Gizmodo Australia » summer

10 Gadgets That Make Nerds Comfortable On A Beach

Sean Fallon — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 20:00:00 +0000

In most cases, a nerd standing on a beach is like the Queen of England standing on stage at a strip club. It just isn’t right. However, these 10 gadgets can make you feel more at home.

I don’t think I need to explain the merits of a drivable beer cooler to anyone—much less nerds used to a sedentary lifestyle. The Cruzin’ Cooler can hit speeds of 24kph with a payload of 24 350ml cans on board. [Cruzin' Cooler via Link]

The Grinch Winch features a tow rope and a 7HP engine that will hurl you head on into the surf. [Distortionboarding via Link]

I would hope that you are smart enough to generously apply SPF 50 sunscreen to that pasty body of yours, but you still might need a backup to prevent overexposure to the sun. The Minox Suntimer monitors UV rays and sounds an alarm when it thinks you’ve had enough. [Optix Planet and Link]

For the gadget fanatic, it’s not enough to merely admire the underwater landscape, it must be recorded. Thanko’s underwater video camera (25fps QVGA) is small enough to mount on a pair of goggles. [Link]

Of course you brought your laptop to the beach. As sad as that is, the LapDome was tailor made for people like you. Basically, it’s a mini tent for your laptop that protects it from the elements while shielding the screen from from that unfamiliar fiery orb in the sky. [LapDome via Link]

When a simple beach chair just won’t do, the Astone inflatable massage chair will provide a more luxurious solution. In addition to the vibrating massage pads, the chair also features a dock for your iPod, speakers and a handy remote control. [Axpertz via Link]

In keeping with your nerdy sensibilities, this unique surfboard was designed by Thomas Meyerhoffer—a guy that spent time working at Apple and was a driving force behind the design of Chumby. [Myerhoffer via Link]

If you are going to be out in the sun, you are going to need a pair of sunglasses. This Calvin Klein model look a bit Blues Brothers, but it does feature 4GB of storage. [Link]

It’s a shark! It’s a submarine! No, it’s some fat guy wearing a Superman wetsuit. If you can imagine it, the guys at Wetwear Custom Wetsuits can make it. [Wetwear]

When you are a guy and you have a set of man jugs like this, do us all a favour and wear a man bra with a t-shirt over it. [Link]

Zubbles Are World’s First Stainless Coloured Bubbles

Jesus Diaz — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 21:00:00 +0000

Scientists believe that bubbles are made of sugar, spice, and everything nice. Or maybe they don’t, but I do. These are called Zubbles, and they are the world’s first stainless colour bubbles. Summer blowin’ on the beach, here I come.

Zubbles were invented in 2005, but they were in commercial limbo until now. Kids and adults can now buy two bottles for $US15 at the Zubble web site.

Bubbles are the most popular toy on Earth—even bigger than Lego—with 200 million bottles sold annually. Stainless coloured bubbles where believed to be chemically impossible, but inventor Tim Kehoe spent 15 years and $US3 million making his daydream a reality. Hopefully, they will work out for him, because I like zubbles. I like plain bubbles too. And I love Bubble Toes:

[Zubbles via Discovery via Infoaddict—Thanks Rosa!]

Electric Massage Chair For Your Pool: What Could Go Wrong?

Sean Fallon — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:40:00 +0000

What better way to usher in the summer by rolling the dice with a floating lounger with a built-in iPod dock, speakers anda 3-mode massage function?

Indeed. Throw some alcohol into the mix here and you have a perfect storm of potential disasters—everything from electrocution to ruining a perfectly good iPod. Still, if you are willing to take the risk, the iPod Stereo Pool Oasis can be had for $US200. [Hammacher via Coolest Gadgets via DVICE]

Powerbrella to Bridge the Gap Between Nerds and Sunlight

Dan Nosowitz — Wed, 27 May 2009 04:50:00 +0000

Now that it’s summer, us cold-weather-city types want to spend every possible waking moment outdoors. But that separation from technology is sometimes just too hard to bear, which is where the Powerbrella comes in. Its solar panels keep your gadgets charged and ready to go.

The recyclable Powerbrella features solar panels on the top of the umbrella and outlets on the bottom to gather that beautiful sun and use it to power your gear. We’re not really sure how much juice it could really provide, but it should definitely be enough to power, say, an iPod speaker dock. It’s a great idea and one we’d totally use. [via Treehugger]

Star Wars Pool Inflatables Impress Princess Leia (Bikini Version)

Mark Wilson — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 14:30:00 +0000

Your Stormtrooper getup works great for conventions with A/C, but what do you do in the dead of summer? That plastic doesn’t breathe. Luckily, Jakks Pacific is releasing a large line of Star Wars inflatables.

The X-wing (pictured here) is not only 5-feet long; it includes a water cannon. Couple that aqua weaponry with a few “pew pew” noises and you’ve got yourself a second degree sunburn before anyone even pulls out the Death Star beach ball.

Seriously, I’m calling a do-over to my childhood. But I can wait until Power Wheels releases a line of working mini Tie Fighters. [StarWars via OhGizmo!]

What Do You Think She’s Listening To?

Brian Lam — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 02:40:11 +0000

I think she’s going to get some sand stuck in that thing.

An iPod colour hangs tenuously from a bikini. That model is from 2004, right before the shuffle was released in 2005, and years before the last and current gen’s clip. [SnowKing24]

Dual Purpose Surfster Double Black Great For Sledding Down Hills and Into the Hospital

Jack Loftus — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 20:00:00 +0000

While I think the Surfster Double Black looks like a head-on date with a tree waiting to happen, it does have one redeeming quality. That quality being it conveniently doubles as a two-person body board.

That means once you get out of the hospital and finish your rehabilitation in the late spring, this thing will be inflated and all ready to go for summer at the lake house. Where, presumably, you’ll experience yet another head injury or concussion. At which point, you’ll recover and this thing will be ready for, well, you get the idea. $US80 and whatever your ER co-pay might be and this is yours.

If the open face design is keeping you from screaming down the slopes on one of these things, then perhaps the slightly less deadly Slegoon is more to you liking. [Cheetah Trading via Coolest Gadgets]

What Gadgets Will You Be Playing With This Christmas?

Nick Broughall — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 05:00:39 +0000

So it’s the Friday before Christmas. Many of you will be beginning your holiday break with a quiet beer or two this afternoon. But if any of you are stuck with the task of working through the Xmas break, know that Giz AU will be right there with you, even if we do slow down a little bit between Xmas and New Years.

To kill off the last few hours of Friday afternoon, we want you to tell us exactly what gadgets you’re planning on playing with over your Christmas break. Are you planning an Xbox marathon? A session with PS Home (which should only keep you busy for about an hour, if you’re lucky)? A new phone? A new TV? Tell us what gadgets will keep you busy over the next couple of weeks.
I’ve got a pile of stuff that I’ve been meaning to get around to looking at. There’s an iPhone case/charger, another iPhone charger, an Apple TV, a Dosh Wallet, another portable iPhone charger, The Xperia X1, another Windows Mobile phone I can’t talk about, an Epson projector, a mosquito clicker, a few Xbox, PS3, PSP and DS games that I haven’t yet had the chance to play (and likely won’t get through), and more stuff than I can really think of off the top of my head. Plus, I’m hoping Santa will bring me a heap of new Blu-ray films to keep me entertained for a while.

At least I’ll be busy.

What about you guys?

The Mosquito Click Apparently Stops Mozzie Bites From Itching

Nick Broughall — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 00:00:21 +0000

I won’t lie to you – I’m sceptical about this as a real solution to the maddening itch of a mosquito bite. Just reading the explanation of how it works on their website sets off the fire alarm in my mind:

It functions with piezoelectricity ie. the generation of electric currents by the compression or expansion of quartz and similar crystalline substances. Mosquito-Click therefore does not need a battery to function and its small and practical size makes it convenient to carry along anywhere!

However, for the sake of science, I’m prepared to guinea-pig myself to the cause of testing this out for real. I’ve requested a review unit, and when it arrives, I’ll subject myself to multiple mosquito bites at my local duck pond for the opportunity to review this $20 gadget for you, the humble Gizmodian. If it works, I’ll thoroughly recommend its purchase for the coming Summer season. If not, we’ll christen it snake oil and never speak of it again…

[Mosquito Click]

AirKick Human Catapult Sends Your Flailing Body 8 Metres Into the Air

Adam Frucci — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 14:45:00 +0000

We’ve seen before how fun getting launched in the air over a body of water can be. Now we have another way to do it: the AirKick Human Water Catapult.

Powered by air and water, the AirKick launches people about 8 metres in the air and into either a pool or a foam pit. Creator Jochen Schweizer explains it thusly:

It propels participants through the air in a pre-calculated parabolic trajectory using a special combination of air pressure and water recoil technology. Approximately 60 Litres of water are then forced through a rocket nozzle under the seat. This pressurised water (8 to 10 bar of air pressure) propels the participant 8 metres though the air for a cool and refreshing splash down in a swimming pool.

It’s available to rent in Germany. There are no words to describe how badly I want to use this thing. Sigh. [AirKick via Baller House]