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Gyroscope + Shiny Metal Top = Shiny Metal Object Noms

gyro

gyrobase

Look at that lovely machined base this thing rests in. LOOK AT IT! Looks reminiscent of a Star Wars-esque ship in orbit around the Death Star or something.

This. I had to spend money on it. Another thing I don’t “need” but wanted the minute I laid eyes on it… beautifully machined and balanced metal top (but wait, you already have one of those!) that is blended with a gyroscope (nope – ain’t got one of those – yet!) that is as hypnotic as it is lovely.  The gyro is pull-started by a kevlar string, from which it can also be suspended for further hypnotic gazes as it segues from gravitational forces to more centrifugal ones. In addition to the precision bearings and the balanced top that can be spun upside down or right side up, it also has a yummy metal base from which it can perch and gaze back at you on your desk as you slave away on code. All the while, the top awaits playtime like a faithful dog that never sheds.

Made of aircraft-quality aluminum, the top boasts a hefty size of 3″ high. This is big-boy-pants territory in top world, people!

Dubbed “Spin” by maker Simplistyk, the yummy top is available at half it’s MSRP for those who back it on Kickstarter. You can follow them on Facebook or on their website. As of this blog post, there are 12 days to on this Kickstarter project, after which prices will double, per the maker of the product.

Holy Yoda Holograms, Batman! Star Wars Holographic Chess Just Left the Millennium Falcon and Can Be in Your House. For realz!

yodahologram

If you’ve got it in a digital format, you can see it in a 3D holographic experience in your home with the Holus. Your coolness factor will go up by 12 parsecs.

For my readers that are my real life friends I’ve known for years – you’ve heard me joke about wanting the next gizmo to come out with Yoda Holograms. The Holus, a Kickstarter campaign from Vancouver, Canada, is bringing us closer to the magic of 1977, when kids and grown-ups around the world saw R2-D2 beating Chewbacca at holographic chess… and of course, Princess Leia beaming out of R2 as a hologram – all of it was beyond magical, and we were just seeing it in 2D the whole time. This campaign ends in a week and has well exceeded its funding goal.

Their goal is not just to deliver a hologram that says, “This is our most desperate hour. Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope!” No – their goal is reflected in their company name – to humanize technology. There are a ton of applications for this technology, especially in education. Kids are already blitzed by their iPads and other flickering gizmos. They can experience not just games in 3D, but perhaps a walk through of Auschwitz or a jungle in India, where their environment looks like environments do in real life – in 3D, and without glasses or headaches after the show.

Check out the video below for an insight on how other tech geeks at CES enjoyed engaging with this in person.

You can follow Humanizing Technology on Facebook, Twitter. and their website.

That smiling person on the other side of the 3D action could be you!

That smiling person on the other side of the 3D action could be you!