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The Safer Way to Charge Your Phone at Night

By on July 27, 2015 in 3D printing, cable management, design, furniture, gadgets, general geekery, gifts, kickstarter, more nerd than geek
Behold! The old-school cupholder.

Behold! The old-school cupholder.

For you whippersnappers that are too young to remember, there was a time in which there were zero cars that came with cup holders. Seriously. Even a Rolls Royce didn’t have cupholders. Not kidding. You had to make a special trip to a convenience store (back then, the only one I knew of was 7-11) to buy a plastic cup holder that would hook between your car door window and the interior paneling. These are still made for use in older, vintage cars, albeit you just don’t see them much nowadays.

The folks at ArmsReach Industries have created an adaptation of the old school cupholder with their NightHolster campaign on Kickstarter.

The NightHolster hitches to your bed frame and holds not only your drink, but also reading glasses, your Kindle and your smartphone. There’s a notch to allow the charging cables to pass through without kinking – and also keeps your phone from flying across the room if you grope for it in a stupor as you awake. No more items sliding off the bedside table with this low-tech gizmo that’s currently prototyped in high tech 3D printing.

You can follow ArmsReach on Instagram, Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and their website.

holster

Finally – a Star Trek Communicator You Can Use – the Trekkie’s Ultimate Speaker Phone

By on July 24, 2015 in blinking lights, bluetooth, gadgets, general geekery, more nerd than geek, shiny metal objects, shut up and take my money!, star trek
Shut up and take my money!

Shut up and take my money!

For those of you who are Harry Potter fans, or even those who are not (I’m fairly indifferent myself – enjoyed the movies, never read the book, liked the SFX, that’s about it), you may have seen or heard about the Magic Wand Universal Remote Control. A well balanced (in the hand, anyway), stunning replica of a magic wand from Harry Potter lore that actually has 13 ‘magical’ functions in regards to using it as a remote. Well, that same folks, The Wand Company, are about to release their latest invention, a true-to-life Star Trek communicator. This is the old series style that Cpt. Jim Kirk used, not the insignia type used by Picard. Flip up screen foil, moving moire. The whole kit-and-kaboodle. The thing you’ve always wanted… but not some dorky toy that makes you look like you still live in mom’s basement. No – this thing works. Sadly, you cannot reach Scotty to beam you up for about 100 years or so… and First Contact with an alien race (the Vulcans for you non-Trekkers) doesn’t even happen until Apr. 4, 2063. BUT – you can use it as a bluetooth speaker for your phone. Your convo will not be private, but it will be the coolest looking phone call anyone will ever see you have. EVER.

If you are a Trekkie and you go to a Star Trek convention or Comicon, you might actually be morally obligated to carry one of these. Just sayin'. :)

If you are a Trekkie and you go to a Star Trek convention or Comicon, you might actually be morally obligated to carry one of these. Just sayin’. 🙂

com4The Wand Company has worked every detail of this true-to-size communicator to give Trekkies the ultimate geek-out experience with a gadget. The central moire disc actually spins while in use and the USB charged gadget will pair with your iPhone or other smart phone so you can use it just like any other bluetooth headset – it’s just that this is more of a handset. Just take a step back, my fellow geeks and think about how much Star Trek has influenced today’s culture. It is truly hard to believe that we are rapidly approaching Star Trek‘s 50th anniversary. No – that is not a typo. We are really that old. I mean Star Trek is really that old. I’m personally not that old (yet), but I’m gaining on them at FTL.

Just look at that picture above and tell me you do not want to secretly lick your screen. It looks like it’s better quality than what Captain James Tiberius Kirk got to use. And he was the captain of a starship! You just pretend to be the captain of a starship! It’s so classy looking, I can actually see this sitting on an executive’s desk. Even the charging base is stunning.

You can learn more about the Bluetooth Star Trek Communicator at The Wand Company’s website, their Facebook page and on Twitter.