HzO’s WaterBlock technology protects all kinds of valuable electronics from humidity, rain, and even total water submersion. Unlike bulky waterproof cases, this invisible coating protects delicate circuitry at a molecular level, from the inside out – no need to worry about plugging up charging ports or headphone jacks.

The waterproof coating is created by placing any device or material into a vacuum chamber and replacing the typical atmospheric gases with an organic gas that builds up a solid thin film through a secret magical proprietary process.

In addition to consumer applications, HzO is also working with the makers of industrial equipment, theme park rides, underwater surveillance equipment, emergency communications equipment, and other critical systems that cannot afford to go down because they happen to get a little wet.

The lifetime of the coating does depend on the environment but, HzO says their product is stable and will generally outlast most devices.

Although coated gadgets have continued to run for hours underwater, WaterBlock was specifically designed to protect against accidental immersion. This means pouring rain, falling into a pool, or dropping into a fish tank – good. Putting your iPhone through the washing machine – bad.

Unfortunately, as of today there is no obvious way for consumers to send HzO a device for coating, even though the website FAQ states “We also can perform coatings applications on-site at our own production facility for lower volume requirements.”

Until that day glorious day comes, you’ll have to just settle for a medium-tech, DRY-ALL emergency kit or the very low-tech, bowl of rice and prayer.

The self described geniuses at Chaotic Moon have taken a motorized longboard and put it on geek steroids with a Xbox Kinect, Samsung Windows 8 tablet, phidget interface module, and all terrain tires – because they can.

The aptly named “Board of Awesomeness” utilizes video and speech recognition along with location and accelerometer data to allow riders complete control of the board without the aid of any other controllers (and while only looking mildly crazy).

Input captured by the Kinect is fed into the on-board Windows 8 tablet which controls the motors three speed settings and ultimately, the off switch. Simply push your hands forward to speed up and pull them back to slow down.

Although there might be easier ways to control a beastly all terrain longboard at 32mph… who am I, as a creator of no board of any kind, to criticize the makers of the “Board of Awesomeness?”

[via SlashGear]

Warning: this looks extraordinarily dangerous and possibly deadly.

Now if that label does not get consumers to flock to the newest invention from Zapata Racing, nothing will. For 4900 Euros, or $6500 US dollars, a FlyBoard can be attained and, with it, a water-based jetpack flying experience.

The sport of wakeboarding has often dazzled spectators with displays of human beings soaring in Superman-like poses above the water for mere seconds before gravity takes them down

The FlyBoard extends the flying ability a bit longer by harnessing the power of a hundred plus horsepower jet ski (or PWC) motor. The human is strapped onto the board and a suit that links them to the FlyBoard system. The unit taps into the water that flows fiercely through the PWC and diverts it into tubes that are attached to the wakeboard-like device on the rider’s feet. Video after the jump…

Depending on whether or not the free flyer dishes out an additional 900 Euro determines if the possibly suicidal pilot can control the acceleration from the board, or (if they neglected the option) are dependent on the PWC driver to speed up the flight.

The rider can launch upwards of thirty feet due to the platform’s hose and hydrojet thrusting water downward as though the jet ski accessory was a rocket being launched.

The moves of the FlyBoard veteran are impressive. The rider graces along the water’s surface horizontally and hoists themselves straight up into the air vertically, like the James Bond jetpack of legend.

This looks perilously fun.

This retro beach cruiser style bike sports a super efficient polished 125cc four-stroke motor capable of of taking riders a cool 150 miles, in style, with one tank of gas. This 176lb work of art also features fuel injection, a four speed transmission, belt drive, and LED lights.

Although beautiful, the general simplicity of the design and four-stroke engine means the Y125 will be cheap to both run and maintain. That practicality accompanied by the undeniable style makes it easy to see a future where mass adoption of this green two wheeler could be a real possibility.

Unfortunately, this is all still a conceptual dream but, I can’t imagine anything but positive feedback driving something Y125-like into a not too distant Christmasey future.

[via motorcycle.com]

The Teaguedino is a development board loaded with the Teensy++ USB Development board plugged right into their custom breadboard which supplies you with 5 inputs and 5 outputs. They also supply you with an array of knobs, buttons, servos, speakers and lights that will literally just snap onto the board. Along with this, The Teaguedino team give you a copy of their open source software which makes the whole learning part easier. It offers up what looks to be a nice GUI with fairly simple to use Drag and Drop features. The idea is to get as many people as possible, spanning all ages, into development for embedded electronics and as all the components just snap into place (No soldering required) this can guarantee adoption.

The great thing is that once you have experimented with the board and grasped the basics – there is nothing stopping you from taking off the Teensy++ board, grabbing a soldering gun and getting down to some hardcore programming.

I can’t wait to see how the community behind The Teaguedino grows and if its anything like the Arduino community, it will be full of life for time to come. We need to get these into school classrooms as soon as possible and get kids programming ASAP and I think that within the educational system is a place where these great open source projects can grow.

Teaguedino has only recently raised funds on Kickstarter so the kits are not readily available yet, but keep an eye on their website for details on development. In the meantime, here is a video to whet your appetite on the possibilities.

The basis of this conclusion is not from first hand experience. I have not even seen Google Wallet in action yet. What I do know is that the ubiquity of smart phones, and how they have become a central hub for content in our daily lives has created a perfect recipe to combine the two things many people have on them at all times.

A little over a year ago, I started seeing this new iPhone case which contained a slot in the back to store your credit cards. Many of my friends eliminated the need for their wallet because they simply slid their credit cards into the little slot, thus consolidating down to just one item. NFC essentially takes that concept even further, and turns  everything digital into just one device.

Japan adopted this technology years ago, and they use it for train passes, and even to pay for snacks at vending machines. The progression of NFC over to North America has been quite slow, but Google has really taken the helm here and is ready to get Google Wallet out on all of their future Android phones. Visa has also jumped onboard the NFC train with their new Visa Wallet product.

I think the tipping point for NFC payment technology will be when Apple includes it in the iPhone. With the soon-to-be-announced next generation iPhone, we just might see a NFC chip embedded inside. If not, I think there is still great momentum in the space, and Apple is sure to jump onboard at some point.

Until then, we will keep using the archaic wallet, but know that you soon just might be waving your cell phone to pay for that bag of Cheetos instead.

This incredibly small and light lantern’s base fits in the palm of the hand, yet provides enormously bright LED-powered light while it deters insects for a 15 x 15 foot radius.

Does it work?  Well, yes it does!

This lantern is small, gives off a good amount of light on my deck but is not overbearing and is the best thing that I have ever witnessed for getting rid of the vampire-sickly mosquitoes and their friends.

I spend a great deal of time outside, especially in the summer months, and because I live on an island there are myriad armies of bugs constantly trying to harass or worse (drink blood).

Off, Tiki torches and fires might slow the onslaught, but the ThermaCELL lantern is the only truly effective means to keep away the bad guys.  The company even boasts that the Outdoor Lantern keeps at least ninety-eight percent of the awful mosquitoes, black flies and no-see-ums (which I have no idea what those are) at bay.

The ThermaCELL Mosquito Repelling Outdoor Lantern has even been used by the US Army to drive away the nightmare-ish flesh-eating (or at least annoying) desert bugs.

The Outdoor Lantern has a European inspired design that resembles the old oil lanterns with a hunter-green casing and handle.  The frosted-globe walls give off a pleasant light, while the repellant mats provide for hours of outdoor partying whether you’re on a deck, a boat or camping.

This little gadget works by mixing a tiny butane cartridge (that is included) with a repellant mat (also included) that fits snugly on the top of the lantern.  AA Batteries allow for the LED lights to brighten up the night, but the repellant function does not require them to be in there.

Once the butane is in place, the Outdoor Lantern is set to give off an invisible bug deterrent that lasts for twelve hours (per cartridge)!

These Outdoor Lanterns from ThermaCELL can be found at Amazon.com, Bass Pro Shops and in most outdoor equipment stores for anywhere from twenty to thirty bucks, and believe me it is worth every penny!

Is the skinny 2×3 inch polymer “nohands” handy?  Well, in a manner of speaking, yes, yes it is.

The rubbery feel to “nohands” reminds one of silly putty, except that this little rectangle can bond to any smooth surface or electronic device with just a twist, and it leaves behind no residue or marks of any kind.

So take that remote control that almost always goes missing in action because it is perennially kicked under the couch by your girlfriend, and dial back the string of obscenities that would have been shouted in exasperation, because the “nohands” can stick the back of that channel changer right to the side of the TV!

“nohands” is easily activated or reactivated with soapy water and then by pushing and twisting it sticks to many smooth surfaces, such as walls, cell phones, remotes and glass.

The sticking power is amazing, because if “nohands” sticks, it does not budge!  I tried the gadget and can report that not all dashboards will work with “nohands”, as my Camaro’s bumpy one did not stick, but anyone with a smooth plastic spot in the car or dashboard can easily display their iPod or iPhone for music and navigation without having to hold up their devices.

The dark royal blue (royal like the Brits), hot (god help me) pink and tasty lime green “nohands” can be purchased worldwide at their online store (nohands.co.uk) for 11.50 (in Pounds) or about $18.59 (American).  Now stick it!

A new instrument, the Kitara is a digital stringless guitar, which includes a touch screen and an interface that allows the player more control over sound. That’s right, no more plucking or calluses. Instead, the sleek 24-fret neck contains buttons for each note one would normally find on an electric guitar. When playing, press the button for the desired note with your left hand and use your right on the touch screen to manage the sound and digital effects like distortion, modulation, and delay.

This ability is what sets the Kitara apart from standard electric guitars. There’s no need to worry about re-adjusting sound effects with foot pedals when your hands are busy doing other things. Cool, right?

Yes, but it is pricy. The Kitara (available in black) and the Limited Edition (in white) can be pre-ordered before its release in April for $849.00 and $2,899.00 respectively. However, any decent guitar is going to cost a pretty penny, but how many people can say that theirs has a polyphonic synthesizer?

There is, though, the obvious catch – you have to know how to play guitar, and even those who do know are going to have to adjust to the Kitara. But if you’ve ever wanted to learn, here is your perfect, stylish, and freaking cool excuse!

The world famous Annoy-a-tron got a festive makeover just in time for the Holiday season, so now you can give that special unsuspecting someone a gift that will keep on giving. The TannenBomb looks like an innocent thoughtful Christmas tree ornament but, when your loved one hangs it on the tree, a switch is triggered that causes it to come alive with the sounds of beeps, mosquitoes, crickets, and elf giggles at totally random intervals.

With it’s festive stealth box this Trojan Horse is sure to find it’s way right to the Christmas tree and with it’s pressure sensor switch, it will be sure to have plenty of juice left for many years to come. Grab a TannenBomb prank Christmas tree ornament and drive anyone on your list crazy for under $12.