Timex Expedition WS4 can't wait to get you outdoors

Timex has always had a thing for pumping out wristwatches that cater to argonauts, and it's doing so yet again with the totally bodacious Expedition WS4. Aside from telling time and withstanding minor bumps, bangs and raindrops, the piece also features an altimeter, barometer, thermometer, chronograph, alarm and compass. It'll also resist water intrusion for up to 50 meters, get lit via Indiglo and arrive in a variety of hues to match your favorite day pack. Word on the street has it that the watch will be widely available in May for around two bills, and while it won't play back MP4 files, it can be worn in public without embarrassment.


[Via: Boing Boing ]

@kickbee OMG, this Twitter / baby-tracking hack is so great. Keep on kicking mommy! http://snipr.com/81153

Everything goes down on Twitter these days, (memes happen, people, memes!) and now there's another kid on the scene, literally. Lil' @kickbee is hitting us from the womb, thanks to his / her nerdy father. Kickbee Sr. wrapped his expecting wife's belly with some piezo sensors to detect baby kicks, with an Arduino Mini transmitting the info via Bluetooth to a MacBook Pro, which beams the info on up to Twitter, making him officially the dorkiest dad since Wayne Szalinski. Next step for this little A-lister? Gadget blogging.

[Via: Gadget Review ]

Thanko's latest MP4 watch boasts 1.8-inch display, video camera

Thanko's last MP4 watch was, um, less than gorgeous, but this one can actually be worn in public without automatic public humiliation. Sure, it's still a bit stocky, but we're confident that fashion-forward nerds could still pull it off. In between the two (p)leather straps sits a 1.8-inch 160 x 128 resolution color display, a multimedia player with MP3 / WMA / AVI / JPEG support and a video camera capable of logging VGA-quality clips. You'll also find a mini-USB port and an internal speaker, and there's 4GB of internal memory to go along with about 3.5-hours of music playback time. All yours (if you live in Japan) for ?14,800 ($163).

[Via: AkihabaraNews ]

Wearable toy piano makes music, looks good doing it

Now here's a concept. A musical shirt with enough transistors to make even the hardest of hardcore nerd blush, and a long-sleeve garment fashionable enough to make even the world-class design student stop and admire. Mashed into one. The Musical toy piano shirt is that very piece, which was constructed to wow onlookers at the Electronic Textile workshop held this month in Switzerland. Packing removable batteries, speakers and circuitry, the shirt enables the wearer to emit eight different notes from Do to Do, and we hear there's nothing quite as cute as playing a song on yourself. See what we mean in the vid hosted just after the break.



[Via: Coolest-Gadgets ]

NTT says one of these days these boots are gonna charge your gadgets

Phone battery constantly dying as you wander from place to place, moving in and out of reception and leaving it straining to find a signal? You aren't alone, and if you're not the sort to wear a conductive dress (in public, at least) you may want to keep an eye out for some new kicks in the works from NTT. Their soles are filled with water, displaced as the wearer walks and forced through a tiny turbine. Current prototypes generate 1.2 watts of electricity, enough to power your iPod as you strut, but by the time these things hit production in 2010 the hope is to more than double that to 3 watts so that you can charge up your mobile, too. Sounds fantastic, but we're a little unsure about running wires down our pants to get that juice where we need it.
[Via: Engadget ]

The Vertical Bed -- never coming to an IKEA near you

For those of you who like to lay in bed watching TV, but always manage to get a sore neck, Jamie O'Shea from the "Office for the development of Substitute Materials" has devised a solution: the Vertical Bed. Supported by a harness that is craftily secured under the clothing, nappers can catch up on beauty rest at any subway stop or back alley of their choosing. As an added bonus the wearer can be made impervious to the effects of the outside world through the use of noise canceling headphones and mirrored glasses, and the ensemble comes with an umbrella for convenient use in a variety of weather conditions. The only thing it appears to be missing from this performance art project is an anti-pick-pocketing force field -- undoubtedly in the works. More photos after the break.

[Via: we make money not art ]

Charmed by Philips' latest Active Crystals USB drives

Ok, you've really gone and put us in a twist this time Philips. The he-man editors of Engadget haven't exactly been wooed by Philips' lineup of Active Crystals USB drives slathered in Swarovski excess. Then again, we're not their target audience. Somehow though, these new 2GB Happy Laura and Naughty Raymond USB drive robots make us want to titter coyly with demure fingertips pressed lightly to our pouty mouths. But for €150 (about $223), we won't.

[Via: Engadget ]

Clove 2 typing glove leaves your other hand free for high fives

Have no fear, we're always on the hunt for new and innovative ways to boost your bombdigity quotient, and we've really found just the thing this time around. The Clove 2 interfaces with your computer over Bluetooth, and through a strange set of tapping gestures (that sort of remind us of that one Daft Punk video), allows you to type one-handed, sans keyboard. Seems like quite the learning curve, but we're sure it's totally worth it in the end. Four words per minute never looked so good. Video is after the break.

[Via: Hack a Day ]

FreeHand puts a pocket on your wrist, L on your forehead

This day and age, there's really no excuse to have too little room in your average pair of cargo shorts for all the gadgets needed in a day. Convergence and shrinking PCBs have left us with do-it-all handhelds that can fit in the rear pockets of size 2 jeans on a size 4 gal, so really, you have exactly zero reasons to actually buy that abomination pictured above. If you must know, the FreeHand is a wearable neoprene pocket that keeps your keys, flash drives, RSA token and chump change within easy reach, and if you're lucky, you may be able to convince the boss it's being worn to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome. Folks who haven't listened to a word we just said can ignite a Jackson right now -- or spend $19.95 on this, same difference.

[Via: Coolest-Gadgets ]

Pilot View FPV 2400 places you within remote-controlled vehicles

It's a tough call -- are you willing to get your eyeballs within the driver's seat of your remote-controlled vehicle, even if it means looking freakishly like Geordi La Forge? If you've thrown aside your pride and confidently answered "yes," you should certainly have a gander at the Pilot View FPV 2400. Designed for use in radio-controlled aircraft and cars, the system places a wireless camera in the cockpit and then beams back live first-person footage to those horrifically unsightly goggles you see consuming the face of that poor gal above. In all seriousness, we'd bet the experience is fairly novel, if not a touch fantastic, but we could probably think of more enthralling ways to spend $549 if we were really pressed.
[Via: Engadget ]

Nike Dunks + WiFi = A Step in the Right Direction

Get ready to pay atelier sneaker prices for these babies, because designer MSTRPLN (not to be confused with MSTRKRFT) and Ubiq (not to be confused with Ubiquio) teamed up to produce some straight black Nike Dunks with built-in WiFi detection. It's called A Step in the Right Direction, and we might actually agree.

[Thanks, JideOsan]
[Via: Engadget ]

RallyPoint Handwear Computer Input Device gives soldiers a hand

The last thing you want to do in a combat situation is bust out a keyboard and mouse and start clicking away just to send some simple commands via your embedded computer. Now RallyPoint, a Cambridge, MA-based startup, is building a new computer interface glove so that soldiers can operate their computers in the field without taking their hands off their gun. The Handwear Computer Input Device (HCID) has a whole mess of sensors built-in, including push-button sensors in the pinky, fourth finger and index, finger, a mouse-like sensor in the index finger and a trio of accelerometers on the back of the hand. HCID plugs in via USB, and can be used to activate radio, navigate electronic maps and send commands. No word on when HCID is going to be deployed, but despite its bulky looks it seems to be pretty much field ready.
[Via: Engadget ]

Oregon Scientific intros weather-forecasting Meteo watch

Oregon Scientific managed to pique our interest with its proximity-sensing Weather In Motion clock, and it now looks like it's got the solution for anyone that wishes they could take it with 'em wherever they go, with the company set to release its new Meteo weather forecasting watch. While the need for a proximity sensor is obviously eliminated this time around, the watch apparently boasts the same weather information in icon-form as its desk-based companion, along with your usual time-telling, stop watch and alarm features. Look for this one to set you back ?40 (or about $80) when it's released next month.



[Via: BIOS ]

Linde Werdelin intros "Sea Instrument" dive computer

Sure, there's plenty of basic dive computers out there, but if you really want to get some attention under the sea, you may want to consider something like Linde Wrdelin's new "Sea Instrument," which can even be had in a special 18K yellow gold edition if you want to go all out. Whether you opt for that or the basic anodized aluminum model, however, you'll get the same transflective color display and sapphire crystal glass cover designed to be readable underwater, along with a 3-axis compass and access to all the vital information you'll need including depth, dive time, decompression stops, and temperature, to name a few, not to mention a rechargeable battery that promises to deliver 28 hours of continuous use. Of course, all that doesn't exactly come cheap, with the aluminum version alone running €2,100 (or about $3,000). Oh, and you'll also need a Linde Werdelin Biformeter watch to attach it to, which is only a few grand more.



[Via: Luxist ]

SPOT watches, R.I.P.: 2004 - 2008

After a long, painful, nearly anonymous ride on the wrists of a select few uber-geeks, Microsoft's finally throwing in the towel on one of its longstanding pet projects: the SPOT watch. Those who've followed the technology recently (you know who you are) already know that the writing's been on the wall for some time; the applications and content available to the watches haven't been updated in ages, and indeed, the entire line of Abacus Smart Watch 2006 models -- the only type being recently offered -- has been discontinued and out of stock for a few months. For what it's worth, MSN Direct's program manager is quick to note that the underlying technology most certainly isn't going away; quite the contrary, in fact, with compatible Garmin and Windows Mobile products still going strong. Though your impetus may have been misguided and your fate sealed from the moment you hit the market, dearest wristwatches, your overwhelming nerdiness will be sorely missed. Oh, and for those of you who plan on sporting your piece of Microsoft history to the very bitter end, take some comfort in knowing that existing content types will continue to be delivered, at least.
[Via: Engadget ]

Keyboard-infused pants make it okay to grab your crotch

Okay, so maybe tapping that space bar repeatedly in mixed company wouldn't be entirely appropriate, but if you've actually managed to mingle with fellow civilians while rocking these, they aren't likely to mind. Dreamed up and designed by Erik De Nijs, these uber-geeky pants boast a built-in keyboard that's apparently Bluetooth-enabled. Beyond that, you'll also find sewn in speakers, a pocket made especially for travel mice of all flavors and a "joystick controller" strategically located just behind the front zipper (saywha?). Hate all you like, we just penned this very post on a pair of these bad boys. Only kidding.

[Thanks, Hans]
[Via: Engadget ]