Smart eyewear is back in fashion, especially thanks to Apple finally announcing the Vision Pro. Although its design pretty much still falls under the “headset” category, the ultimate goal of many of these wearables is to be as inconspicuous are regular spectacles or sunglasses as possible. Easier said than done, of course, especially when you need to cram plenty of electronics in such a small space. There are advancements in that area, of course, to the point that it might be possible to fit almost all the necessary components on or near the lenses. That kind of technology will open the doors to a wider variety of wearable designs, including one where you can swap frames to be as sporty or as classy as you need your mixed reality eyewear to be.
Designers: Ben Melvin, Jo Barnard, Dan Lloyd, Harry Mason (Morrama)
There are actually quite a number of designs for smart eyewear, depending on how complicated they need to be. Some include more complex computers and the usual design involves a headband that you wear around your head. Others simply mirror the screen from your phone or computer, so they can just look like overgrown sunglasses. But if you can settle for something even simpler, you might be able to condense everything around the lenses so that the frame is really just a frame, one that you can even replace more easily than with prescription glasses.
Morrama Issé is a concept for mixed reality eyewear that takes advantage of such a design by making the lenses and the frame two connected but independent pieces. The lenses are not your average pair and look more like sports visors. The rim of the visor is quite thick which is where all the electronics will be hidden. In other words, the visor can function on its own without the frame, and the frame only provides the structure that will hold the visor up on the wearer’s face.
This means that the frames are interchangeable, letting the wearer choose the style of the frame depending on where they want to wear the mixed reality goggles. These can be rugged or elegant, at least as elegant as possible considering the rather thick frame required to support the weight of the visor part. More importantly, however, the frames can be made using more sustainable and recyclable materials since this part usually has a shorter lifespan.
The Morrama Issé design is no Minority Report or Tony Stark, and you will still look conspicuous if you will be wearing such eyewear in public. Of course, the primary use case for the wearable will be for fitness, where the goggles will provide the relevant biometrics and information that people need when training or exercising. It’s pretty much the same data that your smartwatch would show, except it will always be within your field of vision. Not everyone will find the aesthetic that pleasing, but Issé’s innovation is how it is able to envision a more modular approach to designing mixed reality eyewear, especially with a bent towards more sustainable options.
Never before has it been easier to create things at home thanks to 3D printers, but we’ve barely scratched the surface of what’s possible. There are still some limitations, especially for desktop 3D printers, dictated by economies of space or price. Something that may sound as basic as 3D printing objects with multiple colors turns out to be quite a chore because most of these printers are designed to handle a single filament at a time. Most of the time, you’re forced to print different colors as separate pieces and then just assemble them after the fact, a process that takes more time than necessary and is prone to error. You could buy a larger, more expensive multi-filament 3D printer, or you can upgrade your trusty machine with this revolutionary module set that makes printing different colors or materials at the same time easy as pie.
Commercial 3D printers, especially the most popular FDM or Fused Deposit Modeling kind, are designed to be quick, efficient, and easy to use. Given the parts and processes involved, that means limiting the printer head to handle a single filament of material at a time. With this technique, you can only print a single color or use a single type of material for a single pass, switching filaments when you need to print out a different color or material. After that, you have to glue the pieces together, which relies on your own precision and steady hands to achieve the desired design. This has been the status quo for many years now, not unless you buy an actual multi-filament 3D printer, which is bulkier and more expensive, especially if you already have a working 3D printer or two.
ChromaPad – Excels in color, material, speed, and control, unlocking limitless potential.
Fastest Multi-color Printing Experience – ChromaPad pushes the usual boundaries of 3D printing speed for both single and multi-filament projects. Accelerate your print up to 300+ mm/s and get your project in hand three times faster.
ChromaScreen Advanced Klipper Software – Comes with features like the ability to control multiple extruders, a helpful setup wizard, and the ability to manage multiple printers at once.
Manage Multiple Printers Effortlessly – ChromaPad allows you to control up to 8 printers in a single simple panel.
The Co Print ChromaSet is a collection of modules that basically upgrades almost any old 3D printer to be able to handle multiple filaments in one go. It allows you to use the same trusted machine you’ve been working with for years and, with just a few easy-to-install parts, turn it into a multi-color, multi-material 3D printer that is just as easy to use as any other regular 3D printer. Instead of being forced to print multiple parts because they’re made of different materials or colors, you can save time and a lot of work with a single printing pass that can use a variety of colors as well as filaments, including PLA, ABS, PETG, TPU, ASA, Wood, and more.
ChromaHead – Designed to match your needs on multi-filament 3D printing. When combined with ChromaPad or KCM, it minimizes all the issues that can occur such as jamming and clogging.
Filament Cutter for High Quality Prints – Powered by a robust servo motor with up to 20 kg of force and supported by a durable Japanese blade, ChromaHead’s precise filament cutting mechanism achieves a success rate of 99.9% in clean cuts.
Universal Rail Plug System – The design allows you to match with different brands and different models, and solves the compatibility issues.
Supports all the Materials you Need – Different colors, different materials. Your creative journey knows no bounds.
The different pieces of the ChromaSet work together to accomplish this seemingly magical feat. The ChromaHead with the embedded ChromaHotend, for example, attaches easily to almost any 3D printer thanks to its unique rail plug system, making it compatible with different brands, models, and mechanical setups. It is designed to support at most four filaments at the same time, with a special design that minimizes jamming and clogging, as well as employing a Japanese blade for precise and clean filament cuts. The CX-1 Extruder, engineered with Titanium gears, a dual-drive system, and high-torque features, is responsible for pushing those four filaments and can be just as easily installed on any 3D printer.
KCM (Klipper Chroma Module) – For users who already have a Klipper-based 3D printer. KCM gives you all the great features of ChromaPad right out of the box, so you don’t need to buy ChromaPad separately.
ECM (Extended Chroma Module) – Designed to increase your extruder limits. ECM allows you to add up additional 4 extruders into a single output via USB.
If you need more than four filaments, the ECM or Extended Chroma Module adds four more extruders into a single output for a total of eight. You can have up to five of these extruders for a whopping 20 filaments, each carrying a different color or type of material for an even faster workflow. Making all these different parts work together in harmony is the job of the ChromaPad, the world’s first multi-filament 3D printing pad. Running the ChromaScreen software based on Klipper Screen, the tablet gives users unprecedented control not just over multi-filament printing but as many as 8 printers at the same time as well. But if you already have a Klipper-based 3D printer, you can use the Klipper Chroma Module (KCM) instead, delivering the same features without the extra cost.
The Co Print ChromaSet was made in collaboration with major 3D printer brands, ensuring that it will work with almost all 3D printer models in the market. A $349 discounted bundle lets you get the ChromaSet with the Klipper module instead of the tablet, while the $499 set includes the ChromaPad without the KCM. Whichever bundle you choose, the ChromaSet is guaranteed to upgrade your 3D printing experience, allowing you to make magnificent colorful designs in a fraction of the time and with less effort.
The interest in retro products hasn’t disappeared so far, and it has spread to more than just turntables, cameras, and fashion. The pull of nostalgia is especially strong in the gaming industry, giving rise not just to retro consoles but also to retro gaming itself. Gamers of all ages are reliving and discovering the peculiar quirks and joys of old-school titles, some of which are best experienced using the controllers for which they were designed. Commercial arcades might now be endangered species, but that doesn’t mean you can’t recreate that gaming experience at home today. Retro arcades, after all, are also trending, but this innovative modular system goes the extra mile to ensure you’ll be able to enjoy any game on any kind of control not just today but also for the foreseeable future. Better yet, it even supports playing modern games that will become tomorrow’s retro titles.
Here’s a few examples of awesome modern games that can be played on the Polycade Sente
In the years before PC gaming took root, most video games were either played on consoles or arcade cabinets, both of which used controllers with joysticks, D-pads, and buttons. The early age of arcades gave birth to several different controller designs, which may differ from game to game or from cabinet to cabinet. Supporting retro games can be quite a challenge because of that, and supporting both classic and modern titles makes it even more complicated. Polycade Sente, however, has a rather ingenious solution that lets the owner design the mix of hardware components they need, swapping out controllers to support different kinds of playing styles and more than a single player.
Comes with modular controls.
Traditional arcade systems are designed as complete and fixed machines, but that doesn’t have to be the case today. The Polycade Sente, for example, lets you easily swap or add different kinds of controllers and input devices to ensure compatibility with almost all games in existence. Playing a two-player beat ’em up? Use the default single full panel for the best combos. Playing solo and want to have your snack within reach? The center-mounted half panel has inserts for cup holders. Some games require shooting, so Light Gun add-ons can also be installed on each side.
The Polycade Sente’s modularity goes beyond the controller panels. While it’s designed to mount directly to a well, it can also installed on a freestand add-on so you can relocate it anywhere in the room. The very “brain” of the arcade system is also modular and you can choose the kind of computer you need to drive the games you want to play. The standard package includes an already powerful Windows 11 mini PC with an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H with 16GB of DDR4 RAM and a 1TB NVMe SSD. That’s enough to run plenty of games, both the lightweight classics as well as some more recent titles. If you really want the muscle to handle even the likes of Street Fighter VI 6 and Mortal Kombat 1, however, you can go the DIY route and assemble your own PC with all the bells and whistles you can afford. You can even use a console instead if that’s the way you play. Either way, you’re in complete control of how you want to play.
Black Color
White Color
Whichever route you take, you’ll have access to an overwhelming number of games, starting with 24 premium games right off the bat and dozens more from the Polycade Game Store, all of them officially licensed for your guilt-free enjoyment. And since you’re actually running on a Windows PC, you also have access to games from Steam, GOG, itch.io, and more! Still missing some beloved titles from decades past? Polycade’s software includes pre-configured emulators that work seamlessly with the Polycade Sente. It may look like a floating arcade cabinet, but it’s actually a gateway to a gaming dreamland!
The Polycade Sente’s modular design makes it easy to upgrade or replace parts with standard off-the-shelf components. With a powder-coated steel cabinet, it’s also designed to last so that you can keep on playing your beloved titles for years to come. The chassis comes in either white or black colorways, and there are also vinyl stripes or magnetic full-body decals to personalize your arcade. A neon LED backlight, which can be controlled with a remote to change colors or pre-programmed patterns, adds a bit of bling to your setup. Just because you’re playing old games doesn’t mean your gaming machine has to look old as well. With the Polycade Sente modular arcade system, you get to enjoy the guilty pleasures of the past in a future-proof design today.
The popularity of the Apple Watch has finally given smartwatches their place in the market, making them understandable and even desirable. Of course, that doesn’t mean that everyone now wants a smartwatch, especially those who prefer mechanical watches or have different aesthetic tastes. Unfortunately, the majority of wrist-worn smart trackers seem to be made with sporty and rugged designs in mind. Given hardware requirements, that’s not exactly surprising, but that shouldn’t stop designers from imagining what’s possible. One such dream is reflected in this minimalist yet distinctive bracelet that throws all smart wearable design conventions out the window, offering a modular piece of jewelry that is smart in more ways than one.
If you remove the actual time-keeping function of a smartwatch or a fitness tracker, all you’re really left with are the sensors that actually do the work of keeping tabs on different metrics of your health, directly or indirectly. A display isn’t even necessary since you can always check those figures on a smartphone. In fact, a display might even be detrimental because of the distractions it pushes your way or how it clashes with some fashion styles. Smartwatch designs are primarily constricted by hardware such as displays and big batteries, but what if you could be free of those restrictions?
That’s what the BEAD concept seems to be proposing, offering the same health and wellness monitoring functionalities but in a form that is a bit more universal and, at the same time, more personal. At the heart of the design are the beads, actually tiny cylinders that each hide a single sensor used to track a specific biometric like a pulse oximeter or an accelerometer. Each bead is an independent unit, free from displays or large batteries, performing a single task and performing it to perfection.
The idea is that you can combine any number of these beads on a string or wire to achieve the same collective effect as a fitness tracker. You wear it around your wrist like a bracelet, held together at the ends by magnets in the shape of half-spheres. The wire is white, plain, and unadorned, which puts a bigger visual focus on the beads. Those beads themselves carry a brushed metal finish that helps hide whatever scratches they may incur over time while also giving them unique characters.
You can add or remove as many of these modular beads as you need, only paying for the functionality you actually use. It also makes repairing broken beads easier, since you only need to replace that single piece. Admittedly, the industrial aesthetic might not appeal to everyone’s tastes, but the concept opens the possibility of using different, perhaps more stylish designs that will truly create a fusion of fashion and technology in a simple smart bracelet.
We often underestimate the importance of a great sofa. When in reality, we really shouldn’t. We spend the majority of our day sitting on sofas, whether we’re watching some TV, enjoying a meal, or simply sitting and reading a book for leisure! Hence, this piece of furniture needs to be not only comfortable but ergonomic and aesthetic as well. And we’ve curated a collection of chair designs that meet all these criteria! An excellent sofa should not only be super comfy to sink into, but should also perfectly match the interiors of your modern homes, and one such sofa design is the Valencia Modular Sofa.
The Valencia modular sofa is designed by the British brand Morgan, and is intended to be a light and aesthetically pleasing design. It is designed to be an alternative to typical modular sofas. It is a classic of the brand’s catalogue and made up of individual seating units that are meant to be placed together. You can pick from the option of a full, three-quarter or half backrest.
“The combined backrest outlines create a rhythmic sequence of rise and fall, with sofas coming together to form distinctive ‘V’-shaped silhouettes,” said Morgan. The backrests of the Valencia modular sofa are tapered at each end to reduce some of the weight from the volumes, providing the sofa with a clean and flowing form that brings to mind the image of rolling hills in a landscape.
The tapered timber legs add an impressive effect to which echo the gentle angles at the top of the sofa, providing the seating with a look of lightness. The Valencia collection has won the Design Guild Mark award in 2017, which recognizes excellence in British design. The collection will include a daybed, as well as a side and coffee tables, which would make for an excellent addition to your modern living spaces.
Tables primarily serve a functional purpose, providing a horizontal surface to place things. Considering the space they occupy, it’s only fair that they should also have some aesthetic value, adding to the ambiance of a room instead of sticking out like a sore thumb. Unfortunately, not all designs balance form and function equally, with one aspect getting a heavier focus than the other. Some might be extremely beautiful but have little room for use as an actual table, while others try to get too smart with features at the expense of a pleasing appearance. Fortunately, we have plenty of inspiration around us to help shape our designs, and this family of odd-looking tables takes a few pages from Mother Nature’s book to create pieces that offer both practical utility as well as visual interest, bringing any living space to life.
Most tabletops come in conventional shapes such as rectangles, squares, circles, or ellipses. These, after all, are the most space-efficient shapes around, maximizing the area that you can use to lay down objects like laptops, books, or cups. They’re probably also the most mundane shapes you’ve ever laid eyes on, and they are totally dependent on the rest of the table’s composition or materials to pique your interest. The Flow family of tables bucks that trend and presents a table that almost looks impractical but is actually quite flexible in its functionality, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that it pulls off this feat by learning from organic things designed by nature itself.
As the name somewhat implies, these tables are inspired by naturally occurring bodies of water. Whether they’re puddles or lakes, water doesn’t appear as a perfect circle or rectangle, not unless you put them in artificial containers. The amorphous and almost random shape that water comes in evokes a sense of fluidity, even while at rest. It’s almost the perfect metaphor for tables that become centers of activity even as they act as resting places for your stuff.
Flow, however, is also inspired by cells that take similarly undefined shapes. Each table in the collection also has different heights to add to its unique character. And just like cells, these distinct pieces can function independently or merge into one to provide a larger canvas to arrange objects. The dynamic shapes of the tables might even inspire you to inject some life into your room, just like how cells are the building blocks of organic life.
Whether alone or connected, the fluid shapes of the Flow tables create an interesting ambiance that is both lively and calm, just like water. The tables are both pieces of structural art as well as flexible furniture that provide a bold visual impact, blending form and function in harmony just as things in nature usually do.
The attention that outdoor activities like camping and cookouts have made us painfully aware of how many of the tools we rely on haven’t been upgraded yet to modern times. That has led to the rise of new categories of products such as portable solar generators, new types of tents, and all sorts of hi-tech appliances for making outdoor life a little bit more convenient. That said, you don’t really need to go all out on technology just to enjoy the best things about outdoor adventures. Cooking a juicy steak or a delicious meal, for example, can be easily done with nothing more than a simple yet ingenious modular grill plate that can be quickly assembled with different parts to let you cook on whatever kind of fire you have, whenever, wherever.
Some say that the secret to a perfectly cooked steak or delicious food is heat conduction, heat uniformity, and plate thickness, and this Compact Modular Grill Plate definitely checks all those boxes, which is quite impressive given how simple and unadorned it looks. As they say, looks can be deceiving, and you’ll need to literally get inside the plate to understand how the magic works.
The Compact Modular Grill Plate uses a three-layer architecture with two steel layers sandwiching aluminum. The outer (or lower) Stainless Steel SUS439 lets the grill be used on induction stoves, while the inner/upper Stainless Steel SUS304 is noted for its excellent corrosion resistance. The middle aluminum layer is responsible for spreading the heat evenly across the inner layer, and that inner layer also sends the heat back down so that the temperature doesn’t drop when the food is just resting on the plate. Despite this multi-layer structure, the plate is only 5mm thick, making it lightweight and compact to save you space and effort.
Cook Anywhere, Assemble with Ease
The Compact Modular Grill Plate is also a flexible piece of cookware in more ways than one. Thanks to that triple metal composition, you can use it on unstable outdoor campfires, typical gas stoves, induction cookers, and other kinds of fires and still be assured of even heat distribution and a well-cooked steak. And as its name suggests, the grill plate can be put together or taken apart easily, making cleaning and storage a breeze. In fact, you can mix and match the different handles and stands to make the grill plate fit your cooking setup.
Basic for Daily Use; Special Adds Board & Belt
The Basic set comes with a grill plate, a long handle, and a short handle that will meet the needs of most people. The Special set adds a wooden cutting board that can also serve as a trivet, as well as a dedicated belt that helps keep the modular pieces together when it’s time to stow them away.
Tsubamesanjo Craftsmanship
Made by experts from Tsubamesanjo in Japan, this grill plate is not only a functional piece of cookware, it is also a product of craftsmanship. It has a simple aesthetic with a distinctly industrial flair that proves you don’t need complicated designs to take cooking to the next level. Whether you love grilling outdoors or prefer cooking indoors, this Compact Modular Grill Plate will be ready to meet your needs in a blink of an eye, letting you cook scrumptious, mouth-watering dishes each and every time.
People have recently become more conscious of the tables they use for work, whether it’s for a work-from-home setup or with employer-provided furniture in the office. It’s clear that there is no one size that fits all, but even the plethora of options available doesn’t always work all the time. Circumstances can change, like moving to a new flat or rearranging the office space, that would make that carefully selected desk unusable. Rather than a perfectly designed piece of furniture, what we need is one that can change and grow to our needs and environment. That is exactly the kind of flexibility that this modular, customizable, and long-lasting desk is offering, and you won’t even need tools to make it happen!
Ever since work-from-home setups became a thing, the number of customizable desks started to rise rapidly. But while these let you add or remove some compartments, they often retain their basic shape that was dictated by their design and production. A corner desk forever remains L-shaped, while a square or rectangular table will be that way until it’s broken. When your situation or location changes, you’re pretty much out of luck if your sophisticated desk won’t even fit your room.
What the Den Desk does differently is to offer you the building blocks to assemble your own desk just the way you like it, almost like playing LEGO. You can start with the most basic setup and then grow your desk by adding other parts or accessories, from monitor mounts to even a cabinet on the side. Want a corner desk? Simply slot it in another desktop at an angle and you’re good to go! Should space suddenly become a problem, you can easily separate the pieces to go back to a more space-efficient and minimalist workspace.
What’s even better is that you can assemble and disassemble these pieces with relative ease, almost like playing with those toy bricks. Thanks to the innovative Den Mounting System, you can slide parts into each other with specially-made metal connectors and then secure them with thumbscrews. Say goodbye to the days of hunting for screwdrivers and wrenches to set up or take down your desk with an almost effortless system that might even encourage you to change your desk every so often.
The wins don’t stop there, either. Each piece is an elegant work of craftsmanship and durability, made from furniture-grade Baltic Birch ply for the wooden desktop or black or white powder-coated 6061 aluminum for the legs and privacy panels. As a testament to its sustainability and durability, the Den Desk even comes with a lifetime warranty, relieving owners of the worry that comes whenever they have to move homes or offices. With the Den Desk, you can finally design a workspace that grows with your needs, allowing you to do your best work all the time.
It’s a common practice to put pictures of loved ones, including furry friends, on our desks as a source of inspiration or motivation, especially when our spirits are low. Despite this ordinary occurrence, most people don’t really pay much attention to what they attach their photos to. As long as they don’t look ugly or don’t clash with the rest of your desk’s motif, people will settle for any old picture frame they can grab. Of course, the photo inside is the most important thing, but just like any other product, the things that surround it can add more value, especially if the frame can serve multiple functions at the same time. This modular picture frame concept offers that kind of value, but it also tries to enhance the design’s appeal by using a material that embodies long-lasting memories.
Marble is one of the most distinctive types of rock-like materials that we use for creating products. It is durable and long-lasting but, more importantly, is beautiful and unique thanks to the patterns that never ever repeat, at least not naturally. It leaves a lasting impression, which is a fitting metaphor for memorializing someone, something, or some memory in a photo. It’s an admittedly heavier material, but that also lends some stability to the frame.
The MEMORABLE picture frame is more than just a pretty face, though. It uses a rudimentary rail system to slide different modules on both sides of the frame to expand its utility beyond just displaying a photo. There’s a module for a short cylinder for a pen holder, a longer cylinder that can be used as a small vase, and a square spiral wire for holding small notes. The latter might be useful for sticking notes or messages from the very same loved ones shown on the photo beside it.
Given the frame only has two vertical sides, you will have to pick two of the three modules to use at a time. The advantage is that you’re not locked down to these choices and you can change things around as needed. In fact, that sliding rail system also allows two or more MEMORABLE frames to be joined together, allowing you to have as many photos as your desk can accommodate. This expands the function of the frame significantly from a simple display to an organization tool.
Although marble is a refined material, its appearance gives the photo frame a certain raw appearance that is quite appealing to the eyes and especially to the touch. It’s also a more sustainable material that can become raw material for other products after the end of its life. If there’s one drawback to the MEMORABLE’s design is that it’s rail system is fixed to only work with certain modules, such as the pen holder and vase on the left and the note holder or another frame on the right. It’s also not clear where the rails also work when the frame is set to a wide or landscape orientation, which is how some photos are taken when groups of people or scenic views are involved.
The Fairphone 4 launched two years ago left a whole lot to be desired, and the sustainability-focused electronics startup from Amsterdam has now launched the next version to reignite hopes. This is the Android 13 powered Fairphone 5 modular phone which is the most repairable device out there for good reason.
The silver lining with this modern-looking device honing a translucent back panel is its whopping five years of OS support and eight years of security patches promised by the ethical company. They are striving to get that number up to 10 years. Also, there’s a 5-year warranty, so you have nothing to worry about for a long time. How much better can that get?
Pros:
8 years of software support and 5 years of warranty
Decent hardware specification compared to predecessor
Just like their select suite of other products, the Fairphone 5 is made from ethically sourced materials and is designed to be easily pairable at home. Of course, it comes with the freedom to upgrade the hardware, and we’re glad that this time around the device is more of a modern mid-range phone that ignites interest. It has a 6.46-inch OLED display with 1224×2770 resolution and 90Hz refresh rate. On the rear reside the duo of a 50MP primary lens and a 50MP ultrawide shooter. Interestingly, the selfie camera on the front inside the hole punch is also a 50MP shooter.
The number of repairable modules has been increased to 10 as now you can replace the rear camera module and the module having SIM and SD card slots. That beefed-up 4,200mAh battery with 30W charging support is user-replaceable and good for 1,000 charging cycles. Since the phone is targeting a niche set of users, don’t expect it to compete with the current flagships on the market.
It’s powered by the Qualcomm QCM6490 chipset designed specifically for industrial applications and mated to an Adreno 643L GPU and 8GB of RAM. The processor is somewhat similar to the more identifiable Snapdragon 782G in terms of specs. Out of the box, the phone comes with 256GB storage that can be upgraded to 2TB via a separate module. While modular smartphones are not particularly water-resistant, still Fairphone managed to get IP55 water and dust resistance for the device.
For someone who’s looking to buy a mid-range device that has a long-term commitment guaranteed, the Fairphone 5 is a fair recommendation. If so, the device can be pre-ordered right away with shipping in Europe promised on September 14. There are no plans for a US release, but that could change in the coming months. For a price tag of around $750, the Fairphone could just tickle your fancy with the features it has.
