While traditional advent calendars from the 1850s were designed as cards with biblical verses in them, counting down the days to Christmas, modern-day advent calendars make the process a little more fun by including tiny gifts that build up the anticipation to the 25th of December. Major brands participate in the Advent Calendar trend, and IKEA isn’t one to be left out. The Vinterfint Advent Calendar comes flat-packed like every IKEA product, and needs to be assembled together. Put the pieces together and you end up creating an adorable Christmas-themed diorama with characters, houses, trees, and a few snowmen too! Under each of these objects lies a small trinket or chocolate that sparks joy every day for the 24 days before the grand celebration!
The Vinterfint advent calendar opens up to reveal an adorable Christmas scene featuring Santa, snowmen, and a few goats from the nativity display. You’ve also got decked-up Christmas trees and classic countryside-roofed houses amidst a snowy landscape.
Each paper object can be lifted up to reveal goodies underneath, featuring a selection of chocolates including pralines, nougats, and truffles, ensuring a sweet treat for each day leading up to Christmas. IKEA designer Paulin Machado envisioned it as a way to engage in holiday arts and crafts, providing everything needed to create a winter landscape complete with Christmas trees and snowmen.
The broader VINTERFINT collection, which the Advent Calendar is a part of, is IKEA’s way of creating a cozy atmosphere that falls in line with its brand ethos as well as the warm holiday spirit. The collection, inspired by Scandinavian folklore and traditional handicrafts, includes items like table linen, tree ornaments, gift bags, and wrapping paper. The wrapping paper, for instance, features horses, fire trees, and red apples, a nod to IKEA’s Swedish roots, infusing traditional Swedish folk art with a modern twist.
For the uninitiated, Advent Calendars aren’t your standard calendars. Rather than chronicling the 365 days into 12 months, Advent Calendars have just one simple purpose – to count down the days till Christmas. The calendar became somewhat of a tradition in the 1850s, with 24 different flaps that had Bible verses that you’d read every day up until Christmas Day on the 25th of December. In modern times, the calendar has become more of a gifting ritual, with brands creating tiny calendars with products/gifts for each day. This year, the folks at Onyx Coffee Lab decided to make a calendar that quite literally gets you ‘charged up’ for Christmas. The 2023 Coffee Advent Calendar comes in a gorgeous box that opens up to reveal an entire spread of coffee. The box itself is decorated beautifully with gold foil, and creates a wonderful fanned presentation of coffee sachets when opened. I imagine once you’re done drinking all that coffee, it would make for an incredible book or magazine holder!
Featuring 24 days of coffee, the calendar explores various origins, blends, and processing methods, allowing you to experience a veritable tapestry of coffee flavors leading up to Christmas. It’s a perfect way to explore the world through a single cup before deciding on what coffee you want to try more of in the next year!
While Onyx delights practically every year with its gorgeous advent calendars, this year’s packaging exudes elegance and is designed to leave a lasting impression. The box’s exterior is adorned with stunning seasonal illustrations, enhanced with gold foil treatments. Upon opening the box, you’ll discover an accordion-style collection box revealing 24 individually wrapped bags of coffee. Each bag is marked from Day 1 to Day 24, guiding you on a daily journey of coffee discovery. A beautifully designed information card is also included, providing details about each coffee, adding to the overall unique coffee experience.
For most football purists, the advent of technology has ruined the nature of the game rather than improved it. Ask anyone and they’ll tell you that football was MUCH more enjoyable before the accuracy of the VAR, but the point of such technologies isn’t to cater to audience entertainment, it’s to make the game as fair and unbiased as possible. Today, Adidas announced yet another tech-driven product to improve the game of Football. The FUSSBALLLIEBE (German isn’t the most elegant language) is a connected ball that detects kicks in real-time, and has also been adopted as the Official Football for the upcoming UEFA EURO 2024. Beyond its mouthful of a name, which translates to “love of soccer,” this ball is a groundbreaking fusion of sport and tech, designed to change how we experience and analyze football.
At the core of FUSSBALLLIEBE’s innovation is Adidas’ Connected Ball Technology, developed in collaboration with Kinexon. This tech marvel includes a 500Hz inertial measurement unit (IMU) motion sensor, ensconced in a suspension system at the ball’s center. It’s capable of providing detailed insights into every aspect of the ball’s movement, a feature unprecedented in football history. Not only does this technology offer real-time data to video match officials, enhancing the accuracy and speed of in-match decisions, but it also dovetails with UEFA’s semi-automated offside technology, marking a significant leap in the sport’s adjudication.
The ball isn’t just smart; it’s also a study in precision engineering. Its PRECISIONSHELL 20-piece panel shape, augmented by strategically placed deboss grooves, helps control airflow over the ball for maximum precision. The CTR-CORE within the ball further supports this precision, ensuring accuracy, consistent play, and maximum shape and air retention.
In terms of aesthetics, FUSSBALLLIEBE is a vibrant homage to the spirit of the game and the diversity of its global audience. The design, featuring black wing shapes with colorful edges, curves, and dots, encapsulates the movement of the ball and the energy of football. The use of bright colors like red, blue, green, and orange not only celebrates the competing nations but also the sheer joy and universality of football. The inclusion of tournament stadiums and host city names adds a personal touch to this edition of the ball, making it a collector’s item as much as a piece of advanced sporting equipment.
Sustainability is another cornerstone of the FUSSBALLLIEBE’s design. Made from bio-based materials like corn fibers, sugar cane, wood pulp, and rubber, combined with recycled polyester and water-based ink, Adidas touts the FUSSBALLLIEBE as featuring more bio-based materials than any previous Adidas Official Match Ball, without impacting its performance.
As we ‘kick-off’ EURO 2024 with Adidas’ FUSSBALLLIEBE, it’s clear that the future of football is as much about innovation and technology as it is about the game itself. From Adidas’ high-tech, real-time data-gathering ball to even Nendo’s airless football, these designs are not just about playing a game; they’re about changing it.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Tesla announced a Cybertruck 2.0 before even delivering the Cybertruck 1 (after all that’s sort of what they did with the Roadster)… however, this redesign comes from the mind of automotive designer Dejan Hristov, who’s probably waiting for his Cybertruck to deliver too.
The Cybertruck 2.0 concept focuses on getting right the few things that the first truck got arguably wrong. The first design was way too polarizing, and according to Musk himself, incredibly difficult to build at mass scale. Rather than focusing on a truck that’s tommy-gun bulletproof, the Cybertruck 2.0 adopts a less aggressively divisive design, opting for the use of gentle curves instead of sharp angles. Musk mentioned that the Cybertruck hoped to shatter the design monotony of the pickup category, and the Cybertruck 2.0 does that too with a pretty eye-catching design that has the potential for being iconic… but those mild curves definitely give the car a more ‘finished’ appearance rather than looking like something you find at the bottom of a box of cornflakes.
The Cybertruck redesign has a remarkably improved silhouette while still retaining the cyber-ish design direction set by the original. For starters, it still has edge-lines that give the truck definition, along with LED-strip headlights and taillights. The metal used on the redesign is clearly not the same as the one found in the original Cybertruck, given its ability to be formed into 3D curves, and even be embossed (notice the Tesla logo on the front and the back?)
One could assume that either Tesla’s developed a way to bend their bulletproof space-grade metal sheets, or Musk just decided to cave and make the car out of a more manageable metal but provide a solid chassis that gives the car its brute strength. Aesthetically, this just seems like a better direction to go in given that your vision isn’t really clashing with current technologies.
The truck is accompanies by a redesigned Cyberquad that, like back in 2019, fits right in the truck’s bed. The quad’s design borrows from sports bikes with its tank-shaped form, and matches its companion truck with a similar paint job.
In true pickup fashion, the back of the truck has its storage bed that’s ideal for camping, tailgating, or storing a Cyberquad. It comes with its own shutter, just like the original, but look a little ahead and you’ll notice that the Cybertruck’s windscreen now extends all the way to the back, giving you a wonderful vertically panoramic view from inside the car. You won’t want to camp in the back with that view!
A major departure from the original Cybertruck is the presence of color options. Hristov visualized the new Cybertruck with colors to match the rest of Tesla’s lineup, carrying forward the same logic to the Cyberquad too. As interesting as the original Cybertruck was, its lack of color options was probably one of its most noticeable flaws. Musk believed in showcasing the truck’s cold-rolled stainless steel in its true rawness, leaving a lot to be desired in the CMF department. This redesign corrects that mistake with color options that allow the truck to stand out through a stunning color palette, not through that flat-planed design seen on the 1st gen Cybertruck.
In Hristov’s final reimagination of the Cybertruck, he gives it one last feature to blow everyone’s minds away – a frunk! A detail seen on every Tesla car before it, the frunk can now be accessed on the Cybertruck 2.0 concept by opening it like you would a drawer. The hood doesn’t pop upwards like conventional cars; instead, the grille unit on the front slides forward, giving you ample space for storing bags, backpacks, and brewskis. The truck also comes with a retractable spoiler at the back, and a panel on the front that lifts up to reveal the windshield wipers. The redesign also gets sleeker rear-view cameras that share footage to the dashboard, eschewing the archaic rear-view mirror.
As gorgeous as the Cybertruck 2.0 is, it’s probably just wishful thinking for now given how Musk has constantly backtracked on delivery dates for the truck announced in 2019. The Cybertruck is officially (for now) going to start delivery at the end of November, although Tesla hasn’t been clear on how many units will be delivered, or even what its final price is going to be (amid mass fear of a massive price surge). For now, the truck is actually making its way to Tesla showrooms across USA, so maybe that’s one good sign?
Not everyone can afford a Breguet, Rolex, Richard Mille, or Audemars Piguet. Not only are they ridiculously expensive, they’re also gatekept from us regular folk by an arduously long waiting and approval process. You don’t simply go buy a Patek Philippe, you need to be ‘approved’ to buy one. This artificial scarcity makes it difficult for any watch enthusiast to appreciate great watchmaking, but the folks at Tèfo Clockwork have a clever solution – their laser-cut DIY kits allow you to build some of the most beautiful movements and complications found on luxury watches. Instead of splurging millions on a timepiece, Tèfo’s DIY kits let you build working mechanisms for a few hundred dollars, turning them into functional table clocks instead.
Created by a team of hardcore horology-enthusiasts, Tèfo Clockwork’s kits bring million-dollar timepieces to the masses. Their laser-cut wooden kits are highly detailed, and are scaled up so you don’t need Swiss-level precision to assemble them. Their current kits come in 4 complication styles – a Center Tourbillon, a Minute Repeater, a Fly-back Chronograph, and a Perpetual Calendar. These complications can be found in some of the most high-end watch brands, but with Tèfo, they can be bought, assembled, and admired at a much lower price. The complications aren’t the watches themselves, so Tèfo isn’t infringing on any intellectual property. The mechanical movements are open for all to build (although some of them like the tourbillon are so complex on a small scale that only a few companies can build them), and that’s pretty much what the Tèfo Clockwork kits hope to achieve.
The center tourbillon
Back in the late 18th century, Swiss-French watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet developed the tourbillon, a watch complication that was designed to counteract the effect of gravity on the watch’s accuracy. This was a concern back in the days of the pocket watch, but as wristwatches gained popularity, a fixed direction of gravity wasn’t really a concern because of the wrist’s constant movement. Tourbillons soon began fading away (given how complex they were to manufacture), although some brands retained them as a work of luxurious art and a symbol of craftsmanship. The Tèfo TC-01 table clock scales up the classic tourbillion, which can be visible right behind the TC logo on the front. The entire contraption measures approximately 10 inches tall and wide, featuring a skeletal design of multiple wooden components that assemble together to create the TC-01 table clock. More than 300 parts come together to build the TC-01, taking over 15 hours (think of it as a highly complex 3D puzzle). The clock draws power from a 12V motor, which is designed to run 24/7, and when you’re not admiring the constant movement of the tourbillon inside, you can actually use the TC-01 to read the time thanks to an hour and a minute dial that rotate with the same accuracy you’d expect from a haute Swiss-made timepiece. At the center is the Tèfo Clockwork logo, which rotates precisely once every second.
The minute repeater
You can build on the TC-01 by adding a minute repeater to it. The minute repeater was originally developed to help tell the time in the dark by chiming every hour, quarter, or minute depending on its setting. Originally used by aristocrats in the 1600s, this too disappeared ‘with time’, becoming just a mechanical luxury found on high-end watches. Tèfo Clockwork’s Minute Repeater module comes with more than 400 parts, requiring over 24 hours of work to put together. Once assembled, it can be paired with the TC-01 by plugging into its side and connecting using a series of pins. Similarly, Tèfo is working on two more complications – the fly-back chronograph (found on ultra-premium Richard Mille watches) and the perpetual calendar (which can be found in Patek Philippe’s watches that cost up to 9 million a pop) that can both be plugged into another side of your TC-01 clock, building on its intricacy, complexity, and accuracy. Both the fly-back chronograph and the perpetual calendar come with 150 parts, and take roughly 8 hours to put together.
Tèfo Clockwork’s entire kits come made from precisely laser-cut wood, with a combination of both light and dark woods to help highlight certain features and increase contrast between different parts. Load-bearing components or parts subject to wear-and-tear are made of metal, while ball-bearings ensure gears, hands, and other components like the tourbillon can rotate freely without any sort of friction. The kit is available as a central module that serves as a clock, with the option of plugging two more modules into its left and right sides to create a larger-than-life functioning luxury clock! Who says you need to sell your house, car, and kidney to afford a Richard Mille or an Audemars Piguet complication?!
The Tèfo Clockwork TC-01 starts at $249 for just the center tourbillon clock, or $749 for the tourbillon clock and two more complication modules. Tèfo offers global shipping with all units expected to ship by November, making these kits a perfect DIY project for you, or a Holiday Gift for a watch-loving friend or family member!
8 years ago, Apple (helmed by Jony Ive) committed one of design’s biggest cardinal sins by taking a hatched to product usability. Sounds a little extreme, but ask anyone about Apple’s biggest design flaw and they’ll probably tell you how the Magic Mouse needs to be flipped over to charge, thus rendering it absolutely unusable. The flaw is so hilariously bad that most people even overlook the fact that the Magic Mouse is the least ergonomic mouse to begin with. Its ultra-sleek design is perfect for slipping into laptop bags, but it’s a nightmare for anyone with carpal tunnel, and even generally, makes for a horrible gripping experience (resulting in people designing pretty clever ergonomic grips for the Magic Mouse).
Many a DIY-er has tried fixing both the ergonomic and charging problems, but failed at the latter… but Ivan Kuleshov thinks he may have finally cracked the code. His solution? A redesigned shell for the Magic Mouse that doesn’t just fix the infamous charging issue but also enhances its ergonomic feel. The new design allows for upright charging through a USB-C port, a simple yet effective fix that Apple seemingly overlooked.
Designer: Ivan Kuleshov
Kuleshov’s design does the unthinkable – lets you use your Magic Mouse while charging it. Apple apparently engineered a failsafe into its mouse that disabled usage during charging (something that designer Matt Benedetto figured out the hard way), but Kuleshov’s solution circumvents that by technically ‘hacking’ the mouse.
The journey wasn’t straightforward. Existing 3D models of the Magic Mouse fell short, pushing Kuleshov to adjust the enclosure shape by eye, iterating through multiple prints and adjustments. This process epitomized the trial-and-error spirit inherent in DIY projects. He crafted a frame-adapter for the upper part of the mouse in just four iterations, meticulously designed to extend the original mount. This adaptation allowed for a spring and an offset lever to press the button, integrating seamlessly with the mouse’s design.
Kuleshov didn’t stop at mere design modifications. He tackled the electrical challenge head-on, soldering a TP4056 directly to the battery outputs, ensuring the mouse continued to work while charging. This modification enabled the mouse to bypass Apple’s standard charging protocol, a nifty workaround to a long-standing problem.
After numerous trials, Kuleshov finally achieved the ideal enclosure shape. It charges the battery directly, and despite its increased size, the mouse’s sensor still makes contact with the table, ensuring precise movement. Kuleshov labels it as “the world’s first ergonomic Magic Mouse without any flaws,” and while this might be a bold statement (given its slightly bulky appearance), it seems to be a significant improvement from a practical standpoint.
Kuleshov took to Twitter (or whatever Musk wants you to call it) to showcase his rather complicated but functional redesign. The internet’s consensus seems mixed, but with everyone on the same page. While most people are marveling at this new modification, calling it a truly “magical” mouse, others are applauding Kuleshov’s ingenuity while also commenting on the fact that this level of ‘hacking’ was even necessary to undo a simple problem that Apple seemingly engineered on purpose into their product. To make things better, Kuleshov has made his entire project open-source and tinkerers can download the files on GitHub to modify their own Magic Mice…
I hacked the Magic Mouse.
And created the world’s first ergonomic Magic Mouse with no weaknesses.
Yes, you can charge it via USB-C right while you’re working!
More details + demo in the thread pic.twitter.com/lxvCXArZdG
It’s safe to say that the pandemic is now behind us and that all those dormant travel plans from 3 years ago are finally becoming much more easy to execute. The world has changed a lot in the last few years, however… technology has united us, blurring boundaries and allowing us to experience the world like never before. This collection of gadgets embodies technology’s ability to push your boundaries and help you be a global citizen. We’ve got some incredible translators from the award-winning folks at Timekettle, whether you’re a traveler, an expat, a student, or someone working at a multinational corporation. Alongside those, we’ve also got a handful of charging gadgets, productivity tools, classy watches, everything you need to be the ace traveler, worker, and communicator!
1. Timekettle M3 – 3-in-1 Translator Earbuds
These aren’t your average TWS Earbuds – they’re more akin to those fancy ear-worn translator gadgets you’ve seen in sci-fi action and spy movies. Pop the M3 in and it actively translates languages for you, making it perfect to discreetly understand foreign speech without the cumbersome practice of holding up a phone or translator device so someone can talk into it. The M3 sports a unique split-case design that opens into two halves with one earpiece each. This facilitates a kind of verbal ‘breaking of bread’, where you share one half of the M3 with someone who you can converse with, in what Timekettle calls Touch Mode. The Listen and Speaker modes rely on your smartphone too, enabling one-way or even two-way communication using your smartphone’s screen and microphone in tandem. The M3 actively translates 40 languages and 93 accents in real-time (with offline translation for 8 major languages). Given the wearable nature of the device, it also sports ANC, EQ tuning abilities, and still boasts 95% accuracy with a negligible 0.5-second delay that allows for smooth conversations. Given its portable nature and budget-friendly price, the M3 is perfect for the casual traveler or a foreign student on a budget. It pairs with Timekettle’s smartphone app, which is available on both Android and iOS.
Wear the earbuds and you can suddenly understand almost every language. As fairytale-like as that sounds, it’s pretty much the premise of the M3. The different Modes allow you to use the M3 in a variety of ways, making it perfect for work calls with overseas colleagues/clients/vendors, foreign travelers speaking to locals, listening to performances in foreign languages, attending lectures/classes, or even interacting with local authorities without a language barrier.
What we like
It looks like your average pair of TWS earbuds, but the M3 is a world-class in-ear translator that also happens to play music, answer calls, and listen to podcasts!
The split-case design turns the stereo earbuds into individual mono headsets
Perfect for travelers, students abroad, and people looking to learn/understand new languages
What we dislike
No option to tailor EQ for podcasts or music
2. Nothing-inspired Power Bank Concept
This concept for the London-based Carl Pei venture is an accessory anyone would love to have handy. The see-through aesthetics of this power bank adapted from the Nothing Phone (2) are well complemented by the diffused LED lighting on all sides to lend it a futuristic look. The speed of the hard disk is displayed on top adjacent to where you’ll find all the ports to connect your power-hungry gadgets. To keep up with the likes of Seagate, Western Digital, and SanDisk – the compact Nothing external HDD concept should be offered in a comparative capacity – starting from 2TB and going all the way up to 8TB.
Why is it noteworthy?
Gen-Z users will always choose an option that is aesthetically pleasing and cool to show off among peers. With the Nothing’s see-through power bank, there’s a huge potential audience base that can be lured to create the initial buzz.
What we like
A refreshing design that challenges the competition
Made out of lightweight and durable material
What we dislike
No lanyard tether for easy carrying
3. Timekettle Fluentalk T1 Mini – Travel Translator Device
This tiny handheld device is your passport to effortless communication across languages. Styled somewhat like a smartphone with its own touchscreen, camera, microphone, and speaker system, the T1 Mini unlocks the power of instant translation for audio, text, and images, eliminating the need to even take your phone and power the Google Translator app. It handles 36 languages and even works with 88 accents, offering offline translation for 13 popular languages. The standout feature is its 5MP camera that translates 39 languages from signs, menus, and more. For conversations, the T1 Mini works as a two-way translator, converting multiple languages into text and speech to facilitate an easy conversation. The lag is practically negligible with 95% accuracy, thanks to Fluentalk’s built-in translation engine.
Inferring from its name, the T1 ‘Mini’ is the size of a credit card, fitting in your pocket for instant access. It comes powered by a 1500mAh battery, it offers seven days of use on a full charge. Plus, you get one year of free global data, making it ideal for international adventures.
The Fluentalk T1 Mini eliminates the need to open your phone, fire the translator app, make sure you’re connected to the internet, or have the language pack downloaded. It offers one-button translation, simplifying the entire process down to a single click. The T1 Mini also comes with free global data and offline translation, eliminating the need to look for free WiFi while abroad. It’s compact, affordable, and could potentially be an absolute life-saver on your trips!
What we like
One-button translation & instant activation make it easy to use, regardless of age or experience
Compact credit card-sized design
Ability to understand even accents with 95% accuracy
What we dislike
The 2.8-inch screen might feel a little too small for some people
4. UFO Magsafe Charger Concept
There are the usual MagSafe chargers and then there is the UFO MagSafe Wireless Charger that is destined to turn eyeballs. If you want to have the same functionality that the third-party options by Belkin, Mophie, Anker, and Satechi offer but with that oomph factor, then look no further. The concept design has a cute little UFO riding on the back of your iPhone 15 and you would be tempted to turn down your phone every time it runs out of juice just to have a look at that cute little being on the back. So, In a way, it keeps you from instinctively checking the device for any new notifications.
Why is it noteworthy?
The aesthetic appeal of the MagSafe charger adds fun to your smartphone charging routines and we bet you won’t get bored of it.
What we like
The ambient light that surrounds the UFO every time you juice up your device
What we dislike
The UFO rounded shape does not give the best grip to hold onto while using your phone when charging
For more serious globetrotters, immigrants/expats, and international business travelers, the T1 is the Mini’s larger sibling, offering a sizeable 4-inch 1080p display that’s without compromise. It beefs up the hardware that the T1 Mini had with a quad-core chip that offers faster translation (0.2-second lag) with even better coverage, directly integrating into over 200 international networks. The T1 supports online audio translation for 40 languages and 93 accents, and an 8MP camera helps translate text in images across 36 different languages. A built-in multi-microphone array with ENC (Environmental Noise Cancellation) makes the T1 perfect for conversations with local residents and law enforcement, waiters and hotel staff, international colleagues, clients, and investors, or even teachers and students on foreign campuses. The T1 also ships with a free 2-year global data plan that covers all your needs.
The Fluentalk T1 eliminates the need to open your phone, fire the translator app, make sure you’re connected to the internet, or have the language pack downloaded. It’s compact, purpose-built, and does its job like an absolute beast. Whether you’re a traveler or an expat, the T1 is perfect to have on you in a foreign land. Buh bye, Duolingo and Google Translate
What we like
As intuitive to use as a smartphone, without the added apps, notifications, and distractions
2 years of free global data
What we dislike
No external audio input or microphone jack for direct voice translation without a device connection
Has a ‘Swear Filter’ that won’t translate curse words
6. Momentum Watch
Time is relative, that is what we have learned and the designers at All Design Lab have found a way to convert the changing nature of time into a physical gadget. Named Momentum, this watch is almost a kinetic sculpture that adjusts its intensity of spinning based on your emotional and productivity state. For example, the time movement is faster or slower depending on whether the watch senses positive or negative behavior, conveying to the user that their time is being seized or wasted so they can adjust their actions accordingly.
Why is it noteworthy?
Momentum takes away from traditional time-telling, to make the entire experience to be ‘in the moment’. The aim is to double down on the time you have rather than spend it chasing notifications throughout the day and wondering, at the end where the time went!
What we like
The kinetic sculpture creates a soothing movement that can be almost meditative and help the user calm down if they feel themselves getting agitated
Using beautifully neutral tones, this gadget is almost a fashion wearable that is sure to be a conversation starter
What we dislike
The watch offers no option to switch or showcase the actual time, making the users rely on secondary devices and hence breaking the impactful habit they are creating with Momentum
7. Timekettle WT2 Edge – The World’s First Simultaneous Translator Earbuds
The WT2 Edge is the upgraded version of Timekettle’s first-ever product, the WT2. It assumes the shape of your everyday TWS Earbuds, but instead of just playing music or letting you answer calls, the WT2 Edge serves as a bi-directional translator device that works in real time. Just have two people pop one earpiece on and the WT2 Edge begins working, every person in the conversation can speak and listen to translated speeches from counterparts at the same time, offering active translations with unnoticeable lag. Like the M3, the WT2 Edge also works with 40 languages and 93 accents, relying on Timekettle’s AI along with 6 different translation engines to give you 95% accurate translations in under half a second. The earbuds also pack directional voice recognition and ambient noise canceling, picking up your speech with crystal clarity and without any interfering noise. Multiple usage modes allow you to interact freely with people around the globe, but the folks at Timekettle believe the WT2 Edge’s true prowess lies in the conference room. Aside from working in a physical meeting setup with as many as 6 people in the same room, Timekettle’s Group Chat software supports connecting as many as 30 users together, translating both audio and text across multiple languages, making it just perfect for international video calls with clients, colleagues, and investors all across the globe. A single click lets you export your chats too, proving to be ideal for important meetings as well as college lectures.
The WT2 Edge builds on Timekettle’s original vision – to blur the boundaries between different people around the world looking to collaborate together. The device assumes the form of a pair of TWS earbuds, but rather serves as an active translator that helps colleagues, clients, investors, vendors, and other stakeholders in the business to communicate freely regardless of what language they speak. The WT2 Edge is perfect for companies with branches overseas, and on the off chance you find yourself traveling, it’s great for understanding foreign languages as a tourist too!
What we like
As the world’s first Simultaneous Translator Earbuds, Simul Mode enables you to have seamless, real-time conversations as if the two people are speaking the same language
Four different translation modes to cater to all translation needs and scenarios
The ability to pair up to 30 devices in the Group Chat app
What we dislike
Only built for translation, not music.
8. COMM Productivity Manager
If you ever wanted a gadget that could bring your productivity back on track when working from home, this would be it. The COMM smart screen concept removes all the unnecessary distractions that come in the line of communication and online work. For instance, receiving an important mail on your computer and then getting lost down the rabbit hole with distracting apps. The portable touchscreen display designed for work-from-home fanatics focuses on smooth information flow and idea sharing, thereby creating a virtual office environment optimized for productivity.
Why is it noteworthy?
You can connect via video conferencing or audio chat with co-workers and clients directly on the simple interface. Scheduling meetings and getting prompt notifications don’t hamper current workflow which is another plus.
What we like
Distraction-free WFH gadget that keeps productivity in check
Ability to video chat and set meeting schedules right from the screen
What we dislike
Limited functionality that’ll only appeal to a particular set of users
9. Saint Antoine USB Drive
The USB flash drive is one accessory that is an absolute necessity for any kind of user – after all, everything is going digital and data is mostly stored that way. But by today’s standard, the USB flash drives are bigger in size even though some brands shave off the external housing size as a trade-off for durability. However, the Saint Antoine USB takes a detour from the usual design, fitting in perfectly between the keys of your laptop when not in use. This explains the branch-like shape of the accessory. The advantage of this unique shape, well, you never lose the USB drive, as most people are guilty of doing.
Why is it noteworthy?
The compact, thin size challenges existing products on the market. Makes good use of existing space for easy storage that otherwise is not the case with USB drives that are vulnerable to getting lost.
What we like
Slim design that solves a purpose
You can carry your USB drive anywhere without the fear of losing
What we dislike
The one-size-fits-all design is impractical as different laptops have different-sized layouts
10. Sydra Clock
In this digitally dominated world, how many times have we missed out on an opportunity because we forgot or were late for an appointment? Productivity is the trending keyword for all of us and while we are chasing that aim of getting our work-life balance right, we are usually lagging behind and leaving ourselves with a general feeling of dissatisfaction. The Sydra (after the ancient world’s accurate timekeeping device – Clepsydra) aims to help you manage life better by logging all your activities with the time at which you aim to fulfill them. Imagine it hanging in your work setup, giving you a gentle nudge towards your next goal while keeping track of the time spent on the current one. Combining the analog clock with a digital calendar, the Sydra offers an improved hands-free experience that makes time management a more phone-free task.
Why is it noteworthy?
Sydra’s hour hand is a constant reminder of the passage of time as it sweeps across your 12-hour schedule for the day, making space for the next activity or leisure time planned by you. Inspired by the ancient world’s most accurate timekeeping device (the clepsydra), the Sydra brings a bit of that ancient history to your modern room with effortless elegance.
What we like
Sydra can sync multiple calendars (of your family or different work schedules) to create a cohesive tracking/time management device
It is a functional piece of decor, giving you the best of both worlds
What we dislike
With a 12-hour system, Sydra cannot show the next 12 hours while you are approaching the end of the current 12-hour shift, leaving a gap in your time management
Arguably the best thing to ever happen to computing was the Graphical User Interface or the GUI. It took away the massive lines of code that you previously had to deal with while computing and replaced it with the windows and folders and files we see today. This new interface made it easy to interact with the computer, allowing pretty much everyone to jump on board the new technology at the time. CATIA is doing the same for parametric designing. Equipped with an intuitive no-code and algorithmic approach, the new CATIA Visual Scripting app within 3DEXPERIENCE Platform empowers its hardcore users even more with an easier, more visual way to build out their complex designs.
Visual Scripting isn’t completely new to the design community, with software like Grasshopper being in the mainstream. However, CATIA’s sheer power as an industry-leading all-round CAD software combined with its new no-code visual approach to parametric/generative modeling really alters the landscape for designers, engineers, architects, etc. looking to push their creative boundaries. The company did launch a similar web-app named xGenerative Design, but with Visual Scripting, algorithmic design becomes a native part of the 3DEXPERIENCE, and seamlessly integrated into the rest of CATIA applications.
CATIA Visual Scripting provides an intuitive no-code approach to generative modeling
What sets CATIA Visual Scripting apart is its capacity to empower creators. Through a series of building blocks, designers can craft their own scripts, which in turn generate intricate 3D geometries autonomously. The interface takes on a familiar Node-based approach that most designers will find incredibly intuitive. With the tool’s Capture & Reuse feature, these algorithms become shareable and reusable assets, markedly enhancing both efficiency and collaboration across projects.
Instant parametric adjustments and design exploration in Visual Scripting
Users can intuitively link parameter blocks, defining and generating designs without writing a single line of code. The user interface is accessible to those without any programming knowledge, making complex design creation more comfortable and attainable. It also makes rapid conceptualization much easier, allowing you to quickly adjust parameters and alter your design/pattern on the fly, without editing code or rebuilding your model. It’s also the best way to rapidly generate tons of design alternatives and it’s natively built to serve the MODSIM approach, combining modeling and simulation in an integrated loop.
“CATIA Visual Scripting is not only a really powerful tool to quickly add a lot of details to designs. Its capabilities push the limits of traditional modeling with a suite of specialized operators to offer new possibilities for highly detailed and innovative designs. Creators can now also manipulate and deform meshes directly in the application, to find new interesting shapes without any sculpting interaction” mentions Edouard Sutre, CATIA Design R&D. Yet another example of the specialized operator is that the algorithm can create the architecture of lines used for complex, customized and non-regular lattice generation for 3D printing.
“CATIA Visual Scripting aids creators in all industries, not only for aerospace, architecture, or transportation”, Edouard adds. “We are empowering those in the shoe, furniture and product industries as well, for example. The tool can extend from designing buildings and huge city plans to smartphones and even jewelry.”
Nostalgia Upgraded – The Muro Box brings a fond childhood music instrument into the future with App Support and MIDI Connectivity
The second you hear a music box, your mind is taken to a fairytale land. Music box sounds have been used in cinemas to transition to dream sequences, showing exactly how rooted the sound of a music box is in childhood nostalgia. In the past, most of these mechanical musical instruments were found inside toys like snowglobes, jack-in-the-boxes, or other wind-up toys. You can still find music boxes today, although most of them just play fixed tunes like your odd nursery rhyme or Happy Birthday (some novelty stores even sell music boxes that play the Harry Potter or the Game of Thrones theme)… but the folks behind the Muro Box are doing something absolutely unusual. The Muro Box is the first customizable music box that can play pretty much any tune you want it to play, thanks to app connectivity and a MIDI interface. You can use Muro Box’s app to either compose your own tracks or browse through a library of pre-composed tracks… or better still, hook it to a MIDI synth and play music directly from your keyboard onto the Muro Box. The result is a charmingly nostalgic rendition of pretty much any song. Whether it’s a Christmas Carol or a Slipknot song, it’s sure to sound positively delightful and just incredibly dreamy!
The way most music boxes worked was simple. Each box would come with a rotating cylinder that had studs on it, and a metal comb placed strategically near said cylinder. When the cylinder would rotate, the studs would ‘pluck’ against the comb, creating notes. Based on the cylinder’s pattern, you could play elements of any song. The problem with the music boxes of the past, however, was that A. You couldn’t change the song and B. The drum’s limited circumference meant you could only play a small portion of the song over and over again, which would become a little annoyingly repetitive after the first few times. The Muro Box solves both those problems thanks to a patented dynamic cylinder that can change while it rotates. This game-changing innovation allows the Muro Box to not just play different songs, but also play ENTIRE songs.
While the Muro Box is built to be a treat for one’s ears, its beauty starts with that gorgeously nostalgic design, echoing the steampunk aesthetic of the good old days. The mechanical parts of the box are surrounded by gorgeous brass detailing, sitting on top of a single-piece maple or acacia wood platform. Zinc-alloy components help create a warm, pleasant sound, while the acacia platform comes with an acoustic chamber that amplifies the music box’s sound. A glass enclosure seals the Muro Box’s internal components, preventing dust, dirt, or fidgety children from toying with the box’s delicate assemblies. Quite like the Muro Box’s sound transports you to a simpler time, its design is a hallmark of the simpler years before electronics, circuit boards, and internet connectivity.
That being said, the box itself has some seriously impressive tech underneath its hood. It’s designed to be entirely programmable, which means you can choose what to play, thanks to a variable cylinder design that can pluck on the resonating comb in a variety of ways. The box connects to an app that allows you to either choose from a library of songs, or design your own melodies using a MIDI-style interface (think Guitar Hero, but with more notes). A single-button interface lets you twist to toggle between songs in the app’s playlist (left for previous, right for next), and pressing the button toggles the play/pause feature. If you’re looking to push the Muro Box to its absolute limit, a MIDI port on the back lets you connect your Muro Box to a synth or a laptop running a DAW, so you can play more complex melodies directly off music production software.
Most users will be more than content with running the Muro Box off its app. The vast library contains user-submitted tunes from all around the world, featuring classics, latest hits, and even local/regional tunes. Pick a tune and the box begins emitting a gentle whirr that’s punctuated by the melodious clinks of the cylinder’s studs hitting the resonating comb. The Muro Box’s different variants come with single, double, and quadruple-comb arrangements, allowing you to play simple tunes or even incredibly layered musical compositions.
The Muro Box comes in three variants, ranging from simple to complex. The catalog starts with the N20 Lite, a redesign of the company’s first N20 music box from back in 2020. The N20 Lite comes outfitted with one 20-note music comb, limiting the number of notes you have to play with. Designed to be smaller than its siblings, it also ditches the MIDI feature for app-only control, and comes with a battery-powered design that lets you carry your music box with you, unlike the larger models that are wired.
The next step in the Muro Box journey is the N40 Standard, with two 20-note combs, giving it a total of 40 notes. This allows the N40 to cover more notes and more octaves, allowing you to play more complicated songs with a lower baseline and upper melody. The final music box in the series is the N40 Sublime, a more complex version of its standard sibling with four 20-note combs instead of two. However, instead of offering 80 different notes, it sticks to 40 notes, but has duplicates for each note. This makes each individual note sound richer as it’s played twice, creating more resonance. The phenomenon is called Sublime Harmonizing, and the best way to understand the difference is to think of a solo singer versus a choir.
Both the N40 variants come with a DIN 5 and USB-C MIDI input, and there’s even a 6.5mm (1/4 inch) audio output with a transducer pickup system. The N40 Standard comes with a Maple box, but you can upgrade to the high-quality Acacia for an extra $90. The N40 Sublime, on the other hand, is outfitted with the acacia-wood box and even has a laser-engraved metal plaque that you can customize with a message of your own.
The Muro Box starts at a commendable $299 for the N20 Lite, going up to $996 for the N40 Standard or a hefty $1,826 for the N40 Sublime. It’s difficult to put a price on nostalgia but the Muro Box definitely doesn’t make things cheap! The music boxes are all made in Taiwan, and ship globally as early as December 2023.
Just go type the word AirPods into Temu or AliExpress and you’re likely to be flooded with results of earphones that look exactly like the AirPods, but most likely are just counterfeits. The AirPods, more than being wireless earphones, are a fashion and social statement. Everyone craves being seen wearing them, and that sort of crowd response doesn’t go noticed by folks sitting in factories in Shenzhen. Counterfeit AirPods can be found across an entire spectrum. Sometimes they’re just shitty $10 earpieces stuffed into an AirPod plastic shell, other times they’re so convincingly good that they even end up fooling Apple devices into pairing with them. The trick to avoiding falling for a fake is to simply ensure you’re either buying your goods directly from Apple, or a certified Apple retailer/reseller… conversely, you could do what Lumafield did by renting incredibly expensive tomography equipment to scan your products.
While I don’t endorse renting an Xray or an industrial scanner to look into your Apple gear, Lumafield’s endeavor has resulted in some wonderful findings. The company looked under the hood of a variety of Apple products, examining the difference between how real and fake ones were made. The findings reveal a lot of interesting trickery. Most of Apple’s products are engineered to perfection, but you won’t be able to say the same for a counterfeit. To cut costs, most counterfeits use unsafe parts, shoddy construction, unreliable circuitry, and even use metal pieces to mimic heaviness. Heck, sometimes they entirely miss components like some AirPods Pro cases not even having wireless charging to begin with. The point of the exercise, more than being an interesting comparison, was to highlight exactly how unsafe using some of these bogus knock-off products can be. A faulty product is the least of your worries when you think of larger implications like health hazards, exploding batteries, and gadgets being ruined by fake chargers.
Image Credits: Lumafield
CT Scans of Fake AirPods Pro: Unsafe Components, Metal Weights for Faux Heaviness
At the heart of AirPods’ convenience lies its battery technology. The authentic AirPods boast meticulously engineered button cell batteries designed for optimal power efficiency within their compact form. Counterfeit AirPods, however, use less sophisticated lithium-ion pouch cell batteries, crammed into spaces they are not designed for, potentially posing safety risks.
The disparity continues with the internal circuitry. Genuine AirPods are a marvel of miniaturization and precision engineering, featuring a combination of rigid and flexible printed circuit boards. The fakes? They’re assembled with much simpler electronics and off-the-shelf components, leading to reduced functionality and compromised sound quality.
The overall build quality also tells a tale of two products: genuine and fake. In some fakes, wireless charging is entirely absent, and others lack the necessary magnets for proper charging. Counterfeit AirPods even use internal weights to mimic the heft of the original, a deceptive tactic compensating for poorer materials and less functionality.
Comparing Real vs. Fake MagSafe 2 Power Adapters for MacBook
The differences aren’t limited to AirPods alone. Lumafield’s CT scans of the MagSafe 2 Power Adapter revealed a sophisticated power management system in the genuine Apple charger, absent in the counterfeit. The fake chargers lack the safety and longevity features of Apple’s design, raising performance and safety concerns.
Moreover, the heat sinks in the chargers differ significantly. Apple’s genuine charger uses a thin, complex heat sink, whereas the counterfeit opts for a heavier but simpler design. This difference could lead to dangerous hot spots in the counterfeit charger.
In the end, it’s a classic case of “you get what you pay for.” Those tempting savings might come at the cost of quality and safety. Opting for a counterfeit product isn’t just about saving costs; it’s about compromising on reliability and peace of mind. So next time you’re tempted by a too-good-to-be-true deal on AirPods, remember: the devil is in the details, and sometimes, those details are hidden deep inside.
