Author Archives: Sarang Sheth

MagSafe Breadboard Turns Your iPhone Into a Circuit Prototyping Lab

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Show me another MagSafe breadboard. I’ll wait. Kevin Yang’s Commi Board is the only one, and that alone tells you something about how design students occasionally see opportunities that entire industries miss. The engineering is smarter than it looks: instead of embedding a full microcontroller and battery into a phone accessory, Yang uses GPIO communication to let your smartphone handle the processing. Your phone already has more power than an Arduino Mega, better connectivity than most dev boards, and a screen you actually want to look at. Commi Board just provides the physical interface for components and the software to make it work. You get four programming methods ranging from conversational AI to a proper IDE, real-time circuit validation, and a small display that shows execution status. Dimensions are tight: 62mm by 98mm when installed, with the board itself at 62mm by 82mm when detached.

The color scheme gives strong Flipper Zero vibes, but there’s a key difference between that infamous pen-testing tool and this humble breadboard. Flipper wants to be everything: NFC reader, IR blaster, sub-GHz radio, GPIO interface, and more. Commi Board has a tighter scope and probably benefits from that focus. It’s specifically for prototyping circuits and validating code, not for pentesting your neighbor’s garage door. The modular design splits into the breadboard surface and a MagSafe mounting frame with that distinctive ring cutout for phone cameras. Everything connects through USB-C 3.2, BLE, or Bluetooth, and the cloud storage means you can start a project on your phone and pick it up later without dealing with local file management. Yang has a working theoretical PCB prototype with tested connectivity, though the full API integration is still in mockup phase. For a student project that started in June 2024, this is surprisingly far along.

Designer: Kevin Yang

Most IoT hardware tries to do everything and ends up mediocre at all of it. You get a device with its own processor, battery, screen, and connectivity stack, essentially rebuilding a worse version of the phone already in your pocket. Yang went the opposite direction. Commi Board is parasitic by design, borrowing your phone’s computational power, display, internet connection, and power management. What remains is pure interface: holes for components, GPIO pins for communication, and minimal onboard electronics to translate between physical circuits and software. This approach means lower weight, cheaper manufacturing, and no battery degradation to worry about in three years. After 3 years, swap your phone, but continue your tinkering. Sounds almost revolutionary, no?

You can tell Yang actually built and tested this thing because of how the modular split works. Sometimes you want the board magnetically stuck to your phone for portable testing. Other times you need it detached because your circuit blocks the camera or needs more space to breathe. The MagSafe frame has that circular cutout positioned exactly where iPhone camera arrays sit, which matters more than it sounds. Misalign that by a few millimeters and the magnetic connection feels sketchy. The orange border serves double duty as brand identity and a visual indicator of where the two pieces separate. Good industrial design makes functional divisions obvious without needing instruction manuals, and this pulls it off cleanly.

Four programming methods cover a wide range of experience levels, from ‘never touched circuitry in my life’ to ‘I ship builds and hardware for a living.’ Beginners can type “make an LED blink every second” and watch AI spit out working code. That builds intuition about syntax without requiring fluency first, which is how people actually learn instead of how computer science departments think they should learn. Visual block programming handles the intermediate phase where you understand logic flow but typing semicolons still feels unnatural. Puzzle-piece interfaces work surprisingly well for teaching conditionals because the physical constraints mirror logical ones. Then there’s the full IDE for anyone comfortable with text editors or shipping actual products. Most educational platforms force you to switch ecosystems as you level up, losing all your previous projects in the migration. This keeps you on the same hardware using the same project files, just changing how you communicate with the circuits.

Yang claims GPIO communication lets the phone simulate most microcontrollers, which holds up for Arduino-class applications but gets questionable under pressure. Smartphones have absurd amounts of raw compute, but they run full operating systems with schedulers and background processes that introduce latency. Blinking LEDs and reading sensors? Totally fine. Tight timing loops or bit-banging niche protocols? You’ll probably hit walls. The spec sheet lists USB-C 3.2 alongside Bluetooth and BLE, which tells me Yang ran into exactly these problems during development. USB-C handles the demanding stuff while Bluetooth covers casual wireless control. That’s the kind of tiered connectivity you see from someone who tested their assumptions and had to architect around reality.

And the Commi Board comes with cloud storage too, allowing you to save your projects/builds/experiments in a secure place that isn’t bound to your phone. Imagine the alternative – you get inspired, start wiring something up, then life happens and three weeks later you can’t remember which transistor you needed or where you saved that working code. Friction kills momentum harder than technical difficulty does. Being able to pull up a half-finished project on your phone while standing in a component aisle trying to remember your parts list solves a real problem. The project-sharing community is obviously coming next, which transforms this from a standalone product into a platform. If Yang opens the API properly for third-party development, this could turn into something way bigger than a thesis project. Right now there’s a working PCB prototype with tested connectivity, which means the core tech functions. Let’s hope Yang gets to a point where he can take this to a startup level, or even crowdfunding. I know I’d have my money ready.

The post MagSafe Breadboard Turns Your iPhone Into a Circuit Prototyping Lab first appeared on Yanko Design.

JBL’s AI Wireless Speakers Can Remove Vocals, Guitars, or Drums From Any Song While You’re Jamming

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Walk into any rehearsal space and you will see the usual suspects. A combo amp in the corner, a Bluetooth speaker on a shelf, maybe a looper pedal on the floor. Each tool has a single job. One makes your guitar louder, one plays songs, one repeats whatever you feed it. You juggle them to build something that feels like a band around you.

JBL’s BandBox concept asks a different question. What if one box could understand the music it is playing and reorganize it around you in real time. The Solo and Trio units use AI to separate vocals, guitars, and drums inside finished tracks, so you can mute, isolate, or replace parts on the fly. Suddenly the speaker is not just a playback device. It becomes the drummer who never rushes, the backing guitarist who never complains, and the invisible producer nudging you toward tighter practice.

Designer: JBL

This ability to deconstruct any song streamed via Bluetooth is the core of the BandBox experience. The AI stem processing happens locally, inside the unit, without needing an internet connection or a cloud service. You can pull up a track, instantly mute the original guitar part, and then step in to play it yourself over the remaining bass, drums, and vocals. This is a fundamental shift in how musicians can practice. Instead of fighting for space in a dense mix, you create a pocket for yourself, turning passive listening into an interactive rehearsal.

The whole system is self-contained, designed to work straight out of the box without a pile of extra gear. Both models come equipped with a selection of built-in amplifier models and effects, so you can shape your tone directly on the unit. Essentials like a tuner and a looper are also integrated, which streamlines the creative process. You can lay down a rhythm part, loop it, and then practice soloing over it without ever touching an external pedal. It is this thoughtful integration that makes the BandBox feel less like a speaker and more like a complete, portable music-making environment.

The BandBox Solo is the most focused version of this idea, built for the individual. It is a compact, easily carried device with a single combo input that accepts either a guitar or a microphone. This makes it an obvious choice for singer-songwriters or any musician practicing alone. The form factor is all about convenience, with a solid build and a top-mounted handle. A battery life of around six hours means you could take it to a park for an afternoon busking session or just move it around the house without being tethered to a wall outlet. It is a self-sufficient creative station in a small package.

When practice involves more than one person, the BandBox Trio provides the necessary expansion. It is built on the same AI-powered platform but scales up the hardware for group use. The most significant change is the inclusion of four instrument inputs, which transforms the unit into a miniature, portable PA system. A small band or a duo can plug in multiple guitars, a bass, and a microphone, all running through the same box. This is a clever solution for impromptu jam sessions, stripped-down rehearsals, or music classrooms where setting up a full mixer and multiple amps is too cumbersome.

Both units share a clean, modern design that aligns with JBL’s broader product family. The controls seem to be laid out for quick, intuitive access, a must for musicians who need to make adjustments without interrupting their flow. Connectivity extends beyond just playing music; a USB-C port allows the BandBox to double as an audio interface. You can connect it directly to a computer or tablet to record your sessions or lay down a demo, adding a layer of studio utility that makes the device even more versatile. It is not just for practice, it is for capturing the ideas that come from it.

Of course, none of this would matter if the sound was not up to par. JBL’s reputation in audio engineering creates a high expectation, and the BandBox aims to meet it by delivering a full-range sound that can handle both a dynamic instrument and a complex backing track simultaneously. The goal is to provide a clear, responsive guitar tone that cuts through, while the underlying track remains rich and detailed. This dual-functionality is key, ensuring it performs just as well as a high-quality Bluetooth speaker for casual listening as it does as a dedicated practice amp.

The JBL BandBox series has started its rollout in Southeast Asian markets, with promotions and availability already noted in the Philippines and Malaysia. A wider international release is expected to follow. While pricing will fluctuate by region, the BandBox Solo appears to be positioned competitively against other popular smart amps on the market. The Trio, with its expanded inputs and group-oriented features, will naturally sit at a higher price point, offering a unique proposition as an all-in-one portable rehearsal hub.

The post JBL’s AI Wireless Speakers Can Remove Vocals, Guitars, or Drums From Any Song While You’re Jamming first appeared on Yanko Design.

Dual vats, 14K screen, heated resin: inside Anycubic’s game-changing Photon P1 3D Printer

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Desktop resin printers usually ask a simple question: how much resolution can you afford. Anycubic’s Photon P1 adds a more interesting one: what if the same machine could handle two colors, two materials, or two entirely different jobs without claiming more room on your bench. By pairing a dual‑vat system with a high resolution 14K display and a serious Z axis, the Photon P1 feels tailored to studios that prototype daily and iterate fast. The Photon P1 also packs LighTurbo 4.0 (an advanced UV light source system) for curing developed specially by Anycubic, along with a smart heated vat that temperature-controls the resin baths, offering a kind of industrial-grade output you’d never see in other consumer 3D printers.

Central to this new approach is a cleverly engineered dual‑vat system, a feature so rare in the consumer space that it feels like a genuine novelty. Instead of a single, monolithic resin tank, the P1 offers the option of two smaller, distinct vats side by side (the default is still a single-vat version for most basic users). Hovering above them is a forked build plate, a single component with two separate printing surfaces that can operate in tandem. This architecture allows the printer to print two colors or two resin types in a single job, eliminating the need for separate runs. Its slicer supports material-specific configurations optimized for dual-vat workflows, keeping both materials stable and consistent within one print. When working with premium or engineering resins, this setup also reduces waste and helps lower overall material costs, this setup also reduces waste and helps lower overall material costs. This fundamentally changes the workflow – it effectively gives you the power of two printers, but with the synchronized precision and footprint of one. The machine is not just building an object, it is managing a production queue, all within its own chassis.

Designer: Anycubic

Click Here to Buy Now: $499 $799 (38% off). Hurry, only 31/400 left! Raised over $416,000.

This opens a fascinating playbook for designers and creators. A product designer, for instance, could prototype a remote control with a hard, rigid casing printed from standard resin in the left vat, while simultaneously printing soft, flexible buttons from a TPU‑like resin in the right vat. The result is a multi‑material prototype in a single print job, offering a far more accurate representation of a final product without the hassle of printing parts separately and assembling them later. For artists and miniature sculptors, the possibilities are just as compelling. Imagine printing a fantasy character where the main figure is rendered in an opaque grey for maximum detail, while a magical spell effect or a ghostly appendage is printed in a translucent, colored resin from the second vat. This dual‑system approach streamlines the creation of complex, multi‑part models, reducing post‑processing and painting time.

Beyond multi‑material applications, the P1 excels as a pure productivity engine. A technical studio can produce engineering-grade resin prototypes. Designers or creatives can model and produce flexible materials for complex assemblies. A small business owner running an Etsy shop for custom D&D miniatures could use it to fulfill two different orders at once, performing batch production or even dual-part workflows for maximized efficiency. This parallel workflow essentially doubles the machine’s throughput for small to medium‑sized objects, making it an incredibly efficient tool for anyone doing light production work. It transforms the printer from a single‑task device into a small‑batch manufacturing hub.

Of course, these advanced capabilities would be meaningless without a foundation of precision and reliability. Anycubic has clearly invested in the P1’s mechanical integrity, moving it out of the hobbyist category and into prosumer territory. The Z‑axis, often a weak point on budget machines, is built around an industrial‑grade ball screw and robust linear rails. This is a significant upgrade from the typical lead screw setup, translating to smoother, more consistent vertical travel. For the user, this means virtually no visible layer lines, a dramatic reduction in Z‑wobble artifacts, and exceptional repeatability, ensuring that parts designed to fit together do so with tight tolerances.

This focus on industrial‑grade components extends to the build plate itself. Instead of the usual anodized aluminum, the P1 uses a precision‑milled slab of steel. Steel’s superior rigidity and thermal stability mean the plate is less likely to warp over time, ensuring a perfectly flat and level surface for consistent first‑layer adhesion, which is critical for print success. It is a subtle but important detail that signals a commitment to long‑term reliability. This mechanical stability is the bedrock that supports the printer’s headline features.

At the heart of its imaging system is a 14K monochrome LCD. That number translates directly into breathtaking surface detail. With an extremely fine XY resolution, the P1 can reproduce microscopic textures, razor‑sharp edges, and intricate patterns that would be lost on lower‑resolution screens. For jewelry designers prototyping complex filigree or architects building scale models with fine brickwork, this level of detail is indispensable. The monochrome screen also offers the practical benefits of faster cure times and a much longer operational lifespan than the older RGB LCDs, reinforcing the P1’s role as a dependable workhorse.

The Anycubic Photon P1, therefore, is more than just the sum of its impressive parts. It represents a holistic design philosophy where each component complements the others. The high‑resolution 14K screen provides the detail, the industrial Z‑axis ensures that detail is rendered flawlessly layer after layer, and the innovative dual‑vat system leverages that quality to create more complex, more functional, and more beautiful objects with unparalleled efficiency. It is a machine that seems to understand the creative process, offering not just a tool, but a smarter way to work.

Anycubic unveiled the Photon P1 at the Formnext additive manufacturing show, with a Kickstarter campaign debuting this month to let people get their hands on the Photon P1. The retail price is set at a competitive $799, but early adopters have an opportunity to get in at a much lower early‑bird price of $499 (available for a limited period only), a figure that makes its prosumer features accessible to a much wider audience of serious creators and designers.

Click Here to Buy Now: $499 $799 (38% off). Hurry, only 31/400 left! Raised over $416,000.

The post Dual vats, 14K screen, heated resin: inside Anycubic’s game-changing Photon P1 3D Printer first appeared on Yanko Design.

Yale Engineers Created a 3D-Printed Carbon-Fiber Cello That That Never Cracks or Warps

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Traditional wooden cellos and violins are exquisite but fragile. They crack in dry weather, warp in humidity, and require constant environmental monitoring. A professional instrument can cost tens of thousands of dollars, yet one bad flight or unexpected temperature change can cause irreversible damage. This vulnerability has long kept quality instruments out of reach for traveling musicians, students in varied climates, and performers who need reliability above all else.

Forte3D’s answer combines 3D printing technology with carbon fiber construction. The team, led by Yale student Elijah Lee and co-founder Alfred Goodrich, created instruments with flat carbon fiber panels and 3D printed polymer components that maintain their shape regardless of environmental conditions. The sound quality matches traditional instruments because the team used computer-aided design to control every structural element and dial in the acoustics precisely. These instruments also include adjustable string heights and smooth tuning mechanisms, making them accessible for players at different skill levels.

Designer: Forte3D

The project originated from a practical challenge. Lee’s orchestra director asked if he could use his early 3D printing skills to design a cello that was strong, low cost, and easy for more people to use. Rather than simply replicating traditional designs in new materials, Lee and Goodrich rethought the entire structure. They tested different thicknesses and configurations using computer-aided design tools, discovering they could shape the sound in more controlled ways than traditional luthiers. This digital precision allowed them to dial in the acoustics by controlling every part of the structure.

The final design breaks from tradition in significant ways. The top and back panels are made from carbon fiber and shaped as flat and concave surfaces rather than carved forms. The ribs and neck come from 3D printed polymer material. However, certain classical elements remain unchanged because they work perfectly as they are. The sound post, fingerboard, and bridge are still made using traditional methods and materials, creating a hybrid that respects acoustic principles while embracing modern durability.

Carbon fiber’s core advantage is its stability. Unlike wood, which expands and contracts with atmospheric changes, carbon fiber maintains its dimensions regardless of humidity or temperature. This means musicians can bring their instruments to outdoor performances, different climates, or even extreme environments without worrying about structural damage. The material also eliminates the need for specialized maintenance products. A simple cloth and common household cleaners are sufficient to keep these instruments in excellent condition.

Forte3D also addressed playing comfort, which directly affects technique and long-term health. When strings sit too high or too low, musicians experience hand pain and their personal technique becomes harder to execute. The team built in an adjustable string height system that lets each player move the strings up or down using a small tool that comes with the instrument. The cello also includes smoothly moving tuning pegs and tools for stopping wolf tones, which are unwanted resonances that plague certain notes on string instruments. A printed guide ensures the bridge sits in the correct position, and all these design elements work together to support both playing comfort and sound production.

The violin version carries the same philosophy. Players can adjust string height to match their needs, and the body features a hole at the back to support sound flow. Like the cello, it ships with strings and tuning pegs designed for easier tuning. Both instruments handle weather changes and physical bumps that would damage wooden counterparts. For the Forte3D team, these instruments are not about making a style statement. They focus on what musicians actually need, which means less worry about damage, easier carrying, simpler care, and lower cost. The result is an instrument that honors centuries of acoustic development while finally freeing musicians from the constraints that wood has always imposed.

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Inception’s Anti-Gravity Hallway Fight Scene Just Got Rebuilt in 2,395 LEGO Bricks

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In 2010, Christopher Nolan delivered one of cinema’s most unforgettable sequences: a zero-gravity hallway fight that defied physics and redefined practical effects. The scene from Inception featured Joseph Gordon-Levitt battling an opponent while their dreamworld corridor rotated around them, mirroring a van tumbling down a hill in another layer of reality. Nolan’s commitment to practical filmmaking led him to construct a massive rotating set where actors performed the entire sequence for real, creating what many consider a masterclass in tactile, analog special effects.

Now, a LEGO builder known as AboveBricks180 has recreated that iconic moment in brick form, complete with a working rotation mechanism. The 2,395-piece MOC (My Own Creation) doesn’t just capture the aesthetic of the hotel hallway. It brings the scene to life with a hand-crank system that lets you physically rotate the corridor, repositioning the minifigures mid-fight just like in the film. Currently seeking support on LEGO Ideas with 770 backers and counting, this build represents both technical ambition and genuine love for one of modern cinema’s most inventive sequences.

Designer: AboveBricks180

Building a stable rotating mechanism in LEGO that can support its own weight while maintaining structural integrity across multiple axes is legitimately difficult (as Nolan will tell you from larger-scale real-life experience). You’re essentially creating a drum that needs to spin smoothly without the whole thing collapsing or jamming, all while keeping minifigures positioned on surfaces that become walls, then ceiling, then floor. AboveBricks180 solved this with a hand-crank lever mounted at the back, connecting to the cylindrical hallway section through what appears to be a geared system housed in that dark grey mechanical compartment visible in the side views. The entire assembly sits on a display base that provides both stability and theatrical presence, with the “INCEPTION” nameplate doing some heavy lifting in terms of presentation. Fifteen years after the film’s release and people are still building elaborate tributes to a single three-minute sequence, which tells you something about how deeply that hallway fight embedded itself in pop culture consciousness.

Look at the color work and interior detailing. The film’s hotel corridor had this specific warm brown and tan aesthetic, almost Art Deco in its geometric simplicity, and this MOC captures it down to the wall sconces with their cream-colored light elements, the vertical brown slat work on the ceiling, the white ceiling panels, the door frames. Strip away the movie-accurate design work and you’re left with a clever mechanical toy. Add in the precise replication of Nolan’s set design and suddenly you have something that feels like it belongs in the film’s universe. The builder used Bricklink Studio for the design work, which tracks given the complexity involved. You can’t eyeball 2,395 pieces and hope for the best.

Turn that crank and watch the hallway rotate while Arthur and his opponent stay locked in their fighting poses. You can stage the scene at any angle you want, recreating different moments from the sequence. Arthur hanging from what’s now the ceiling? Rotate. Both grappling on the floor as it becomes a wall? Keep turning. This interactivity transforms the build from static sculpture into something closer to a kinetic toy, which feels appropriate given LEGO’s roots as a play system rather than just a modeling medium. Too many Ideas submissions lately treat LEGO as purely an artistic medium for adults, forgetting that the best sets balance display appeal with actual functionality. This one remembers.

Getting to 10,000 supporters on the Ideas platform means LEGO reviews it for potential production. Right now this sits at 770 with 403 days remaining, which feels achievable given Inception’s enduring cultural footprint. The rotating hallway scene specifically has staying power because it represents practical filmmaking at its most ambitious, the kind of thing that makes people go “wait, they actually built that?” when they learn no CGI was involved. AboveBricks180 clearly understands this, building something that honors both Nolan’s commitment to physical effects and the scene’s place in modern cinema history. Whether LEGO greenlights this for production or it remains a fan creation, the MOC succeeds at translating one medium’s impossible physics into another’s playful reality. You spin a crank and gravity shifts. Dreams feel real while we’re in them, and apparently so do LEGO sets when someone builds them with this much care. Vote for the build on the LEGO Ideas website here.

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How an RC Pilot Built the Most Technically Accurate LEGO Plane You’ve Seen

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Most LEGO builders start with the instructions. Simons_Studio started with experience building actual radio-controlled aircraft, then wondered if the same principles could work with plastic bricks. The answer turned out to be yes, and in some ways, LEGO proved easier since every connection stays perfectly aligned without adjustment.

The Red Bull Extra Aerobatic Plane showcases this aviation-first approach to LEGO building. Rather than simply creating a brick shell shaped like an airplane, the builder constructed an actual airframe using proper longitudinal bracing and wing structures. At just under 1,000 pieces and 1/14 scale, this model balances impressive size with buildable complexity, making it a compelling candidate for LEGO’s official product lineup.

Designer: Simons_Studio

Lowkey there’s something fascinating about watching someone apply real engineering knowledge to a toy medium that makes you reconsider what that medium can do. Simons_Studio brought RC aircraft building experience to this Red Bull Extra, which explains why the fuselage tapers convincingly instead of looking like stacked rectangles trying their best. LEGO fights you on curves. The plastic wants right angles, wants to stack in predictable increments, wants to betray its modular origins at every turn. That rear fuselage section apparently took multiple attempts and different techniques before it worked, but the final result flows from cockpit to tail without those telltale bumps where one building method gives up and another takes over. You can see it in the profile shots, how the dark grey maintains its line.

The wings use actual longerons running lengthwise with plates acting as structural spars and ribs. If that sounds excessive for a display model, consider that this approach gives the wings proper internal geometry instead of being solid brick masses. Real aircraft wings are essentially fabric or metal stretched over a skeleton, and replicating that logic in LEGO means the proportions naturally fall into place. The thickness-to-chord ratio looks right because the structure underneath enforces it. It’s the difference between sculpting something to look like a wing versus building something that is fundamentally wing-shaped, even if it’ll never see airflow.

The Red Bull livery stretches across 48 centimeters of fuselage and a 55-centimeter wingspan, which puts this squarely in the display model category rather than something you’d swoosh around the living room. Those yellow wing tips and lightning bolt tail graphics capture the brand’s energy without sliding into corporate sponsorship territory. The color blocking works because it follows the aircraft’s actual lines instead of fighting them. At 1/14 scale with just under 1,000 pieces, this sits in an interesting space for LEGO Ideas submissions. Complex enough to justify the price point an official set would command, accessible enough that someone with intermediate building experience could tackle it over a weekend.

Now the Lycoming O-480 engine sitting behind that propeller deserves its own conversation. This is a six-cylinder horizontally-opposed powerplant, the kind you’d find in actual Extra aerobatic aircraft. Simons_Studio modeled it with a blue crankcase, white cylinder heads complete with cooling fins, and accessories in red and yellow positioned where they’d actually sit on the real thing. We’re talking about replicating individual cooling fins on cylinders, the sort of detail that lives in shadow and could easily be skipped. But then there’s the exhaust system, which uses custom-bent chrome LEGO bars to route individual pipes away from each cylinder in those distinctive curves. On a real Extra, this exhaust setup does real work during airshows, mixing smoke oil with hot gases to generate colored trails. Getting those curves right means someone heated LEGO bars and shaped them by hand, which is definitely off-label use of the parts.

That exhaust detailing matters beyond aesthetics. Anyone who’s spent time at airshows can spot an Extra’s exhaust configuration from the flight line, and those curves are part of the aircraft’s visual signature. Replicating them accurately signals that this build understands its subject matter at a level beyond “red and blue plane with wings.” The cockpit continues this pattern with a full instrument panel mimicking actual Extra avionics layouts, modern digital displays below representing GPS navigation systems, and proper canopy framing with curved transparency. Most LEGO aircraft put a seat in there and move on. This one recognizes that aerobatic pilots experience serious g-forces in that space and the cockpit deserves proportional attention to the exterior.

LEGO’s been oddly conservative with aircraft in their lineup. Military stuff runs into guideline issues around weapons and warfare, which eliminates a huge chunk of aviation history from consideration. But civilian aircraft don’t generate the same enthusiasm outside of specific niches, and planes generally demand more sophisticated building techniques than cars or buildings. This Extra threads through that narrow gap as a legitimate performance aircraft with name recognition that happens to be completely civilian.

LEGO Ideas MOCs (My Own Creations) needs 10,000 supporters for a project to get reviewed, and this one’s sitting at 361 with over a year to go. The platform’s algorithm favors early momentum, so that’s a concerning gap. LEGO’s been bizarrely stingy with aircraft sets, partly because military guidelines eliminate a huge chunk of aviation history, partly because planes demand building techniques that scare off casual customers. This Extra threads a narrow path: civilian aircraft with legitimate performance credentials, complex enough for adult builders but not so esoteric that it lacks mainstream appeal. Whether it hits that supporter threshold depends on whether aviation nerds and LEGO enthusiasts overlap enough to create critical mass. The build quality deserves it. The question is whether 9,639 more people will care. If you consider yourself a part of that demographic, head down to the LEGO Ideas website and cast your vote for this build!

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Anicorn x PlayStation’s $780 Mechanical Watch Is The Wildest 30th Anniversary Flex Yet

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Anicorn and Sony just dropped a fully mechanical PlayStation watch, and the fact that it exists at all feels like a minor miracle in a market drowning in lazy licensed quartz. Limited to 300 numbered pieces and priced at $780, the PlayStation 30th Anniversary watch launches December 19th with a Miyota automatic movement, a custom rotor, and enough thoughtful design touches to justify the “limited edition” label beyond artificial scarcity. The caseback alone, with its exhibition window and engraved numbering, shows more restraint and craft than most gaming collabs bother with.

What makes this interesting beyond the usual merch cycle is how seriously they treated the design language. The △○×□ symbols sit at 12, 3, 6, and 9 o’clock as three-dimensional applied elements, not flat prints. The PlayStation logo occupies a raised central medallion, and the hands are modeled after the original controller’s Start and Select buttons, which is the kind of nerdy detail that separates fan service from actual design work. The case mirrors the faceted geometry of the 1994 console hardware, finished in that unmistakable matte grey, and the rubber strap carries the button symbols all the way down. It feels like someone actually cared about making this coherent as an object of sheer nostalgia, not just profitable as a limited drop.

Designer: Anicorn

Miyota movements get dismissed sometimes by the Swiss snob crowd, but here’s the thing: they’re reliable, serviceable by basically any competent watchmaker, and when decorated properly, they do the job without drama. The rotor visible through the exhibition caseback gets custom perforation work that echoes disc drive aesthetics, which is a subtle touch that could have easily been skipped in favor of a plain rotor with a logo slapped on. That kind of restraint shows up throughout the design, actually. The dial could have been a chaotic mess of branding and colors, but instead it uses that soft grey finish with selective pops of color on the applied symbols. Legibility takes a backseat to theme, sure, but you buy a watch shaped like a PS1 controller for the vibe, not to check train schedules.

Pay special attention to the case shape. Those faceted, near-octagonal edges are a direct reference to the original PlayStation’s industrial design language, which was all hard angles and serious electronics aesthetics back when consoles still tried to look like they belonged in an A/V rack. Anicorn could have gone with a standard round case and called it a day, but the geometric approach makes the whole thing feel intentional rather than opportunistic. The integrated strap design, with that all-over micro-print of controller symbols, reinforces the “this is a device” impression rather than trying to split the difference between jewelry and gadget. You wear this and people either get it immediately or think you’re wearing some kind of fitness tracker. There’s no middle ground, which is exactly how it should be.

Three hundred pieces worldwide means this will sell out in minutes, probably to a mix of serious PlayStation collectors who still keep mint PS1 longboxes and watch nerds who appreciate limited mechanical releases with actual design thought behind them. The memory card-shaped authenticity cards included in the packaging are pure fan service, but they work because they commit to the bit completely. At $780, you’re paying for scarcity, licensing, and that Miyota movement wrapped in very specific nostalgia. I can almost hear the PS booting sound as I look at this watch! Don’t lie, I’m sure you can too.

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Citroën’s ELO Concept Car Transforms Into a Mobile Camp With Inflatable Beds and Built-In Power

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French automaker Citroën just unveiled a concept that treats your car like a Swiss Army knife for modern nomads. The ELO is an electric vehicle that doubles as a bedroom, triples as an office, and moonlights as a power station. We’ve seen plenty of concepts that promise versatility, but most end up being vaporware with a nice press kit. This one actually has me convinced someone at Citroën has spent time living out of their car.

Two inflatable mattresses live in the rear cargo area, and they deploy using the car’s built-in compressed air system. You’re not wrestling with a manual pump or some finicky electric one you bought off Amazon. The mattresses fill the entire rear space to create an actual sleeping area for two adults. The roof slides open so you can stargaze without getting eaten alive by mosquitos, and the side lamps flip into bedside light mode. There’s a projector mounted inside with a pull-out screen for outdoor movies. Citroën partnered with Decathlon for the storage systems, which explains why everything feels less “auto show prop” and more “gear you’d actually use.”

Designer: Citroën

The exterior looks like Citroën told their designers to prioritize function over flash and actually meant it. The body is boxy and van-like, painted in a bold coral-orange that screams “adventure vehicle” without trying too hard. Those honeycomb wheel covers aren’t just styling exercises – they integrate the Citroën chevron logo and protect the wheels while looking distinctive. The front is minimalist with vertical LED strips flanking the badge and a textured grille pattern that’s more utilitarian than aggressive. Large glass surfaces dominate, including that massive windscreen and the sliding panoramic roof section. The doors open wide with no center pillar, making entry and exit genuinely easy instead of the usual concept car gymnastics. Above each wheel arch sits a flat platform for storing small items when parked – the photos show pétanque balls, because of course the French put boules storage on their concept car. The proportions are short and tall, maximizing interior volume without making the thing a nightmare to park in European cities.

The driver sits in the center of the front row instead of off to one side. This isn’t some McLaren F1 tribute. It’s purely functional, giving you an unobstructed view through what is genuinely one of the largest windscreens I’ve seen on a vehicle this size. The steering wheel has a single spoke design with a massive opening in the middle, and Citroën ditched the traditional dashboard entirely. Everything projects onto a transparent strip across the windscreen. Two joystick controls sit on the wheel within easy reach of your thumbs. The interface is stripped down because this car needs to work when you’re tired, when you’re working, and when you’re just trying to get somewhere.

Modularity usually means “kind of adaptable if you spend twenty minutes reconfiguring things.” Not here. The second row has three identical seats that fold flat and detach completely. Use them as camp chairs. Two extra seats hide under the side seats, so you can haul six people when needed. Even with all six seats up, there’s cargo space left over. The driver’s seat spins 180 degrees to face backward. A work table folds out from under the center seat in the second row. If you forgot your laptop, the projection system works for video calls. The wheel arches have cutouts that hold phones and headphones.

Expanded polypropylene keeps weight down and recycles easily. Same stuff they use in bike helmets. Felt sections come from recycled fabric scraps from other Citroën projects. The second-row seats have water and wear-resistant covers because obviously you’re going to trash them. The exterior stays simple with huge windows and wide doors that have no center pillar. Front and rear bumpers are identical to reduce parts count.

Power options go beyond the drive battery. The V2L system lets you run speakers, charge devices, or power cooking equipment. A built-in compressor handles paddleboards, bike tires, whatever needs air. Hooks on all four doors mount a large awning for covered outdoor space. You could genuinely set up a small basecamp without bringing any extra equipment.

Citroën calls this a mobility study, which is corporate speak for “we’re not committing to production yet.” But unlike most concepts that feel like design school fever dreams, the ELO solves real problems for people who work remotely, chase outdoor activities, or just refuse to stay in one place. It’s compact enough for cities but functional enough for extended trips. Whether this becomes a real product or just influences future designs, someone finally built a car for people whose home, office, and garage are increasingly the same place.

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Midea Built A Dr. Strange-inspired Multi-Arm Robot… Humanity Is Absolutely Cooked

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There is a moment in Infinity War where Doctor Strange fans out into a halo of spectral arms and every animator in the room probably high fived. Midea’s new Miro U looks like someone freeze framed that shot, printed it, and walked it down the hall to the robotics lab with the caption “do this, but for factories.” Six coordinated arms, a torso that feels almost cloaked, a wheeled base that spins 360 degrees in place, it reads less like industrial equipment and more like a concept sheet that escaped ArtStation. Except this thing is heading to a washing machine plant in Wuxi, with a target of boosting line changeover efficiency by about 30 percent according to Midea’s own numbers. The visual language screams sorcerer, the job description says production engineer.

You can tell a lot about a robot from what its designers chose to sacrifice. Miro U trades the prestige of bipedal walking for a wheel leg base that is brutally honest about factory floors. No stairs, no urban parkour, just flat concrete and tight aisles that reward stability and turning radius over photogenic gait. It also trades the polite two arm humanoid silhouette for six bionic arms that Midea describes as high precision and flexibly controlled, coordinated around a central spine like a mechanical mandala. That is a very specific bet on parallelism. If you care about line changeovers and modular cells, you want one body that can grab tools, fixtures, and parts at the same time without waiting for someone else to show up.

Designer: Midea

There is a design honesty here that I find refreshing. Most humanoid projects in the West are in a beauty contest with the human form. Smooth faces, leggy proportions, carefully choreographed walking demos, everything framed around the idea that “this could stand where a worker stands.” Miro U walks away from that stage and heads for the backstage rigging. Six arms mean it behaves less like a single worker and more like a compact crew. One pair can hold a housing, another can swap a jig, the remaining arms can manage cables or safety barriers. The silhouette is chaotic on purpose because the workflow is chaotic and the robot is supposed to absorb that complexity.

The numbers around it are still pretty thin, which is typical at this stage, but the broad strokes are telling. Third generation in Midea’s humanoid line, which means they have already burned through at least two iterations before this one hit the news cycle. Fully self developed tech stack, from motion control to the six arm coordination, which matters if you care about long term tuning in real factories rather than trade show floors. Scheduled deployment at the Wuxi washing machine plant this month, following an earlier wheeled humanoid that has been working in Jingzhou since August. This is not a lab mascot. This is a product being dogfooded on a line that actually has throughput targets.

The superhero resemblance is more than a meme hook. Superhero bodies are about exaggerated affordances. Extra limbs, extra reach, extra context switching. Doctor Strange with a ring of arms is a visual metaphor for parallel spellcasting. Miro U with six arms is a visual metaphor for parallel operations on a line that refuses to sit still. Factories that build multiple SKUs on shared equipment live and die by how quickly they can tear down and rebuild a station for the next run. A robot that can reposition fixtures, pull in new tools, and handle parts without waiting for a human crew starts to look less like a novelty and more like a new species of line technician.

You can also read Miro U as a quiet critique of the “humanoid or bust” hype. The question is not whether robots can walk like us, but whether they can inhabit the work in a useful way. Midea is a manufacturer first, and that shows. They do not need a robot that can walk out of the factory and hail a cab. They need something that can survive three shifts a day, roll between modules, and treat the shop floor like a mutable level layout. The wheel base, the vertical lifting, the 360 degree in place rotation, all of that is a love letter to cramped industrial layouts rather than glossy demo stages.

There is also a cultural angle that I cannot ignore. This is a Chinese appliance giant that bought KUKA in 2017 and has been quietly building a robotics stack while the rest of the world argued about whether Tesla’s Optimus would ever fold a shirt. Now they roll out a six arm sorcerer for factories and talk openly about large scale deployment of humanoids across industrial and commercial spaces. Whether Miro U itself becomes a platform or a stepping stone, it signals an attitude. The factory is not a place where you hide robots in cages anymore. It is a stage where body plans are fair game.

Does that mean humanity is cooked. No. It means the shape of “a worker” is starting to fork more visibly. On one branch, you have the leggy, two arm humanoids chasing a one to one replacement fantasy. On another, you now have creatures like Miro U, multi arm, wheeled, unapologetically weird, tuned for specific forms of chaos. The fear response is predictable, but the more interesting reaction is curiosity. If this is what a robot body looks like when you stop caring whether it resembles us, what other silhouettes are still on the cutting room floor.

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TWS Earbuds With Built-In Cameras Puts ChatGPT’s AI Capabilities In Your Ears

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Everyone is racing to build the next great AI gadget. Some companies are betting on smartglasses, others on pins and pocket companions. All of them promise an assistant that can see, hear, and understand the world around you. Very few ask a simpler question. What if the smartest AI hardware is just a better pair of earbuds?

This concept imagines TWS earbuds with a twist. Each bud carries an extra stem with a built in camera, positioned close to your natural line of sight. Paired with ChatGPT, those lenses become a constant visual feed for an assistant that lives in your ears. It can read menus, interpret signs, describe scenes, and guide you through a city without a screen. The form factor stays familiar, the capabilities feel new. If OpenAI wants a hardware foothold, this is the kind of product that could make AI feel less like a demo and more like a daily habit. Here’s why a camera in your ear might beat a camera on your face.

Designer: Emil Lukas

The industrial design has a sort of sci fi inhaler vibe that I weirdly like. The lens sits at the end of the stem like a tiny action cam, surrounded by a ring that doubles as a visual accent. It looks deliberate rather than tacked on, which matters when you are literally hanging optics off your head. The colored shells and translucent tips keep it playful enough that it still reads as audio gear first, camera second.

The cutaway render looks genuinely fascinating. You can see a proper lens stack, a sensor, and a compact board that would likely host an ISP and Bluetooth SoC. That is a lot of silicon inside something that still has to fit a driver, battery, microphones, and antennas. Realistically, any heavy lifting for vision and language goes straight to the phone and then to the cloud. On device compute at that scale would murder both battery and comfort.

All that visual data has to be processed somewhere, and it is not happening inside the earbud. On-device processing for GPT-4 level vision would turn your ear canal into a hotplate. This means the buds are basically streaming video to your phone for the heavy lifting. That introduces latency. A 200 millisecond delay is one thing; a two second lag is another. People tolerate waiting for a chatbot response at their desk. They will absolutely not tolerate that delay when they ask their “AI eyes” a simple question like “which gate am I at?”

Then there is the battery life, which is the elephant in the room. Standard TWS buds manage around five to seven hours of audio playback. Adding a camera, an image signal processor, and a constant radio transmission for video will absolutely demolish that runtime. Camera-equipped wearables like the Ray-Ban Meta glasses get about four hours of mixed use, and those have significantly more volume to pack in batteries. These concept buds look bulky, but they are still tiny compared to a pair of frames.

The practical result is that these would not be all-day companions in their current form. You are likely looking at two or three hours of real-world use before they are completely dead, and that is being generous. This works for specific, short-term tasks, like navigating a museum or getting through an airport. It completely breaks the established user behavior of having earbuds that last through a full workday of calls and music. The utility would have to be incredibly high to justify that kind of battery trade-off.

From a social perspective, the design is surprisingly clever. Smartglasses failed partly because the forward-facing camera made everyone around you feel like they were being recorded. An earbud camera might just sneak under the radar. People are already accustomed to stems sticking out of ears, so this form factor could easily be mistaken for a quirky design choice rather than a surveillance device. It is less overtly aggressive than a lens pointed from the bridge of your nose, which could lower social friction considerably.

The cynical part of me wonders about the field of view. Ear level is better than chest level, but your ears do not track your gaze. If you are looking down at your phone while walking, those cameras are still pointed forward at the horizon. You would need either a very wide angle lens, which introduces distortion and eats processing power for correction, or you would need to train yourself to move your whole head like you are wearing a VR headset. Neither is ideal, but both are solvable with enough iteration. What you get in return is an AI that can actually participate in your environment instead of waiting for you to pull out your phone and aim it at something. That shift from reactive to ambient is the entire value proposition, and it only works if the cameras are always positioned and always ready.

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