Author Archives: Sarang Sheth

When Data Says No And Your Gut Says Go: What Designers Can Learn From Ti Chang

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Design Mindset, Yanko Design’s weekly podcast powered by KeyShot, is quickly becoming a space where designers unpack how ideas actually move from gut feeling to shipped product. Episode 13 zeroes in on something every creative feels but rarely names clearly: that inner voice that pulls you toward a risky idea long before the data looks friendly. Host Radhika Singh calls it “that mysterious inner voice that guides our best work,” the sensation when “data says one thing but something deeper says let’s try something else instead.” A new episode drops every week, and this one sits right at the intersection of intuition, taboo, and cultural change.

This time, Radhika speaks with industrial designer and entrepreneur Ti Chang, Co Founder and Chief Design Officer at CRAVE, the San Francisco company behind design led vibrators and “pleasure jewelry” for women. Ti has spent her career trusting her creative compass in one of the most stigmatized consumer categories. From Duet, an early crowdfunded USB rechargeable vibrator, to necklaces that double as vibrators, she keeps making moves that look commercially reckless on paper and then quietly create new product categories. The episode becomes a compact playbook for using intuition without abandoning rigor.

Download your Free Trial of KeyShot Here

Trusting your inner compass when no one else sees it

Ti does not treat intuition as a vague vibe. It is the core of how she decides what to make. “Intuition is something that have guided me throughout my process,” she says. Her first filter is simple: if a concept does not resonate deeply with her, it is unlikely to resonate with others. “If you follow your intuition to create something that resonates with you, there’s a much higher chance that you’ll resonate with somebody else.” She borrows that framing from Rick Rubin’s The Creative Act, but applies it in a very concrete way to industrial design.

Her career choices follow a three part test. “I’ve been able to find something that serves people and that I’m interested in and I have the skill set to do, and the marriage of these three is what has allowed me to I think have a quite a fulfilling life so far.” Intuition, for her, is not anti research. It is what tells you which questions to ask, which users to serve, and which ideas deserve the grind of engineering and validation. When Radhika asks what trusting that compass feels like, Ti is blunt: “It feels scary. It feels scary and it feels isolating because you’re the only person who sees it and nobody else quite understands it. And so for a long time, you’re going to just be in a scary kind of alone, a lonely spot.” Being early, she suggests, comes with that loneliness baked in.

Nudging culture from the middle, not the extremes

Designing for intimate wellness means walking a tightrope between too safe and too provocative. Ti describes her job as knowing her “playground.” On one edge are clinical, anonymous forms that keep taboos intact. On the other are objects so polarizing that they scare off the very people she wants to reach. Her goal is to live in the middle, where aesthetics are aspirational enough to move culture, but digestible enough that people actually buy and use them.

“You want to be able to nudge people along, bring them along with an aesthetic that they find acceptable and that they can digest, while all the while pushing, you know, aspirational and also creating room for a little more edginess, you know, without completely polarizing them.” She is clear about the commercial reality too. “If I created something that was just so polarizing, I’m sorry, like I would probably sell three a year, you know?” That is not just bad business, it is misaligned with her mission. “I know my playground. I know what will work for the agenda that I am trying to help people have a more open conversation about pleasure.” That agenda shapes choices around materials, silhouettes, and how proudly a product can sit on a bedside table without broadcasting its function.

Duet and pleasure jewelry, when “crazy” ideas become categories

CRAVE’s Duet is a neat case study in how Ti blends intuition with hard engineering. Long before USB everything became standard, she and her team asked why intimate products still relied on disposable batteries and clumsy chargers. The answer became a slim metal vibrator that plugged directly into a USB port, with the motor and electronics separated for safety and durability. This was 2008, pre Kickstarter playbook. Ti self funded prototypes, sourced metal work in China, and took early units to an adult products trade show. Instead of over indexing on focus groups, she watched buyer behavior. Immediate purchase orders were her market validation that the gut call was reading the culture correctly.

If Duet was bold, pleasure jewelry was the move that really made people think she had lost it. In the rapid fire round, when Radhika asks for “one decision you made on pure intuition that everyone thought was crazy,” Ti answers instantly: “Pleasure jewelry.” Turning necklaces and bracelets into fully functional vibrators that can be worn in public contradicted every convention in the category. Investors struggled to imagine why anyone would want their vibrator around their neck. Only once the pieces existed, and early adopters responded emotionally, did the idea begin to make sense to the market. Ti is careful not to claim that empowerment lives in the object. She rejects the notion that women must wear pleasure jewelry to feel powerful, framing empowerment as internal, with products as optional tools that some people find resonant and others simply do not.

Selling intuition to data driven stakeholders

A big chunk of value in this episode lies in how Ti translates a private hunch into something investors, engineers, and retailers can actually work with. Stakeholders do not fund “I have a feeling.” They fund roadmaps and artifacts. Visualization tools sit at the center of that bridge. KeyShot, the episode’s sponsor, is part of her daily workflow, letting her explore materials, textures, and finishes in real time. Those renders are not just for pitch decks. They help her test her own instinctive reaction to an object’s presence. In intimate categories, she often finds those visceral responses more useful than sanitized focus group quotes.

At the same time, she respects data enough to let it overrule her when the stakes are commercial rather than artistic. She laughs about being wrong on colors. “I’ve seen myself thinking like this color is going to be amazing. I’ve been wrong many times. And when you’re wrong with something as, like, in product, when it comes to color, you’re stuck with a lot of inventory and you do not want that. That is not good for business.” In a hypothetical startup challenge, where user testing clearly favors a more clinical aesthetic over a playful one the designer loves, she is clear. If this is not an art project, you ship what users are ready for. Yet she refuses to let numbers become the only voice. Asked what designers who only trust data are missing, her answer is sharp and short: “Missing their heart and soul.”

Prototyping life, not just products

Later in the conversation, Ti talks about being diagnosed with ADHD and autism as an adult. Hyperfocus on topics like gender equality, pleasure activism, and emotional design has been a quiet engine behind her work, letting her stay with difficult ideas long after others would have moved on. The flip side is that when she is not deeply interested, progress stalls. Instead of fighting this, she now uses it as part of her compass, choosing projects she knows she can stay obsessed with for years.

Underneath all the specifics of sex tech and crowdfunding, the operating system stays the same. When you cannot see the full path, you prototype. Ti treats “try, learn, iterate” as both a design tactic and a way to navigate an unconventional career. When Radhika asks if she would still design something her intuition loves even if she knows it will not sell, Ti says yes, “if I think it’s going to be a fun journey.” Some ideas exist to move markets. Some exist to keep the creative self alive. Episode 12 of Design Mindset captures that balance cleanly, showing intuition not as the opposite of research, but as the spark that tells you which risks are worth taking in the first place.

Listen to the full conversation on Design Mindset (powered by KeyShot), available every week on YouTube, to hear more insights from one of the industry’s most decorated design leaders.

Download your Free Trial of KeyShot Here

The post When Data Says No And Your Gut Says Go: What Designers Can Learn From Ti Chang first appeared on Yanko Design.

This $399 Device Can Kill Your Joint Pain Using Infrared Lasers (And Zero Side Effects)

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The first Move+ made a bold promise: what if your “painkiller” was a band of light instead of a bottle of pills? By wrapping medical-grade red and near-infrared LEDs around your joints, it tried to tackle the inflammation at the source, not just blur it out. Move+ 2.0 arrives as the next pass at that concept, with a more polished chassis, smarter ergonomics, and a clearer pitch that this is not a gadget for your shelf, but a piece of recovery infrastructure you actually wear.

The real story behind the 2.0 update is a shift in how the device delivers light. Pain, after all, is rarely skin deep. Kineon’s answer was to build a hybrid system, pairing 660nm red LEDs with 808nm near-infrared lasers. While LEDs are great for surface-level recovery, the focused, coherent light from the lasers is engineered to penetrate several centimeters deeper, reaching the actual joint capsules, cartilage, and muscle tissue where chronic inflammation hides. It’s a clever engineering choice that directly addresses the limits of LED-only panels, aiming to deliver a therapeutic dose where it truly matters, whether that’s inside a shoulder with tendinitis or a knee struggling with arthritis.

Designer: Kineon Design Labs

Click Here to Buy Now: $399 $798 (50% off). Hurry, only a few left! Raised over $58,000.

The new adjustable strap is noticeably slimmer and more pliable, designed to solve the ergonomic puzzle of wrapping something securely around tricky areas like the shoulders or glutes. With reinforced stitching, premium materials, and a quick-release function, it feels less like a medical brace and more like a piece of high-end athletic gear. Kineon also includes bridging clips to connect the modules closer together and a separate extender strap. These simple but practical additions ensure the device can comfortably fit both on smaller treatment areas and larger body types or span across the lower back, making the entire system more versatile out of the box.

Even the travel case gets a thoughtful overhaul. Finished in vegan leather with a redesigned interior, it treats the Move+ 2.0 like a piece of premium electronics, not a clunky medical aid. The new layout, with dedicated bridge holders and a simplified charging tray, is about removing the small points of friction that often lead to expensive recovery tools being left at home. It affirms the idea that for a device like this to be effective, it has to be with you when you need it, whether that’s at the gym, in a hotel room, or after a long flight.

By combining LEDs and lasers, the Move+ 2.0 is positioned to address a whole spectrum of common complaints that live deep in the body’s machinery. The issues it targets, from frozen shoulder and carpal tunnel to gout and cartilage damage, are the kind of stubborn problems that often resist simple surface treatments. The device is not just for post-workout soreness; it is designed as a tool for managing the kind of chronic, nagging conditions that can disrupt daily life.

Beyond the hardware, Kineon is building out the digital side of the recovery equation. The new companion app acts as a logbook and a coach, letting you track sessions, monitor progress, and access a library of educational videos and guided recovery programs. This turns the Move+ 2.0 from a purely physical tool into a smarter system. Instead of just treating a sore spot ad hoc, the app provides a framework for managing chronic conditions over time, offering insights and guidance that help connect the daily sessions to a longer-term healing strategy.

At just $399, the entire package feels cohesive, including not just the 3 light modules and adjustable strap, but also the travel case, a charging dock, and a USB-C charging cable. Kineon is clearly positioning the Move+ 2.0 as a serious piece of performance and recovery gear, designed to sit comfortably alongside a high-end smartwatch or a percussion massager. It’s a tool built for a wide spectrum of nagging, persistent issues, from the athlete’s case of tennis elbow to the office worker’s carpal tunnel. By wrapping sophisticated medical technology in a thoughtfully designed, user-friendly package, Kineon is making a strong argument that the future of pain management might look a lot less like a pill and a lot more like a piece of well-designed hardware.

Click Here to Buy Now: $399 $798 (50% off). Hurry, only a few left! Raised over $58,000.

The post This $399 Device Can Kill Your Joint Pain Using Infrared Lasers (And Zero Side Effects) first appeared on Yanko Design.

The Cheapest Personal AI Device You Can Own: $50 Raspberry Pi Whisplay Runs Gemini, Claude, and ChatGPT

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Smartphones were never really meant to be your AI sidekick. They juggle notifications, social feeds, and a dozen background services before they ever get around to being “smart.” Meanwhile, the first wave of dedicated AI gadgets from companies like Humane and Rabbit showed up with big promises, closed ecosystems, and short lifespans. When the money dried up, so did the hardware. A little Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W with a Whisplay HAT quietly sidesteps all of that. It is a DIY AI chat device that you own outright, that you can fix, reflash, or repurpose, and that can talk to Gemini, Claude, or ChatGPT without caring which startup is still solvent this quarter.

Instead of betting on a single company’s cloud, Whisplay treats AI as a replaceable part. The hardware gives you a screen, mic, speaker, and buttons, and leaves the “brain” up to you. If Gemini changes pricing, Claude adds features, or ChatGPT pulls ahead again, you can swap backends with a config file or a bit of code, not a new gadget. In a landscape where AI hardware keeps arriving as disposable, subscription-tethered experiments, this little open, modular box feels like the first honest attempt at a personal AI terminal that will not vanish the moment a runway spreadsheet turns red.

Designer: Jdaie

At its very core, the Whisplay HAT is a clever little I/O board designed to give a Pi a face and a voice… simply put. It bolts directly onto the 40-pin GPIO header and provides everything needed for a conversational interface. You get a surprisingly crisp 1.96-inch color LCD for displaying text or animations, a WM8960 audio codec driving an onboard microphone and speaker, an RGB status LED, and a few programmable buttons for user input. It is not a standalone computer, but a purpose-built terminal that turns the Pi Zero into something you can actually talk to. The entire package matches the Pi Zero’s footprint, making for a compact and tidy build that feels intentional, not like a messy science fair project.

The choice of the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W as the platform is telling. With its quad-core 1 GHz ARM Cortex-A53 CPU and just 512MB of RAM, it is nobody’s idea of a powerhouse. That is precisely the point. The Pi is not running the large language model; it is just a client. Its job is to capture audio, send a request over Wi-Fi, and then play back the response. This thin-client architecture is incredibly efficient, requiring minimal power and processing, which is perfect for an always-on desk companion. The heavy lifting is outsourced to the cloud API of your choice, leaving the Pi to handle the simple, tangible task of being the physical interface between you and the AI.

The actual magic is a simple, elegant pipeline that you control completely. Your code on the Pi captures audio from the Whisplay’s microphone, uses a speech-to-text engine to transcribe it, and then packages that text into an API call to Gemini or another LLM. When the response comes back, a text-to-speech engine converts it back into audio and plays it through the onboard speaker, while the LCD can show the text or a thinking animation. You can point it at Google’s Gemini API today and switch to a local Ollama server running on a spare Raspberry Pi 5 tomorrow if you feel like it. What’s so perfect about the Whisplay HAT is that it assumes companies and models will come and go, so it treats the LLM as a pluggable component. Today, that might be Gemini, Claude, or ChatGPT. Tomorrow, it might be some open model running on your own server. Either way, the little chatting device on your desk stays the same, happily piping audio in and out while you swap brains on the backend.

That brings us to the real kicker. The Whisplay HAT costs about thirty-five dollars. Paired with a fifteen-dollar Pi Zero 2 W, you have the core of a highly capable, endlessly customizable AI device for fifty bucks. Compare that to the seven-hundred-dollar Humane Ai Pin or the two-hundred-dollar Rabbit R1, both of which are functionally just API clients tied to a single, proprietary service. This DIY approach is not just cheaper; it represents a fundamentally different, more sustainable philosophy. It is a platform for tinkering and ownership, not a sealed product designed to be consumed and eventually discarded. It is a starting point, and in a field moving this fast, a good starting point is infinitely more valuable than a dead end.

The post The Cheapest Personal AI Device You Can Own: $50 Raspberry Pi Whisplay Runs Gemini, Claude, and ChatGPT first appeared on Yanko Design.

LEGO Just Dropped a $300 Stranger Things Set That Transforms When You Pull the Corners

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In Stranger Things, victims trapped in Vecna’s curse describe the Creel House as a place where reality fractures and splinters around them, rooms shifting into impossible geometries. LEGO has somehow captured that exact horror in brick form. Their new 2,593-piece Creel House literally transforms with a lever pull, walls splitting apart to reveal Vecna’s cursed mind lair within. It’s launching January 1st at $299.99, and after six years without a proper Stranger Things LEGO set, fans won’t want to escape this one.

Stranger Things Season 5 wraps up on New Year’s Eve at 5 p.m. PST. LEGO Insiders get early access to the set that same day before general release on January 4th. You’ll have processed the finale’s emotional damage and immediately have 2,593 pieces of therapeutic building to work through your feelings. I can’t decide if this is brilliant marketing or deliberately sadistic.

Designer: LEGO

LEGO calls it their first ever transforming house. Pull the corners and the entire structure reconfigures itself: some rooms split in two, others rotate 45 degrees, one wall drops into place, and the central spire rises up to reveal that infamous grandfather clock. Most LEGO sets with transformation gimmicks feel like compromises, sacrificing detail in one mode to accommodate the other. You get a decent robot or a passable vehicle, never both. This thing maintains a 20-inch-wide, nearly 12-inch-tall facade in both states, which means someone on the engineering team actually gave a shit about making both configurations work properly instead of treating one as an afterthought.

Open up the back and you’ve got seven distinct rooms: hallway, dining room, sitting room, Alice’s and Henry’s bedrooms, an upstairs landing, and two attic spaces. You can build it boarded-up or with the boards removed, which matters because the boarded version captures that abandoned murder house aesthetic from earlier seasons while the clean version works better as Vecna’s active lair. That’s not just aesthetic choice for its own sake. Anyone who’s watched the show knows the house exists in multiple states across different timelines, and giving builders the option to represent that shows someone actually paid attention to the source material instead of skimming a wiki for reference images.

Thirteen minifigures come with the set: Will, Mike, Lucas, Dustin, Vecna, Mr. Whatsit (Henry in his Season 5 human disguise), Holly, Steve, Nancy, Robin, Jonathan, Max, and Eleven. For $300, that’s a solid roster. The Mr. Whatsit to Vecna transformation happens through a hideaway feature built into the set, letting you physically swap between Henry’s boring normal kid persona and his full monster form. It works better in LEGO than it would in most other collectible formats because the medium already asks you to suspend disbelief about scale and realism. A transforming minifigure compartment feels natural here in a way it wouldn’t in, say, a high-end statue.

Buy during the first week and you’ll get the 40891 WSQK Radio Station gift, a 234-piece bonus set with Joyce Byers and a magnificently bearded Sheriff Hopper. Given their absence from the main set’s roster, this feels mandatory rather than optional. That rubber chicken printed tile though? Absolute deep cut for fans who’ve been paying attention to Season 5’s marketing. Stock runs out fast on these gift-with-purchase promotions, so waiting for a sale means missing Joyce and Hopper entirely unless you want to pay scalper prices on BrickLink later.

Steve’s car and the WSQK radio van both use six-wide construction with complicated techniques for tight angles and small offsets. Will’s bicycle rounds out the vehicle collection. None of these are throwaway builds to pad the piece count. LEGO City vehicles typically phone it in with basic stud-and-plate construction, but these use the kind of techniques you’d expect from Creator Expert or Speed Champions sets. Small details like that separate a licensed cash grab from a set that actually respects the builder’s time and money.

LEGO’s pricing sits at $299.99 US, £249.99 UK, €279.99 EU, and AU$449.99 Australia. That works out to roughly 11.5 cents per piece, above standard LEGO pricing but expected for licensed sets. Add in the transformation mechanism’s manufacturing complexity and you can justify the premium. Whether 2,593 pieces and 13 minifigures actually justify three hundred dollars depends on how much you care about Stranger Things specifically. If you’re ambivalent about the show, this is an expensive shelf decoration. If you’ve been waiting since 2019 for another proper set, it’s basically a bargain.

The post LEGO Just Dropped a $300 Stranger Things Set That Transforms When You Pull the Corners first appeared on Yanko Design.

Say Goodbye To Bottled Water: Kara Pure 2 Turns Air Into 99.99% Pure Water (Without The Microplastics)

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We’re in the great age of unbundling. We’ve unbundled our power grids with solar panels, our entertainment with streaming, and our communication with the internet. We’re systematically severing the cords that tie us to centralized, aging systems. But what about the most essential utility of all – the water pipe? For decades, that’s been the one connection we couldn’t cut. You could go off-grid with power, but you were still tethered to the municipal water main. Until now. What if your home could perform a little bit of everyday alchemy? What if it could breathe in the invisible humidity hanging in the air and exhale pure, rich drinking water? This isn’t a far-future concept; it’s the game-changing revolution happening inside the all-new Kara Pure 2. This sleek, stainless steel tower isn’t just a water dispenser; it’s your home’s personal atmospheric hotspot. The award-winning technology doesn’t filter water from the grid; it creates the water instead, offering a glimpse into a future where the most precious resource on earth is no longer piped in, but simply harvested on demand.

At first glance, the Kara Pure 2 is a study in minimal-yet-effective industrial design. Standing at a confident 44 inches tall, its brushed stainless steel body feels both substantial and elegant, designed to complement a modern kitchen rather than dominate it. Its upgraded internal copper piping and five-stage water filtration signal a commitment to quality, suggesting this is a permanent fixture, not a temporary solution. The front is punctuated by a clean, 40% larger touchscreen and a gracefully curved dispensing area. There are no awkward plastic jugs, no complex pipework, no visible signs of the powerful process happening within. This deliberate minimalism is central to its appeal; it domesticates an industrial-grade technology, making the extraordinary feel approachable. The magic trick is only impressive if the magician makes it look easy, and the Kara Pure 2 looks effortless. Its only demand is a standard power outlet, and in return, it offers a bottomless well of 9.2 pH-balanced Alkaline water.

Designer: Cody Soodeen

Click Here to Buy Now: $3899 $5999 ($2100 off). Hurry, only 6/20 left! Raised over $371,000.

Kara Pure 2’s Patented AirDrive™ technology uses a clever desiccant material that acts like a super-sponge, aggressively grabbing water molecules from the air. Once saturated, the machine gently heats the desiccant, forcing it to release the captured moisture as perfectly pure water vapor, leaving dust and other airborne gunk behind. It’s an elegant and efficient method of harvesting, allowing the machine to perform even when the air feels less than tropical. This isn’t merely condensation; it’s a targeted extraction.

Once the water is harvested, it begins a journey through a multi-stage purification gauntlet. The process starts before the air even enters the machine, with a commercial-grade EPA air filter that scrubs the intake air, providing the side benefit of purifying about 200 cubic feet of room air per minute. After the water is condensed, it passes through a system that includes an advanced ultrafiltration (UF) membrane. With a pore size of just 0.01 microns, this stage is designed to physically block contaminants like bacteria, viruses, and microplastics. Finally, the water is exposed to a medical-grade UV-C sterilizer, which neutralizes any remaining microorganisms to ensure the final product is 99.99% pure.

But anyone who has tasted distilled water knows that “pure” can be boring. The filtration process strips out everything, good and bad, leaving a flat, lifeless liquid. Kara brings the water back to life in the final step by enhancing it with a carefully balanced cocktail of essential minerals like calcium and magnesium. This not only gives the water its clean, crisp taste but also nudges the pH up to an alkaline 9.2+, a nod to the modern wellness enthusiast. It even gets an antioxidant boost, completing its journey from humble humidity to what you might call high-performance hydration.

That whole process nets you up to 10 liters (or about 2.6 gallons) of water a day, storing it in an 11.5-liter reservoir so it’s always ready. Standing 44 inches tall and weighing a hefty 70 pounds, the Kara Pure 2 is a stainless steel monolith that feels more like a piece of modern sculpture than a kitchen appliance. The premium feel extends to the internals, with upgrades like 99% pure copper piping that signal this is a forever-appliance, not a disposable gizmo. The user experience gets the same love, with a spout moved forward for easy access and a pouring area now 20% larger, big enough to fit that ridiculously oversized 64-ounce water bottle you carry around.

The day-to-day command center is a 40% larger touchscreen that lets you dial in everything, including instant hot and cold water. But the most impressive feature might be what you don’t notice. At just 32 decibels, the Kara Pure 2 is quieter than your fridge’s late-night humming. This is the critical detail that makes it a viable housemate, allowing it to quietly perform its magic in the background of your life without driving you insane. It’s a testament to the engineering that went into making this complex process feel effortless and unobtrusive.

Naturally, a device this forward-thinking is making its debut on Kickstarter, the go-to platform for launching category-defining hardware. This is where early adopters can secure the Kara Pure 2 before it hits the broader market. The super early bird pricing is set at $3,899, which feels like a pretty good investment considering the average family spends upwards of $1,350 a year on bottled water (even more for 9.2pH+ alkaline water)… And after all, it’s an investment in a new kind of infrastructure for your home. I mean, you’re literally turning air into alkaline drinking water. Rumor has it that Kara’s next appliance will turn that water into wine!

Click Here to Buy Now: $3899 $5999 ($2100 off). Hurry, only 6/20 left! Raised over $371,000.

The post Say Goodbye To Bottled Water: Kara Pure 2 Turns Air Into 99.99% Pure Water (Without The Microplastics) first appeared on Yanko Design.

Say Goodbye To Bottled Water: Kara Pure 2 Turns Air Into 99.99% Pure Water (Without The Microplastics)

Posted on by

We’re in the great age of unbundling. We’ve unbundled our power grids with solar panels, our entertainment with streaming, and our communication with the internet. We’re systematically severing the cords that tie us to centralized, aging systems. But what about the most essential utility of all – the water pipe? For decades, that’s been the one connection we couldn’t cut. You could go off-grid with power, but you were still tethered to the municipal water main. Until now. What if your home could perform a little bit of everyday alchemy? What if it could breathe in the invisible humidity hanging in the air and exhale pure, rich drinking water? This isn’t a far-future concept; it’s the game-changing revolution happening inside the all-new Kara Pure 2. This sleek, stainless steel tower isn’t just a water dispenser; it’s your home’s personal atmospheric hotspot. The award-winning technology doesn’t filter water from the grid; it creates the water instead, offering a glimpse into a future where the most precious resource on earth is no longer piped in, but simply harvested on demand.

At first glance, the Kara Pure 2 is a study in minimal-yet-effective industrial design. Standing at a confident 44 inches tall, its brushed stainless steel body feels both substantial and elegant, designed to complement a modern kitchen rather than dominate it. Its upgraded internal copper piping and five-stage water filtration signal a commitment to quality, suggesting this is a permanent fixture, not a temporary solution. The front is punctuated by a clean, 40% larger touchscreen and a gracefully curved dispensing area. There are no awkward plastic jugs, no complex pipework, no visible signs of the powerful process happening within. This deliberate minimalism is central to its appeal; it domesticates an industrial-grade technology, making the extraordinary feel approachable. The magic trick is only impressive if the magician makes it look easy, and the Kara Pure 2 looks effortless. Its only demand is a standard power outlet, and in return, it offers a bottomless well of 9.2 pH-balanced Alkaline water.

Designer: Cody Soodeen

Click Here to Buy Now: $3899 $5999 ($2100 off). Hurry, only 6/20 left! Raised over $371,000.

Kara Pure 2’s Patented AirDrive™ technology uses a clever desiccant material that acts like a super-sponge, aggressively grabbing water molecules from the air. Once saturated, the machine gently heats the desiccant, forcing it to release the captured moisture as perfectly pure water vapor, leaving dust and other airborne gunk behind. It’s an elegant and efficient method of harvesting, allowing the machine to perform even when the air feels less than tropical. This isn’t merely condensation; it’s a targeted extraction.

Once the water is harvested, it begins a journey through a multi-stage purification gauntlet. The process starts before the air even enters the machine, with a commercial-grade EPA air filter that scrubs the intake air, providing the side benefit of purifying about 200 cubic feet of room air per minute. After the water is condensed, it passes through a system that includes an advanced ultrafiltration (UF) membrane. With a pore size of just 0.01 microns, this stage is designed to physically block contaminants like bacteria, viruses, and microplastics. Finally, the water is exposed to a medical-grade UV-C sterilizer, which neutralizes any remaining microorganisms to ensure the final product is 99.99% pure.

But anyone who has tasted distilled water knows that “pure” can be boring. The filtration process strips out everything, good and bad, leaving a flat, lifeless liquid. Kara brings the water back to life in the final step by enhancing it with a carefully balanced cocktail of essential minerals like calcium and magnesium. This not only gives the water its clean, crisp taste but also nudges the pH up to an alkaline 9.2+, a nod to the modern wellness enthusiast. It even gets an antioxidant boost, completing its journey from humble humidity to what you might call high-performance hydration.

That whole process nets you up to 10 liters (or about 2.6 gallons) of water a day, storing it in an 11.5-liter reservoir so it’s always ready. Standing 44 inches tall and weighing a hefty 70 pounds, the Kara Pure 2 is a stainless steel monolith that feels more like a piece of modern sculpture than a kitchen appliance. The premium feel extends to the internals, with upgrades like 99% pure copper piping that signal this is a forever-appliance, not a disposable gizmo. The user experience gets the same love, with a spout moved forward for easy access and a pouring area now 20% larger, big enough to fit that ridiculously oversized 64-ounce water bottle you carry around.

The day-to-day command center is a 40% larger touchscreen that lets you dial in everything, including instant hot and cold water. But the most impressive feature might be what you don’t notice. At just 32 decibels, the Kara Pure 2 is quieter than your fridge’s late-night humming. This is the critical detail that makes it a viable housemate, allowing it to quietly perform its magic in the background of your life without driving you insane. It’s a testament to the engineering that went into making this complex process feel effortless and unobtrusive.

Naturally, a device this forward-thinking is making its debut on Kickstarter, the go-to platform for launching category-defining hardware. This is where early adopters can secure the Kara Pure 2 before it hits the broader market. The super early bird pricing is set at $3,899, which feels like a pretty good investment considering the average family spends upwards of $1,350 a year on bottled water (even more for 9.2pH+ alkaline water)… And after all, it’s an investment in a new kind of infrastructure for your home. I mean, you’re literally turning air into alkaline drinking water. Rumor has it that Kara’s next appliance will turn that water into wine!

Click Here to Buy Now: $3899 $5999 ($2100 off). Hurry, only 6/20 left! Raised over $371,000.

The post Say Goodbye To Bottled Water: Kara Pure 2 Turns Air Into 99.99% Pure Water (Without The Microplastics) first appeared on Yanko Design.

I Stopped Paying for Cloud Storage After Trying This Tiny 256GB iPhone SSD

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I remember a time when smartphones had expandable storage. In fact, I remember feeling this internal rage when I saw the iPhone Air and that Apple even decided that a physical SIM slot wasn’t necessary anymore, because apparently a SIM tray blocks so much space that you need to shave down on a phone’s battery capacity. It’s wild that we’ve gotten to this point in our lives, and what’s more wild is that we now have to ‘rent’ storage out by paying for iCloud or Google Drive subscriptions to store our photos and videos. I remember when you could pop in a MicroSD card and those low-storage problems would go away… and ADAM Elements is trying to bring back that convenience with its ultra-tiny SSDs.

The iKlips S isn’t as small as a MicroSD, but it’s sufficiently more advanced than one. Barely the size of a 4-stud LEGO brick, this SSD plugs right into your smartphone, giving it an instant 256GB memory boost. It docks in your phone’s USB-C port, transferring data at incredible speeds, and here’s the best part – the tiny device packs biometric scanning too, which means you can pretty much secure your backups with a fingerprint the way you secure your phone with FaceID. The best part? No pesky subscription fees. You pay once and own the storage forever, and everything’s local and offline… so you never need to worry about remembering passwords, or about having companies and LLMs spy on your personal data to train themselves.

Designer: ADAM Elements

Click Here to Buy Now: $62.3 $89 (30% off, use coupon code “30YANKOIKPS”). Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

Think a thumb drive, but insanely tinier. That’s the beauty of SSDs, and ADAM Elements touts that the iKlips S currently holds the record for the world’s smallest SSD. Plug it into your phone, tablet, laptop, or any device and it instantly gets a 258GB bump. Data transfers at speeds of up to 400Mb/s with read speeds of 450Mb/s, that’s fast enough to move RAW files in milliseconds and entire 4K videos in seconds, or even directly preview/edit ProRes content on your phone, tablet, or laptop without having to transfer data to local storage. After all, that’s the dream, right?

The tiny device comes with a machined aluminum body and a lanyard hole so that you can string something through to prevent it from getting lost. Plug it into your phone to back up media, then into your laptop or iPad to edit said media. You can transfer data between multiple devices fairly quickly, across platforms too, thanks to cross-compatibility with iOS, Android, MacOS, Windows, ChromeOS, and even Linux. The tiny design sits practically flush against your phone, tablet, or laptop, occupying about the same amount of space as a USB receiver for a wireless keyboard or wireless mouse. Its most important design detail, however, hides in plain sight.

On the underside of the iKlips S is a fingerprint scanner, allowing you to add authentication to your SSD the way you add a password to your iCloud. The device can hold as many as 20 fingerprints, making it perfect for redundancies (just in case you cut a finger while chopping veggies) or even for a team of multiple people sharing data. Place your finger on the iKlips S and it unlocks the SSD, allowing you to read/write data in no time. You’re never faced with forgetting your iCloud password as your password literally lives on your fingertips.

The price of it all? A mere $62.3, which costs about as much as an annual subscription to these cloud storage services. For that, you get something you truly own, and can use without needing an app or an internet connection. Just plug it in and you’ve suddenly got extra storage. Secure the storage with a fingerprint, and move data around at speeds your internet service provider could only dream of. Neat, huh?

Click Here to Buy Now: $62.3 $89 (30% off, use coupon code “30YANKOIKPS”). Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

The post I Stopped Paying for Cloud Storage After Trying This Tiny 256GB iPhone SSD first appeared on Yanko Design.

Top 5 EDC Pocket Knives Running Major Last-Minute Discounts

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The annual flood of Black Friday deals can feel overwhelming, a constant barrage of alerts and ads all claiming to offer the deal of a lifetime. For those of us who appreciate well-designed gear, the challenge isn’t just finding something cheap; it’s finding something great at a price that makes it impossible to ignore. A good everyday carry knife, in particular, is an investment in utility and reliability. This is the time of year when that investment pays off before you even make the purchase, with respected brands and proven designs becoming more accessible than ever.

Consider this your curated shortlist, a direct path to the best value in the EDC knife world right now. We’ve cut through the noise to bring you five standout blades that are currently seeing major price drops, from compact workhorses to unique tactical designs. Each one was chosen based on its reputation, build quality, and a discount that truly matters. This is your chance to acquire a fantastic tool that punches well above its weight class for a fraction of its usual cost.

Tekto A5 Spry (20% Off)

Out-the-front automatics occupy a special place in the knife world, somewhere between practical tool and mechanical indulgence. The Tekto A5 Spry lands firmly in both camps. This is an OTF with a 3.5-inch S35VN blade, titanium-coated and available in three distinct profiles: drop point for general use, dagger for piercing and double-edged utility, and tanto for maximum tip strength. That blade choice matters because each geometry fundamentally changes how the knife performs. The drop point excels at everyday slicing, the dagger offers symmetrical cutting edges and a needle-sharp tip, while the tanto brings reinforced strength for tougher tasks. All three options run 60-62 HRC hardness, putting this steel in premium territory where edge retention meets reasonable sharpening requirements. The 6061-T6 aluminum handle is contoured and textured aggressively, offering what Tekto calls an “iron grip,” and they’re not exaggerating. At 8.6 inches open and 3.49 ounces, this knife has presence without crossing into heavy.

The double-action mechanism fires with the kind of authority that makes cheap OTFs feel like toys. The button sits perfectly positioned for thumb deployment, and the blade launches with zero hesitation. Retraction is equally satisfying, a smooth return that locks back into the handle without play or wiggle. Tekto offers the A5 Spry in black or OD green aluminum, giving you color options to match either stealth or tactical aesthetics. The glass breaker on the pommel isn’t decorative, it’s a legitimate emergency tool that adds function beyond cutting. The ambidextrous pocket clip works for tip-down carry, and the lanyard hole gives you attachment options if you prefer alternate carry methods. This is an American-made OTF priced to compete with imports, which is rare enough to be notable. The build quality reflects domestic manufacturing standards, with tight tolerances and finish work that justifies the premium over budget alternatives.

Why We Recommend It

At 20% off (bringing it to $200 from $249.99), the A5 Spry becomes one of the best values in American-made OTF knives. S35VN steel at this price point is already competitive, but pairing it with three blade options and two color choices means you’re buying exactly the knife you want rather than settling for what’s available. The customization factor alone makes this compelling: drop point for EDC versatility, dagger for collectors who appreciate double-edged designs, or tanto for anyone who prioritizes tip strength. OTF automatics typically command premiums, and finding one with premium steel, solid construction, and genuine versatility under two hundred dollars is legitimately rare. This is the knife for anyone who’s wanted a quality OTF but balked at the typical $300-plus entry point.

Click Here to Buy Now: $200 $249 (20% off, use coupon code “YANKO” at checkout for $49.99 off, plus 2-day FedEx shipping. Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

SOG Keytron (26% Off)

Most people never think about knife accessibility until they’re standing in a parking lot with a package that needs opening and their EDC folder is sitting on their dresser at home. The SOG Keytron exists specifically for that moment. This is a 1.8-inch clip point blade made from stainless steel with a hardness of 54-58 RC, mounted on a slim aluminum handle that stretches to 5.3 inches closed. At 1.3 ounces, it weighs less than most sets of car keys and takes up about as much space. The lockback mechanism keeps the blade secure during use, releasing with a simple press of the spine lock. SOG added a thumb groove for opening, which works well enough once you get the hang of it, though this isn’t a flipper or assisted opener. Deployment is deliberate, not fast, which makes sense for something designed to live on your keychain. The satin finish on the blade is functional rather than flashy, and the flat grind gives you enough cutting edge for everyday tasks.

The built-in bottle opener is the kind of feature that sounds gimmicky until you actually need it, then it becomes the reason you keep this knife around. The keyring attachment uses a simple latch mechanism, making it easy to add or remove from your key collection without disassembling anything. The aluminum handle keeps weight down while providing enough rigidity to handle light cutting without flexing. This isn’t the knife you reach for when serious work needs doing, but it’s the knife that’s always there when you need to open a package, cut some cord, or pop the top off a bottle. The clip point blade shape gives you a fine tip for detail work while maintaining enough belly for slicing. SOG designed this for people who want a knife available at all times without the bulk or weight of traditional EDC folders. It’s the backup to your backup, the blade you forget you’re carrying until you suddenly need it.

Why We Recommend It

At $19.96 (down 26% from $27), the Keytron costs less than most people spend on a single lunch and solves a problem most knife people don’t think about: what do you carry when carrying a real knife isn’t practical? The built-in bottle opener and keyring attachment turn this from a simple blade into a multi-function tool that actually fits on a keychain without destroying your pockets. The aluminum construction and sub-2-inch blade mean it’s legal almost everywhere and inconspicuous enough to carry in settings where larger knives would draw attention. This is the knife for gym bags, travel kits, office drawers, or anywhere you want cutting capability without commitment. At under twenty bucks, it’s cheap enough to buy multiples and stash them everywhere you might need one.

Click Here to Buy Now

Gerber Gear Quadrant (47% Off)

Gentleman’s folders exist in a strange intersection between knife and accessory, where aesthetics matter as much as edge geometry. The Gerber Quadrant understands this assignment perfectly. The 2.7-inch sheepsfoot blade is made from 7Cr17MoV stainless steel, a budget-friendly Chinese steel that sharpens easily and holds an edge well enough for daily cutting without requiring constant maintenance. That sheepsfoot profile is the defining characteristic here, a straight cutting edge with a curved spine that eliminates the pointy tip most knives sport. This makes it less aggressive, more workplace-friendly, and surprisingly effective for precise slicing tasks where you’d normally reach for a box cutter. The frame lock is textured stainless steel, providing structural rigidity while the flipper deployment snaps open with satisfying authority. At around 3 ounces, this knife has enough heft to feel substantial without weighing down your pocket.

The handle is where things get interesting. Gerber offers three scale options: white G-10 composite, natural bamboo, and black bamboo. The bamboo variants turn this knife into a genuine conversation starter, bringing organic warmth to a category typically dominated by synthetic materials and anodized metals. The bamboo isn’t just for looks, it provides natural texture and grip while keeping weight minimal. The white G-10 option appeals to anyone who wants a cleaner, more modern aesthetic without sacrificing durability. The deep-carry pocket clip keeps the knife discreet, sitting low enough that most people won’t notice you’re carrying unless they’re specifically looking. The overall package feels refined in a way that makes it appropriate for office environments, social settings, or anywhere a tactical folder would seem out of place. This is the knife you carry to meetings, dinners, or events where pulling out something aggressively tactical would raise eyebrows.

Why We Recommend It

At $25.10 (slashed 47% from $47), the Quadrant becomes one of the best gentleman’s folder deals you’ll find anywhere. That bamboo handle option at this price is borderline absurd, it’s a material upgrade that typically adds significant cost but here comes in under twenty-six dollars. The sheepsfoot blade makes this genuinely useful in situations where pointed tips feel unnecessary or inappropriate, and the flipper action provides quick deployment without screaming “tactical knife.” Gerber designed this for people who want something classy that still performs, and the discount turns an already reasonable $47 into an impulse buy that makes sense for anyone needing a sophisticated EDC option. This is style meeting substance at a price that removes any reason to hesitate.

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CRKT Daktyl (23% Off)

Some knives whisper. The Daktyl screams from across the room. Tom Hitchcock designed this thing to look like it escaped from a sci-fi prop department, and he succeeded completely. The entire knife is cut from stainless steel, both blade and handle, creating a skeletal framework that’s equal parts functional tool and conversation starter. That massive finger ring isn’t just for show, it’s the core of the “Hole In One” deployment system that lets you rotate the 3.05-inch modified Wharncliffe blade open with a flick of your finger. The 420J2 stainless steel blade is skeletonized with oval cutouts that reduce weight and add visual drama, while the slide lock mechanism keeps everything secure once deployed. At 6.813 inches open and weighing just 2.4 ounces, this is lightness taken to its logical extreme.

The handle is where things get interesting, and by interesting, we mean polarizing. Those flowing curves and cutouts look fantastic in photos, but they’re designed around that finger ring more than traditional grip ergonomics. The bead-blasted finish is grippy enough, and there’s a carabiner built into the pivot end that doubles as a bottle opener, because why not add party tricks to your EDC? The deep-carry pocket clip works for left or right-hand carry, and the whole package feels more like jewelry than a tool, which is either the point or the problem depending on your perspective. This isn’t the knife you grab for heavy cutting tasks or extended use. It’s the knife you carry when you want something that looks like nothing else in anyone’s pocket, a blade that values aesthetics and novelty as much as it does utility. The Wharncliffe profile is excellent for precision work and slicing, but that handle design means your grip options are limited by the architecture of the frame itself.

Why We Recommend It

The Daktyl at $45.99 (down from $60) is twenty-three percent off a knife that you either instantly love or completely don’t get, and that’s precisely why it belongs on this list. This is design as statement, a knife that refuses to blend into the background of standard folders and liner locks. That stainless steel skeleton construction and finger ring deployment make it instantly recognizable, and the built-in bottle opener means it’s actually useful at parties where knives normally aren’t. At under fifty bucks, you’re buying into something genuinely different without the usual premium that “unique” commands. It’s not the most ergonomic knife you’ll ever hold, but it might be the most interesting, and sometimes that counts for more than another perfectly competent but forgettable folder.

Click Here to Buy Now

Smith & Wesson Extreme Ops (31% Off)

Budget knives have a certain reputation, and the Extreme Ops leans into it completely. This is a knife designed to hit a price point first and ask questions later. The 3.1-inch clip point blade is made from 7Cr17MoV stainless steel, a perfectly serviceable Chinese steel that holds an edge well enough for everyday tasks without requiring expert sharpening skills. The partially serrated configuration gives you options: plain edge for clean cuts, serrations for rope and tougher materials. The black aluminum handle is lightweight and functional, adorned with jimping on both the spine and handle for grip. At 7.1 inches overall and weighing 3.5 ounces, this is a knife that announces its tactical aspirations loudly, with ambidextrous thumb studs, an index flipper, and aggressive styling that screams “I’m ready for anything” even if that anything is usually opening Amazon boxes.

The liner lock is straightforward and reliable, exactly what you’d expect from a workhorse folder at this price tier. The pocket clip allows for ambidextrous carry, and the whole package feels solid enough for regular use without the anxiety that comes with carrying something expensive. Smith & Wesson’s knife division isn’t trying to compete with high-end custom makers; they’re building tools for people who need something functional, affordable, and backed by a recognizable name. The Extreme Ops delivers on that promise without pretense. It won’t impress knife snobs, but it also won’t leave you stranded when you need to cut something. The partially serrated edge is genuinely useful for anyone who regularly deals with zip ties, packaging straps, or fibrous materials, and the aggressive jimping means your grip stays secure even when things get slippery.

Why We Recommend It

At $17.33 (down 31% from $24.99), the Extreme Ops costs less than most people spend on lunch and delivers a fully functional EDC knife with a lifetime warranty. This is the knife you throw in a tackle box, glove compartment, or work bag without worrying about it. The 7Cr17MoV steel won’t win awards, but it’s tough enough and sharpens easily when it dulls. The partially serrated blade makes it more versatile than single-edge alternatives, and the aluminum handle keeps weight down while providing decent durability. This is maximum utility for minimum investment, a knife that understands its place in the world and excels at being exactly that. At under eighteen bucks, it’s an impulse buy that actually makes sense.

Click Here to Buy Now

The post Top 5 EDC Pocket Knives Running Major Last-Minute Discounts first appeared on Yanko Design.

Custom Modded iMac G3 Has An M4 Chip And Runs Cyberpunk 2077 At 30 FPS

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Remember the Apple iMac G3? Those translucent, candy-colored bubble machines were everywhere in the late 90s and early 2000s. Steve Jobs and Jony Ive turned computing into something you’d actually want on your desk, and suddenly schools, offices, and homes were full of these things. For a lot of people, this was their first real computer.

But try using one today and you’ll understand why they’re mostly decorative now. The CRT screen hurts to look at, the processor moves like molasses, and those integrated speakers that seemed so premium back then sound absolutely terrible. That’s what makes Zac Builds’ recent project worth paying attention to. He took an iMac G3 shell and rebuilt it with current hardware, keeping everything that made the original iconic while fixing everything that makes it painful to actually use.

Designer: Zac Builds

The teardown shows just how strange these computers were. Apple used pressed-form RF shielding that looked genuinely sculptural, completely functional but designed to look cool even though nobody would ever see it. Then there’s the CRT, which can store lethal amounts of energy months after you unplug it. After carefully discharging the tube and pulling out all the original components, Zac had that famous shell and a whole lot of empty space to work with.

Removing everything created a structural problem. The case was basically held together with clips, so Zac 3D-scanned all the remaining parts to create precise digital models. He designed custom posts to properly connect the top and bottom halves, plus replacement clips where the old plastic had crumbled. He even tracked down the right 3D printing filament to match Apple’s original translucent plastic, testing physical color swatches until he found Bambu’s transparent PETG.

The core of the build is an M4 Mac Mini. Apple’s M-series chips have turned out to be legitimately good. They’re efficient, compact, and powerful enough for serious work without turning into space heaters. The base $599 model delivers solid performance, though Apple still charges obscene amounts for storage upgrades.

Zac addressed storage with three different solutions. First, he upgraded the internal NVMe drive. The Mac Mini’s storage isn’t soldered, which is unusual for Apple, though it uses a proprietary format and requires another Mac to restore the system via DFU mode. Apple’s documentation even gets it wrong, saying not to use a Thunderbolt cable when that’s actually what makes it work. Second, he added a UGREEN hub that plugs into the Mac Mini and has its own NVMe slot underneath, adding 2TB in about 15 seconds. Third, he connected a UGREEN NAS for bulk storage, supporting up to 60TB without subscription fees.

The display replacement required some creative problem-solving. Finding a modern screen that fits the G3’s curved opening while maintaining that retro 4:3 aspect ratio is basically impossible. Zac went with a 14-inch 4K OLED at 16:10, then designed a custom interposer frame to bridge the gap between the flat screen and the curved case. Getting that transparent frame to look right meant using CA glue without accelerator spray, which takes 8+ hours to cure but avoids the foamy expansion you’d see through clear plastic.

The audio system got a proper upgrade too. Zac installed Dayton Audio 1.5-inch full-range drivers in custom 3D-printed enclosures designed for optimal acoustic volume. A 200-watt digital amp boosts the signal from the Mac Mini’s headphone jack, and after some tweaking, the whole setup works like it’s factory-integrated and responds to software volume controls.

The power system is genuinely clever. Zac rewired the original power cord to feed automotive-grade junction terminals that distribute 120V AC to everything inside: the Mac Mini, the screen’s power supply, the amp’s transformer, and anything else that needs power. It’s live electricity, so there’s real risk if you’re careless, but the modular approach means one cord powers everything.

The IO panel mirrors the original’s placement while offering Thunderbolt, USB-C, dual USB-A, and Ethernet, all connected back to the Mac Mini through short cable extensions. Even the original power button works, thanks to some microscope-assisted soldering that extended the Mac Mini’s switch contacts to reach the front of the case.

The rebuilt machine runs Cyberpunk 2077 and handles 6K video editing smoothly. The upgraded internal drive shows 50% speed improvements, while the external NVMe delivers nearly 1GB/s transfers. Both options cost significantly less than Apple’s storage pricing.

Could you just buy a MacBook instead? Sure, and you’d get more portability. But you’d also pay nearly three times as much for comparable storage, and you’d miss the entire point. This project isn’t about building the most practical computer – it’s about preserving a design icon while making it genuinely usable. Like restoring a classic car, you’re trading pure practicality for the joy of bringing something meaningful back to life. Zac’s rebuilt iMac G3 delivers that early-2000s nostalgia without the painful slowness, eye-straining display, or terrible speakers, proving that sometimes the best way forward is to bring the past along with you.

The post Custom Modded iMac G3 Has An M4 Chip And Runs Cyberpunk 2077 At 30 FPS first appeared on Yanko Design.

This $368 Gadget Turns Any Bike Into an E-Bike in 30 Seconds (And It’s 28% Off This Weekend)

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The whole appeal of LIVALL’s PikaBoost line is that it doesn’t look like a DIY experiment. The PikaBoost 2 Lite is a self-contained module that clamps to your seatpost and drives your rear tire with a roller, and it manages to do that while looking more like a piece of refined bike kit than a bolt-on science project. LIVALL released the Lite alongside the full PikaBoost 2 as the simpler, lower-power version: same core idea, same clean industrial design, but tuned for casual city rides rather than long-range commuting. It’s on sale for 21% off through December 1st, which puts it squarely in the Black Friday impulse-buy zone if you’ve been curious about trying electric assist without committing to a full e-bike.

What “Lite” means in practice is a set of sensible compromises that align perfectly with urban riding. The motor delivers up to 500W of peak power, enough to flatten hills without feeling like a rocket, and assists you up to a city-friendly 15 mph (25 km/h). The brains behind it is LIVALL’s patented AAR 2.0 adaptive algorithm, which intelligently matches the power output to your pedaling for a smooth, natural feel. LIVALL claims a maximum range of up to 31 miles (50 km), and an IPX5 waterproof rating means it’s built to handle road spray and unexpected showers. This isn’t a kit for extreme touring; it’s the convenient, quick-fit solution for riders who want a simple boost for their daily commute and the ability to turn any bike into an occasional e-bike.

Designer: LIVALL

Click Here to Buy Now: $368 $508 (PikaBoost 2 Lite Bundle with additional 220Wh battery) Use Code RKMASDSTJYYT for extra $20 off. Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

Click Here to Buy Now: $269 $339 (PikaBoost 2 Lite) Use Code ANBM9MC9Y5X8 for extra $10 off. Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

Amazon Here.

Streamlined eBike Conversion, Featuring Only the Essentials

What makes the Lite Edition interesting at this price point is that it preserves the “install in under a minute, move it between bikes, take it off when you don’t need it” convenience, but strips out the features most people won’t miss on short rides. It totally simplifies the e-bike experience: no remote controller, no app connection, just pure riding. Retaining only the essential Assist Mode, the powerful assist activates automatically when you pedal – zero setup, zero learning curve, just focus on the joy of powered cycling without any distractions. Lite Edition also retains the core safety features of the Powerful Edition, including slip detection, anti-slip V-shape tire, smart sensor, and LED rear light. It provides the confidence and peace of mind that make it an excellent choice even for novice riders or seniors.

Intelligent Engineering: Lightweight Design and Effortless Flexibility

Clamping a motor and battery to your seatpost sounds like it should make a bike feel clumsy and top-heavy, but the reality is often less dramatic than you’d think. By keeping the mass centered and relatively close to the rider’s own center of gravity, it avoids the weird, disconnected steering feel you can get from a heavy front hub motor. The entire experience is meant to be transient. You aren’t permanently marrying your frame to a motor; you’re just giving it a temporary partner for a specific journey. This is a fundamental departure from the mindset of hub or mid-drive conversions, which demand a commitment of both time and mechanical alteration to your bike. The PikaBoost 2 Lite asks for neither.

Perfect for Anyone Seeking Seamless Electric Assist

You can almost picture the ideal user. Maybe it’s someone with a Brompton and a third-floor walk-up, who needs an assist for the last mile but can’t add permanent weight to a bike they carry daily. Or it’s a couple who share a single assist unit between two different bikes for weekend errands. It even makes sense for the dedicated road cyclist who loves their lightweight frame but secretly wishes for a little help on the last 20 kilometers of a hilly century ride. These aren’t people looking to replace a car with a 50-kilometer-per-hour e-bike beast. They’re cyclists who just want to smooth out the rough edges of their existing rides, to arrive a little less sweaty, to make that final hill feel a little less daunting.

Honest Evaluation: Convenience Over Perfection

Of course, the friction-drive concept itself isn’t an outward replacement for dedicated e-bikes. It’s a modular solution that does the job well, but has some really minor trade-offs. The direct roller-on-tire interface is brilliantly simple, but it’s also inherently sensitive to conditions. Heavy rain can reduce its grip, and a worn or under-inflated tire can impact performance. There’s also a low but audible hum as the roller spins against the tread. These aren’t deal-breakers so much as they are the known physics of the design. You trade the silent, all-weather consistency of a hub motor for the unparalleled convenience of a system you can install or remove in the time it takes to fill a water bottle.

Unlock the Best Value in eBike Experience This Black Friday

That 28% discount on the Lite Edition Bundle for Black Friday really reframes the entire proposition. At full price, the PikaBoost 2 – Lite Edition is a considered purchase, an investment in convenience that you have to weigh against more powerful but more complex kits. With a significant price cut, it becomes something else: a low-risk experiment. It’s an opportunity to answer the question, “Would I actually use an e-bike?” without first spending a couple of thousand dollars on a dedicated machine. If you discover you love the assist and use it constantly, you’ve learned something valuable for your next big bike purchase. But if you find you only reach for it once or twice a month, then the Lite Edition, bought on sale, was probably the smartest, most cost-effective way to get that occasional electric tailwind all along.

Click Here to Buy Now: $368 $508 (PikaBoost 2 Lite Bundle with additional 220Wh battery) Use Code RKMASDSTJYYT for extra $20 off. Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

Click Here to Buy Now: $269 $339 (PikaBoost 2 Lite) Use Code ANBM9MC9Y5X8 for extra $10 off. Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

Amazon Here.

The post This $368 Gadget Turns Any Bike Into an E-Bike in 30 Seconds (And It’s 28% Off This Weekend) first appeared on Yanko Design.