Shower Timer - Make Your Life More Like 24

I think the only reason I spend so much time in the shower in the mornings is that my mind seems to take a bit longer to wake up than the rest of my body. So half the time I’m standing there trying to remember where I am or what I should be doing. But maybe if I had a ticking clock staring me in the face I’d be more focused on getting the job done.

The Shower Timer is a pretty ugly looking large metal box that connects between your showerhead and the pipes in the wall and can be programmed to shut off the water after a set amount of time. So not only will it save you time in the mornings (or give you a few more minutes of shut-eye) but it also has the potential of reducing your water and heating bills.

I particularly like the built-in functions for those who try to ‘beat the system.’ Once the timer runs out it can be set with a waiting period before the water can be turned on again. Even better it also has a ‘discouraging’ shower function that I can only assume means a blast of cold water when the time runs out. To be honest I think that would be the only motivation I needed to get in and out of the shower as fast as possible.

The Shower Timer is available for about $340 and there appears to be quite a bit of ‘assembly required’ in order to get it working. Almost to the point of hiring an actual plumber to do it so you’ll want to factor that into the cost as well.

[ Shower Timer ]

Icon Organizer For The Visually Impaired

Though this device might look like nothing more than a small memo recorder don’t be fooled by its appearance. It’s actually a fully featured PDA and media player designed for persons with impaired vision. The Icon from LevelStar includes a 30GB hard drive and a list of functions that rivals pretty much any PDA on the market.

It has a calendar, an address book that syncs to MS Outlook, a word processor that’s compatible with MS Word, a web browser with built-in wifi, email, journal, clock, stopwatch, calculator and a media player that’s compatible with MP3s, audiobooks and even podcasts. You can also get an optional qwerty or braille keyboard docking station that makes text entry even more efficient.

The Icon unit itself is available on the LevelStar website for $1,395 though I can’t find prices listed for the docking station keyboards.

[ LevelStar Icon with Docking Station ] VIA [ Popgadget ]

Schroers & Schroers Uranus & Cosmos Glass LCD Or Plasma Stands

Since LCD and plasma displays have become more common having one hanging on your wall is less likely to impress your friends when they come over. But I guarantee these all glass ‘floating’ stands are sure to impress anyone and everyone who stops by. While glass shelving and displays are nothing new the Uranus and Cosmos models made by Schroers & Schroers have no visible metal pieces and look like they’re ready to shatter at any moment under the weight of the display.

The Uranus model (on the left) is designed to hold an LCD or plasma display up to 38 inches in size or about 30 kilograms in weight. On the bottom is a rotary base that can actually be swiveled thanks to a series of hardened steel balls that roll along a milled groove. The Cosmos (on the right) is the larger of the two and can accommodate screens up to 60 inches in size and includes an integrated shelf for holding up to 4 AV components. While they look really cool in the product shots I can’t help but wonder if they’ll look as cool once you’ve got all the wiring hooked up between devices.

You can expect to pay just over $3,000 for the Uranus stand while the Cosmos is actually available in 2 sizes depending on the size of your screen and runs between $5,900 and $6,600. Personally I think I’ll stick with my IKEA stuff for the time being.

[ Schroers & Schroers Uranus & Cosmos Glass LCD Stands ] VIA [ Cribcandy ]

Zacod Brings Mobile Keyboards Into Third Dimension

It’s not often that the keyboard gets revolutionized (Dvorak, anyone?), but Zacod is giving it a shot with an innovative new type of keyboard for mobile devices. The Zacod MK-100 concept keyboard condenses a full size keyboard into almost an effective tenth of the size by making each key into a little joystick. When you push a key, rocking it on it’s axis allows you to select up 9 different characters. It works with both physical keypads and touchscreens, and Zacod claims (”claims” being the key word here) that you can input faster on a Zacod keyboard than on a conventional QWERTY.

The obvious downside here is that in order to take advantage of the Zacod keyboard, you’ll have to retrain yourself out of QWERTY mode, which is self perpetuating due to its ubiquity. It’s kinda like the Windows vs. Linux debacle: Linux may be a better OS, but Windows is already everywhere, and by the time you’re competent enough to make the (right?) decision, it’s too late and you’re too lazy to switch. Your only other option would be to dual boot your fingers, but that’s unhealthy.

And dang it if I’m not happy I managed to make it through this article without accidentally typing “Zaphod.”

[ Zacod ] VIA [ AVING ]

Whirlpool centralpark Connection - Not Just A Fridge Anymore

From what I’ve seen having an LCD display built into a fridge hasn’t really caught on as a mainstream option just yet. I think they’re still waiting for their ‘killer app’ but in the meantime they’re just a solution looking for a problem. Whirlpool seems to be thinking the same way when they came up with their centralpark Connection idea. The new feature will be available on their side-by-side fridge models and will add a special plug to the top of the door that’s compatible with custom made removable plastic cradles.

The general idea is for the cradles to hold something like a DVD player or LCD picture frame allowing them to be ‘parked’ on the fridge as needed. But unlike a built-in display the devices can easily be removed and used elsewhere in the home as needed. At a recent trade show Whirlpool showed off cradles holding a portable Panasonic DVD player and a Philips LCD picture frame and apparently more electronics manufacturers have expressed interest in the concept. Ideally the centralpark feature will use a single standardized cradle and third-party manufacturers will produce devices specifically designed to fit the cradle and be used on a fridge.

Whirlpool hopes to have the centralpark Connection feature available on some of their fridge models sometime in 2008 with a starting price of about $899.

[ Whirlpool centralpark Connection ]