Secret compartments are cool. Whether it’s the room behind a pivoting bookshelf, the flask inside a cane (a sword is even better), or an underground vault, the ability to stash away goods from the unsuspecting summons up fantasies of living as a mad scientist, James Bond or Batman.
For golfers who have something to hide, Bracketron recently unveiled the Smuggler, an insulated soft-sided “cooler” with a reusable cold gel pack that holds up to six cans of your favorite liquid. It’s designed to “discreetly” slide into a golf bag, which, we gather, means sneaking beverages of the adult variety onto the green. The Smuggler will sell for $24.95.
The Smuggler is part of Bracketron’s lineup of mobile accessories for golfers, including mounts for securing a GPS or smart phone device to a golf cart or bag.
There must be a demand for waterproof cases. Not long after we mentioned to you about the DryCASE, the folks at Benzitech sent us info on their new iDry waterproof cases for smart phones and tablets. The cases seal a device to keep out water, yet allow the devices’ touch screens to be used through the case without removal. They can submerge down to 30 feet underwater, and they float, too. The iDry products come with waterproof ear bud headphones, armbands, and neck straps.
Cell phones and H2O should normally never mix, but for those who cannot live without their phones even when in or near water, the DryBUDS SPORT headphones with built-in waterproof microphone is the accessory for you.
Shown this week at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, the DryBUDS SPORT is completely waterproof, according to its manufacturer, Dry Corp. That means you can bring it into the pool or shower to listen to your tunes. Paired with your phone using Dry Corp’s DryCASE vacuum-sealed waterproof case, you can utilize the microphone to make/receive calls while you soap up your bod or perform your backstrokes. The ability to access your phone through the headphones is also great for times when you can’t physically reach for the phone, like when you’re busy canoeing down a river, for example.
The folks over at Apartment Therapy have rounded up nine stylish fitness- and sports-related products that look sleek enough to stand alone as furniture, even if you never actually use them.
As someone who has used one of the products, the Technogym VISIOWEB, I can attest it works as well as it looks. With its large 19-inch display that does TV and iPod/iPhone connectivity, this is one piece of exercise equipment that I absolutely drool over.
Trips for Kids website www.tripsforkids.org (credit: Charles Simpson Photography)
Cleaning out the old bicycle parts bin always seems to start as a simple task, but can often turn into quite a dilemma. What should be kept or pitched? What has value, and what might be worth the hassle of selling on eBay or Craigslist? What has no real monetary value, but is still a functioning part that could have some use? Even for the latter, there may be an option other than the trash can for those parts and bikes that are still good, but not worth the hassle of selling. In a word: donation.
The Beer Can Surfboard by Richard Quinn Morrison (Photo: Richard Morrison/Enviro Surf Art Series)
Here’s one way to recycle those empty aluminum beverage cans from your next party. Surfer and artist Richard Quinn Morrison, who started the Enviro Surf Art Series, has created a surfboard using 72 empty beer cans from six brands salvaged from a local bar. Morrison created the board with the help of surfboard maker Gary Seagraves. The 6’2” board uses a rocket fish design with twin fins and a swallow tail, and it was designed to be functional. Watch this video of how he put the board together. The board will be put to use soon to test out its sea legs.
It was a year ago that we launched KineticShift with a simple goal: to cover the best products, devices and trends to help make a better you. In that time we reported from the Consumer Electronics Show (we’ll be back in Vegas this week), the Electronic Entertainment Expo and Interbike. We’ll be back at those three shows this year, and we’ll be reporting from other shows as well, including the SHOT Show later this month.
We’ve seen a lot of great products and it has been a great ride – including a ride in the Nevada desert with Cervelo Test Team during Interbike. Rather than waste time, energy and space recapping what we saw in 2010, we’ll keep it simple and say it was a great year for innovative products.
We hope that Gary Shapiro, president of the Consumer Electronics Association was right when he said to us in a phone interview last week that as far as innovation goes, “2011 will knock your socks off.”
Last January we launched KineticShift.com to cover the convergence of technology and fitness. We were submitted for a Battle of the Blogs contest at SoftCity Cafe for best “Gadget and Home” blog. We’re hoping to get the vote out.
Please vote early (and often) as they say:
It’s often difficult to find a bike rack. And when you do, your bike still takes up valuable space on the sidewalk. A German hobby supply company has the answer for you. A stand that raises the bicycle up a lamp post or other pole. So far, this is strictly a DIY project, but this company, Conrad, has the supplies and instructions for you to make your own. Check out how the mechanism works, and how it’s put together (in German).
Following the success of the inaugural “SEAL Tribute Celebration and Golf Tournament,” which was held on October 4and raised more than $500,000 for the families of U.S. Navy SEALs and their support personnel, the Naval Special Warfare Foundation, Half Moon Bay Golf Links and The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay, have already announced the second annual event for 2011.
This year’s event featured guests including Medal of Honor recipient Lieutenant (SEAL) Michael E. Thornton (ret.), Vice Admiral (SEAL) Albert M. Calland, III (ret.), and Rear Admiral (SEAL) Thomas R. Richards (ret.). The exclusive golf tournament took place on Half Moon Bay Golf Links’ Ocean and Old Courses, with sponsors playing and interacting with members of the SEAL community. The event concluded with more than 200 participants attending a Gala Dinner in the ballroom at The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay, with addresses by Lieutenant Thornton, Admiral Richards, and Ms. Krissy Rankin, whose fiancé was a Navy SEAL and died in the line of duty.
“It was invigorating and inspiring to watch Americans rally on behalf of the Naval Special Warfare Foundation, the SEALs and their loved ones,” says Mark Kendall, SEAL Tribute Event Chairman and President of Kenmark Golf Management, who operates Half Moon Bay Golf Links. “Despite the economy and downturn in large events and outings, golf is still a unifying game that brings people together over a shared cause.”
Opening ceremonies for the event began on October 4 with the U.S. Navy color guard and a Half Moon Bay High School trio singing the national anthem. A brief presentation followed with the retirement of an American flag recently flown in Afghanistan by a U.S. Navy SEAL team. Next year’s event will be held on September 30 and October 1.
For anyone who has received treatment for their injuries from exercising or sports, you know the importance of getting proper medical care and you expect that whatever the doctors need to put inside you is safe. But what if a procedure done to you or device put inside you wasn’t properly approved by the medical community?
It looks like that is the case with an implant device called the Menaflex Collagen Scaffold from ReGen Biologics Inc. According to the Los Angeles Times, the device—used to repair and reinforce tissue that cushions and helps lubricate bones in the joint of the knee—had received fast-track approval in 2008 despite the objections of Food and Drug Administration scientists, who wanted more testing done on it. Read the rest of this entry »
As you know, there are various methods of weight loss, including exercising, diets, pills, and hypnosis. Now you can add optical illusion to the mix, with a product called Slimware. Slimware are plates with unique designs that help you maintain portion control with food placement. See those flowers on the plate? In addition to adding aesthetics to your dinnerware, the size of the floral pattern is the size of the amount of a particular food you should have on the plate (the larger flower should contain more vegetables, while smaller flowers contain proteins and carbs). According to Slimware, “We are psychologically and culturally programmed to ‘stay in the lines,’ whether on the highway or at the post office. Slimware applies that mental predisposition to help you become portion conscious.”
Of course, the theory goes that if you eat less, you gain less. But you still have to be concerned with what types of foods you are putting on the plate. It also doesn’t stop you from building mounds of food on the plate as long as you stay within those lines. So, we’re not sure if we buy into the idea, but Slimware does point out the important fact that portion control plays a huge role in weight control.
Slimware lists celebrities like Elisabeth Röhm, Tori Spelling, Judith Light, Kendra Wilkinson, Emily Procter, Kathy Griffin, Rene Russo, Ashlee Simpson, Jennie Garth, Faith Hill, and Kristin Chenoweth as fans. If a celebrity uses it, then it must be good! Right?
The product is available in various designs, all for $36.50 for four plates.
Take a packet of PowerBar Gel Blasts on your next extended workout for an energy boost.
PowerBars have come a long way from their original chewy formula. The company has developed a dual source energy blend, C2MAX, made from sugar, glucose syrup from wheat, and invert sugar to boost energy and carbs during a workout. PowerBar Gel Blasts energy chews with a flavor choice of raspberry and strawberry banana use C2MAX to provide just such energy in an easy-to-eat form for workouts.
The quantities may be a little difficult to digest. PowerBar recommends that during activities lasting more than one hour, exercisers should take on -to-three pieces every 10 minutes, followed by water or sports drink. You can alternatively down a packet of 30 chews, the equivalent of one and a half PowerBar Gels, 60 minutes before exercise.
Secret compartments are cool. Whether it’s the room behind a pivoting bookshelf, the flask inside a cane (a sword is even better), or an underground vault, the ability to stash away goods from the unsuspecting summons up fantasies of living as a mad scientist, James Bond or Batman.
There must be a demand for waterproof cases. Not long after we mentioned to you about the 
