Dokumat 500 is a robot that creates documentary films that are destined to create buzz at the next Sundance. Created by Niklas Roy, the Dokumat is a completely autonomous robot that decides what to film without ever analyzing the film it records. Using thirteen sensors, the Dokumat roams freely around the landscape, filming and avoiding obstacles like kids and old people. It has complete control over its camera and it independently edits the film, so no human interaction is involved after turning it on. The robot has a short attention span and the filming might be completely random, but isn't that what inevitably happens to the wedding photographer after a few trips to the open bar? Plus the Dokumat will never fall down some stairs and into the wedding cake. Twice.
Telephoneboxing is a telephone concept that finally gives you a reason to break out your complete collection of Tae Bo tapes. The concept is based around ten numbered boxing pads placed randomly around the inside walls of a 20ft container. To make a call, a person simply punches the number they want to dial, stands in the center of the container, and begins screaming once the telephone connection is made. The screams are automatically adjusted to an appropriate volume, and the called person's responses are transmitted back through a speaker in the front of the container. The boxing pads even make sounds when you punch them. Will Telephoneboxing still let you play "Mary had a little lamb" on the keypad? Probably. Will Telephoneboxing save Billy Blanks from another appearance on the Tony Danza Show? Probably not.
Stacks and Stacks is selling a biometric wall safe perfect for the gunslinger who just can't seem to remember pesky combinations. The Wall Vault uses biometric reading, where a simple scan of your fingerprint will open the safe in seconds. The Wall Vault is mainly targeted at gun owners who want quick and easy access to their handguns, but feel free to store secret plans or truth serum antidotes or anything else you would usually find in a wall safe. Criminals should also note that they only need the owner's index finger (severed or otherwise) to open the safe. It's that convenient!
In an attempt to strengthen military capability, the South Korean Air Force has started recruiting online gamers. The Air Force has decided to specifically target online gamers because of their skills in dealing with "computer-related things" as well as their "excellent personal hygiene" and "amazing social abilities." Those last two quotes were my own, but we can bet that those added benefits were implied. As soon as next month, five professional "e-Sports" athletes will begin serving as program testers for war-game simulations. It is not known whether or not they will sport name tags like "S |-|4Rk A++aC|<" or ones hosting their actual, less l33t names.
Does your alarm clock light up your entire room with an unyielding green glow? No? Well, then maybe you should follow the lead set by our friends at Spark Fun Electronics and build a giant 2 x 12ft wall clock. Built from LEDs, this clock sets itself, is accurate to 100ns, and is powered over ethernet. This thing is huge and time consuming, but they have a step-by-step tutorial that should tell you everything you need to know. Since each digit is individually controlled, you could put this to many different uses. How about a countdown clock for when the Olsen twins turn 18? Oh wait, it's not the year 2004 and you're not that really skeevy guy who hangs around parked in a high school parking lot... Hopefully.
Pain®Gone is a wonderful panacea with interestingly placed trademarks and the shape of a large ballpoint pen. The PainGone uses "electrical charges produced by crystals to provide prolonged pain relief which is clinically proven to work." For a second there, I thought this was a scam, but we all know that if something has crystals, it has to work. The PainGone supposedly mimics nerve impulses that send a "call for help" message to the brain. The brain, which frequently confuses electric pens for actual nerve cells, immediately sends endorphins to the area. Take a gander at the illnesses the PainGone miraculously cures: back pain, tennis elbow, whiplash, shingles, skeletal pain, lumbago, phantom limb pain, and headache. It is not known whether or not the PainGone cures the ink marks left on your skin when you mistakenly jam a Bic into your forehead.