Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding September 10, 2012

Everpurse iPhone Charging Purse

Project Title: Everpurse: Magically Charges Your iPhone All Day Status:In progressClosing Date for Funding: October 13, 2012 URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: Never run out of battery again! Ever notice that your smartphone dies JUST when you need it most? We set out to build something so powerful and easy to use, it would make charging your phone an afterthought. To charge, all you have to do is slip your phone into the Everpurse pocket! Whether you’re at work or out on the town, your Everpurse will keep your phone charged all day long. You…

Crowdfunding August 29, 2012

The CruxSKUNK Wants to Make the iPad into a Laptop

Project Title: CruxSKUNK™ – Powerful iPad® Laptop Status: Open Closing Date for Funding: Wednesday Oct 3, 4:56pm URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: Turn your iPad® into a laptop: This isn’t our first rodeo. At Crux we’ve been busy making keyboard cases for your iPad® for about 2 years now. Needless to say we’ve learned a lot about design, manufacturing, and getting a product to market. The CruxSKUNK™ is the culmination of everything we’ve learned. There is essentially no other keyboard case that can touch the fit, finish, attention to aesthetics, and detail that we’ve put…

Crowdfunding, eBooks, Reviews August 21, 2012

Seven Poets and the Assassin’s Secret Is a New Kind of Novel

When I heard about the iOS app Seven Poets and the Assassin’s Secret, I couldn’t help but be intrigued. It is a unique, real-time serialized novel centered around a fictional terrorist attack on the Olympic Stadium in London during the closing ceremony. Content runs from August through October, when real-time serialization will end. Seven Poets tells the story of seven children who are able to escape the terrorists and their struggles to survive in a new and different world. The app, which features in-app purchases for each new portion of the story, went live at the beginning of August and…

Crowdfunding August 6, 2012

TOUCH TIME Digital Watch with Touch Screen Gets Kickstarted

Project Title: TOUCH TIME: Digital Watch with Touch Screen Status: Open Closing Date for Funding: Funding runs until Sept 30th URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: INSPIRATION: Next generation digital watch with a touch screen, Smartphone-like watch apps, “always on” display, and you never need to charge it. Today’s mobile phones and other electronic devices don’t look and function like they did in the 1980’s, but that can’t be said for digital watches. Wouldn’t it be nice to change the appearance of your watch’s time display and set an alarm with a swipe of a finger?…

Crowdfunding, Reviews August 4, 2012

Elevation Dock Review; How Some Kickstarter Projects Overdeliver

Backing a Kickstarter Project is, as Judie and I have discovered, a roll of the dice. There is no guarantee the project will get funded and, if it does, no guarantee it will deliver on time. In fact, just yesterday I received to emails about projects that are “significantly delayed”. Then, even if the project does get funded, created and arrive there is no guarantee it will live up to its promise. Then there are projects like the Elevation Dock. It. Is. Awesome. The Elevation Dock was a Kickstarter project that sought to deliver what Apple never has — a good,…

Crowdfunding, Reviews July 19, 2012

LunaTik Touch Pen Video Review, Kickstart This!

Project Title: LunaTik Touch Pen: The Evolution of the Stylus Status: Funded, Backer Rewards Received, New Orders Being Taken Closing Date for Funding: February 10, 2012 URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: Thank you for checking out our LunaTik Touch Pen project. Ever since we launched the TikTok+LunaTik Watch Kits on Kickstarter last year we have been constantly asked when we were going to do another project. Well, we have been working on a variety of ideas which we plan to launch in the near future. One of the first ideas is a simple and obvious…

Crowdfunding, Reviews July 18, 2012

TouchFire Screen-Top Keyboard for iPad, Some Kickstarter Projects Just Don’t Make the Grade

Project Title: TouchFire: The Screen-Top Keyboard for iPad Status: Funded and my backer reward arrived Closing Date for Funding: December 13, 2011 URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: TouchFire makes your iPad feel like a normal keyboard! TouchFire puts the “touch” back into typing on an iPad. You can now feel where the keys are and rest your fingers on the home row, so you can type as fast and accurately as you can on a laptop. You can even type without looking at the screen. TouchFire cushions your fingers as you type, something both touch-typists and…

Crowdfunding July 18, 2012

POP – The Intersection of Charging and Design, Kickstart This!

Project Title: POP – The Intersection of Charging and Design Status: Raised $5261 of $50,000 goal Closing Date for Funding: September 1, 2012 URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: The batteries in our mobile devices have not been able to keep up with the increased usage. As a result, we often find ourselves looking for places to charge. But many times, convenience and charging do not go hand in hand. At the Edison Junior Design Laboratory, we developed the perfect solution to this problem. POP, aka “Portable Power”, is a rechargeable portable battery with retractable cord…

Crowdfunding, Gear Bits, News & Features July 13, 2012

Functional Home Decor: Urban Fidelity Art Speakers

For new home-owners on a budget, Urban Fidelity’s new line of eco-friendly art speakers provide a fitting mix of form and function. If you’ve got just $300 to spend on both interior decorating and a new speaker system, this newly announced collection of artist-powered audio equipment might help bridge the gap. The art speakers come adorned with designs created by a select group of contemporary-minded indie artists, including: Liam Brazier, Craig Watkins (wotto), Herman Lee, Daniel Teixeria, Hyein Lee, Tobe Fonseca, Wojtek Polak (Akuma101), Maxime Archambault and more. A visual list of the entire design collection is available to view…

Crowdfunding, Reviews July 5, 2012

WINGStand for Apple iPad and Bluetooth Keyboard Review

I have tried, reviewed, and stopped using so many keyboards and keyboard cases designed to work with the iPad that, quite frankly, I’ve lost count. Each time however I have returned to using the on-screen keyboard or dictating- as I am right now. It’s not that the different keyboards didn’t work – quite the contrary – in fact, some of them were rather good. It is simply the fact that I’ve been spoiled and none of those keyboards were as good as the keyboard on my MacBook Pro or iMac. In other words, in my experience even the best external iPad…

Crowdfunding July 3, 2012

tablift Holds Your iPad So You Don’t Have To….

Project Title: tablift – The Missing Companion to The iPad Status: Seeking funding with 9 days to go as of this post (July 2, 2012) Closing Date for Funding: July 12 at 8:-4 p, est) URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: tablift is a simple yet elegant solution for using your iPad hands-free in bed, on the couch, or in your favorite cushy chair. Although there are many accessories for propping up the iPad, most are made to be used on tables and desktops. However, over half of tablet use takes place on the couch or…

Crowdfunding June 21, 2012

Metal Medal Hangers with a Shelf, Kickstart This!

If you participate in any organized sporting events, there’s a good shot you will end up with a medal. Running races generally give out medals for half-marathon and marathon distances, and championships in team sports often also reward players with hardware. Yes, there’s an easy joke here about how these days “everyone gets a medal” but they make great souvenirs to remember athletic experiences. However, once you take one home, how you do you display it? One or two can be hung on a hook, but above that you want a better way to show them off. Enter the Kickstarter…

Crowdfunding June 18, 2012

Kickstart This! EDGE.sound Bluetooth Speaker

I have come to love bluetooth speaker systems; their ability to stream audio from a phone or tablet is extremely convenient. In fact, when I am camping or outside on the deck, I almost refuse to use a wired speaker system. New technologies and design features make these products sound and look great. One feature I wish all companies would include is a microphone to allow the speaker to be used as a hands-free call device. I recently found a device that looks to provide a bluetooth speaker that includes style, quality and ease of use. All of that with…

Crowdfunding, Gear Bits, Reviews June 11, 2012

iLID MK-1 iPhone case/Stand/Wallet Combination Video Look

The iLID began life as a Kickstarter Project. (Here’s the page.) I got in on it later, so I ordered one retail (I ended up with two, so be on the lookout for a giveaway). Here’s what the website has to say about it. The World’s Thinnest iPhone Wallet! The iLID iPhone 4 Wallet Case is the thinnest Wallet iPhone (Patent Pending) in the world. Its ultra-thin 17mm profile means you’ll never be weighed down by an iPhone Wallet again. MSRP: $39.95 What I Like: Light; Not as thick as I expected; Let’s you go out with just your phone; The…

Crowdfunding, News & Features June 5, 2012

On the Way! Elevation Docks Begin to Ship, Kickstart This!

The Elevation Dock is one of the Kickstarter projects I have been most excited to see actually ship. I love my iPhone but hate the way most docks make it a challenge to put your iPhone in or remove it. After all, the 30-pin connector is the most vulnerable part of the iPhone other than the screen (and I would argue it is in first place). The Elevation Dock solves that problem with a metal dock that looks great and promises to be easy on the iPhone when yopu dock and undock. (Read the Kickstart This! post here.) Well the…

Crowdfunding June 4, 2012

The Brydge Gets Funded… and then Some, Kickstart This!!

The most expensive Kickstart Project that Judie and I have backed just got funded. (Okay, “over-funded if there is such a thing”.) The Brydge is an elegant solution to the lack of quality iPad keyboards and accessories currently on the market. Brydge connects to your iPad using a patent-pending hinge which allows for close to 180 degrees of iPad positioning and holds your iPad secure. In other words, it turns your iPad into a NetMac complete with speakers and all. As the Creatives note Brydge’s aluminum body is machined and anodized so that it matches the look and feel of…

Crowdfunding, News & Features June 1, 2012

Trygger iPhone Camera Case

Trygger Camera Case: iPhone 4/4S Polarizing Filter Case Status: $6,919 pledged of $25,000 goal Closing Date for Funding: Tuesday Jul 3, 7:05am No offense to you, or your burgeoning photography skills, but cellphone cameras suck. Even with the iPhone 4’s auto-focus and auto-exposure features, it’s hard to create frame-worthy images. While capturing beautiful moments isn’t impossible, it’s certainly a challenge to even the most deft photographers. Indie casemaker Trygger is ready to change that. With the introduction of their KickStarter project, the company aims to enhance iPhone photography through a polarizing filter attached directly to their new case. Maybe it’s…

Crowdfunding, Reviews May 30, 2012

Hand Stylus Review, Kickstart This!

Using an iPhone and or iPad throughout most days, there is one thing I have learned. My hands can sure make a touch screen smudged up and grimy. While coaching my high school softball team this year, we used the iPad to collect all of the game stats. While this was awesome, I found myself cleaning my iPad after every game just to be able to see the screen. At one point I thought using a stylus might be best to keep it clean while also making the stat keeping easier, but did not have one to use. Recently I…

Crowdfunding, Reviews May 24, 2012

Cellhelmet Protection for iPhone 4S Review

The cellhelmet is one of the Kickstarter projects I backed that was actually successful, produced and shipped. (You can read the initial Kickstert This! post here.) Yes, my cellhelmet arrived the other day and I was excited to get it on my phone. It stayed there for about an hour and then came off, was repackaged and prepped to give away in tomorrow’s newsletter. Why am I not using it? Read on! The reason I find the cellhelmet to be a mixed bag can be summed up in this image. You see, the bulk of the creators discussion of the…

Crowdfunding, Editorials May 22, 2012

Is Kickstarter Limiting Hardware Projects Because of the Pebble’s Unprecedented Success?

We love Kickstarter; Dan and I (along with others on the Gear Diary team) have backed many projects, and we are always on the look out for new ones. That is, of course, why we started Kickstart This! We love the way that Kickstarter helps inventors and artists get funding so that their products and projects will be available to the public. As anyone who has backed a project on Kickstarter likely knows, “every project is independently crafted, put to all-or-nothing funding,and supported by friends, fans, and the public in return for rewards.” While Kickstarter gives these projects a place…

Crowdfunding May 19, 2012

Elevation Dock, the Best Dock for iPhone; Kickstart This!

I love the idea of having a set, stable place to drop my iPhone and charge it. The Element Case Vapor Dock (reviewed here) is a great dock. But it could be better. I mean, imagine something as solid and gorgeous as the Vapor Dock but also lets you dock and undock your iPhone in a millisecond. That’s what the Elevation Dock promises and… with luck… will soon deliver. Project Title: Elevation Dock: The Best Dock For iPhone Status: Funded Closing Date for Funding: Saturday, February 11, 2012 URL of the Project: Find it here. From the Creatives: If you…

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