Welcome to another week in Kickstarterland. I can’t believe it is June already. Water bottles, universal translators, MORE Pebble and a 13.3″ e-ink monitor. Quite a busy week.

 

Kick(s) of the Week

Gululu – I met the creator of Gululu earlier this year. It’s a Tamagotchi in a water bottle designed to encourage kids to drink more water. The product looks great but the price is a bit steep for me with four kids who lose their water bottles regularly. Thankfully my kids like water.

 

Regular Kicks

Pilot – I have struggled with every type of translation system while traveling and expect this to be as hopeless. However, it’s always fun watching people trying to build a Universal Translator.

Pebble Core – Another $10m project from Pebble. This time its two upgrades and a new faceless wearable. Nothing in there for me but it’s good to see them back.

Paperlike – The world’s first e-ink monitor and the world’s largest e-ink panel. Nice.

Silent Keys – For the truly paranoid. BYO secure keyboard with built-in operating system.

Energysquare – Certainly not a new idea but at the price, it looks pretty appealing.

101Hero – I don’t normally mention 3D printers but at this price I couldn’t resist.

GoBone – I pay less for my pets than this toy costs but there is always a market for high-end dog toys.

Gole1 – When China sells directly to the world, boy are things cheap. This is a seriously cheap mini PC running Android or Windows 10 (free because it includes a screen).

Platypod Pro Max – A third version of their low “tripod” which can support a full size camera with lens.

Remo – A repeat of the very successful Sensibo. These type of devices are made almost redundant by the aircon manufacturers working out how to do it themselves. Thankfully they do it very badly.

Photon – A children’s programable robot which develops skills over time in pace with the child’s capabilities.

WeatherFlow – A smart weather station integrated into all the right places.

SoundLazer VR – This is the 8th project for Richard. This one is a focused speaker sound system particularly useful for offices.

ATX Breakout Board – This power supply is the first project I have ever seen fully sold out. Well done Richard.

RoutaBoard – A clever prototyping board with a very flexible neighbour-based layout.

Solos – Google Glass for cyclists. This is a pretty good application of Glass/HUD and the testing on the Olympic team was a winner move.

Vessi – Another beer making machine, this time an all-in-one. It looks like it is supposed to sit next to your BBQ serving beer with meat.

Dato Duo – A simplified synthesizer and sequencer for you and old to make music together. Someone forgot to tell them that cheaper is better when it comes to “toys”.

Cinemood – A small portable projector designed for kids and families. The purchasable covers include unique content.

Wooting One – It’s amazing to see someone redesign the least changed part of the computer for modern uses … and in analog!

The Barisieur – The ultimate gift, a coffee/tea machine that makes you coffee in the morning. What my mum has been asking for for years!

Proximity – This should be called “Leash” and it applies just the same for kids. But it’s not that “exciting” or “innovative”.

 

Shitstarters

Romoss – I don’t know what problem they are trying to solve. I have a need for a large charging station but not a large battery station. Does anyone?

Prota Box – A robotic finger for pressing buttons. Get a life, really.

 

Left Fielders

Livia – The best video for a TENS machine for period pain I have ever seen!

Eve Kit – A home sampling kit for female STI and HPV screening. I am not sure Kickstarter is the best channel to market although this way they do get to pitch to people without “lady parts.”

Fucking New York – This is a photobook about sex WITH the city instead of sex IN the city.

UpLamp – A lampless lamp. WTF.

Carin – A wearable bladder control meter. I am so pleased to be a man.

 

And remember, its only limited by your frigging imagination.

Welcome to another week in Kickstarterland. It’s been too long since my last post so this should be a big week. I have been busy with my new startup Mystic Pants traveling to the USA for meetings and conferences about the Internet of Things (IoT).

Kick(s) of the Week

The DAO – The worlds largest crowd funding campaign at $160m so far and I don’t even understand what it is! But it had to get a mention.
Acanvas – This project wins the prize for it’s really brilliant charging solution.
Regular Kicks

GeoOrbital Wheel – A clever solution to making your bike electric.
Knocki – Sometimes Kickstarter backers surprise me. $100 for a device which detects knocks and turns them into home automation actions is nuts.
Nura – A crazy idea from a Melbourne company – headphones that calibrate themselves by bouncing sounds off your inner ear.
BioLite – A battery powered lantern. This is a company that has worked out how to sell the basics all over again.
Portal – A new Wifi AP which enables some extra 5ghz channels. It will only buy some extra time until everyone else is using the same spectrum.
Pal Strap – A GPS add-on strap for Pebble Time. How to make your Pebble uglier.
BiCable – A dual-header cable (Lightening and Micro-USB) with the most sexual inuendo I have seen so far.
Spend Wallet – Another card consolidation device like Coin and still without chip-and-pin support. It wouldn’t work in modern countries like Australia that no longer support swiping.
Flens – A focus lense for your smartphone flash. It narrows the beam to make it brighter.
Formbox – A desktop vacuum former for making your own mini factory.
Furbo – A dog camera with a treat ejector and bark alert. I can see this woman cleaning piles of dog shit on a regular basis and not getting much work done.
PlayDate – Sphero for dogs with a built-in camera, microphone and speaker.
Leka – A giant Sphero robot for exceptional children with autism and alike.
Nydeum Sense – Apparently the revolution is missing some members. It’s not a bad looking device but it’s really not a problem needing to be solved.
Geo AR Games – This is the first project I have seen that posted a news piece as their campaign video.
Broadcast – A tshirt with a display and touch sensor. This could be fun. I wonder how hot the LEDs get?
Issa Mikro – A baby and child toothbrush with a seriously talented young presenter.
Ember – A Bluetooth controlled, heated lunch box. I am not sure who would pay $199 for a lunch box, even if it is a cool one.
Enki Stove Wild – A clever camp fire system which uses pyrolysis to burn fuel efficiently, without smoke and apparently environmentally friendly.
Udoo x86 – A lot of grunt for a tiny price tag plus Arduino compatibility to boot
Kuvee – I didn’t really know that keeping wine fresh was such a global problem but apparently there is a solution
Floatti – A smart suitcase with wheel suspension, USB charger, Bluetooth tracking, scale and a handbag dock.
SeeNote – I like all products built around ePaper displays. This is one I have been hoping to see for a while.
Brixo – Lego bricks with electrical circuitry.
Trainerbot – A table tennis training robot that won’t pick up your balls for you.
LoRaOne – IoT development board based on a small microprocessor and the LoRa wireless protocol.

Shitstarters

Tap Device – This was first created about 10 years ago and nobody wanted it then. Nothing has changed.
Helio Tent – Proof that more information doesn’t buy your more backers.
Bioo – Power from your plants? I doubt it.
Lighty – Why? Who wants a robotic projector?
Left Fielders

Field Phone – Telephone solutions for the zombie apocalypse
And remember, its only limited by your frigging imagination.

Welcome to another week in Kickstarterland. A total random collection of interesting projects popped up this week from robotic security and lawn mowers to self filling water bottles. A few of this weeks’ projects appear to be repeats of earlier projects. Maybe they will be more lucky than their predecessors.

 

Kick of the Week

Moon – This stunning moon globe has real and accurate craters and a simulated sun that makes them shine. Oh to have that kind of money to throw around.

Regular Kicks

Sense A Life – I am not sure this is the best solution to the problem but it is a real problem. I think the reality is people won’t buy this product until they have screwed up at least once. And every parent has done it.
ShadowBox – Lighting solutions are ever improving. This is a good price for a really useful lighting project.
Growver – Grass watering robots aren’t as good as drought tolerant grass but hey, whatcha gonna do?
Mr Beam II – I can’t wait to have a laser cutter in the kitchen at home so I can write messages on my kids’ bananas!
Mooring – One day, one of these sleep projects will deliver a product that actually works. Until then I will wait until there are real reviews out in the market.
Birdie – This would be fun once or twice.
EZ Remote – I think it’s a bit too late for a product like this to be taken seriously. But it looks ok and cheap.
Fishing FanCam – I was fishing a few weeks ago and thought that it would be great to have a camera pointed at the hook and bait. And what do you know, there it is!
Geni – A bit of a clone of ORBneXt but still a great idea.
Riley – A really cute robotic camera with some basic security features.
Fontus – A clever use of technology to extract water from humid air into a solar powered bottle. Delivery in a year from now is a bit higher risk.
Aurai – For the relief of eye strain, this mask massages your face with warm and cool water. How exciting.
LoRaONE – This product will be much more useful when the LoRaWAN network reaches a reasonable scale.
Dualo – Another new musical instrument designed to be freeform and anti-establishment.

Left Fielders

Livia – An Israel father-and-son have created a Tens machine tweaked for women’s menstruation pain. I can only imagine how they got to this idea but they produced a great video.

And remember, its only limited by your frigging imagination.

Welcome to another week in Kickstarterland. The trend this week is the Nespresso model – campaigns that sell you the hardware but tie you in to buying content from them. Add to that we have connected umbrellas, coding for kids and dual SIM iPhones. But the news (and my mind) this week was dominated by the Tesla 3 launch.

 

Kick of the Week

Tesla Model 3 – This is cheating a little bit but Tesla has pulled off 250k+ orders to raise $250m cash on back-orders of $10bn+. This is the greatest Kickstarter of all time.

Regular Kicks

Olo – Insanely cheap 3D printer which uses your phone for the heavy lifting. Another insanely popular 3D printer project.
Ekko Hub – Wireless headphone jacks for up to four people at once. Bloody well thought out product.
Kaptivo – Whiteboard image capture system for online realtime collaboration.
FlipFlic – Automated, solar powered blind winder.
Kuvée – Connected wine bottle which keeps wine fresh for 30 days and provides digital drinking notes. Sadly requires you to buy your wine in canisters from them.
Juicero – A ludicrously expensive connected fruit press with subscription juice packs.
Tovala – Another smart oven that requires you to purchase food pods from them.
Artbrew – Kickstart loves automatic beer brewing machines. Yet another subscription service for ingredients.
Davek and Oombrella – Bluetooth connected umbrellas that alert you if you walk too far from it.
Codeybot – Robots that teach kids to code.
Dodock – A multidevice dock which looks ok but I can’t handle when they pay voice-over artists to read terrible english.
A-Speaker – I like the concept of directional speakers but I haven’t seen a good application for the technology.
Anyware Smart Adapter – Put this between your bulb and its socket and you have yet another smart home adapter. It’s yet another product that is disabled if someone flips the light switch.
DoBox – An odd but somewhat wonderful combination of add-on wireless device connectivity for your Apple devices. Card reader, access point, battery/charger, audio out, Airplay, keyboards, printers, mouse/trackpad, etc.
Krimston TWO – Live SIM adapter (backpack) for the iPhone. It’s big and ugly but really looks functional and useful … if only it supported 4G.
Protonet Zoe – Amazon Echo for the paranoid?
Ossic X – Headphones are something best bought in a store. These look great but I need to know how it sounds.

 

Left Fielders

Hush – Connected butt plug. Something every couple should have.
Remoji – A whole set of connected sex toys that dance to music.
Nervana – Music player that tickles your pleasure centers via your ears. The video indicates it puts people to sleep too.
Tmouse – “Deformable” mouse. Use your mouse in a gripping position to reduce strain.
iBrush365 – How these people crap on for 6 minutes about a toothbrush, I don’t know.

 

Shitstarters

Triton – Another “ambitious” project that will never deliver, they claim it’s an artificial gills but there is little proof.
Stream Cheese – This creator isn’t sure what decade he is in. Devices like this have been around for decades.

And remember, its only limited by your frigging imagination.

Welcome to another week in Kickstarterland. I haven’t had much time to research in the last month due to the launch of our new business, Mystic Pants, a full-service IoT consultancy. Now that it’s are up and running … here we are.

Kick of the Week

Package Guard – When you don’t have a guard dog to protect your packages, this seems to be a pretty simple and effective solution for “porch pirates.”

Regular Kicks

popSLATE 2 – These guys are back with a new 2nd screen for your phone. I like the idea but it gets expensive to replace every time you get a new phone.
Sinclair ZX Spectrum – Retro gaming extraordinaire. The interview is great if you can stay awake.
Aibo – Yet another robotic assistant with no hands. At least this one has a projector built-in.
TuneBox2 – Stream audio to your speakers over Wifi instead of Bluetooth.
Vie Shair – I like open air headphones but these looks like flimsy 3D printed plastic.
Cubetto – Teach very young kids to code with this wooden robotics tool.
Toaster – Another simple project from Brad Slattery, this time a 3v3, 5v0 and 5v-16v USB power supply for breadboard.
Sweep – Finally, LIDAR is becoming affordable.
Youmo – This power solution is looking for a problem I can’t find.
Fishbit – Your fish’s home automation system is now ready for production.
2020 Beat Machine – Software for making beatbox music. All you need to bring is skill.
Nurugo Microscope – This looks more like a toy than a scientific tool.
Voxcube – Got to love their 8x8x8 LED cube with through-hole LEDs … out of Australia!
Liv GX1-A Watch – These guys raised $1.2m on Kickstarter AND Indiegogo.
Vara – German engineers trying to redefine desktop lighting.
Sense – Some ex-Mozilla engineers using their talents to secure your home. I really am not sure what to make of this project.
Father.io – A real-life multiplayer first person shooter game.
Soundboks – Apparently bigger is still better. Good luck not being hated by your neighbours.

 

Left Fielders

Hello Mazel – You aren’t jewish enough if you don’t back this project.
Lioness Vibrator – Vibrators connected to smartphones that empower their owner.
16 Magnetic Interactions – Some people know how to put their viewers to sleep really quickly.
Bios Incube – Help to turn your dead relatives into trees. Yep, you heard me.

And remember, its only limited by your frigging imagination.

Welcome to another week in Kickstarterland. Leading the way this week is a gorgeous levitating Bonsai tree. Right up behind that wonder is a smart steering wheel cover, a fingerprint padlock and a few other clever items. But fear not, we have the best collection of crap at the bottom of the pile. Phew!

Kick of the week

Air Bonsai – One of the sexiest pot plants I have ever seen. Eat your heart out Avatar.

Regular Kicks

Radiomize – Using a steering wheel cover is a clever approach to car automation.
Tapp Lock – Batteries are always a risk with these ideas, but I think its worth it.
Tittle – I already have a 8x8x8 LED cube but this is for the rest of you.
JIC – A call/voice recorder for your iPhone. A pity it doesn’t automatically record every call.
Treata Smartcare Watch – Monitor an elderly family member by having them wear this smart watch.
Carehub – This is another way of monitoring your elderly family members. It monitors various environmental factors and adds video communication to the home.
proacmOm – A great looking product but really, pay a marketing consultant!
Junglejar – A rotating aquarium that apparently nobody wants.
LoPy – LoRa, Wifi and BLE in one dev board with the MicroPython framework. The video is painfully bad.
MicroPython for ESP8266 – Stripping the event-based operating system from the ESP8266 to allow for better MicroPython integration.
InsideCoach – I am not convinced this technology works. This is the second time they have brought this to KS.
ScopeAround – I can’t think of many uses for these beyond being a better Peeping Tom. I am sure you are more creative than me.

Shitstarters

Chi-o Phi – How is it that some scam artists, no matter how bad the advertising, still manage to scam people out of their money? Bio-friendly frequencies? Blessed by Balinese priests! Protect the human genome?!?!? Holy batshit.
Drive – TV screen time is unblocked when you have reached your Fitbit goals. Yeh, that’s going to happen.
The Telecom Company – WTF is this?
Banana Toiler Lifter – When “larceny” and “crimes against person” aren’t enough, put your crap on Indiegogo.
iDIFR – Nah, he isn’t paranoid at all. And yes, it’s just RFID backwards.
Smart Shoot – Nobody wants a robot to improve their selfies. Nobody wants some kids’ school project either.

Left Fielders

Sola – Add a little extra happiness. Your new “massager” comes with a five year global warrantee.
Fiera – Where is your want?! A toy to help women want sex. Sounds like a brilliant idea.
Audiopill – I don’t think the warning at the bottom about sifting through your faeces is sufficient.
Petspeak – Finally someone has invented a dog translator … NOT.

 

And remember, its only limited by your frigging imagination.

Welcome to another week in Kickstarterland. Not a massive week but we do have a maglev DeLorean time machine, a light globe with a built-in battery backup and way to use your smart phone as a wireless headset.

Kick of the week

Stego – The first project I have promoted simply because it has an awesome name.

Regular Kicks

Smartcharge 2.0 – While not their first version, building a UPS into a light bulb is a good move.
MagLev DeLorean – A floating DeLorean time machine? Yes please!
Blipcast – My Roku remote already does this but it’s great, so I can’t know Blipcast for doing it via your mobile.
Smartypans – There really isn’t enough value in this product to justify the price tag. Digital scales are cheap as are cooking apps.
OneCook – I don’t think robotic kitchens are quite ready yet, especially if it requires buying food pods from them. Maybe when Nestle sells one.
Luna – 360 degree cameras are getting smaller and more approachable.
DreamScreen – The third LED backlight enhancer for your HDMI TV. I look forward to seeing one of these in action.
f/0.75 lens – Wow, that’s fast. It’s not exactly the easiest to work with as it has no focus adjustment or aperture diaphragm.
SCIO – Learn to code for the IoT with this educational kit and videos.
tinylab – Why wire things to an Arduino when you can get an Arduino with everything already hardwired?
WifiThing – Yet another IoT platform.
Sync Footwear – LED shoes. Really, who could say no?
Simple WS2812B controller – Control Neopixels using buttons and pots.

Shitstarters

Walley – What we can see of the product isn’t terrible but there is something creepy about the campaign.
Interstellar Spacecraft – Not as cooky as some projects but certainly a little bit loopy.
AromaCare – Because lighting a candle is too frigging complex.

Left Fielders

Umbra – Engage with your menstrual cycle instead of dreading it.

 

And remember, its only limited by your frigging imagination.