Gearfuse

I’ve been DJing since I was 15. Never professionally, only at parties, the occasional event or for my own pleasure. My first set of decks were made up of old Numark belt-driven turntables. After I got a little better, I bought Technics 1200s with Ortofon cartridges and a nice Rane mixer. That lasted me until I went digital and started using M-Audio’s Torq Xponent controller in conjunction with Traktor 3 on my Macbook.

Now it’s 2009. For the last few weeks, I’ve been messing around with the Tonium Pacemaker. It’s a rather expensive little DJ device coming in at around $850 but it packs a lot of power.
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We’re in dire need of some new LEGO stories here at Gearfuse, so be sure to send us some tips. In the mean time, check out this awesome LEGO Safe. It features a working electronic lock and weighs 14.3 pounds, making it quite the usable safe. It uses the LEGO Mindstorms NXT system, allowing for a fully programmable safe. Of course, if you really wanted your roommate’s stash inside, you’re probably better off introducing it to a crowbar.

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Pacemakers are turning out to be more problematic than their original conception intended. The electronic device that runs the arterial show can not only be controlled wirelessly, but can also be deactivated by nearby MP3 headphones. Research teams are suggesting that patients wearing a pacemaker should stay more than three centimeters away from such devices as the interference from the headphones could prove fatal by temporarily deactivating the pacemaker.

Scientists are now completely re-thinking the pacemaker. The cloaking device was the first step to pacemaker-hacking prevention. Unfortunately, someone must now come up with a pacemaker not affected by the headphones. Remember to never walk through a retirement home with your new iPod.

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While digitizing a Rubik’s cube would offer little more than confusion and frustration, at least it’s a one-up from Hasbro’s Lights Out. However, it is not a one-up from the original design of the Rubik’s cube, which is a classic amongst puzzle games worldwide. Rubik’s cubes were always the cheap toy you could throw around when you couldn’t solve it, but now that it’s electronic, it’s more expensive and therefore more fragile.

This is the future. So why not add credit cards into Monopoly, digital dice into Double Trouble and a digital display on to each card of Uno? I’ll tell you why: because it’s lame. Leave the classics alone, people.

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David Butcher is one cool dude. Every day, he exercises for 45-minutes on a pedal-powered generator that powers his laptop computer, a Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner and compact fluorescents. However, he’s not the only one making use of this eco-friendly approach to powering electronic equipment.

A new gym in Portland, Oregon utilizes a similar approach to building up energy.  Personal trainer Adam Boesel opened the Green Microgym not solely to provide members with an excellent workout but also to save some energy.

“It is an example of what a community can do to conserve energy, even if it’s a drop in the bucket.”

If only more people shared a similar outlook on our energy crisis.

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If you’re not familiar with Carl Craig, Google around and I’m sure you’ll find out that he’s one of the pioneers of techno and electronic music. In recent years, his music has taken more of a house/ethnic approach that has pushed the boundaries of modern electronic music. For our readers in France, if you’re around the Cité de la Musique in Paris come October 18th, you’ll be able to catch the Les Siècles Orchestra performing Craig’s tracks. Craig will be there mixing in the orchestra with the electronic bleeps and beats. Expect ass-shaking from everyone come nightfall unless Craig pussies out and ends up beat-syncing (that’s a pun on lip-syncing FYI).

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Looking stylish with those cufflinks made from electronic oscillators. Yes, those are real 25 MHz oscillators  that’ll keep your sleeves looking nerdy for just $10.  Etsy member digiBling hand-makes all of her electronic-inspired jewelry that’s guaranteed not to get you laid. Maybe you could interface these with your Arduino or something? You could have some sort of crazy Arduino top-hat and tuxedo that flashes LEDs with wrists that emit dolphin tones…

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Trying to fashion your bathroom in a serial killer theme? You’ll need this electronic bloody shower curtain inspired by the famous scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. Guests are sure to be startled by the motion-activated Psycho music clip, complete with a screaming woman that’ll make anyone cringe. It’ll go great with those homicidal clothes hangers and no one will ever mess with you once they’ve seen your bathroom.

If that doesn’t scare them, you could always whip out your WASP knife for shits and giggles. It’s a $20 dollar must-buy and runs on three AA batteries.

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Tap on, tap off. That’s exactly what you’ll be able to do when you get a Sanindusa Spot electronic bathroom faucet installed in your home. As you can see, there’s a sleek button on top that you can tap for water. H2O will flow out into your washbasin in a clean, controlled manner, which is supposed to help conserve water and reduce costs.

Unlike most faucets in public bathrooms, you can tap twice to turn the stream of water off instead of waiting for it. This makes sense considering that the Spot is made for home use. Just don’t try to use it as a butt plug. Let it flow instead.

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Even if it looks a little too much like a purse to be completely unisex, as the designers claim it to be, the idea is a snazzy one. The Urban Performer Unit is a handbag with slick crystallized controlling, allowing you to operate your iPod from the Swarovski crystal laced surface.

The crystals indicate the iPod’s functions, incorporating an emotional feel to a smart electronic handbag. The bag doesn’t only work with iPod’s, but with most any pieces of mobile gadgets, including your PDA or cellphone. The Urban Performer Unit will be available in Christmas 2008 for the price of about $517.80. (more…)