Crutch Chair Design Transforms for Impromptu Sitting

Ever broken a leg? Know how much hassle it is to stumble around in crutches? Designer Yong-Rok Kim's Crutch Chair is intended to be a partial solution to the problem of knackering yourself out when walking like this. The two halves of his design snap together to form a neat seat-like thing so you can take the weight off your injury. Seems a darn sensible idea. With just one concern: that connection. Will you break your other leg when it gives way as you sit? Death by crutch it shall be! It's just a concept— we imagine it'd be boring gray or "medical pink" if it were ever made real. [Yanko design]

Motorola's Smart Rider Car Phone: Just In Case You Were Expecting a Call From 1992

An FCC leak back in February tipped us off to the fact that Motorola was prepping a car phone, but it wasn't until today that the details were announced. However, unlike the car phones of yesteryear, the Smart Rider features GPS navigation, voice activation and Bluetooth. But here is the kicker—you can use it outside of your car, which basically makes it just another cellphone. Oh those Motorola execs with their marketing trickery! No wonder you guys are kicking so much ass. Available starting in June. Press release after the break. More »

Question of the Day: Which Cellphone Style Do You Prefer?

With CTIA 2008 winding down, we have been inundated with phones of all shapes and sizes. Some cellphone styles are more popular than others, but each has its own distinct advantages and disadvantages. That having been said, which of the following cellphone styles do you prefer? More »

Perspektiva Lamp: For Anyone Who Dreams of Being Stalked By the Paparazzi

According to the designers at Transparent House, the idea behind the Perspecktiva lamp was "to integrate an iconic object into modern day life while maintaining the qualities of art and function." In this case the "iconic object" was a vintage camera inspired by the classic Leica design. The result is a work of art that should appeal to just about anyone—especially Hollywood hopefuls that dream that they too will one day have to file a restraining order against a paparazzo. Too bad it is only a concept at this point. Video after the break. More »

Nokia's N-Gage Cellphone Gaming Platform Is Up and Running

The official announcement won't be until next Monday, but the N-Gage blog just let everyone know that their cellphone gaming platform went live today. If you've got an N81, N81 8GB, N82, N95 or N95 8GB, you can go download and install the service now (available on both Mac and PC). If you've got an N73, N93i and N93, you'll have to wait a bit for support. Here's our hands-on of it at Mobile World Congress. In short, it's like Xbox Live for your phone. [N-Gage Download]

Selfy the Easy Bed Makes Itself for You

Attention, lazy, lazy people! Say hello to Selfy the Easy Bed. Yes, that's the name of the product. It's a bed that makes itself in the morning, using a couple of rails that hold onto the sheets to lift and tuck everything in, giving you a neat bed to crawl into at the end of the day. Sure, it was invented for the sick and infirm, but I think your laziness could qualify as a sickness if you're really looking to justify this thing. Also, did I mention it's called Selfy the Easy Bed? [USA Today via Oh Gizmo!]

Bald Kung Fu Baby Kicks Ass

Kung Fu Kidz, he's really not very tall. More »

Bagetty Wiener Microwave

There's apparently a market out there catering to people who don't want to use a one-size-fits-all microwave, as evidenced by the Ultra-Mini Microwave we reviewed yesterday, and this Bagetty elongated microwave. Instead of being relatively boxy like traditional models, this thing is long and tube-shaped, making it perfect for hot dogs, wieners, franks, sausages, bratwurst and other long meat. It's just a concept, meaning you won't have to make the very difficult decision of whether or not you want to purchase one. [Martin Zampach via The Design Blog via DVice] More »

Ghost in the Chair Design is Milky not Spooky

Designed to look like it's almost not really there, this "Ghost Chair" puts me more in mind of milk poured into water. It's pretty futuristic, in a curved-yet-straight, acrylic kind of way. It's apparently the first in a line of chairs and stools from designers Ralph Nauta and Lonneke Gordijn that will use this novel technique. We don't know if you'll be able to buy them, though they'd certainly make a dining set that would be a conversation starter. Conversations like: "These chairs look like someone's taken a glass of water and poured in ..." It's on display from the 16th to 21st April in the Salone del Mobile in Milan. [Designdrift via Yanko design]

XCM Chrome Xbox 360, From Drab to Fab(ricated)

We can't speak for everyone here, but our home theater just isn't looking tacky enough lately. Luckily there's this XCM-branded chrome Xbox 360 case replacement for HDMI-enabled models to help us reach our geek quota. Running about $60, a set of four will only set you back $240—a nominal cost to have the most unique, sought-after rims on the block. Unfortunately, the hard drive cover isn't included, nor is a new skin for your controller. Those will set you back $25 and $30, respectively, meaning that this little joke gets expensive real quick. More »

Man Stuff - The Best of Uncrate

This week at Uncrate: We hit the skies Batman-style in the Air Suit, retrieve our balls from the drink with the Callaway Golf Ball Retriever, and prepare for Springtime showers with Swims. We also outfit out bar with some Tiki Room 45th Anniversary Collectibles, sport the Helvetica Cap out on the town, and take out our aggression on some African wildlife in Big Buck Hunter Safari. Finally, we protect our iPhones with the Working Class Heroes Multi Case, get our rock climb on poolside with the Aqua Climb, and kick back on the modern Ply-Bak Love Seat.