So what makes the Volcano so great that people spend close to $700 on one? Well, first of all, it looks pretty awesome. If you didn't know what it was, you'd think it was some sort of German-designed kitchen equipment, which isn't too far off.

Each Volcano is built by hand by a small German company using top-notch parts. It's got a classic design to it that will make you want to leave it out rather than hide it in a desk drawer. But that's not why you buy it. You buy it because it gets you high really well.

You simply pack some vaporizables into the heating chamber and pop that into your Volcano, which has a handy digital readout to let you decide exactly how hot you want it running (it still stays cool to the touch on the exterior). You then attach a vapor balloon to the top of the heating chamber. Over the course of about 30 seconds, it fills up with vapor (not smoke, mind you). You then snap on a mouthpiece and pass the balloon around. It all sounds more complicated than it is.

So why is that so great? Well, it's all about the vapor. The Volcano heats your vaporizables up, but not hot enough for combustion. That means all the nasty tar and toxins in your herbs don't get released, just the active ingredients and flavors you're looking for. What results is a healthier and cleaner-feeling experience. It also gets you high as shit.

So is it worth the cash? Well, not really. But if you're a serious smoker and you have cash to burn, you will almost definitely absolutely love this thing and want to use it every day, not just because of the great experience but because of how good it looks. But if spending $700 on something to smoke with seems like a ludicrous and insane thing to do on your budget, it most definitely is. But hey, not everyone can afford a Porsche, either.

[Digital Volcano Vaporizer]

As explained in this CNN clip, Hillman returned to the police department later with his original box and receipt, proving his ownership of the system. But the console could not be found because it had not yet been transferred to the evidence room.

We're still in the dark as to whether or not Hillman ever got his (now) stolen Xbox back. Here's hoping the authorities drew the lines of decency somewhere and left his frozen pizzas alone. [Xbox360Fanboy]

Just watching this video serves as proof of the efficacy of the Volcano—obviously whoever shot and edited this watch-the-grass-growing video had a distorted sense of time passing. Note to self: Don't shoot and edit video while plastered.

Its makers say the Volcano Digit is accurate, bringing that herb to ± 1.5°C of the perfect vaporization temperature, showing its progress to you in big bright LEDs you'll be able to read no matter how toasted you are. Even though this Volcano Digit costs $669, we like the idea of reducing the most harmful aspect of pot smoking: It's a gateway drug ... to cigarettes. [The Volcano Vaporizers, Via Storz-Brickel]

These guys did extensive market research, probably involving smoking lots and lots of, uh, vegetable material, just to make sure the finished product was up to snuff. The researchers discovered that "more than half the people we spoke to said whilst they love the ritual of rolling, they would rather not have to lick their cigarette to seal it shut." Now they've patented the process, somehow making the ends self-sticking while still making the papers easy to package and dispense.

Stamps are increasingly self-sticking, why not rolling papers? Great idea. VPapers are available in a couple of different weights, and also in regular and king-size, giving you a nice long 100mm smoke. Fire 'em up. [VPapers]

Too bad there's not a stash compartment inside that lets you inject just the right amount of smoking substance into that bowl. Maybe that'll be one of the features of version 2.0. Anyway, just keep this baby filled up with gas and weed, and you're good to go. The bad news? You'd better smoke the schwag for a while, because this little tokin' tool will set you back $80.

Product Page [Solopipe]

Here were our impressions.

Vaporizers are billed as tobacco cessation devices, as well as aromatherapy products for burning various herbal remedies, as well as the type of herb you are thinking of. They work essentially like a hair dryer element, heating herbs and tobacco to a temperature just before the point of combustion thus extracting the active elements but not actually burning the leaves. The absence of burning makes for little to no carcinogens in the inhaled vapor. In fact, the Volcano claims to be over 95% carcinogen free making it the preferred form of marijuana consumption in various Pharmaceutical Science and Medical Marijuana usage studies.

But enough of the boring stuff—how do you use it?

The Volcano is a relatively simple device to use and is expertly crafted with fine German engineering to make it pretty much idiot proof to operate. The temperature dial can be set to whatever level you like, although the experts we spoke to said they always turn it to the highest setting to maximum extraction. The red button on the bottom turns the machine on and off while the green button is pushed when you are ready to force hot air through the herbs of your choice. The center control light will turn on when the heating element is off and shut off to signal that the desired temperature has been reached.

The filling chamber has a screen on the bottom to hold the herbs into place. Once you have put the desired amount in, the screen set is placed on top and forms a seal.

Then the closed filing chamber is placed on top of the Volcano. The grooved top fits snuggled into the bottom of the chamber, making it pretty much impossible to place it incorrectly.

The valve comes attached to the large plastic bag which will fill up and hold the vapors. Our experts say that you can leave the vapors in the bag for an hour or two before inhaling them. The unit also comes with more bags that can be easily changed every few months. The bags that come with the unit will last for 2-3 years with heavy usage and more bags can be bought on the company's website.

The valve snaps into place on top of the filing chamber.

Then you press the green button which forces the hot air through the herb and send the vapors up into the bag, which inflates in a matter similar to a Jiffy Pop bag.

Once the bag is full you use the clips on the side of the valve to disconnect it from the filling chamber. Those same clips snap the bag into the mouth piece which forms a seal and keeps the vapor inside the bag. You just have to press your lips against the mouthpiece and the valve is opened allowing you to inhale all that vapor-y goodness.

Another friend of a friend moved with his Volcano and after a few years of solid use decided to open it up and clean it out. He told us that most of the crap in there was removed with compressed air, but he needed to hit a few spots with rubbing alcohol to do the trick. Here are the Volcano's finely engineered innards.

The Storz and Bickel Volcano retails for around $550 US but better deals can be found eBay and other discount sites. Our anonymous friend says he obtained his on eBay for around $400 but only after a huge delay, presumable because the sellers were probably too inebriated to put on some clothing and get to the post office.

Worth the price? Hard to say, but damn was it fun to play with...I mean my friend said it was fun to play with. It certainly could not have been any easier to operate and would definitely pay for itself in just a short amount of time for the serious smoker. Another bonus that you can get more extraction from using less actual herbs, so this up front investment could save you money for years to come. One more thing—could you pass the Cheetos?–D. B.

Volcano Vaporizer [Storz and Bickel]

The I-Lit [I Want One of Those, via TRFJ]

The thing is an expansive three feet wide and looks to us like it could double as a scoreboard at a football stadium. It's all yours for $94.95. – Charlie White

Big Ben LED Wall Clock [OhGizmo]

This is a great hybrid system, and an especially nice idea for lights that might be situated in darker areas of your house. Weed growers will love this, where its reduced power usage won't be as likely to raise a red flag down at the government-supervised power company. Plus, you get a 30% federal tax credit if you install it this year or next. Can't beat that. – Charlie White

Take a look at the Discovery Channel video segment, after the jump.

Product page [Sunlight Direct, via SlashGear]

If you also have a clock fetish like we do, this'll be your favorite website. Hey, we like online clocks. Go ahead, park this one on your desktop and show 'em your people skills. Cheer up: wherever you are, somewhere in the world, it's cocktail hour. – Charlie White

Body Clock [Billy Chasen, via TRFJ]

Might offer some good stealth in a pinch, or when you're on that next spy mission. Not exactly high-tech, it hooks up to USB 1.1 to send your pictures back to the mothership. And oh yeah, it can light those stogies, too. It's the same size as a regular Zippo, and that crappy camera on board doesn't raise the price too much—it's $30.

Product page [HotGadget, via CrunchGear]

This six-foot marijuana plant, marked down to $190.57 from $224.20, includes five buds and sits in a basket container. The three-foot marijuana plant is $114.07. Or you can just grow your own for free. – Charlie White

Product Page [New Image Plants, via Yahoo News]

How could we resist telling you a story that involves dope and babes all in the same breath? There is a legitimate use for the cannabis sativa plant, and that is to make hemp to be used for clothing. But the plant's course coarse fibers have been sometimes associated with cloth that is anything but smooth and silky.

Now British clothier Enamore has figured out how to mix up the fibers from the hemp plant with silk and other recycled fibers to put together some soft and supple underthings worn by this pouty-lipped vixen. Only problem is, while underwear like this is certainly smoking, it must be hard to keep it lit. – Charlie White

Luxurious Hemp and Silk Lingerie From Enamore [Treehugger]

Feeling guilty because you're leaving your plants home all alone while you go out gallavanting around? Put them in intensive care with the Self-Watering IV Plant Pot ($275), a home for that special-needs plant that looks like an Apollo spacecraft with an IV drip hanging on it.

This is not just any self-watering flowerpot. Besides its humorous qualities, its hanging IV bottle is actually useful, letting you easily see when the water supply is running low.

Show those special plants just how much you care. But if you like to talk to your plants, just don't let them know that ultimately you're going to kill them, roll them up in a phatty and smoke them. – Charlie White

Product Page [Vitamin Living, via über review]

We're wondering just how effective this could possibly be, where the product's website promises best results if you use the Bird Chase Laser in low light. Couldn't we accomplish the same thing with a well-aimed laser pointer or two?

Anyway, we'd like to try this out on some rabbits who are chewing up our prize-winning Gizmodo garden, moseying away afterward as if they were searching for a bag of Doritos or a pawful of chocolate chip cookies. If this doesn't work, well, we'll just have to get out our elephant gun and go for the pink mist. – Charlie White

Bird Chase Laser [Bird B Gone, via boingboing]