[Bart Nijssen via The Design Blog]

The Ammonite Washbasin is available in 1200-1590 x 560 mm (approx. 47-63 x 22 inches) dimensions with a basin that measures 64 cm (about 25-inches). There is no word on pricing, but my guess is that it would be very expensive to install. Plus, you may run into trouble with the financing after you get canned for being late to work everyday. You could easily get caught in a trance watching this sink operate as you brush your teeth in the morning. [HighTech via Trendir]

You hang the device on your shower head. The included proprietary cleaner bottles gravity-feed into the rotating nozzle and pump, powered by 4 AA batteries. You push a button after you're done showering and after half a minute of warning beeps, the turret fires off the cleaning fluid in a 360-degree pattern. It's supposed to be a robotic anti shower dirt artillery cannon. It is is not.

Over a few weeks, a mild and inexcusable pattern of soap scum (infantry in the army of shower gunk) built up onto my bathtub. Was it by chance some serious buildup? No. Some strong stuff in the purple squirt bottle applied and a non abrasive sponge took it right off.

Honestly, I think they're selling this thing on the fantasy of clean bathrooms and fear of mildew alone. The snake oil product, which I tested for about two months, might make a good base for an automated scarecrow weapon in the garden triggered by some motion sensor. But it won't do anything for your bathtub that a sponge, some elbow grease and the most caustic material your lungs and skin can handle can't do better and cheaper. Especially the original Scrubbing Bubbles stuff, which I am a fan of.

Robot bathroom cleaner, zero; human domestic man servant, 1.

UPDATE: Just got this hate mail from this guy, josh.pruitt@gmail.com

This is clearly an angry attack on a product. Lots of people I know
(self included) use this product and have been satisfied with its
performance for years. The article is completely biased and shows a
lack of research. There's no indication that Brian contacted Arm &
Hammer for help with finding out why the product wasn't performing as
expected. Just because a product doesn't work for you doesn't mean
it's "snake oil." This product isn't even related to the theme of
Gizmodo.

"Hello Arm and Hammer, your thingy I bought doesn't work. Can you please explain why? Oh, ok. Good answer. Thanks. Bye." *goes back to using lame shower cleaner with a deeper understanding of why it fucking sucks.*

• After nearly going bankrupt in 1927, Buckminster Fuller moved his family to a Chicago slum so he could spend his days in the library reading works from the likes of Gandhi and Da Vinci. By 1928, he had compiled 2,000 pages of notes into a 50 page manuscript entitled "4D Time Lock." It was basically described as incomprehensible nonsense. From here, Fuller began work on his Dymaxion line of inventions focused around utopian living.
• The Dymaxion Car, built in 1933, was blimp shaped, sat on three wheels and had a periscope instead of a rear window. Fuller had a vision that the evolution of housing would lead to pre-fabricated homes that could be put anywhere, so people would be living in places like Antarctica or the Sahara, and would need an all-terrain vehicle to get around. The car could turn 180 degrees on a dime, and would often cause traffic jams from slack-jawed onlookers. Future designs for the car called for it to fly using a VTOL mechanism, but a fluke accident at the Chicago World's Fair killed production of the vehicle in 1934.
• Fuller viewed the (still popular) individual homebuilding process as inefficient and antiquated, which gave way to his Dymaxion Home project. He thought homes should be built like cars; constructed in a day, exactly the same as the rest. The Dymaxion Home would have all the necessary amenities and would be installed in lightweight towers. The towers themselves would be constructed in a central location and transported to the building site via Zeppelin, where a bomb would be used to excavate the land. When a family was ready to move, the home could be packed up, removed from the tower and taken to the next site. Unfortunately, Fuller was unconcerned with the availability of the technology he called for, which made building these homes nearly impossible.
• The Dymaxion Bathroom was intended to be built like a refrigerator, with a sink, toilet and bath condensed into a modular unit that could be placed anywhere in the home. Thirteen models were produced before production was nixed in 1936.
• Bucky's most bizarre concept was his Cloud Nine project, which consisted of communities built inside ginormous, super light spheres covered in polyethelyne. Apparently, when the sun hit the spheres and created enough hot air, they would rise up into the sky, essentially creating cloud cities (sans Billy Dee Williams). I don't think further explanation is needed to show why this never happened.
• But Fuller's most realized innovation were his Geodesic domes. Utilizing aluminum struts and fiberglass panels, Fuller made a dome which covered 93 feet and only weighed 8.5 tons, catapulting him to design fame. His services as a speaker and thinker became popular from universities and the Pentagon alike. Obsessed with the shape for their volume optimizing qualities, Fuller wanted to house entire cities under domes and shield residents from the elements, where energy would be conserved and money saved. His envisioned Manhattan covered in a two-mile dome, and more domes in the Arctic, Antarctic and Tokyo Bay.

Buckminster Fuller's failed inventions aren't the only things worth reading about. There are plenty of great anecdotes about his eccentric life — like how he was expelled from Harvard using his tuition money to entertain a group of chorus girls and spent a significant chunk of time only eating prunes, steak, tea,and...umm...Jell-O (unmentioned is that he also served as the second president of MENSA). Basically, he was awesome. [The New Yorker]

There's probably a Loolander "Loo Steel" joke there somewhere, but I can't be bothered. [Pocket-Lint and Design Odyssey]

[WET via Trendir]

Not only does the Sorgente look expensive, but its unusual design also means you'll have to build the bathroom around it, instead of the commoner way of throwing in a plastic shell. The tub completely submerges into the floor, and creates that seamless effect by way of a specially designed brim seen in the picture below (think Infinity Pool for the water closet set).

Once you enter the pool, er tub, eight "hydrosilence" whirlpool jets massage your kiester after a long day of driving the Maserati around Rodeo Drive. Meanwhile, the entire tub is surrounded by a choice of teak or oak woods, or three different varieties of stone.

Pricing wasn't listed on the Teuco product page, but if you have to ask, right? [Teuco via Notcot]

Other features on the Regio include a Sharp designed "mechanism that kills germ-emitting ions," an illuminated toilet bowl, and a seat that is extra wide for those with more ample buttocks. Naturally, all of this luxury will set you back a few—to the tune of 462,000 yen in white ($4500) or 556,500 yen in black ($5400) to be more specific. [Inax via Trends in Japan]

Although similar installations already exist on military aircraft, this will be the first time urinals will be available on commercial flights. As well as using less water than conventional sit-and-flush toilets, the urinals could lead to separate loos for men and women—which can only be a good thing, as my experience as a frequent flyer on the Madrid—London Gatwick route attests.

Norbert Runn, Dassler's head of Business Development, expects the urinals to go in economy class, where the majority of passengers are men. He declined to say which airlines were considering the move, but the urinals, which take up less space than the current cubicles, could well be fitted on Boeing 747s and the 380 Airbus. [Telegraph]

They are call Vasabarca and Arca, respectively. The price range goes from frackinghell to yougottabekidding. [Antonio Lupi via Aqua—in Spanish, gracias Fernando]

The surprising aspect is that only standard text messaging rates apply, meaning that the government isn't making money off the service. So why lock the bathrooms in the first place? By putting users' numbers on record, authorities hope to cut down on vandalism. We'd be happy if just it curbed "gush without flush." [HELSINGIN SANOMAT via textually]

For those looking for more practical toilet lighting solutions, check out this little gadget. [philipwatts via techdigest]

I would prefer a bigger shower head, myself. [Yanko]

It's energy-efficient (read: environmentally friendly) because it heats water each time it's used as opposed to keeping a heater on 24/7 in order to store warm water. The water flows through tubes in the seat (which has been reshaped to minimize heat loss) and up your bum when you're finished, cleaning itself off with antibacterial ionized water after it's cleaned you.

It even has a deodorizing fan built in, but I still think the best part about the whole thing is that it has a remote control to lift the seat. All I need is one more remote - added to the remotes for my iPod, my ceiling fan, and the 17 items in my entertainment center, it'll make for one stylish proposal some day.

The toilet's 2 models, the SCS-S500 and the SCS-S510 (the remote and deodorizer are only in the S510) go on sale in Japan on November 23. [Tech On via Trendhunter]

- Josh Ziegler

The musical choices include rain, waves, jazz, latin, modern, and appropriately, stream. The sensor uses 3 AAA batteries and is easy to install (just stick it on the lid using the adjesive backing). The gadget itself will set you back $29.98, which is a small price to pay to avoid your own bodily functions. [FindGift via NerdApproved]

1. Tagging TFSU on Jesus's chest while he sleeps.
2. Getting mediaeval on jumper fluff.
3. Trimming my bonsai lawn.
4. Intern Benny!
5. Creating a hair-don't for the dog.
6 @%*& &mdash no, that's just rude. [Impress through Google Translate]

Nakamura encourages consumers to add their own custom paint job, which may prove pricey, as the tub itself costs 3 million yen ($26,000) while the other items are 1.5 million yen ($13,000) each. By the way, a disclaimer specifically states that bathers should bathe at their own risk—so try not to get impaled by the faucet. [PinkTentacle via UberReview]

Someone called Robert Stadler of French design group Radi Designers is the muppet behind the +336+ mirror. His house is, I'm sure, a veritable potpourri, smorgasbord and chimi-churri of fabulous things, but this, Robert dearest, is something else. Give me your number and I'll text you exactly what I think of the +336+ and you can read it while you floss or shave or pick your zits or whatever it is you do first thing in the morning. [Generate via Oh!Gizmo]

This silly device gives you effortless control of that tremendously heavy and difficult-to-lift toilet seat by using a foot switch that raises the seat as you approach the john and lowers it back down when you're through. Apparently you must keep your foot on the pedal for the seat to remain up, which we see as a slight inconvenience.

Really, though, why can't we guys just remember to put the seat down when we're done? Are we that fucking stupid? Do we need $29.95 device to do this for us? Or is there a bit of injustice involved when males are ordered to lower the seat after they're done?

We're thinking that the mere act of spending $29.95 might serve as a reminder to raise and lower the seat properly. But then, there are more-civilized members of the male persuasion who have no trouble remembering this at all. – Charlie White

Why didn't you think of this?: The PeaceMaker Toilet Seat Lifter [GearFuse]

Hopefully these things are strong enough to support lightweight laptops—though it doesn't seem like they are—so we may have to stick to playing with our Pokeballs while we're on the toilet. What? We're talking about the new DS game. – Jason Chen

Product page [LazyBoneUK via Nerd Approved]

Oh, one thought on that black finish: It could pick up soap and calcium deposits pretty easily. Then again, people who have shower systems like this also have French maids to clean it all up. – Brian Lam

Grohe [via Mocoloco]

The iSave is a rather simple gadget that has just clinched the runner-up prize in Metropolis Magazine's 2007 Next Generation Awards. Attach it to either your sink or a showerhead and it will show you just how much water you are using for your morning's ablutions/scrubbing last night's taco melt off your plates. Designed by Reamon Yu, it's not going to save any water, but it will make you conscious of just how much is used/wasted, and hopefully will push you to further reduce your consumption.

The iSave is powered by a small turbine embedded in the waterflow, so greenies among you need not worry about expending any more energy than you have to. It's not available as yet, but fingers crossed and faucets tight. – Ad Dugdale

The 2007 Next Generation Design Competition Winner and Runners-Up Announced [Metropolis Magazine via Inhabitat]

Toilet Paper Folding Prototype [Core 77]

Product Page [Via nerdapproved]

Product Page [Via Ubergizmo]

Toto, purveyors of a-cut-above bathroom accessories, such as this and this are in deep doo-doo. Toilets from their Z range, which feature a pulsating massage spray, a power dryer, and a "Tornado Wash" flush, have been bursting into flames in the company's home market of Japan.

According to a company spokesman, nobody was using the toilets when the fires broke out, and there were no injuries—although it could have been very nasty indeed. "The fire would have been just under your buttocks," she added. Imagine the carnage if, while perched atop one of the flamers, some unlucky person had chosen that moment to unleash a mighty fart.

Although just three loos have been affected, Toto is taking no chances, and is recalling all 180,000 of the Z models, which were manufactured between May 1996 and December 2002. – Ad Dugdale

Free repairs to flammable toilets [BBC News}

It's a landing strip for your stream, and will cost you a mere $5.99. No more bright bathroom light waking you all the way up at night; these glowing strips let you get blessed relief while you stay half-asleep. Short of installing yourself a urinal for closed-eye nocturnal urination, this is the best idea yet. – Charlie White

Product Page [Vacation Gadgets, via The Uber Review]

Sure your water bill may double as you spend so much time in the bathroom, but at least you'll start washing your hands.

Hit the jump for another Hansa design.

The Hansaclear Lux allows your wife to choose the color of her new "joystick" (as you neglect her playing with the sink). – Mark Wilson

New Hansa Products [via trendir]