Gizmodo: shock

Oregon Man Used an Electric Dog Collar to Shock His Kids "Because He Thought It Was Funny"

Dan Nosowitz — Fri, 08 May 2009 02:20:00 EDT

Salem, Oregon resident Todd Marcum, whose name we will use repeatedly because of the nature of his crime, has been arrested for maliciously abusing his four young children with an electric dog collar.

According to police lieutenant Dave Okada, Marcum admitted that Marcum shocked his children, aged 3, 6, 8, and 9, "because he thought it was funny."

Marcum told police that he would chase the 3-year-old boy around with the collar, making him cry at the thought of being shocked. Okada said that because of the boy's behavior, it is likely that the children were shocked more than once.

The collars, being powered by a nine-volt battery, are not strong enough to actually injure a child (or a dog), but that's no excuse for this jackass's behavior. Marcum is currently in jail in Salem on four charges of first-degree criminal mistreatment, and we hope he stays there. [Statesman Journal]

Lightning Review: Datel Wildfire, PS3 Dual Shock Alternative

Mark Wilson — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:40:00 EDT

The Gadget: Datel Wildfire, the first third-party PlayStation 3 controller to support a combination of Bluetooth, rumble and tilt sensitivity.

The Price: $40

The Verdict: Even at $10 less than Sony's Dual Shock 3, the Datel Wildfire is a pass. The controller actually feels decent in your hand, with an interesting pistol-like contour and a useful rubber texture. And its build quality is decent—it doesn't feel cheaper than a Dual Shock or SIXAXIS.

But the rumble isn't fantastic, the buttons are all a bit stiff and the altered, trigger-like position of L2/R2 buttons makes it a leap for your fingers to reach L1/L2 (similar to the Xbox 360, but exaggerated for the worse). I didn't notice any inherent lag or inaccuracies in either the analog sticks or the tilt sensitivity, but I found it hard to pull off any maneuver with laser speed. And additional turbo functions can do little to combat buttons that are hard to press quickly.

Plus, even though it plugs in via mini USB like official PS3 controllers, the Wildfire runs on AA batteries. Sony's integrated rechargeable lithium ion alone probably makes the $10 premium worth it.

Comfortable to hold

Bluetooth pairing was super easy, no dongle required

Stiff Controls

Awkward trigger placement

Mediocre rumble

AA batteries required
[TotalConsole]

Shock Safe Delivers a Jolt to Would-Be Thieves

Adam Frucci — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:15:00 EST

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that no one wants your old baseball cards enough to warrant securing them in a safe that delivers electric shocks to people.

The shock safe does just that, administering a jolt to anyone who dares tamper with it. It uses a four-digit code to keep itself locked up, and it has flashing lights and sound effects as well, which are features found on every serious safe. The jolt is probably pretty weak, but so is a mere four-digit code, so what can you do. [Product Page via Red Ferret]

Innovations in Visualizer Technology: Electroshock Your Face

Dan Nosowitz — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 12:45:00 EDT

Sure, iTunes' new visualizer is pretty, but you can't compete with the visceral, hypnotizing weirdness of Daito Manabe's facial electric stimulus. He tapes electric stimulators, looking like the same type used for electroshock therapy, to his face, and syncs them with his music so his involuntary facial contortions match up with the tune. Shots of the machine he used after the jump.

[MAKE]

Lipstick Stun Gun Comes In One Shade: Frazzled 'Nads

Kit Eaton — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 08:19:05 EDT

Forget DIY camera stun guns: they're just a stunt. If you want real pocket protection, these charmingly disguised stun guns can deliver 350,000 volts of agony to an assailant. Will they think it looks like you're just brandishing a tube of lippy at them? Probably not an experiment to try. They have an LED flashlight built-in, and come with a charger. If carrying this around in your purse makes you feel safer, they're available for a paltry $49.95 in a variety of shades and shapes. So you can, you know, coordinate your electro-shock defense with your outfit. Weird. [Red Ferret via Gizmodo UK]

PSPs For Assholes Hold a Shocking Secret

Haroon Malik — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 10:30:00 EST

The gadgets you see above may look like your average Chinese knock-offs, but they hold a most shocking secret. They don't play video games or MP3s, but you would be forgiven if you thought as much. You would not be forgiven if you picked one of these bad boys up, as they'd shock the bejeezus out of you—literally.

Each $3.95 gadget will electrocute anyone who unwittingly tries to utilize them, all in the name of good electro-shocking fun. Bizarrely, the laser point will actually function, where as the others don't. It is not too clear whether it functions whilst delivering a current, but that would make it even more pointless than we initially thought. Smashing. At $3.95, the practical joke is not going to deliver a paralysing blow, but can you afford not to enter the market of electric comedy at that price? [Product Page via Technabob]

Shocking Stapler

Jason Chen — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 20:00:52 EDT

Ensure that nobody ever borrows your stapler again with this real-looking Shocking Stapler. It's even colored red like Milton's, which means your co-workers are all the more tempted to grab for it as they drop by unannounced while you're trying to get some work done.

The only downside is that it's not a real stapler, which may actually be an upside since you won't have to worry about staplers flying all over the place when your buddy gets shocked and throws this across the room. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Amazon via PCNews via PC News Blog]

Shocking Alarm Clock

Jason Chen — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 17:00:12 EDT

We've featured a bunch of alarm clocks over the years, but this one seems to be one that'll either wake you up fast or you'll smash it against the wall on the second day. On the surface it looks like a regular old school alarm clock, but when you reach over to shut it off it gives you an electric shock.

We used to sleep past all our classes in college, so something like this would have been great. Painful, but great. Oh, and don't bother using this if you have epilepsy or a pacemaker. They don't have a snooze button for death. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Dontdosocks via Oh Gizmo via i4u]

Shock Ball Takes Hot Potato to a New Level

Travis Hudson — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 17:15:04 EST

Unless you are playing hot potato with a flaming tennis ball, then you aren't playing hard enough. And if that flaming tennis ball is a bit too much, then the Shock Ball may be more of your liking. Charge up the ball and begin tossing it around. The Shock Ball has contact points all over and a timer that will send jolts all over after a set length of time. Pair this $40 toy up with a BongXedo for one hell of a night. –Travis Hudson

Product Page [Via CG]

Pikashoes: Lightning Power at Last

Mark Wilson — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 16:30:59 EST

In Gizmodo's unending quest to become a team of ~~supervillians~~ superheroes, we've come across the Pikashoe. As my pea brain understands the science, the shoe sends low voltage negative ions somewhat safely through your body to the ground. But if you touch someone who is uncharged, ZAP, they are toast.

And the plans look like they only take a few minutes.

Tip to modders of the world: when making supershoes, splurge for some new kicks first at Payless. Like everything else in the world, supershoes are a waste if they can't get you laid. – Mark Wilson

Pikashoes [digg]

Tazer Gloves: DIY and Fight Crime for $20

Brian Lam — Thu, 20 Jul 2006 18:02:39 EDT

We'd all like to be superheroes, but none of us are getting any stronger by sitting our asses in front of our beautiful, baby blog. That's ok — you can follow this instructables.com tutorial to make your own Tazer gloves for $20 dollars worth of rubber gloves, tin foil, some AA batteries, and a disposable camera. Has a 300 volt standard mode, and a supercharged jolt that is "much more painful." – Brian Lam

Tazer Gloves, Video, Instructions, and Photos [ instructables.com ]

Shocking Lie Detector

Jason Chen — Sun, 07 May 2006 17:00:31 EDT

Hide this Shocking Lie Detector from your wife, or the next time she asks you where you were until 2am, that "I was working late Honey" is going to cost you all the feeling in your fingers.

As she feeds you some easy calibration questions—what are our children's names—you'll be wishing this device didn't strap your hand tightly to prevent any last second fidgets. Good luck gentlemen.

Shocking Lie Detector [igadget via Me, My Coke & I]

Shocknife

Jason Chen — Sat, 06 May 2006 03:00:36 EDT

Need training against a knife but don't want to look like Zsasz from Batman? Use the Shocknife, which looks like a knife, hurts like a knife, but doesn't cut your skin. With up to 7,500 volts but less than 1 milliamp, the Shocknife provides law enforcement and self defense classes real world experience with bladed weapons. The shock is activated but a button on the grip, and has four settings, "LOW", "MED", "HI", and "X".

If they could make a low-powered version of this thing I bet kids would snatch it up. Cuts like butter.

Shocknife [via Tech Ticker]

Motion Sickness Wristwatch

Jason Chen — Mon, 24 Apr 2006 23:46:54 EDT

Not a fan of vomiting? Cruise goers (cruisineers?) can now use a wristwatch-like band that dispenses gentle shocks to your arm in order to trick your inner-ear into thinking you're on solid land.

Five settings of relief are available to soothe your motion sickness. Available for $100, the "watch" comes with two 3-volt batteries and a tube of gel so you don't burn your skin. Oh, and it doesn't actually tell time.

FDA-Cleared Device for Motion Sickness [via Gadget Review]