Gizmodo: Switches

LeaveMeAloneBox is Douglas Adams-esque in Its Simplicity

AddyDugdale — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 10:45:00 EDT

Inspired by Claude Shannon and Marvin Minsky's Ultimate Machine, the LeaveMeAloneBox is made of a couple of hobby R/C servos, a switch, a microcontroller, and a battery pack, all contained in a little box and with a sprinkling of code. "I get a pretty consistent reaction," says Michael, the guy who made it. "First no one wants to touch it. Next, someone reaches out tentatively and flips the switch. After that, all you hear is laughter and everyone's trying it out." And this is how it reminds me of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy.

Arthur listened for a short while, but being unable to understand the vast majority of what Ford was saying he began to let his mind wander, trailing his fingers along the edge of an incomprehensible computer bank, he reached out and pressed an invitingly large red button on a nearby panel. The panel lit up with the words Please do not press this button again. He shook himself.

Its slender hands remind me of my childhood ghoulish coffin bank, out of which an emaciated hand would snake, and avariciously grasp my pocket money before returning from whence it came. [LeaveMeAloneBox via MAKE]

USB Hub Has Individual On/Off Switches

Jason Chen — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 19:00:05 EST

USB Hubs come in all shapes and sizes (including fruit cake), but this is the first time we've seen a USB hub with individual on/off switches. This isn't only useful for switching off stuff without unplugging it and making a mess, it also helps save power when you're on laptop battery mode. It's a non-powered hub, however, so you won't be able to run four external USB hard drives off this thing. Those of you with four external hard drives should probably be getting a Windows Home Server unit and plugging those into there anyway. [Brando]

Essential Wall Dimmer Video Hands On, Soft as a Baby's Butt

Charlie White — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 10:17:30 EDT

When we first told you about the Essential Wall Dimmer from International Fashion Machines, we were wondering if its carpet-like conductive switch felt like a Brillo pad. The company sent us a demo unit, and we can now definitively tell you that it feels soft as silk, just like a fine piece of carpet. The $99 switch works well, and is extremely easy to turn on and off. We only noticed one slight downside to these pretty wall switches.

The only drawback we saw was the inability to have two or three of these switches together in a dual-gang or triple-gang arrangement, a common configuration around here. Some of us wished the conductive-fabric switching part was available in more than just that gray color, but the rest of us thought the whole concept was way cool. Big thumbs up! [International Fashion Machines]

Soft Touch Light Dimmers Turn High Tech Into High Touch

Charlie White — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 10:15:56 EDT

Here's a light switch that was formerly just a concept but has now received UL approval and is actually available: the Essential Wall Dimmer softens the whole light switch experience with its tufted textile sensor.

Just tap this little piece of carpet-looking stuff, and the lights turn on, off or dim. The material is an electronic textile made of conductive yarns, neoprene and acrylic that creator International Fashion Machines calls Plush Touch Sensing Technology.

This $99 dimmer is available in the 14 colors you see here, but it looks like those different hues are just on the part of the switch that mounts on the wall. We're hoping the actual switch feels more like plush carpet than a Brillo pad. [International Fashion Machines]

Goofy Light Switches Might Turn You On

Charlie White — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 08:52:46 EST

Those Brits are a wacky bunch, decorating with tacky wallpaper and now topping it off with some of the most unusual light switches on the planet. Just turn this pool ball, dolphin or Mini Cooper clockwise to turn the lights on, and as you turn, it adjusts brightness, too.

Too bad these are all 400-watt switches, not usable in the US. Maybe this will give some enterprising switchmaker in the States some ideas. If you like to trick out your place with unusual light switches like we do, you'll be eagerly awaiting such a development. Check out three more of the switch choices, including one that's unquestionably our favorite, and then imagine the unlimited possibilities:

We're especially fond of that hippified VW Microbus. – Charlie White

Product Page [Boutique to You, via Spluch]