The next time you have to visit your dentist to get a cavity filled, or a dreaded root canal, you might not need any anesthesia if you’re able to watch the incredibly hypnotic footage from a waterproof camera pointed up at a running faucet.
Besides being able to produce prototypes quickly and efficiently, 3D printers are also able to create complex shaped pieces that are impossible to make using traditional manufacturing techniques. That’s why American Standard has embraced 3D-printing for its new line of twisted faucets that seem physically impossible.
Faucets already seem a bit like magic — you turn them on and the water flows right out. But these faucet designs add a bit more pizazz to conventional plumbing technology, letting us better control the flow and temperature of water.
When your kitchen lacks a dishwasher you'll do anything imaginable to cut down on dirtying dishes—including drinking directly from the faucet. But instead of having to lean over and use your hand as a cup, Alice Spieser has designed a simple dual-nozzled faucet that easily becomes a drinking fountain with some…
Since most faucets are nothing more than a metal tube, you rarely get a glimpse of the magic inside when cold and hot water come together to create warm water. So Philippe Starck designed the Axor Starck V, a crystal clear faucet that creates a vortex as the streams of water mix and bubble up and out.
You probably don't give much thought to your kitchen faucet, but here's proof that it can be awesome in the right hands. Sure, these aren't functional so far as their intended purpose is concerned, but they're cool. Which is better?
They certainly catch your eye, but Italian designer Lorenzo Damiani's unique folded faucets will also have you wondering how they let more than just a trickle of water pass through. Wormholes? Good old-fashioned wizardry? We've no idea.
Unless it's wearing a waterproof jacket, natch. These Japanese faucet stands for both iPad and iPhone are so much fun, and come in black, blue, white or transparent. No word on pricing or availability, I'm afraid. [DesignBoom]
Obviously, there are better ways to design a shower knob than this (i.e. MAKE IT DIGITAL). But still, those of us who practice good hygene and don't blow our noses in $100 bills can relate to the daily struggle of trying to find the perfect water temperature in the shower. [Reddit via Geekosystem]
Water conservationists (most of us, right?) will likely love this design out of Yonggu Do, Dohyung Kim & Sewon Oh. The conceptual faucet only gives the user a liter-sized burst before forcing them to wait for the reservoir to refill.
We're no stranger to well-designed faucets here, but usually they're in homage to a Henry Moore sculpture or B&O design. Fluid Faucets is inspired by a completely different kettle of objects—as shown below in their comparison photos.
Lately there's been no shortage of sleek, designer faucets here at Gizmodo, and today is no exception. Called the Shark, this touchscreen faucet won't devour your hands, but it will be touched by them.
In the future, we can only hope that turning on one's faucet will require a pseudo-sexual air stroke. Groping is so pedestrian. [Jasper Dekker via Yanko Design]
You don't spend three months of the year circumnavigating the globe on your houseboat. You don't have a closet full of designer loafers. You're not married to a supermodel. So what: your sink has a mini-waterfall LED faucet.
Signorini's ceiling-mounted faucet is an interesting design for sure, but it might also be practical for people who tend to sleep in late. Just wash your hair and go.
The folks at Dwell have tapped cognitive scientist and design consultant Don Norman to offer up his unique opinion on the design of several faucets—demonstrating that there are people out there that think way too hard about this stuff.
Mmmm...municipal water. Delicious and nutritious. Koehler Fluid faucet concept aims to make drinking from the tap a little easier with a design that can can be adjusted upward to form a drinking fountain.
There's just something about this sleek, black, digital Ondus Digitecture faucet that makes me wish it would speak to me in William Daniels voice.
A couple in Colorado thought they detected the scent of gas coming from their tap water. The test was simple: put a match to their water. What resulted is both awesome and terrifying.
It appears that Burno Sacco, the former head of Mercedes Benz design, has given up the luxury car biz to focus on creating crazy, jacked up faucets like the Hansa Latriva.
