So what is this thing that reminds me of another technically unrelated term? (If you’re curious, the words I’m thinking of are “land fill.”) Well, it’s an innovative floor mat that’s setting out to change the world of mats for good. It’s flexible and foldable, and because of that last attribute, it’s also portable. Pull the folds open and spread it out wide on the floor to go from one tile to a full-sized mat in minutes (or maybe even seconds if you’re fast!)

Need an extra chair in that corner? No problem. Another table on your side of the mat? Easy peasy. Just peel some panels off the floor and fold it up, origami-style, and there you go: instant furniture. And if you find yourself low in energy, simply scooch on over to a flat panel of mat, prop up a pillow (or a pile of clothes) and lie yourself down for some quick Zzz’s.

The Land Peel is a project designed by Shin Yamashita who is a student at the Kyoto Institute of Technology. Since we all know that Japan is the place to be for all sorts of innovative and out-of-this-world gadgets, it won’t come as much of a surprise when these floor mats will be sold in stores there soon.

[via Fast Company]

The new ‘bot is called the iRobot Scooba 230 and it is very small, and designed to clean your hard floors so you can do other things. The small bot is 3.5″ tall and 6.5″ in diameter and is small enough to go under furniture and around most toilets. That last part is a big deal if you have boys in the house that think getting in the vicinity of the water is good enough.

The ‘bot has a three step cleaning system that scrubs, washes, and squeegees your floors and the container inside for cleaner can hold enough juice for 150 square feet of hard floors. The Scooba 230 also has virtual wall tech to keep the little thing form heading onto your carpet by mistake. The robot will ship this spring at an undisclosed price.

If you don’t remember the Wampa, he’s that menacing, abominable, 8-foot tall, white inhabitant of Hoth who put a serious beatdown on Luke Skywalker before he managed to cut off its arm. But you guys are probably too busy staring at Slave Leia and not the fuzzy, bear-like rug she’s lying on top of. Stop it. Focus on the bearskin and not the bare skin. The Wampa rug is cool, and deserves to be on your floor, even if Leia doesn’t come with it.

Want one? Head on over to ThinkGeek and get your name on the e-mail waiting list, so you can get one when it ships this August.

The Mint is guided by a NorthStar navigation system, although I’m not sure if it makes a map of the area prior to cleaning or if it makes one as it goes along.

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The Mint’s retail price is $250 (USD). You can reserve a unit at the official website; you’ll pay a non-refundable deposit of $20 and will be notified when the product is available.  Not to sound like a Roomba fanboy – I don’t even own one, and have no plans of owning one – but the cheapest Roomba is only $160. It’s not square though.

[via CrunchGear]

StarQ’s ifit Sports sells for 280 yuan (appx. $41 USD), and instead of a Balance Board, comes with a floor mat that’s more reminiscent of a Dance Dance Revolution controller than something for intended for fitness or sports games. Here’s a shot of the ifit controller compared to the just slightly more simple and compact Wii Balance Board.

For your first position, place your right foot on 2, your left foot on 26, your left hand on 8, and your right hand on 1 – GO! Actually, this thing might be better suited to a game of electronic Twister.

And while the system comes with 80 mini-games, most of them look about as exciting as watching paint dry. Activities include standing on one leg, standing on the other leg, and walking in place. Wow, how much fun is that?

Here’s some video of the slippy floormat controller getting all bunched up during gameplay. Looks like more fun than humans should be allowed to have.

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And from the looks of this clip, there’s even a foot-powered version of Tetris. While I can’t read Chinese, I’m pretty sure it should be called Footris. Or Shitris.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

If you really want one of these, you’ll probably need to make your way to China and dig around the schlock shops to get yours. Or not.

[via Trendy Net via GamOvr]

Each squishy floor tile measures 40cm x 40cm (15.74 x 15.74″), and if you’re willing to spend some serious dough, you can cover your entire floor with ‘em. At $23 a piece, they’re more expensive than some schmancy Persian rugs, but for dedicated Mario fanboys and fangirls, money should be no object. After all, you should have plenty of extra gold coins lying around?

They’re made in Mario, Shroom, Goomba, Question Mark Block and Brick patterns, but the bricks are currently sold out, so my dreams of recreating the entire Mushroom Kingdom in my living room have been dashed for now. Made by Banpresto, they’re available from NCSX.

[via Level Select]

Panasonic’s new heated rugs have a special radiant mat that sits beneath the surface of the carpet to keep things nice and warm. Your bare feet should have nothing to complain about with these rugs cranking out temperatures all the way up to about 114°F/46°C. But if that’s too hot for you, no worries – they are adjustable. In addition to a variety of fabric styles, they plan on offering wooden surfaces as well.

And you don’t need to worry about Rover taking a whiz on one of these and electrocuting himself. The heating elements are waterproof, and the rugs are designed for stain and germ resistance.