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wire recorder lets you record your voice on random metal surfaces

poulsen_wire_recorder_gakken_kit

Building on some of the same basic principles that eventually gave way to the cassette recorder, this kit lets you transcribe the sound of your voice into magnetic charges and play them back with a swipe of your hand.

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October 15th, 2009 comments stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: audio cool toys interactive technology

clock-a-doodle-doo: time telling magna doodle hack

Clock-a-Doodle-Doo

This unique electromechanical clock is like a cross between a Magna Doodle and an Etch-a-Sketch.

Using a modified Magna Doodle as the basis for their display, the Clock-a-Doodle-Doo is the brainchild of a recent UCLA mechanical engineering class.
The clock uses a XY plotter-like mechanism to “draw” the current time by neatly arranging the magnetic…

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August 9th, 2008 comments stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: technology

cassette tape lamps look great, sound awful

Cassette Tape Lamp by Transparent House

The cassette tape is probably just a fuzzy memory for those of you who grew up with Compact Discs and MP3s. But for us born before the 1980s, we have to figure out what to do with all of those old tapes. Why not turn them into a lighting fixture?

That’s exactly what the guys…

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June 26th, 2008 comments (18) stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: design retro

abacus magnetic watches are a minimal delight

Abacus Magnetic Watch

Remember those puzzles that had tiny steel balls that you had to try to get into little holes? Here’s a series of watches out of Germany that remind me of those favorites from my childhood.

The Abacus series of watches has no hands at all. Instead, there’s just a single steel sphere that rolls around…

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August 26th, 2007 comments (2) stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: design timepieces