The customized Xbox 360 was created by Richard Taylor and the Weta Workshop. It features a miniature Master Chief blowing a hole through the side of the console. It’s only appropriate since the Halo franchise and the Xbox brand are pretty inseparable. As a matter of fact, I  bought my original Xbox to play Halo, and play it I did.

The console will be auctioned off at eBay in order to raise money for the David Peachey Foundation. Microsoft will match the donation and donate an extra $10,000 to Cure Kids.

[via Born Rich]

The Martin Aircraft Company jetpacks have about 200 HP coming out of their dual propellers. They can go up to 1.5 miles in the air and reach speeds of 60 mph. They will aim to make about 500 packs a year.

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These jetpacks were invented by Glenn Martin, who unveiled his prototype last year in July. This whole contraption weighs less than 254 lbs, so in the UK, you won’t need a pilot’s license to travel in it. It is capable of traveling 30 miles with a full tank of fuel.

The jetpacks will be made in New Zealand, and the company says that these packs would be perfect for emergency services, as well private users and the military. (And killing yourself – ed.)

[via Good]

The sit-down electric YikeBike tops out at 20km/hr (appx. 12 MPH). An electric chainless drive powers the bike up to 10 kilometers (appx. 6 miles) on a quick 30 minute charge. While that’s not a ton of range, it’s certainly enough for most urban commuters to get to and from work. It’s also great for short haul travel from public transportation sites like trains and buses.

And thanks to an innovative lightweight folding carbon composite frame, you can carry the YikeBike up to your office during the day for a recharge (and to protect it from theft on the street). The whole thing weighs just 9.8 kg (appx. 21 lbs.) which means it won’t break your back carrying it around either.

If you can get past the annoying song in this commercial, the YikeBike actually looks pretty cool…

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Here’s a better (and far less irritating) video that shows off the YikeBike being put through its paces on a variety of challenging terrains. It’s surprisingly agile, given its unassuming looks.

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Expect the YikeBike to start shipping sometime in 2010. Final pricing hasn’t been set yet, but it’s likely to run between €3500 and €3900 (appx. $5180 to $5772 USD). You can reserve one now with a €100 (appx. $148 USD) deposit here.

The WeraMouse V2 (aka the Ergotouch Mouse) is just a little smaller than a conventional mouse, but you don’t put it on your desktop. Instead, you hold the WeraMouse in your hand and operate your computer wirelessly from up to 25 feet away.  Technically, it’s not a mouse at all – it’s a trackball with a scroll wheel and a pistol-grip button. The one-handed wireless controller is said to reduce wrist strain and allow you to remain in a more neutral posture than you do when using a traditional mouse (although the guy in the picture above looks like he’s setting a pretty bad example for “good posture”). Battery life for the WeraMouse is rated at up to 28 hours on a single charge, and when it’s not in use, there’s a charging dock that’ll juice the WeraMouse back up in about 90 minutes.

The WeraMouse V2 retails for $99 (USD), and it looks like the Ergotouch guys are working on a WeraMouse V3 that uses a trackpad instead of a trackball, in case you prefer your mice without any balls.

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As you tilt each cube, the player climbs through the environment, moving in concert with the angles of the physical cube. The objective of the game is to move the cubes to help guide the digital player to the exit of each cube’s virtual environment. Some of the doorways lead to another cube, while other are dead ends that make you start all over. The whole interaction looks like a Michel Gondry video to me.

Oliver developed the game to run under Debian or Ubuntu Linux, and plans on releasing it as an open source project soon.