kickstarter passes $1B in pledges today.
kickstarter passes $1B in pledges today. that’s $1,000,000,000 pledged by 5.7 million people for creative projects. via kickstarter [RK]
kickstarter has been hacked.
kickstarter has been hacked. recommends account passwords to be changed. [RK]
Maker mixer at minimal. idsa international conference 2013.
A one-night only ‘maker-mixer‘ Kickstarter All-Stars retrospective takes place at MINIMAL’s new expansive studio and incubation space. Not only did these 25 curated projcts exceed their funding goals on Kickstarter, they used good design and great storytelling to connect with their audience and turn their project ideas into a reality. In many cases these projects spurred the launch of sustainable businesses long after funding was completed.
cosmonaut
MINIMAL founder Scott Wilson propelled Kickstarter to mainstream consciousness back in 2010, when he raised $1M on the platform for his TikTok+LunaTik Watch Kits. The project not only sparked new interest in wearable technology, but it shook the product design industry of its preconceived beliefs about product development.
“At MINIMAL, we fully believe in the future of crowd-funding and incubation and are vested in the evolution of these models,” says Wilson. “The Kickstarter All-Stars exhibition is a perfect opportunity to pay tribute to a handful of crowd-funded projects that truly represent the power of the independent designer/entrepreneur. With the IDSA International Conference in our backyard this year, we wanted to celebrate and highlight designers in pursuit of freedom of expression and purity of design vision.”
hidden radio
lumio
ouya
the porthole
lunatik
zooka
Kickstarter All-Stars Are: CST-01, Porthole, TidyTilt/JustMount, Pebble, Designing Obama, Vers 1Q, HiddenRadio, Zooka, More/Real Stylus, Ouya, Lumio, The Glif, TikTok+LunaTik, Cosmonaut, 10-Year Hoodie, Wabi Nabi, Tylt VU, Resketch, Kern & Burn, Pinch, LUNATIK Touch Pen, Sharpener Jar, Piccolo, Biblio, Chromatic, Hex6agon, LUNATIK Taktik, Facet.
The event takes place during the IDSA International Conference. Tunes from DJ Greg Corner,specialty cocktails from Stoli, and craft beers from River North Beer.
when> 22 August | 9p – midnight
where: MINIMAL | 939 west lake street chicago
RSVP required: rsvp@mnml.com
#MNML
Lessons from a record-breaking kickstarter campaign.
lessons from a record-breaking kickstarter campaign. what role does contributor play in it? via washington post [RK]
Grabit robot multipurpose holder. Kickstarter project.
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DesignApplause met Leo and Angie Fajardo at an after party at Housewares Show 2013. They had something to show and they didn’t have a booth. After chatting with them for 15 minutes and seeing what they were up to DA joined their team of supporters. Kickstarter has a full-blown presentation [ check it out ]
[ trinkits design ]
Kickstart the spark socket, the new wi-fi light bulb.
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The latest in home automation products comes to us via Kickstarter, where Spark Devices is seeking to raise funds for their new Spark Socket, a Wi-Fi connected light bulb designed by Scot Herbst. The Spark Socket is an attachment you twist onto a light bulb before screwing it into a light fixture. Once it automatically connects to you Wi-Fi, your phone registers the bulbs (there’s a color coded and labeling system to help you identify and organize them all) and creates a unique on/off switch for each Socket.
Spark Devices founder, Zach Supalla, grew up with a deaf father, who wired the family doorbell to the lights so they would flash when someone rang the bell. “You can have your lights slowly illuminate in your bedroom as an alarm clock, or blink when you receive an email or text message. It’s all pretty neat for everyday consumers, but it could be revolutionary for the deaf or hard of hearing.” (via Fast Co.)
about perrin drumm
Mother's day gift idea: sensu brush.
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Artist Hardware, an arts materials company the produces Field Portage bags, notebooks, sketchpads and paintbrushes, is about to release the Sensu Brush, a paintbrush designed specifically for the iPad.
“Sensu is two very useful tools in one. A brush and a stylus for capacitive devices like the iPad and iPhone. The rubber stylus is exposed when the brush is closed. This stylus is great for sketching and writing or as a general navigation tool. Grasp Sensu near the nib section and pull it out of the protective cap. You will reveal the capacitive bristles of the artist brush. Insert the rubber stylus into the cap and the cap becomes a handle for your brush.”
Artist Hardware funded Sensu with a successful Kickstarter campaign, and now, six months after it ended, they’ve finished production on the brush and have begun sending them out to backers. The reviews are starting to come in, and so far they’re all positive.
“We were really impressed by the way the Sensu Brush works as a stylus or pointing device. The chrome-plated brass body feels light but stable in hand. The length of the stylus means it fits perfectly in the crook of our hands between thumb and index finger when used in pen/pointer mode. The smooth sculpted shape of the stylus body/brush cover is simply lovely. We felt it was one of the most natural and balanced styli we have used. It seems just about perfect for long sessions writing, sketching, or painting. Of course, everyone’s hands are different, but we think the Sensu is spot-on as a stylus.” –ipadcreative
It won’t be on sale until May 25, which – yes – falls after Mother’s Day, but nothing says Mother’s Day nostalgia like an I.O.U. gift. But this time you’ll actually deliver, right?
Our kickstarter pick: air quality egg.
“Look outside your window – have you ever wondered what the quality of the air is out there? I mean RIGHT. OUT. THERE. 12 inches from your face. If so, you are out of luck. The air quality data collected by the government is likely sampled from far, far away and then applied to you on a regional level – not very useful from the standpoint of trying to understand or change the local dynamics of pollution that affect you.”
As someone who’s been driven indoors to my gym due to the air quality in my neighborhood, even though I’d rather run outside, I’m definitely someone who should back the Kickstarter campaign for the Air Quality Egg, an egg-shaped air quality sensor that reads NO2 and CO concentrations right outside your window. It’s bad enough trying to bypass sidewalk smokers and school buses spewing out black clouds of noxious gas, but when I stop to think about what else is stinking up my air ways – like the wastewater treatment facility down the street, the very nuclear Newton Creak nearby, the warehouses that line my side of the East River and the trucks that rumble by them nonstop – it’s a little disturbing to think what your lungs can get used to.
That’s where the Air Quality Egg comes in. It’s not just a great sensor, it’s a great way to raise awareness of how terrible the air we breathe is and eventually – hopefully – do something about it. Find out more and consider backing the project. A $100 donation gets you your very own egg.
JuiceTank: a better iphone charger.
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No matter how streamlined Apple’s designers make their products, there seems to be one necessary evil of any electronic device that not even the big brains in Cupertino can solve: cords. Everyone needs them; Nobody loves them. They’re impossible to coil up tidily, making a mess in desk drawers or snaking haphazardly over table edges. And don’t even get me started on ear buds.
But now two designers, Jesse Pliner and Lloyd Gladstone, have created JuiceTank, an iPhone charger and case in one. The unit works like a camera battery charger that plugs straight into the wall, only you don’t have to take anything out of your iPhone to charge it – you just stick the whole thing into an outlet. Sure, there are some limitations, like not being able to use your phone while its charging, but this way you can charge your phone when you’re on the go and you don’t have your cord with you. No more asking waitresses and bartenders if they have an iPhone cord you can borrow.
I just hope it gets Apple thinking about how to do away with all the cords clogging my otherwise impeccably organized desk space. Right now Pliner and Gladstone are raising funds on Kickstarter to produce the JuiceTank. Pitch in and say No More Cords!
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