TFTS - Technology, Gadgets & Curiosities » Pointless Gadgets

Star Wars Force Trainer Release Date Confirmed [Star Wars Mind Control Game Feels Your Force, Moves Ball]

Andrew Tingle — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:42:14 +0000

If you’re a dedicated Star Wars fan who feels the force you may like to know that you can now pre-order the Star Wars Force Trainer mind control game which, as you’d probably gathered, offers you the potential ability to lift a ball (or remote sphere, as its officially referred to) merely using the power of thought.
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USB-Powered Gyrating Hips [Your Very Own Desk-Sized Shaking Ass]

Robert Lesher — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:37:35 +0000

I love USB devices. They come in all sorts of designs like personal fan, little lights, sound cards, even a microwave is available that’s powered by your USB slot. But a USB-powered ass? When I first saw this one I almost passed it by. I figured, what could I possibly have to say about such a dumb device. But I couldn’t get it out of my mind. Images of little shaking butts kept creeping back into my head like some kind of visual earworm. I had to exercise the demons and I had to find out where in the hell these things came from.(...)
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Arimaz Creeps Out Computer Users with Tiny Robot Penguin [Autonomous, Interactive Robot Talks to Facebook]

Robert Lesher — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 17:16:58 +0000

I have always wished that I could have a small, multi-colored, visor-wearing autonomous robot penguin that would meander around my desk making noises and lighting up. Am I alone here? OK, this one almost defies description and it definitely defies usefulness. Let’s put this one in the WTF file. Introducing the mydeskfriend project from Arimaz.

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The Hitch, Designed By Robert Nightingale, Is A Conceptual Nightmare!

Bo — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:59:12 +0000

Hmmm … it’s not often I start a review with those words but then this invention is making me ponder somewhat into the mind of the designer/inventor, like … is he on drugs??? The “Hitch” is an object that was borne in the mind of someone nuts or simply sporting a grand sense of humour.

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Canon Announce REALiS WUX10 High-End HD Multi-Media Projector [World’s First HD WUXGA LCOS Projector]

Andrew Tingle — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 08:50:00 +0000

Following on from the recent release of their REALiS SX80 projector – the first projector to offer PictBridge connectivity – Canon have announced a the upcoming availability for their high-end REALiS WUX10 multi-media projector which is, according to Canon, the first p[rojector in the world to offer WUXGA (1920 x 1200) resolution using LCOS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) technology.

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DIY Lego Inspired Block Tower Light – Crass Lighting Aimed At Lego Hippies

Andrew Tingle — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:14:29 +0000

Whilst here at TFTS Towers we tend to positively salivate over just about any gadget that takes the iconic Lego brick as its inspiration we cannot help but wonder quite who would buy this DIY Lego Inspired Block Tower Light when you could simply make your own with the real McCoy.

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Curious Easy Grip Book Holder and Page Keeper Gadget [Korean Gadgetry Overkill]

Andrew Tingle — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 10:53:40 +0000

Once in a while we come across a gadget that serves merely, it would seem, to offer a needlessly overcomplicated solution to what is, in all fairness, a fairly simple issue but this Easy Grip Book Holder and Page Keeper Gadget is undoubtedly in a league all of its own in terms of absolute absurdity.

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Whimsical Troika My Photos Mini Camera Styled SD Memory Card Holder Keyring

Andrew Tingle — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 10:12:59 +0000

Whilst the obvious answer for storing spare SD memory cards whilst out and about snapping merrily away with your digital camera would be to keep them safe in your camera case, if you’re looking for an altogether more whimsical solution this somewhat quirky My Photos camera styled SD card keyring may be of interest.

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Detect And Discover Unknown Wireless signals with the Auto Detective LED Pen

Andrew Tingle — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 00:13:44 +0000

Our sincere apologies for the quality of the image but the moment we saw this Auto Detective Pen, which will warm of unknown wireless signals by lighting up, thanks to an integral LED, we just knew that we had to offer a brief heads up here, simply because of the absurdity of it all.

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Pointless Gadgets – The Fruit Machine Pen

Andrew Tingle — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:36:34 +0000

One thing that is sure to get our attention here at TFTS is items that mix and match seemingly wholly unconnected functions merely in what we can only assume to be a bid to come up with something that’s either unique or, more often than not, just bizarre – and this fruit machine pen certainly slots neatly into this category.

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Mira Ball 360 Degree Desktop LED Message Bubble

Andrew Tingle — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 14:01:43 +0000

From the latest camcorders to MP3 players, LCD TVs to the odd sports car, we like nothing better here at TFTS Towers than writing about the latest, cutting edge gadgets but once in a while we’ll step aside and define just how great most of the products we feature are by posting something that is complete and utter tack – but that, for some bizarre reason, either make us smile or that we find ourselves drawn to (not that we’d admit this publicly).

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Loose Weight with this Revolutionary Plastic Diet Fork

Andrew Tingle — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 23:43:27 +0000

As our catchphrase denotes we like to throw the odd curiosity in with all the high-tech gadgets and gizmos and this frankly ridiculous Diet Fork certainly merits an entry under the ‘curiosity’ label. And, whilst initially I thought that this was a joke, having proceeded with clicking through to order one of these ‘revolutionary’ diet forks I can confirm that I found myself in a secure page requesting my details.

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High Tech Training Soccer Ball – Are You the Next Beckham?

Andrew Tingle — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 10:49:26 +0000

Apparently this high tech football (LCD displays are very high tech, don’t you know) will assist you in becoming a superstar player. Frankly we doubt that but, if you are wishing to follow in Beckham’s footsteps this Virtual Soccer Ball has at least one positive side – namely that it doesn’t come with an irritating, self-obsessed wife and, in anyone’s book, that has to be a considerable bonus.

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Say I Love You with Fake (LED Enhanced) Flowers

Andrew Tingle — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 08:53:30 +0000

‘Say it with flowers’ an advertising campaign says here in the UK though quite what you would be saying by giving your significant other a bunch of these fake, LED enhanced flowers is quite another matter.

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Compact Handheld Laser Show Gadget

Andrew Tingle — Sat, 12 May 2007 14:19:12 +0000

If you’ve ever wanted to hold you own laser show spectacular in your front room for the benefit of family and friends then this Compact Handheld Laser Show gadget will allow you to do just that – though take a tip from us, it might work better with a captive audience (i.e., if you’ve locked your guests in and swallowed the key) as it will probably get a little boring after the first few hours.

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Tacky Mini Cocktail Fridge Magnets

Andrew Tingle — Tue, 01 May 2007 12:24:55 +0000

Firstly we would like to strenuously deny that we are scraping the barrel here (primarily on account of the fact that we suspect that we’re only just getting started – it’s one of those days – so we think it best to cover ourselves from the offset).

These fridge magnets, created to resemble cocktails (…where are we going with this?) are, let’s be honest here, rather tacky, but could make a perfect gift for someone you really don’t like at all who will then smile sweetly back, thank you from the bottom of their heart and immediately spend the next three hours trying to position them on their fridge door in all manner of compositions whilst they wonder just why they bothered to invite you round in the first place.

If you cannot think of a friend or acquaintance (or relative by marriage) who doesn’t deserve these then you’re a better person than I. That said, I will now of course pay the price for making that comment by a) receiving a hostile call from the in-laws and, b) spending the rest of the day trying to come up with posts that act in some way to claw us back out of the depths to which we have stooped by posting about these mini cocktail magnets in the first place.

That said, no doubt a number of you might actually want these fridge magnets (welcome to TFTS, by the way, nice to have some discerning readers on-board), so here’s a link from where they can be purchased.

Curious USB Animated Chameleon sans Memory

Andrew Tingle — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 10:38:16 +0000

If you thought that the USB Humping Dog was cool but perhaps a little too vulgar for your tastes, how about a USB Chameleon with not only moving eyes but an animated tongue? Yes, you read that correctly.

Unfortunately, just like the original USB Humping Dog, the USB Chameleon also comes without any inbuilt memory so is, from a functional perspective at least, wholly redundant. That said, we’ve already noted that the humping dog has been modded to take memory whilst not effecting its humping proficiency so it’s only a matter of time until some bright spark gets their hands on this bizarre USB device and adds some much needed functionality.

Available in three colour schemes this somewhat curious USB Chameleon comes with 100cm of USB cable which, once connected will see its eyes and jaw move (cheekily exposing its tongue) and can be obtained from this site (link to English translation of the page) for 2940 Yen (approximately $24 / €18 / £12).

And, if this USB Animated Chameleon does not do it for you, how a USB Squid which does actually have some inbuilt storage capacity?

The Brainizord Window Climbing Robot

Andrew Tingle — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 09:36:27 +0000

Where would we be without windows? Well, for a start we wouldn’t be able to half close the binds in order to spy on the neighbours – not that we have ever done that sort of thing. Secondly, of course, our homes would be fairly depressive affairs reliant on artificial light consequently resulting in us all feeling rather glum.

Yes, windows are great, but now that you can attach one of these Climb@tron robots, such as the Brainizord version featured above, to them and watch it climb up and down they’ve just got greater. The fact that it’s also got flashing lights is just the icing on the cake as far as we’re concerned (any thing with a pulsing light makes it into my wish-list these days, which probably explains why my wife is walking round with an LED glued to her forehead in a concerted attempt to prise me away from TFTS for a few hours).

A great gift for children as you coax them towards fabled geek status, the Brainizord retails at a mere £8.95 (€13.43 / $15.89) and can be obtained, along with other Climb@trons, from this online retailer.

The Busty Portable Radio

Andrew Tingle — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 18:58:25 +0000

If you’ve got a thing about women’s chests – and let’s face it, how many of us chaps can honestly say we haven’t – and you happen to have absolutely no taste whatsoever then this somewhat ridiculous device could transpire to be the portable radio of your dreams.

At the very least, if you’re lacking in finesse and have been asked to stop tweaking certain parts of your partner’s body as if your were trying to tune a radio then you could turn tables with this in the house by tweaking to your heart’s content as you scan the airwaves. Oh, such mirth (for but a fraction of a second).

Call me dull, but I can think of far better things to spend £14.99 on but I’ll offer a link to the product page here anyway just in case you can’t.

[Source | Coolest Gadgets]

The Banana Boat Slicer

Andrew Tingle — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 21:08:19 +0000

Some of the most indispensable tools we have in our homes are designs that are so blindingly obvious and so utterly simple that it makes us wonder why it has taken so long for someone to think of them (and, in the case of this device, why on earth we didn’t think of it ourselves and retire to a cardboard box under Brighton pier once the proceeds start rolling in).

Just from a convenience point of view, the Banana Boat Slicer is bound to appeal to the fruity sorts amongst you, and think what you could do with the time saved – like ponder why on earth you ever considered parting with $7.99 for this in the first place when it doesn’t even peel the banana for you.