With summer approaching, we’re looking to ways to cover up and protect our skin from the harmful rays as much as we’re looking forward to spending some time in the sun. One product that helps us gauge how long we’ve been in the sun, and tells us when we’re at risk, is UVSunSense Monitoring Bands. These bands are plastic strips you put on like a bracelet, and apply sunscreen to when you apply to your skin. This strip then works as a timer to let you know when to reapply, and simply when you’ve had enough time in the sun. Continue reading Hands On: UVSunSense Monitoring Wristband
Category: Outdoors
Bag That Is Light As A Feather
Lightweight and highly adjustable is the promise of Osprey’s Escapist 30 Multi-Sport pack. Weighing in at just 2 pounds, 4 ounces, the bag can be fine tuned to figure back just perfectly. It is adjustable at the shoulders, back, and hips. And even if you may sweat the small details in life, while you hike your back won’t get overly wet, as a series of mesh-covered foam ridges provide passages for fresh air circulation. Video after the jump
Glow Time
Riding a bicycle at night can be dangerous, and while there are numerous ways to improve your chances of being seen, we like the bright idea that Rickshaw Bagworks came up with in its new line of messenger bags. Made of reflective “Ultra-Glo” material, these feature microscopic glass beads that bounce light so drivers will have no trouble seeing you. The Reflective Medium Zero bags are available in silver or orange, and are also waterproof so you can be seen and keep your possessions dry at the same time!
Weekend Reading List (4.14.12): Running With (Just) GPS, Tech From Paris-Roubaix, Social CrossFit
Lonely Runner Indeed
httpv://youtu.be/kWO7SBjmzYs
From YouTube: [CrazyNav] TwoNav, When orientation becomes a game
Challenge yourself! Find your way, alone, with nothing else but your GPS.
A Tack With GPS
GPS is very good for plotting distance when fairly direct travel is involved, but this isn’t always possible. One notable area where this can be difficult is with sailing as tacking to catch the wind is necessary, making it nearly impossible to determine arrival time. Continue reading A Tack With GPS
Boil Water to Make a Call
Turning heat into energy is just basic physics, but usually boiling water is done to generate steam to drive a turbine. An entirely different concept involves boiling water to create an electric current via thermoelectric materials through the temperature gradient.
David Toledo and Paul Slusser have been devising a type of cooking pots – the PowerPot – where the temperature difference between the top and bottom of a heated pot can create such a thermoelectric current. The pot can be heated over a camp fire or even a gas stove to generate electricity to juice up a portable electronic device. Continue reading Boil Water to Make a Call
Tunes for The Beach – Rain or Shine
Beach season is just around the corner, but boomboxes are so last decade as everyone now relies on “personal music devices.” How about something that combines the two?
The Beach Sounds Mandalay Radio & Speaker from SunnyLife might not look like a serious outdoor device, but it caught our attention. While simple and basic looking, it is actually a fairly robust- and water resistant – housing for an iPhone or other portable music player, or even smartphone. The Mandalay Radio & Speaker provides a speaker as well as radio tuner, and can thus supply the tunes whilst protecting your MP3 player – rain or shine.
Sea Otter Classic: Atlas 8 Ready to Roll
Tow, tow your gear with the new Road Warrior Sports trailer, the Atlas 8. Launched in January, the sports trailer will be shown at the upcoming Sea Otter Classic, where riders can get a chance to check out this efficient solution for hauling gear and freeing up space in a car or SUV. Waterproof and lightweight, this sports trailer can be hauled by nearly any vehicle to provide 73 cubic feet of space, and even provide extra room for bikes on top. The Road Warrior would be envious!
Shoes That Suction
Sometimes with shoes it is good to get a grip, and the OluKai Maliko shoes are certainly about getting such a grip. These feature a sticky rubber sole along with an aggressive traction pattern that also includes suction cups. But the foot print on these is unique in that these offer a double toe as well, which is designed to provide greater balance and dexterity. This is done by separating the big toe from the rest of the toes and along with the suction cups provides more traction on slick and wet terrain, but reportedly should give a grip on dry terrain as well. Continue reading Shoes That Suction
Keystone ECO MarineCase Lets You Bring Your iPhone Into the Water
Judging from all the “rugged” cases for portable electronics we have covered, we are going to confirm (unscientifically) there’s a really big market for people who want to take their smart phones and music players into the water or any place that is electronics unfriendly. The latest such product for the iPhone 4/4S is the Keystone ECO MarineCase from Concord Keystone, a fully submersible case – up to 20 feet – that lets you shoot video, take photos, send e-mail, or perform any smart phone-related activity while under water. It also protects against other elements like dust and sand, and is IP58 certified for dustproof and waterproof.
Check out this video shot with an iPhone encased in the MarineCase. Continue reading Keystone ECO MarineCase Lets You Bring Your iPhone Into the Water
Smart Uniforms
F
or centuries British soldiers have wanted to look smart with their dress uniforms. But now the British army is experimenting with a different type of smart uniform, one that actually includes not smart looking fabrics, but rather actually smart fabrics that could include electrically conducting yarn woven directly into the clothing.
The result would be that there would no longer be the need to use cumbersome batteries and integrate cabling. Instead these “e-textiles”, as it is called in the concept stage, would actually offer uniforms a single, central power source. The biggest benefit of this would be that it could enable soldiers to recharge just one battery instead of having to manage many, and further reduce the total number of cables in their kit for higher efficiency. This could result in a lighter weight uniform, but also allow for electronic devices to simply be attached and powered up.
And this could certainly have advantages for civilian products as well. Imagine an outfit that would be attached to all your gizmos and gadgets. Smart attired indeed.
Inactive America
While we’re happy that you’re reading this, we’d like to encourage all of our readers to get out there and get a bit more active. According to the recently released Physical Activity Council (PAC) study, inactivity levels in the United States has risen to 68.2 million people, up from 67.2 million in 2010. This included adults ages 18 and older, and those not participating in any of the physical activities measured continued to increase, rising from 58.7 million in 2010 to 60 million in 2011.
The good news is that PAC, a partnership of six major trade associations in the sports, fitness, and leisure industries, reported that inactivity among children ages six to 12 fell slightly from 4.6 million people in 2010 to 4.5 million people in 2011. This may be an early indication that efforts to engage children in sports, recreation and other related physical activities are starting to have a slight effect on America’s youngest generation.The research is part of the 2012 Participation Report, an annual study tracking sports, fitness and recreation participation in the United States. Continue reading Inactive America
Zboard Gets Electric Boost
There is an old saying that what goes up must come down, but for those who skateboard sometimes what goes down must go up. That’s the case if you ride down a hill and need to get back to the top. If walking isn’t an option, and you can’t get the leg powered deck up the hill there is always the Zboard Electric, a skateboard that adds an electric motor.
This boost can transport the rider at a top-speed of 15-MPH, and control of the accelerator is managed from the front pad while the brake is at the rear. Riders should have a fine level of control, but obviously anyone looking to ride a wooden board down a hill probably knows a thing or two about control. Continue reading Zboard Gets Electric Boost