Skip to main content

Awesome tech you can’t buy yet, for the week of August 31, 2014

At any given moment there are approximately a zillion different crowdfunding campaigns happening on the WebTake a stroll through Kickstarter or Indiegogo and you’ll find there’s no shortage of weird, useless, and downright stupid projects out there – alongside some real gems. We’ve cut through the Pebble clones and janky iPhone cases to round up the most unusual, ambitious, and exciting projects out there this week. Keep in mind that any crowdfunded project — even the best intentioned — can fail, so do your homework before cutting a check for the gadget of your dreams.

Anymote — Use your smartphone as a universal remote

AnyMote HomeIf you’re like most of us living in the circuit-saturated screenage wasteland known as the 21st century, you’ve probably got anywhere from three to six different remote controls lying around your house. There’s one for the TV, one for your audio receiver, one for your cable box, another for your gaming console, and probably half a dozen more if you’re a real technophile. As you are no doubt well aware, fiddling with this many different remotes just to watch all the Golden Girls reruns on your TiVo is a pain in the hindquarters — as is digging through your couch cushions every time you lose one of them. AnyMote aims to solve this problem by allowing you to use your smartphone as a universal remote. And when we say universal, we mean universal. AnyMote can speak to over 800,000 different devices, so no matter if you’re rocking a shiny new Apple TV or a dusty old Bose receiver you had in college, this little gizmo will allow you to control it from your phone.

Recommended Videos

Jolt Sensor — Wearable concussion sensor

Jolt SensorThe Jolt Sensor is a small clip that can easily attach to any piece of head-worn athletic equipment. Whether you wear a helmet, a headband, goggles, or headgear, it’ll work. The sensor enclosure has a soft silicone-rubber exterior to prevent injury, and is fully waterproofed to stand up to dirt, dust, sweat, and rain. It has a multi-week battery life and is rechargeable via a standard micro USB port. When an athlete’s head accelerates in a potentially dangerous way, the sensor vibrates to alert the athlete. It also connects wirelessly to parents’ and coaches’ smartphones (Android & iOS), using Bluetooth Low Energy, to alert them on the sidelines. The project claims a range of “over a hundred yards,” so that you’ll be able to get alerts no matter how far across the field you are. If you back the project now, you can lock down a Jolt for a pledge of just 80 to 100 bucks.

Perception Neuron — Affordable motion-capture system

Perception NeuronGenerally speaking, motion capture technology has been one of those things that only deep-pocketed animation studios had access to. To do it properly, it used to be that you needed all manner of special suits, camera equipment, studio space, and processing software to make it work — but soon that might not be the case. A Japanese startup that goes by the name of Perception Motion Capture has built a suit called the Perception Neuron that makes motion capture easier and more affordable than ever before. The system is comprised of an array of tiny inertial measurement units (IMUs) that you can strap to your body. Because it doesn’t rely on optical detection like earlier mo-cap suits, Perception Neuron doesn’t suffer from any line-of-sight restrictions, and can be used both indoors and outdoors. Furthermore, in addition to motion capture, could be used for things like game interaction, virtual reality, sport analysis, medical analysis, and more.

Fixd — Wireless OBD2 dongle

FIXDFor those of you who might be unfamiliar with the acronym, OBD2 stands for On Board Diagnostics, version two. It’s a system that’s been built into just about every car made in the US since the mid ’90s, and it basically allows you to tap into your car’s onboard computer and get detailed information on what’s going on with it at any given moment. These kinds of dongles have been around for ages, but it wasn’t until recently that people started making them wireless and accessible via smartphone apps. Fixd isn’t functionally much different from other wireless dongles, but it’s much cheaper (for now), and will be compatible with both iOS and Android-based smartphones when it’s finished. All the early bird backer rewards have been snatched up already, but if you act fast you can still lock one down for about $50. That’s roughly half of what you’d pay for the competing Automatic Link. Not bad, when you consider the Fixd platform looks almost exactly the same.

Invisaband — Mostquito-repelling bracelet

InvisabandEver wondered why people often plant geranium flowers outside their window sills? It’s not just because they look pretty. It turns out mosquitoes and other insects don’t like hanging around the geranium flower. One of the oils that can be extracted from the geranium flower is a substance called geraniol — a natural essential oil that, according to a handful of studies, has proven more effective at keeping mosquitoes away than citronella candles, and in some cases, even DEET. Ivisaband is a small microfiber wristband that’s imbued with this oil, so when you wear it, you supposedly become far less appealing to the blood-sucking bastards buzzing around your campfire. We haven’t had a chance to try them out for ourselves just yet, but the company is so confident that its product works that it offers a money-back guarantee. You can snag a pack of five for just $19.

Drew Prindle
Former Senior Editor, Features
Drew Prindle is an award-winning writer, editor, and storyteller who currently serves as Senior Features Editor for Digital…
Zoox recalls robotaxis after Las Vegas crash, citing software fix
zoox recall crash 1739252352 robotaxi side profile in dark mode

Amazon's self-driving vehicle unit, Zoox, has issued a voluntary safety recall after one of its autonomous vehicles was involved in a minor collision in Las Vegas. The incident, which occurred in April 2025, led the company to investigate and identify a software issue affecting how the robotaxi anticipates another vehicle’s path.
The recall, affecting 270 Zoox-built vehicles, was formally filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Zoox said the issue has already been addressed through a software update that was remotely deployed to its fleet.
Zoox’s robotaxis, which operate without driving controls like a steering wheel or pedals, are part of Amazon’s entry into the autonomous driving space. According to Zoox’s safety recall report, the vehicle failed to yield to oncoming traffic while making an unprotected left turn, leading to a low-speed collision with a regular passenger car. While damage was minor, the event raised flags about the system’s behavior in complex urban scenarios.
Establishing safety and reliability remain key factors in the deployment of the relatively new autonomous ride-hailing technology. Alphabet-owned Waymo continues to lead the sector in both safety and operational scale, with services active in multiple cities including Phoenix and San Francisco. But GM’s Cruise and Ford/VW-backed Argo AI were forced to abandon operations over the past few years.
Tesla is also expected to enter the robotaxi race with the launch of its own service in June 2025, leveraging its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software. While FSD has faced heavy regulatory scrutiny through last year, safety regulations are expected to loosen under the Trump administration.
Zoox, which Amazon acquired in 2020, says it issued the recall voluntarily as part of its commitment to safety. “It’s essential that we remain transparent about our processes and the collective decisions we make,” the company said in a statement.

Read more
Mitsubishi’s back in the EV game—with a new electric SUV coming in 2026
mitsubishi bev 2026 momentum 2030 line up

Mitsubishi is officially jumping back into the U.S. electric vehicle scene—and this time, it’s not just dipping a toe. The company confirmed it will launch a brand-new battery-electric SUV in North America starting in summer 2026, marking its first fully electric model here since the quirky little i-MiEV left the stage back in 2017.
The new EV will be a compact crossover, and while Mitsubishi is keeping most of the juicy details under wraps, we do know it’ll be based on the same next-gen platform as the upcoming Nissan Leaf. That means it’ll ride on the CMF-EV architecture—the same one underpinning the Nissan Ariya—which supports ranges of up to 300+ miles. So yeah, this won’t be your average entry-level EV.
Designed in partnership with Nissan, the new model will be built in Japan and shipped over to U.S. shores. No word yet on pricing, battery size, or even a name, but Mitsubishi has made it clear this EV is just the beginning. As part of its “Momentum 2030” plan, the company promises a new or updated vehicle every year through the end of the decade, with four electric models rolling out by 2028. And yes, one of those might even be a pickup.
Mitsubishi says the goal is to give customers “flexible powertrain options,” which is marketing speak for: “We’ll have something for everyone.” So whether you're all-in on electric or still into gas or hybrid power, they're aiming to have you covered.
This mystery EV will eventually sit alongside Mitsubishi’s current U.S. lineup—the Outlander, Outlander PHEV, Eclipse Cross, and Outlander Sport—and help the brand move beyond its current under-the-radar status in the electric world.
In short: Mitsubishi’s finally getting serious about EVs, and if this new SUV lives up to its potential, it might just put the brand back on your radar.

Read more
Toyota unveils 2026 bZ: A smarter, longer-range electric SUV
toyota bz improved bz4x 2026 0007 1500x1125

Toyota is back in the electric SUV game with the 2026 bZ, a major refresh of its bZ4X that finally delivers on two of the biggest demands from EV drivers: more range and faster charging.
The headline news is the improved driving range. Toyota now estimates up to 314 miles on a single charge for the front-wheel-drive model with the larger 74.7-kWh battery—about 60 miles more than the outgoing bZ4X. All-wheel-drive variants also get a boost, with up to 288 miles of range depending on trim.
Charging speeds haven’t increased in terms of raw kilowatts (still capped at 150 kW for DC fast charging), but Toyota has significantly improved how long peak speeds are sustained. With preconditioning enabled—especially helpful in colder weather—the new bZ can charge from 10% to 80% in about 30 minutes. Also new: Plug and Charge support for automatic payment at compatible stations and full adoption of the North American Charging Standard (NACS), meaning access to Tesla Superchargers will be standard by 2026.
Under the hood, or rather the floor, Toyota has swapped in higher-performance silicon carbide components to improve efficiency and power delivery. The AWD version now produces up to 338 horsepower and sprints from 0–60 mph in a brisk 4.9 seconds.
Toyota didn’t stop at just the powertrain. The exterior has been cleaned up, with body-colored wheel arches replacing the black cladding, and a sleeker front fascia. Inside, a larger 14-inch touchscreen now houses climate controls, giving the dash a more refined and less cluttered appearance. There’s also more usable storage thanks to a redesigned center console.
With the 2026 bZ, Toyota seems to be responding directly to critiques of the bZ4X. It’s faster, more efficient, and more driver-friendly—finally bringing Toyota’s EV efforts up to speed.

Read more