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Awesome tech you can’t buy yet, for the week of Sunday, March 2

At any given moment there are approximately a zillion different crowdfunding campaigns happening on the Web. Take a stroll through Kickstarter or IndieGoGo and you’ll find there’s no shortage of weird, ambitious, and downright stupid projects out there – far too many for any reasonable person to keep up with. But here at DT we are not reasonable people. We spend an inordinate amount of time poring through crowdfunding sites and product blogs in search of the next Oculus Rift or Pebble Watch, so we’re here to bring you a quick roundup of the best projects that are currently up and running.

Acoustic Stream – Guitar session recorder

Acoustic StreamInspiration can strike at any moment, and when it does, the last thing you want to do is hook up a mic system and fiddle with a bunch of cables before you start recording. Acoustic stream makes the process of starting a session as seamless as possible, so there’s almost nothing in the way to interrupt the flow of your creative juices. It’s designed to fit in or on your guitar and turn on in an instant. To activate it, just tap once on the body of your guitar and it fires up. Tap twice and it starts recording, and three taps will activate the recorder to help you tune up before a gig. All recordings are beamed wirelessly to your mobile device where they’re stored safely for later listening.

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Luxor – Digital focusing flashlight

Luxor flashlightThe idea for Luxor was born when creator Paul Lowchareonkul found himself struggling to get the right light during a home improvement project. At times he needed a diffused, lantern-style glow; but at other times he needed a directional, focused beam. Carrying both a lantern and a flaslight was cumbersome, and constantly switching between the two was annoying, so he invented something that gave him the best of both worlds. Luxor is a high-tech flashlight equipped with a digital focus, so at the push of a button you can switch from focused to diffused light to suit your needs. As an added bonus, it’s also equipped with a battery-level indicator, so no more guessing how much juice is left.

Axis360 – Modular motion-control system for cameras

Axis360Created with small production crews in mind (folks who need something lightweight, portable, and affordable), Axis360 is a compact rotating device with a motorized tripod head and slider unit that pans, tilts, and slides your camera to create smooth videos and time-lapse photos. With this little rig, you can get all the awesome, fluid, Hollywood-style shots you’ve ever wanted. The 11-pound device works with a variety of cameras, from GoPros to DSLRs and cinema cameras, and can move at a wide range of speeds, either fluidly or incrementally. Check out our full article for more info.

Carbon – Wearable solar charger

Carbon solar chargerSolar chargers are fairly ubiquitous at this point, but very few of them are portable and convenient enough to travel everywhere with you and come in handy when you really need them. That’s where carbon comes in – it’s a small, stylish, watch-shaped solar charger that lives on your wrist. It’s a bit bulkier than your average wrist-borne timepiece, but not by much, and with just a few hours of sunlight it can gather enough juice to charge your smartphone or tablet for anywhere from two to four hours. And best of all, its compatible with just about any device imaginable, be it iOS, Android, Blackbery, Windows Phone, or even Google Glass.

Soap – Simplified touchscreen router

Soap routerSave for a few exceptions like Almond and Skydog, the vast majority of routers are a pain to work with. Many of them come with all kinds of advanced features, but accessing and adjusting those features is often easier said than done. Soap aims to fix that. With its big touchcreen interface and a simplified Android OS, this little box allows you to easily control not just your network settings, but your electronic devices as well. With just a few taps, you can set bandwidth limits for connected devices, set usage limits for kids, or even control home-automation devices. In addition to 802.11AC Wi-Fi, Soap sports Zigbee, ZWave, Insteon, and Bluetooth radios, so you can use it as a central hub for practically everything in your house.

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…
Sebastian Stan lays out Bucky’s future after Thunderbolts
Sebastian Stan in Thunderbolts.

There are some spoilers ahead for the ending of Marvel's Thunderbolts. Stop reading now if you don't want to be spoiled.

Earlier this year, Captain America: Brave New World briefly introduced a new direction for James "Bucky" Barnes, a character Sebastian Stan has been playing since 2011 in Captain America: The First Avenger. In Brave New World, the former Winter Soldier apparently retired from being a reformed hero and went into politics by running for Congress. Thunderbolts reveals that Bucky won his election to the House of Representatives. But his stay in Congress was short.

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Jeep Compass EV breaks cover—but will it come to the U.S.?
jeep compass ev us newjeepcompassfirsteditionhawaii  4

Jeep just pulled the wraps off the all-new Compass EV, and while it’s an exciting leap into the electric future, there's a catch—it might not make it to the U.S. anytime soon.
This is a brand new electric version of the Jeep Compass, and being built on Stellantis' STLA platform—the same architecture underpinning models like the Peugeot E-3008 and E-5008—it looks much slicker and packs a lot more inside than previous versions of the Compass.
Let’s start with what’s cool: the new Compass EV is packing up to 404 miles of range on a single charge, a 74 kWh battery, and fast-charging that gets you from 20% to 80% in about 30 minutes. Not bad for a compact SUV with Jeep's badge on the nose.
There are two versions: a front-wheel-drive model with 213 horsepower and a beefier all-wheel-drive version with 375 horsepower. That AWD setup isn’t just for looks—it can handle 20% inclines even without front traction, and comes with extra ground clearance and better off-road angles. In short, it’s still a Jeep.
The design's been refreshed too, and inside you’ll find the kind of tech and comfort you’d expect in a modern EV—sleek, smart, and ready for both city streets and dirt trails.
But here’s the thing: even though production starts soon in Italy, Jeep hasn’t said whether the Compass EV is coming to America. And the signs aren’t promising.
Plans to build it in Canada were recently put on hold, with production now delayed until at least early 2026. Some of that might have to do with possible U.S. tariffs on Canadian and Mexican vehicles—adding a layer of uncertainty to the whole rollout.
According to Kelley Blue Book, a Stellantis spokesperson confirmed that the company has “temporarily paused work on the next-generation Jeep Compass, including activities at” the Canadian plant that was originally meant to build the model. They added that Stellantis is “reassessing its product strategy in North America” to better match customer needs and demand for different powertrain options.
So while Europe and other markets are gearing up to get the Compass EV soon, American drivers might be left waiting—or miss out entirely.
That’s a shame, because on paper, this electric Jeep hits a lot of sweet spots. Let’s just hope it finds a way over here.

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Charlie Cox singles out his least favorite Daredevil: Born Again episode
Charlie Cox in Daredevil: Born Again.

Daredevil: Born Again season 1 was largely reconceived after the 2023 actor and writer strikes. Dario Scardapane -- a veteran of The Punisher series on Netflix -- was brought in to be the new showrunner and he made a lot of changes to the series that were well-received. However, there's one episode that Scardapane didn't really change at all, and it happens to be the least favorite episode of Daredevil: Born Again's leading man, Charlie Cox.

During an appearance on The Playlist, Cox noted that he wasn't very fond of the season's fifth episode, "With Interest," which was a largely standalone episode that featured his character, Matt Murdock, in a bank during a hostage crisis.

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