Skip to main content

The Bento Lab somehow fits professional DNA analysis equipment into a laptop-sized box

Oops! We couldn't load this video player
Want to sequence DNA yourself? Thanks to a fully funded Kickstarter project, you may soon be able to. London-based Bento Bioworks aims to make a basic DNA analysis laboratory, which it in turn hopes will spur interest in one of science’s fastest growing fields.

For sure, Bento Lab seems like something that children aboard Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Enterprise-D would have played with. But it shows you how far we’ve come in genome research in just a few short years. Just a decade or so ago, equipment for this easily ran into the tens of thousands of dollars: today we’re talking about shrinking it down to a size and price that makes it a viable science fair project.

Recommended Videos

Bento says its device “allows you to do copy DNA and do basic DNA analysis,” and is being targeted toward a wide variety of potential users, including students, professionals doing field work, and even just curious individuals. It comes with detailed instructions, so as long as you follow them, you too can become a DNA researcher.

Bento Lab — Compact, portable, affordable DNA testing lab
Bento Lab — Compact, portable, affordable DNA testing lab Image used with permission by copyright holder

Related: This handheld DNA sequencer could let civilians analyze genetic material

Please enable Javascript to view this content

No commercial pricing is available, but those who pledge £549 or more (about $800 USD) will be the first to receive a lab from the initial production run. The lab kit includes the device itself, a power cable, handbook, and the Gel Electrophoresis Unit and Blue Light Transilluminator required to perform tests.

An additional £149 (about $215 in the U.S.) gets you the Starter Kit which includes a list of possible experiments and a host of reagents to complete them, laboratory pipettes, cotton swabs for collecting samples, and even six hours of “office hours” support and lifetime community access to discuss your potential projects with experts.

“Biology is a technology that defines us. It creates medicine, food and enjoyment. It touches every aspect of life, it surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the planet together … yet only a small number have access to molecular biology laboratories and specialist knowledge,” Bento Labs writes on its Kickstarter page.

Bento goes on to say that it hopes its lab brings biology to the masses, and especially genome research. As for safety, as long as you wear gloves and follow instructions, the group says it is “perfectly safe.”

The first lab units should ship out in October. However, no time frame for a commercial release has been set.

Ed Oswald
For fifteen years, Ed has written about the latest and greatest in gadgets and technology trends. At Digital Trends, he's…
Hyundai Ioniq 5 sets world record for greatest altitude change
hyundai ioniq 5 world record altitude change mk02 detail kv

When the Guinness World Records (GWR) book was launched in 1955, the idea was to compile facts and figures that could finally settle often endless arguments in the U.K.’s many pubs.

It quickly evolved into a yearly compilation of world records, big and small, including last year's largest grilled cheese sandwich in the world.

Read more
Global EV sales expected to rise 30% in 2025, S&P Global says
ev sales up 30 percent 2025 byd sealion 7 1stbanner l

While trade wars, tariffs, and wavering subsidies are very much in the cards for the auto industry in 2025, global sales of electric vehicles (EVs) are still expected to rise substantially next year, according to S&P Global Mobility.

"2025 is shaping up to be ultra-challenging for the auto industry, as key regional demand factors limit demand potential and the new U.S. administration adds fresh uncertainty from day one," says Colin Couchman, executive director of global light vehicle forecasting for S&P Global Mobility.

Read more
Faraday Future could unveil lowest-priced EV yet at CES 2025
Faraday Future FF 91

Given existing tariffs and what’s in store from the Trump administration, you’d be forgiven for thinking the global race toward lower electric vehicle (EV) prices will not reach U.S. shores in 2025.

After all, Chinese manufacturers, who sell the least expensive EVs globally, have shelved plans to enter the U.S. market after 100% tariffs were imposed on China-made EVs in September.

Read more