Ridiculous tech
WE SCOUR THE DARK AND OFTEN PERVERTED CORNERS OF THE INTERNET TO BRING YOU THE WEIRDEST TECH AROUND. YOU MAY WANT TO BRING A SICK BOWL OR A BOX OF TISSUES TO CRY INTO...
LoveSync bonk button
NOTHING SAYS INTIMACY LIKE AN ON OFF SWITCH. US$57 | lovesync.com People have been successfully having sex for a while, but this small detail hasn’t stopped a new Kickstarter from addressing this problem once and for all. LoveSync is a pair of connected buttons that you and your partner push when you want to have sex. If only one is activated then nothing happens, but if the other is already engaged then lights swirl and you take it from there. Now all we need is a button for making dinner, one to know if you’re ready to get a dog and one that’ll show your desire to immediately watch a b-grade rom-com and we can get rid of pesky relationship conversations forever (please note: this is the dumbest piece of technology I have ever seen - Ed).
RoboSea Robo-Shark
A DRONE THAT SWIMS WITH DA FISHES. $NA | www.robosea.org People are either going to think the robo shark is the sweetest bit of tech available or the dumbest invention to swim into existence (see above), but either way this steel shark actually has some clever features. A movable tail fin swings to create thrust in much the same way as a traditional shark would, which reduces noise and allows it to get much closer to fish. Well, at least the fish that don’t mind playing with sharks. This 2m long, 54kg, metal-monster has a two-hour battery life and can explore at distances up to 3km away, making this robot shark drone a pretty handy fish finder.
LITTLE SOPHIA
A CREEPY LITTLE ROBOT AUTOMATON THAT YOU CAN TAKE HOME. US$149 | www.hansonrobotics.com Sophia has been the unofficial face of AI for some time now, despite not really being AI at all. Hanson Robotics’ protégé is more of a pre-programed chat bot that runs through scripts of witty man-made retorts and our worst AI nightmares, written specifically for particular events. Many in the AI space resent Sophia for instilling unfounded fears about AI and for misleading the public in how advanced the space is. Little Sophia, a new Kickstarter from Hanson Robotics, looks like it wrapps up all the creepiness and false-promises of its bigger sibling in your very own little bundle of joy.
THE COMPUTER MOUSE
A HANDY LITTLE PC. $NA | tinyurl.com/TLA-MousePC In Sydney, living space comes at a premium. But instead of trying to earn more money to get a bigger place, an easier alternative might be to just shrink your PC to the size of a computer mouse. With a little help from a 3D printer and a Raspberry Pi Zero, Youtuber Electronic Grenade has built a micro PC that manages to be contained entirely within the confines of a traditional-ish computer mouse. Sure this mini PC won’t be crushing the latest gaming titles, but it can run
for a while. Minecraft Pi Edition…