Marketing rule #1: Big numbers are better than small numbers

March 19, 2010

Thanks to reader Ian B. who sent this one in. He writes:
"Found this box lying around work. It's quite a powerful charger at 16,000 mA but I really don't think it will be any match for my 16,000,000 μA charger I have at home."
battery charger.JPG

Don't calculate on power

March 18, 2010

Kludged calculator.jpgAnother one for the home-brewed fixes / bodges / kludges category...

Calculate the odds that this calculator actually works, with the modified on / off switch.

See it in all its glory on thereifixedit.com

Continue reading "Don't calculate on power" »

Recall corner: Remote control kits for electric fireplaces

March 17, 2010

fire remotes 150.jpgTalking of remote controls - and I'm showing my ignorance here - I didn't know you could even have remotes for electric fireplaces...

Well, it seems there is a danger of burns. Not from the fireplaces, but the remotes themselves...

Dimplex has issued a voluntary recall and replacement programme "for approximately 700,000 plug-in remote control receivers included with certain Dimplex, Electraflame, Symphony, Optiflame, Electralog and Charmglow branded electric fireplaces, stoves and fireplace inserts."

Continue reading "Recall corner: Remote control kits for electric fireplaces" »

I can't believe someone makes... Recursive remote controls that include the TV

March 9, 2010

A TV remote control that displays other channels on itself? Wow. The decadent's decadence... watch the telly AND the remote?

And who's got the remote-remote to change the channel? This recursion could go on forever, until we run out of room in the room, or power.... Someone save us from ourselves!

Samsung 9000 Series Remote In Action from PopSci.com on Vimeo.

Continue reading "I can't believe someone makes... Recursive remote controls that include the TV" »

Noisy sprinkler controller reduces a fountain to tiny spurts

controller 1.jpgWhen EE Dwight Bues' deluxe automatic sprinkler system went from putting out a "Bellagio Fountain" flow to a few tiny spurts, he quickly put his debug skills to work:
"Fifteen years ago when we bought our current home, it came equipped with a rather extravagant, 8-zone sprinkler system. (I say extravagant because the lot is less than a quarter acre in size!!!)

Anyway, when we were doing the walk-through, I was surprised that the owner mentioned that he always ran the sprinklers manually. This seemed like a waste to me, since the system allowed one to set up to four watering times a day, two separate watering plans, and you could select which zone would be on which watering plan. This was state-of-the-art at the time.

Continue reading "Noisy sprinkler controller reduces a fountain to tiny spurts" »

Silver fork and spoon iPhone stand

March 8, 2010

fork and spoon iphone stand.jpgThis bit of fun caught my eye over the weekend - an iPhone stand made from a silver fork and spoon.

Trouble is, I don't know whether to file this under Made By Masters or I can't believe someone makes.... What do you think?

They will set you back $30 from ForkedUpArt - and come in different varieties - some made from spoons, some made from forks, and some both...

Continue reading "Silver fork and spoon iPhone stand" »

Most Read in February - The Made By Monkeys popularity stakes

March 3, 2010

AV connector t-shirt.jpgIt's time again to take stock of what your peer's have been reading as we round up the Made By Monkeys popularity stakes for February.

We cover a wide range, from Apple warranties and LED cutting guides to laptop failures and electric guitars, in T-shirt form...

As usual, to keep suspense at an absolute maximum, let's do it in reverse order:

10.
What's Wrong With Lithium-Ion Batteries?

9. Electronic Worm Harvester

8. One in three laptops fails in three years - study

Continue reading "Most Read in February - The Made By Monkeys popularity stakes" »

Apple warranties go up in second-hand smoke

February 23, 2010

Black Apple MacBook.jpgApple warranties, how easily they are voided. The iPhone and MacBook products might be smoking hot, but don't go smoking near them... Issues of "second hand smoke", you see.

Thanks to The Consumerist for this interesting one on the non-repair of computing faults. It reports on the (2008) experiences of two readers who claim that their Applecare warranties were voided due to secondhand smoke - see Smoking Near Apple Computers Creates Biohazard, Voids Warranty

"Both readers appealed their cases up to the office of God Steve Jobs himself. Both lost," writes the site.

Continue reading "Apple warranties go up in second-hand smoke" »

One in three laptops fails in three years - study

February 22, 2010

HP laptop.jpgThere was a fair bit of interest in the report on Xbox failures we covered recently - the "red ring of death" - and here is some more interesting data about the failure rates of consumer electronic devices. Laptops, to be precise.

The US company SquareTrade has produced a report - 1 in 3 Laptops fail over 3 years - based on a sample of 30,000 randomly selected laptops and netbook computers that were purchased brand new.

Highlights of the study, according to SquareTrade, include:

Continue reading "One in three laptops fails in three years - study" »

Can we make that drive any steeper?

steep drives.jpgTo continue our new series, Don't Get The Builders In, here are a couple more examples of how-not-to...

As Chandler Bing might say - Could this drive be any steeper?

I also like the Escher-inspired staircase below. Does it go up or down? Or neither, but meeting in the middle?

outside staircase.jpg




I can't believe someone makes... An electric guitar T-shirt

electronic_rock_guitar_shirt.gifWith a guitar T-shirt, you never know when inspiration will take you. Imagine strumming a little Paul Simon while sitting on a warm Californian beach, maybe, or just practising a few riffs standing in a cold bus-shelter waiting for the number 53 to Ponds End...

The Electronic Rock Guitar Shirt will set you back $29.99, and you strum away by waving a magnetic pick over the strings...

guitar_shirt_chord_guide.gifThere's even a mini guitar amp speaker that clips to your belt and, inevitably, the volume control goes past ten and all the way up to 11...

Continue reading "I can't believe someone makes... An electric guitar T-shirt" »

Big Brother should be watching you!

February 15, 2010

no builders big brother.jpgGood material for another series, maybe - Don't Get the Builders In!

Big Brother may be watching us, but let's hope he's not too smart... Not a lot to be seen in Sector D47...

Continue reading "Big Brother should be watching you!" »

An EMF headache in the air

February 8, 2010

"EMF (electromagnetic waves) are everywhere, in your home, office, car - all electronic equipment radiate them. In addition, radio stations, cell phones, satellite communications also operate via EMF waves. Some products that generate EMF are computers, hair dryers, heating pads, microwave ovens, and cell phones, and many more. Some common symptoms of EMF exposure are headaches, fatigue, nausea, eyestrain, and overall lack of energy."

The paragraph above is posted on the Toolsforwellness.com website, which offers a plethora of products for EMF protection including pendants and watches. Plus they're stylish, too! In fact, plenty of websites offer devices to protect your home and office, your car, even your pet. Because you know if your pet hedgehog is acting a little weird, it just has to be the result of harmful EMF!

Continue reading "An EMF headache in the air" »

I can't believe someone makes... LED cake cutting guides

February 5, 2010

musical led cake cutter.jpgBack to good old-fashioned 'electronic landfill'1. Or am I being harsh? Do you fancy buying an LED-cake-cutter-guide?

That's the use of LEDs to help cut cakes, not a guide to cutting LED-cakes... Anyway, it plays music, too.

This innovative use of light emitting diode technology will set you back $38 from Amazon.com (not available on the .co.uk site, at time of writing).

Continue reading "I can't believe someone makes... LED cake cutting guides" »

Home-brewed electric screwdriver

February 4, 2010

diy electric screwdriver.jpgAnother contender for a Made By Students category, maybe? It makes me shudder to imagine it in action...

How not to do it yourself.

Thanks again to There, I Fixed It.com!

Continue reading "Home-brewed electric screwdriver" »

Most Read in January - The Made By Monkeys popularity stakes

February 2, 2010

top ten jan.jpgAnother month has flown by, and it's time again to take stock of what your peer's have been reading, as we round up the Made By Monkeys popularity stakes for January.

We cover a wide range, beginning with Lithium-Ion Batteries and patent laws and finishing with something that never stops...

As usual, to keep suspense at a maximum, let's do it in reverse order:

10. What's Wrong With Lithium-Ion Batteries?

9. US Patent Law: Made by Monkeys?

8. Battery Eater Has a Open Circuit

Continue reading "Most Read in January - The Made By Monkeys popularity stakes" »

Impossible objects #16: Piano stairs

January 25, 2010



I like this one. How could you encourage people to use the stairs, in a public building, rather than take the escalator?

Piano stairs may be the answer. Check out this video of the amended subway exit at Odenplan station in Stockholm.

Continue reading "Impossible objects #16: Piano stairs" »

I can't believe someone makes... More (food-based) USB nonsense

January 21, 2010

usb bento.jpgWhat is the connection between Universal Serial Bus-based devices and... food and drink?

I don't know, but it is easy to bite off more than you can chew with this one, as there's a feast of choice ... [Enough. We get the theme - Ed.]

How about beginning with a bento box, as Sushi lovers so often do?... Though not usually in small, plastic form, for storing files (available from USBGeek for 17 online dollars).

Continue reading "I can't believe someone makes... More (food-based) USB nonsense" »

Galvanic corrosion stills Whirlpool washine machine

January 20, 2010

Corrosion on Whirlpool washing machine.jpgSee also: Dishwasher Rack Succumbs to Corrosion

Peter D'Aloisio sent in this example of a six-year-old Whirlpool Duet front-loading washing machine with a serious case of galvanic corrosion, which sort of begs the question: What period of problem-free performance can one reasonably expect out of an appliance these days, even if its under warranty?

My mother had the same washing machine for the first thirty years of my life, and though it didn't have the sorts of bells and whistles you get on today's machines, it was perfectly serviceable and ran problem-free for three decades. She finally junked it for a new model that came in a color she liked better than white.

Continue reading "Galvanic corrosion stills Whirlpool washine machine" »

Let the latest Made By Monkeys posts come to you, with RSS

January 13, 2010

rss%20feeds%20shot.jpg The best way to get the very latest Made By Monkeys posts as soon as they are published? RSS!

And it's not just Made By Monkeys. Check out all the RSS feeds that are available for Electronics Weekly content. The feed for Latest News, for example, can be found here.


There are 12 Electronics Weekly feeds you can tap into:
News
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  • Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on Impossible objects #16: Piano stairs: True, Peter, but introducing drunkenness seldon improves anything! BTW, what read more
  • Peter G. on Impossible objects #16: Piano stairs: Sounds like a great idea, until some drunk fellow tries read more
  • Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on Electric Toaster Runs Amok: Cheers Mark, and thanks for sharing that. I must admit read more
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