Rentokil's RADAR super-mousetrap texts you when the pests are dead

We've seen some relatively mouse-friendly attempts at a better mousetrap, but Rentokil's RADAR trap drops all the touchy-feely stuff and brings the pain action-movie-style: with infrared beams, a trick floor, and poison-gas dispensers. Mice are lured into the Rodent Activated Detection And Riddance unit by infrared beams, where the pressure sensors in the bottom of the box trigger the release of a "measured dose" of carbon dioxide, which Rentokil says is a "quick and humane" way of dealing with little Mickey. Once the deed is done, the trap fires off a text message to let you know that the rodent resistance is being dealt with, and prepares to strike again. No word on price -- Rentokil apparently only custom-installs the RADAR traps -- but availability is listed as "now."

[Via Tech Digest]

[jermaine @ Oct 8th 2007 10:11PM]

wow, that is some COLD ASS SHIT!

[Asha Kydd @ Oct 20th 2007 3:59PM]

You should look up some of the patents for mouse traps. You would not believe some of the stuff they come up with.
My 'favorite' design is for the mouse trap that is basically a bucket of anti-freeze with a plank that drops the mouse into the liquid to drown. Now, THAT is so serious cold sh*t. One such design had a wire basket like a deep fryer so that you wouldn't have to empty it until it was genuinely full of mice. The anti-freeze keeps down the smell.

And there is already a company in Germany that manufactures a very similar 'Mouse gas chamber'. I guess gassing a mouse is more humane than crushing it with a band of wire that might not kill it instantly . . . or the sticky patch traps. Those are fucked up because you pretty much have to kill it yourself or leave it to die of dehydration over days.

[Joey @ Oct 8th 2007 8:10PM]

There's only one way to test if it actually works!

Now to test it on someone's hamster pet...

[Le Master @ Oct 8th 2007 9:31PM]

Booo

[DickHardknocks @ Oct 9th 2007 12:24AM]

For just $1 I can get a traditional snap trap.

I don't think trapping a mouse and SUFFOCATING IT is humane - at least not as humane as crushing his skull and spine instantly and leaving his legs jiggling.

[Jose Chavez @ Oct 8th 2007 8:12PM]

ummmm... i like it ....before you know it we will have one that talks and tells you dinner is ready.....

[I LOVE THE CAPS LOCK KEY @ Oct 8th 2007 10:45PM]

I think that is a Korea only model.

[paul34 @ Oct 8th 2007 8:18PM]

What does the message say?

MIKY DEAD!!11! WTF LOLZ

[Blah @ Oct 8th 2007 8:23PM]

...But why is that brown sperm attempting to fertilize their product?

[James Ollier @ Oct 8th 2007 8:24PM]

SMS: Suffocated Mouse Snuffed
TXT: Tragic Xtermination Trap
LOL: Laugh Out Loud (When you expain the message you just got to your mates)

[james @ Oct 8th 2007 8:24PM]

To: 555-687-1267
From: 555-272-8778

OH HAI, UR MOUZ IZ DED.

[Allister @ Oct 8th 2007 9:42PM]

To: 555-687-1267
From: 555-272-8778

OH HAI, I CATCHED U A PET MOUZ BUT I GASSED IT.

[Reader @ Oct 8th 2007 10:42PM]

Meh, I'll buy it when they come out with a telefragging model.

[L. Cyphre @ Oct 9th 2007 5:07AM]

TERMINATED.

[backwoods_retard @ Oct 8th 2007 8:32PM]

I can imagine sitting down at work, getting the message, flipping my cell phone open...

"It's been done..."

*Throws away cell-phone and walks out*

[yoyodude64 @ Oct 8th 2007 8:36PM]

so do they make cat sized? my neighborhood has a cat problem lol

[feffrey @ Oct 8th 2007 9:33PM]

cat sized? I need one dog sized, way too many barking dogs where I live

[Nick @ Oct 9th 2007 10:58AM]

do they have a human sized one comming out cuz there are too many annoying people on this planet?

[crypt @ Oct 8th 2007 8:46PM]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say mother nature is already working on building a better mouse...

[Jeff @ Oct 8th 2007 9:02PM]

I just call Pointe Pest Control! They are awesome.

[mikey @ Oct 8th 2007 9:10PM]

"quick and humane"!? what about, i don't know...using one of the ones where mouse walks in, then you can release him outside?

even better, use this text system to tell you there's a mouse inside it, then you can go let it out. humane, and useful.

how low is getting texted by your sodding ratrap on a saturday night anyway? i have other things to text me. like friends.

[Asha Kydd @ Oct 8th 2007 9:28PM]

I have to agree. If someone really wants to be humane, a catch & release trap only costs about $10-$20. They can easily trap the little fellow and release it somewhere else or even keep it as a pet (if they are so inclined).

[Enduro @ Oct 8th 2007 10:22PM]

You obviously don't live in an old (120 year old) house where mice do their best to get inside this time of year (at least if it wasn't so damn hot). I am as humane as the next guy but not when it comes to disease carrying rodents who chew through your walls to get their grub on at the expense of your dry goods and health. Release them outside and just like Dino Flintstone they'll be working on getting back inside before you turn your back.

That said I use the sticky kind to rid myself of any mice and I throw them away... sometimes alive. I let their cries of pain and sticky frustration send a message to their brothers that this ain't the house they're looking for.

[mikey @ Oct 8th 2007 10:28PM]

Maybe you should move out of the woodshed. Enduro, you are clearly a real man. Congratulations.

[John Doe @ Oct 8th 2007 11:59PM]

Ahh the ignorant children speak. mikey you are a moron. Beyond the fact that you've probably never even seen a 120 year old "woodshed" let alone afford one. These 120 year old "woodsheds" no matter what kind of renovation you do to them the simple fact is the structure itself can allow any determined rodent in.
PS- Its douche bags like you who are keeping this country from obtaining an architectural history. Hey I have a good idea. Lets tear down that 80 year old house and make way for something ultra modern. Gah. Asshats all.

[mikey @ Oct 9th 2007 12:20AM]

120 year old rat-infested "woodsheds"? that's history? in England we have, cough...castles.

[Enduro @ Oct 9th 2007 12:59AM]

I challenge you to find a woodshed constructed with the same love that this home was. Hand carved wood details in almost every room, brass light fixtures, decorative plaster work... It's got character unlike some suburban home picked from a catalog of three. It's in a historical neighborhood in Detroit where there are no woodsheds. Some people value things that are old and have character rather than insult them.

I don't even kill spiders but mice have diseases and multiply fast. Sorry I don't hold their hands and sing campfire songs with them.

[Nick @ Oct 9th 2007 11:08AM]

@John Doe... hey thats a pretty piece of land over there. Lets tear down that 120 year old forest to build some houses there. Then after displacing the counless animals that used to live there I'll bitch about all the animals trying to make new homes for themselves. Or go out and live out in the wilderness for 3 weeks and then see if you wouldnt like a nice warm covered place to be living in too.

[Asha Kydd @ Oct 8th 2007 9:28PM]

What a waste of money. The world doesn't need a better mouse trap. Mice are actually incredibly easy to catch. You're standard spring-loaded trap has a 99% effectiveness and, if put within a 8 foot range of the mouse's home, should get the unwelcome guest in only a few days; all of which are provided for the low price of $1.99.
Only a complete fool would waste their money on a device like this. It would probably cost less to upgrade the storage of/move potential food sources (bagged rice, boxed cereal, et cetera) so that there isn't any way for a mouse to survive in your home.
I can tell you that I don't have a mouse problem in my home.

[Konstantin @ Oct 10th 2007 12:53PM]

Agreed! This is probably the most useless invention ever not to mention that it is somewhat sadistic. Why in the world do you need a text message to tell you that the pest is dead. Have we really gotten so bored as to develop devices of this nature? I honestly thought that this was a gag gadget at first.

[granny down east @ Oct 8th 2007 9:29PM]

I shot a mouse with a BB gun in my living room one night while I was drinking beer and watching the bugzapper.

[I LOVE THE CAPS LOCK KEY @ Oct 8th 2007 10:47PM]

Isn't starving your cat much cheaper and environmentally friendlier way of ridding your home of mice?

[Asha Kydd @ Oct 20th 2007 4:00PM]

Having a cat kill and eat a mouse actually sounds pretty fair. It would just be good old nature working things out.

[Tom @ Oct 8th 2007 11:22PM]

http://snltranscripts.jt.org/95/95ebugoff.phtml


Bug-Off

Spokesman: Roaches. Eliminating them from your home should be safe, as well as effective. Most products on the market today use strong poisons to seize a roach's central nervous system, paralyze him, and eventually kill them. Can't we do better than that? Now you can, with new Bug-Off.

Roaches are attracted to Bug-Off by a chemical message that says, "Come on in, it's warm and safe in here." Once inside, the roach is held fast by a powerful adhesive, while three pairs of tiny tweezers grab the roach's legs and strech them in opposite directions until, eventually, they snap off. Meanwhile, a red-hot metal coil burns off the roach's reproductive organs, as the roach's own legs are used to beat him senseless. And, with the patented clear-view window, you can be sure it's working. Finally, wads of turpentine silk cotton are stuffed into the roach's orifices, while a tasty piece of food dangles just out of his reach.

True, none of this will actually kill the roach.. but it will give him plenty to think about. So stop coddling your roaches. They've had it too good for too long. Give them what they deserve, with Bug-Off.

Announcer: Bug-Off. Go Medieval!

[John Doe @ Oct 9th 2007 12:03AM]

Surely they mean carbon MONoxide?

[Bubba G @ Oct 9th 2007 1:14AM]

No, actually, mice don't have the same digestive system that we do and therefor can't release the bubbly gas as hick-ups. So, it just expands in their stomachs until they explode.

Forget the cheese/peanut butter....use Pop Rocks!

It's just like birds and Alka-Seltzer....only different.

K.

[blarvh @ Oct 9th 2007 6:51AM]

Last time I checked mice can't breath carbon dioxide. They need oxygen just like us.

So by replacing the oxygen by carbon dioxide they are suffocating it.

[Dave @ Oct 9th 2007 1:44AM]

Victor Pest makes the best traps ever ... it's an electric trap that zaps the mouse right before it gets to the bait. Kills 'em instantly. Picture here:

http://g-ec2.images-amazon.com/images/I/31kOgQJKhcL._AA280_.jpg

[Garst @ Oct 9th 2007 6:44AM]

I guess I'll say what everybody else is afraid to say: "This article, device, and comments are morbid!" This coming from a person that would like to destroy the universe when one person pisses me off. It is sad that I'm the one who actually said what everyone else is thinking. You should be ashamed of yourselves. :'-(

[Bubba G @ Oct 9th 2007 9:04AM]

Garst,

Actually, it sound's like you just need to get laid. I, and I think most everybody else, was just joking.

Loosen up a bit and let FiFi out! hehe

K.

[NHAnimator @ Oct 9th 2007 10:08AM]

I know a couple who used a "have-a-heart" trap to catch a skunk that was roaming around their garage. They caught the skunk, but then didn't know what to do with it. They ended up dunking the whole trap in a trash can of water until the skunk drowned.

I know it is pretty much OT, and I feel for the skunk, but still... offing a skunk like that is just messed up.

[Sayer @ Oct 9th 2007 11:18AM]

That is because they were stupid. Why didn't they call....I don't know....ANIMAL CONTROL?!

[Loonie @ Oct 9th 2007 1:16PM]

I'm... intrigued by their classification of death trough CO2 asphyxiation as being "quick and humane".

[tiuk @ Oct 9th 2007 4:11PM]

Why would you want to receive a text message telling you a mouse is dead? I'm pretty sure I'd be fine with waiting until I got home.

[Scott @ Oct 9th 2007 4:26PM]

Hey Engadget, good try but clean up your reporting. First this product kills one mouse and then can't do anymore until someone removes the victim. It won't kill repeatedly (unfortunately). Second, it will not text message you. When it goes off, an LED blinks. That's all. I admit I got excited when I read it might exterminate multiples, and would page when the death happened. Sounded like a great idea. Even good for upscaling...it would be wonderful to use on all the cats people let roam all over my neighborhood. A tiny bit of bait, and Tabby is breathing the CO2.

[Sergio @ Oct 19th 2007 4:44PM]

If this thing doesn't actually text you, it very well could. These days it's not hard to implement that kind of technology into anything... I mean, soon enough you'll be able to receive text messages after just about any event that takes place in your home..... I can definitely see myself getting a text one day saying, "the enemy has been put to rest, and your laundry is done too!"