It's one thing to exemplify laziness; it's another to buck the habit just long enough to invent something to keep you idler, longer. Enter Enrico Berruti, an everyday fellow who has created something that almost anyone with a bed could see as useful. His Selfy bed, quite simply, uses a variety of moving parts, bars and linens to make itself at the push of a button. To be fair, Mr. Berruti was thinking of disabled individuals who would have a difficult time making their own traditional bed when conjuring this thing up, but he didn't hesitate to mention his own indolence as motivation. Hopefully there's some kind of safety feature to prevent users from accidentally activating the thing while they're still snoozing -- can't imagine that being any fun.

[Via Physorg, image courtesy of AFP / Getty Images]

Admirers of Macs and Z-Wave have longed for the day in which they could finally use their two dearest loves simultaneously, and thanks to Wayne-Dalton, that day is upon us. The WDUSB-10MAC is hailed as the world's first Z-Wave-enabled home control system "designed specifically for the Mac OS X operating system." Mac users simply plug in the USB dongle, install the bundled Houseport software and go wild creating and managing their home network. When all is said and done, OS X users will be able to "control light switches, appliances, electronics, thermostats and other Z-Wave-enabled devices from their computers or through the internet" -- a feat previously only achievable by booting into Windows. Not too shabby for $87, eh?

[Via CEPro]

The UK's now showing off what it claims to be the "first" zero-emission home design or, more specifically, the first to meet "level six requirements" of the Code for Sustainable Homes set to go in effect in the year 2016, according to the BBC. Designed by Kingspan Off-Site, the so-called "Lighthouse" design includes, among other things, solar panels on the roof and a biomass boiler on the inside that runs on various organic fuels, with a waste separation system also included to weed out trash that can be burned to provide additional power. The house also packs in additional insulation to cut down on heat loss, and boasts a "wind catcher" for ventilation in the summer. While those measures will apparently help to reduce the house's annual energy bill to just £31 ($61), the house itself will demand quite a premium over less efficient homes, costing about 40% more, although Kingspan says that'll come done if they're produced en masse.

Hey, we can't all live in the pimped out mansions or nicely appointed lodges, but an NYU graduate student is making it her personal mission to do something substantial about it. The living portable project has yielded a cardboard-based Shell House contraption that requires just $35 worth of material, a bit of time, and a hearty dose of generosity. The DIY project allows interested citizens to build collapsible houses for homeless individuals, and moreover, gives them an opportunity to experience ubiquitous computing by way of an integrated radio network. Moreover, you can couple this with a homegrown solar heater, and you've got yourself a date with nature.

[Via Core77]
Read - Instructions on building a Shell House
Read - Shell House homepage

It pains us to see the furry fad still lingering around, but joining the totally hairy Philips display comes the patent-pending "no constraints carpet," which presumably aims to provide warmth and companionship to the lonely house dweller. Reportedly showcased at the Tokyo Fiber convention, Panasonic has developed a electrified faux fur that comes in white, brown, or black / white color schemes to "deliver warmth only to the areas you touch when you cuddle it." Oddly, there was no word on where the internal heating elements get their juice, but considering that the technology isn't quite ready for commercial release, we assume the firm is keeping wraps on the nitty gritty. The fun-lovin' fur should be available in short (five feet) and long (23 feet) iterations, and while we aren't entirely sure if your local home furnishings store will actually have rolls of this stuff to cover your flooring anytime soon, those still living in yesterday can certainly hope for the best.

[Via PinkTentacle]

While we've seen a variety of domiciles packed to the hilt with consumer electronic-related goodness, the big boys and girls most certainly come out of the woodwork (or the downstairs home theater) when Electronic House begins accepting applications for its Home of the Year. The award goes to the home that most perfectly displays "a mix of electronics and design," and while we're fairly sure the 300 or so entries they received could all be worthy of gracing the pedestal, only three were picked to take top honors. Clearly, money was of little or no concern in the construction of these fine dwellings, but rest assured, the thousands upon thousands that went into objects of desire such as Runco plasmas / projectors, Crestron home automation systems, Lexicon amplifiers, Denon receivers, and the host of other LCD HDTVs, lighting systems, and in-ceiling speakers weren't used carelessly. Each of the top three homes sports a distinct angle and motif not directly shared by the other victors, and while we personally wouldn't mind visiting any of the three, be sure to hit the read link for the breakdown of how each crib won its medal, and click on through for a few more shots.

Fanboys (and girls) with enough cashflow and skill can certainly drop a few jaws with their heartfelt creations / collections, and while the Mac cathedral certainly holds a special place in the hearts of Apple freaks abroad, the Nintendo playhouse doesn't fare too badly either. While the production certainly isn't perfect from an architectural viewpoint, the creativity and sheer brilliance of such a domicile is worthy of applause, as the life-sized Game Boy, littering of characters, and barrage of retro inspirations are enough to make just about anyone show some respect. Unfortunately, we've absolutely no idea where in the world this palace is located, but until the quest to locate it finally concludes, be sure and hit the read link for homegrown Nintendo mania.

UPDATE: We've been informed that this was a part of the spring carnival at Carnegie Mellon University, and we owe this honor to Sigma Phi Epsilon, who had the hand in constructing it. Kudos!

[Via NintendoWiiFanboy]

Ah, there's nothing like an over-hyped pile of steaming rubbish, and that's precisely what you'll get if you somehow pull the trigger on the forthcoming RealPIX digicam. The fixed-lens P&S sports an utter lack of beneficial features, but boasts about its "awe-inspiring" 22-millimeter f2.0 lens, "full 90-degree field of view," built-in flash, USB recharging ability, and the laughable 640 x 480 maximum resolution. Furthermore, you won't be seeing any flash card slots, rear LCD monitor, or video mode on this sucka, as the ginormous red button atop this dreadfully designed camera supposedly makes it all worthwhile. The most unbelievable aspect, however, isn't the complete absence of niceties we'd expect on even a low-end shooter, but the expectation that "real estate professionals" will actually drop $299 on this pimped out disposable. Good luck closing on this one.

[Via Wired]

You've got plenty of options when it comes to healing your own body, but patching up your domicile usually requires days of back-breaking labor and gobs of cash to boot. Thankfully, that awful process could be nearing its end, as a £9.5 million ($18.64 million) European Union-funded project sets out to develop self-healing walls for your average home. The idea is to develop "special walls for the house that contain nano polymer particles, which will turn into a liquid when squeezed under pressure, flow into the cracks, and then harden to form a solid material." The technology would prove quite useful in areas where earthquakes are prominent, and in an effort to test things out before shoving it out to contractors everywhere, a swank villa is being erected on a Greece mountainside to collect information. The house's walls will be built from "novel load bearing steel frames and high-strength gypsum board," but more importantly, they will contain a smorgasbord of wireless sensors and RFID tags meant to collect, store, and disseminate critical data regarding "any stresses and vibrations, temperature, humidity, and gas levels." Now, who's the lucky lad(s) that get to call this their home research dwelling?

[Via Physorg]

Intel's not the only chap on the block loosing long range connectivity options on the world at CTIA, as Samsung is apparently aiming for the consumer market with its forthcoming Ubicell base station. While details are scarce at the moment, we do know that this "micromini BTS" will provide CDMA 1x services in the home by "enlarging the coverage area to shadow areas by connecting with DSL / cable modems." Essentially, this unit will help folks who live on the fringe of service areas to ditch their landline and finally enjoy the full benefits of their cellphone service. And while we're not entirely inclined to believe it, Samsung also states that its new creation will actually provide voice quality that's superior to VoIP. Nevertheless, we're still not sure when the Ubicell is expected to land, but those yearning to cut the cord on their landline can start sharpening the scissors.

[Via BoyGeniusReport]

Sprucing up your domicile with various forms of light has been trendy for quite some time, but rather than constructing an entirely new building or installing a fiber optic chandelier, you could just mount a Reveal Light. In what appears to be nothing more than a wall-mountable projector with pre-loaded imagery, this not-yet-priced artsy device can beam images of windows onto your drab apartment wall, complete with sunlight, trees, and a light breeze blowing around the leaves. Sure, some would say that artificial light and scenery is better than none at all, but the inner geek in us would argue that a 100-inch projection image of your favorite shows (or games) in HD would be a much, much better use of that bare wall.

[Via SciFiTech]

It's one thing to sacrifice your freedom to snatch 39 iPods from a retail shelf in an act of desperation fanboyism, but to devote a substantial chunk of square footage in one's ultra-modern home to Apple is an entirely different type of determination. Sure, we've seen various forms of collections before, but this edition features no fewer than 74 Mac computers, posters galore, and a dedicated bar to boot. In total, Jeremy Mehrle of St. Louis, Missouri has 30 classic Macs situated at the bar, 18 different CRT-based iMacs, various PowerMacs, a plethora of iPod paraphernalia, Mac OS boxes spanning years of development, Apple printers, Newtons, a PowerBook 165c, a Next Cube, four Apple IIs, and to top it off, a 20th Anniversary Mac as well -- and that's still leaving quite a few out. Although we can't fathom how much time, loot, and resources it took to essentially construct an Apple museum with a modernized style similar to Apple retail locations today, we can't help but give credit where its due, so here's your props Mr. Mehrle, now make sure your security system is in working order, okay? Click on through for a few more snapshots, and be sure to tag the read link for all the Mac mania you can handle.

[Via ChipChick]

If you thought Microsoft was just going to bail out on all the Windows XP Home and Media Center Edition users now that copies of Vista are flying off online shelves worldwide, here comes that assurance you've been yearning for. Although most of the folks in Redmond seem to be preoccupied with ironing out the forecasted Fiji service pack, the firm has announced that as of today, it will be extending the support phase for Windows XP Home / MCE users to match that already given to XP Professional owners. With the addition of the "Extended Support," the aid life cycle for the two operating systems will include "a total of five years of mainstream support (until April 2009), as well as five years of extended support." Of course, we highly doubt you're seriously planning on using an old-news OS for another couple years, but hey, Gates' crew is there if you need 'em.

Seemingly, it's just not to efficient enough to buy lighting tools for your home anymore, as lamps these days have to have at least one other random function thrown in for good measure, and Soundoiler's duo is no different. Melding form with function, this stylish lamp features a built-in speaker to go along with its lighting capabilities, an integrated control pad to dictate volume / channel selection, and an optional "maestro" transmitter that pipes in audio from your wirelessly-enabled DAP. Moreover, the lamps can be purchased in pairs and setup to function as stereo speakers, correctly separating the left and right channels during playback, and if that weren't snazzy enough, there's also a foot-controlled power / dimmer switch so you can set the mood without even lifting a finger. Soundoiler's multi-purpose fixture can be picked up now for $279.95, while the wireless addition will run you an extra $79.95, but the wow-factor in your living room is presumably priceless.

[Via CNET]