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This is how you refuel Zero's electric motorcycle
If there's one problem to racing a super-cool electric motorcycle, it's that pit stops tend to be a bit slow. After all, in the time it takes a regular hot rod to refuel, you've probably only gained one or two percent of charge. That's why Zero Motorcycles has created a patent pending hot-swappable battery system for the Zero FX that enables you to "refuel" the e-bike in just over half a minute. The clip below shows you how quickly this can be done out on the track, which makes us want to buy one of these $10,000 bikes even more than before.
Skyfire browser brings account switching to iPad with HotSwap
Skyfire is among the most popular third-party browser apps in the App Store, bringing quite a few solid browsing features that mobile Safari doesn't have to the iPhone and the iPad. And here's yet another one: The latest update to Skyfire adds account switching capabilities, so multiple users on one device can have their bookmarks, history, account logins, and all other browser settings set for them when they first log in to the app. While we have seen information that many households run more than one iOS device, there are certainly plenty of houses out there where the family shares one iPad, and in those situations (as the company's trailer shows), account switching can be very helpful. Skyfire's feature is called HotSwap, and allows for up to four different accounts to be used on one device at one time. The app's probably most famous for allowing users to watch Flash-based videos on the iPad, by separately compressing and then streaming them straight to the device. You can pick up Skyfire on the App Store now for $2.99.
Hotswap laptop batteries let you keep the juice flowing
Sure, most laptops let you swap out a battery while the machine's asleep, but sometimes you need things to stay running while you switch out powerpacks -- which is where inventor Ric Richardson's hotswap batteries come into play. In addition to their traditional contacts, the cells have a small extension that plugs into your machine's power jack, allowing you to take out the dead battery and plug in the new one without having to shut down. It's a deceptively simple idea, but Richardson's got a patent on it, and he says he's talking to various companies like HP and Lenovo about using it in consumer laptops. We're definitely intrigued -- but here's hoping there's a good way to stow that cable afterwards.
Lindy's Data Dock hot swaps all kinds of junk
Do you ever find yourself staring down at your drive bays, watching as the lazy, single purpose hard drive does its work and think, "Man, I wish I could swap that thing out for a USB hub when it's done spinning."? Well, the clever folks at Lindy have answered your prayers by creating the USB 2.0 Data Dock. The premise is simple: the Dock installs into your standard, 3.5-inch bay and provides two open "slots" which you can use for either a 2.5-inch swappable drive enclosure, a four port USB hub, or a multi-format card reader -- all of which are provided. Additionally, once the modules are swapped out, they can be plugged directly into another system (or the same system) via a typical USB connection. Available now for £49.99 (about $101).[Via SlashGear]
