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Crowdfunded Project News: A few hot picks and some real stinkers
Every week, TUAW provides readers with an update on what new or significant crowdfunded Apple-related projects are in the news. While our policy is to not go into detail on items that haven't reached at least 80 percent of their funding goal, this update is designed to give readers a heads-up on projects they might find interesting enough to back. Note that we're not covering those "projects" on Indiegogo where people are trying to get someone else to cough up money for a new computer or tablet... From Kickstarter Exercise anywhere! That's the mantra of Tao, an app-enabled isometric exerciser that just started its campaign. Backers can get one of these talky little boxes for half of the normal retail price if they hurry. There are 28 days to go in this campaign, and you can see what happens when normal people give it a try in the video below. Have you ever had a little tune stuck in your head that you wanted to get out to the world, but you just didn't have the talent to do so? Imitone is the brainchild of Evan Balster, and it turns your computer into a voice-controlled MIDI controller so that if you can hum or sing a tune, you can enter the notes into GarageBand or any other music creation tool. Thanks to reader Hal Sherman for pointing this out. Remember The Coburns? That project provided the world with an infinitely-adjustable wood iPad stand, and now the team is back with the Coburn Jr. iPhone stand. The campaign launched today and is already about 45 percent funded. Beautiful, compact, and useful. Just in time for March Madness, it's the Hoop Tracker! This is a smartwatch that tracks basketball shots and helps you improve your shooting percentages. It's already 22 percent backed with 39 days to go in the campaign. Think of the Hoop Tracker as a Pebble for basketball players and you've got the right idea. It will be available for US$99 starting in September of 2014. Admit it -- haven't you sometimes wished that you had one of the old Polaroid instant cameras instead of your iPhone camera, so you could print out a picture and hand it to someone? The ability to print your iPhone or iPad images is the idea behind LifePrint, a wireless "social photo printer for iPhone" that's now on Kickstarter. With 36 days to go, LifePrint is well over $35,000 into its $200,000 goal. It's all networked, too! Check out the video below: And here's a minimalist way to keep your iPad protected without the need for a case. Corners for iPad is the name and an apt description of these Makrolon corners that protect the most vulnerable part of your iPad. I wish I had been able to install these before I dropped my iPad Air on a corner a few months ago... 25 days to go, and Corners needs backers. Toss in $12 or more and you're a backer. Designed by m's original AL13 was a very cool iPhone 5 bumper, but the developers of this aluminum work of art decided to go back to the drawing board to produce a model that wouldn't partially block the signal to your phone. AL13 v2 is already funded with 30 days to go, but you can still back the project and get a really phenomenal iPhone bumper at the same time. Wouldn't you like to be able to stick your iPad Air to a metal surface without having to put a bulky case onto it? That's the idea behind MagBak, which touts its product as the world's thinnest mount for iPad. A lot of people love this idea, since the project has received funding. The good folks at Tabu Products have been successful in their campaign to bring a smaller version of the Lumen Bluetooth Smart Bulb to market. LuMini has reached 146 percent of its funding goal with 12 days to go, so we'll all be controlling our lights from iPhones in the very near future. Everybody go cyan now! And now a look at what's happening over at Indiegogo It's billed as the world's first wearable smartphone docking system. Celltack consists of a ring that mates magnetically to an iPhone case so that you can just pick up your phone and spin it around for use. Not sure why this is better than just picking up an iPhone with your hand, but you make the call. You can back Celltack for as little as $39 in the next 26 days. Want to be able to tell when the postman has delivered mail, without going out to your mailbox? Postybell is the "first post box sensor that works from any distance" and it has a built-in GSM module to send you notifications. All you need to add is a local SIM. You do have one of those, don't you? With 47 days left in the campaign, Postybell has raised about $1,200 of a $30,000 goal. Please back this project so I can avoid going to my mailbox. Thank you. Dave Caolo must have been really digging for "useful" projects, as he came up with the iWiFi Wi-Fi signal-enhancing case for iPhone 5/5s. Yep, that antenna looks quite strong and useful! And they've raised $20 towards the $5,000 goal. 24 days to go, though, so this one might... just... make it. The KeeperClip actually does look like it's a functional design, providing a way to keep credit cards, ID and the like attached to your iPhone. This project has a whopping $34 pledged towards its $20,000 goal, so it needs your love. It comes in two different really thin flavors -- string and flap. Won't you help? Seriously, I'm going to scream if someone comes up with yet another credit-card-like iPhone charger and says that it's a unique idea. SCREAAMMMMM! There, I feel better already. Roshi is the latest in a string of this kind of "unique" chargers. OK, we get it already. And finally, the winner for the most opaque product description on Indiegogo goes to "iPhone & iPad Product". There's no description of what it is, what it does, or why you should back the project. Unsurprisingly, it has raised ZERO dollars. Check it out and give this guy and his fiancé some money. Just kidding. If you're aware of any other crowdfunded Apple-related projects, be sure to let us know about them through the Tip Us button at the upper right of the TUAW home page for future listing on the site. Just make sure that they actually have a valid reason for existing, OK?
Tao WellShell offers up isometric resistance, tracks fitness, rhymes (hands-on)
Two days before the official kickoff of CES 2014, and it already seems safe to declare this the year of the fitness device. Tao Wellness's rhyming WellShell wants to be a bit of a one-stop shop for all things portable fitness. The handheld's primary function is isometrics -- offering you resistance as you work out, while helpfully coaching you with built-in audible encouragement. The device is built for 50 different isometric exercises, recording results by way of your Android or iOS device. It can also track your steps, caloric intake, heart rate and sleep patterns -- so pretty much everything, but the cooldown massage. Update: We've just seen it in person and it looks like a flat, symmetrical mouse -- minus the cable. We gave it a squeeze (you're supposed to), as well as testing out a pair of earlier models that avoid the screen (as well as some of the functionality). Instead, these flat tokens are actually more stylish and simple, with a glowing light in the center. However, with these smaller models, all the data and exercise instruction is delivered by the app, meaning that while the new WellShell it might just lose out in the looks, the new model looks to offer a far gentler learning curve. Mat Smith contributed to this report.
NSA can reportedly bug computer equipment before it reaches buyers
Don't think that the NSA always has to wait until people are using technology to start snooping on it. Spiegel has obtained documents which claim that the agency's Tailored Access Operations (TAO) group can intercept computer equipment orders and install tracking hardware or software before the shipments even reach their buyers. The division can target a wide array of hardware, too. Another NSA section, ANT, reportedly has a catalog of tools that can install back doors in everything from Cisco and Huawei network systems through to hard drives from most major manufacturers, including Seagate and Western Digital. Some of these bugs can give the NSA "permanent" access, since they're designed to persist if the owner wipes a device's storage or upgrades its firmware. The leak suggests that the targeted manufacturers aren't aware of what's happening; Cisco and other firms tell Spiegel they don't coordinate with the NSA. These hardware interceptions are also limited in scope next to remote surveillance programs. The agency isn't confirming any specifics, but it maintains that TAO is focused on exploiting foreign networks. Whether or not that's true, the discoveries show that the NSA's surveillance can reach the deepest levels of many networks.
Washington Post report details how often security agencies break into other networks
The latest national security related revelation to come from the documents leaked by Edward Snowden is an account of how offensive computer operations work, and how many there are. The Washington Post reports that in 2011, 231 took place with about three quarters of them against "top-priority" targets, which its sources indicate include Iran, Russia, China and North Korea. Also interesting are details of software and hardware implants designed to infiltrate network hardware, persist through upgrades and access other connected devices or networks. The effort to break into networks is codenamed Genie, while the "Tailored Access Operations" group custom-builds tools to execute the attacks. One document references a new system "Turbine" that automates control of "potentially millions of implants" to gather data or execute an attack. All of this access isn't possible for free however, with a total cyber operations budget of $1.02 billion which includes $25.1 million spent this year to purchase software vulnerabilities from malware vendors. Get your fill of codenames and cloak-and-dagger from the article posted tonight, or check out the "Black Budget" breakdown of overall intelligence spending.
Wasteland Diaries: Choose your clan
If you are playing Fallen Earth and you are not in a clan, you are doing it wrong. The importance of clan membership cannot be overstated. There are simply too many benefits to not find one that suits you. There is safety in numbers if you are a PvPer. It's nice to team up on that nasty boss with your PvE buddies. And roleplaying by yourself isn't roleplaying at all; it's just being weird. We need to interact with other people to get the most out of an MMO game. Hence: clans. Finding a clan to join is easy. Finding the best clan for you is a bit more complicated. In order to make it a little bit easier for you to choose the clan that's best for you, I have compiled a list of Fallen Earth clans for you to check out. I've supplied their requirements, playstyle focus, and website when available -- some clans are more secretive than others (or maybe less formal). So click past the cut and start your search for your new BFFs.
Purported Motorola roadmap uncovers Sholes Tablet, Motus and other mythical mysteries
Okay folks, this is the moment where hauling a spoonful of NaCl down the chute would be highly recommended. DialAPhone seems to have unearthed what looks like a Q4 2009 - Q1 2010 Motorola roadmap, and while the finds are certainly intriguing, we're still hesitant to believe this thing is legit. For starters, this is obviously a European plan, so what we're viewing here may never make the tedious journey across the pond anyway. Secondly, how many of you honestly believe Moto's cooking up a Sholes Tablet? Exactly. That said, we'd be the first to drool should that device (or the Motus and / or Zeppelin) launch early next year, and you can bet your bottom dollar that we'll be scraping the floor for details when CES kicks off in just a few months. [Thanks, dejan]
Motorola Sholes and Torch battery covers unearthed (hey, it's something)
We really don't need any more convincing that the Sholes is real, but what about the Torch? Oh, you don't remember that one? Yeah, we had to look it up to refresh our memory -- turns out this was the rumored market name for the Inferno, a touchscreen featurephone Moto apparently had in the works to replace the Krave on Verizon. The company has just published press shots of the battery covers of both the Sholes and the Torch -- those are the names Motorola is using, though it's not uncommon for them to refer to press shots by codename, so we wouldn't make much of it -- so if we had to guess, the Torch is still alive. Also notable is the fact that they're showing two versions of the Sholes' cover, one with a Verizon logo and one without, so this is a strong indicator that there'll be a second model -- most likely for overseas GSM markets. Or, you know, an unlocked US 3G version. Dare to dream, right?
Motorola Tao's photographer zooms out a little, better shot ensues
Now that the Sholes has seemingly been gifted with a less bizarre, less reminds-us-of-a-shoe-insert name, pictures and specs of the so-called Tao are starting to flow en masse -- just in time for a possible introduction at next week's CTIA show out in San Diego (we can only hope, anyway). The first round of in-the-wild shots really didn't reveal much of anything, but the cameraman has elected to apply just enough wide-angle this time around to give us a full-on view of the high-end Android beast in its closed position -- and if this is what we're going to be getting on Verizon shelves, HTC (and heck, even Moto's own CLIQ) should be on high alert. So, who'd switch to Verizon for this? [Via Boy Genius Report]
Motorola Tao (Sholes) purportedly seen running Android, traversing America
All we've got to go on here are a few screen images, but at a cursory glance, they sure match what we expect the Motorola Sholes (or Tao, as it were) to look like. The biggest news is that Android is alive and well, and while we're still waiting for an official release date, things are looking up for this to be the outfit's second-ever Google-powered device. Have a peek in the read link for a few more Google Maps shots as well as a glimpse at the 1,390mAh battery, and yes, it's completely fine if you bookmark the last page of the thread and refresh it continuously until actual hardware shots slip out. Not saying that's "normal," but hey...[Via phoneArena]
SmartQ TAO sports a swanky screen
We're pleased to see some improvements in SmartQ's latest PMP. Screen size and resolution for the TAO weigh in at a formidable 3.3-inches 480x320 HVGA with 262,000 colors. It hosts a decent lineup of multi-codec niceties like MP3, OGG, WMA, FLAC, APE, AAC, WAV (PCM, ADPCM), along with a 500mhz Blackfin processor -- not too shabby for soaking up video. Xvid and Divx AVI res hit 720x480 with RMVB topping that, and FLV, WMV, ASF, 3GP, MPEG, DAT, MP4 formats are also supported. If you're jetting over to China any time soon, you should be able to pick up a 4GB model for around 699RMB ($102.)[Thanks, Nick]
