Petoi has been shrinking Boston Dynamics down to desk size for almost a decade now. Dr. Rongzhong Li started the company in his dorm lab in 2016, after a video of his open-source robot cat prototype went viral. That cat became Nybble, a laser-cut wooden kitty, and it was followed by Bittle, a palm-sized robot dog that ended up in classrooms, research labs, and a surprising number of home offices. Petoi says it has shipped more than 30,000 robots to over 60 countries, all running its open-source OpenCat framework. Each new model has gotten smaller, smarter, and easier to build, which brings us to the newest pup in the litter.

Meet Quaddle, a palm-sized robot dog that walks, glides, spins, and does backflips using just four servos. That’s half what Bittle uses in its legs and roughly a third of what most quadrupeds need, thanks to a spring-loaded linkage Petoi calls the MinDoF leg, which lets one motor drive both the shoulder and the knee. It weighs about 6 ounces, snaps together without screws, and takes LEGO bricks on its back. You can teach it tricks by physically moving its legs, chat with it, or code it in anything from beginner blocks to ROS. Prices start at $179, which is pretty reasonable for a dog that never needs walking.

Designer: Petoi

How one servo runs an entire leg

Each of Quaddle’s legs hangs off a single servo, with a spring and a four-bar linkage doing the job a second motor normally would. As the servo swings the upper leg, the linkage folds the knee up and straightens it again, turning one rotating shaft into a proper step. Petoi calls this the MinDoF leg, short for Minimal Degrees of Freedom, a degree of freedom being one independent way a joint can move. The spring clips onto different anchor points, changing how stiff or bouncy each leg feels. In Petoi’s tabletop tests, Quaddle walks about one body length per second, turns 90° in a single step cycle, and climbs onto a ledge as tall as its own knee.

Walking machines driven by a single crank go back to Pafnuty Chebyshev, the Russian mathematician whose 1870s linkage turned rotation into a surprisingly lifelike stride. Theo Jansen’s wind-powered Strandbeests on Dutch beaches run on the same basic idea, and Quaddle feels like their tiny, battery-powered cousin. Petoi added one more trick by fitting small bearings to the tips of the feet. Angle the legs just right and those bearings become wheels, letting Quaddle glide across a smooth desk at around three body lengths per second without a single extra motor. Fewer motors also means less weight, less cost, and less battery drain, which is how the whole dog comes in at roughly 6 ounces.

Teach it tricks by hand, then teach it in code

On the Buddy and Scout models, every leg servo reports its position back to the robot, so you can teach Quaddle a move by simply grabbing its legs. Tap to start recording, guide the legs through whatever silly dance you have in mind, and tap again to have it play the motion back. There’s no app or code involved, and Petoi says you can teach it a basic walk in about ten seconds. Recorded moves can be pulled into Petoi’s Skill Composer software for fine-tuning and shared with other Quaddle owners. For a kid, this is probably the fastest route from “I wonder if” to a robot actually doing the thing.

Buddy and Scout split their thinking across two ESP32-S3 chips, one for motion and balance and one for voice chat and smart home control. A physical slide switch cuts power to the AI chip entirely, which is great for privacy and for days when your robot dog gets a bit too chatty. Coding starts with drag-and-drop blocks, moves to Python or MicroPython, and eventually reaches the Arduino C++ firmware. Bigger projects can mount a Raspberry Pi Zero on its back or plug into ROS, the software framework most research robots run on. A browser-based simulator runs the same code as the real robot, so you can test ideas on a laptop or even a phone with no robot in sight.

LEGO bricks, a Nokia battery, and three Quaddles to pick from

The top of Quaddle’s shell takes LEGO bricks, and Petoi will publish printable shells and mounts for anyone with a 3D printer. Petoi’s own demos have turned it into a walking LEGO AT-AT, a waddling biped called the NanoDuck, and a rover on Mecanum wheels, which use angled rollers to slide sideways. Power comes from a swappable Nokia-format phone battery, the same BL-5C shape that lived inside Nokia’s famously indestructible early-2000s handsets. Quaddle ships with the bigger 1,800 mAh BL-10C cell, good for roughly 1 to 1.5 hours of walking depending on the model. Plug it into USB-C while you code and it charges as it runs, so marathon debugging sessions are fair game.

Builder PLUS ($179) handles walking and coding, Buddy ($219) adds AI chat and teach-by-hand, and Scout ($269) adds a sensor head that detects gestures, light, distance, and people. All three are priced at $144, $175, and $215, with deliveries starting in December. For context, Petoi’s own Bittle X lists at $279, Unitree’s Go2 starts around $1,600, and Sony’s Aibo launched in the US at $2,900. Petoi spent a decade shrinking big robots down to desk size, and Quaddle shows the smartest way to shrink one further is to give it fewer parts.

The post This palm-sized robot dog has a Nokia battery and a customizable LEGO-compatible back first appeared on Yanko Design.

Halloween decorating can start small, with something like a skeleton on the porch. A strange little object on the dinner table, a lamp that reveals something unexpected, or a pair of shoes with eyes on the heels can be enough. The most interesting seasonal designs give familiar things a new personality, leaving room for a little mischief without turning the entire house into a haunted attraction overnight.

These eight picks approach the season through miniature storytelling, everyday utility, and atmospheric details. Some are unmistakably Halloween, while others suggest a darker mood without wearing a pumpkin on their sleeve. This is an editorial selection rather than a tested ranking or a collection of new releases. It includes retail products, an older lighting design, and a LEGO fan proposal, with those distinctions kept clear as we explore each one below.

1. Halloween Snow Globe

The Brick Artist’s Halloween Snow Globe puts a graveyard where you would normally expect a snowman. Published as a LEGO Ideas fan proposal, rather than an official retail set, it gathers a twisted tree, a floating ghost, and a pumpkin-headed scarecrow beneath a transparent dome. Its proposed hand crank rotates the scene, bringing a skeleton and spider into view from behind the tombstones. That gives the mechanism a storytelling purpose beyond simply displaying the same arrangement from another angle.

The published renders make the strongest case for its inclusion here. Orange leaves interrupt the black and gray palette, while a vampire on the base greets anyone approaching the miniature scene. It would be an appealing centerpiece for someone who prefers examining tiny details to hanging oversized decorations. The construction is less convincing from behind, where the moon exposes its studs, but that also reveals the theatrical thinking: this is a small stage with a carefully arranged opening view.

What we like

• Rotation reveals hidden characters.
• The dome contains an entire miniature Halloween scene.

What we dislike

• It is a fan proposal, not an official retail set.
• The rear view exposes some scenic construction.

2. Nike Dunk Low “Shibuya Halloween”

Nike’s Dunk Low Premium Halloween takes a quieter approach to dressing for October. The leather upper has a scaly appearance, with dark green and black keeping the daytime palette restrained. The more theatrical detail sits behind you: eyes on the heel tabs glow in the dark, accompanied by an outsole with the same effect. Nike also includes a Shibuya city tongue label, connecting the shoe’s familiar nickname to a specific detail rather than relying on Halloween colors alone.

For anyone who wants a seasonal accessory without committing to a costume, that restraint is the attraction. The familiar sneaker silhouette remains intact, and the monster character emerges through texture and small graphic interventions. It is a more flexible wardrobe proposition than footwear covered in pumpkins, at least aesthetically. The limitation is that much of the Halloween effect depends on darker surroundings. Nike describes the glowing elements but does not specify their duration, so treat them as decoration, not illumination.

What we like

• Heel eyes give a familiar sneaker an unexpected character.
• The dark palette is less overtly seasonal than orange graphics.

What we dislike

• The Halloween effect is subdued in daylight.
• Nike does not specify how long the glow lasts.

3. Skeleton Wine Glasses

Pottery Barn’s Skeleton Wine Glasses let a tiny skeletal figure do the lifting. Instead of decorating the bowl with a printed Halloween motif, the design incorporates the skeleton into the stem, with raised arms reaching toward the glass above. The manufacturer specifies a handmade zinc alloy embellishment and a bowl made from mouth-blown soda lime glass. It is a satisfying change of scale: something normally imagined standing in a doorway becomes the character supporting a drink at dinner.

This is a particularly useful direction for a Halloween table because the decoration participates in the meal rather than occupying another patch of tabletop. Set against plain plates and napkins, the figure could carry most of the seasonal theme on its own. The practical compromise comes afterward. Pottery Barn calls for washing by hand with mild soap and warm water, and the glass cannot be removed from its skeleton. These are entertaining pieces that ask for a little extra cleanup.

What we like

• The skeleton becomes part of the glass’s structure.
• One piece supplies both drinkware and table decoration.

What we dislike

• Cleaning requires washing by hand.
• The glass does not detach from the skeleton.

4. Elizabat Kitchen Scissors

Elizabat turns a pair of kitchen scissors into a bat without hiding what the tool is supposed to do. The wings form the handles, and a small face sits between them, giving the silhouette a character that becomes especially clear when the scissors open. OTOTO combines stainless steel blades with plastic and rubber components. The tool also incorporates a bottle opener and a nutcracker, putting several kitchen jobs inside a shape that would otherwise be easy to dismiss as novelty.

Something is appealing about letting Halloween enter through food preparation instead of adding another ornament to a shelf. Elizabat can remain in the kitchen after the decorations come down, assuming the bat aesthetic suits your everyday tools. OTOTO lists the scissors as dishwasher-safe, which is a useful distinction from the more demanding glassware in this collection. The wing shape is still a stylistic commitment, and the friendly expression should not obscure the fact that these are sharp kitchen scissors.

What we like

• The handles give the bat silhouette a functional role.
• Scissors, bottle opener, and nutcracker share one tool.

What we dislike

• The winged handles are visually busy.
• The playful appearance can obscure the sharp blades.

5. Angela Deane Incense Smoker

West Elm’s collaboration with Angela Deane brings a pair of small ceramic ghosts to the tabletop. Their uneven heights, dark eyes, and draped forms make them look more like curious visitors than threatening apparitions. The object is an incense smoker, giving the sculpture a role beyond standing on a shelf. Its soft, pale silhouette offers a useful alternative to the black metal, orange plastic, and deliberately distressed finishes that can make a Halloween display feel visually crowded before anything happens.

For a smaller seasonal arrangement, the ghost pair could sit beside a stack of books or become the focus of an otherwise ordinary side table. The ceramic form remains legible without needing a large surrounding display, which is part of its appeal. Incense introduces another layer of atmosphere, though smoke and fragrance will not suit every space or preference. West Elm recommends wiping the piece with a soft, dry cloth, so its upkeep is closer to caring for a sculpture than washing tableware.

What we like

• Two ghost figures create a charming sculptural composition.
• It combines seasonal decoration with an incense function.

What we dislike

• Incense smoke will not suit every space.
• Care requires wiping with a soft, dry cloth.

6. Agatha Spoon Holder & Steam Releaser

Agatha’s joke becomes clear as soon as a spoon passes through her hands: the utensil becomes a witch’s broomstick. Designed by OTOTO in collaboration with Uli Ben Israel, the purple silicone character works as a spoon holder and steam releaser. Her pointed hat and flowing outline make the Halloween reference immediate, but the cooking connection gives the character a reason to exist. A witch beside a pot is a more convincing piece of visual storytelling than a random seasonal graphic.

The appeal is strongest for someone who enjoys the season while doing ordinary things. Preparing dinner becomes the setting for the design, with the pot standing in for a cauldron and the spoon completing the scene. OTOTO lists the silicone as dishwasher-safe and resistant to boiling water. Fit still deserves attention, since a useful holder needs to work with your particular spoon and cookware. Agatha is a small accent rather than a decoration that changes the mood of an entire room.

What we like

• The spoon completes the witch’s broomstick silhouette.
• One silicone character serves two cooking roles.

What we dislike

• Compatibility needs checking against your utensils and cookware.
• Its decorative impact stays mostly around the stove.

7. King Edison Ghost Pendant Lamp

A dark pendant shade is not an obvious Halloween decoration until it reveals the chandelier hidden inside. Designed by Young & Battaglia for Mineheart, the King Edison Ghost contains a miniature brass chandelier within a shade of hand-blown black glass. According to the manufacturer, the interior becomes visible when the light is switched on. The result borrows the visual language of an old drawing room, then compresses it into an object whose exterior initially gives very little away.

This is the collection’s most permanent approach to creating an eerie atmosphere. There are no cartoon ghosts or seasonal slogans, just an illuminated object appearing through dark glass. It could appeal to someone who prefers a suggestion of haunted architecture to literal party decor. It also demands a different commitment: this is a ceiling pendant with a ceiling rose, not a lamp to unpack for one evening. Mineheart’s page currently offers availability notifications, so immediate purchase should not be assumed.

What we like

• Switching it on reveals an unexpected miniature chandelier.
• The ghostly effect does not depend on seasonal graphics.

What we dislike

• Ceiling installation makes it a longer-term commitment.
• The manufacturer currently directs shoppers to availability notifications.

8. Miniature Bonfire Wood Diffuser Set

Shinchi Ringyo’s Miniature Bonfire Wood Diffuser Set takes its seasonal cue from campfire stories rather than haunted houses. The Japanese design arranges miniature firewood on a stainless steel stand, using the wood to disperse aromatic oil. The stand measures about 2.1 by 2.7 by 2.3 inches, making this a tiny campsite rather than a conventional centerpiece. Its appeal lies in recognizing a familiar outdoor arrangement at a scale intended for a desk or shelf.

The Halloween connection is atmospheric, so this is the pick for anyone who would rather suggest a woodland evening than display another pumpkin. The shop lists cedar and Hakusan scent options, with the latter combining cedar, cypress, and lindera umbellata. Fragrance preferences are personal, and the set’s $99 price makes this a considered purchase for such a small object. Its role here is as an aroma diffuser; the listing’s separate stove claims are not the basis for recommending it.

Click Here to Buy Now: $99.00

What we like

• The miniature campsite offers a quieter autumnal mood.
• Its woodland theme can remain relevant after Halloween.

What we dislike

• At $99, it is expensive for a small decorative diffuser.
• The Halloween connection is indirect.

A Little Halloween Goes a Long Way

A good starting point is to choose the moment you want to change rather than the number of decorations you want to own. A dinner table needs something different from an entryway, and a kitchen tool earns attention differently from a display piece. Give one object enough space to be noticed. A distinctive silhouette or unexpected reveal can lose its effect when surrounded by too many competing seasonal props nearby.

It is also worth deciding how much Halloween you want to keep after October. Literal ghosts and skeletons can become an annual ritual, while darker lighting or woodland references may suit the room for longer. Neither approach needs to dominate the house. The pleasure is in finding a design whose particular joke, detail, or small surprise still makes you look twice when you pass it during an otherwise ordinary day.

The post The 8 Best Halloween Designs for a Delightfully Spooky October first appeared on Yanko Design.

The little rectangular blade gives RAY away. Without it, Marija Kucurski’s stingray-shaped design could pass for a small sculpture, all sweeping fins and a curling tail. It’s actually a concept for a 3D print scraper, a tool meant to help release stubborn plastic from a printer’s build surface. Presented through renderings on Render Weekly, it gives an unglamorous workshop accessory a silhouette I’d happily leave out on the bench.

The practical problem is straightforward: a print needs to stay attached while it’s being made, but removing it afterward can take care. Prusa recommends letting its flexible steel sheets cool before bending them to release a print, sometimes using a spatula for assistance. RAY explores a handle for that scraping job while tackling a second, more personal frustration. Kucurski wanted to get away from the cubes, rounded rectangles, and racetrack shapes that had started to feel repetitive.

Designer: Marija Kucurski

In her project description, Kucurski compares working with SubD to playing with pizza dough or clay. That experimentation led her toward a stingray. I like how modest that explanation is. There’s no elaborate story about the ocean teaching us to scrape plastic more efficiently. She wanted to try a different shape, followed the modeling process, and arrived at an animal whose broad body gives the tool a recognizable identity. Sometimes that’s a perfectly worthwhile starting point.

Seen from above, RAY spreads outward into two rounded wings, with a raised central body flowing into a slender, curved tail. The dark, metallic-looking surface catches light across those changes in curvature, making the body feel more sculpted than assembled. That’s a visual effect in the renderings, not confirmation of a particular material. The blade sits at the front, interrupting those soft contours with a plain rectangle and two exposed fasteners.

A separate visualization makes the proposed grip clearer. A hand cradles the broad body, with the thumb resting near the center and fingers supporting the wings from underneath. The tail extends back toward the wrist rather than serving as a conventional narrow handle. That arrangement suggests a different relationship between hand and tool: more of a palm-supported object than something held by a stick. I’d be curious to see how that translates when applying pressure close to the build plate.

The blade attachment is a useful visual anchor. Two visible screw heads keep the business end legible, so the animal reference doesn’t completely swallow the tool’s purpose. I appreciate that decision. A perfectly uninterrupted stingray would make a cleaner sculpture, but the exposed hardware gives RAY a little workshop credibility. It also draws attention to the connection that would need to hold up during use.

My hesitation is mostly about the tail. It completes the stingray immediately, and removing it would make the design less memorable. But I’d want to know whether it contributes anything to handling or simply asks for extra space in a drawer. The wide wings raise a similar question about storage. Neither concern ruins the idea. They’re the ordinary negotiations that make a playful concept interesting once you imagine it sharing a bench with other tools.

The available presentation doesn’t establish grip comfort, scraping performance, or compatibility with particular build surfaces. Those details would matter more than the silhouette if RAY moved toward production. Even a beautiful scraper needs to respect the surface underneath it. Prusa specifically cautions against damaging the sheet when using a spatula and recommends slipping it beneath the model while the sheet is slightly bent, rather than digging into a flat surface.

Still, I’m glad Kucurski followed the less predictable shape. I don’t need every tool to resemble a sea creature, but I do enjoy a design that makes its maker’s curiosity visible. RAY earns attention through the sweep of its body and the almost comically practical blade attached to its front. The next step would be putting that expressive form to work, finding out which curves help the hand and which ones are simply along for the ride.

The post RAY’s 3D Print Scraper Concept Refuses to Be Another Rectangle first appeared on Yanko Design.

For five years, Arrowmax has been teaching screwdrivers to read people. The SES Pro in 2021 watched your wrist, so a twist left or right told the motor which way to spin. The SES Max added app control, and the M1 Pro stretched output to 10 kgf·cm with a manual fallback for stubborn screws. Its little screen could report torque and battery level all day. Your screwdriver got smarter and you got lazier, in the best possible way. The obvious next question was why the tool still had no idea what screw it was holding.

The Arrowspace S1, built by the same team under a new brand name, answers that with a camera on the tail end of the screwdriver. Image recognition names the screw’s drive type and exact size, while a small probe holds the lens at a fixed distance so tiny heads stay sharp. The smart case then lights the slot of the matching bit, and Auto mode picks a safe torque for that fastener. It keeps the 10 kgf·cm ceiling of the M1 Pro, which is plenty for everything from earbuds to e-bike parts. Early pricing starts at $119, and the kit includes the case, 52 S2 steel bits, and a power tip extension.

Designers: LAU YIN / XU YU

Click Here to Buy Now: $129 $215 (40% off). Hurry, only 40/400 left! Raised over $119,000.

The Screwdriver That Squints So You Don’t Have To

The camera sits at the rear of the S1, right behind a small contact probe, and the two work as a team. You rest the probe on the screw head, which locks the lens at one fixed distance, so every shot lands sharp. A screw this small turns to mush if the camera drifts even 1mm. Arrowmax fixed that blur problem with a metal pin instead of more code, which is a very hardware-person way to win an argument. I love it, because it means recognition survives a messy bench and shaky hands instead of working only in a demo video.

Once the shot is sharp, the driver sends it to the companion app on your phone, which works out the drive type and exact size. Everything runs locally with no internet involved, so your screw photos stay on your phone. Arrowmax trained the model, a YOLO object detector, on its own collection of tens of thousands of real screw photos, currently covering 12 common head profiles. The app shows the actual camera image next to the verdict, so you can see what the S1 sees and judge the call yourself. Only the reading step needs the phone, since motor control, torque, and the displays all work on their own.

A Case That Points at the Right Bit

The smart case turns the app’s verdict into something you can see across the bench. A 2-inch TFT screen with Arrowspace’s purple interface shows the recognized screw type and size, while an LED glows under the slot holding the matching bit. Reach, grab, done. Compare that with the usual ritual of squinting at tiny codes on dozens of near-identical shafts, and the old way starts to look like a part-time job. It is the same idea as a warehouse pick-to-light shelf, shrunk down to a tray of S2 steel bits.

The 52 bits are S2 steel hardened to HRC60, which keeps the tips from rounding off after repeated use, and extended bits reach screws buried in deep holes. A magnetic holder keeps bits seated while you work. The case itself is a CNC-machined frame in aerospace-grade aluminum with EVA protection inside, a build the M1 Pro’s CNC aluminum box would recognize. That solid metal feel suits a bench that sees daily use. One box ends up holding the driver, the bits, and the answer to which bit you need.

Gentle With Earbuds, Firm With E-Bikes

Electric torque runs from 1 to 10 kgf·cm, roughly 0.1 to 1 N·m, and Arrowspace’s own chart maps that range to real jobs. The low end suits earbuds, smart bands, and glasses. Around 3 you are into laptops and camera bodies, 6 covers RC cars, drones, and game consoles, and the full 10 handles e-bike parts and large appliances. Auto mode matches a conservative preset to the screw it just identified and remembers your last setting between jobs. Prefer to drive? The app lets you tune the torque for each mode yourself.

When electric mode runs out of muscle, the S1 switches to manual on its own, a trick it inherits from the M1 Pro. The mechanism is rated for 30 kgf·cm of hand-twisted force, which handles the factory screw that laughs at motors. A 600mAh LiPo battery covers 900+ screws or about 90 minutes of continuous use, and USB-C refills it in roughly 70 minutes. An OLED on the body shows torque level, spin direction, and battery, and it even animates while charging. A full session of fiddly repairs fits comfortably inside one charge.

The Price of Never Guessing Again

The S1 suits anyone who repairs often enough to own a drawer of bits but not often enough to have a veteran’s eye, meaning RC builders, scale modelers, drone owners, and the friend who gets every laptop question. Arrowspace says the AI handles identification while your hand keeps the control, and that split feels right to me. My one wish is friendlier recognition for oddballs like JIS cross-head screws, the Phillips look-alikes in plenty of Japanese electronics. Arrowmax says updates will keep widening the 12 profiles covered today, so the wish has a path. A screwdriver that learns new screws over time is a fun idea for a tool that used to be a metal stick.

Pricing for a single S1 kit starts at $119, listed at 45% off, with $129 and $149 tiers also available. Every tier includes the driver, the illuminated smart case, 52 S2 steel bits, and a power tip extension. Shipping is an estimated $16 by air freight to anywhere in the world, so US buyers are covered, with delivery expected in April 2027. Two kits run $238 and three run $339, with shipping at $30 and $45. The optional Angle Screw attachment is sold separately, so check the product page for its price. A stripped screw can cost you a whole device, which makes $119 look like cheap insurance.

Click Here to Buy Now: $129 $215 (40% off). Hurry, only 40/400 left! Raised over $119,000.

The post Arrowspace’s $119 screwdriver identifies screws and lights up the matching bit first appeared on Yanko Design.

Every crisis has its panic buy. In 2020 it was toilet paper and N95 masks, in 2021 it was graphics cards, in 2025 it was RAM chips, and in 2026 my money is on lithium iron phosphate. With Iran attacking tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, gas sitting at a record-for-October $4.36 a gallon, and heating oil bills forecast to climb 21% this winter, the case for keeping your own stash of electrons has never been stronger. A portable power station from Anker, EcoFlow, or Jackery keeps your fridge cold and your lights on when the grid gives up. It also runs indoors without trying to poison you, and it never needs a trip to the gas station.

Stockpiling toilet paper made you look a little unhinged. Owning a power station makes you the neighbor everyone suddenly wants to befriend during an outage. Black Friday could knock a few more dollars off, sure, but fall sale prices are already the best we’ve seen this season, and winter storms rarely wait for a coupon code. I’ve narrowed the field to one value pick from each brand, all hovering around the 2kWh mark, enough to keep a fridge humming for well over a day. Anker gets first crack, because its S2000 squeezes 2,010Wh into a 35.7-pound body that costs less than a decent espresso machine.

[Editor’s Pick] Anker S2000 2,010Wh Portable Power Station: $699.99

Anker announced at IFA 2026 that its SOLIX power station brand is folding into the Anker name, so you’ll still spot “SOLIX” on boxes and Amazon listings while the switch plays out over the next couple of years. Same company, same warranty, simpler logo. The S2000 makes a great poster child for the new identity, because it looks like it wandered over from the home appliance aisle. At 8.2 x 11.1 x 12.7 inches (208 x 282 x 323mm) and 35.7 pounds (16.2kg), it takes up roughly the counter space of a coffee maker. That makes it nearly 4 pounds lighter than Jackery’s Explorer 2000 v2 and 9 pounds lighter than EcoFlow’s DELTA 3 Max.

Inside are 314Ah lithium iron phosphate cells rated for 6,000 cycles to 80% capacity and 10,000 to 60%, the same chunky format used in grid-scale storage. Anker estimates a 15-year design life, so this thing could easily outlast your fridge. Output tops out at 1,500W continuous with a 3,000W surge, plenty for a fridge, router, lights, laptops, and a CPAP. The real magic is efficiency, with idle draw of just 6W, which helped it keep a fridge running for 34 hours and 15 minutes in GearJunkie’s testing. At $599.99 for subscribers, that works out to roughly $300 per kilowatt-hour, the cheapest of our three picks by a wide margin.

Click Here to Buy Now

What we like

• At 35.7 pounds, it’s the lightest 2kWh station you can buy right now, and compact enough to live on a kitchen counter.
• A UPS switchover of 10ms or less keeps your router and desktop online the moment the grid drops.
• Long-life cells and roughly $300 per kWh make it the best value of the three.

What we dislike

• Solar input caps at 400W, which means about five hours of ideal sunshine to refill, and winter rarely delivers ideal.
• It isn’t expandable, so 2kWh is your ceiling.
• 1,500W of output rules out running a space heater alongside much of anything else.

Jackery Explorer 2000 v2 2,042Wh Portable Power Station: $899

Jackery’s orange-trimmed Explorers were the default power station for years, long before Anker, EcoFlow, and Bluetti started crowding the category. The Explorer 2000 v2 keeps that familiar look but trims the bulk, measuring 13.2 x 10.4 x 11.5 inches (335 x 264 x 292mm) and weighing 39.5 pounds (17.9kg). Its proportions are squatter and more cube-like than the Anker’s, which makes it easier to tuck under a desk or beside a fridge. Jackery marketed it as the lightest and most compact 2kWh LiFePO4 station around, a crown the S2000 snatched this year by shedding nearly four more pounds. The two brands are basically locked in a very nerdy weight-loss competition.

Output is where the Jackery pulls ahead of the Anker, with 2,200W continuous and a 4,400W peak spread across three AC outlets. That’s enough headroom for a sump pump, a fridge compressor, or a microwave without the station breaking a sweat. Jackery’s ChargeShield 2.0 system layers in 62 protection mechanisms, and Silent Charging Mode keeps noise under 30dB, roughly a whisper, which is handy if it ends up in your bedroom during an outage. The cells are rated for 4,000 cycles and a 10-year lifespan, fewer than Anker promises but still plenty for daily use well into the 2030s. At $899, you’re paying about $440 per kilowatt-hour, dropping to $416 when it dips to $849.

Click Here to Buy Now

What we like

• 2,200W of continuous output handles bigger appliances than the Anker can.
• Silent Charging Mode stays under 30dB, so it won’t keep you up at night.
• A 3-year standard warranty plus a 2-year extension covers you for five years total.

What we dislike

• Only three AC outlets, so a power strip becomes part of the kit.
• It isn’t expandable, and solar input maxes out at 400W.
• It won’t charge below 32°F (0°C), so an unheated garage in January is a bad home for it.

EcoFlow DELTA 3 Max 2,048Wh Portable Power Station: $899

EcoFlow’s DELTA family is the brand’s bread and butter, and the DELTA 3 Max is the 2kWh sweet spot of the current lineup. It’s also the chunkiest of our three picks, measuring 19.45 x 9.41 x 12.01 inches (494 x 239 x 305mm) and weighing 44.8 pounds (20.3kg). That long, low, suitcase-like shape belongs on the floor next to the fridge, and you’ll want two hands whenever you move it. EcoFlow spends that extra bulk on muscle, and the trade feels fair once you see the output numbers. The Halloween sale has it at $899, down from $1,199, which puts it neck and neck with the Jackery on price.

You get 2,400W continuous across four AC outlets, the most of our three picks, plus EcoFlow’s X-Boost mode for resistive appliances up to 3,400W. X-Boost works by dropping the voltage, so a kettle or hair dryer runs a little slower instead of tripping the station. That’s enough headroom to run a 1,500W space heater with the fridge and router still plugged in. EcoFlow also rates it at 25dB or less when charging or discharging at 600W, which is quieter than a library. At $899, it lands at about $439 per kilowatt-hour, essentially tied with the Jackery, so the choice comes down to extra watts versus a lighter box.

Click Here to Buy Now

What we like

• 2,400W continuous output, with X-Boost up to 3,400W, makes it the most powerful of the trio.
• Four AC outlets, one more than the Jackery.
• It stays under 25dB at moderate loads, so it’s easy to live with indoors.

What we dislike

• At 44.8 pounds, it’s the heaviest of the three, roughly 9 pounds more than the Anker.
• The long footprint eats more floor space than its boxier rivals.

The post Do yourself a favor and buy a power station now, before the energy crisis gets worse first appeared on Yanko Design.

During World War II, Americans planted millions of victory gardens in backyards, vacant lots, and rooftops, and by most estimates those plots supplied roughly 40% of the country’s fresh vegetables. Today’s enemy is the grocery receipt, which now runs roughly 35% higher than it did in 2019. Prices have cooled lately, but they never came back down, and the herb aisle still charges luxury rates for a handful of leaves. Norwegian brand Auk has a counterattack in the Mini 2, a countertop garden that takes the victory garden indoors and shrinks it to fit beside the coffee maker. Your war effort is now four pots of basil, and honestly, I respect it.

The Mini 2 is the sequel to Auk’s best-selling Auk Mini, and it comes from a team in Oslo, where December daylight is more rumor than fact. Lead designer Johan Schreiner and his team just took home a 2026 European Product Design Award in the Kitchen Appliances category. That’s a jury-judged international competition with more than 800 categories, so call it a solid nod rather than an Oscar. The pitch is simple: herbs, salad greens, even chilies and tomatoes, grown from seed on your counter all year. It’s 12% smaller than the first model, holds 25% more water, and starts at $239.

Designers: Johan Schreiner, Jostein Kvitvang, Magnus Bjørnstad & Didrik Dimmen

A Grow Light That Stops Turning Your Kitchen Into a Nightclub

Anyone who has shared a kitchen with a grow light knows the deal: the plants get their sunshine, and so does everyone trying to eat dinner. The Mini 2 fixes that with an optical lens system that aims light down at the leaves instead of spraying it across the room. Auk’s spec sheet lists output between 300 and 1,000 µmol/m²/s of PPFD depending on mode, which is the number plants actually care about. Average power draw runs from about 5 W in slow mode to 17 W in fruit and vegetable mode. That’s somewhere between a night light and a modest LED bulb, so your electric bill barely flinches.

Scandinavian designers have been fighting glare since Poul Henningsen’s PH lamps for Louis Poulsen in the 1920s, which hid the bulb behind layered shades so light landed where people needed it. The Mini 2 carries that instinct into horticulture, and it makes a neat contrast with Lettuce Grow’s Counterstand and Glow Lamp, which tames its grow light by tuning the color temperature until it looks warm and livable. Auk controls where the light goes, while Lettuce Grow controls what the light looks like when it arrives. Henningsen was Danish, so Norway gets a polite asterisk on the heritage claim. Either way, nobody has to live under a purple haze anymore.

Walnut, Oak, and Ash: A Garden Dressed Like Furniture

Pull the Mini 2 out of the box and it reads as furniture first, appliance second. A wraparound sleeve of FSC-certified, oil-treated European wood (walnut, oak, beech, or ash) rolls around softly radiused corners, and Auk keeps the seams flush so nothing catches the eye or your sleeve. Two slim wooden dowels, 0.63 in thick, hold up a light bar made from 100% recycled Norwegian aluminum, its ribbed top borrowing the look of heat sink fins. The base and pots are recyclable ABS plastic. Even the 5.9 ft braided USB-C cable comes in green, so the wire looks like it belongs to the plant kingdom.

Five colorways run from Espresso Walnut to Sage Ash, so the Mini 2 can slip into a moody dark kitchen or a pale Scandinavian one without making a scene. The footprint shrinks from the original’s 17.5 x 8.5 in to 16.9 x 7.5 in, and Auk’s own math calls the whole unit 12% smaller. Yet the tank holds 0.9 gallons on the first fill, 25% more water than before, which means fewer refill trips and fewer “oops, I forgot” moments. Longer dowels and wider Big Plant Pots, bundled in a chili and tomato kit, let the Mini 2 grow fruiting plants too. Smaller box, bigger ambitions.

Does a $239 Garden Actually Beat the Produce Aisle?

A clamshell of basil runs about $3.50, so if you buy one a week, the Mini 2’s $239 price covers roughly 68 of them, or about 16 months of Sunday-night pesto. Power is cheap, with Auk listing 3.6 to 12.2 kWh a month, which works out to a buck or two at typical US electricity rates. Seeds, coco fiber, and nutrients add a little, so treat 16 months as the friendly estimate. Past that point, every snip is free basil with a side of smugness. Better yet, you cut exactly one sprig and leave the rest alive, so the cilantro funeral in your fridge never happens.

Nobody is quitting the grocery store over this, but cutting a few herb runs a month adds up to a real taste of food independence. Pod-based systems like Click & Grow sell you plant capsules, while the Mini 2 grows from any seeds you like in coco fiber, with no pump and no pods. The optional Bluetooth app handles light cycles and modes, and Slow Mode keeps plants from outgrowing the light while you’re away on vacation. The victory gardeners of the 1940s never had it this easy. You can order the Mini 2 at Auk’s site, and the first basil is about four to five weeks out.

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Apple’s October has turned into a full-on home makeover. First came HomeView, a $299 smart display for the kitchen with a generous helping of iMac nostalgia baked into its design. Now the iMac itself is back with the M6 chip, which feels a bit like the original star showing up after the spinoff already aired. The two aren’t rivals at all, because a 7-inch hub and a 24-inch desktop live very different lives. They play for the same team, with HomeView running the house while the iMac sits on the desk handling homework, taxes, and the occasional late-night gaming session.

The new iMac skips the M5 generation and goes straight to Apple’s 2nm M6 chip, with two more CPU and GPU cores than before. It starts at $1,499 for the 10-core, two-port model, while $1,699 gets you 12 cores, four Thunderbolt ports, and 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet living inside the power brick. Apple also swapped in its own N1 wireless chip for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread, which fits neatly with all that smart home energy. Those prices match what the M4 iMac cost after June’s price hike, so the extra cores are basically a free upgrade. Pre-orders open October 28, and the first deliveries land November 6.

Designer: Apple

The iMac skipped M5 and went straight to 2nm

The M6 is built on TSMC’s first-generation 2nm process, swapping the M4’s FinFET transistors for gate-all-around nanosheets that leak less power at these tiny sizes. The $1,499 model gets a 10-core CPU split into two super cores, three performance cores, and five efficiency cores. The $1,699 model bumps that to 12 cores, with two super, four performance, and six efficiency cores. Both get a matching GPU with a Neural Accelerator in every core, plus two 16-core Neural Engines totaling 32 cores. Memory bandwidth climbs from 120GB/s to up to 170GB/s, and the SSD now supports PCIe 5.0 for up to twice the read and write speed.

Apple’s own numbers put the M6 iMac up to 1.5 times faster than the M4 in Microsoft Excel and up to twice as fast for photo editing in Affinity. Ray-traced gaming performance doubles too, which is great news for anyone secretly using the family computer as a gaming rig. The biggest jump is on-device AI, with prompt processing in LM Studio up to five times faster than M4. Apple’s press release even name-drops vibe coding as an iMac use case, a very 2026 thing to say about a computer that comes in pink. If you’re coming from an Intel iMac, Apple claims up to 18 times faster performance, which should feel like time travel.

The Ethernet port lives in the power brick now

The $1,699 model comes with a 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port as standard, and the $1,499 model can add one for $30. Apple builds that jack into the power adapter instead of the computer itself. That keeps the iMac’s 11.5mm-thin body free of a chunky network port, and your cable clutter ends up under the desk where it belongs. The previous model used the same brick trick, but it topped out at 1 Gigabit. At 2.5 Gigabit, pulling a giant photo library off a home server should feel a lot less like waiting for a kettle to boil.

Apple’s own N1 wireless chip replaces Broadcom, bringing Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread, the low-power mesh network behind a lot of Matter smart home gear. External display support gets generous on the four-port model, which can drive two 6K screens at 60Hz, two 4K screens at 165Hz, or a single 4K panel at 240Hz. It can even run both external displays off a single Thunderbolt port. Everything you see and hear stays the same, from the 24-inch 4.5K Retina display at 500 nits to the 12MP Center Stage camera and six-speaker system. The seven colors carry over too, along with color-matched keyboards and mice that charge over USB-C.

Same $1,499 price, two more cores

The M4 iMac launched at $1,299 back in 2024, then jumped to $1,499 in June when Apple raised prices across the Mac lineup to cope with soaring memory and storage costs. The M6 model keeps that $1,499 starting price, but the base chip now has 10 CPU and GPU cores instead of eight. Compared to yesterday, that’s two extra cores of each for the same money. Compared to two years ago, the cheapest iMac costs $200 more. The four-port model at $1,699 is the one I’d point most people toward, since it bundles Ethernet, more display options, and the full 12-core chip.

If you bought an M4 iMac, enjoy it, because the display, camera, speakers, and design are identical and your browser tabs won’t notice the difference. Families still running an Intel or M1 iMac are the real audience here, and the jump will feel enormous. Pre-orders open October 28, with deliveries starting November 6. That makes it the third new Apple product in two days, after the iPad mini and alongside the M6 MacBook Pro, with touchscreen Macs still on deck. HomeView may have gotten the nostalgic looks this month, but the iMac is still the one doing the family’s homework.

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On Monday, the day the new iPad mini landed, I begged John Ternus to take a break. On Tuesday morning, Apple responded by dropping a brand-new 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M6 chip, roughly 24 hours before its Pro and Tell event in Los Angeles. That’s the event literally named after the MacBook Pro, by the way. It’s like a band releasing a single the night before the album drops, if the single cost $1,999. At this point I’ve stopped asking for rest and started stretching before I open my inbox.

The new MacBook Pro starts at $1,999 with 16GB of unified memory and 1TB of storage, the same price the M5 model has carried since Apple’s June price hike. Inside sits the M6, a 2nm chip with a 12-core CPU and 12-core GPU, two more cores apiece than before. Apple claims up to 30 percent faster graphics than M5, with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 arriving through its own N1 chip. Pre-orders open October 28, with deliveries starting November 6 in silver and space black. Even funnier, Wednesday’s rumored touchscreen MacBook Pros reportedly run M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, so the cheapest Pro in the lineup now has the newest silicon.

Designer: Apple

Two more cores, 2nm silicon, and a reshuffled CPU

The M6 is built on TSMC’s first-generation 2nm process, and it first showed up in the Mac mini back in August. It swaps the old FinFET transistors for gate-all-around nanosheets, which wrap the gate around the channel on every side so less power leaks away at these tiny sizes. The CPU layout changes too, from four super cores and six efficiency cores to two super, four performance, and six efficiency cores. The GPU climbs to 12 cores, each with its own Neural Accelerator, while the Neural Engine doubles up to a dual 16-core setup totaling 32 cores. Apple claims up to 1.3 times faster Blender ray tracing and Xcode builds than the M5 model.

Apple ditched the M5 model’s Broadcom wireless chip for its own N1, which brings Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread support. Thread is the low-power mesh network a lot of Matter smart home gear runs on, which fits neatly with the HomeView push Apple kicked off earlier this month. External displays get a bump as well, with two 4K monitors now running at up to 165Hz instead of 144Hz. Memory bandwidth rises to 170GB/s, though only on the 24GB and 32GB configurations. The base 16GB model stays at 153GB/s, so if you plan on running local AI models, spring for the extra memory.

Same $1,999 price tag, same body, same 24 hours

The M5 model launched at $1,599 with 512GB of storage last October, jumped to $1,699 in March when 1TB became standard, then hit $1,999 in June when Apple raised prices across the Mac lineup. Apple blamed AI data centers hoovering up the world’s memory supply, saying it had never seen component costs climb so far so fast. So the M6 costs exactly what the M5 did yesterday, while sitting $400 above where the 14-inch Pro started a year ago. That 1TB base is generous at this tier, though it also means there’s no 512GB option to save a few bucks. Students and educators can knock the price down to $1,899.

Everything outside the chip carries over from the M5 model. The Liquid Retina XDR mini-LED display still peaks at 1,600 nits in HDR, with a nano-texture option for anyone working beside a sunny window. The 12MP Center Stage camera, six-speaker sound system, HDMI port, MagSafe 3, SDXC slot, headphone jack, and three Thunderbolt 4 ports all return untouched. Battery life holds at up to 24 hours, matching the M5, so Apple’s “longest ever in a Mac” line describes a tie. Coming from a 13-inch M1 MacBook Pro, though, that’s up to four extra hours, plus up to 13 times faster AI prompt processing.

The cheapest MacBook Pro now has the newest chip

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Wednesday’s 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros will bring OLED touchscreens, a Dynamic Island in place of the notch, and a lighter build. They’ll also reportedly stick with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, which means the $1,999 model you can’t touch has a newer chip generation than the flagships you can. Gurman says the mini-LED models stay on sale for now before eventually being phased out. Apple announced the M6 model on October 27, exactly ten years after it unveiled the Touch Bar, its last attempt at putting touch on a MacBook Pro. I refuse to believe that timing is an accident.

For an M5 owner, the M6 is an easy skip, since the design, display, and battery are identical. For anyone still hanging onto an Intel MacBook or an early M1 machine, this is the most sensible Pro you can buy, and it costs $500 less than the $2,499 M5 Pro model. Pre-orders for the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 open October 28 at 10:10 a.m. Pacific, with deliveries starting November 6. That’s an iPad mini, an iMac, and a MacBook Pro in two days from the guy I asked to take a break, with touchscreen Macs queued up next. At this rate we’ll get that Apple Car announcement by the end of the week.

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We put glow on everything we are afraid of losing in the dark. Watch hands, exit signs, stair edges, light switches, and those plastic stars on a kid’s ceiling all got the memo decades ago. The carabiner, an object whose entire job is hanging onto things in low light, somehow missed it. It sits there, smug in anodized aluminum, daring you to find it. That is the oversight of the century, and I will happily defend that claim at any campsite.

OBORO, from Maruhachi Kasei, a plastics factory in Nagoya, Japan that has been molding resin since 1974, closes the loop. The large D carabiner is glow-infused polycarbonate, measures about 3 by 1.7 inches, weighs 0.42 ounces, and is rated for 66 pounds. Leave it in sunlight or under a lamp for a bit and it shines for hours, with no battery, no charging, and no app (thankfully). A one-handed clip joins it for towels and tarps, rated for 55 pounds, and both come in green or a cooler blue. It is accessory gear rather than climbing gear, so keep your rope work on the real stuff.

Designer: Maruhachi Kasei

Click Here to Buy Now: $73 $91 (20% off) for 12 pieces. Hurry! Only 5 days left.

The Glow Is Baked Into the Plastic Itself

The glow pigment is mixed into the polycarbonate itself, so the entire body is the light source. There is no paint layer to chip or flake, which matters on an object that spends its life banging against rocks, zippers, and other gear. Polycarbonate is the same family of plastic used in bulletproof glazing, and the maker claims five times the impact resistance of ABS and 250 times that of ordinary glass. It also handles weather and heat better than most plastics. The gate is a nickel-plated metal wire, the one part that has to flex thousands of times, so it makes sense that it is not resin.

In the maker’s own test, twenty minutes under a blacklight gave about three hours of visible glow. Brightness peaks in the first 10 to 20 minutes and fades gradually from there, the way every glow-in-the-dark thing you have ever owned behaves. Sunlight and ordinary LED room lighting both recharge it, as many times as you like. Long-afterglow pigments like this trace back to a 1993 breakthrough at Japan’s Nemoto & Co., the lineage behind Super-LumiNova on Swiss watch dials, though the maker does not name its exact pigment. Water is the weak spot: the maker says wet pigment loses its charge and the surface can cloud, so this belongs in the tent, not out in the rain.

A Bigger Gate, Beefier Numbers, and a Clip for Towels

The large D measures about 3 by 1.7 inches and 0.28 inches thick, which the maker says is 30 percent bigger than a standard carabiner. That extra room is the whole point of the redesign. The gate opens wide enough for thick camp rope, so a mug, a kettle, and a lantern can all hang without a game of Tetris. The working load is rated at 66 pounds, while the maker’s pull test ended at 213 kilograms, roughly 470 pounds. That gap is deliberate, since the rating sits near 15 percent of breaking load, and at 0.42 ounces you will forget the thing is on your bag until you need it.

The clip is built for flat, floppy things like towels and tarps. It opens and closes with one hand, using serrated jaws and a sliding block with a toothed lock, and a thin metal loop up top lets it hang from a line or a bag. The wide mouth takes thick fabric where a standard clothespin gives up. Its 55-pound rating sits a bit under the D carabiner, which is plenty for a soaked camp towel. Two clips and a rope between trees give you a glowing clothesline you can actually find after dark.

Two Colors, Endless Things to Hang, and Roughly $6 a Piece

Green is the classic and the brighter of the two, while blue is the rarer, cooler color that I find more fun to look at. By day neither looks like it does at night, since green reads pale yellow-green and blue looks milky white. Blue is dimmer after dark, which seems a fair trade for the novelty. The use cases click once the idea sinks in: a tent guyline, a go-bag handle, a kid’s school backpack, a dog’s leash, a key hook by the front door.

The 12-piece set (six large D carabiners and six clips) is ¥11,616, about $73, against a ¥14,520 (about $91) retail price, which works out to roughly $6 a piece. Singles run about $6 for a D carabiner and about $7 for a clip. Pink versions of both ($40 for six of each), a three-pack of Suncheck glow carabiners ($33), and the older Ouroboros Carabiner Clip ($4) are available as add-ons. OBORO ships worldwide with delivery estimated for January 2027.

Click Here to Buy Now: $73 $91 (20% off) for 12 pieces. Hurry! Only 5 days left.

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A multitool can earn its place in your pocket, right up until its weight makes you leave it at home. Pliers, blades, drivers, and openers all need somewhere to go, and those stacked layers of steel add up. If your daily repairs mostly involve opening a package or tightening a loose screw, carrying the entire assortment can feel like packing a toolbox for a job that takes thirty seconds flat.

The five designs here keep their ambitions small and their functions specific. There’s a DIY toolkit inside a Zippo case, a utility knife with a magnetic ruler, a keychain tool, a flat flashlight, and compact scissors with a few useful extras. Each offers a different way to pare down your everyday carry. Pick the one that matches your usual tasks rather than treating the collection as a pocket packing list.

1. Tiny Tool Shop’s DIY Zippo Toolkit

Closed, Tiny Tool Shop’s DIY toolkit is still a Zippo case. Open it, and a custom 3D-printed insert holds a Crom micro ratchet, two Steinwhale micro bits, and a Klein utility knife extension. The lighter insert has been removed, so this no longer doubles as a lighter. That constraint is part of the appeal: the maker uses an existing enclosure, with its hinged lid already solved, then designs the internal storage around a very specific selection of small tools.

The cleverest detail is retrieval. A spring salvaged from a Bic lighter helps push the ratchet through an opening in the case’s back, addressing the obvious problem of extracting something packed this tightly. Dedicated recesses organize the components instead of leaving them loose inside the shell. This is a maker project, not a ready-made Zippo product, and reproducing it means sourcing parts and making the insert. For someone drawn to mechanical projects, that assembly process is part of its attraction.

What we like

• Reuses a familiar hinged enclosure with dedicated tool storage.
• Spring-assisted retrieval addresses the difficulty of removing tightly packed components.

What we dislike

• Requires DIY assembly and a custom printed insert.
• Storage is tailored to the specified ratchet, extension, and bits.

2. CraftMaster EDC Utility Knife

CraftMaster makes more sense when opening boxes and trimming materials account for most of your tool use. The utility knife pairs a metal body with a replaceable OLFA blade deployed using a rotating knob. At 4.72 inches long, the package stays compact, while a companion metal ruler docks magnetically against the back. Rather than hiding a blade among unrelated attachments, the design gives cutting and measuring the full object, with the ruler stored alongside the knife.

The ruler carries both metric and imperial markings, with a raised edge to help lift it from a flat surface. It also incorporates a blade breaker for removing dull segments, keeping a maintenance accessory within the same compact arrangement. That’s the interesting decision here: the extra features support the main task instead of chasing a larger function count. At $80, this is a deliberate upgrade to a basic cutter, and its appeal depends on how often you cut and measure.

Click Here to Buy Now: $80.00

What we like

• Magnetic storage keeps the ruler attached.
• Replaceable blade with a dedicated blade breaker.

What we dislike

• An $80 price for a utility knife.
• No driver or plier functions.

3. Gerber Shard

Gerber’s Shard takes the opposite approach to the Zippo build: there’s nothing to unpack. This stainless steel keychain tool integrates a pry bar, two flathead drivers, a cross driver, a wire stripper, and a bottle opener into its fixed shape. A hole attaches it to your keys, so it doesn’t demand a separate pouch. The appeal is straightforward. For occasional small adjustments or light prying, you can reach for a tool without unfolding an entire set of handles and attachments.

The design asks you to accept a small gripping surface in exchange for less hardware. That’s a reasonable bargain for a backup, but not a reason to retire proper screwdrivers. There’s no blade or pair of pliers here, and the integrated tips aren’t interchangeable. Gerber specifies a titanium nitride coating for corrosion resistance, although that’s a protective treatment rather than a claim that the tool is titanium. Its distinction is how little mechanism it needs to do its limited jobs.

What we like

• Integrated tools need no unfolding or assembly.
• Keyring attachment avoids a separate carrying case.

What we dislike

• Fixed driver tips cannot accommodate interchangeable bits.
• Small gripping area limits its role in demanding jobs.

4. Streamlight Wedge SL

A flashlight earns its place here because seeing the screw can matter as much as having the right bit. Streamlight’s Wedge SL uses a flat aluminum body rather than a cylindrical tube, measuring 0.28 inches thick, or 0.41 inches with its pocket clip. It weighs 1.14 ounces and measures 5.65 inches long. Those proportions explain the design: this is a slim inspection light for a pocket edge or tool pouch, with dimensions that prioritize a thin profile over outright miniaturization.

Streamlight rates continuous output at 100 lumens on high and 50 on low, with a temporary mode reaching 500 lumens. Keeping those figures distinct matters more than leading with the biggest number. A tail switch handles operation, while USB-C charging and a user-replaceable battery support continued use. The manufacturer quotes 1.75 hours on high, so this is worth choosing around short inspections rather than assuming an entire evening at full output. That runtime deserves as much attention as the brightness.

What we like

• Flat body measures 0.41 inches thick, including the clip.
• USB-C charging and a user-replaceable battery.

What we dislike

• The 500-lumen output is temporary, not continuous.
• Rated runtime on high is only 1.75 hours.

5. Eiger 8-in-1 Scissors

EigerTool starts with the scissors, which is a sensible choice if most of your everyday cutting involves packaging, string, or labels. Made in Sanjo, Japan, the Eiger 8-in-1 Scissors use SUS420J2 stainless steel and measure 5.12 inches long, weighing 1.87 ounces without the carrying case. The handles and blades incorporate bottle, can, and screw-cap openers alongside other functions. Instead of burying small scissors inside a conventional folding tool, Eiger makes the familiar cutting action the center of the whole design.

A leather case covers the tool for carrying, and the included Nite Ize carabiner offers a bag attachment option. That matters because a tool this long still needs room, even if the scissors themselves weigh little. The case belongs in the size calculation, too: the listed 53 grams refers to the scissors, not everything you’ll carry when they’re protected and clipped on.

Click Here to Buy Now: $65.00

What we like

• Scissors remain the primary tool.
• Leather case and carabiner are included.

What we dislike

• The 5.12-inch length needs pocket space.
• Case weight isn’t included in the 53g specification.

Choose the Task Before the Tool

Before adding another tool, think about the last few times you actually needed one away from home. Frequent deliveries suggest carrying a dedicated package cutter. Loose fasteners suggest a driver. Dark cupboards suggest a light. That sounds obvious, but it’s an effective way to avoid choosing by function count alone. Your pocket has limited space; the useful question is which recurring inconvenience deserves a permanent place in it each day.

There’s also permission here to leave capabilities behind. If pliers rarely solve a problem for you, their absence isn’t automatically a flaw. If you need them regularly, none of these smaller alternatives make that requirement disappear. Compact carry works best as an honest edit, including the case, clip, or loose components that come along. The goal is a tool you’ll willingly bring, without slowly rebuilding the toolbox inside your pants.

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Ask any American watch nerd about space watches and you’ll hear one word within three seconds: Speedmaster. Moon landing, NASA certification, the whole legend. Meanwhile, eight years before Apollo 11, a Soviet pilot strapped on a standard-issue navigator’s watch and went around the planet first, and that story gets a fraction of the airtime. I love a Speedy as much as anyone. Still, the first human in orbit deserves a little more wrist love, and a Moscow designer just delivered some.

Alexey Yakushik’s Yuri Gagarin: First in Space is that delivery. His brand launched in 2025, and this is a big step up from its earlier releases on Vostok and Luch movements. The case is Grade 5 titanium, 45mm across (about 1.8 inches), with a domed sapphire crystal, a Miyota 8215 automatic sits under a custom module, and a rocket hand circles a blue Earth every hour. It collected two European Product Design Award wins this year. The run is 130 pieces, split between natural titanium and black PVD, at about $4,150 each, sold only through the brand’s Russian site.

Designer: Alexey Yakushik

A polished blue Earth sits dead center of the dial, and a rocket-shaped minute hand laps it once an hour. Minute numerals ring the globe like a launch-control readout. Hours sit lower down as bold Arabic numerals, with a red marker picking out the current one. Four plates on the diagonals spell СССР in Cyrillic, which is about as subtle as a Soviet space poster should be. For the record, Vostok 1 took roughly 89 minutes to orbit the planet and the rocket does it in 60, but I won’t be filing a complaint about the pacing.

The case and the integrated bracelet are both Grade 5 titanium, the alloy aerospace engineers love because it is strong, light, and unbothered by most of what life throws at it. At 45mm the case is large on paper, though titanium weighs far less than steel, and the brand hasn’t published the weight or thickness. The domed sapphire crystal is 35mm across and bulges up over the globe like a capsule window, which is the whole porthole idea in one piece of glass. Water resistance is 100 meters, the lume is BGW9, and the links look faceted and angular in the renders. Nobody is mistaking it for a dress watch.

Underneath sits the Miyota 8215, a 21-jewel Japanese automatic workhorse that keeps time reliably and stays out of the dial’s way, with the brand’s AYW001.1 module built on top. The renders show a custom rotor stamped with 1961, СССР, and 2026, the sort of detail only the owner will ever see. Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin’s full name wraps the sapphire caseback window, and every watch carries its own number, such as 01/65. Hiding a love letter on the back of a watch is a wearer-only flex, and I’m here for it. Nobody across the table will ever read it, which is exactly the point.

Yakushik says the project has the blessing of Gagarin’s daughters, Galina and Elena, along with Roscosmos support. It launched April 16, 2026, timed to the flight’s 65th anniversary, and the first piece went to the Moscow Museum of Cosmonautics. The European Product Design Award is a paid-entry Farmani Group competition that covers concepts and finished products, so read the two wins as a nod to the design and leave the horological verdict to others. At about $4,150, the money goes to the titanium, the bracelet, the dome, and the custom display more than the base caliber. Gagarin carried a 33mm brass tool into orbit, and sixty-five years later his flight has a 45mm titanium watch of its own.

The post This titanium watch turns Yuri Gagarin’s first orbit into a dial first appeared on Yanko Design.

Give an architect a box of blocks and they’ll tell you it’s research. Toronto architecture studio PARTISANS took that excuse all the way and came out the other side with a lamp. The Jenga Light rebuilds the game’s famous rectangles in a translucent material that glows from inside. Set the blocks on a powered base and electricity travels upward through every point where one block rests on another. The path the weight takes is the same path the power takes. That one idea turns a party game about collapse into a lamp you build by hand, one glowing brick at a time.

Lead designer Alex Josephson and teammate Teddy Shropshire solved the fiddliest part of the problem with a component most people have never heard of. The blocks hide bridge rectifiers, tiny circuits that make polarity a non-issue. Flip a block, rotate it, or push it into a cantilever that looks like it’s daring gravity, and it still lights. The lamp won its category, Home Lighting: Lamps and Luminaires, at the 2026 European Product Design Award, an international competition that welcomes prototypes as well as finished designs. Pricing and availability haven’t been announced yet. Meanwhile, I’m trying to figure out how many blocks it takes to reach the ceiling.

Designers: Alex Josephson & Teddy Shropshire

How bridge rectifiers make every block reversible

Every electrical connection has a positive side and a negative side, and most stacking lamps deal with that by forcing pieces to go one way. A bridge rectifier is four diodes arranged in a loop, and it sends current out the same way no matter which way it comes in. Tuck them inside the blocks and “upside down” stops meaning anything. A brick can sit flat, sit flipped, or spin around, and its LEDs get the right polarity every time. That one cheap part deletes every rule you’d otherwise have to learn before playing. It’s the electrical version of a USB-C plug, which also stopped caring which way you hold it.

Compare that with the Tetris lamp ThinkGeek sold around 2012, where a powered bottom piece fed light to the tetrominoes stacked above it and the interlocking shapes did the steering. Later patents for modular light kits went mechanical, adding magnets and contacts shaped to avoid short circuits when blocks meet at odd angles. LumiBlocks took the magnetic route too, pairing snap-together blocks with app control and RGBCW LEDs. PARTISANS skips magnets entirely, letting electronics handle orientation and gravity handle everything else. The result asks nothing of you except a steady hand. That also happens to be the only thing Jenga ever asked.

Translucent printed bricks and a grid of contacts

From the photos, the bricks appear 3D-printed in a translucent plastic, with visible layer lines and a wavy internal infill. Most designers would sand or hide that texture, but here it does the job of a lampshade. Light passes through the infill and paints a woven, scaly pattern across every face, so each block glows with a grain that frosted acrylic could never give you. The shots mostly show warm white light, with one hero image running cooler. PARTISANS hasn’t published brightness or color temperature figures yet. Stack enough bricks and the whole thing reads like a lantern built by someone who really loved masonry.

Small metal contacts dot the top of each block, three in a row on the long pieces, while the base carries more, plus a power cord and a small port on one side. Those dots likely form a grid that decides how far one block can overhang the next and still stay lit. They also mean you can’t play an actual round of Jenga on it, since shimmying a brick out of the middle of a tower will just disconnect the entire top half of the lamp. Think of it as Jenga-inspired, with the building half of the game kept and the pulling half retired. A bumped table can still flatten a ten-minute spiral, which is the most Jenga thing left about it.

From a Toronto toy fair to a Toronto studio

Jenga began as a family game Leslie Scott played with wooden blocks growing up in Ghana, and it launched at the London Toy Fair in 1983. Its real break came in 1986 at the Toronto Toy Fair, where Hasbro’s chairman reportedly decided he had to have it. Forty years later, a Toronto studio has turned the same stack into a table lamp. PARTISANS is mostly an architecture practice, best known for the cedar-lined Grotto Sauna on Georgian Bay, yet Josephson keeps drifting into lighting. His Gweilo lamps, made from hand-molded acrylic sheets, won the 2016 AZ Award for Best Lighting Installation.

Playful lighting has had a good run lately, from Analog lamps, which grew out of LEGO play and now sell at MoMA, to app-controlled magnetic blocks for desk setups. The Jenga Light skips apps and color modes and bets everything on the hands-on part. The European Product Design Award judges entries anonymously and accepts prototypes, so this win recognizes the idea and its engineering ahead of any retail launch. PARTISANS hasn’t announced pricing or a release date. Until it does, I’m staring at my old Jenga set and wondering how hard bridge rectifiers really are to solder.

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My phone flashlight handles most of my after-dark chores, which is a funny confession from someone who writes about EDC gear for a living. It is always in my pocket, it is bright enough, and it asks for nothing extra. Then a job needs both hands, and suddenly the phone is clamped in my teeth, aiming at the ceiling while I squint at a breaker box. The phone flashlight is a great idea with one design flaw, which is that it comes attached to a phone. Hands-free light has always been the gap, and headlamps are too much hardware for a trip to the garage.

Wuben’s G6 SPARK is a keychain-sized answer to the teeth problem. Its clip rotates 90 degrees with distinct clicks, so you can clip it to a pocket, cap brim, or backpack strap and aim the beam where your hands are busy. The 500-lumen main light handles distance, a 100-lumen side light with red modes handles up close, and a hidden blunt-tip blade covers the odd chore. The body is 7075 aluminum, 0.34 inches (8.6 mm) thick, and 1.4 ounces (40 g or about as much as an AirPods case).

Designer: Wuben

Click Here to Buy Now: $33.99 $44.99 (24% off). Hurry, only 411/1000 left! Raised over $111,000.

Eleven credit cards thick and cut from aerospace aluminum

The G6 SPARK measures 2.56 by 1.35 inches and 0.34 inches thick (65 by 34.2 by 8.6 mm), and it weighs 1.4 ounces (40 g). That makes it roughly eleven credit cards thick, so it vanishes into a jeans pocket. The body is 7075 aluminum, which Wuben calls aerospace-grade, and a slab this thin needs a metal with a spine. Wuben rates it IP66 against dust and powerful water jets, with 1 meter (3.3 feet) of impact resistance, so a keychain’s daily abuse should not scare it. The USB charging port hides inside the body, which keeps the face clean and symmetrical.

7075 is the zinc-rich member of the aluminum family, and it has a reputation for being far tougher than the 6061 found in most flashlight bodies. Aircraft engineers fell for it because it is light and stiff at the same time. Stiffness is exactly what a flat flashlight needs, since a thin body that flexes is a bad day for the lens and the electronics. On a keychain, that rigidity should also help it survive a crowded pocket full of other metal. A push-release attachment lets you pop it off the ring when you want it in your hand instead of dangling off your keys.

Three lights, one button, and a click code you can learn in an evening

The main light tops out at 500 lumens with a 66 meter (217 ft) throw and a peak beam intensity of 1,089 candela. Those numbers describe a beam for the space around you, like a driveway or a campsite, rather than a hillside across the valley. Light color is 5000K, a daylight white, and the CRI of 70 means colors look decent rather than lab-accurate, which is fine for finding a dropped screw. Brightness steps are Eco, Low, Medium, and High, and you cycle them by holding the button. A double click jumps to Turbo, a triple click gives you Strobe, and mode memory remembers your last setting.

The independent side light is the one I expect to use most, since it gives a close-range pool of light at arm’s length. White comes in Low, Medium, and High, topping out at 100 lumens, which is plenty for reading a label or tracing a wire. Red adds a steady mode and a signal mode at 10 lumens, handy for saving night vision or flagging yourself on a dark road. Hold the button while the main light is off to wake the side light, and hold again to cycle the five modes. That is a lot of options on one button, though the click patterns are easy enough to learn in an evening.

A clip that aims, a blade that hides, and a cap brim that becomes a headlamp

The clip is the headline trick, rotating through 90 degrees with distinct mechanical clicks so you can feel each position. Clipped to a cap brim, it works like a minimalist headlamp, and I would happily wear it to read in a tent. Tucked into the side is a blunt-tip utility blade that handles opening boxes, slicing tape, and sharpening a pencil, and probably a marshmallow stick if you ask nicely. Fold it away and the G6 goes back to being a slab that keeps your keys company. My one wish is a tiny tactile mark near the button, so a cold thumb can find it in the dark.

Click Here to Buy Now: $33.99 $44.99 (24% off). Hurry, only 411/1000 left! Raised over $111,000.

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Copying customer details from a message into a spreadsheet probably isn’t anyone’s idea of a good afternoon. Unfortunately, even a perfectly capable computer still leaves plenty of that work to you. Bvio’s Violoop is a plug-in AI operator designed to handle those repetitive steps, giving your existing computer an assistant without asking you to replace the machine you’re already comfortable using.

You can tell Violoop what you need in ordinary language, such as finding customer information in a WhatsApp conversation and entering it into a customer relationship management (CRM) system. That might sound like a small convenience, until you’ve spent an afternoon repeating the same routine. The aim is to let you explain the task instead of manually carrying every detail from one window to another.

Designer: Team Violoop

Click Here to Buy Now: $399 $699 (43% off). Hurry, only a few left! Raised over $2.8 million.

To do that, Violoop interprets what’s on the screen and interacts with applications through keyboard and mouse controls. Its companion software supports Windows, macOS, and Linux, while the screen-based approach means it doesn’t need a dedicated integration for each application. You’re still working with familiar programs, only with assistance intended to bridge the gaps between them, and without the need to learn programming to give it instructions.

Of course, customer records are only part of the paperwork that follows a small business around. Invoice details need entering into spreadsheets, documents need organizing, and files rarely end up where they belong without some encouragement. Violoop is designed to help with that preparation, taking on the repetitive handling while leaving you to check the information and decide what to do with it.

Email offers another familiar example. Having something sensible to edit can be easier than staring at an empty reply box, especially when several messages need similar responses. Violoop can prepare replies as drafts for review, giving you a starting point while keeping the final wording in your hands. You can add the context that a customer relationship or a delicate conversation actually needs.

There’s also a reason this assistant takes up physical space on your desk. Its compact enclosure and angled touchscreen give ongoing tasks a place of their own, rather than burying everything in another software window. Inside, the tiny device packs a punch of up to 26 trillion operations per second (TOPS) of AI processing. That hardware is intended to support local screen understanding and other AI work on Violoop itself.

That local processing also supports a more personal approach to recurring work. Violoop keeps personal memory on the device, retaining preferences and context so you don’t have to explain the same habits every time. Local memory doesn’t mean every task stays offline, however. Depending on the selected mode, Violoop can also connect to cloud services or larger AI models when additional help is needed.

The most interesting control might be the button on top. Violoop separates AI processing from a dedicated security controller, with an approval step for sensitive actions. The physical confirmation button gives that pause a tangible form. Preparing information and committing to an action are different responsibilities, after all, and the design puts a deliberate checkpoint between what the AI proposes and what happens next.

You don’t have to stay beside it to keep an eye on progress, either. Phone access lets you check tasks, send further instructions, and approve sensitive actions while you’re away from the desk, provided the computer remains on and connected. That’s useful when you need to step out but still want to see how things are going, without returning to the keyboard for every update.

An organized spreadsheet won’t decide which project you should take on next, and a drafted reply doesn’t know everything about the person receiving it. Those parts still belong to you. Violoop’s role is to help get the surrounding work ready, using a device that keeps progress visible and approval close at hand. That leaves the final email waiting for something decidedly familiar: your own words.

Click Here to Buy Now: $399 $699 (43% off). Hurry, only a few left! Raised over $2.8 million.

The post This AI Assistant Looks Like a Tiny Monitor but Actually Operates Your Computer first appeared on Yanko Design.

An empty vase can make a shelf look oddly unfinished, as though the flowers were supposed to do all the decorating. Aleksander Kozera’s Neo-Brutalist Vases offer a convincing way around that small domestic problem. Created under his Warsaw-based Yird Ceramics brand, these ceramic vessels have enough architectural detail to hold attention on their own. I’d be inclined to leave them empty before deciding what, if anything, belongs inside.

Their cylindrical bodies are divided into rectangular panels, with tiny indentations that suggest construction details on a concrete facade. Circular recesses interrupt that grid, while curved projections extend from the sides like abbreviated balconies or exposed joints. The effect lands somewhere between an architectural model and a piece of science-fiction set dressing. They look a little like infrastructure for a very small, very design-conscious civilization, which is part of their appeal.

Designer: Aleksander Kozera

The concrete resemblance comes from the ceramic body itself. According to the collection’s Łódź Design Festival description, Kozera uses porcelain casting slip with ceramic pigments and black grog to produce that raw, concrete-like finish. In the close-up photographs, dark speckles break up the gray surface. That texture matters visually: without it, the panel lines and repeated circles could read as a smooth plastic prop. Instead, the surface gives the geometry some grit.

The modular approach also makes the collection more interesting than a row of differently sized cylinders. The festival describes vessels that can be combined and arranged into larger compositions. In the photographs, neighboring forms create narrow gaps, overlapping projections, and changing silhouettes. I like the possibility of treating a shelf as a small architectural composition rather than lining up three matching accessories. The vessels share a vocabulary without looking identical from every angle.

Kozera’s broader studio process helps explain that controlled repetition. He describes beginning with digital modeling, then 3D-printing master forms used to make plaster molds for slip-casting porcelain. That’s a useful distinction for anyone assuming these are printed plastic objects or directly printed ceramics. Digital tools establish the geometry, while casting translates it into ceramic. The workshop photographs make that relationship tangible, showing shaped components and molds alongside vessels at different stages of production.

The finish introduces another layer of detail. The collection description specifies a translucent green glaze, with the small exterior “windows” individually glazed by hand. The green is restrained enough that the photographed pieces still read predominantly as gray architectural objects. I prefer that decision to an all-over glossy finish. Small glazed areas give the eye somewhere to pause without obscuring the panel divisions or competing with the speckled body.

Flowers change the balance considerably. In the styled photograph, branching stems stretch above and across the vessels, disrupting all those disciplined horizontal and vertical lines. The arrangement is sparse enough that the ceramic remains visible, which seems the right approach. A dense supermarket bouquet might conceal much of the detail that makes these worth looking at. A few irregular branches would let the architecture and the plant material each have some breathing room.

My reservation is mostly about where they would live. These are visually busy objects, even with their limited palette. On a shelf already crowded with books, collectibles, and patterned ceramics, the small recesses and projecting edges could get lost. I’d give one a relatively clear stretch of console or place a group against a plain wall. That’s a styling preference, but the design rewards enough space to read its silhouette.

These are physical ceramic works rather than render-only proposals, and the collection is listed as selected for the make me! 2026 exhibition at Łódź Design Festival. That listing does not establish retail pricing or US availability, so it shouldn’t be mistaken for a confirmed shopping announcement.

For me, the strongest choice is the attention given to the sides of each vessel. Turn one, and the relationship between grid, recess, and projection changes. That gives the object a reason to stay on display after the stems are gone, without asking an empty vase to pretend it’s waiting for its next assignment.

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Small jobs have a habit of sending us looking for bigger tools. A package arrives, the tape won’t budge, and suddenly you’re searching a drawer for something sharp. Carrying a large knife for these little interruptions feels a bit excessive, though. Lunark’s Edge & Pop takes a more modest approach, combining a folding pocket knife and bottle opener in one compact, wood-handled design.

At 2.7 inches long when open, with a 1.6-inch handle and a 1.1-inch blade, Edge & Pop keeps its ambitions fairly small. And at one ounce, it’s quite lightweight, too. That’s useful when your pockets already have a phone, wallet, and keys competing for space. There’s little reason for a tool meant for occasional cutting to take over the rest of your everyday carry.

Designer: Allan Ospina, Founder of Lunark

Click Here to Buy Now: $39.20 $59 (33% off, use coupon code “YD’). Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

The drop-point blade brings a curved cutting edge and a tip that slopes down from the spine. It’s intended for modest tasks, such as opening envelopes, slicing packing tape, or trimming cord. You don’t need to invent a camping trip to find a reason to carry it. A delivery on the doorstep or a stubborn bit of packaging is a less dramatic place to start.

Of course, a tiny knife doesn’t have to look like anonymous hardware. The blade is made of Damascus steel with 67 layers of high-carbon 9Cr18MoV, while the winding patterns give its surface a character of its own. The lines resemble the contours on a map, bringing detail to a small area. That pattern is an aesthetic attraction that makes the knife feel more considered than your typical cutting tools.

The ebony handle gives that patterned steel a quieter companion. Dark wood grain sits alongside black fasteners and softened corners, keeping the shape simple without making it plain. It’s an appealing departure from tools that turn every surface into exposed metal. The grain varies between pieces, so some of the object’s personality comes from the material rather than an added color scheme.

The bottle opener, meanwhile, becomes useful when a capped drink calls for something better than an improvised trick. It sits at the rear of the blade and becomes accessible when the cutting edge folds into the handle. There’s no separate implement to swing out first. Moving between the two jobs means changing the blade’s position, keeping the arrangement compact without adding another folding tool.

That little opener has another job as well. Pressing its end helps rotate the blade outward, making it part of the opening mechanism rather than a feature sitting idle between drinks. A liner lock holds the blade in its extended position, so you won’t have to worry about the blade folding back in accidentally. It’s a small but critical detail you’ll be thankful for when facing a stubborn box.

An attachment opening in the handle provides another way to keep the tool nearby. Paired with the included mini carabiner, it can join a keychain or hang from a bag rather than occupy a pocket. Whether in a pocket or hanging from a belt or bag, having a choice of carry arrangements is useful for an object meant to tag along.

Beneath the ebony handle, a heat-treated 420 stainless steel frame gives the tool a neatly defined outline. The exposed metal traces the wood’s edges, while black fasteners keep the assembly visually restrained. It’s a considered way to bring several materials into such a small object. There’s detail to appreciate up close, yet the overall shape stays simple enough to read at a glance.

A taped box on the kitchen counter and a capped drink at the end of the day make a good case for keeping these two functions together. Edge & Pop answers both with a compact shape and materials that reward a closer look. The pleasure is in that combination, having something useful within reach that feels as thoughtfully designed as the objects you choose to display.

Click Here to Buy Now: $39.20 $59 (33% off, use coupon code “YD’). Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours!

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Valve raised the price of the 512GB Steam Deck OLED to $789 this May, a number that makes anyone want to close the browser tab out of spite. Blame the AI boom, which has data centers swallowing memory chips faster than factories can make them, leaving handhelds to fight over the scraps. Now look at the phone in your hand. It runs native console ports like Resident Evil, streams entire Xbox and PlayStation libraries, and emulates most of the consoles a millennial grew up with. All it lacks is a pair of real thumbsticks and triggers, which is a far cheaper problem to solve.

Hong Kong-based abxylute solves that problem with the M5 and M6, two sliding controllers that magnetically snap to the back of your phone. Closed, they sit behind it like a chunky case. Slide the phone up and a full gamepad appears underneath, Xperia Play style, with sticks, triggers, and rumble. The M5 is the slim one, plugging in over USB-C with zero pairing and pass-through charging. The M6 goes wireless over Bluetooth, adding clickable capacitive sticks, Hall Effect triggers, gyro aiming, and a 10-hour battery. Both retail under $90, roughly one-ninth of a Steam Deck these days, and for anyone whose gaming happens on commutes and couches, that math is hard to argue with.

Designer: abxylute

Click Here to Buy Now: $65 $84.99 (24% off) Hurry! Only limited units available.

A slider rail from the Nokia era, rebuilt for modern phones

Sliding rails nearly went extinct when touchscreen slabs replaced slider phones, and so did most of the factories that made them. abxylute eventually tracked down a manufacturer that once built rails for Nokia and Sony, then asked it to do something those phones never needed. A slider from 2010 only had to carry a lightweight screen half, while the M5 and M6 have to hold a phone and case weighing up to around 10.6 ounces (300g). The resulting bidirectional damped rail glides smoothly both ways, with magnets snapping it into the fully open and closed positions. That makes for a calmer motion than the spring-loaded slide on the OhSnap MCON, which fires the phone open at a button press.

The phone attaches through an adjustable magnetic mount rated at 4,098 gf, roughly 9 pounds of pull and comfortably above the 2,500 to 3,500 gf abxylute quotes for Apple’s MagSafe. Both mounts clear camera bumps up to 0.28 inches (7mm), and the plate shifts to suit different phone sizes. Supported phones include the iPhone 18 series, Galaxy S26, Pixel 11, OnePlus 15, and Xiaomi 17, with a magnetic adhesive ring in the box for anything lacking MagSafe. Thick cases will sap some of that grip, so slimmer cases make the safer pairing. Lightning iPhones sit out the M5 entirely, since that model needs a USB-C port to work.

The M5 goes wired and thin for pocket duty

The M5 began life as a DIY build by Jinjiang, an independent maker who handled the 3D modeling, PCB design, and programming himself before abxylute partnered with him to engineer it for mass production. Its connection is wired USB-C, which means no Bluetooth pairing, no battery to charge, and pass-through charging so your phone can top up mid-session. The sticks are low-profile carbon-film sliders modeled on the PSP, PSP Go, and Nintendo 3DS, recessed nearly flat to keep the controller slim. Because sliders can’t click, abxylute added dedicated LS and RS buttons that double as programmable macro keys. Micro-switch triggers with short travel and a crisp click round out the inputs.

Those choices produce a controller that weighs about 6 ounces (170g) and measures 0.91 inches (23mm) thick with the mount, thinning to 0.45 inches (11.5mm) at the grip area. It spans 5.9 inches (149.5mm) wide, about the width of a large phone, so it slips into a jacket pocket easily. I appreciate a product that commits this fully to one idea, and the M5 commits to portability. Slider sticks offer less throw than full-size ones, so they favor retro titles and platformers over twitchy shooters. A limited M5 Founder’s Edition, capped at 1,000 units, comes in translucent retro green with a customizable two-letter badge replacing the abxylute logo.

The M6 packs full-size controller features into the slide

The M6 took nearly three years to develop, long enough to earn the internal nickname “little Nezha,” and most of that effort went into the controls. Its capacitive sticks, developed with component maker K-Silver, tilt 20 degrees against the roughly 23 degrees of a full-size controller stick, and they click for L3 and R3. abxylute also built them to resist magnetic interference, a smart call given the strong magnet array sliding a few millimeters above them. Instead of sinking the sticks into deep wells, a stepped surface around each one frees up room for your thumbs. Stick output switches between circular and square modes, handy for racing games and emulators.

Hall Effect linear triggers with 0.22 inches (5.5mm) of travel handle racing games, and a Fast Trigger Mode shortens actuation for shooters. A face-mounted Z button takes remaps and multi-button macros, so a fighting game special move or a jump-and-shoot combo fits under one thumb. There’s also a 6-axis gyroscope for motion aiming, and Bluetooth 5.3 backed by a 500mAh battery rated for up to 10 hours. The lighting is diffused, bouncing off the controller’s surface instead of shining at your eyes, and its color changes with each mode. All this comes in at 6.7 ounces (191g) and 1.02 inches (26mm) thick, a modest premium over the M5.

Shared features, the abxy app, and what each model costs

Both controllers share a physical mode switch that flips between NS, XInput, and PS layouts, covering Switch emulators, Android and cloud gaming, and iPhone titles respectively. Each gets dual Z-axis linear vibration motors with four intensity levels, plus a Turbo function paired to the M button. The free abxy Game App doubles as a launcher for emulators and cloud services, and it handles remapping, dead zones, macros, lighting, and vibration. Virtual touch mapping lets you assign on-screen controls to physical buttons for games that never bothered with controller support. Detachable magnetic grips, held by magnets plus a mechanical shear lock, add full-size handles for longer sessions, though they aren’t listed among the box contents.

Kickstarter pricing currently sits at $65 for the M5 and $69 for the M6, against retail prices of $84.99 and $89.99, both well under the $169.99 Backbone Pro. A bundle with one of each costs $119, down from $174.98. The M6 is estimated to ship in November 2026 and the M5 in December 2026, with worldwide delivery. The M5 box adds a USB-C cable to the controller, adhesive ring, and manual that both models share. Valve wants $789 for a handheld. abxylute wants $69 to upgrade the one you already own.

Click Here to Buy Now: $65 $84.99 (24% off) Hurry! Only limited units available.

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Even though I already have drawers and boxes of various stationery items, I’m always on the lookout for things that are cute and unique but still useful for work and my hobbies. Scissors are one of those things you can never have too many of, especially if they serve different functions. There are pairs for everyday cutting, for journaling, for cutting things into cute shapes, and some that are just highly decorative.

If you love stationery and music, the Rockstar Guitar Scissors may be your next tiny purchase. As the name suggests, it’s a pair of scissors shaped like an electric guitar. But more than just being uniquely shaped, the design itself has a role in storing and using the scissors. It’s the kind of item you might want to keep out of your office drawer, and it could also make a small gift or stocking stuffer this upcoming holiday season.

Click Here to Buy Now: Starting at $30

A lot of differently shaped stationery items can just be novelty things that are good to display on your desk. This one, though, has parts that were thought out to match the theme while making it a functional piece for everyday use. So forget about guitar graphics slapped onto a pair of conventional scissors. This one takes the idea further. Well, it still can’t play actual music, of course.

The guitar body separates into the handles, with the finger openings as part of the lower body of the instrument it’s imitating. The narrow neck of the “guitar” separates into the cutting blades. It even has a removable ABS cap that completes the headstock when the scissors are closed. According to the store’s description, the cap also covers the sharp point and prevents the scissors from opening while it’s in place. That gives a decorative detail a useful job when you’re putting the scissors away.

The scissors have stainless steel blades, while the handles and cap use ABS plastic and the stand is made from elastomer. You can choose from three color options: black, metallic blue, and pearl white. They measure about 7.8 inches overall, and the YD Select lists black at US$30; metallic blue and pearl white at US$40 each.

They even come with a stand that holds up your closed scissors like an actual guitar at rest on an instrument stand. For anyone who tends to lose smaller tools among notebooks and pen cases, having a dedicated spot could make them easier to find. Of course, the stand takes up some desk space, so this isn’t really a space-saving solution. It’s more about giving a useful item a place where you’ll actually notice it.

Made in Japan by Nikken Cutlery, the scissors are also known as Seki Sound. Nikken says craftspeople in Seki individually sharpen the blades, and it describes a fluorine-coated finish intended to reduce adhesive sticking when cutting tape. That’s a relevant feature if your stationery projects involve tape, although it shouldn’t be read as a promise that the blades will never need cleaning. The guitar detailing also includes six strings and frets, rather than relying only on the outline.

Compared with options from a big brand like Fiskars, the Rockstar Guitar Scissors put more emphasis on their display-ready shape. Fiskars offers SoftGrip handles, Easy Action spring-assisted opening, and nonstick models, while its MoMA collection puts artwork on familiar scissor handles. The Rockstar design instead turns the whole tool into a miniature instrument, complete with a cap and stand. There isn’t enough evidence to say it cuts better or feels more comfortable than those alternatives; its clearest distinction is how the guitar shape carries through to storage.

I wouldn’t expect the Rockstar Guitar Scissors to replace every specialty scissor in my drawers. What appeals to me is having something with a recognizable personality that still has a reason to be on my desk. For a stationery lover who also loves music, it could make a good holiday gift or stocking stuffer, especially if you’d rather give something useful than another ornament that just sits there. At least this little guitar has a job between its imaginary performances.

The post These Japanese-Made Guitar Scissors Come With Their Own Mini Stand first appeared on Yanko Design.

The relationship between technology and craftsmanship is evolving rapidly, and 3D-printed lighting sits at the center of this transformation. What once belonged purely to industrial manufacturing has now become a creative medium for designers, artists, and architects. Through digital modeling, parametric experimentation, and sustainable fabrication, 3D-printed lamps are redefining how ambient light interacts with interiors.

These sculptural objects are more than functional fixtures. They merge precision engineering with artistic expression, creating lighting that feels organic, customizable, and emotionally engaging. As digital craft evolves, here is how 3D-printed lamps are shaping a future where light becomes both atmosphere and architecture.

1. Parametric Light Sculptures

Traditional lighting design often begins with hand sketches and material studies, but digital craft introduces a more fluid design process. Using parametric software, designers can manipulate patterns, geometries, and textures in real time. This allows lighting forms to evolve naturally through algorithms and experimentation.

The result is a new language of illumination where every curve, perforation, and layer influences the diffusion of light. Designers can create highly detailed structures that would be difficult or impossible to produce through conventional manufacturing. Digital precision transforms lamps into immersive visual experiences.

The Maze Lamp transforms experimental 3D printing into a sculptural lighting piece filled with movement, texture, and individuality. Created by designer Stijn van Aardenne, the lamp features intricate winding lines produced through an industrial 3D printing process that moves across a rotating axis. This technique creates mesmerizing maze-like patterns that wrap around the cylindrical form, casting dramatic shadows and ambient light throughout the space. Even when switched off, the lamp stands as a striking decorative object with an artistic and futuristic presence.

Each Maze Lamp is unique, as the flowing patterns are generated through a randomized printing process, ensuring no two pieces are ever identical. Crafted using recycled plastic sourced from discarded refrigerator doors, the design also embraces sustainability while celebrating digital craftsmanship. The layered structure creates a glowing effect that feels both mysterious and architectural, turning the lamp into a functional work of art.

2. Layered Printing Creates Soft Illumination

One of the most fascinating aspects of 3D-printed lamps is how layered fabrication affects light quality. During the printing process, thin material layers form subtle textures that interact beautifully with illumination. These ridges scatter light softly, creating a warm and ambient glow within interiors.

Instead of harsh brightness, the lamp becomes a medium for atmosphere. The printed patterns generate shadows and gradients that shift depending on viewing angles and light intensity. This blend of texture and luminosity turns ordinary lighting into a sensory and sculptural feature.

The Alherd Collection by YET FAB transforms lighting into a sculptural exploration of nature, technology, and atmosphere. Inspired by the organic growth of coral formations and the erosion of natural stone, the collection features porous, cellular structures created through advanced computational design and custom 3D printing. Founded by Ilya Kotler, Anastasiya Kotler, and Rael Kaymer, the studio blends biomimicry with digital fabrication to create lamps that glow like living forms while adding a soft ambient presence to contemporary interiors.

The collection includes table, floor, and pendant lamps, all sharing a unified visual language that adapts beautifully across different scales. Crafted from recyclable plastic, each lamp is made to order and can be customized in various finishes and colors. Integrated LED lighting softly illuminates the textured surfaces, producing a warm, atmospheric glow that feels both futuristic and organic.

3. Sustainable Materials Shape Modern Lighting

Sustainability has become a defining factor in contemporary product design, and 3D-printed lighting responds directly to this shift. Many designers now use biodegradable plastics, recycled polymers, and plant-based materials to produce environmentally conscious lamps. Digital fabrication also reduces material waste compared to traditional manufacturing methods.

Since objects are printed only where material is required, excess production is minimized. Designers can also manufacture locally, reducing transportation emissions and unnecessary inventory. This approach reflects a future where digital craft aligns aesthetics with responsible production practices.

The Drop Light by Teixeira Design Studio redefines everyday desk lighting through a thoughtful blend of functionality, sustainability, and minimalist design. Created in collaboration with Oftwise Studio, the lamp is 3D printed entirely from recycled plant-based PLA and features an integrated storage tray within its sculptural base. Designed to organize essentials like charging cables, earphones, and small accessories, the lamp transforms clutter into a seamless part of the design while maintaining a clean and contemporary aesthetic suited for modern interiors and workspaces.

The design highlights the versatility of 3D printing through contrasting textures and finishes. Its matte, tactile base offers durability and warmth, while the smooth, semi-translucent shade softly diffuses light to create a calm, ambient glow. The layered printing details feel intentional rather than industrial, emphasizing craftsmanship and precision. Combining sustainable materials with intelligent functionality, the Drop Light stands as a refined example of modern lighting design where utility, environmental consciousness, and understated elegance exist in perfect balance.

4. Customization Redefines Personal Spaces

3D printing allows lighting design to move beyond mass production toward personalization. Lamps can now be customized in size, texture, color, and form according to the needs of individual users or specific interiors. This flexibility creates stronger emotional connections between objects and spaces.

For homeowners and designers, customization means lighting can adapt to modern lifestyles. Organic forms inspired by nature, futuristic geometric structures, or minimal sculptural silhouettes can all be produced with ease. The result is lighting that feels unique rather than standardized.

The lighting collection from Gantri focuses on sustainable, design-led lamps made using plant-based, sugar-derived PLA materials. Each product is 3D printed to achieve precise forms, soft textures, and environmentally responsible construction. The designs combine modern aesthetics with functional lighting solutions suited for compact and contemporary interiors. The material choice ensures durability while maintaining a low environmental impact, making the lamps both practical and sustainable for everyday use.

The collection includes table, desk, and ambient lighting designed to enhance workspace and home environments. Products like sculptural desk lamps, multi-functional tray lights, and ambient mood lighting solutions offer features such as diffused illumination, space-saving bases, and integrated utility functions. Many designs emphasize minimal silhouettes, warm LED lighting, and ergonomic light distribution to reduce eye strain. Across the range, the focus remains on combining functionality, clean design, and eco-conscious production through advanced 3D printing technology, resulting in versatile lighting objects that suit modern living spaces.

5. The Fusion of Art, Technology, and Atmosphere

3D-printed lamps exist at the intersection of digital innovation and artistic craft. Designers are no longer limited by traditional tools or manufacturing constraints. Instead, they can experiment freely with fluid geometries, intricate lattices, and biomorphic forms that transform illumination into art.

As these lamps glow, they create immersive environments where technology feels human-centered rather than mechanical. Ambient lighting becomes an emotional experience shaped by texture, transparency, and shadow. This fusion of craft and computation reflects the future of contemporary design culture.

The Armadillo series by OHR Design explores how 3D printing can move beyond novelty objects into functional lighting systems. Inspired by the layered armor of the armadillo, the design transforms a simple shade into a kinetic, adjustable structure made of concentric printed rings. Originally developed from the OHRB tea light holder, the Armadillo introduces a flexible lighting concept where form directly controls illumination. The compact version stands at 240 mm and works as a bedside or accent light, while maintaining a sculptural presence even when unlit.

The Armadillo XL expands the concept into a full-scale desk lamp at 373.8 mm tall, designed for standard light bulbs and stronger everyday use. Its adjustable ring system allows users to open or close the shade, shifting light from a soft ambient glow to a focused beam depending on the need. Instead of being a fixed object, the lamp becomes interactive, letting the user physically shape lighting conditions.

These 3D-printed lamps transform digital craft into atmospheric experiences, blending technology, sustainability, and artistry. Through innovative fabrication and customizable forms, ambient lighting evolves into a sculptural expression that reshapes modern interior design.

The post These Five 3D-Printed Lamps Shape Light With Mazes and Moving Rings first appeared on Yanko Design.

Only a few come close to Bandit9 when it comes to avant-garde custom motorcycle creations. We’ve seen some eye-popping designs from the Vietnam-based studio that lean into a sci-fi theme, with alien-inspired forms that stay within the desirable two-wheeler limits. This time around, the custom builder is back with a hand-built motorcycle crafted in collaboration with RED, an organization helping fight AIDS and other preventable diseases.

Dubbed the (RED)800, this bike is a sight to behold with its raw form fused into a modern aesthetic, as the hand-brushed aluminum fades gradually into the sparkly red form. Only 9 units of this bike will ever be made, so that puts it firmly in the ultra-limited-edition category. More importantly, every single penny earned from the sales will go to RED’s mission for life-saving healthcare programs to communities most in need.

Designer: Bandit9 and RED

According to the makers, the bike’s bodywork is sculpted from scratch, with the attention to detail that’s worthy of a sculpture. As RED puts it, the bike is “an unexpected meeting of color and raw metal, executed by hand. It’s this kind of unconventional thinking and meticulous execution that defines a Bandit9 motorcycle.” Underneath that drool-worthy bodywork is the Ducati 821cc Testastretta V-twin producing 110 bhp. That takes the handsome machine from 0–60 mph in 3.3 seconds, and capable of hitting top speed of 201 km/h.

Coming back to that magnetic bodywork shaped in one continuous form, the hand-painted gradient transitions from the Racing Red to the raw hand-brushed aluminum with no apparent separating lines. Each one of the bikes will be hand-painted, so they’ll have a unique personality of their own. The finish of the bodywork is the talking point here, as the raw metal is turned into something organic while still feeling modern.

The mechanical components of the bike are left exposed underneath the aluminum shell for that muscular feel. Especially on the rear of the monocoque body, the metal surfaces are left exposed – showing off the steel trellis frame. The red strip light running from the saddle, all the way down to the suspension joint, gives the bike a sci-fi character. To complement the unibody design, the (RED)800 rides on spoked wheels and low-profile tires. For an aerodynamic riding posture, the bike gets rear-set foot controls and low-slung handlebars.

Bandit9 (RED)800 carries a price tag of $49,000 (plus shipping), and each one is made to order, with shipping taking anywhere from eight months to a year. So, you’ll have to be ultra-patient to get hands on one, even if you are lucky enough to order one of the only nine units.

The post Bandit9 (RED)800 Motorcycle Fades From Racing Red to Brushed Aluminum first appeared on Yanko Design.