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Navigating the world of crowdfunding can be overwhelming, to put it lightly. Which projects are worth backing? Where’s the filter to weed out the hundreds of useless smart devices? To make the process less frustrating, we scour the various online crowdfunding platforms to put together a weekly roundup of our favorite campaigns for your viewing (and spending!) pleasure. Go ahead, free your disposable income:

Chef and avid outdoorsman Adam Glick partnered with Messermeister to develop a full range of portable, professional-grade cooking tools. The collection has everything you’d need to whip up a meal on your next adventure, including the only full-size, folding chef’s knife currently on the market, a fillet knife, a peeler, a multi-functional eating utensil, and a compact cutting board. Everything is housed in a handy carrying case and backers get to choose between maple wood or rustic burlap for the handles.

If you want to pare down your kitchen tools, this smart cutting board comes with a built-in scale, timer, a knife sharpener, and a built-in disinfecting UVC light that kills most germs within one minute.

These easy-to-use Trill sensors provide a simple way to incorporate touch interfaces into your next project.

Cute Little Fuckers is one of the first sex toys to get Kickstarter’s stamp of approval in a long time, and that’s largely because of their social impact mission. Designed to be gender inclusive and encourage a “light-hearted, affirmative” approach to sex, each toy is made of medical-grade silicone and features five vibration speeds. “This is activist work in an adorable package,” the campaign says.

Korin’s latest anti-theft bags are made out of even more resistant fabrics, include a charging system, and TSA locks, among other features.

Do you need help designing, developing, patenting, manufacturing, and/or selling YOUR product idea? MAKO Design + Invent is a one-stop-shop specifically for inventors / startups / small businesses. Click HERE for a free confidential product consultation.

The guys at MOFT make it look so easy to build a stand that’s strong, yet so incredibly sleek and lightweight, it’s practically invisible. Fresh off its high after receiving nearly a million dollars in funding, the MOFT Laptop stand still remains one of the most innovative stands I’ve seen. Weighing practically nothing, and measuring as thick as a credit card, the MOFT Laptop stand sat flat on the back of your laptop, being practically unnoticeable until it opened out to become a two-angle stand for your laptop. Moreover, the stand was universal, and was designed to be sleek enough to sit on the back of your laptop all the time. The guys behind that laptop stand are back now, with a stand for your phones and tablets! Designed with its signature lightweight and thin form factor, the MOFT X “Invisible” Stand for your phone and tablet sits flat against the back of your device, can be opened and used in both portrait and landscape modes, works as a grip for your fingers, so you can use your smart-device single-handedly, and even doubles as a wallet to store some of your payment/identity cards while on the go! If anything, the MOFT X stand for your smartphone and tablet delivers even more function than its elder brother, the laptop stand, did.

The MOFT X invisible foldaway smartphone and tablet stand sits flat against your smart device, just like its laptop counterpart. Designed to fold out with a quick outward motion, it converts into a stand you can use in portrait mode, resting at a variety of angles that are perfect for typing, Skyping, and swiping. The angles help reduce neck strain, and even work with your facial unlocking system to unlock your phone whenever you look at it. Tilt your phone sideways and the stand continues to prop your device up, thanks to its ability to work in both portrait as well as landscape. The stand’s internal magnetic adhesion system is strong enough for the MOFT X to even work as a gripping-loop for your fingers. Slide your hand in, and the MOFT X lets you use your smartphone singlehandedly, providing the same sort of functionality a Pop Socket would give you, while remaining sleek enough to slide into your pockets without getting caught in the fabric.

You’d think the MOFT X’s functionality ends there, but the guys at MOFT Studio had other ideas. You see, the MOFT X for your smartphone even works as a wallet, with enough space to stash 3 cards, allowing you to carry your favorite payment cards, your public-transport access cards, loyalty cards, or your identity cards. Just slip them into the MOFT X’s slot and the stand doubles into a slim, minimalist wallet that’s attached to the back of your phone. Its magnetic system even gives it mounting abilities, allowing you to mount your smart-device in your car, on your bathroom wall, or even in the kitchen, on your fridge.

At less than 2mm thick, the MOFT X is designed to universally work with any smartphone or tablet. Designed with a repositionable glue base, the MOFT X can fit on your phone/tablet with or without a case (as long as the surface is flat and texture-less), and can even be peeled off when needed, leaving absolutely no marks on your gadget. Optimized for a use-case that is more versatile than a laptop, the MOFT X uses its sleek material and innovative design to push the boundaries of what a stand can do for you. I mean, how often do you come across a phone/tablet stand that’s less than 2mm thin, adjustable up to 3 angles, magnetically mountable on walls, and with the ability to even work as a wallet?!

Designer: MOFT Studio

Click Here to Buy Now: $16 $19.99 (20% off). Hurry, for limited time only! Raised over $400,000.

MOFT X – Invisible and Foldaway Stand for Smartphone/Tablet

A versatile stand for phones/tablets that offers maximum productivity and comfort with a minimalist design.

MOFT X series is unseen when attached, unfelt when worked on, and unnoticed when carried.

MOFT X for Phone

Vertical 60-degree Golden Angle

Scientific research indicates that smartphone users hold their phones vertically about 94% of the time. However, most of the attachable stands on the market are only designed with horizontal angles.

60° is perfect when you stand it up, you need an angle to help you read these vertical contents in clarity & comfort, so we got the best one – 60°. It has the best viewing angle when you are in the business, the best ergonomics when you interact with it.

Whether it’s Facial unlock, video-chat, messaging, news browsing… At 60°, you can totally do anything we mentioned just now, hands-free.

Instant Face-unlock

Simply fold it in your hands and take it wherever you go, no strings attached.

Landscape Mode in a Jiffy

5 mm Thin and Weighs only 1 Ounce

Very thin and light – at 5mm/0.15inch thinness & 1oz weight, you won’t even feel it in your pocket.

Holds 3 Cards

Carry your driving license, your credit card, your name card. Don’t worry, the stand blocks RFID, all your cards are safe and sound.

In-built Magnet

Firm Handgrip

An extra stand on the back will keep your phone on your hand like a magnet. No more worries when you try to use it on un-wieldy angles.

Removable Glue

The perfect glue for the stand – where it can be removed from your phone stand without leaving a single mark or scratch, while still being tough and strong to endure all kinds of pulling and tearing.

MOFT X for Tablet

Built for Dual Screen Set Up

Portrait mode is usually for web-browsing, reading, hand-writing, and video chatting. Through a simple fold-line and change of direction, MOFT X tablet stand is the only one in the market that offers 3 angles to make sure you complete the tasks in most postures, most distances, and most comfortable way.

Landscape mode works best with media contents. Videos, games, art creations, etcs. With the help of a smart “v” line, you can also have 3 angles that keeps all the contents crispy to eyes, and all the drawings smooth to hands.

The tik-tok mode enables 1-second instant message sharing between two or more colleagues/family members/friends.

Charge Apple Pencil 2 on the Go

Clip to charge, easy to store, and full protection from head to toe.

Slim, Stable and Tough

Details

Behind the Scenes

Click Here to Buy Now: $16 $19.99 (20% off). Hurry, for limited time only! Raised over $400,000.

Apple‘s glass Fifth Avenue store in New York City has reopened to the public following a renovation by Foster + Partners that added a spiral staircase, skylights and public plaza.

Apple Fifth Avenue is an underground Apple Store in Manhattan, nestled below a plaza that is in front of Edward Durell Stone’s 50-storey General Motors office building. The store overlooks the southeast corner of Central Park and was opened in 2006 by Apple founder Steve Jobs, with an “iconic glass cube” for its entrance.

Before being closed for several years for renovation, it was “one of the most photographed attractions in the city… [and] Steve Jobs’ defining symbol for Apple Fifth Avenue,” said British architecture firm Foster + Partners, who overhauled the store with Apple and its former chief design officer Jony Ive.

“It’s a 100 per cent design collaboration with Jony,” Foster + Partners’ head of studio Stefan Behling told Dezeen at the store’s opening on 19 September.

The team restored the glass cube entrance and much of the store’s floorplan below. The main intervention was to dig several feet into the base to create higher ceilings in the subterranean store.

“We decided to dig deeper and make the store higher,” Behling said.

Another key addition is 80 skylights that are arranged in a grid across the ceiling and flood the store with natural light. The lightwells are round and identical, and are integrated into a knitted, off-white fabric that creates a tent-like effect.

The ceiling is designed to change in order to match the colour temperature outside. Thousands of LED lights and sensors make the store glow, from a blueish-white in the morning to a more golden tone later in the day. The Fifth Avenue store location is the only Apple Store that is open 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.

Trees are also planted inside to make the store feel in tune with nature. Upholstered benches in a caramel fabric atop a white base surround each tree.

“The whole idea here is that you could make it feel happy, fresh and outside,” said Behling.

Another new feature of Apple Fifth Avenue is the redesigned spiral staircase, which Foster + Partners upgraded to suit the new, taller store. A mirrored stainless steel drum features 43 cantilevering steel steps. Bezier curves are created on each step to evoke the shape of Apple products.

At the upper portion of the staircase are mirrored walls and glass that create optical illusions. The staircase also conceals a circular elevator with a glass bottom and top.

Inside the store, walls are clad in a pale grey Italian Castagna stone with varying stripes and rounded corners. The same stone is used at Apple Park in Silicon Valley, which was also designed by Foster + Partners. Floors are off-white terrazzo.

Wood tables and matching storage units provide space for Apple products, including the newly launched iPhone 11 Pro with its three camera lenses. Another section of the store is designed for hosting talks and events.

Apple Fifth Avenue’s public plaza was also overhauled to be “easier to use and more accessible,” according to Behling. “What is one of the most generous things you can do for society? It is actually to do a civic gesture, that is free and like a really nice present,” he said.

“The new [store] design seeks to build on the original idea and create a public plaza that celebrates the vibrant nature of New York City,” Ive added.

The stone floor of the public space features 62 lightwells that blend in with the ground, while the remaining 18 skylights are formed as silver orbs. They are for both sitting on and as “public sculptures” that reflect the surrounding New York skyline.

The orbs are called “Skylenses” and have mirrored stainless steel shells with reflective glass tops, allowing light to pour down into the store without being able to see inside. There are nine volumes on either side of the glass entrance, in three rows of three.

Other aspects of the plaza include 28 honey locust trees that are planted symmetrically on the plaza’s north and south ends, at 59th Street and 58th Street. Low-lying water fountains and benches round out the space.

Apple Fifth Avenue joins another Apple store by Foster + Partners that is similarly designed around a public outdoor space, Apple at Aventura Mall in Miami.

The firm is also behind several other Apple stores, including Chicago’s Apple Michigan Avenue, a store in Macau with a glowing facade and a Tokyo Apple store featuring bamboo.

Photography is by Aaron Hargreaves, courtesy of Foster + Partners.

The post Foster + Partners restores “iconic” glass Apple Fifth Avenue appeared first on Dezeen.

The ONE24 bag is for a niche market for which no singular backpack solution exists… the person who works and plays in the same day. Most bags are designed around work and travel, but the SportHacks ONE24 was designed to be your business briefcase as well as your gym-bag, all rolled into one. Its inner space is optimized to everything from your laptop and charger to your gym-clothes and yoga-mat, and it’s crafted to be professional enough to carry to work, and the ideal bag to stash inside your gym’s locker.

In contrast to other bags we’ve seen, the ONE24 stands out for the way it’s mindfully designed for the active lifestyle. For starters, it isn’t one duffle bag into which you throw your belongings. Separate compartments with color-coded zippers indicate separate areas for your belongings. There’s obviously a padded neoprene sleeve for your laptop, but there’s also a dedicated compartment for your lunchboxes (multiple, since you’ll need to stay on top of your nutrition game). The ONE24 has an individual water-and-smell-resistant compartment for your gym-clothes and shoes, and a separate leak-proof slot for your water-bottle. Everything integrates into the One24’s sensibly designed cuboidal form that sits easy on your back, but even fits right into a gym-locker, allowing you to hang it on your locker’s hanger-rod. The backpack’s gym-compartment has a zipper running across three edges, allowing it to open completely in a clamshell design. This helps you literally have access to your entire gym-wardrobe right inside your locker in a way that’s just convenient. Hungry for more space? The ONE24 backpack has a zip for expandable storage that gives you an extra 10 liters to store more than just gym-clothes and shoes.

A perfect juxtaposition between your office bag and your sports-bag, the ONE24 has a way of pleasing everyone. Whether you’re a workout kinda guy, or a simple jogging-buff, or even a yoga-freak, the ONE24 accommodates for your work and your form of physical exercise. For work, it gives you a large quick-access pocket for your phone, wallet, and keys, while a hidden magnet in its strap lets you suspend your AirPods from it while you’re walking into your workspace. For your post-work workout, ONE24 does have its gym-gear compartment, but also allows you to attach addons, from an extra-gym-bag, to a storage-unit for your racket, to even a mesh-pocket for your yoga-mat. No matter what sort of job you work at, and what sort of physical activity you take up after a stressful day at work, the ONE24 is designed to be the one and only bag that gets you through those 24 hours… and speaking of just how mindful the bag’s design is, it even has a motivational quote printed into the inside, to pump you through your day!

Designer: Ralph Waschkut

Click Here to Buy Now: $153 $185 ($33 off). Hurry, only 6 days left! Raised over $110,000.

ONE24 – A New Generation Sport Bag for 24 Hours

The ONE24 is designed to hang in your locker with full access to your gear. No matter what kind of sport is on your schedule, the modular system gives you endless flexibility to carry any equipment you might need.

Whether it’s an early workout, meal prep, morning swim, 9 hours in the office, shooting hoops on the court, or recovery, ONE24 bag is for 24 hours.

Designed to hang for effortless packing.

Modular system for endless flexibility.

Durable and weather-resistant fabrics.

Features Overview

Clamshell design for effortless packing

The modular, hook-loop system for endless flexibility

Large, golden, water- and smell resistant laundry & shoe compartment

Full circumference zipper for extra 10 Liters of space. Can be used as compression compartment

Modules

On average, an athlete practices 2.6 different sports each week. The hook-loop system prepares you for everything and is flexible.

Each ONE24 comes with a standard SportHacks GymBag module – a high performance stretch bag for rackets, foam rolls, yoga mats, balls, groceries or fitness equipment.

In addition, you can get the GymBag Plus, with tarpaulin protection, double-padded compartments, an integrated zipper mesh bag, and a reflective logo.

Both modules were designed as stand-alone bags with premium aluminum hooks from Duraflex. When the hooks are not being used, just hide them in the small side pockets.

Details

The sealed bottle pocket can be used for water bottles, smoothies or even bananas.

Large main compartment with open zipper access.

Integrated hook for utility bags.

Fit up to a 15-inch MacBook or similar sizes in the neoprene-padded sleeve.

With the hidden magnet for your headphones or AirPods, you can stay hands free, with more range of motion.

The large, quick-access pockets include two mesh pockets designed for your smartphone, wallet, and keys. You can also hide your gym bag module in this pocket, so it’s always available in the event you go to the gym or you need an extra bag for shopping.

The ONE24 is built with three comfortable handles. No matter the occasion, you can carry the ONE24 comfortably as a backpack or professional briefcase.

Roller Bag Handle Pass Through

Adjustable sternum strap

Hidden shoulder strap tie downs

Elastic Loops to prevent lugging straps

Customizable ID card hangtag

Reflective front to stay visible at night

Compared to old-fashioned, overloaded sports bag designs, the sleek, contemporary design promises you always arrive in style.

After collaborating with sports psychologists, we decided to integrate inspiring text elements to support a consistent sport routine.

When you lay out your running shoes the night before, you are more likely to go for a run the next morning. The ONE24 is your daily reminder to get out and move instead of focusing on Netflix or Instagram.

Click Here to Buy Now: $153 $185 ($33 off). Hurry, only 6 days left! Raised over $110,000.

Pentagram has redesigned Yahoo’s logo and branding to give the search engine a “bold and confident” identity for the 21st century.

The logo has been designed to be more simple and flexible than the previous design, but also look back to the fun of the brand’s “Looney Toons-style” logo from 1996.

“Yahoo is one of the digital world’s iconic brands and its original logo perfectly captured the spirit of the early days of the internet,” said Pentagram’s Michael Bierut.

“We were determined to reflect the brand’s idiosyncratic roots, which is why we retained and strengthened the Yahoo exclamation mark,” he told Dezeen.

The capital letters of the logo’s previous iterations have been abandoned in favour of lower case letters.

The brand’s exclamation mark is italicised to give emphasis and is alined at 22.5 degrees to match the angle of the Y.

“The exclamation mark’s exaggerated italic treatment helps bracket the wordmark with two strong diagonals, and calls back to the Looney Toons-style charm of the original 90s mark,” explained Bierut.

The new identity has been created to mark Yahoo’s new brand strategy of focusing on helping users find a more customised experience online. The design is meant to represent this new chapter for the company.

“Today, Yahoo is not only a place for fun, but a place where people go for world news, investment advice, and reliable weather reports,” said Bierut.

“We were so lucky to work with the team at Yahoo to find a balance between what’s always made the brand distinctive – the exclamation mark, the colour purple, the yodel – while creating a 21st-century identity system that responds to the needs of its hundreds of millions of users.”

The logo is written in the Centra No. 2 Extrabold font, with the letters modified to be more geometric and compact. Purple, which has been the Yahoo colour since 2009, is used throughout the rebrand.

A bright shade called “grape jelly” is used as the the primary colour, with secondary shades of “hulk pants” and “malbec”.

Pentagram designed the logo so that it can work across both physical and digital platforms and at all scales – from the side of a building to a mobile app.

The logo has been designed so that it can be streamlined to create a y! monogram, which will be used across Yahoo’s sub-brands.

“We worked closely with the creative and product teams at Yahoo to make sure that it will work well across media and across platforms,” explained Bierut.

“The shortened y plus punctuation treatment formalises a way of communicating the brand more telegraphically. All elements are designed to support sub-brands like Yahoo Finance and Yahoo Sports in a way that’s clearer than ever before”

The y! monogram could also be on clothing such as caps and socks, although Bierut does not think that Yahoo will be abandoning web services to become a clothing manufacturer in the near future.

“At the end of the day, it’s hard for a company called Yahoo to not be fun on some level,” he said. “And I believe they are currently assessing potential demand before they fully commit to the sock business!”

Pentagram is one of the world’s largest design consultancies, it has previously carried out major overhauls of Slack, America’s Library of Congress in Washington DC and the Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.

Yahoo is one of numerous companies that have simplified their branding in recent years. Earlier this year London studio Red&White created a minimal logo for BT, while Mastercard dropped its name from its logo to be clearer.

The post Pentagram creates “21st-century identity” for Yahoo appeared first on Dezeen.