If it were 1st April we'd be raising a very cynical eybrow at this one right now. A wireless internet locator in the shape of a flower?! Has the world gone mad?! Apparently so. This Hotspot Bloom wearable flower changes colour to let you know when a wireless access point is in the vicinity, changing hue depending on the strength of the signal. So presumably, you'll be lurching about the place while your flower lets you know if you're getting hotter or colder to the hidden hotspot. We've got to admit it's a neat little idea, and we'd love to try one out to see how it works and how silly it looks. However, it's not entirely clear where or if these things are on sale.
We don't know about you but we just keep thinking fire hazard. Nevertheless these fluffy pink lights are sure to appeal to your inner Liberace. As well as being wonderfully fluffy, the lights themselves are garishly pink and you get 40 in a pack for just £14.95. Yours from Girls Stuff.
Patriotism might be the last refuge of the scoundrel, and all that, but that doesn't mean we can't appreciate a good flag especially when it is as iconic, and indeed retrodelic, as our very own Union Jack. Not entirely sure we want one taking pride of place in our living room, but if you do fancy adding the red, white and blue to your lounge, obviously in a mod-esque ironic, kitsch kinda way, The Paramount Zone has this wonderfully cheesy Union Jack illuminated coffee table.
Apparently there are two independent fluorescent lighting systems, one for the top of the table, and the other a down light for the floor, so it will deliver a really groovy light show accompaniment to your Who albums. The table itself is made from stainless steel and toughened glass and has a whopping £1400 price tag.
There are few more annoying moments in life than when you are curled up on your sofa, glass of aspirational new world plonk in one hand, remote control in the other, and you discover that pesky handset won't change channels because it has run out of battery power. It is even more annoying if the TV is already on and the only thing between you and an hour's worth of Jim Davidson Live from Blackpool is that nightmarish, leg-stretching, alcohol-free trip across the living room.
Plug this china Aroma Pot into your computer. Add water and the essential oil of your choice. Enjoy the calming smells that waft around your work space. Watch in horror as you knock the pot and send oily water spilling over your keyboard. Smell the sickly fragrance on your fingers for the rest of eternity. Rue the day you ever read this post.
$27 from Brando
Plug your memory card full of digital photos onto the Digital Picture Frame. That way, when its parents call you can quickly flick to the ugly baby pic only to switch to something more appealing when they're gone. Alternatively, you can create a slide show of your favourite photos, which changes automatically. $228.95 in the US. They don't ship to the UK unfortunately. We asked.
We sent the Roomba from iRobot away to live with our editor, Katie Lee, for a few months. Here's how the two of them got on.
The Roomba, or "Roombie" as I now affectionately call it, but not in a crazy cat lady way. Well, OK, Sort of in a crazy cat lady way. But I'm seeking help. Anyway, the Roomba is a robot that cleans your floor for you. Now, this may not be the sexiest raison d'etre a robot's ever been handed, but the fact is, only insane people sincerely enjoy doing the housework, and this little fella's more than happy to do it for you. Built, as all vacuuming robots are, to faintly resemble a scarab beetle, the Roomba is smaller than you think. It's also nippier than I imagined, whipping round the room with a sense of purpose that I could never muster.
From: Adobe launches Creative Cloud with 20GB of added online storage and web apps