I'd heard of pasta-making machines, but not toilet-paper manufacturing ones. But a Japanese company have taken recycling to a new level by making one.

And not only have they made it, they've called it White Goat which is a great name for a gadget and captures the chewing and masticating functions of the machine perfectly. Put paper in one end and it is shredded, mixed with water and turned to a pulp and deposited out the other end as loo roll.

It's not an instant solution so if you've run out toilet roll, you'll have to wait for half an hour before your copy of the Guardian sports section becomes usuable in its new form. In fact, this isn't really intended for private use: more for big office blocks with a large turn-around of printer paper: it takes 40 sheets of A4 to make one roll.

The toilet rolls produced work out cheaper than the average roll, at 10 or 11 cents a roll - 6p, but you have to set that against the initial $100,000 for the 6 ft tall 600 kilos gadget.

As Geekwithalaptop say: this would be a good gadget to have around in a company where security is important. Yes, no matter how interesting that document I doubt anyone will be dredging it up after it has made its way into the sewer system.

How comfortable is the loo roll produced? We imagine it's not Andrex but surely the warm glow of doing the right thing by the environment must counteract any scratchiness.

Video:


[via GeekwithLaptop]

Smartphones are the obvious location for apps, they've got loads between them but, they're not the only places. Obviously laptops and desktop computers have had apps or widgets for ages, whether they're calculators or a Spotify launcher.

Apps are creeping into TVs - new sets from places like Samsung and LG come with Facebook and weather applications - and other household appliances are getting in on apps too.

The Wall Street Journal drew attention to one of the more surprising places you can find apps, a Bluetooth headset, Aliph's Jawbone Icon. It's headphones that connect with your computer or indeed smartphone via Bluetooth meaning you don't need to plug them in and you can talk hands-free.

Plug the headset into a computer go to the relevant website and you can download apps for this, what is essentially a microphone with an earpiece.

Of course as the WSJ points out - this is great for consumers because it means that when they buy something it can increase in functionality through these extra pieces of software.

So how can you possibly increase the functionality of a headset with apps?
Well, through your computer you can give it either audio apps or dialling apps. Audio apps do things like give you an audio reminder that the battery is about to die, dialling apps "perform functions by dialing out on your phone, like hands-free text messaging". Presumably you need a handset to really understand what that means.

See Jawbone products here
The Jawbone MyTalk software site is still in private Beta
The Wall Street Journal is behind a paywall so you probably can't see that either, but if you can, it's here

Weird invention of the week goes to the carbon-dioxide sensitive Corset, the C02rset.

Not only is this hook-and-eye corset sensitive to C02, it's also gonna make darn sure that you're pretty sensitive to C02 too after you've worn it, because as carbon dioxide levels in the air increase, tiny motors draw the laces in, tightening the corset.. Making it MORE DIFFICULT TO BREATHE. Like carbon dioxide does.. you see. The C02 sensors are sewn onto the front in an embroidery pattern.

This eco-conscious S&M piece is not part of a new range in Topshop but is in fact the creation of Kristin O'Friel, a student at NYU ITP, a New York art school, who made it as a school project last Spring.

It also optionally has a visual indicator on a jacket, shape changing ornaments or light-up patches to warn you about the C02 levels before you become so squished and breathless you can't move.

See women and a man getting squished by the C0rset on Flickr
And Kirsten outlines the project and influences on her blog

[via Gizmodiva]

Want a webcam with a difference? A webcam that boldly goes where few webcams have gone before. A webcam that shows that you more than anyone else in the office is a true Trekkie fan..?

From that house of magic, Brando, comes the Star Trek webcam - a mini replica of Original Star Ship Enterprise NCC-170 - complete with a "stylish bendable gooseneck mount", glowing turbo engines (red LEDs) and a cunningly concealed webcam. Perched elegantly on top of your monitor this signals TREKKIE to everyone in the immediate vicinity. You need only get the cute uniform to complete the effect.

$30 from Brando (worldwide shipping available)

We're always up for weird USB gadgets, and this one is pretty out there. Not only is it a kooky shape - a flower, it also releases aromatherapy scents that waft gently from the head of the plastic flower and fill the immediate vicinity of your USB port with soothing odours.

I suppose it does the same job as a scented candle, but try pulling one of those out in the office - you'd either get health and safety onto you or everyone would think you were trying to turn your desk into some hippy romantic boudoir - or both. :O
Invented by an American entrepreneur called Fredrik Perman, a man who clearly wants to bring nice smells to offices all over the country, the USB Scent Flowers have just been launched in the USA.

One downside I suppose is that the scent flower uses what you might call proprietary scent sachets. The Scent Flower comes with 3 refills each lasting approximately a month, giving you 3 months of fragrance before you will need to purchase more. But I suppose given that the whole thing costs 10 dollars or £6.15 that's not too bad.

Also I haven't had a err 'hands-on' with this so I don't know what the scent actually smells like. However I do know it comes in four different scents: Ocean Breeze, Purple Lavendar, Pink Jasmine and White Chamomile.

Costs $9.99 - not including postage, from USBflower

Just so you didn't think everything was too serious at CES, here's the iPhone hat. It looks like a mixture between a baseball cap and a small head-tent and it lets you watch videos on your iPhone or iPod touch, with ease. Incorporating an iPhone holder and a magnifying glass it creates a private mini cinema around your head. Only catch being of course that you look a bit stupid. And if your phone rings...? you're gonna have to dismantle the whole affair.

Anyway, for only $19.95, it might be worth it for the times you have to sit on a train and don't really mind if fellow passengers give you funny looks. Hell you won't be able to see their funny looks anyway, you'll be watching a film.

Imagine a disaster scenario: burning lava, an earthquake or maybe just the fusebox has blown and you need a light - where's your flashlight? Your pocketknife? Your energy pills? Why, of course, they're in pockets on the cat's emergency jacket.

Yes your cat can have an emergency jacket.

The pet emergency jacket is a real true product you can buy, from helpful website JapanTrends. The Pet Evacuation Jacket is good for you and good for the cat. Made of flame-retardant material it comes with a convenient carrying handle for picking up and transporting your skittish pet in times of crisis. = Win for cat.

Packed into the sides of the jacket are pockets containing pet food, transportable pet bowls and your own emergency kit: flashlights, nutrition packs, a first aid kit and an emergency whistle. = Win for you.

Above all, the pet evacuation jacket is another triumph for Japanese design. Just make sure that kitty wears its jacket at the right time, oh and it weighs 20lb so make sure you tone up its forelegs to cope with the weight.

Find it for $480 at the Japan Trend Shop

Yep another survey this time from Logitech, the webcam maker, which has just asked a load of women over the age of 50 what they want for Christmas, and guess what they all want webcams! Well many do want webcams (to talk to their grandchildren obviously) but also other high tech goodies like widescreen TVs, PCs and even games consoles.

Logitech discovered that over two thirds of over 50s females wanted high tech stuff much more than they wanted traditional pensioner friendly fodder like foot spas and gardening gear.

Yehia Oweiss, Regional Director for Logitech UK & Ireland says: "Our research shows a growing demand for gadgets from the over 50's age group. With Christmas just around the corner, we're conscious that grandparents across the UK will be looking for expert help when it comes to getting all their new gadgets up and running and have made sure our support teams are on standby for a busy season."

I think Logitech is being a little bit naughty with its age barrier. In many ways 50 isn't that old and the over 50s women category now includes Madonna, Joanna Lumley and Helen Mirren. However it is clear that tech toys are no longer the preserve of young geeky males, and that's a good thing.

Sleek, powerful, creative ... these are the phones, laptops, games consoles and cameras that got me weak at the knees.

I say for girls, boys can join in too.

Click on the image below to start the gallery

Satnavs tell you where to drive, so it was only a matter of time before they started telling you how to drive too. And someone's just gone and launched one in the UK. With a twist though.

Econav fixes on your car's dashboard like a TomTom or other standard satnav and tells you how to drive in most efficient and eco-friendly way possible as well as where to go. That means a) it's better for the environment and b) you save more fuel.

Select the make of car you own from the Econav's 8000 strong database and it sets up the sat nav up so it can accurately tell you which gear you should be in and if you're accelerating or braking excessively. It also has an inbuilt speed limit warning.

This reminds me of my mum. But the Econav, unlike my mum, then measures how much fuel you've saved by following the good driving recommendations and presents you with a Econav Report.

Econavs were initially launched in Spain by creators Vexia but their new versions will be available in the UK as well.

Available on Amazon.co.uk:
Econav 480 (4.3" screen) UK & Ireland maps: £179.99 inc VAT on amazon

Econav 380 (3.5" screen) UK & Ireland maps: £149.99 inc VAT on amazon

You can get GPS systems for driving and cycling, so it stands to reason that someone would invent a GPS system for skiing, hiking and err.. golfing. (Well, not golfing so much, but the other two).

Satsports do GPS applications and hardware for sports, and they have just released 3 new mobile apps for Windows and Android handsets. They are:
1. Satski: for skiing and snowboarding
2. Pocket Caddy: for golf
3. SatsportsLog: for running, cycling, mountain biking, hiking, walking

What with the chilly onset of winter and thus the skiing season, let's take a look at Satski, the winter-sports offering. They say:
"This 'must have' ski gadget enables skiers to navigate the piste, record their day on the slopes and speed levels all from their pocket."

Working either on Windows or Android phones Satski is a GPS system which uses 'real time' while on the piste to plot user's routes and guide skiers and boarders of all different levels around the resort, providing an easy to use, interactive piste map.

Key features include:
1. Point-to-point navigation
2. Real-time stats (speed, distance, altitude)
3. Record and replay your tracks
4. Emergency button
5. Resort Info (restaurants, ski hire etc)

The Satski app is available on Windows Mobile for 7.7 euros, for 5 euros on Android, or alternatively on Satsports own GPS device which costs 339 euros. It's not on iPhone, we note. Will your phone work at temperatures below freezing? We hope so. Get a nice warm woolly case for it perhaps?

Find out more information on all three apps and the Satski hardware device on the SatSports homepage.

Related: Nu-m8 lets you track your kids with a GPS wristband

Computer-design tends to get sleeker and more minimalist as time passes - with laptops increasingly resembling ice cubes or pebbles.

But one desktop is bucking the trend and drawing its influences from 1950s TV sets and antique technology, referencing a time when computers were machines and there was more steel involved than silicon.

This retro PC concept from Philco draws on typewriters and ancient TV sets to create this strangely attractive piece.

Sadly this is more of a design concept than a for-sale-now item. But look at more pictures from SchultzeWORKS

Tired of squeezing toothpaste tubes - day in, day out as part of that unending inevitable daily routine of brushing your teeth?

Well. Gizfever have come up with a gadget which will put paid to the toothpaste squeezing part of that anyway, adding a little innocent fun to the whole procedure. They haven't got rid of the physical exertion involved entirely... you have to push a
button instead.

As they put it: "push the squeeze button one time to make the toothpaste effluence automatically"

Automatic effluence? Now that's a result. Sounds like fun at the very least. Gizfever have a good track record in coming up with these slightly demented gadgets which make up for in sheer ridiculousness what they lack in practical value.

Insert the toothpaste tube into the "inlet" so it sits up-ended above the device. You can stick the dispenser to the wall with its adhesive sticker - err, check that with the landlord first - and it's 9cm by 8 by 4.

$6.99 from Gizfever

For Geography freaks like myself globes are items of real beauty. However as great as spinning a globe, perusing the world and deciding where you are going on holiday is, I can't help feeling that most globes are a bit two dimensional. Step forward gadget site IWOOT which has just snapped up what sound sounds like the smartest globe ever.

The £99.99 3D Interactive Smart Globe also features a mini on board PC which is powered by a smart pen. All you need do is point the pen in the direction of a country and you can find out fabulous facts about the place via the globe's built-in speakers. Currency, capital cities, national anthems, history, current leaders and a whole lot more are a click away and as the globe has a USB connection the information it carries can be constantly updated.

It also boasts a series of games including the classic 'find the city;' where the globe announces city names and the user has to find them. I'd probably never leave home again.

A good stocking- filler for the kids, this tiny whizzing car runs on solar-power and scoots at high speed over the floor when you put it under the sun. Its light weight & tiny size, means it can shoot around really quickly when its solar panel gets direct light.

Cute, and seeing how kids - and dogs as a matter of fact - like things that move really quickly this Tiny Solar Power Moon Car could go down well. An opportunity to teach them about the benefits of renewable energy as well? maybe.

Brando are also offering a dancing grasshopper which works along similar lines - sunlight on the solar panel on its back makes it skip and dance.

You won't have the kids bugging you for batteries... however these gadgets are only going to work for about 3 hours a day over the Christmas holidays as we're all plunged in seasonal darkness.

Super Tiny Solar Power Moon Car - $9.90 from Brando

Super Tiny Solar Power Skipping Grasshopper - $9.90 from Brando

A new device promises an end to the multiple gadget chargers and snarls of wires that the gadget fan has to put up with. Instead of dumping six differently shaped chargers in one corner of your bedroom and trying each one in any given gadget - as you might do, iDapt's multi-tipped plate can sit on your desk and be compatible with your phone, camera, video recorder and iPod.

Buy the lower plate then add whatever tips you need to your order - whether that's a mini USB, a port for Samsung gadgets, LGs or Apple products. With three ports on the iDapt I3, you can charge up to three items at the same time.

17 different "tips" are available from brands including Apple and Sony Ericsson. You can also get a tip that recharges AA and AAA batteries.

They say:
"IDAPT is the only solution using a cordless system of interchangeable tips that allows you to charge several electronic devices at the same time. To change the tip, press the buttons on each side of the tip and replace it with a different tip."

We say: Hey useful.

Available in pink, black and silver and with two tips or three tip-ports, the basic plate with 4 tips is 40 euros from iDapt.com

Fuel your private detective fantasies and uncover the mysteries of your loft space by purchasing this strange wall-penetrating periscope from usbfever. It's a borescope - a gadget honed for the sole purpose of looking into walls, crevices, floorboards and other dark places.

The retailer's blurb outlines a scenario when a borescope could be exactly the gadget you need:

If you think your grandfather had some treasures behind the wall for you but you do not want to risk demolishing the wall because you are NOT 100% sure.

On the other hand... I fear to say it, but what you discover in the walls might be really dull - insulation fibres or dead bats. However, if you do suspect that there's buried treasure, or just an interesting bit of wall - you'll be glad to have a borescope.

Borescopes have tubes with cameras and lights at the end and then a viewing lens, or in this particular case an LCD screen on the back of the handheld device. You can even record what you see on a SD card, so no need to link up with a TV or computer.

This borescope runs on AC mains, has a waterproof tube, so the camera bit can be sent underwater.

Suggested usages include: Industrial inspection, Science education, Forensics, Jewelers and Printed circuit board (PCB) inspection.

It also suggests that it's suitable for medical purposes but I certainly would not recommend putting this down your throat or anything else. At least if you do, wash it first.

Available here from usbfever for US$336.99, international delivery available

In a lot of ways, I am a usb gadget journalist. Despite a little existential quiver about this fact yesterday, I do accept my role with devotion and yes love.

Without any more ado, this is the USB missile launcher webcam. Yes, it launches foam missiles for a distance of up to 15ft, with sound effects, and it is also a webcam.

As the makers put it:
"The USB Webcam gives you not just the ability to share audio and video online, but a cheeky way to launch foam missiles at targets and friends via webcam."

Genius. If these guys turned their attention to larger problems like world hunger they'd probably achieve great things.

You and your friend both need a missile-launcher/webcam for this to fully function and you need to be talking on Windows live messenger. Once you've both set up the cameras, you can control one another's missile launchers. And since the camera is conveniently incorporated into this system, you can easily aim directly at your friend, or your friend's cat/boss.

Like a real-life "poke" but with a foam missile. Not for the serious office environment, it's fair to say.

$50 on Amazon

[via Webtvwire]

Related: The USB eyelash curler: at last(!!1)

Is there anything that can't be powered through a USB port? The national grid? Sex toys? Don't answer that - we imagine someone somewhere has hooked at least one of them up to a USB port.

It wouldn't surprise me if that person worked at Thanko, the company behind the latest cunning invention to hit your computer's USB dock - a USB Eyelash Curler. I personally have been scared off eyelash curlers of all sorts since reading about a girl in a student newspaper who pulled all of her eyelashes out with one accidental yank and had to walk around eyelash-less for months till they grew back.

But, if you're sold on the concept of eyelash curling, and you have a few spare USB ports with nothing better to do... invest in this sleek model [W37 x H150 x D23mm] which can use AAA batteries if you happen to be further than 40cms from your laptop.
Use your laptop's camera as a mirror why not?

Priced only in yen, international shipping is available.

¥ 2,980.00 from GeekStuff4u.com

[via InventorSpot]

Related: Warm your shivering hands with Xmas USB gloves

Do you think your Twitter followers would appreciate knowing just how much you weigh on a frequent basis? Well now you can tell them with minimal effort. Simply stand on your Wifi-ennabled Body Scales from Withings and it AUTOMATICALLY UPDATES YOUR TWITTER . With your weight.

We reported on this gadget a little while ago - it's a weighing machine with wifi that sends details of your weight to a connected iPhone app, letting you plot your weight over time on graphs and plan a day's calorie intakes accordingly.

Now Withings have added social networking to the machine...