Those Japanese scientists are at it again. One of their latest wacky projects is the development of a 8cm thick paper plane designed to be thrown from the International Space Station to earth. Astronauts on the space station will be able to write messages on the paper plane before sending it off. Professor Suzuki and his team behind the project, plan to ask a Japanese astronaut traveling to the station to throw about 100 of the planes in to space. The paper planes are made of special paper that has been treated with a compound that can endure temperatures of around 300 Celsius, so you don’t have to worry about the planes burning up upon entering the atmosphere. If the first mission is successful, they plan on throwing Hello Kitty Branded paper planes to earth on the second mission. Ok, so we made up that last part but is it so far fetched? (Source: BBC & TechRadar)

Playing poker with a real deck of cards is officially old fashioned. The Heads-Up Challenge home edition brings poker in to the 21st century. It’s an electronic poker table with a touchscreen designed for up to two players to compete on. The touchscreen is so neat that it will even let you peel up the cards. The table also shuffles cards, deals, displays showdown hand percentages and it awards pots. Unfortunately, the futuristic poker table retails for around 10 grand, so for now it will be reserved for the high rollers.

If you’re planning on traveling to a warm climate this summer, and chances are that you are, than you probably know that Bug-Off is something not to leave behind. Or you could drop the Bug-Off all together and get this Mosquito-Proof jacket from Napapijiri. The jacket is waterproof and also coated with a “secret concoction of chemicals” that will keep those nasty vampire insects off of you. We’ll take one in pink. The jacket retails for 155GBP. (Source: Stuff Mag, May ‘08)

Speck is one of the best companies when it comes to Apple Cases and accessories, and they are currently having a great sale on their iPhone cases. That is Half Off on a big selection of cases ranging from their ToughSkin now $14.97, to the colorful SeeThru 2 packs which are currently $14.97 as well. (Thanks, Brent)

We’re not sure whether these speakers are loudspeakers or a mini-planetarium. Duevel’s Planets are some of the strangest high-end audio speakers we’ve ever seen, yet still oddly good looking. The Floorstanding omni-directional loudspeakers feature a 5″ subwoofer and and a 1″ horn loaded tweeter. The Planets are available in several colors including black, white, silver, red, green or blue and retail for $1295 per pair, making them not crazy expensive but pretty expensive for a very unique audio device.

We’re always happy to see splashes of color thrown o to ordinary electronics, especially when there are quality brand names involved. Canon is one of the latest such companies to come out with different color choices for their camcorders. Their new Canon FS100 Digital Flash Memory Camcorder feature 37x optical zoom, Image Stabilization, a 2.7″ Widescreen LCD, the ability to record to SDHC cards all in a body that weighs just 9.6 oz. Unfortunately the camera is not HD and a memory card isn’t bundled with it, but it’s $399 price tag isn’t bad considering Canon’s camcorder usually produce great video. And last but not least, the camera is available in red, blue or silver. If these camcorder look familiar, it might because they might remind you of JVC’s colorful hard drive based GZ-MG330 model that we first saw at CES.

Charging valets are nothing new. Their a simple way to organize all your gadgets in to one place while they charge, while keeping things neat and tidy by hiding the power cords. The Mini Charging Valet is roomy enough for just a few gadgets like an ipod and cell phone or camera so it wont take up much space. Those of you in to pastels will appreciate that this isn’t some wooden or black affair, e-pad’s mini charging valet is available in a pastel pink, green or white for $19.99.

If there is one toy I really miss from my childhood, it’s legos. Till this day I’m tempted to whip out some and start building, but being an “adult”, I have to keep up appearances. The Knights’ Kingdom Chess Set is a complete chess set made out of legos. That includes 32 chess pieces and 24 minifigures plus a portable storage case. So finally, I can have a good excuse for why I’m playing with legos.

Believe it or not, this isn’t the first time we’ve come across ipod hoodies to dress up your ipod in. Gear4’s StreetWear for the 3G iPod Nano are the latest ones to to enter the game. There are two colors to choose from – a gray or a more feminine styled pink version with a printed floral pattern. Both feature a drawstring hood, a coat hook on reverse for attaching to a key ring, and each have a velcro pocket for headphone storage. Gear4’s StreetWear outfits retail for £9.99.

Schmap offers free maps and guides for cities that are complete with reviews and photo slideshows. Their free guides feature dining, art & entertainments, activities, hotels and everything else you would expect in a good travel guide. You can choose from viewing their guides online or via their desktop software which is available for both Mac and PC. And now Schmap has optimized their guides for the iPhone and iPod Touch as well which have a neat Rotate n’ Map feature so that by turning your iPhone sideways you can see places on a map and scroll a list as the map dynamically updates. Their iPhone optimized site isn’t available yet to the public but we did get a chance to try it and we love its neat interface and it seems very resourceful. We’ll definately be bookmarking Schmap for our upcoming summer travels.

When it comes to custom paint jobs for your computer or ipod, ColorWare is probably the first company that comes to your mind. But they definitely aren’t the only custom paint job company on the market. CSX offers a selection of unique custom paintjobs for your rig or ipod. Green Flames, skulls, and an adorable “Orange shag wagon” re just some of the chassis you can choose from. You can also choose from customizes ipods, a Nintendo DS or a gaming laptop. Granted the prices are not cheap, but you expected as much.

We don’t know of many people that frequently carry around their keyboard, but if you do, than you might want to check out the Dust-Off Zone’s Keyboard Quiver. The Keyboard Quiver is designed to protect your keyboard while you travel. It’s also got extra pockets to carry your mouse, some CDs, two Dust Off cans and another gadget or accessory. The Keyboard Quiver costs $45, which for some of you might cost more than your keyboard – but to each your own.

Maybe it’s just me but when the alarm goes off in the morning, my first instinct is to throw the clock across the room. My Sports Clock is an alarm clock that is actually meant to be thrown, it will even bounce. It’s got a unique action sensor that turns off the alarm when you toss it. My Sports Clock is available in a choice of Football, Baseball, Basketball, Golf and Soccer designs. And it would make a pretty neat not Father’s Day Gift.

The Flamingo Music earbuds feature EarClick technology which promises to provide a customizable secure fit for your ear that is also “weightless”. The product comes packaged with 6 EarClick ear-pads. I had to try on a few until I was able to find the one that fit my ear right. Once I found the appropriate one, the Flamingo did feel quite comfortable, however the non-appropriate sized ear clicks were just the opposite – they were uncomfortable. So you have to be sure to find the one that is best for you. True to their claim, the headphones did feel quite weightless as well, and the nature of the design does feel very secure – the earphones don’t fall out or get loose the way my iPod earbuds so easily do.

The Flamingo Music also came with a carrying pouch, which is appreciated because I hate carrying around headphones in my bag only to discover later that they’ve gotten all tangled up. Keeping them in a little bag keeps things neat in tidy. A clip is also included as well to keep things neat or to use to attach the earbud’s cable to your clothing or bag strap.

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From the same guys who brought you the Drivemocion, they bring you Bling-Unit. Similarly to the Drivemocion, the Bling-Unit is a street car message sign that displays different messages, but instead of displaying emoticons it will light up with words like “Holla”, “Phat! Thank you”, “Sorry Homey”, “Chill Out Homey”, and “What Ever”. So the next time someone cuts you off, just flash them a “What ever”. Or you could buy the DriveMocion Middle Finger sign, which you might need if you live in New York. All of these devices work wirelessly via a remote control. The BLING-streets car message retails for £27.99.

Going to the spa is great but it can get expensive. Chances are you cant afford building one in your home either – or can you? The Steam Spa is essentially a fold up Sauna / Spa for your home. The kit comes with a Sauna Tent, a Steam Generator, a Steam Hose, a carrying case and a Detox Diet plan. Check out the dorky YouTube video to see it for yourself. And look at it this way – it might not be as good as the real thing, but at least you won’t have to tip anyone.
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Have you been trying to kick that bad smoking habit? Or maybe you just think that the look of smoking is cool but you don’t want to risk your health actually smoking? If you answered yes to either one of these questions, than Gamucci might work for you. Gamucci is an electronic cigarette that “uses state of the art sophisticated micro-electonic technology to provide users a real smoking experience without the tobacco and tar found in real cigarettes.” – It even claims to not only look like the real thing, but also taste like the real thing. And another important benefit would be that you’ll never have to worry about finding a lighter. Gamucci retails for $89.91.

In the world of Nano rip-offs, there are many. But not many of them come blinged out with fake jewels. The pink iSonic Snapbox X25 Limited Edition sports a 2GB capacity, a 1.8″ LCD screen, a voice recorder, FM tuner, and it supports MP3, Mp4, WMA and Wav formats – you know all the features you would expect in a knock-off. Either way, the price is right at $59.99, it makes a good cheap DAP for those girly girls who like a little bling sprinkled on their gadgets.

Over the years we’ve seen all sorts of Hello Kitty branded electronics – cell phones, Mp3 players, computer mice, solar chargers – you name it. Yet somehow this is the first Digital Picture Frame we’ve come across designed for Ms. Kitty affecionandos. Really though, it was only a matter of time. The KT4607 7″ Digital Photo Frame  features a widescreen 16:9 LCD display, it supports JPEG, BMP, PNG, GIF & TIFF Files upto 200 Megapixels, has a 170° Viewing Angle, and 32mb of built-in memory which is expandable via SD/MMC, CF, XD & MS Cards. It’s also got a slideshow feature, Clock, alarm & calendar feature and it can connect to your TV with an included cable. Overall, nothing cutting edge here, but not too shabby for a pink frame covered in flowers and a cat holding a camera winking at you.

Looking for a cheap pair of new earbuds, maybe to match your pink ipod or other pink MP3 player? Koss has a special pair of Susan G. Komen StereoBudz Earbuds. The package comes with both a white and hot pink pair of earbuds along with a carrying case. And naturally, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The Koss Susan G. Komen StereoBudz Earbuds retails for just $14.99.

This heart-shaped speaker pillow is too late for Valentine’s Day but it’s not too late to get for a gift for Mother’s Day. The very red, soft and plush pillow has the words “I Love You” emblazoned on it. It connects to any MP3 player via standard audio out cable and plays its music through a speaker at the center of the pillow. Throw in a matching Red Nano and you’re sure to have one killer gift set. The I LOVE YOU Music Pillow retails for $14.