Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Expensive Geek Toys Roundup

Posted by michael on from the put-it-on-my-credit-card dept.

An anonymous reader writes "I was recently asked by a coworker to come up with a list of <implied> expensive </implied> and cool gadgets for a VIP. He was interested in anything that was up-and-coming, rare and the usual odd combination of devices (ie. anything with a camera/WiFi that shouldn't have it). I figured that since it was Friday, it may be a good day to see what the /. crew has up their sleeves."

28 of 502 comments (clear)

  1. "Smart" Fridge by kneecarrot · · Score: 5, Interesting
    It's cutting edge and absolutely ridiculous:

    http://www.zdnet.com.au/newstech/enterprise/story/ 0,2000048640,20268993,00.htm

    "Korea's LG Electronics is selling a 26-cubic-foot Multi-Media Refrigerator, with a built-in 15-inch LCD (liquid crystal display) screen for watching TV, surfing the Internet or looking at digital pictures."

    I don't know about the rest of you, but when I go to the fridge to grab a coke, I like to stand there and watch a quick sitcom on a 15" LCD display. Right...

    --

    I always save my last mod point to mod up a good troll. You people are too serious.

  2. Green Laser pointer! by Ikeya · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I've been drooling over this at ThinkGeek for months since I first saw this. Just can't justify $120.

    Green Laser Pointer at ThinkGeek.com

    --
    ---- Move SIG...For great justice!
  3. New RIM Colour Device by SubtleNuance · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The RIM 7200 Series is by far the best PDA/GSM Phone/StarTrek TriCorder ever created. Show him *that*.

  4. G5! by 11223 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    A couple of G5s and iSight cameras. They really are quite fun to play with.

  5. If you want really expensive ... by paxcirca · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The Neiman Marcus Christmas Catalog has a his/her set of programmable butler robots. The damn things will open the doors and, via their built-in camera, give you a view of your visitors before you get to the door. They also can help you bring in your groceries. They don't give a mention of whether they're able to do a fresh install of Gentoo, though. All this for only ... $400,000.

  6. cool desk to put all the stuff on.. by joeldg · · Score: 3, Interesting

    something like this or if I remember there was some cool ones on here a year or two ago that rotated and you climbed into like going into a space capsule, but those were around $5,000-USD so... Anyway, I think having a good desk is very important.

    --
    anime+manga together at last.. in real time.
  7. An Apple iPod by Ryan+Stortz · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Give him a new iPod. They're pretty expensive and are fucking awesome.

    I want one so bad...

    --
    Bugs are just features that have been fixed.
  8. CLK-GTR Roadster. by computersareevil · · Score: 3, Interesting

    http://www.modexotics.com/www/p102950_v1.html

    'Nuf said.

  9. Early Adopters by slothdog · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Amazon's Early Adopters page can be fairly useful when browsing for expensive toys....

  10. Incredible earphones: $500 by mfago · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Shure makes some incredible earphones, and they are $500. Work as earplugs too.

    They are even better if you get custom made inserts.

    I've been happy with my similar (but $50) Fontopia MDR-EX71SL headphones from Sony, but have been eyeing these others for a while.

  11. Some links, some ideas by phorm · · Score: 2, Interesting

    First of all, the geekiest stuff is often home-build... have about contracting out to build something? I've always wanted to make one of these.... VP's are good at messing up computers so why not make it easy and geeky too!

    Alternately, you can always shop at thinkgeek or compgeeks

    Of course, much of my geeky pipedreams have involved cool places to put a flat panel display. How about something rigged up with a USB-flat-panel that looks like a desktop picture (but can change, or is animated). I know I've seen support for usb-flat-panel in my recent kernel version, so I'd assume the hardware is out there. Better yet, if you could fit it into a real picture frame so that it looks realistic, and enable it as default output for video-conferencing software: functional+geeky.

    And of course, if you wanted to go outside the office (I doubt this would fly in most companies), replacing the ol' car stereo with a custom-wired miniPC (don't forget voltage-backing capacitors or a failsafe for when spikes/ignition), and perhaps an LCD that pops out of the glove?

    Wireless is always cool. Go with the picture frame, but set it up wireless somehow so that it's as hard-to-figure as possible. You might even be able to do something with an old ebay laptop and a little wiring of the video connector through the desk. Anyhoo, just suggestions, and personal preference, but I'm sure there are lots of cool things one could do with miniturized PC components and a little time, and the custom-job is often much more unique/cool/geeky than stuff you find in even semi-geeky retail stores.

  12. my dream toy, zorb. by 2MuchC0ffeeMan · · Score: 3, Interesting

    http://www.zorb.com/
    they don't sell them, only to franchises, but everyone can be pursauded with cash, how much you got?

    --
    Runnin' On Empty .... I'm Still Alive
  13. hmm... by Oquin · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Something neat but completely useless, huh?... how about this?

    Oh wait... you wanted hi-tech...

  14. Pioneer DVD-R with HDD and Tivo by swb · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Personally, I think Tivo is a necessity and not a toy, but the addition of a DVD-R to the mix and the ability to burn a show to DVD effortlessly makes it cool.

    Yes, you've been able to do this for some time in a garden variety of ways (extract to PC, analog copy to standalone burner), but all-in-one makes it pretty damn cool.

    Pioneer's site isn't carrying this yet, but there was a full page ad in the USA Today ("tomorrow the world") for this. Rumor has it its not as good as the Panasonic DMR-E80H since it doesn't allow for any editing, but there's been a dearth of solid info about it thusfar.

    Even without the editing ability of the Panasonic, combining DVD writing with the great Tivo UI would be super cool.

    It'd be on my Christmas wishlist, but the wife just recently quit mumbling about the cost of the S2 and lifetime sub, so I think I'll just ask for the Panasonic instead.

  15. Flying spycams! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    One of these [rctoys.com] would make any geek exec happy. It's nifty, AND it lets you spy on your employees!

  16. easy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    http://www.redcross.com

    A donation in his name.

  17. SkyMall by sleepingsquirrel · · Score: 4, Interesting
    You can't beat SkyMall for useless crap for people with too much money. I'd recommend the iPen...
    As clever as it is discreet - the world's first digital camera/recorder/PDA stylus/pen
    To all the world you're holding a stylish ballpoint. But there's a world of technology packed into the iPen. It's little more than 5 in. long and is the world's first combination ballpoint, viewfinder digital camera, a web cam, and as a stylus for your PDA. Discreet buttons let you select a specific function. Built-in 8MB flash memory can hold up to or up to 400 digital still images, or connect directly to a USB interface to use as a PC web camera.
    I'm holding out for iPen 2.0, the one that also includes a built-in cell phone, LED flashlight, laser level, pocket pepper grinder, and perfume dispenser.
  18. How's this for a desk? by slacktop · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Poetictech has some nice looking desks...they start at about $1500 for the base model, and run up to about $4500 for the high-end models with air-conditioning and indirect lighting sources. Strap on a 20" flat panel LCD's and you've got the perfect workstation for your VIP...who will set the resolution at 800x600.

  19. Garmin PDA/GPS Nav by Jjeff1 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I'd have to go with the Garmin ique3600.

    A palm PDA, plus NAV with GPS all built into a normal PDA sized box. It even talks to you and tells you to turn around when you've gone the wrong way. About 475$.

    ique 3600

  20. AirScooter II by srain · · Score: 2, Interesting

    How about this personal, ultralight, helicopter-type thingy?

  21. As long as you don't work at the post office... by mercuryresearch · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I found this very cool "toy" the other day ( http://shop.store.yahoo.com/airgundepot/eaa-drozd. html )

    Not every day you run across a selective fire BB gun.

    Imagine how "The Christmas Story" would have gone with this instead of the Red Rider BB gun.

  22. Nixie Clocks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    You might want to consider one of these retro Nixie tube clocks. They come with a technological twist: They use GPS to acquire the correct time. http://www.amug.org/~jthomas/clockpage.html

  23. Didn't feel like reading the whole thing by FictionPimp · · Score: 2, Interesting

    But this is my current target for a geek toy.
    one of these monitors and a nice laptop for travel.
    Pimp Monitor

  24. Dtagan Flyer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    It's expensive, not practical, and requires little skill. Perfect.

    http://www.rctoys.com/draganflyer4.php

    Computer assisted electric RC Helicopter with a camera.

  25. here's a collection with pics.... by ptorrone · · Score: 2, Interesting

    my site has a pretty good collection of gadgets. http://www.flashenabled.com/ arcos video player, roomba robot, panasonic ewear, tablet pc, nokia 3650, er1 robot kit, aibo, media center (2004 version), segway ht (with new software), pocket pc 2003 devices, sony ericsson p800...and the list goes on....

  26. Archos AV340 Does All Of This And More... by ferrellcat · · Score: 2, Interesting
    The Archos AV340 is a handheld device with 40GB of storage that...
    • Plays DivX movies on its 4" screen.
    • Plays DivX movies via A/V outputs.
    • Records DivX movies via an optional camera addon.
    • Records DivX movies via an A/V inputs.
    • Plays MP3s.
    • Records MP3s via A/V inputs.
    • Captures still photos (2.1MP) with optional camera addon.
    • Transfers photos from digital camera flash memory cards to it's own internal sotrage.
    • Displays still photos on its 4" screen.
    • Displays still photos via A/V outputs.
    • A bunch of stuff that I'm sure I've forgotten.
    • Acts as a standard 40GB portable hard drive with USB2 and FireWire connections.


    Of course it costs nearly as much as a cheap laptop, but you can't beat the functionality for its size!

    Also, a great site to check regularly is I4U. This site is updated on a daily basis with the greatest drool-inducing toys you've ever seen!

  27. Four monitor stitched together? by mahlen · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Tasty.

    Monitor resolution of 6400x1200 sound good?

    mahlen

    Succumb to natural tendencies. Be hateful and boring.

  28. TiVo, Hacking TiVo book, and a torx screwdriver by jkeegan · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Hands down, IMHBO, the coolest geek setup ever:

    1) Buy him/her a Series1 TiVo (much easier to hack, or if you know their up-to-speed, then you can get him/her Series2 40 or 60 hour model if you can find one, rather than the 80).

    2) Hacking TiVo: The Expansion, Enhancement and Development Starter Kit with CD-ROM, by Jeff Keegan.

    3) A #10 Torx screwdriver.

    You can let him/her go buy their own additional hard drive, though if you decide you've gotta buy that too get 120 gig or 160 gig IDE drive (doesn't have to be faster than 5400 rpm).

    (By the way, the B in IMHBO stands for biased. :) )

    --

    ..Jeff Keegan
    seven syllables explain TiVo: kee gan dot org slash ti vo