Slashdot Mirror
Zorb - Inflatable Human Hamster ball
Xyloc the Stone writes "The ZORB
has got to be the coolest product ever made. It's an inflatable human sized hamster ball. Kinda like in the movie 'The Avengers'. I want one, only problem is, where I go to school, BIG FREAKIN HILL. uh, I'll have to try anyway" Hmmm. AFAIK there is no official toy for Slashdot staff members. Yet. Wonder how much these things cost and if we can talk Andover into buying us one. Hmmmm again.
I saw that on TV one time, on MTV's Road Rules. It actually looked like a lot of fun getting a bunch of them together, like a really evil game of hampster bumper-cars.
---
"Why do you keep reloading Slashdot?" - User Friendly
pb Reply or e-mail; don't vaguely moderate.
The hell with Dreamcast, get me one of those suckers. Anyone find a price?
It looks very expensive.
So it's really really cool. I'll grant that. However, I saw pics of people using them in wave pools at water parks and stuff....wouldn't it be relatively easy for water to shlop down into the entrance hole and drown someone? what if the damn thing popped? You'd NEVER get out.
Not to say that the prospect frightens me. I still want one, I'm just pointing out some stuff that occurred to me.
First Post (i theenks)
-Andy Martin
-Andy Martin
If y'all don't like me, blow me.
If you don't pass out while inflating it, you get to suffocate inside.
Noone escapes the village.
Aye! I've rolled off into the sea! Retrieve me!
(Seriously... is that what they meant?)
Well they wouldn't load w/ a plugin, so here are the URLs for others w/ problems:
a vi i
http://www.zorb.com/Images/Video/original_test.
http://www.zorb.com/Images/Video/harnessed2.avi
http://www.zorb.com/Images/Video/hydro_zorb2.av
http://www.zorb.com/Images/Video/Simpsons.avi
http://www.zorb.com/Images/Video/Austria_1.avi
http://www.zorb.com/Images/Video/Austria_2.avi
http://www.zorb.com/Images/Video/Austria_3.avi
Someone should post a mirror before that site gets Slashdotted.
He used it at the beginning of his movie "First Strike". If you haven't seen that movie, he uses the ZORB to escape some natives that are after him. He ends up rolling down either a mountain, or huge hill. Either way, it was amazing to watch.
Could this be a new extreme sport? Seeing who can roll down the highest point in a ZORB?
(offtopic) If you've seen "First Strike", then you've seen some of the cool toys Jackie plays with: The ZORB, the handheld scanner with printout, and the car with no doors. Does anyone know where I could find a car that has the door slide down like that one did?
"Hmmm. AFAIK there is no official toy for Slashdot staff members. Yet."
Everyone who voted for Hemos the Hamster as their favorite breakfast cereal mascot should be real excited about the possibility of making their vote a reality and ought to back Roblimo up on this one. ;)
~ Kish
I'd think hills would be the fun bit. Catch a bus in, then at the end of the day inflate your ride home. The adreneline rush would be great for destressing.
Here's a mirror of the movies in case the site is Slashdotted:
http://home.rochester.rr.com/crayz/zorb/
They had one of these at the start of an old Jackie Chan Honk Kong flick where he sky dived out of a plane in one. Looked pretty cool...
check out the simpsons video, the designers obviously are aware of the similarities
"You want one?"
"yeah!"
"Even if it is really expensive and impractical?"
"yeah!"
"Sorry, Zorbs aren't for sale"
Apparently the Zorb business model does not include selling the Zorbs. Even people who get a Zorb franchise only lease their Zorbs. The Zorb people make their money by bringing Zorbs to various events/meetings/fairs, and then having people ride around in them. I guess that makes sense considering a couple issues that we'd all like to ignore given the fun factor:
1) They are probably really expensive to buy/maintain/repair.
2) You really could kill yourself tumbling down the wrong hill, so you need some kind of skilled instructor/Zorb-wrangler to prevent massive liability lawsuits/injuries/death.
3. Come on folks, even the hamster gets tired of the hamster ball.
I'm sure Andover.net could have a couple Zorbs brought to the next big convention, huh folks?
The Kinder Zorb!
The Perfect Babysitting Tool!
- bridgette
Ewww...
= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Suddenly the Zorb becomes one giant salad bowl and you are covered in thousand island dressing.
Seriously...what if this happened at the top of a hill? By the time you reach the bottom, you would probably have passed out from the acrid fumes...that might be dangerous.
Also, what happens if you are bouncing down a hill and a rock gets in the opening? Severe cits or bruises since you are pretty much pinned to the wall and at the mercy of whatever object is flying around with you.
All told, this is still a way cool invention. I just don't think it's something I would try.
- JoeShmoe
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
-- I wonder which will go down in history as the bigger failure: the War on Drugs or the War on Filesharing
> Wonder how much these things cost and if we
> can talk Andover into buying us one.
What, you mean there's not already a category in Slashdot's budget for inflatable plastic devices?
I saw that on a Jackie Chan movie. I think it was Operation Condor. He used it to escape from some ancient tribe who tried to make him marry a really ugly woman. Take care, Steve
It seed in there bisness section that
thay only leace them. to bad.
Question:
Are the people who are hit by slashdots HREF gun warned ahead of time? I wouldn't expect slashdot to give warning for breaking news from CNN or News.com, but for these non-urgent posts, it could help the people who run the website. I would think the people running the zorb.com are bemoaning the fact they didn't get up ordering info to take advantage of thousands of pageviews by drooling geeks. Plus, they would have the added benefit of trying to make their websites slashdot-effect proof.
Just a thought.
i dont display scores, and my threshhold is -1. post accordingly.
Discuss
...cept I'd probably puke my brains out.
yeah rob, you can buy one since you are a billionare and you own bill gates now..
*sarcasim*
Anyway, you can't buy one. I can think of about 15 million Slashdot readers who would shell out big bucks for these little toys.
I can think of two reasons why they don't sell them:
The production cost is too much or they don't have sufficient production available to mass market.
The liability has to be enormous with these things. I would be the first to jump into one, but I can think of many things that can go wrong.
Oh well, I want one and I hope the lease rate is low. If anything, all the frats on campus will want to rent it from me.
IANAL, but I play one on
I remember my hamster in his plastic ball; so excited to be allowed into the "real" world. (mind you at times there were troubles when he encountered the stairs). so what does this have to do with the average slash reader? well in a nutshell...imagine: Presenting the ZORB, the ultimate exploratory tool are you too attached to the computer? Do you continually here references to the "outside" and wonder what it's all about? Is your idea of having a good time taking down a Microsoft Server? Well then the ZORB is for you...it allows you to explore the "outside" world...all the marvels...all the scenery. The ZORB allows you to explore without leaving the sense of security of being seperated from everything else. ----ORDER NOW--- SUPPLIES ARE LIMITED CALL 1-800-BIGBALL for more information "The outside is waiting....are you ready?"
Zorbs on a Zorb lease plan - Zorbs are not sold.
well, i can still lease one, then loose it....
I recall a show called "American Gladiators" .. they used steel balls like such .. it's great that there's an inflatable version .. blah blah ..
I am Not a number... I am a free man!
Hm.... :) I beleive you can do this just north of Auckland in New Zealand - it was invented (well, patented by, so one assumes....) by a Kiwi - one of my flatmates colegues, even.....
:)
And, the inventor is a software developer! Could it be a toy by a geek, for geeks?
BTW, if you read the history, DSIR = Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. Long, long gone.....
It looks like if the outer balloon gets punctured
then the entire thing deflates - leaving you with
no padding as you bounce down the hill... use
only where there are *no* sharp rocks or plants...
Am I getting old, or does this remind anyone of
the daredevils who specialized in going over
Niagara Falls in a barrel... now illegal ( I
think ) because of several who did not make it...
Hehe - ok folks - nice to see all this interest in these babys. Let's see if I can answer your questions: 1. Yeah selling them is a major issue - in the interests of safety and quality and control and all that stuff - we have been setting up Master Franchises in other countries around the world and leasing the Zorbs - this works really well. So now all I need is someone with some cash and some smarts to call me up and say ... "hey Andrew let's do this right in the USA." 2. ummm what else did you want to know - well I'll tell you what if you want to discuss specific points with me - e-mail me from http://www.zorb.com or I'll be online as "zorb-boy" if you want to chat at http://www.xtrachat.co.nz for a few hours. Adios
Haha - yeah but consider this ... the only reason it rolls in the first place is 'cos it's round and inflated right - so if it starts to deflate - it stops being so round, and ... stops rolling - perfecto! Besides there's about 13 cubic metres of air in these babys so it sure takes a while to deflate.
Two reasons it may not work:
1) Distortion. Magnifiers such as these tend to distort the field of view significantly. Its a little like what you see in a magnifying glass, at the edges. The center looks good and in focus, but the edges stretch away. Fixing this, in my opionion, would be very expensive and require multiple lens and would have a narrow field of view.
2) Chromatic aberration: Any solution of the above, would have to be very high quality or you would get a prism effect on regions of multiple colors, like white. Notice how bright lights seem prismed in binoculars (especially cheap ones).
I'm not saying it doesn't work, I'm just saying that if it does, they are probably fixing a lot of technological optics problems inherent in many situations.
-- Moondog
Time to deflate will depend on the size of the
cut... a small puncture is probably no problem...
a 1 m. cut could deflate rapidly...
Now if it stops rolling and padding you...
*you* may still have considerable momentum which
must be absorbed somehow... as you continue
bouncing along with no or reduced padding...
do you have any test results to show on this
issue???
(no text)
-- Moondog
According to what I've heard about the Andover.net prospectus, Rob is a bigger "aire" than a thousandaire, but a smaller "aire" than a billionaire. I think he'd buy Bill Gates for a nickel, but would make him sleep in the shed in the backyard.
Yeah - but if you take a 1 metre cut (as long as the whole thing's not bouncing which it doesn't where we use it) then it still takes a fair bit of time to deflate - works kind of like a stuntman's airbag
Well, i suppose it wont come to sweden if it someday get for sale, we have to much sharp rocks and dirt here. What idiot would roll around in one Zorb in the middle of Gothenburg. :)
Was looking att the photos of this thing and saw that one of the zorb crew is named Ida-Maria, is she swedish or do a lot of New Zeelanders have that name?
If ever there was a a project that had "Do It Yourself written on it, this is the one. all you'd need is some visqueen, scotch tape and a bike pump. Just do it! You could win the a prestigous Darwin award, err... for good Science! Remember to have a video cameraman on hand for it's maiden roll, cause you could win $10K on one of those TV shows where everybody gets hit in the nuts.
by Mike Buddha -- Someday the mountain might get him, but the law never will.
When I was in New Zealand last April, I tried zorbing at Rotorua. It's really cool.
:(
You roll down and bounce off the hill, not knowing what's up and what's down (much like a wipeout during surfing, only much more fun). My only problem: the hill wasn't big enough to pick up much speed
In some of the other comments I read about safety issues. Well, I don't think it's too unsafe:
1. The balls are made of thick plastic. A ball won't 'pop', but rather develop a leak. That way the ball deflates. While this can be rather quick, the few impacts after the leak occurs slow down the ball to a safe point. (try playing footbal with a partially inflated or even leak ball. It will take a while before all the air is out)
2. Water won't stay in. As I've seen it, there are two entrance holes in the Zorb ball, opposite each other. Water coming in from one side will get out the other, not allowing for much water to stay in, but enough to toroughly get you wet!.
3. If something happens, you can get out. You strap yourself in, and you get out yourself. It's probably easier when upright, but manageble in ayy position.
To anyone: try it. It's definately cool!
the pun is mightier than the sword
I'm no expert, but from the pictures it looks like this is constructed in the same manner as an air mattress: several different pockets of plastic that are connected by tiny air conduits.
= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
When inflating with a slow, steady stream...the air can flow into every single plastic chamber until the entire sphere is inflated. Plus, the plastic walls of each chamber (with sufficient air pressure on both sides) are what actually supports the sphere.
In the case of an extreme puncture, only one of the cells will completely deflate right away, and the surrounding cells will continue to leak air at the same slow, steady rate. Eventually, the entire thing will become rather floppy but hopefully by then you are safe on the ground.
This doesn't mean hurl yourself into a spike pit because if the "extreme puncture" happens to be in the place where your back is, all bets are off.
- JoeShmoe
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
-- I wonder which will go down in history as the bigger failure: the War on Drugs or the War on Filesharing
The Dangerous Sports Club took one under Tower Bridge in London back in the 80s. Apparently wind resistance on those things is considerable, and a gust of wind made the ball break free from the tugs that were trying to tow it. The people inside almost drowned as the thing slowly collapsed and filled with nice, clean Thames water.
Still, a miss is as good as a mile...
One word: Claustrophobia
Just by looking at the pictures I got shortness of breath and sweaty palms. I won't even dare to check out the AVIs.
So you might pass out from the fumes. OK... it pops and you go falling down a hill at high speed. Some of us are still young enough to go out on a limb and try it. Big deal they only want to lease it. It's their idea. I've seen worse. They're entitled to make some money off it. Heck, I'd be the first in line with a grin :^) If you're interested in seeing these guys coming out to the USA you should mail them. You could also call or mail your local fairgrounds/amusement park and tell them they should get one. The end WILL justify the means. HAVE FUN WHILE YOU STILL CAN!
I must get one for me and my girlfriend... (Although it would be more for a exhibitionisms) (sp?)
;)
Jón
I love the idea of it! I spent many hours raising and breeding gerbils (minds off of Richard Gere!) and one day I was invited to a few TV shows where I raced Gerbils, met Miss America and made money and I always thought racing humans would be fun. But is there the issue of suffication for small children?- ----
--------------------------------------
Movie News - "Entertainment news, bitch!"
You could also, I'd imagine, use a two-hole Zorb for that purpose; you'd get a lot wetter but because the Zorb floats...
:) )it from the inside - no holes at all. You wouldn't even have to get yourself wet then and, punctures notwithstanding, you certainly wouldn't sink.
Just a second...picture this: two hole Zorb rolling around in the water, and one hole goes below the surface. Water will pour in the submerged hole and Zorb and owner will sleep with the fishes because the only thing that keeps the Zorb afloat normally is air pressure on the inside, which is now being conveniently relieved by the other hole!
I reckon you need a way of completely sealing (and re-opening
The conclusion of your syllogism, I said lightly, is fallacious, being based on licensed premises
The coolest way of doing it was not getting strapped in, but just sitting inside with about a bucket and a half of water being poured in. You just go flying down the hill sliding all over the place. Other stuff we did was ly in front of the ball as its rolling. Its always fun flattening your mates and it doesn't hurt at all!!!!! Is did it in Rotorua, New Zealand
they're so damned odd.
Wonder how much these things cost and if we can talk Andover into buying us one.
Uhh, why would Andover need to buy one for you? Wasn't slashdot sold for (literally) millions in cash?
Sorry, it's just a pet peeve of mine. You have millions. Get used to it.
Jordan
Put a ramp at the bottom of the hill, and see how far those suckers'll go! I know that I'd be the first volunteer for that.
Didn't Jackie Chan ride one of these down the side of a mountain at the begining of Operation Condor?
Oh, and I think I recal seeinging these on the Real World, with water in 'em. Looked like an endless Slip-n-slide. Sweet.
No. That would be marge narrowly escaping the Village Security bubble and Hans Moleman getting caught.
I can see the infomercial already: "Hello, I'm Patrick McGoohan. Today, I'd like to introduce Zorb...."
---
... I instantly pictured one of those in the middle of a Smash-Up Derby.
Sort of a Moto-Soccer. You could do it during half time at a Monster-Truck show.
"would the the person sitting in seat A23 please make their way to the lower level.. you've just won the chance to become a soccer ball!"
I'm not positive, but i think Tom Green used a similar contraption on his show. He rolled into someone's softball game and said "due to modern technology, i can play softball even with my alergies!" and everyone got mad at him. They tried to cut it open, beat him up, etc.
Someone saw the Avengers?
___
"I know kung-fu."
guns kill people like spoons make Rosie O'Donnell fat.
Only 20 years late this time.
You make progress
You are so weird.
Only if I get to be the first to push you down the hill...
Chill, no sweat, whatever you say! Some of us want an earlier retirement, but we won't get it, even if we ask the right people.
Hmmm....interesting....but looks like fun!
You must be on break.
If I get one of those, I'm keeping it for myself!! :-)
What in the world IS that?
Where do you find these things? :)
What in the world is that thing? And don't tell me it's a Zorb!
you're nuts.
"It takes really big balls to go zorbing!"
Would the school with the big friggin hill be CORNELL???
My friends have been threatening for years to buy me a bubble to live in and now they can. Great. I'm thrilled. Anyone want to loan me a penknife?
How do you stop one of these things? If you're rolling down a hill at a fair clip of speed, how do you intend to make it stop? I don't think a person would want to get in front of it and get ran over, and you can just jump out. I guess the only solution is find a REALLY long flat landing area.
The car was a BMW Z1, predecessor to the Z3. Never was sold in the US for saftey and cost reasons.
Helium!