Historically, within the first week of any iPhone release, those in search of YouTube fame and riches have resorted to hurling their newly-acquired pocket computers towards the ground to perform various forms of “drop tests” (see: here, here, here, and here). Although the phones can be replaced for $50 under an AppleCare plan, the tests…

Although it may have quieted down substantially compared to the early days of MakerBot, the exploration of 3D printing in consumer applications has never been stronger. While small companies such as print+ are testing 3D printing in distributed manufacturing sales models, larger companies with more substantial budgets are exploring how they can create new consumer…

It’s been a while since we’ve heard from our favorite UK garage inventor Colin Furze, but we’re glad to see that he’s wrapping up 2015 on a high note. The 32-year-old plumber and daredevil, whose previous projects have ranged from the World’s Fastest Pram to a hydroformed suit for wearing while being shot at with…

It was only a couple of weeks ago when Sketchfab announced that they had put together the world’s first directory for industrial 3D scanning services – The Sketchfab Community 3D Scanning Services – yet, the crew has yet another milestone announcement to make before the close of 2015. Starting today, users of the fully embeddable…

It was just last week when we saw the “How to Draw a Lightsaber” video from ID Sketching and Sketch-a-Day founder Spencer Nugent. With the upcoming release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Nugent has been feeling the Star Wars fever and has released not one but TWO more videos that both teach us the…

Inspired by a phenomenon called emergence, a process whereby larger entities, patterns, and regularities arise through interactions among smaller or simpler entities that themselves do not exhibit such properties, artist Thomas Medicus recently turned his attention to creating a hand painted anamorphic sculpture that he calls the “Emergence Lab”. “On each side of the cube…

Having been a heavy user of industrial-grade 3D printing since 2008, Jay Leno had since added an industrial 3D scanner and even a Dimension metal 3D printer from Stratasys to his personal collection for restoring cars and creating one-of-a-kind parts. Needless to say, the guy – along with his expert team – knows a thing…

As the host of one of the most satisfying woodworking channels on YouTube, Frank Howarth of Frank Makes tends to seamlessly balance interesting wood projects with clever videography skills regardless of the challenges from either thrown at him. To date, the Portland, Oregon-based Howarth has recorded and shared the build process of everything from lawn…

Although they started out in 2004 as an “artistic company anchored in snowboarding”, Signal Snowboards has since become synonymous with a less-traditional medium for building boards and other structures – cardboard. In partnership with LA-based Ernest Packaging, the snowboard company’s Cardboard Chaos series of videos has been exploring the structural limits of cardboard and how…

Although blow molding is a highly developed molding technology that’s been around since the late 1800’s to create hollow parts (such as plastic bottles) with uniform wall thicknesses, few have ever thought to use an actual blown-up animal balloon as a final material choice. Yet, for Seoul-based industrial designer Seungjin Yang, the use of balloons…

With tens of billions of LEGO bricks made each year, it’s no surprise that there are nearly 4,200 different elements in the LEGO range with a variety of different colors and decorations – a number that brings the total number of possible LEGO brick combinations to nearly 10,000. Inspired to make sense of at least…

Although it may not have the field of view that many were originally hoping for, Microsoft’s HoloLens is still no less of an amazing tool on the horizon for many involved in hardware development. Earlier this year, SolidSmack reported on ten reasons why the HoloLens could change product design and the way that consumers interact…

In the history of sci-fi pop culture, only a few objects have ever elevated to ‘legendary’ status. Of course, the hoverboard from Back to the Future comes to mind – not to mention the Nike Air Mag shoes worn by Marty McFly while cruising on the board. But although it may not be technologically possible yet,…

It was nearly a decade ago when the idea of producing physical objects on a desktop started to pick up steam – both for the object creators themselves and the consumers who use them. Today, it’s hit the mainstream and anybody with a fistful of cash can walk into anywhere from Best Buy to Barnes…

Last we heard from Luxion, the makers of KeyShot were arching back to prepare a knuckle sandwich of rendering KAPOW! for their latest release, KeyShot 6. Well, the troop has held true to their promise and has indeed unveiled the most powerful level-up in company history with a host of new features. For this release,…

You would think that having been called a “brilliant science-and-technology documentarian” whose “videos should be held up as models of how to present complex technical information visually” would go straight to one’s head, yet Bill Hammack (AKA Engineering Guy) is anything but your typical engineering dude. The University of Illinois teacher, whose popular course, ‘The…

When Onshape came out swinging earlier this year, it was speculated that whether users chose to use the new full browser CAD program or not, it would change the greater landscape of MCAD pricing and licensing structures forever. Needless to say, Onshape sent a ripple through the industry that acted as a wake-up call for…

When they first hit the scene with their Confidant sketchbook back in January of 2014, NYC-based Baron Fig became one of the few Kickstarter success stories that involved the creation of a sustainable brand rather than a one-hit wonder product. Today, the company has a mini-factory where they continue to crank out the user-friendly sketchbooks…

Since the 1930s, the infamous “plop, plop, fizz, fizz” sound of two effervescent Alka-Seltzers into a cup of hot water has been associated with the relief of everything from indigestion to hangovers. Now, dunking a piece of meltable bioplastic may also be the source of a cure for many common everyday headaches, too. Designed and…

It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from our favorite ID sketching master Spencer Nugent, but the one-man sketch machine hasn’t slowed down his hustle. Although he normally posts videos on various ID sketching-related sketch tutorials on his personal YouTube channel, the industrial designer recently took time to give us a three-way look at the new…

Like 3D printers, 3D scanners are also rarely owned by people who don’t use them regularly – and the occasional need to use one rarely justifies the cost of owning one. Unsurprisingly, commercial 3D scanning companies exist for exactly this purpose, but finding one that’s both close and suits your needs isn’t always easy. Thankfully,…

Like most kids of the Betamax generation, Google’s VP of Product Management, Clay Bavor, never ceased to be amazed by the Star Wars universe – even after dozens of viewings of the original trilogy. Perhaps it comes with little surprise, then, that Bavor has helped lead a Google tribute to the Star Wars franchise in…

It seems as though in order to gain attention these days, automaker are increasingly looking outside of the cars they make and into new technologies that validate their credibility as an innovator. One only needs to be reminded of Lexus’ recent hoverboard publicity stunt to see that they actually, kind of, work. More recently, German…

By now, we’re well aware of the promises that augmented reality holds for professionals – whether it is used for showing a client a scale model through an iPad or for working with CAD in the “real world” – yet we’ve seen very little in the realm of consumers outside of novelty apps. Within the…

For some, it only exists if it includes mounds of bacon and a steaming stack of syrup-soaked hot cakes. For others, it’s as simple as a bowl of shredded wheat and a handful of blueberries. No matter how you prepare it, though, chances are your first meal of the day isn’t necessarily the most pleasurable…

With the upcoming release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens on December 18th, it’s safe to say that we’re gearing up for Star Wars marketing overload – and if you’ve ever had plans to launch a Star Wars-related Kickstarter project, now would be a great time to do it. Among other Star Wars-related items that…

Having just shared their concept for a 3D printed shoe – or, midsole – only last month, Adidas has shared the next chapter of their next ‘Futurecraft’ series; but this time they’ve turned to subtractive manufacturing rather than additive. Billed as a “reimagining of how to work with leather”, the company’s Futurecraft Leather is made…

In most cases, sitting on a flat wood surface for hours at a time isn’t what most people would consider comfortable, but with an innovative new wood block cushioning system, they may be singing to a different tune. The Block System, which was masterminded by the mad geniuses at Los Angeles-based Sitskie Furniture Co, was…

Having already created a dashboard, a horse-drawn carriage, a helicopter, and various other items out of cardboard, sculptor Shannon Goff might have topped herself with her most recent full-scale cardboard replica project, Miles to Empty. Measuring in at 19′ x 6’5″ x 4’9″, Goff sculpted a full-scale replica of a Special Edition Collector’s Series 1979…

With the latest installment in the Star Wars franchise, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, arriving in theaters on December 18th, we’re already starting to feel the early ripples of yet another tidal wave of Star Wars mania. While some marketing teams have been busy developing strategies for jumping on the Star Wars hype train the…

It goes without saying that one of the best ways to get better at your craft is to watch others do it. Unfortunately, this hasn’t necessarily been easy in the digital age with software tools. Of course, we’ve seen our fair share of CAD or Photoshop tutorials on YouTube, but something usually gets lost when…

When it comes to curating tomorrow’s fashions and other must-haves of the season, most might turn their attention to the runways of New York and Paris during Fashion Week. Or at least one of the multiple lifestyle fashion tradeshows that pop up throughout the year. Needless to say, few might ever expect to find a…

After having been inspired to extend storytelling media beyond two-dimensional space and into the physical world with interactive components, industrial designer Eun Young Park quickly found that a category of construction set was missing from the arsenal of today’s STEM toys: one that teaches kinetic design. Created as a part of her MA thesis at…

When it comes to tools for refining loose design concepts, the usual suspects – pens, paper, clay, and the occasional Bedazzler – tend to suffice. But while these tools all work fine and well, “sketching” at full scale to create room-sized objects isn’t necessarily something that comes with ease – until now at least. Designed…

Having created everything from a jet-powered go-kart and the world’s fastest pram to an ejector bed and even a hydroformed suit designed to be worn while being shot at with fireworks, you would think inventor Colin Furze has seen and done it all. But, as somebody who consistently makes a point of going further and…

As Moore’s Law continues to grant us ridiculously powerful computers that we can fit inside of our pockets, the experience of using some of the earliest personal desktop computers continues to become an even further distant memory. Unsurprisingly, some people aren’t ready for that memory to fade yet. Among others is Philippe Lang, an IT…

When it comes to morning routines, few things can surpass digging into a golden and fluffy waffle soaked in maple syrup to get the day started right. For Brooklyn designer Chris Dimino, this love for the holy grail of breakfast cuisine led to the creation of one of the most ingenious kitchen tools we’ve ever…

Despite the wide range of incredible technologies that are available to us today, there are still some concepts from the “future past” that haven’t yet been delivered. Among others, these include hoverboards, teleportation, instant hot pizza ovens and flying cars. While we do have Segways, Skype, Bagel Bites and Teslas, these experiences are a far…

When it comes to solid and original comedy material, public access television show parodies have consistently delivered. Among others, Wayne’s World comes to mind, along with Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis. But as computers and technology continue to drive humans into ‘the future’, it would only make sense that the current state of computers…

As the Marvel Universe has taught us, superhero powers are not to be taken lightly. Among others with superhuman strength in the Marvel Universe include Thor, the Asgardian God of Thunder and the son of Odin, the All-Father of Asgard, and the Elder Earth-Goddess Gaea. According to legend, Thor is arguably the greatest and mightiest…

When it comes to pretty much anything new and exciting, MIT and all of their various labs are almost always fairly dependable. More recently, the team at the school’s Tangible Media Group updated their interactive pin table – a table that’s capable of reproducing a virtual version of any object placed under its sensors in…

Balancing a metal structure on top of a dandelion without the dandelion breaking sounds like the beginning of some sort of bar trick sorcery – yet this is entirely possible without the need for any sleight of hand or other forms of trickery. After years of researching and developing a way to make some of…

Since Kickstarter first hit the scene in the Spring of 2009, the popular crowdfunding platform has still proven to be a tricky playground for both businesses and backers over a half-decade later – particularly with campaigns that are actively promising fulfilment in the form of a mass manufactured product. Although the company has since come…

It’s no secret that we’re big fans of industrial designer Spencer Nugent around here. The designer, who is well-known for his highly communicative design sketching abilities, is also the founder of ID Sketching; one of the best resources for industrial design sketching online. More recently, Nugent has been publishing his industrial design sketching tutorials directly…

For those who might have seen the mesmerizing Kawai Tsugite joint (which fits perfectly in three different ways) pop up somewhere on the internet every now and again, you were likely one of many who were looking for a deeper explanation. Thankfully, engineer and woodworking master Matthias Wandel (yes, the same Matthias who built the…

When it comes to upcycling, old bicycle tires and discarded biscuit tins often come to mind – yet one of modern society’s most commonly disposed of objects just might be living in your back pocket right now. With an average lifespan of 18 months, bank notes around the world are decommissioned and destroyed about as…

Between delivering packages and even successfully catching fish, it seems as though there is little that drones – or quadrocopters – can’t do these days. But what about building a bridge that can support two humans…autonomously? In a new video YouTube video uploaded by programmer Federico Augugliaro, two drones use a high-precision motion capture system,…

When it comes to NFL commercials, one only needs to be pointed to a long-running list of legendary Super Bowl ads to be reminded of how much money is spent on campaigns. To help kick off the new season, Honda has paid $5 million USD to air a total of 8 minutes of their new…

Despite being the best building set around, LEGO brick creations are limited to one’s own imagination and rarely ever manifest into full-scale products – assuming one’s job doesn’t involve designing for Legoland. Although it’s certainly a few decades late for the majority of us who dreamt up spaceships of all shapes and sizes, a new…

Few movies have been burned into the brains of today’s corporate work force as well as Office Space – the 1999 Mike Judge film that tells the story of corporate work life. The film, which helped lay the foundation for Judge’s more recent Silicon Valley show that follows a similar premise, has many memorable scenes…