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Nexa3D needs your cash to make its 'ultrafast' 3D printer
Not long ago, we saw a new kind of super-fast 3D printer that works by "growing" objects from resin, rather than laboriously depositing the print material in layers. Another company called Nexa3D has launched a product on Kickstarter that's similarly quick, claiming that you'll be able to print objects at a speed of around 1-inch every 3 minutes. That's around 25-100 times faster than a regular 3D printer, and objects can be made to around 120 microns of detail, fairly close to the resolution of a Makerbot Replicator 2. Like the Carbon 3D printer we saw earlier, this new system works by using light to harden a photo-curing resin that is gradually extruded from a tank.
Tiny drone-friendly 4K camera lets you swap lenses
If you want to fly an interchangeable-lens camera on a DJI Phantom-sized drone, Blackmagic has two options coming soon, the 1080p Micro Cinema Camera and the 4K Micro Studio Camera. Now there's another one -- the E1, a Micro Four Thirds (MFT) interchangeable-lens camera small enough replace a GoPro in many cases. There is a catch, however. The company that's building it (Z Camera) is a startup and the camera is launching on Kickstarter, making any purchase a roll of the dice. However, it is fully funded and being produced in cooperation with Panasonic, which built the 4K sensor and is supplying the bundled 14mm f/2.5 lens.
'Mortal Kombat' and 'NBA Jam' documentary needs your help
In the 1990s, one name ruled the arcade scene: Midway Games. From Mortal Kombat to NBA Jam, Revolution X, NARC and San Francisco Rush, you knew what you were going to get when you popped a few quarters into a cabinet: fast, loud, aggressive games. But what's the story behind those titles? How did the studio come to practically dominate an entire sector of gaming? That's what Josh Tsui, co-founder of Chicago-based game developer Robomodo, wants to tell you with his new documentary, Insert Coin: Inside Midway's 90s Revolution.
Congratulations to our Insert Coin winners: Poursteady and Noke
The votes have been tallied; the judges deliberated; and we have our winners for this year's Insert Coin. The judges tossed their support behind Poursteady, a robot that makes five pour-over cups of coffee and handed the company $10,000 to help get off the ground. Noke took home the $15,000 readers choice prize. While we've seen plenty of smartlocks before, this is the first time we've seen Bluetooth crammed into the padlock form factor. You can relive the entire competition, from the initial presentations by the 10 semi-finalists, to the grilling by the judges, and finally the prizes being awarded after the break.
60 seconds with Hemingwrite, an E Ink typewriter
Between social networks, video games and the endless void of procrastination we call "the internet," computers can make pretty poor writing devices. Isn't there something better? Insert Coin contenders Adam Leeb and Patrick Paul think so -- they've created the Hemingwrite: an E Ink typewriter that does almost nothing, save text entry. It's a minimalist writing machine that features a machine-tooled aluminum chassis, a satisfying mechanical keyboard and a six-week battery life. It's not completely devoid of modern faculties, however: it also automatically uploads your prose to a cloud storage system as you type it.
60 seconds with the world's first Bluetooth padlock
In just a matter of three months, the Noke smart padlock managed to make its way from Kickstarter to our Expand event as an Insert Coin contender, so of course it's rather special. First of all, it's a Bluetooth 4.0-enabled steel bolt that can be unlocked with a click on the shackle when your iPhone or Android phone is nearby. Secondly, the companion app lets you share your Noke locks with family and friends, thus saving you the hassle of passing on a physical key. You can even set the repetition and security level for the authorization, as well as tracking history by users or by locks.
60 seconds with a simple but smart home monitoring device
There are already plenty of ways to keep an eye on your abode from afar, so any new home monitoring product better have a fresh approach if it wants to stand out from the competition. For start-up Form Devices, the goal wasn't to create an elaborate, connected home security system that did more than existing products, but to make something simple, affordable and user-friendly. And, it must've done something right with its Point home monitoring device, which cruised past its $50,000 Kickstarter goal just two days after the campaign went live, and is now participating in our Insert Coin competition at Engadget Expand. The plain white, palm-sized puck hosts sound, humidity, temperature, air quality and particle sensors, but no camera. This was a very intentional omission, not just because Point is supposed to be small and inconspicuous, but so users have peace of mind that nobody will ever be watching them.
60 seconds with the tracker that proves how close you got to the edge
Sure an action camera can provide the video record of your extreme (or not so extreme) sports exploits, but what about the data? Any number of fitness and motion trackers exist, but the Push Supernova is a ruggedized device that not only captures the key metrics from your session -- GPS, depth underwater, G-forces, speed, etc. -- but can display them on its color screen in real-time, or feed them into an overlay to accompany video recorded by a GoPro or similar camera. The touch-controlled interface is glove-friendly and protected by Gorilla Glass, it can mount anywhere a GoPro goes, it's waterproof to 30m with sealed expansion and USB ports, plus it can log data for days and the internal battery lasts up to 24 / 8 hours at a time (screen off / screen on). Finally, you don't have to buy a brand new Corvette to get the videogame-style readouts of data to go along with with your highlight reel.
60 seconds with a robotic pour-over coffee machine
Coffee enthusiasts know that one of the best ways to brew the caffeinated beverage is via the pour-over method, a meticulous technique that requires a steady hand and precise timing. At coffee shops, baristas have traditionally brewed this style of coffee the old-fashioned way, carefully pouring hot water in a steady spiral stream over multiple filter setups. Not only can it be tiresome, it can also distract them from giving better customer service. Poursteady, however, is a potential solution to that.
60 seconds with the team that wants to make every car smart
Wouldn't it be great if you could change your car's head unit as frequently as you do your smartphone? Enter Onics, a startup that's crafted a dashboard-mounted module that lets you turn your phone into your car's nerve center. Essentially, the hardware's just a double-din unit with a locking clip up front, that'll accept any Android or iOS smartphone that's up to six inches in size. Rather than trailing a power wire from the 12V socket, there's a built-in microUSB or Lightning port, and if your vehicle supports it, you'll even be able to start the car with your mobile.
60 seconds with the wearable that might save your back
This Insert Coin contender could well cure what we call "Engadget back": the slightly unappealing hunch that some editors (read: this editor) descend into after typing away at one too many articles or trade shows. The Upright sticks (through a hypoallergenic adhesive strip) to the small of your back, where it uses multiple sensors -- an accelerometer and a strain gauge -- to monitor the line of your spine -- and tell you through gentle vibrations when you're doing it wrong. We just tested it briefly here at Expand, and the reminder vibrations are far more gentle than, say, your smartphone. It kinda feels like soda water on your skin: enough to remind you that you're slouching but not enough to grate. The team behind it reckons that 15 minutes a day will be enough to reeducate your back muscles and a Bluetooth connection links the device to your smartphone to keep everything recorded for future posterity.
60 seconds with a giant, rollable display for your mobile devices
At some point, you've probably wished that your smartphone had a much larger screen to watch a movie or get work done... but you can't always lug a desktop display or tablet around, can you? If Insert Coin finalist RollRR has its way, you won't have to. It's developing rollable displays that would give your mobile devices a lot more visual real estate without consuming much space in your bag. The prototype on the Engadget Expand show floor is a 10.7-inch roll of e-paper attached to a giant tube, but the ultimate goal is to fit a 21-inch or larger screen (ideally, full color plastic OLED) into a gadget the size of a small umbrella. It's also considering touch technology like 3M's silver nanowires, so RollRR could expand your input area, too -- you could edit a large image on your phone just by unrolling the sheet on a table.
60 seconds with a modular drone that packs a pro camera
We're entering a golden age of UAVs, with models ranging from hobbyist drones like the Parrot AR Drone 2.0 all the way up to DJI's DSLR-packing Spreading Wings S900 Hexacopter. So what could our Insert Coin semi-finalist drone possibly bring to the party? Ivan Stamatovski said he created the EasyDrone for one simple reason: portability. Unlike most commercial drones, the EasyDrone can be broken down into a relatively compact case and easily assembled without having to connect any wires. At the same time, it comes with all the capability of a high-end drone: video streaming, a built-in gimbal, the ability to carry heavier cameras like Sony's NEX models and a high-end navigation system from 3D Robotics.
Meet the 10 Insert Coin 2014 semi-finalists
Thanks to your votes, we now have the 10 semi-finalists for this year's Insert Coin competition. Each of them will get $1,000 in travel stipend and a spot on our Expand NYC showfloor at the Javits Center this November. But, their fight's nowhere near over: they're now vying for the $10,000 Judges' Choice, as well as the $15,000 Reader's Choice award. So go ahead and get acquainted with the top 10 contenders below, because we'll ask for your help again in the near future.
Last chance to vote for our Insert Coin semi-finalists!
Time is almost up to help us choose who the lucky 10 semi-finalists will be in our Insert Coin competition at this year's Expand. As a reminder, each one of the semi-finalists will receive a $1,000 travel stipend and a spot on our showfloor at the Javits Center. Then they'll have a chance to compete for up to $25,000 to help bring their vision to market. You can read about all of our contenders in the gallery below, then head right here to cast your vote for who should make it to the next round. But make it quick -- all votes must be in by 11:59 p.m. PDT on October 15th, 2014.
Help us pick 10 Insert Coin semi-finalists from this list
Each of the top 10 semi-finalists for this year's Insert Coin competition will get a $1,000 travel stipend and a spot on our showfloor at Expand NYC. So, we really want to make sure they're projects you'd want to see in person. To make that happen, we're putting the decision in your hands -- we've narrowed the list of contenders down to 16 to make it a bit easier for you, but you'll have to vote for the entry you think deserves a chance to win up to 25 grand. You can look through the list of contenders below and then cast your vote right here until 11:59 in the evening, Pacific time, on October 15th, 2014.
Attention makers! You have until 11:59PM tonight to enter Insert Coin 2014
Makers, it's time to put down those soldering irons and stop worrying about any detail you've potentially forgotten. It's September 26th, which means this is the last day we're accepting Insert Coin entries. Remember, you'll have two chances to take a nice fat wallet home with you, since our panel of judges and our readers will be voting separately. You can win up to $25,000 to kickstart your hardware project, and earn some bragging rights, as well as generate publicity, in the process. Also, the top 10 semi-finalists will receive $1,000 each in travel stipend to showcase their masterpieces at the 2014 Expand event in New York this November. Not a bad deal at all, right? So, read our submission guidelines thoroughly one last time, make sure the pictures and videos of your work are top notch, and fill out our entry form by 11:59PM EDT tonight. Good luck!
Catching up with DiWire Bender, Insert Coin 2013's metal-bending wonder
Does that curious little contraption above look familiar? That's probably because it's DIWire Bender, the rather unusual desktop device created by Brooklyn design firm Pensa, which won our judges' hearts at last year's Insert Coin competition. We say unusual, because DIWire Bender boasts very specific skillset: bending metal wires for makers, crafters and just about anyone who could use it. We caught up with Pensa founder Marco Perry to talk about how the project's been doing since the team took home $10,000 for winning Judges' Choice. By the sound of it, its victory really got the ball rolling: the team's Kickstarter campaign that launched right after Insert Coin, for instance, reached its $100,000 goal in just one day.
Calling all makers: the deadline for Insert Coin submissions is in 17 days
Before you party with us and RJD2 at Expand NYC in November (which is free, by the way!), you may first want to finalize those hardware designs. The deadline for Insert Coin entries is fast approaching, and you wouldn't want to miss the chance to win up to $25,000 to fund the project of your dreams. We'll only be accepting submissions until September 26th, after which we'll choose 20 contenders and whittle it down to 10 semi-finalists by your vote. These lucky 10 will receive $1,000 in travel stipend, so they can showcase their creations at the Expand show floor. We'll then let our panel of judges and you, our readers, decide which masterpiece (or two, if your tastes differ greatly) deserves a financial boost and time in the spotlight.
Meet the judges of Engadget Expand's Insert Coin 2014 competition
We know Insert Coin contestants shed blood, sweat and tears to complete their masterpieces, so we make sure they get scrutinized by people who know what they're talking about. For this year's event, we gathered a group of judges from different backgrounds to look at, poke and analyze every entry. They're in charge of making sure that the best entries get the coveted prize money and that the winners embody what Insert Coin's all about. Cyril Ebersweiler is the founder of HAXLR8R, an accelerator program for hardware startups based in San Francisco and Shenzhen, China. He also juggles several projects in both countries, including mentoring a number of startups and serving as a board member to Leap Motion. Rahul Sood is just as tireless as Ebersweiler and currently serves as the global head of Microsoft Ventures. Some might remember him as the creator of Voodoo PC, which was eventually snapped up by HP. Ben Einstein describes himself as a "lover of hardware" and is the Managing Director of Bolt, a start-up incubator that focuses on (you guessed it) companies that work on hardware. Devindra Hardawar's probably a familiar name if you tend to visit a certain online publication other than Engadget -- he's a Senior Editor and the lead mobile writer at VentureBeat.
