Star Wars Speederbike, in Real Life: Aerofex Hover Bike Flies the Mojave

As young boys, how often did we dream of speeding through our neighborhood like Luke Skywalker did in the forests of Endor on a speederbike? Probably way too often, at least in my case.

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But now that dream may be one step closer to reality, thanks to the “Tandem-Duct Aerial Vehicle” fromAerofex.

The company isn’t going into mass production just yet, so put your checkbook away, but they envision these hoverbikes as a development platform for robotic drones for lifting and carrying cargo. Currently, the Aerofex machine is being tested at a top speed of 30 mph and a max height of 15 feet above the ground.

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Follow along with their progress at the Aerofex Flight Log.

A Personal Weather Station for Your iPhone: Netatmo

Imagine having a mini personal weather station at your own house, one that allows you to monitor and track the outside temperature, humidity, air quality, and atmospheric pressure, right from your iPhone or iPad. Now imagine being able to also monitor and track the inside temperature, humidy, CO2 levels, and indoor air quality.

Well, you’re in luck, because if you’re weather-obsessed, meteorologically-inclined, or your daily activities depend on knowing the current conditions outside, the Netatmo Urban Weather Station is for you.

With two sleek aluminum sensor bodies – one for inside and one for outside – measuring the data, an iPhone/iPad app for viewing and sharing it, realtime air quality and weather alerts, and cloud data storage backing it all up, the Netatmo system can help you decide the best (and worst) times for watering the garden, going for a run, riding your bike to work, or making your kids go outside to play. The app also features a 7-day weather forecast, and for those who live in areas with plenty of noise pollution, the sensors also measure and track the sound levels (from 35 dB to 120 dB).

In addition, those who use Netatmo weather stations can also choose to help contribute to a wider community-based network of weather monitoring, so that scientists and meteorologists can further their understanding of the climate and weather in urban environments.

“The Netatmo Urban Weather Program aims to create the largest community based weather and Air Quality monitoring network ever established, offering a wealth of info to scientists and people living in urban environments…”

Roomba Turns 10, a DIY Autonomous Paintball Turret, and More at Tested.comRoomba Turns 10, a DIY Autonomous Paintball Turret, and More at Tested.com

When they’re not busting myths on the Discovery Channel, Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage are busy cooking up great DIY projects and keeping up to date on the latest achievements of the world’s best makers.

Here’s some of the latest from Tested.com:

The Roomba Turns 10

Everyone’s favorite robo-floor cleaner is now 10 years old. Tested.com outlines the history of the home robot and the company that creates it, iRobot.

3D Printing at the World Maker Faire

Meanwhile, at World Maker Faire, Tested.com checks out a new 3D printer that uses stereolithography instead of extruded plastic filament to build highly detailed objects.

The Autonomous Sentry Gun

How cool is this? Project Sentry Gun is a homemade paintball and airsoft turret that uses open source software to track moving targets with a webcam and trigger arduino-connected servo motors to activate a homemade sentry. You’ve got to see it in action.

Talking With Makerbot Industries’ Bre Pettis

Finally, Tested.com talks with the co-founder of Makerbot Industries, Bre Pettis. He explains the improvements in the company’s latest 3D-printer.

Victorinox Unveils 1 Terabyte Solid State Drive in a Swiss Army Knife

Image: Victorinox

The Swiss Army drive is ready for its update.

At CES, Victorinox announced two new products to its portable storage line: the Victorinox SSD and Victorinox Slim 3.0 USB drive. Both look like teeny flash drives. Both pack quite a bit more.

The company claims the drive is the world’s smallest high-capacity solid-state drive, ranging from 64 gigabytes to 1 terabyte. It has a 220 MB/second read and 150 MB/second write speeds with 256-bit AES encryption. The drive can also handle automatic backup and syncing. The drive is removable and can be outfitted with two included cases, a TSA friendly one and a signature Swiss Army one with all the bells (blade, scissors, nail file/screw driver). The Slim 3.0 USB drive has a capacity of up to 128 gigabytes and is up to 10 times faster than the its predecessor. Pricing for either product has not been announced.

Samsung Debuts New Product Category: The Note is a Smartphone-Tablet Hybrid

Image: Samsung

It had to happen. On Thursday, Samsung debuted a tablet-phone hybrid with the 5.3-inch Galaxy Note.

Samsung’s new product category, CNET reports, combines tablet-like functionality with smartphone features and portability.

The Note, with a 1.4-gigahertz dual-core processor, has a Super AMOLED touchscreen, which Samsung says is more vivid and brighter than standard hi-def displays. The screen — large for a smartphone, tiny for a tablet — makes is easy to view websites, books and documents, but overall the phone is pretty thin at 9.65 millimeters.

It runs on Android’s Gingerbread operating system, comes with a stylus (did we return to the ’90s?) and has both a 2-megapixel front camera and 8-megapixel rear camera. With 16-gigabyte and 32-gigabyte versions, the phone will also support the various 4G networks: one model will support HSPA+ and the other LTE. But details are scant on pricing and timing.

iPad Meets Antique Typewriter

Image: etsy/usbtypewriter

Is your iPad feeling a bit too modern for you?

Then attach a typewriter to it. An etsy member has hacked an antique typewriter to work as a USB keyboard for Macs, PCs and even iPads.

The typewriter’s keyboard includes all letters, numerals, punctuation marks, shift, space and a functional return carriage. Non-standard keys, such as function (eg. F1, F2), esc, ctrl are available with a special toggle key.

READ MORE: Autonomous Robots Use Wii Sensors to Play Hockey

Image: etsy/usbtypewriter

The modification is very clean leaves the typewriter looking, feeling, and working like a regular typewriter — and yes, it still writes beautifully on paper. A beatiful, functional, unique addition to your home office.

The USB typewriter doesn’t require special software and also works with a number of tablets, including the Toshiba Thrive, Motorola Xoom and HP TouchPad.

READ MORE: Can’t Decide Between a Private Island or a Mega-Yacht? Get Both in One

Image: etsy/usbtypewriter