Greenlaunches, our cool eco-blog, is up with some green fun as it offers a chance to win long-lasting Energizer Advanced Lithium Batteries to keep your gizmos juiced up. Anyone under the sun can try their luck by simply submitting an eco-friendly tip for a green lifestyle. Enter the contest here and feel free to let your tips flow! 
Putting robotics to its best advantage is the tubeBot Pipe robot. This is the zero-energy solution for detecting leaks in the water supply pipes of the urban drinking water systems of the world. Billions of liters of water are wasted throughout the world due to faulty pipes and leaks in them. Monitoring the entire water supply lines of the city can be a cumbersome job, and is very inefficiently done. Ideally you need to shut off the supply when repairing the damaged pipe, or even dig up roads for that; but with the tubeBot you won't have to do any such thing. It is an autonomous maintenance robot for urban drinking water piping systems. 
In many countries they don't use any furniture for seating, the simply huddle together in a circle on the floor and catch up on gossip. While this may make a cozy picture, I can't imagine it being very comfortable, unless you can sit on the ground for long hours. Andrej Statskij's Carousel Sofa takes inspiration from the fair carousel, but I think it's an extended version of the traditional divan. You get to play with 5 cushions around this 8-sided mattress to create the perfect seating option. There are two cushions that house storage options and can even function as tables. In all you get a sofa plus table plus drawer; wow that's a lot coming from a single furniture piece! 
Nike DAC: Design against crime takes birth from the idea of self-protection. Like how the shell of tortoise protects it from harm, or how the superhero uses a shield as self defense. This safe bag is a concept design against crime. Worn like a backpack, there is protrusion on the back that resembles a disc or a shield. The ergonomic design ensures that the bag is always near the body, and ready to protect you and the contents from thefts. The polycarbonate material used resists knife jabs and blade slashes. The Resistant Velcro used in the straps keeps the handles stiff so that they could be used in defense. Personally I find the leopard print awesome, what do you think? Designer Daniel Kroker a neat idea on his hands. 
Teens are the most excited lot when it comes to driving a car. This is because they haven't yet experienced the years of driving on congested roads. Anyways, the lot sure knows what kind of cars they want to drive and the Pepenero Microcar fits their perceptions. Although the styling of the car reflects a compact design, it's pretty roomy on the inside. Designed by Raul Frollàand, this three-seater boasts of a spacious cabin and a cool style and could become a status symbol amongst the youth. 
Nintendo gamers are going to love this simple dish because it's a take on their favorite console the DS. Designed by Jason Lui, it's a Sushi DiSh that reflects your love for the game. The designer also has paper plates compressed and made into the same design featured in his portfolio and I think that's awesome. I somehow am more loyal and biased towards Nintendo anyways. Maybe because my first console was the wonderful NES and not a PS and a PSP would make an awkward plate! Here's an idea, use the ceramic wonder for a formal, quirky Christmas dinner party and the disposable ones for a wild New Year's! 
Dreamers make the best designers and Mac Funamizu is one of them. Tracing his previous works shows that he's not afraid to dream the impossible and convincingly sells an idea. Take a look at what he has in mind for the recently announced Samsung Flexible OLED screen. He's conceived a mobile phone that could be folded in whichever way one wants to. Of course his aspirations for the phone includes a touch screen, because that seems to be the norm these days. With limitless possibilities the phone design is a refined version of what could be the future of communication. 
Competition always brings out the best in you and the Electrolux Kitchen Design Competition brought out the best in three designers, naturally they won the top spot. The ever-pervasive space-crunch probably inspired the winner Marcello Zuffo to come up with the rotating kitchen that pivots on a central column. All the components of this kitchen can be reconfigured to suit the users need. Zuffo used the Electrolux ICON appliances throughout the kitchen; he used this as a base for his layout and coordinated the elements to the users interaction with them. The jury applauded the 'knuckle,' which swivels, and allows the kitchen to serve utilitarian and sculptural purposes concurrently. 
You may wonder what is the need to design a manhole cover. Ask the person who fell into an open one, and broke his bones…he'll tell you the importance of the cover. It may sound funny at the moment but open manhole covers is a serious issue in most parts of the world and a nighttime fall is even more dangerous. I heard about this kid in India that fell down a hole and had to be rescued with the help of the army. The illuminated manhole cover by designers Kim Pil Gon, Seo ll Kyung and Ha Nam Mi is a great option for places that are dark and have no alternate coving for the hole. The system uses rigs of light to draw attention to the danger of an uncovered manhole.
Broto is Spanish for sprouts and this little device has been rightly so called for the plants it nurtures to grow. It's the perfect kitchen garden where you can fuss over your spices or teas and herbs. Why would you opt for Broto over a potted plant? Well, the answer is simple, with pots comes in dirt and mud, but Broto eliminates the need of mud or earth altogether. According to the designers, the technology used is one of the hydroponic systems, the aeroponic. In this system, the roots are not immersed in the water but are suspended in the air and receive jets of water with liquid nutritional solution. Artificial lightning via LED facilitate in healthy growth and the well being of the plant. Broto uses an autonomous system, which provides measurement of pH, temperature, nutrients and humidity. This info is displayed on the interface located on the side of the device. 
J. Havarlant is a designer who dedicates all his energies towards churning out sexy Sony Ericsson concept phones. His feast for Christmas includes a slew of SE designs in the T, P and W series. Getting details on these phones is a bit tricky but we can state the evident. Lets start with the T903 Rugya. This one is a sleek slider with red highlights. It sports a 8.1- megapixel camera and is inspired by the gorgeous Rugya car. The P912 boasts of a single large screen with only two buttons on the face. What makes the touchscreen P905 very interesting is that it proposes an Android platform, looks like a smooth iPhone but hosts a side-slider QWERTY keyboard. 
It's the world's best selling toy and was invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture, Ernő Rubik. Often dubbed as the Magic Cube, we have seen plenty of inspirations that take on the majestic beauty of the Rubik's Cube. Here we have a special iteration that glows with the very spirit of the puzzle. The Rubik's Lamp has been designed by Eric Pautz' and he gives to us two versions of the lamp. The simple white form sports different textures on each face, giving it an enigmatic appeal. The colored version is closer home to the original and reflects the colors that make the puzzle so popular. 
Hectic lifestyles and nuclear families gave birth to modular kitchens. Taking the idea to another level is the modular refrigerator. An alluring concept because its advocates space-saving techniques and technologies. Maximizing on the utility-quotient, the Arçelik Divide&Cool uses four differently sized modules that can be arranged in multiple ways. This not only promotes customization, it also takes into account the aesthetic appeal of the kitchen and individual preferences. For example, a vegetarian family may not require an ample deep freezer for meats. The modules can be customized for storage of particular foods at the ideal temperature and humidity of those foods, extending freshness and good taste. 
The used teabag usually goes in the dumpster, not unless you're the sort who re-uses the bag till its done to death. However eventually it does head to the dumpster. My point is; if you're the ingenious sorts like Yuree Stacy Lim, Jieun Yang and Sangmin Bae, you'll come with a better use for the bag, when it's done making tea. They have come up with the idea of a Teabag Coaster, a coaster that promises to add a dash of color to your tea break! This is how it works; you simply place your used teabag on this specially designed coaster to highlight the embossed artwork. The special paper absorbs the remainder liquid from the bag and makes you Picasso. The Teabag Coaster makes tea break richer by providing both functionality and aesthetic value. 
Be it a bike or a cab ride, there is nothing to beat the efficiency of a train ride within the city to commute fast and easy. The ride may be short and sweet, but it does have its set of problems…like congestion and heavy baggage load. There are designers out there who want to make the ride as smooth as possible and Daniele Nicola is one of them. The Nano is an optimised briefcase that commuters can use as a support during the ride. Place it on your lap and it makes good as makeshift desk with a cup holder. Slide out the hook-clip at one end and it's a handy hook that latches on to the overhead railing in the bus/train cabin, giving you the support to stand steady. 
