Every year, thousands of aspirants ask for crowdfunding - money from
people who are willing to back a new idea. Kickstarter is where hundreds
of new products receive initial funding to get started. Hitesh Raj Bhagat looks at some of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns from the world of technology.
Ouya 63,416 backers
There are game consoles, there are PCs and then there are handheld devices. Ouya borrows a little bit from all of them to create something totally unique for gamers. It's powered by Android, has the guts of a handheld device and uses a wireless game controller. It hooks up to a TV or projector for a big screen gaming experience. Their idea behind it is to make gaming more affordable (given the high price of new games). Games are cheaper to make and cheaper to buy. Many are completely free. And since it is built on Android, thousands of games already exist and developers know how to make new ones. In essence, it's an open, gaming and entertainment unit that could bring about change in several related industries.crowdfunding marketing Elevation Dock for iPhones 12,521 backers Milled from a solid block of aluminium, the Elevation Dock does away with all the misgivings of the conventional iPhone/iPod dock. It works with or without a case and docks without you having to align the connectors up. You can use it as a bedside charging dock, on a desk or when you want to connect your iPhone to other AV equipment. Since the dock itself is super heavy, the iPhone separates from it as soon as you pick it up. The original version uses Apple's 30-pin connector but there's a newer version available for devices that use the Lightning connector.crowdfunding advertising Narrative (previously Memoto) 2,871 backers Narrative is what the makers call a 'lifelogging' camera - it's a tiny, weather-proof, unobtrusive and autonomous camera and GPS module that you can clip to your clothing. It takes two geotagged photos per minute and stores them in internal memory. The idea is that you have a complete 'record' of your life which you can revisit or share with others at any time. The built in battery lasts for two days and it charges and transfers photos by connecting to a computer. When you connect to a computer, every photo is uploaded to their secure, infinite cloud storage for US$9 per month. Paired with the mobile apps, your life moments are easily searchable and accessible from anywhere.indiegogo marketing Folding USB Solar Cell 1755 backers If you live in a sunny area, these small, efficient solar cells from Brown Dog Solar can help power up your numerous gadgets without relying on the electricity grid. The cells are tough, foldable and flexible. Backpackers or bikers can store them in a bag or you could just hang it up on a window in your home. The solar cells do not have a battery, only a USB port to directly charge your gadgets. You can team them with a battery pack though - and then use the battery pack to charge your devices.kickstarter marketing 3Doodler 26,457 backers 3D printing is a huge craze among engineers and geeks who like the idea of creating a physical object out of a digital 3D model on a computer. It has immense uses in prototyping but the 3Doodler wants to make 3D printing fun with this hand-held 3D printing pen. The concept is unique - it uses thin plastic sticks (in different colours) as the source material which is melted inside the pen. The plastic hardens soon after, permanently taking the shape you drew.kickstarter project Pebble Smartwatch 68,929 backers
By far the most popular smartwatch and credited with creating the
trend, Pebble is a smartwatch that uses an E-ink display display instead
of LCD. The advantages of course, are extended battery life, seeing as
you can't really put a large battery inside a wrist-worn device. It
doesn't have a touchscreen either, relying on a trio of buttons to get
things done. It communicates with your phone vis Bluetooth and all kinds
of functionality can be enabled by using custom built apps. And yes, it
also tells the time, through any of the numerous watch faces that you
can customise yourself. Posted from:http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-12-07/news/44909610_1_kickstarter-elevation-dock-ouya |