It might be designed for the needs of modern classrooms, but I’m pretty sure I could use one of these Steelcase Node desk chairs around my home/office. Besides better addressing the needs of today’s laptop-toting students with ample bag storage under the seat and an adjustable work desk sized for most notebooks, the Node also swivels and is on wheels making it very easy to re-arrange an entire classroom should a different configuration suit the day’s lesson plan. Whether it’s a lecture or working in smaller groups. The chairs are also available in a variety of color combinations since branding seems to be an important part of higher-learning these days.

[ Steelcase Node ] VIA [ designboom ]

Waaaay back in 1992 Timex introduced their first Ironman watch with electroluminescent Indiglo backlighting and the world of watch face illumination has never looked back. But even though it provides ample illumination for an LCD display (and perfectly stealthy illumination for use in a dark theater) I guess Casio figures there’s finally room for improvement. So their new G-Shock GD-100 models, which will be available at the end of September, feature a new LED backlighting system that’s 6 times brighter than your standard LED. Now I’m not sure who needs a watch that bright since the iPhone 4 has already taken over flashlight duties for a lot of us, but since the G-Shock line seems designed to handle any situation, I guess it’s nice to know it’s there.

[ Hypebeast - Casio G-Shock GD-100 ]

It isn’t the first calculator spycam I’ve written about, nor will it probably be my last, but this model has something very important going for it. It’s built into an actual Casio DS-5500 desktop calculator, which is probably the best office camouflage you could ever imagine, since no one, not even accountants, will ever give it a second glance.

When not capturing 640×480, 30fps covert video via the pinhole lens you can see on the side, this DS-5500 works like any other calculator. It’s even solar powered, though the video electronics are powered by a rechargeable li-ion battery on the inside. There’s 4GB of memory on board which is good for capturing about an hour and a half of footage (the battery’s good for 2 hours) and the video files can be offloaded via a miniUSB port hidden inside the battery compartment underneath. ~$40 from Chinavasion.

[ Casio DS-5500 Desktop Calculator Spycam ] VIA [ 7Gadgets ]

Never suffer through an overcooked or undercooked steak again with this Steak Station thermometer. Its biggest claim to fame is the fact that it comes with four separate probes for keeping tabs on four steaks at once, or a single massive slab of meat that covers your entire grill surface. I also like that instead of showing the internal measured temperature, the Steak Station has an easy to understand LCD display showing whether a steak is rare, medium, well done or somewhere in between. $22.50 from Amazon.

[ Steak Station ] VIA [ The Green Head ]

Besides a slick form factor that won it a red dot design award and a 3-stage Hepa filtration system which removes 99.5% of airborne particles including germs and dust, the Coway AP-1008 features an illuminated hole that will glow a specific color depending on how polluted the room happens to be. Red indicates high levels of pollution, light purple for medium pollution, purple for low pollution and blue signifies the room is 99.5% clean. Of course that last 0.5% of air pollution could very well contain those microscopic bits that eventually get you, but for $279.99 you’re greatly increasing your odds of not getting sick.

[ Coway AP-1008 Air Purifier ] VIA [ 7Gadgets ]

Websites like Where’s George? let’s you track the travels of a piece of currency using their unique serial numbers, but it only really works if everyone who gets their hands on it visits the site. The same idea exists behind the Bijlmer Euro created by artist Christian Nold, but it’s a little more automagic since the bills each feature an RFID tag. Now obviously in order to track the whereabouts of a given bill, every single place of business would need RFID scanners installed, so the notes are designed to be used more as a “complimentary local currency” for the south-east area of Amsterdam, where about 2,000 of them were made available.

A handful of local shops have been equipped with the requisite RFID scanners which then report to a website which allows users and shopkeeps to visualize the flow of the bills. And in order to ensure that people are more likely to spend the Bijlmer Euros in the area where they can be tracked, the participating shops and restaurants offer unique discounts and promotions when you pay with the special currency. I like the idea, but have to wonder if the issue of defacing currency comes into play here.

[ Bijlmer Euro ] VIA [ PSFK ]

I’m all for taking care of one’s toys, but even I have to wonder if these MouseGuards from Moshi are a bit overkill. They’re a form-fitting thin film that not only protects the surface of the mouse from everyday wear and tear, but they also apparently have a bit more texture than the Magic Mouse’s glossy surface, providing more of a tactile feel. With a price tag of $69 Apple’s mouse is definitely something you don’t want to have to replace often, but I’ll leave it up to you to decide if you’re willing to spend an extra $15 for a MouseGuard to keep it looking as good as new.

[ Moshi MouseGuards ] VIA [ The Gadgeteer ]

We heard whispers about it before this, but now it has been confirmed that Yahoo Japan is planning to team up with Google to use Google’s search engine technology in Japan, giving Yahoo Japan and Google a massive, near-monopoly share of the Internet search market in Japan. It’s worth noting that despite its name, Yahoo Japan isn’t controlled by Yahoo Inc., rather Softbank Corp has about 40% stake in the company, while Yahoo Inc. has a 35% stake. According to this deal, Yahoo Japan will also be using online advertising and distribution systems developed by Google, though an exact date as to when the switch will be carried out has yet to be determined. It’ll be interesting to see if such a move with have any detrimental effect on Yahoo’s many partnerships with Microsoft and its Bing search engine.

Permalink: Yahoo Japan To Use Google's Search Engine Technology from Ubergizmo | Hot: iPhone 4 Review, iPad Review

While many consumers and businesses out there enjoying Google’s services, the search engine giant hasn’t forgotten about the Government sector, as the company has just announced its Google Apps for Government, which according to them, is the first cloud computing app suite to receive the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) certification, making it easier for agencies or groups to evaluate and adopt Google Apps. To further ensure that governments will have confidence in this product, Google plans to have Gmail and Google Calendar data for this service segregated into data centers that have been earmarked exclusively for government users in the continental US.

Permalink: Google Introduces Google Apps For Government from Ubergizmo | Hot: iPhone 4 Review, iPad Review

You might not have a camera that you can take with you underwater to capture all your cool diving pictures, and if you’re too lazy to carry one with you underwater, you might want to check out the Diving Goggles with Camera from Century Japan. It sports a 2-megapixel camera sensor, 8GB of internal memory, and is also capable of shooting videos at 30fps in 1280 x 960 resolution, not to mention being able to operate at a depth of up to 20m.

Permalink: Diving Goggles With Built-in Camera from Ubergizmo | Hot: iPhone 4 Review, iPad Review