Tag Archives: sci fi

The Sizes Of Popular Sci-Fi Spacecraft Compared To New York City

Posted on by

Created by Youtube channel MetaBallStudios, this is a 3D visualization of what various spacecraft from popular sci-fi franchises would look like as viewed by a person standing in Jersey City and facing lower Manhattan. I’ve stood right in that exact same spot before. Granted, there weren’t any spaceships hovering in the sky, but I was eating one of the best street hot dogs I’ve ever tasted.

You get a glimpse of the Star Wars X-Wing, E.T. Ship, D77H-TCI Pelican from Halo, Martian’s Spaceship (Mars! Attacks), Moon Rocket (Tintin), USSC Discovery One (2001: A Space Odyssey), Space Battleship Yamato, Mothership (Close Encounters of the Third Kind), USCSS Covenant (Alien Covenant), Battlestar Galactica, Destiny Ascension (Mass Effect), Avatar (EVE Online), City Destroyer (Independence Day), High Charity (Halo), and more.

Honestly, I expected the Borg Cube to be even more giant. I’m not sure exactly how big I imagined they were, but definitely larger than 3km square. I mean Death Stars were about 160km in diameter — they would dwarf Borg Cubes! Or at least they would if they didn’t keep getting blown up by the rebels.

[via TechEBlog]

This eerie desk pen holder makes it look like aliens are coming after your pens

Posted on by

Most of us have a favorite writing instrument, be it a specific brand and grade of pencil or, more likely, a specific kind of pen. More avid writers also favor a particular pen design, often of the more luxurious bent, that they put on display on their desks when not in use. Such pen stands and holders are designed to put the focus on the pen itself, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be attention-grabbing themselves. This pen holder design, for example, is truly out of this world, literally and figuratively, as it suspends your favorite writing instrument in mid-air as if caught in a tug-of-war between the Earth’s gravity and an alien spaceship’s tractor beam.

Designer: Hesham El-sheikh

We might have different reasons for putting a pen on a pedestal, whether it’s for ease of reach or simply for display. Most of those simply involves a piece of metal or wood that holds the pen upright, sometimes at an angle. It’s a convenient and efficient way to show off a pen and only the pen, but it’s also a rather boring one, especially compared to this.

The UFO Desk Pen Holder leaves no room for guessing what it does but leaves the “how” a complete mystery. The pen still stands upright, which makes it easy to grab it when you need it. Given how it’s levitating in the air, you can definitely grab it easily, though your brain might have second thoughts lest you risk losing parts of your hand to some molecular transportation device. It’s all a trick of the mind, of course, being that there is no real alien technology at work, or so we presume.

The top of the pen holder is your stereotypical alien spaceship in the shape of a flying saucer. Why extraterrestrials would choose such a design is anyone’s guess, but it is a familiar form and a practical one for this purpose. You could put the USS Enterprise or a Star Destroyer, too, but its irregular shape would break the illusion and remove a bit of the eerie atmosphere surrounding this design.

The saucer also serves as a desk lamp of some sort, its light providing both illumination as well as the suggestion of some retro sci-fi tractor beam. The pen hangs directly below it, of course, though it’s not clear whether it’s coming from or going toward the UFO. How it’s floating without any evident support is even more mysterious. Ironically, the UFO itself is supported by a pillar rather than hovering in the air as well.

It’s definitely possible to pull this off using some transparent support since it would be impossible to keep a pen float using only magnets, at least not with design. We do have “hoverpens” that meet that requirement, though those don’t have the same “retro punk” appeal as a UFO that’s trying to steal your favorite pen away.

The post This eerie desk pen holder makes it look like aliens are coming after your pens first appeared on Yanko Design.

These wireless earbuds have sci-fi-inspired cases you will want to collect

Posted on by

TWS, or Truly Wireless Stereo, earbuds have become more common these days now that almost all smartphones no longer have headphone jacks. Since the earbuds themselves are what you’d see and use most of the time, it’s only natural that they also get the most attention when it comes to design and features. Recently, however, there has been a shift of attention from the buds to their charging cases, from the cobblestone-inspired OPPO Enco X2 to the JBL Tour PRO 2 case with an embedded touch screen. The earbuds, after all, are meant to be discreet and almost invisible, while the cases are what people will often see. If that’s the case (no pun intended), then these new TWS buds are definitely worth showing off, especially if you’re a huge sci-fi or cyberpunk fan.

Designer: Gravastar

Gravastar has made a name for itself by producing accessories and gadgets whose designs cater to a very specific demographic. Its conception is quite timely, considering the rise in interest in sci-fi content in recent years. Even cyberpunk, which has been around for decades, is experiencing a bit of a renaissance thanks to a few films and games. Having sci-fi-themed accessories and products can be a lucrative business these days, especially when those products themselves are doing well in the market.

Everyone these days seems to have a pair of wireless earbuds, and there is almost an overabundance of them, especially when you take clones and knockoffs into account. The design of the buds themselves doesn’t tend to vary that much, and they’re often seen simply as tools at this early stage in their market life. Their cases are even more so taken for granted as simply a means to an end, but it’s only a matter of time before they take the spotlight. For fans of all things sci-fi, that time is already now.

The Gravastar Sirius P5 buds have charging cases whose industrial designs are clearly inspired by the futuristic genre. If that weren’t already clear from their looks, the names like Defense Armor, Defense Mecha, and Defense Crystal definitely make it explicit. Made from either zinc alloy or a “LEGO-like material prized for strength and rigidity,” each of these cases has a distinct character that would appeal to fans of certain subsets of the sci-fi genre. Defense Armor, for example, will be at home in the hands of a Cyberpunk 2077 fan, while Defense Mecha might have its DNA rooted in Gundam or Macross.

Tastes can differ, of course, and even the same people might change their tastes from time to time. What makes the Sirius P5 extra special is that you can actually swap the outer shells, provided you’ve purchased all three designs, of course. That’s because the actual charging component can be removed and inserted into different cases, allowing you to change your mind from time to time. There are also four RGB lights that can let you take personalization to the next level.

In terms of features, the earbuds sound (again, no pun intended) pretty basic, with support for Bluetooth 5.2, “environment” noise cancellation, and an IPX4 waterproof rating. The buds themselves can last for eight hours, while the charging case provides an additional 32 hours of use. All these make for a decent audio experience that probably won’t woo audiophiles, but its case will definitely be something you’d be proud to actually wear around your neck.

The post These wireless earbuds have sci-fi-inspired cases you will want to collect first appeared on Yanko Design.

This rugged portable speaker looks like a war-torn sci-fi space carrier

Posted on by

Portable wireless speakers come in many shapes and sizes, but most of them are designed to be easy to carry around, whether by hand or inside a bag. That means that typical designs revolve around conventional shapes like cylinders and bars, though a few speakers have unusual and interesting forms that try to grab your attention. There are, of course, always exceptions to those rules, and some portable speakers seem to prioritize appearances over portability, especially when they’re just in concept form. This particular wireless speaker is an example of the latter, and while it uses one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of rugged equipment as its muse, it can easily be mistaken for a miniature model of some sci-fi spaceship.

Designer: Harry Rigler

A spaceship naturally has to be made to be able to withstand many dangerous forces outside of our control. One that could be carrying a fleet of smaller battleships needs to be extra tough to survive enemy fire. Given its purpose, this kind of ship doesn’t need to have an elaborate design, which is almost a perfect model for something that’s designed to be used in an industrial setting today.

The Aurras speaker concept tries to take its design cues from Caterpillar, better identified by its CAT logo, a brand whose heavy equipment has become a de facto standard in the industry. It has even lent its name to smartphones that try to capitalize on the company’s fame for producing rugged products. This speaker’s black, white, and orange motif try to convey that association beyond the telltale logo, but you can’t be blamed if you connect the design with something totally unrelated to heavy machines used in construction.

The speaker looks like something that would be coming out of an outer space warp gate, carrying inside it other spaceships. The trapezoidal shape and industrial appearance give it an almost militaristic look in this context. You can almost expect the front of the device to lower like a drawbridge and unleash dozens of smaller ships upon enemy forces.

Despite its futuristic aesthetic, the Aurras’ design is pretty simple and utilitarian. There are three knobs along the top to control treble, bass, and volume. Everything else is operated using a smartphone or any other device connected via Bluetooth. The back has a single port for a USB-C cable to charge the battery inside, though it might also be possible to connect it to a sound source that way.

Beyond its appearance, the concept is also interesting in its actual construction. It’s designed to be easy to take apart using an Allen key, making it more trivial to swap out components or shells to customize its look. Its aluminum and HDPE plastic shell were also chosen to give it actual ruggedness, helping it survive present-day enemies such as accidents. Whether it’s sitting on a workshop table or hanging around in our gaming room, the Aurras portable speaker concept tries to look good and hopefully sound good as well, bringing some enjoyment to what could be a busy day of work or play.

The post This rugged portable speaker looks like a war-torn sci-fi space carrier first appeared on Yanko Design.

This USB Hub concept brings a literal docking station to your desk

Posted on by

A lot of products these days extol the virtues of minimalist design, but one computer accessory idea goes the opposite direction to turn your workstation into a miniature battle station.

The number of devices we’ve become dependent on has grown considerably in the past few years. Ironically, the number of ports we can use to connect these with our computers has actually gone down. Some laptops, for example, have reduced those connectivity options to two USB ports, one of which might even be the only way to charge the portable computer. This has given rise to an innumerable number of so-called USB hubs and docks, most of which try to blend into the background. One concept, however, throws that convention out the window and tries to give science and science-fiction fans something to drool over.

Designer: Junwan Woo

“Docking station” isn’t a new term, but its meaning really depends on the context. For computer users, this often refers to accessories that expand the number of ports you can use. For space enthusiasts and sci-fans, it’s often a place where spaceships find their temporary home. In both cases, the docking station is almost like a metaphor for new experiences, and this hub, simply called “Docking,” puts a literal spin on that.

Instead of the small and nondescript USB docks that litter stores these days, the Docking station is bigger than what its function requires. It only has three full-sized USB ports, for example. Smaller hubs and docks than these also have room for HDMI ports, Ethernet ports, and more. Then again, as a concept, the implementation can be expanded as long as they don’t detract from the main design.

That design is, of course, a miniature docking station for USB drives in the shape of miniature ships. Although the ships look generic, the weathered white exterior of the station and orange accents are almost reminiscent of Rebellion colors in Star Wars. And as with any other Star Wars technology, the design looks both futuristic and retro at the same time.

The USB thumb drives themselves don’t seem to have anything special about them. Each USB port, however, lights up when something is inserted inside, a redundant indicator that still fits perfectly with the theme. Unfortunately, putting any other USB with a different design breaks the illusion, but the dock itself is already something worth talking about on its own.

It’s also going to take up a lot of desk space, but you wouldn’t be buying something like this just to keep your workstation looking tidy and clean. It’s a rather ingenious idea that mashes together two different interpretations of the same term, and it’s one of those concepts we wished actually got turned into a product you can buy.

The post This USB Hub concept brings a literal docking station to your desk first appeared on Yanko Design.

This tiny home concept envisions life in a lush, alien world

Posted on by

If we’re going to start thinking about living on a different planet, we might as well dream of living in a world that’s in a much better state than our own.

We are thinking of how we’d live on the Moon or on Mars, mostly because those are the only places we know outside our planet where it is even remotely possible to set up a colony. We haven’t given up searching for more inhabitable worlds, of course, and visionaries haven’t given up imagining the possibility of finding one that is as green and fresh as our Earth millennia ago. If ever we do find something like that, how would we start building our houses? One designer has sought to answer those questions, visualizing what peaceful life would be like on a planet like Pandora.

Designer: Rohit Dhote

For those who haven’t seen it yet, Pandora is the center of the drama in the critically-acclaimed and also heavily criticized film “Avatar.” The planet was portrayed as “primitive” by Earth standards, even though there were elements that defied even the science and technology of that fictional future. Of course, there’s more than meets the eye, but it’s hard to deny that the richness of the natural environment is only something we could wish for our own dying planet.

The designer of this particular concept entitled “Nestled on Pandora” visualizes tiny homes perched on or carved into the floating rocks native to that alien planet. Given the size of these levitating boulders, tiny homes won’t just be a lifestyle choice but also a necessity. Then again, when you’re one of the first people setting up a home in a new world, you probably won’t have much stuff to bring with you anyway.

The house is a rectangular block that could almost be made from a container van, with one of its ends chopped off to give an unobstructed view of the planet’s flora and fauna. There’s a helipad for aircraft because that’s the only way you’ll be able to get on or off this kind of housing. Although not part of this concept, the designer’s “Green Recluse” lounge chair is almost the perfect furniture for such a home, reflecting the luscious greenery of the untouched world.

Finding a planet with floating rocks is almost an impossibility, but the ideas laid out in this concept aren’t that far-fetched. It takes a look at the environment and builds habitats that blend into that environment rather than destroying it. It’s a principle that we could definitely still use here on Earth or, in the near future, a mindset we should definitely follow once we start colonizing Mars.

The post This tiny home concept envisions life in a lush, alien world first appeared on Yanko Design.

Star Wars + other sci-fi-inspired automotive designs for sci-fi lovers to geek out over!

Posted on by

Sci-fi has always been a major source of inspiration for automotive designers! Whether it’s sci-fi movies, TV shows, or even books – designers have been picking up inspiration cues, and ideas from iconic series and phenomena such as Star Wars, Star Trek, Back to the Future, Blade Runner, and more! The result? Super cool and innovative sci-fi-inspired automotive designs that leave science fiction and automotive lovers wanting more! Although these designs are usually concepts, they still manage to impress you with their futuristic looks, advanced functionality, and menacing speed. And we’ve curated some unconventional concepts that you would love to see on the road someday!

The Pandemax Concept by Radek Štěpán is unconventional, to say the least. It has a distinct Star Wars-inspired aesthetic and those all-terrain tires and that high ground clearance really implies the car could easily work on the roughest of alien terrain. Designed to be a sort of explorer vehicle or manned rover, the Pandemax comes with two seats that are at the absolute front of the vehicle, with a panoramic windshield that lets the explorers get a full view of the terrain and landscape ahead of them. Sure, there are a few questions that come to mind too, especially regarding driver safety and also the center-of-gravity, given that the drivers are sitting outside the car’s wheelbase. However, it’s a neat aesthetic exploration of an interplanetary vehicle if you ask us.

The Polestar 1K is a racing car no doubt but without a driver. Its Speed Racer-inspired aesthetic doesn’t include a cockpit, is developed entirely for roboracing, and comes with a pretty obvious disdain for humankind – something made pretty evident by the fact that its rear lower wing has Death To All Humans written on it! Breës developed this sci-fi beauty taking inspiration from the evil, assassin T-1000 from Terminator 2. The electric hypercar is equipped with cameras on all ends, including a 360° camera on its central watchtower, leaving no blind spots. If that wasn’t enough, the antagonistic autonomous automobile even comes with a secretly evil AI brain!

Tamás Jakus’ Equus Kylo bike celebrates the malevolent dark force that is Kylo Ren. The bike comes in a signature black paint job complete with Kylo Ren’s ‘logo’ on the side of the vehicle between two wheels, and a headlight that looks directly inspired by Ren’s own helmet. Just like the helmet, the bike’s headlight sports multiple chrome strips that travel horizontally before extending down the sides, giving the bike its signature piercing glare… and if that wasn’t enough, there’s even an illuminated red bird logo on the side that looks like a wonderful abstraction of Kylo Ren’s lightsaber.

Adapting the elements of Tesla’s Cybertruck frame, SpaceX’s Mars colonizing dreams, and NASA’s Mars rover – this concept design is straight out of a sci-fi future. Retaining the cardinal points for the overall structural design of the vehicle, Lee envisions it to be a renewable energy powered car – again having origami-inspired solar panels on the rear that expand to harness the sun’s energy when the vehicle is parked. Set sometime in the distant future where we will be able to freely scout the surface of planets in our solar system, the Tesla Origami concept car comes with a reinforced exoskeleton body for rigidity and airless tires to adapt to the terrain. The ultra-sharp design of this futuristic concept is well balanced with the fat tires, giving the four-wheeler a distinct appeal that’s truly unmatchable.

Just on face value, the Horizon Cavorite X5 looks like an absolute sci-fi wet-dream. It sports the aesthetic of a sleek stealth-bomber, and comes with wings that, get this, split open to reveal multiple fans underneath (yes, wings with FANS!) These fans help the EVTOL take off and land vertically (like a helicopter) on a landing pad, and the outer covers close shut to turn the X5 into a wing-based aircraft that can hit speeds of up to 350 km/h (217mph). The Cavorite X5 comes named after a fictional super-material first mentioned in H.G> Wells’ 1901 book The First Men in the Moon, which, when cooled, can cancel out the effects of gravity. The plane takes on those very characteristics too, with its unique ability to hover vertically before flying like a normal plane. With an LS V8 engine onboard and a relatively modest battery system, the Cavorite X5 can achieve cruise speeds of up to 350 km/h, traveling as far as 500 kilometers while carrying cargo.

The Tesla x SpaceX x BTTF combination comes from the mind of Charlie Nghiem, a maverick automotive designer who’s even made a Tesla x Rimowa concept collab. This holy-trinity mashup features both of Elon Musk’s current ventures, electric automobile company Tesla, and space exploration venture SpaceX, along with an unlikely third, the DeLorean from Back To The Future (Musk is a Rick and Morty fan, so maybe he loves BTTF too?) The car looks like a pimped-out Tesla Roadster complete with all the trims and the massive afterburners from the BTTF automobile. The car’s even got a hoverboard casually resting against its side, and features a SpaceX logo at the base of the C pillar, because where they’re going, they don’t need roads.

Let’s take you on a ride into a mythical world where strange creatures rule the land and mysteries remain to be unraveled. Or perhaps, a distant future when humankind has been erased from the face of planet earth and beings with superior powers exist. This hover concept car dubbed ‘Loki’ is from that very realm giving us the opportunity to let loose our imagination. The flying car bears the character of Loki, the notorious god in Norse mythology. Imagined by industrial designer Christian Grajewski set in a sci-fi world of alien creatures, the hover vehicle has a glimpse of the trickster god who loves playing pranks on his fellow gods as well as their opponents. The mischievous smile is apparent in the front grill (with futuristic LED lights) that’s elevated at the corners. The profound shark fin also adds a mythical character to the concept car, while the aerodynamic flowing design right from the front to the rear lives up to the hover design.

apocalyptic_vehicles_1

apocalyptic_vehicles_2

50% impossible, 50% real vehicle, and 100% awesomeness, the Apocalyptic Vehicle series by Jomar Machado gives us a taste of what our rides would look like if the world collapsed into collective chaos. An early adopter of 3D modeling (back in 1994), Machado became a master of his craft. His love for the art and production of films like Star Trek, Stars Wars, Babylon 5, Dune, and Blade Runner helped him develop a distinct style, something very evident from his current work. The vehicles below (and above) combine real cars with impossible technology and military-grade weapons to give us something that looks right out of Death Race, or Carmageddon, or Mad Max (but less dusty).

Designer Simon Grytten has thought something out of the box and penned it down in the form of sketches for his version of a bike that’s apt for Mars missions. He calls it the NASA Bike and Grytten has designed the mock-up in a way that makes it just more than a medium of transportation. It can charge its own battery as well as the battery of the base station by harnessing the wind energy courtesy of the prominent storms of the planet. NASA Bike turns into a wind turbine when not in use which is a mindful utility in a space where everything needs to be resourceful. The bike plugs into the charging station which is a big generator to keep things running on the hostile planet. For riding the two-wheeler has a very bare-bones basic design for obvious reasons since one is not going to drive it for the thrill of riding, rather get from one place to another, safe and sound.

Lukas Haag who’s an automotive designer with a fair experience at Mercedes-Benz has created the blueprint of a BMW concept that is an improvement on his earlier concept design dubbed Connected Dynamics created way back in 2014. This renewed vision of a hair-raising four-wheeler with a refreshing CMF-concept lies right in the realms of automotive designs that strike the right balance between form and function. A very tightly knit body design that flows from the front to the back, urging the onlookers to just be bemused by its presence on the road. The wide stance makes the car generate tons of aerodynamics efficiency and the assurance to stay glued to the tarmac as speeds hit in excess of 185 miles per hour. From what I can assume, the shortened hood of this concept and elongated rear points towards an electric drive train much like the official BMW Group’s concept cars in the Vision series.

HBO Max’s ‘Made for Love’ stars a woman with a surveillance chip in her head

Posted on by
HBO Max has released a teaser for a series called Made for Love, which might give you a good reason to avoid getting too close to tech billionaires. Cristin Milioti plays Hazel Green, a woman who escapes an oppressive, decade-long marriage by fleeing...