Where do you look for iPhone and iPad accessories? Your local Best Buy? The online Apple Store? There are lots of places to look, but one destination in particular has become my go-to spot for accessory browsing: Kickstarter.

The crowd-funding site, which invites users to invest in various projects with small sum “pledges” that only have to be paid if a project reaches its funding goal, is a breath of fresh air for a jaded iDevice accessory shopper like myself. And Kickstarter projects associated with Apple hardware seem to have a knack for doing well, both on the site and after achieving funding. Dan Provost, co-designer of the Glif and the Cosmonaut (both listed below), shared with me his opinion of why Kickstarter has prompted so many interesting Apple-related projects:

To a smaller degree, the influx of Apple accessories on Kickstarter has mirrored the deluge of apps into the App Store back in 2008. Apple has created an amazing tool in the iPhone, and people are excited to build things for it. Apple enabled individuals to publish software on the iPhone in 2008 with the opening of the App Store, and it seems Kickstarter has created that same enthusiasm for hardware.

Considering how many Apple accessories currently populate Kickstarter (a lot), and the frequency with which they appear (very often), I’d agree. Here’s a look at some of the best iPhone, iPod and iPad-related projects Kickstarter has brought us so far.

1. TikTok + LunaTik

Apple’s iPod line has been overshadowed by the iPhone and iPad for quite some time now, but that didn’t stop the bite-sized music player it unveiled last fall from sparking the imaginations of many an accessory maker. Designer Scott Wilson was one of those who saw great potential in the 2010 iPod nano, and he came up with something that fits seamlessly with Apple’s own minimalist sensibilities.

Wilson created the TikTok and LunaTik, two watchband accessories for the iPod nano, based on the idea that users would be willing to pay more for a quality product, instead of just spending only a little bit of money on the nano straps rushed out the door by the usual suspects. The TikTok and LunaTike proved he was right, raising nearly million on Kickstarter, before eventually finding a place on Apple Store retail shelves. The TikTok retails for .95, and the LunaTik is .95

2. Glif

iPhone photography is not a new phenomenon, but it seems to be taking off as the quality of the device’s camera improves. But for all their enthusiasm, mobile photo buffs still run into the limitations inherent in using a smartphone camera. Stability and shooting in low-light situations definitely number among those weaknesses. The Glif, designed by Dan Provost and Tom Gerhardt, aimed to fix some of the problems with iPhone photography in a simple way.

The Glif is a single piece of hard rubber with a metal threaded tripod mount that snugly grips your iPhone 4. It works wonderfully, as I discovered, letting you use your iPhone with any standard tripod, and other useful photo accessories like the Joby GorillaPod. The Glif might have been possible without Kickstarter, Glif designer Provost says, but the site “does so much more than just money raising.” According to Provost, it also “creates and fosters an enthusiastic community around your product, which is invaluable.” The Glif retails for .00.

3. GoPano micro

Another project related to iPhone photography (they aren’t exactly a rarity), the GoPano micro also achieved Kickstarter success. It’s a case/attachment combo that allows the iPhone 4 to record 360-degree videos, which you can then upload and share to the GoPano website.

This relatively small and inexpensive add-on for the iPhone is a classic Kickstart project: a product that appeals to such a relatively small niche of customers that it probably wouldn’t otherwise get made. But for realtors, nature lovers and others who might benefit from the tech, it’s an amazing device at a great price, and judging by the GoPano micro’s nearly 0,000 in funding, many agree. The GoPano micro will retail for around when it becomes available.

4. PadPivot

Holding the iPad for longer periods of time can be a bit of a challenge. Designer Bernie Graham recognized that, and created the PadPivot, which features a ball-and-socket design, combined with a contoured base to make it easier to perch your iPad on your thigh at an easy angle for viewing. In my review, I couldn’t really find anything bad to say about the finished product.

Graham says that while he likely could’ve made the PadPivot a reality without Kickstarter, the site streamlines things and really allows entrepreneurs to focus on the process. And having watched along as the PadPivot made its way through funding, to production, to being retail-ready, you really see the advantage of Kickstarter from a small manufacturer’s perspective, as well as the challenges that ramping up to full-scale production present. The PadPivot will retail for around when it becomes available.

5. The Cosmonaut

Dan Provost and Tom Gerhardt had so much fun creating the Glif on Kickstarter that they went back for seconds. The Cosmonaut, another project to break 0,000 in funding, is an iPad stylus designed based on how users actually draw on their iPads. The project was unusual in that it started out with a risky “pay what you wish” option, where every backer who pledged at least would receive a pre-order of the finished product.

Luckily, the gambit seems to have worked out in Provost and Gerhardt’s favor, as you can tell by the success of the initial funding. It also reflects well on the Kickstarter community that it rewards smart design, even when given leeway to take advantage. The Cosmonaut will retail for when it becomes available.

6. The Oona

Looking for a flexible iPhone mount that can stick to a variety of surfaces? The Oona can do that, and more. It works as an in-car windshield mount, a desk stand, a tripod attachment and even an under-the-cupboard clip for browsing recipes. Like the other projects listed here, it’s also stylish, showing off considerable design talent from the team of Brad Leong, Danny Fukuba and Sam Gordon.

The Oona managed to exceed its funding goal by more than 0,000, and is now accepting pre-orders with a four- to eight-week lead time. The Oona retails for .00 now in pre-orders, and .95 once it becomes widely available.

7. MySaver

The last project on this list, Thomas Lehman’s MySaver, has yet to be fully funded. But the problem it addresses is so widespread that I have faith it’ll exceed its goal. The MySaver addresses the tendency of iPhone, iPod and iPad cables to wear out near the points where they connect to the USB or dock connector ends. This has eventually happened to nearly all of my iPhone USB cables.

The MySaver comes in two flavors: a DIY version for upgrading your own cables at home, and a Pro version that comes pre-assembled with a high-quality OEM dock connector to USB cable of its own. The project is a smart idea, solves a common failing, and something we haven’t yet seen from the usual crowd of established accessory makers. The MySaver can be pre-ordered with a Kickstarter pledge for the DIY version, or a pledge for the Pro version.

That’s just a sampling of some of the best and brightest Kickstarter has to offer. Got any other suggestions we missed? Share them in the comments.

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Even though I’m not a massive fan of many television shows, there have been a number of great comedy programmes in recent times which are still as hilarious now as the first time I watched them and definitely stand up to repeated viewing. Thinking about it my absolute favourites are generally those which take place in a different era from now. I’ve formed the theory that the reason for this is that a series based in the present will look old fashioned in a few years time – the references which are current now will no longer be, fashions and hairstyles will have altered and the whole concept will appear to be a bit jaded.

Of course for those programmes which are not set in current times, that issue doesn’t exist. Those which are set in the past are already dated, but in a such a way that we don’t object as we know it’s meant to be. So it’s more like reading a history book as opposed to today’s newspapers. Programmes which take place in the future, of course, only need to appeal to our imagination. It’s impossible to know if their depiction of life many years from now is even a little accurate, but it’s not a problem because it’s realistic enough to keep us interested and at the same time, it’s strange enough to make us curious.

I guess my three favourite comedy programmes (though not necessarily in this order) would be Dad’s Army, Blackadder and Red Dwarf. Having parents who were alive during World War II, albeit as children, I suppose it was inevitable that they would relate to some of the situations that the gentlemen of the Home Guard got themselves into, and the gentle humour with little more than subtle innuendo once in a while would have appealed to their sensibilities.

From my point of view, looking at it from a child’s viewpoint, I loved the two younger characters, Walker and Pike. I guess it’s natural for a child to warm to the people you stand the most chance of being able to relate to. Having seen countless episodes as an adult, I now see how spot on the casting was for every character, and it’s fair to say that, maybe apart from Ian Lavender, all of those actors will always be best remembered for their Dad’s Army character. Every part within the programme was just perfectly written, from Wilson’s middle class politeness, to Fraser’s typical Scottish characteristics, Walker’s ‘wide boy’ behaviour and Captain Mainwaring’s pompous leadership style. (And I’m sure he would have been ordered to have Laser eye surgery if it was these days? It would have been a drag to be constantly fiddling with those glasses in a combat situation!)

The creation of the Blackadder character was a great TV moment. The medieval prince, who starts to name himself The Black Adder, and his descendents wreak havoc throughout history throughout the four series, and the viewer witnesses a more and more devious Blackadder character, together with a progressively intellectually challenged Baldrick in the time of Elizabeth I, during the Regency and taking part in the First World War. Again, the casting was outstanding, especially the main characters. I’d be hard pushed to choose a favourite series, much less a favourite character, and the presence of so many renowned actors in most episodes makes the task even more unachievable.

Red Dwarf, at the opposite extreme, is set way in the future on a mining ship on which nearly all of the crew perished three million years earlier after a radiation leak. One human survived having been in suspended animation when the accident took place. For any folk not familiar with the programme, the the events that follow are possibly not what you want to read here. To those who are fans, I expect you’re already quoting pieces of the script as you read this! Again, the cast is extremely important to the programme, a fact which was more than proven after two US efforts at pilots for the show flopped disasterously. The four leading actors really made the characters their own, and I really can’t imagine liking an episode of the show with anyone else playing Lister, Rimmer, Kryten or The Cat. The incompetence of the crew only serves to make their adventures more amusing, though I’ve always wondered why a comparatively sophisticated spaceship doesn’t actually possess the Laser eye weapons that The Cat kept saying that they should use. But all the same, they always come out on top in the end.

There are other comedy shows which I also love watching – The Mighty Boosh and The IT Crowd are both close to the top of the list. And although they don’t exactly fall into the categories of past or future, The Mighty Boosh most definitely takes place in some type of nearby universe – a planet where a talking ape and a man who consists solely of a pink head are considered quite normal members of the community and where almost anything might happen. The imaginations of writers Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt must be exceptionally creative. I await the next series with interest and am totally expecting more strange and wonderful characters to appear – perhaps one with Laser eye sight, or another with roller blades instead of feet. In the land of The Mighty Boosh anything is possible! I think that The IT Crowd also partly exists in an alternate dimension – a place in which someone blurs the line between what could really happen and what has to happen to make the show a success.

I suppose, ultimately, that the fact that all of these shows exist in places beyond my reality probably explains why they appeal to me so much – maybe I wish to be somewhere else too. (Most logically in an opticians finding out about Laser eye surgery if I don’t stop playing so many DVDs!)

What a wrongheaded, quixotic, and yet opportunistic and callous idea. A cardboard PC. Now, they’re launching a product I was careful to denounce several months ago, and all my objections still apply. Take a moment to read why a cardboard PC is just the epitome of foolishness, or just glance over these handy bullet points:

• Corrugated cardboard will retain heat, limiting life of parts
• Corrugations will become clogged with dust, exacerbating insulation effect
• Cardboard is fragile, absorbent, and impossible to repair
• Expandability is very limited
• Only one 2.5″ HDD bay and it’s stuffed into the cardboard – obviously a heat risk
• The “limited to bare bones” is the same as almost any other computer
• Hello, cardboard is flammable, and parts of your computer get hot enough to burn things
• The case is perhaps the only part of a computer you don’t need to throw away, ever
• Would you buy a computer from people who misspelled power supply, ventilation, through, perimeter, and call RAM “RAM memory,” all on their spec page — a solitary JPEG?

The thing is, these guys have to know this stuff. They couldn’t design a case without knowing something about all this, but they’re doing it anyway. It’s a very disingenuous statement, and one that’s open to misinterpretation. “Now your computer is disposable!” That’s what people will take away from this. If they’re serious about this, these guys should be applying their green sensibilities and engineering experience elsewhere. If they’re just cashing in on the fact that green sells right now, then I we can just put them in the pile with Asus, whose transparently un-green “bamboo laptop” creates only the thinnest veneer of ecological awareness.

Look, I’m all for making things greener. But putting a cardboard shell around a bunch of toxic metal and plastic and calling it eco-friendly is bullshit of the highest order. We need to focus on consumer education so people don’t throw out entire PCs. People should know what they were buying, how to upgrade their computer or keep it working, or how to keep it in use after they buy a new one (home media server, anybody). This unbelievably inadequate band-aid (if we can even call it that) is the exact opposite of what needs to happen.

[Recompute, via The Next Web]

It was only two weeks ago that the Windows 7 Launch Party video cut a burning swath across the internet, leaving only scorched sensibilities and a feeling that you’d lost something fundamental never to be regained. We lied to ourselves then that it couldn’t be more than a blip on the radar, a PR pitch gone awry and furtively uploaded, unfit for human consumption as it was — a tainted morsel of the promotional meat grinder. And to be honest, I was ready to let it lie. But it wasn’t just a morsel. Little did we know, the Windows 7 launch sausage factory would be squeezing gristle into our inboxes regularly — and now they’ve gone and sent us party favors.

Behold the signs you’re to hang on your cursed abode when the dread night comes. Behold the guide to family-friendly entertainment (show your guests how to turn your party into a movie!). Nervous about being a host? I know Matt is. Maybe he should bone up on Microsoft trivia so he’ll be a hit at the party.

Whoever put this campaign together is the Tiger Woods of fail. It’s heinous! First, how did they expect people to do these parties? Without irony? No, that was never an option. Or rather, they removed it from the list of options we had as soon as they made that faux-earnest video. Second, and I know this was pretty much settled in the comments of the video post, but that video is a goddamn travesty of the first order. I just wanted to have that registered here, officially. Thirdly, who put this website together?

These are supposed to be signs that you print? Since when is it even possible to make a 379KB JPEG with such bad aliasing that the nerdy guy from the video gets crazy eyes? Let’s take a closer look at the printable PDF. Please click the following to see just how bad it is.

Who puts out official promo materials you’re supposed to print, at such low resolution that it’d be pixelated if I printed it out at 3×5″, let alone poster-size? And look at the Windows 7 logo! Nice white drop shadow you’ve got there!

But the nitpicking really isn’t necessary. The very concept of these “favors,” the very idea that you are supposed to take this thing seriously, is a harpoon to the very heart of humanity. I have nothing against Microsoft (except, of course, for this, now) but if this is their best attempt at fulfilling the needs of their customers at such a critical time as an operating system switch, it’s a catastrophic, grotesque, mind-boggling failure.

In most cases, a nerd standing on a beach is like the Queen of England standing on stage at a strip club. It just isn’t right. However, these 10 gadgets can make you feel more at home.

I don’t think I need to explain the merits of a drivable beer cooler to anyone—much less nerds used to a sedentary lifestyle. The Cruzin’ Cooler can hit speeds of 15mph with a payload of 24 12oz cans on board. [Cruzin' Cooler and 19th Hole Carts via Link]
The Grinch Winch features a tow rope and a 7HP engine that will hurl you head on into the surf. [Distortionboarding via Link]
I would hope that you are smart enough to generously apply SPF 50 sunscreen to that pasty body of yours, but you still might need a backup to prevent overexposure to the sun. The Minox Suntimer monitors UV rays and sounds an alarm when it thinks you’ve had enough. [Optix Planet and Link]
For the gadget fanatic, it’s not enough to merely admire the underwater landscape, it must be recorded. Thanko’s underwater video camera (25fps QVGA) is small enough to mount on a pair of goggles. [Link]
Of course you brought your laptop to the beach. As sad as that is, the LapDome was tailor made for people like you. Basically, it’s a mini tent for your laptop that protects it from the elements while shielding the screen from from that unfamiliar fiery orb in the sky. [LapDome via Link]
When a simple beach chair just won’t do, the Astone inflatable massage chair will provide a more luxurious solution. In addition to the vibrating massage pads, the chair also features a dock for your iPod, speakers and a handy remote control. [Axpertz via Link]
In keeping with your nerdy sensibilities, this unique surfboard was designed by Thomas Meyerhoffer—a guy that spent time working at Apple and was a driving force behind the design of Chumby. [Myerhoffer via Link]
If you are going to be out in the sun, you are going to need a pair of sunglasses. This Calvin Klein model look a bit Blues Brothers, but it does feature 4GB of storage. [Link]
It’s a shark! It’s a submarine! No, it’s some fat guy wearing a Superman wetsuit. If you can imagine it, the guys at Wetwear Custom Wetsuits can make it. [Wetwear]
When you are a guy and you have a set of man jugs like this, do us all a favor and wear a man bra with a t-shirt over it. [Link]

Some people prefer earphones that blend in so much no one can tell they’re even being used, while others like their gadgets to stand out from the crowd. If you fall into the latter crowd, the Skullcandy iCon Soft headphones might be right up your alley.

This on-ear model …

Originally posted at iPod accessories