The Almighty Board: Designer Jaewan Jeong’s Almighty Board is a multifunctional tablet that suits any kitchen. When placed flat on a counter, the double-faced concept device’s scratch-proof glass surface can be used as a cutting board. For an enhanced cooking experience, its touchscreen system will concurrently display the food’s weight, a correlating recipe, and a checklist of ingredients. The Almighty Board also will display instructional videos with step-by-step directions, making it perfect for the timid cook. The waterproof tablet even indicates whether or not it has been properly washed, thus alerting cooks to any hygienic risks such as the presence of salmonella.

IQcook: A watched pot never boils…but a forgotten pot can lead to a real disaster. Should it hit the production line, design group Gorenje’s IQcook will bring an end to any such kitchen nightmares. The self-cooking stovetop allows users to boil, fry, steam and grill from any location. After one of the five preset modes (IQboil, IQpro, IQsteam, IQfry, and IQgrill) is selected, a magnetic sensor that attaches to any type of lid communicates wirelessly with the induction stove. The automatic controls adjust timing and temperature to prevent food from burning or pots from boiling over, and even optimizes the temperature to save up to 40% in energy consumption compared to the average stove.

Prisma Smart Kitchen: Italian kitchen manufacturer Toncelli unveiled its lustrous Prisma smart kitchen at this year’s Eurocucina trade show. Powered by Samsung Galaxy Tab technology, this kitchen island boasts a countertop-embedded tablet that both connects to the Web, allowing chefs to surf recipes and view demos while cooking, and controls basic kitchen functions, like fridge settings and stove temperature. Its exterior may appear austere, but the Prisma is subtly equipped with a cache of gadgetry, including a sliding cutting board, sleek door open/close mechanisms, invisible handles, and a built-in sink. While it’s difficult to imagine the preparation of farm-to-table fare in this Jetsons-style kitchen, its functionality is simplistic enough for even the staunchest culinary minimalist.

Shelter Co.: The longstanding pop-up trend has left its mark on retail shops, urban landscapes, and movie venues. Now, the concept is being applied to event planning. Billing itself as a “pop-up lodging service,” Shelter Co. creates temporary, comprehensive overnight accommodations—essentially fully furnished campgrounds—for experiential events. The planners at Shelter Co. can erect a cluster of European-style tents at almost any location, customizing the outdoor experience to clients’ specific occasions and needs. Standard accommodations include carpeted floors, wood-frame beds with comfy mattresses and down comforters, and lounge vignettes for group gathering. We suspect that this inherently romantic concept might spur an uptick in camp- (or glamp-) themed weddings.
AirHotel: Conceived and constructed by Belgian performance art group TimeCircus, AirHotel presents a novel approach to the glamp experience. This hotel-by-way-of-circus experiment is taking place this month in the woods of Norfolk, England, where TimeCircus has installed nine fantastical pods among the trees. The structures, which sit nestled in branches or hang just above the ground, sleep up to six people and boast cozy-quirky features like beds hidden within nests of actual twigs, an eco-friendly sauna, and complimentary dream journals. TimeCircus members are on-call to entertain, and tree-climbing chambermaids provide aerial concierge services. We can’t imagine much better visual material for Instagram-fanatics’ #PhotoADay attempts and competitive undertakings.

Minaret Station: The amenities at New Zealand’s Minaret Station are contained within canvas tents, but that’s about the extent of this nature retreat’s likeness to traditional camping. Located in the Southern Alps of NZ, the site is accessible only by air travel, and guests must be helicoptered in. On arrival they’ll find the aforementioned high-tented canvas lodges, outfitted with wall-to-wall sheepskin carpeting, en suite bathrooms with heated floors, and plenty of heated water—enough to keep a hot tub at the ready in every suite. Guests of adventurous spirit can partake in hiking and fly-fishing; those more hesitant can admire sweeping views of the glacial valley from the safety of their private decks.

Hologram Experience: Epcot’s Mission: SPACE ride continues to thrill the astronaut fantasies of theme park visitors, yet when it comes to the behind-the-scenes mechanizations of air travel, such simulations have remained elusive on the consumer level. As part of NYC’s Creative Week, GE collaborated with BBDO to create Throttle Up, a holographic immersion that afforded anyone the ability to experience the process of building and launching a jet engine. Staged at St. Ann’s Warehouse, the dramatic installation relied on motion-control and projection technologies to blanket the room with seemingly real 3-D engine parts, the assembly of which was gamified by Float Hybrid Entertainment.

Hologram Store Assistants: This winter, Walmart announced plans to end its 32-year tradition of posting “people greeters” at its store entrances. Given reports on the demise of big box retail dominance, this loss of high touch interaction feels counterintuitive—but as new forms of customer service surface, it’s possible that the hallmark could be reinterpreted in a high tech format. Indeed, Asda, the UK’s second biggest supermarket chain, has been testing hologram assistants in the aisles of select grocery stores. Though the technology has the potential to be an empty gimmick, it could, if executed thoughtfully, offer a novel form of added value to the in-store experience.

Holographic Chats: As useful as Google Hangouts and Skype are for staying in touch, the screens that divide people while chatting remain a barrier to intimate conversation. Getting us one step closer to more realistically imitating the familiarity of an in-person encounter, researchers at Queen’s University have invented a life-sized, 3-D video conferencing pod that enables users to see the person with whom they are talking in holographic form. The rendering is so life-like, it’s almost as if the participants are chatting together on a street corner. The device’s cylindrical body is irrefutably unsightly for home environments, but expect future iterations to be infused with a more elegant design sensibility—hopefully, one on par with Jem’s.

Destination: Mexico: The most recent focus of MoMA’s globally minded Destination: Design series is Mexico, indigenous home to the weaving tradition. Fittingly, some of the series’ most striking pieces feature a woven element with a modern slant. Elias Abadi employed a traditional Mayan technique to weave strips of recycled plastic into the Day of the Dead clutch; the Jam Collapsible side table by Rodolfo Samperio is fastened with a lace-up cotton rope hinge; and the Maria Bonita table features a hand-braided draped embellishment that suggests a loom. Elsewhere in the MoMA shop, Jessica Carnevale’s stretch chair and stool cleverly juxtapose traditional hand-woven construction with modern materials like bungee and latex cording.

Nike Flyknit: Following fellow shoemakers’ efforts at improving footwear sustainability, the new Nike Flyknit was designed to minimize waste during production. The sneaker features a woven fabrication that allows for a one-piece upper, no longer requiring multiple smaller pieces to be cut and cobbled together. Tightknit woven construction provides strength and support without sacrificing closeness of fit, and the shoe has been applauded for its impressively light weight (a size nine weighs in at just 5.6 ounces). The Flyknit line will premiere in stores this summer in the lead up to the 2012 Olympics. Design-minded sneakerheads can find a chicer take on the shoe in Nike’s corresponding HTM Flyknit line.

Marni Lawn Chairs: On the heels of its much-anticipated collection for H&M, fashion house Marni made a colorful impression at this year’s Salone del Mobile furniture expo. The brand debuted its inaugural, fashionable attempt at home furnishings, featuring 100 wicker lawn chairs designed in the traditional Colombian style—with thin, curved metal frames, and vibrant PVC thread woven into color block patterns. In a charitable twist, Marni transformed its manufacturing process into something of a rehabilitation program, employing former inmates of Colombian prisons to cut and weld the iron frames and weave the seating. Proceeds from the chair sales were donated to ICAM, an institute that provides for the children of imprisoned mothers.

Digital Bolex: The ubiquity of the digital video camera has afforded the everyman the ability to test out the director’s chair, but as evidenced by about 90% of the content on YouTube, most people are more interested in capturing images like the antics of their cat than crafting thoughtfully framed narratives. For more serious filmmakers, the appealingly retro Digital Bolex may become a fundamental tool in their aesthetic arsenal. The first consumer-oriented “digital cinema camera” shoots raw images rather than compressed video, meaning that the filmmaker can alter the color and white balance, contrast, and more, without spoiling the quality of the imagery. Aaaand action!

Magnifi: One of the marks of a committed nature enthusiast is a backpack loaded not just with granola bars, bungee cords, and protective raingear, but also an optical tool, whether it be a pair of binoculars for taking in the view from a mountain summit or a magnifying glass for inspecting insects (or starting a fire). Now, by using the Magnifi, amateur ecologists and astronomers can photograph their extreme close-up discoveries with the type of definition previously found only in the pages of National Geographic. The device, the first universal photoadapter case for the iPhone, works with most optical instruments to capture microscopic and/or celestial subject matter in exquisite detail.

Brydge: Tablet devices have yet to replace computers altogether, but iPad accessory Brydge could make the latter obsolete for many. The aerospace-grade aluminum keyboard add-on, which is fashioned to mimic the look and feel of the iPad, attaches to the Apple tablet via a click-in hinge that can be flexed nearly 180 degrees. Unlike most external keyboards, which fasten to the iPad somewhat clumsily, Brydge’s integration is surprisingly harmonious. Plus, because Brydge also functions as a durable tablet cover, there’s no need for an iPad case. Built-in speakers kick the sound system up several notches, allowing the iPad to double as a work station and bedroom cinema.

InstaDerby: Perfect for the photographer with a competitive spirit, new website InstaDerby challenges Instagram users to photograph and submit artistic images based on a weekly theme. From “chicken” to “robot” to this week’s “blue,” contestants snap their interpretation of the assignment, upload the photo, and then hashtag it. Entrants must then accumulate as many votes as possible by sharing the pic with their Instagram network, family and friends. The “Top 100 Stallions,” or photographers with the most votes, are featured on the InstaDerby homepage and leaderboard, and the winning Stallion is awarded an Instagram-themed prize like credits towards sites such as StickyGram, CanvasPop and InstaTees.

#WDESIGN: Instagram NYC and New York’s W Hotel partnered to host the city’s first ever Instagram photography show, “WDESIGN: An Instagram Exhibition.” Six participating Instagrammers were chosen for work that uniquely captured “the different elements of New York City: architecture, street art, patterns, and design,” as explained by Instagram NYC founder Brian DiFeo. Meanwhile, anyone could submit a photo with the hashtag #WDESIGN for a chance to have their city portraits shown in the exhibition. Even those who didn’t make it were entered into a contest, in which the grand prize was a two-night stay at the W in Times Square—a location seemingly made for ’gramming.

#IWONTGIVEUP: As one of the most popular users on Instagram, musician Jason Mraz launched a contest directed towards his large network of followers. For the release of his latest single “I Won’t Give Up,” fans were encouraged to visually translate the song into one photograph and post the picture to Instagram under the hashtag #IWONTGIVEUP. After scouring thousands of entries, including ones by celebrities like Selena Gomez, Mraz chose his 25 favorite submissions and had them printed on 20”x20” canvases provided by CanvasPop. The winners were invited to see their work on display at Animazing Gallery in New York City and received a print copy signed by Mraz in-person.

OneSense: As sound expert Julian Treasure testifies, the auditory and visual cacophony of our contemporary environment has led to a decline in listening capability—making it increasingly difficult to extract real meaning from sound. Working off this premise, designer Joe Doucet conceived a set of headphones that obscure intrusive sights and sounds, allowing wearers to focus wholly on the music at hand. The OneSense concept headphones wrap across the wearer’s eyes to prevent external sights from meddling with the music’s narrative, thus heightening the auditory experience. With its spiky, danger-red design, they’re sure to ward off unwanted intruders (but we don’t recommend them for your public transit commute).  

Dans Le Noir: The concept restaurant is no new fad, but few are likely to adhere as closely to concept as does Dans le Noir. Founded in Paris, with outposts in London, Barcelona, St. Petersburg, and now midtown New York, this restaurant pioneered the practice of dining in the dark. Customers are guided through a pitch-black dining space, where they rely on a staff of visually impaired servers to present their meals and provide tips on blind dining. All told, the experience gives patrons a firsthand understanding of the challenges of visual impairment, but also offers one unique pleasure: namely, complete immersion in the taste, texture, and scent of a meal.

Float On: Purposeful sensory deprivation is believed to ease anxiety, promote relaxation, and even stimulate meditative insights (not to mention an occasional mind-bending hallucination). Patrons seeking one or all of the above can test the waters at Float On, an isolation tank center in Portland, OR. In line with standard protocol, the tanks at Float On contain highly salinized water warmed to body temperature. Customers float in complete darkness and earplug-assisted silence to allow for complete physical and mental decompression. Float On also boasts a few community-friendly features, permitting broke locals to work shifts for float time, and encouraging inspiration-seeking artists, chefs, and musicians to float for free.

Threadflip: For those with an addiction to shopping, the burden of closet cleaning is often less about parting ways with a previously cherished item than it is about deciding how best to get rid of it. Such was the consumer insight (gleaned from his wife and her friends) that inspired engineer Manik Singh to launch Threadflip. The online bazaar simplifies the buying and selling of used clothing and accessories by synching listings with social network streams and by providing “end-to-end” service. Right after an item is purchased, Threadflip sends the seller prepaid shipping materials. Then, once the package is ready to go, the seller merely calls for a pick-up.

Gumroad: In today’s cluttered startup landscape, garnering consumer attention is challenging for an enterprise in its infancy. But, when a young digital impresario leaves a post at the third most popular social network to start his own service, people notice. Hence, the buzz surrounding Gumroad, a new e-commerce/social shopping platform from former Pinterest designer Sahil Lavingia. Created as a means to “democratize the ability to sell stuff online,” Gumroad gives makers of digital content a systemized way to distribute their work to their friends, fans and followers, whether it be a song, app, art piece, essay, or PowerPoint presentation. Indeed, if it can be shared, it can be sold.

Copious: The “social graph” is a term that’s been thrown around almost as much as “curation,” but few have implemented the concept successfully. Google Ventures-backed site Copious is based entirely on the idea. The platform facilitates peer-to-peer sales transactions akin to those of Craigslist, eBay, or any one of the many online classifieds, but its differentiating factor is that its marketplace exists entirely within each member’s unique social network. This affords sellers an unprecedented degree of transparency. So, rather than field email offers from strangers who may never show up at the appointed sale time, vendors can take comfort in selling to people they already know and trust.

If you had to choose one word or phrase to describe Turntable Kitchen, what would it be?

Inspired.

How do you define success for your enterprise?

I think that success lies in having a very clear and defined goal, and never losing sight of it. I also think staying true to your core—your brand—is really important. I always want Turntable Kitchen to feel authentic. And I want it to grow because people love it and believe in it. 

What is the one thing you wish you knew before you founded Turntable Kitchen?

I wish I knew that all good things come in due time. Doors open up if you work hard; you don’t necessarily have to knock them all down right away. 

What is the one thing you never want to hear (or, most want to hear) from a customer/user/client?

I’m particularly sensitive to negative feedback, so the last thing I want to hear is that someone was unsatisfied with the product they bought, or disappointed in a recipe. I know you can’t make everyone happy, but I sure try!

What compan[y]ies (other than your own) are you inspired by, and why?

I’m inspired by many companies. I work full-time at Evernote, and I’m constantly inspired by the work that we do. I’m inspired by fast and furious startups that challenge the norm, like Warby Parker. Early on, I was inspired by Instagram, and the co-founders’ focus on keeping things simple. I’m in awe of Etsy and the amount of thought that goes into their content strategy and the company’s community involvement. I’m also really inspired by bloggers-turned-businessesmen/women who’ve managed to monetize their content and also find new avenues for monetization (like Bri Emery, the creator of Blogshop). 

What is the next big thing?

Mobile. It’s actually already the next big thing. But it keeps getting bigger. 

What is the worst business idea you’ve heard?

Ha! I don’t think there are bad ideas, just bad execution and a lack of focus. So, as long as at least three people think you might be onto something, it’s worth trying!

Cinemagram: Apps like Viddy and Socialcam are starting to find an audience, but video sharing has yet to attract the numbers of photo sharing. Might it be that people find videos a little too real to share? Cinemagram may be a happy medium between the two genres. The iOS app can convert a brief video clip into an even more fleeting, two-to-three-second cinemagraph, complete with flattering filters, which can be shared within a social stream. It has a long way to go before it catches up to The $1 Billion App, but with one million users after launching just six weeks ago, it seems to be on track.

Flixel: The Action Movie FX app has found fans in would-be Hollywood stuntmen, but for those who prefer art house films to box office blow-ups, Flixel may be more to their liking. Recognizing that the technical expertise that Beck and Burg pour into their category-defining works is not attainable by the everyman, Flixel co-founder Mark Homza wanted to introduce a systemized way for people to add discreet animations to their photos. The resulting “living photo” app, which hit the iTunes store in March, captures video frames from still images, after which users simply swipe their digits over the area to which they want to add movement.

Kinotopic: Kinotopic likens its output to “the moving images in newspapers from a certain wizard themed series of movies.” The app conjures Harry Potter-style magic in the form of cinemagraphs, or what its creators call kinos. Unlike animated GIF apps, which create motion throughout an entire image, Kinotopic allows users to apply movement to a specific area by essentially finger-painting onto the screen (similar to how Flixel works). A menu of 12 filters makes the moving pictures look as spectacular as if a lighting crew had been there to film them. And though Kinotopic has a community element, users can keep their work private if they so choose.