Around The Home

Nothing can rescue a bland meal quite like fresh herbs, but not everyone has access to outdoor space to grow their own. That's where indoor smart gardens come in, and the latest from Plantone allows growers to use regular soil and seeds.

Chinese researchers claim they've come up with a novel 3D-printed toilet bowl, impregnated with lubricant, that'll make toilet brushes redundant. Unlike non-stick coatings, this one stays slippery even if you sandpaper it until it's wafer-thin.

The original Barsys cocktail machine looks like it belongs only in an actual bar. The new Barsys 360, however, is more a piece of high-tech home decor, immersing one's glass in a vertical amphitheater of mixology with the skills of an ace bartender.

Just because it's easier to transport a heavy load in a wheelbarrow, doing so can still be a lot of hard work. That's where the eBarrow Kit comes in, as it quickly adds an electric boost to your existing wheelbarrow.

I grew up with a ready supply of freshly picked greens and veggies from my parents' garden, but apartment dwellers don't have such luxuries. This is where indoor growing units can help, and the Nutroponics Garden Tower can host up to 100 plants.

There are already ant farms that let people watch ants, and even a sealed termite colony for folks who prefer something a little different. Now there's the round, transparent Ivry-B beehive, that allows users to engage in some quality bee-watching.

Platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo have helped bring many garage projects to life, but more and more companies are using them to sound out ideas for future products. The latest is from LG in the shape of its first capsule coffee machine.

Barbecue is serious business, and some of the most serious about it hail from Texas. Chemist Jeremiah Gassensmith insists that while it's as much an art as a science, knowing more about the "circus of chemicals" can help anyone master a brisket.

There are now several devices that help you keep food waste out of landfills by converting it to compost … but what if you don't have a garden? Well, the Mill converts such waste into dried grounds which are sent off to feed chickens.

At CES 2023 in January, Samsung hatched a plan to stem the tide of microfibers shed during washing cycles from entering seas and oceans via a special wash program and an external filter. Now that Less Microfiber Filter has launched.

Just over 10 years ago, WobbleWorks took sketching into a new dimension when it launched a Kickstarter for its 3Doodler 3D-printing pen. Now the company is hoping to do the same for the world of baking with the ChefDoodler.

All was peaceful and gently sucky in the robot vacuum world – at least until this morning, when Dyson thundered in, Dysoning everything in its path, unleashing a fearsome 110,000 RPM Hyperdymium-driven beast that sucks six times harder than any other.

It was just last year that we told you about the MetMo Driver, which was a modern take on the classic ratchet screwdriver. Well, its makers are now offering a smaller version, and it's appropriately named the MetMo Pocket Driver.

Eeva is a small, water and energy-efficient machine designed to sit where your laundry basket would normally sit – bedroom, bathroom, or even in an RV or caravan – no hoses required. It'll get a load of laundry washed and dried in 90 minutes.

Some people like to install a wooden seat on their toilet for its warmth, but the Block goes further. Described by Woodio as the world's first bio-material toilet, it ditches porcelain in favor of a modern toilet that's made from composite wood.