Sure, the best part of the holidays is the presents being with your family, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t have some fun annoying them before you go back to post-holiday life.

These four gadgets will allow you to ruin Christmas without the mess of traditional pranks or the cost of booking the Grinch on December 25th.

The EvilTron

Absolutely nothing is more frightening than not being able to locate the source of a creepy sound.

The EvilTron is a microscopic device that emits a medley of terrifying noises. Just hide the EvilTron in the last place anyone would look, and patiently wait for your victim to have a nervous breakdown.

This fiendishly small device features six creepy sound choices perfect for frightening your “friends” and co-workers. Simply choose your favorite sound (or use the random mode), place it in a dark hiding spot and watch the madness begin. Perfectly suitable for dorm, office and home use. Or try putting it in someone’s car – that gets them every time.

The Phantom Keystroker

The Phantom Keystroker masquerades as a flash drive, but this nefarious device can emulate a keyboard and mouse, causing all sorts of digital mayhem.

To top it off, the device does not require any special drivers or software to run—just plug it in and watch as your victims struggle to compute.

The Keystroker emulates a keyboard and mouse and periodically makes random mouse movements, toggles caps-lock and types out odd garbage text and phrases. Switches on the side allow you to choose between keyboard garbage typing, caps lock-toggle, annoying mouse movements or all three.

Micro Spy Remote

Tired of watching boring Christmas specials with your parents? With the Micro Spy Remote, you can power off or change the channel and volume on nearly any TV (without any configuration!).

The remote is small enough to be discretely concealed so your siblings take all the blame, and costs just $5—making it the perfect secret weapon for budget-minded jokesters.

This little universal remote is the newest (secret) weapon in your arsenal to confuse hoards of TV viewers and perhaps save the free world as we know it. In seconds (just hold the mute button until the TV target mutes), you can take control of almost any television set, thus preventing S.M.U.S.H. propaganda from brainwashing what the Americans so cleverly refer to as “couch potatoes” (though, really, would anyone notice?)

WiFiKill for Android

WiFiKill was pulled from the Android Market for being too mischievous, but rooted (jailbroken) users can still sideload the app without too much trouble.

The program sends out de-authentication packets to other devices on the same network, allowing you to free up all the bandwidth for yourself by booting everyone else off.

WiFiKill is freakishly powerful, so remember: With great power comes great responsibility. Don’t use this app on public networks, or you’ll make many people very unhappy.

Well, with this app you can disable internet connection for a device on the same network. So if someone (anyone) is abusing the internet wasting precious bandwidth for a Justin Bieber videoclips you could just kill their connection and stay happy with a full bandwidth just for yourself.

Spending time with family is important. Grinching them will provide fun memories for years to come!

Smartphones that can tell the time in 40 different timezones are causing watches to become ancient relics, but, you can show your affection for the retro timekeepers of your childhood with these four watches that are unlike any other.

Casio Databank

First on the holodeck is the classic Casio Databank, which pairs a timeless frame that houses ten digits and four functions to a silicon band.

The databank is able to tell you the time and the tip, but the lack of a backlight or indiglo system will leave you in the dark once the sun sets.

The sexy CA53W also features dual-time and an alarm, as well as a chronograph in the unlikely event that you need to record your lap times.

The watch retails for $25, but can be found online for just $15—making it a no brainer for mathletes.

Watchismo Click

Watchmiso’s original Click watch ditches the standard plain casing found on most watches in favor of printed circuit board and steel, and replaces ordinary buttons with old school toggle switches.

The Click watch can output time in the standard hour:minute format, but if you’re feeling especially nostalgic, you can activate the bar graph metered time display with the literal flip of a dip.

The Click watch is $150, but you can’t put a price on the satisfaction of having raw hardware on your wrist.

Click KeyPad

The Click KeyPad watch is bulky, awkward, and to be perfectly honest, does a pretty bad job at telling time. But, the incredibly unique (yet familiar) design makes it the ultimate geeky accessory.

The face of the watch—if you can even call it that—is a ten digit number pad, and when a key is pressed, individual LEDs on each number light up in order to tell you the time.

It’s a perfect fit for the rare accountant with a sense of humor, or anyone who remembers the golden years of clicky keyboards.

The Click KeyPad will run you $90, although it’s a small price to pay for all those chicks you’ll inevitably pick up.

Nixie Tube Watch

Ah, the nixie tube watch. As seen on Steve Wozniak himself, the nixie watch from Cathode Corner is the only sure-fire way to establish your geek cred in the dark, seedy underbelly of inner city hackerspaces.

When you tilt the retro timepiece at a 45 degree angle, the cathode tubes glow red in the neon gas, illuminating the time in true 1960′s fashion.

The costly $395 price tag will weed out any hipsters, but this watch is the closest you’ll get to reliving the early days of modern computing—short of carrying around a mini punch-card machine.

Do you know anyone sporting a geekier watch than these? Leave a comment and tell us what it is!

Only two buttons and a scroll wheel can be rather limiting when raiding in World or Warcraft or hunting Zergs in StarCraft, so for your gaming pleasure, here are three uber-mice that have more buttons than Apollo 13 and pack more firepower than Rambo.

Cyborg R.A.T.

The Cyborg R.A.T. 7 looks like a Terminator that suffered a nasty explosion to the face, and its plethora of settings and buttons will help you do your own share of fragging. The mouse features an interchangeable weight system for maintaing a perfect balance, a precision aim mode for adjusting sensitivity on the fly, and a ‘twin eye’ laser sensor to deliver up to 5600 DPI—with 4 customizable resolution settings that can be quickly toggled during firefights on Battlefield 3.

Five buttons can be programmed to fit your needs, whether it be a predefined macro for slaying nooblets or a alternative to stretching your pinky to the limits attempting to crouch in Counter Strike.

Play to win with the R.A.T. 7. Uncompromising, unparalleled, and unmatched, the R.A.T. 7 helps you play like the pros, combining state-of-the-art technology with a jaw-dropping array of customizable features to produce the next step in the evolution of the mouse.

Vengeance M90

The 15 fully programmable buttons arranged near the thumb rest make the Corsair Vengence M90 perfect for MMO and RTS games. The mouse has a solid aluminium chassis with a soft exterior, so it won’t shatter when you get spawn killed for the umpteenth time. Up to six custom profiles can be saved to the on-board memory chip, so your personal configurations can travel with you to LAN parties.

Like the Cyborg, the DPI can be altered instantly, and the high-mass scroll wheel with tactile feedback allows you to confidently switch to your secondary weapon instead of accidentally pulling a useless smoke grenade out of hammer space.

Incredible responsiveness. Precise accuracy. Customizable, reliable controls. Intelligent design. The smallest details and the highly crafted refinements that make all the difference. Vengeance gaming peripherals aren’t typical gaming devices, but elite mice, keyboards and headsets that allow you to perform at your highest level. Brought to you by Corsair — people enthusiastic about performance gaming.

Razer Naga Epic

As its name suggests, the Razer Naga Epic is simply epic. The mouse separates itself from the pack by featuring dual wired/wireless functionality and 17 programmable buttons, 12 of which are aligned in a grid directly under your thumb. Three interchangeable side panels are included for finding that perfect fit, and the large humpback design prevents your delicate carpus from cramping up.

Even the backlight color can be customized to match the obnoxious glowing LEDs in your gaming rig.

The Razer Naga Epic MMO Gaming Mouse is the upgrade to the original award-winning and massively popular Razer Naga that shifts the balance between the keyboard and mouse with its 17 MMO-optimized buttons.

Now that’s a mouse.

Do you need a mouse as powerful as these? Leave a comment and let us know!

With 2012 right around the corner, I’ve been on the hunt for MacBook concepts. Generally my laptops only last a year before I spill something on them and have to buy a new one (you’d think I’d learn). I bought my latest MBP (MacBook Pro) in June, so I’m almost due for a new one.

Here are some of my fave concepts — it’s unlikely I’ll see these in stores anytime soon, so hopefully my current MBP can last a bit longer than it’s predecessor (a 4 month old MBP that had ice water dumped all over it).

Mac TriBook

Despite having a nice large cinema display, I’m always on the hunt for more screen space. If these side panels folded up nicely, I’d be one of the first in line.

These side panels would also be awesome for work while traveling or in a coffee shop where you can’t necessarily bring an external monitor.

MacBook Touch

I’ve seen quite a few different versions of this guy floating around. This is the one I think it most likely to actually be made:

It’s sleek, it’s beautiful and it’s simple enough that future versions can be built based upon it to be released in fairly quick succession.

MacBook Touch Bendable

This version of the MacBook touch created by Tommaso Gecchelin is all your favorite iDevices in one.

According to Gajitz, “Gecchelin has come up with a surprising new configuration that combines the best of a notebook, netbook and tablet.

His MacBook Touch design can go from the basic screen-and-keyboard layout to a full-size tablet to a two-sided tabletop display with ease. It’s not a dual-screen setup; rather, it’s one flexible touch screen integrated with the as-yet not invented technology called iSpine that will allow it unprecedented flexibility.”

MacBook 3D

It’s definitely pretty, but I can’t imagine Apple releasing a 3D MacBook that requires glasses.

I’m sure something like this will happen within my lifetime. I just don’t see it happening in 2012.

MagicBook & MacMini

Antonio Lieto designed the MagicBook to take the MacBook to the next level.

According to Technabob, Lieto “replaces the standard keyboard with a touch surface that works like a giant Magic Trackpad. But with a push of the button on the top left corner, a full QWERTY keyboard is revealed, concealed beneath a glass protective layer and backlit with LEDs.”

Lieto has also redesigned the MacMini that eliminates the DVD drive. Who uses that think anymore anyway? I say good riddance.

What do you think about all these concepts? Would you buy any of them? 

There is no doubt that cloud hosting has made USB drives less useful to most people. That being said, if for some reason you won’t have Internet access or aren’t sure you will, these USBs can save your life.

Crypteks

If you honestly think that pictures of your cat warrant 256-bit AES hardware encryption, then the upcoming Crypteks flash drive will finally put your mind at ease. This ridiculously over-engineered USB stick features a Dan Brown certified (don’t quote us on that) cryptex lock made from ultra-high-grade aluminum to keep that nosey spouse from prying into your files.

There are only 14,348,907 possible combinations, so a determined intruder with a spare millennia could potentially break into the drive, but the self-destruct function ensures that your embarrassing data will be erased automatically after too many incorrect password attempts.

When we say “Simply Secure” we mean it. Seriously. The Crypteks USB™ features a unique hardware controller built right into the stick itself. This chip is the secret to really great encryption; by actively enforcing a preset password (of your choosing), all of the information stored on the USB stick is automatically encrypted and decrypted.

The Crypteks USB is available for pre-order on KickStarter, but even the small 8GB model will run you a steep $130 due to the Bond-level encryption. An extra $30 will double the capacity, and even more expensive packages are available for the rich-and-shady.

The team hopes to ship the units in time for Christmas.

IronKey

The IronKey isn’t nearly as flashy as the above USB drive, but if your have legitimate Top Secret files, the last thing you want is attention. Like the Crypteks, the device uses always-on hardware encryption, so not even the most clever hacker will be able to brute force their way in.

The all-metal IronKey is waterproof to military standards, so you can safely leave it in your pants pockets when doing a wash, or bring it with you to through the Amazon. Our more paranoid readers will be happy to know that a secured version of Firefox is built-in for safely browsing on foreign networks.

Your identity and personal data are too valuable to risk. IronKey Personal keeps you protected with military-grade encryption and easy-to-use identity management. The result of extensive R&D and the collaboration of some of the world’s leading experts in cryptography and the Internet, IronKey is the world’s most secure flash drive.

Despite the lack of a glorified combination lock, the drive retails for the same price as the Crypteks: $130 for 8GB. 16 and 32GB models are also available for $200 and $300, respectively.

I am addicted to tablet and laptop concepts and thought I’d share a few of my favorites.

MacFolders

When we posted about this potential next-next-next-at-some-distant-future generation of the macbook on the Zoink! Tumblr it was promoted under the Tech tag and recieved over 160+ notes.

Apple gadget lovers seem to get a kick out of MacFolders… and yeah, I do too.

Compenion

This OLED dual screen touchbook was created by Felix Schmidberger. One of the screens can be turned into a full keyboard if necessary.

I like it – but what’s up with all that wasted silver space? Yuck.

Sony Tablet Concept

Sony has said they want to grab the #2 spot in the tablet arena — second only to the magical Apple gods. So far they haven’t put out anything impressive, but maybe this sleek tablet will be the make to make them silver medalists?

It sure is pretty but I’m not in love with the tiny icons up in the menu bar. They look awfully close together. I imagine I’d hit the wrong icon way too often.

VAIO Zoom

I’ll be honest — I’ve never been a fan of the VAIO line. Barbara (cofounder of Zoink) had a heavy 17-incher back in the day, and it’s sheer mass turned me off for life.

To be fair it was a desktop replacement more than a laptop but I’ve always pictured that dinosaur when someone mentions VAIO. This picture of the Zoom has finally opened my eyes to what the VAIO line has become and where it’s going.

Nice work, I like that I’m seeing!

iPad Concept

I’m just downright smitten with this iPad concept. But then again, I’m a fan of most pretty pictures.

This iPad concept is a beauty without brains though – it couldn’t walk and chew gum at the same time. I mean, can you imagine even trying to use photoshop on a tablet? Total nightmare.

You can’t tell me it’s not pretty though…

Bonus: Throwback iPad Concept

Here’s a pic of the MacView, a popular iPad concept that circulated around before the real iPad was announced.

Again, it’s pretty, but Steve would never have approved that slide out physical keyboard. No way.

Seen any good concepts lately? Share a link in the comments so I can check ‘em out. For more concepts follow us on Tumblr. We post cool gadget concepts and hot new items we love everyday.

Music is full of small details that can’t be heard with thumpy stereo systems and cheap earbuds, so in order to get the most out of your audio collection, you’ll need a quality pair of cans (unless you listen to Nickelback, in which case we recommend these).

Here are four pairs of over-ear headphones that will allow you to hear instruments that you never knew existed.

Sennheiser HD558

• Audiophile-grade high performance headphones
• Twist and lock single-sided cable eliminates tangles and simplifies exchanges
• Internal Sound Reflector immerses the listener in rich audio

The HD558s share the same modern aesthetic as the rest of the Sennheiser family, and stay true to the German engineering stereotype. The circumaural HD558s envelop your ears in pure bliss, and offer many difficult to pronounce features, including Eargonomic Acoustic Refinement technology, comfortable velour ear pads, and a neodymium ferrous magnet system.

Amazon - $144

Grado Prestige Series SR-60i

• Brilliant sound for a low cost
• Adjustable headband made of soft vinyl
• Earpieces rotate 360 degrees – great for packing flat
• Mini stereo termination with 1/4-inch adapter

Grado headphones resemble a pair of cans made during the Cold War, because the design literally hasn’t been changed for decades. Love them or hate them for their retro looks, Grados of any size produce amazing audio, and the baseline SR-60i is no different.

The ‘legendary’ headphones are among the most popular in this price range, and can beat the pads off of any of those silly Skullcandy abominations.

If you’re looking to stretch your audiophile wings, look no further—but note that due to the open-air nature of Grados, the fellow sitting next to you will be able to hear your tunes just as well as you can.

Amazon – $80

Sennheiser HD-280 PRO

• Dynamic, closed-ear headphones with up to 32 dB attenuation of outside sound
• Lightweight and comfortable, ergonomic design
• Extended frequency response and warm, natural sound reproduction
• Collapsible earpieces for compact transport
• Earpads, headband padding, and audio cord are easily replaceable, ensuring long life
• Collapsible ear-pieces for compact transport

The Sennheiser HD-280s are in the same price and quality range as the Grado SR60s, but will offer more privacy due to the closed ear design. The collapsable design makes them perfect for traveling or stuffing in your backpack, and they won’t break the bank in you’re new to the pro-audio game.

Amazon – $80

Sony MDR-XB500

• Power handling capacity: 1500mW
• Over the head, around-the-ear wearing style (circum-aural closed)
• King size ear cushion (diameter: 3.7¿, thickness: 1.8¿)
• Cord: 1.2m flat cord

If you scrolled to the bottom to look for the lowest priced headphones, then stop right here. At $50, the Sony XB500s aren’t exactly ‘cheap’, but they will be the only worthwhile step up from whatever crackling monstrosities you currently have squeezed around your cranium.

The ear pads are harvested straight from a cumulonimbus cloud, and while the drivers don’t provide the same angelic tones as some of the more costly options, they do produce enough bass to make even CATS from Zero Wing jealous.

Amazon - $50

The best part? All of the earphones make the perfect gift for your music loving friends and family this holiday season!

Chuck Lepley is the marketing manager for Sphero, a robotic ball that enables endless hours of gameplay for kids, adults and even pets!

How was the idea for Sphero born?

Sphero was born out of the genius of Ian Bernstein and Adam Wilson. Ian is a robotics expert who has been building robots since the age of 12; he has won numerous robotic competitions worldwide. Adam’s focus is software. He has been developing software since the age of 16 and is probably one of the world’s foremost experts on smartphone Bluetooth control.

Ian and Adam envisioned a re-invention of the ball as a robot with infinite possibilities – one that would outdo remote-controlled devices of the past and create a whole new category of play.

After graduating from the TechStars program in 2010, and with the backing of serial-entrepreneur Paul Berberian as CEO, their concept for Sphero was transformed from a dream into a reality.

The result is a completely new gaming platform that changes the way people play; Control in the virtual world and play in the real one. A category we call mixed-reality gaming.

Who is the ideal Sphero user? Why will gadget geeks LOVE Sphero?

Sphero is a highly sophisticated robotic ball – that can be controlled through mobile devices.

Control seems almost magical and the possibilities for gameplay are virtually endless.  One minute you can be using Sphero Drive to race Sphero against friends and the next minute you can be swinging your smartphone to “hit” Sphero in a round of Sphero Golf.

With our open API, developers can even create their own apps for Sphero – so future games and applications for Sphero will only grow. With all of the possibilities, what’s not to love?  Sphero is the perfect gadget for just about everyone – even your pet.

How long did it take to develop/create Sphero and what was that process like?

Sphero has been in development for just over a year. The process has been a dynamic whirlwind in which ideas were developed and implemented at breakneck speed. This was all made possible by the incredible team of experts working at Orbotix.  We’re incredibly excited to finally release Sphero out into the world.

Who develops apps for Sphero? What are your plans to expand the app store?

The team at Orbotix consists of an impressive group of developers and programmers. As a result, it’s no surprise that the six apps available with Sphero’s release (on the iTunes App store and Android Market) were all developed in-house.We also have a handful of new apps in the works that will be released in early 2012.

The potential for new Sphero apps is endless, that’s why we’ve made a full API and mobile SDK available to developers. In the near future you will not only see new apps from our in-house team, but you’ll also see apps from developers using our open API.

What’s next for Sphero and the Sphero team?

We’re releasing Sphero out into the wild in December 2011, and can’t wait to see just how famous he becomes.

Our software team will continue develop new apps for Sphero and our engineers will work to make Sphero even cooler (if that’s possible). Next year Sphero will travel abroad as we open up international orders.

In addition, we’ll be coming out with accessories for Sphero that will extend the possibilities for mixed-reality gameplay. We couldn’t be more excited.

You can order the Sphero now and be one of the first to have this lil robotic ball of fun! 

In a world with smartphones and data connections in all but most bum-frak of nowheres, the aptly named Little Printer is without a doubt the most useless gizmo that could possibly be imagineered. Yet, it’s utterly irresistible.

The device resembles a young Charlie Chaplin stuck inside a TV, and its sole purpose is to print daily digests of your online activity onto receipt paper.

Little Printer lives in your home, bringing you news, puzzles and gossip from friends. Use your smartphone to set up subscriptions and Little Printer will gather them together to create a timely, beautiful mini-newspaper.

Through the website, you can subscribe to various “publications” from Foursquare, Nike+, Google, and more. In the morning (or whenever you prefer) the Little Printer will churn out a beautifully tailored summary of your daily headlines and upcoming events.

There is a very strong focus on typesetting, with heavy influences from oldschool lithography and modern pixel art, which makes the output a pleasure to read. It’s reminiscent of a simpler age before technology began bombarding us with notifications and endless streams of updates.

The Little Printer connects wirelessly to a small box attached to your router, which communicates with BERG’s web backend. Their servers handle all the important bits, so the miniature thermal printer isn’t limited by an on-board chip (or even ink!).

It can be configured over the Internet using your favorite smartphone, and never needs to be manually updated.

The creators at BERG hope to build a fleet of adorable BERGlings that can take advantage of their cloud platform and combine forces to infect your desk with unadulterated cuteness.

The Little Printer will be available for pre-order as a “beta product” in 2012.

We’re been seeing a lot of futuristic concept peripherals recently and thought we’d share some of our favorites. Check ‘em out below!

Multitouch Keyboard and Mouse

This multitouch keyboard and mouse are the wave of the future. We’re seeing a few similar prototypes crop up, but none quite as nice as these by Jason Giddings.

If you’d like a set of these, you’ll need to donate to Jason on KickStarter so he can get them into mass production.

If you pledge $150 you’ll score a mouse. If you pledge you’ll score a keyboard and if you pledge $350 you’ll get both. Sure, the prices are steep for a keyboard and mouse, but that’s the price you pay for bragging rights on owning a piece of the future.

HP LIM (Less is More)

The HP LIM is still a concept computer but should it see the light of day it will feature a 19″ OLED touchscreen with a thin and attractive wireless keyboard. The screen will come with a super adjustable display that allows you to view it upright or laid down like a tablet.

This is one we really hope comes out soon.

Optimus Tactus

The Optimus Tactus is a full touchscreen keyboard that can be programmed to show you whatever keys you need at the moment. If you’d rather get rid of some of those pesky keys and show images or a movie – no problem!

I could definitely get used to something like this!

Projectable Keyboard

Doing away with the physical keyboard almost entirely  is this projectable keyboard.

According to Concept Phones, this little gadget is hooked to an ISQ server and can project any screen of your choice – including a keyboard!

Seen another cool concept keyboard or mouse recently? Leave a comment below so we can check it out. With CES 2012 just about a month away, we’re getting more excited than usual about the future of electronics!