Technology, Innovation & Outdoor News

ESPHome Starter Kit review: From blinking lights to building a smart home

September 04, 2026 | Howard Armitage
ESPHome’s first official hardware kit makes a fiddly corner of DIY smart homes remarkably approachable, and it’s built to remain genuinely useful long after the lessons are over.

Floating data center would provide water and electricity to 32,000 homes

September 03, 2026 | Etiido Uko
Some companies build a desalination plant and call it a day; others build a data center, while others, still, build power generation facilities. One project wants to build all three …into one facility …offshore …on a movable ship.

Xiaomi’s new mid-rangers pack batteries up to 10,000-mAh

September 04, 2026 | Monica J. White
Xiaomi’s REDMI Note 17 lineup brings 7,700- to 10,000-mAh batteries to four mid-range phones, led by a Pro Max promising three-day endurance, 100W charging and up to six years of battery health for longer ownership.

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With its lack of trailer, this A-frame tiny house isn't a good fit for nomads. The home trades ease of movement for a cozy and comfortable interior that draws inspiration from traditional cabins.
Building on the design language it debuted with the new Elko knife, The James Brand packs multiple functions inside the all-new Helton EDC tool. The Helton, then, is a sleek, lightweight piece of EDC that's as easy to carry as it is to use.
Many of our most popular camper van articles of 2026 have one thing in common: the Kia PV5. Now, Kia is readying the PV7 for debut. The larger e-van will offer more space for camper equipment, but will it prove as popular a camper base as the PV5?
Developed by researchers in the US, the remarkable new treatment could one day be used to treat patients in advanced stages of dementia by restoring the brain’s ability to recover from ongoing neurodegeneration.
Radica has never been known to follow convention. Its original widened pickup cap camped like nothing out there, and its subsequent launches followed suit. The new Stargate lands as a telescopic pop-topper that becomes the most spacious Radica yet.
All too often, lubricating your bike chain ends up with you inadvertently lubing the ground beneath it, also. The Green Disc+ is designed to change that, by applying its eco-friendly lube only where it's needed. Less waste, and no mess.

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Archeologists say they have solved the 6,000-year-old mystery of Armenia’s “dragon stones" – massive carved monoliths scattered across high-altitude slopes and pastures where no ancient settlements ever existed. It's a story of worship and water.
The dream of the ancient alchemists may come true as Marathon Fusion announces that its tokamak fusion reactor technology can turn common mercury into gold as a byproduct of fusion operations in quantities that would make Auric Goldfinger blush.
The all-new Urbanoid Booba is an impossibly cute, tiny acorn of a trailer designed to provide a stylish, carefree way of instantly escaping the urban grind. The towable clamshell unfolds and inflates into a cozy base camp in a matter of minutes.
Researchers in the Netherlands have created mechanical structures that strangely shrink – or more precisely, snap inward – instead of stretching outward when pulled. This 'countersnapping' behavior could find use in tomorrow's soft robots.
There are knives, good knives, great knives, and classic knives. Then there are the knives that are flat-out legends with remarkable stories behind them. One of these is the instantly recognizable Puma White Hunter that redefined the hunting knife.
Shoei has just launched the GT-Air 3 Smart, the world’s first moto helmet to feature fully integrated augmented reality thanks to a partnership with EyeLights, which specializes in head-up displays and Bluetooth audio kits.
The Kimbo camper has always felt to us less an RV and more a stylish backcountry hut secured to a pickup bed. Now, Kimbo makes that hut a little larger by launching an 8-foot model for full-size trucks.
Construction on the new world's tallest skyscraper is rapidly approaching a major milestone. Saudi Arabia's JEC Tower is racing towards 100 floors, making it another step closer to achieving its projected 2028 completion date.