While Philips did eventually bring its Ambilight technology to PC monitors, it wasn’t before others had decided to roll their own. Now you can add ambient backlighting to any computer display without any of the attendant soldering and Arduino-wrangling, thanks to the folks at Woodenshark. The team has built Lightpack, an Ambilight-esque system that’ll connect to a Windows, OS X or Linux PC and project the display’s colors onto the area surrounding the screen.

Plug the hockey puck-sized device into your computer, attach 10 LED modules to the back of your display and install the open-source software and you’re good to go. Once ready, you can even set up custom alerts to measure CPU temperature or email volumes, and even control the lighting with your smartphone or tablet. The team has asked for the unusually specific figure of $261,962 in order to fund an initial production run of 5,000 units, with early backers able to snag one of the units for $50 instead of around $90. Interested to watch it in action? There’s a video after the break, friends.

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Source: Kickstarter

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Insert Coin: Lightpack turns your computer display into an ambient backlight (video)

In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you’d like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with “Insert Coin” as the subject line.

It’s safe to say that most people’s idea of home networking involves the following steps: buy a wireless router, set it up with an SSID and a password, and then never ever think about it again as long as the WiFi keeps working. But if you’re one of a dedicated few who want deeper IT admin-level control over your family’s internet usage, then a new Kickstarter campaign from PowerCloud Systems just might be right up your alley. The product is called Skydog, and while you do get a slim and compact dual-band 802.11n five-port Gigabit router out of it, Skydog is really more about the cloud-based platform than the physical hardware. Customers are able to visually survey who and what device is on their home network, manage permissions based on that information, allocate bandwidth priority, troubleshoot network issues with ease and more.

PowerCloud Systems is no stranger to cloud-managed networking — it’s been providing just such a solution to enterprises such as hotels, schools, multi-dwelling units and retail chains ever since 2008 when it was spun out of Xerox PARC. In order to bring that level of sophistication to the home audience, however, the company needed consumer-facing software to simplify the process for the masses, and that’s exactly what it has tried to do with Skydog. After the break, we offer a tour of the service and interview the people behind it to see just why they’re seeking funding via Kickstarter.

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Source: Skydog (Kickstarter)

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Insert Coin: Skydog brings cloud-based networking to the home

In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you’d like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with “Insert Coin” as the subject line.

Between the Kinect and Leap Motion, gesture control’s on just about everyone’s minds these days. There’s still a ways to go, certainly, before such devices become a mainstream method for interfacing with our PCs, but they’ve already become a ripe source of inspiration for the DIY community. Duo’s hoping to further bridge the gap between the two, with a “the world’s first 3d motion sensor that anyone can build.” The desktop sensor features two PS3 Eye cameras that can track hands and objects for a more natural interface with one’s computer. Duo’s unsurprisingly looking to crowdfund its efforts. A pledge of $10 or more will get you early access to the company’s SDK. For $40 you’ll get the case and instruction. Add $30 to that number, and you’ve got yourself the kit, which includes everything but the camera ($110 will get you all that). Check out the company’s plea after the break, and if you’re so inclined you can pledge at the source link below.

Filed under: Peripherals

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Source: Kickstarter

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Insert Coin: Duo kit lets you build your own 3D motion tracker

It’s all been leading up to this! We narrowed it down to 10 semifinalists, and you helped us whittle the list down to five — and now we’re ready to announce the winner of our first-ever Insert Coin competition! Join co-host Mark Frauenfelder and our panel of judges as they unveil the results.

For a full list of Expand sessions, be sure to check out our event hub.

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Live from Expand: Insert Coin Awards (video)

You’ve seen plenty about our Insert Coin competitors on this very site — and now it’s time to see them in action. We’ve got some stage time with the finalists, who will be arguing for why they think they deserve that $20,000 grand prize.

For a full list of Expand sessions, be sure to check out our event hub.

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Live from Expand: Insert Coin New Challengers Demos (video)