Missing the fireworks display this weekend? Never mind that, you can have fireworks every night of the year with this Sega projector, letting you design your own fireworks display by mixing and matching 55 different pyrotechnic simulations.

This $160 doodad won’t do you any good this weekend, though, because this fireworks projector won’t be available until July 25. One other problem: this little light show is unlikely to provide that visceral thump in the gut you get from real world aerial bombs, known in the industry as “salutes.”

That said, don’t settle for a projector or a televised view of a fireworks display this year — get out there and see the bombs bursting in air first-hand, celebrate our nation’s independence, and don’t forget the bug spray.

Here’s a video of the projector’s output, underscoring why fireworks must be experienced in the real world:

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Sony may be looking to make a phone to compete with the iPhone, but Etsy crafter “rabbitrampage” has already come up with an adorable way to make your Apple product a little more Sony-ish. It’s a classic PlayStation cover for your iPhone made of felt, complete with an accompanying controller.

The PlayStation case runs for $20 whenever Rabbit has them in stock, and the controller will set you back $7. There are also although covers for other gadgets, including penguin and floppy disk covers for an iPod.

Here’s how it slides into the PlayStation case (click the image to make it bigger):

Etsy, via Geekologie

Popularity: unranked [?]

Solutions to the problem of human beings only having two hands are always welcome around here. Here’s an improved plate idea for cocktail parties, the Mantara Dish.

This crockery design solves that problem of having a drink in one hand, and a plate of food that requires utensils in the other: designer Gabriel Contino envisions a mini dish with a place to park your wine glass that also includes a secure slot for that necessary spork.

Now you can have that right hand free to shake hands, working the room properly. Too bad this little invention is not ready for those Fourth of July cocktail parties where your humble DVICE narrators are often spotted.

Via Yanko Design

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Walt Disney World just modernized its Hall of Presidents attraction, adding a new likeness of our current president, Barack Obama. Take a look at the video above and see if you think it captures his essence. We’re thinking it looks pretty good, but does not quite make the trip across that proverbial “Uncanny Valley.”

Not only did they add Barack Obama to the collection of 42 other presidents (remember, Grover Cleveland counts as two presidencies), but the Disney “imagineers” upgraded the exhibit with digital sound, projection and lighting.

We’ve seen the previous version of the Hall of Presidents, and although the robots move a bit slowly to be perfectly realistic, it’s still an impressive tableau. Here’s a video of President Obama recording the audio track for this new version:

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Better batteries are popping up regularly these days, and this one’s on its way to the real world within six months. Some German smarty-pants researchers figured out how to slather together reactive layers that can magically create power, but the trick is that all the necessary components put together are less than a millimeter thick.

The secret? They’re using manufacturing techniques that are similar to printing.

Imagine the devices that this 1.5 W power source could enable. Sure, you might need a few of them to power a cell phone, but there could be outlandishly flat handheld gadgets in our future if these batteries really are ready to go before the end of this year. Amazing. Maybe they should call them “flatteries”.

Via CrunchGear

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Michael Jackson’s final flamboyance will be the vehicle in which he’s delivered to his final resting place: This 14 karat goldplated custom casket that will be the center of attention at Tuesday’s memorial service at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

The $25,000 container from Batesville Casket Company (”because every family deserves a Batesville”) is made of solid bronze, plated with 14-karat gold, and polished to a mirror finish. It’s the same model in which James Brown was buried. No question about it, it’ll be the fanciest coffin in the graveyard.

With all due respect, sorry, this is nuts. Sadly, it’s perfectly normal for the insane funeral industry in the United States. Maybe it befits such a wacko as Jacko. Perhaps those gravediggers will exclaim to each other — as they did in the old joke where a man was being lowered into his grave in the driver’s seat of a shiny new Cadillac — “Now that’s really living.”

Might we suggest an Ecoffin instead?

Via Born Rich

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