As a prelude to Tam’s Obama Gadget article, we are showing you a glimpse of how Obama is actually helping our economy. Indeed, as shown in The Colbert Report’s January 14th episode – P.K. Winsome Obama Collectables, the Obama craze is a prime example of Say’s Law at work and certainly creating a new market in this recession.

We know for sure, because The Abraham Obama iPod skins from Gela Skins (see above) are selling like hot cakes in our store AC Gears. And beyond the obvious Obama commemorative coins, the Big O is also made edible -Yes Pecan from Ben and Jerry’s is another example. Now if B&J can give the new ice cream away on inauguration day everywhere, we think even McCain himself or Mr. Bush could perhaps understand a tad more about the liberal agenda.

We will follow up soon with our in-depth research article on Obama related gadgets and accessories. We are glad our new President Elect is already putting his good name at work to help our economy.

The Speak-er is a new powered speaker design from the. design team.  The Speak-er is designed to look like comic word bubbles and comes in a pair of two.  Made from polished ABS plastic and a matte black steel grille, the Speak-er puts out a total of 12 watts of sound and connects to a computer or MP3 player via a 1/8th inch mini plug.

Check out some of the.‘s other products at www.thinkofthe.com.

The Jonathan LeVine Gallery in Chelsea, which has housed shows for such art-world heavyweights as Shephard Fairey and Jeff Soto, is currently playing host to James Jean‘s first ever solo exhibition. You may recognize Mr. Jean’s illustration work from a Prada campaign last year, which played a perfect foil to Murakami’s pop art work for Louis Vuitton. With this showing, it’s high-fashion to high-art for Mr. Jean…

‘Kindling,’ which opened January 10 will run through February 7. Check out some great coverage of the opening from the folks at Arrested Motion, and thanks to good friend (and illustrator) Andy for the tip-off.

[Jonathan LeVine Gallery]
529 W. 20th St. 9E
(212) 243-3822
Tue—Sat 11am—6pm

T Magazine, the New York Times Style supplement, presents a new season of ‘T Takes’ — a series of short, improvised films featuring some of the best and brightest with up-and-comer Brody Baker behind the lens.

Catch up on Season 1 to get a bead on Mr. Baker. Shot at Sundance with young cats like Lukas Haas, Michael Pitt and a scruffy Josh Hartnett, the episodes strike a smart indie note — at turns grainy, loose, moody and mysterious, the whole thing feels like fun.

This season, Brody Baker is Brooklyn-bound with young Brit Charlie Cox, who glides through the Brooklyn 09 trailer with whimsy. Keep your eyes on this:

“In this episodic love story by the New York writer and director Brody Baker, six short improvised films draw a portrait of Charlie, a young transplanted Briton, as he navigates relationships with his eccentric family and future wife. Charlie Cox, Kate Mara, Lily Cole, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Angela McCluskey and Zoe Lister-Jones star.”

We’ve been waiting and Takaratomy Japan finally delivers. Through an announcement via Robot Watch, Takaratomy will begin selling Robo-Q, the world’s smallest robot on February 28th, 2009. The little Robo-Q comes with different AI modes such as object tracking and object avoidance (sensors to allow Robo-Q recognize and then follow/avoid an object). 20-30 minute charge for a 3 minute operation. Costs about $45.

Given that there are already several hacks out there on the ever-so-popular Hex Bugs (such as making one into a little bug drawing machine), we expect to see some Robo-Q hacks by robot geeks around the world soon, too.

[ Applied Inspirations' Hex Bug Hack ]

Lego Lovers rejoice – it is our year. This weekend, Lego and Digital Blue announced a set of retro-fitted Lego electronics. For those of us craving snap-happy Lego goodness, expect to see BoomBoxes, MP3 Players, Walkie Talkies, Digital Cameras, among others, soon. No, you don’t build them yourself, but each item will carry the Lego signature look and will cost between $19-$59. The ETA on these babies is late summer/early fall, but if you’re itching for a Lego fix, there are already gadgets to be found, like the Lego USB Drive and the Homade Lego Ipod Stereo Dock, available from AC Gears.

It’s not at all surprising that Lego has decided to take this merchandising move – the past few months have been nothing but affirmitive of the brand’s staying power as both a popular toy and an icon of pop culture. From New York art studios to English beaches to French catwalks, legos are everywhere!

New York artist Nathan Sawaya has become the pioneer of Lego construction with his highly complex, mystifying Lego sculptures. Nathan uses Lego as a medium for creating profound and wild surrealist pop art. Order a pair of His & Hers sculptures for as “little” as $60,000 or check out his appearance on The Colbert Report instead for free. His works will be in Edmonton, Canada until May 3rd and are touring indefinitely.

And what this giant minifig was doing on a beach in England is anybody’s guess. The positively mammoth minifig washed ashore around October 31st of last year and has been a great source of bewilderment and delight among the people of Brighton. Nobody could quite figure out where it came from, but as you can see in the above photo, it was quickly carried off by a gaggle of ten year old boys.

Finally, fall fashion week in Paris brought some serious surprises this year, as renegade designer JC de Castelbajac gave a preview of his lego-inspired spring line. Complete with a digital remake of the show in true lego form, the house of Castelbajac proved to have the most original line of the season.

JCDC Versus LEGO on Vimeo.

We’ve always believed that the original Lite Brite is a form of art, made not just for children, but for adults and artists alike. It taught us to respect pixels and colors, and that, together, pixels and colors can create something completely original and tasteful.

Our friend Yosoh introduced us to Matt Bilfield’s works – painting-like graphics made with hand-cut, sanded and painted wooden dowels. Visit Matt’s website and click on the images. They will make you pixel pushers salivate.

For those interested in obtaining the original Lite Brite (for adults), Bandai Japan had released the new Luminodot HD last November, now available at AudioCubes.com for $179.99. A big peg board gives you more room for more colors and designs.