Kickstarter isn't slowing down all that much for the holidays, and in fact some of its iPhone and iPad accessories are positively on fire right now as online spending goes through the roof. Here's a look at one cool project nearing the end of its Kickstarter funding, and one just making a promising start.
Twice the suck makes for a very versatile iPad mount
The
MobileMount is almost done with its funding efforts there's less than 24 hours to go before it becomes funded. But it's already met and exceeded its goal, with more than $97,000 pledged as of this writing. For $25, you can still get in on the ground floor and receive one of the first devices, which is designed to stick to any smooth surface via two attached suction cup mounts.
So basically, one end could be attached to the back of your iPhone, while the other is attached to your counter, or to a window, for example. You can also use the included vinyl stickers to make it work with surfaces that have a rubberized back or textured surface, like the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.
The suction cup uses a twist-to-lock design, which amps up the suction power and makes it possible for the mount to remain attached for "weeks," according to its creator. The MobileMount comes in black and white, looks pretty cool, and is expected to ship in January 2012.
A stylus that goes the extra mile
A stylus may not be the most necessary of iPad accessories
according to Steve Jobs, but doodlers and fans of handwritten notes might disagree. The
iPen is a project that aims to cater to those individuals, tackling the deficiencies inherent in current iPad drawing utensils.
The iPen achieves this by working with an active digitizer accessory that plugs into your iPad's dock connector port and "talks" to the stylus itself via ultrasonic and infrared transmissions. The added dongle allows for proximity sensitivity, precise drawing and writing, and palm input rejection, which is a really big sore spot when it comes to using the iPad as a notepad currently. It'll launch with two apps at least that support the hardware, and the iPen's creator is hard at work convincing other apps to introduce support, too.
The iPen so far has achieved just $8,680 of its $35,000 funding goal, but you can help by pledging $50 to pre-order your own kit via the early bird special, which is reserved for 250 early backers. After that, it'll be $79 for one, which still seems like a bargain for those interested in being able to use a pen with their iPad without oddly contorting their wrist or sacrificing legibility.
Got an exciting Kickstarter project? Send it to us for consideration in our regular roundup of promising accessories.
