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Sometimes the best designs are the most simple - like the Lamp Lamp.
The work of Tokyo designer Hironao Tsuboi, it adds a new angle to the bare light fitting - quite literally - by adding an extra screw-in connector to create a light that's guaranteed to be a talking point with anyone entering the room.
You can pick one up online, priced at £19.99.
The Onya Back could be a useful addition to your suitcase this summer.
It's a backpack - but without the bulk In its minimal form, the Onya Back will fit into your pocket. But with a quick tug, it becomes a perfectly formed backpack, complete with adjustable straps, secure zips and an interior pocket (complete with headphone porthole) for holding an iPod, mobile phone or camera.
The bag is also washable, can dry out quickly and is available in a variety of colour options. Yours for just £12.50.
Find out more at the Onyabags website
It might not be all that hot right now, but when the temperatures do start to soar, you'll be glad of a desk fan - especially when it's as stylish as the Flowerpower desk fan.
This is a limited edition version of the Heckhausen & Zetsche floor-based classic, offering that flower-shaped design, a two-speed motor with safety switch and a child-friendly design (should you want to keep your kids cool).
It retails for £205.
Mobile phones that offer TV have traditionally been pretty hit and miss affairs - but that could change with the arrival of the Samsung P960 in Europe.
The P960 is also the world's first DVB-H mobile TV phone that supports both of European mobile TV standards, offering optimised viewing via uts large 2.6-inch QVGA TFT screen and programme searching with the Electronic Service Guide (ESG), as well as Picture in Picture (PIP), Time-Shifting (should you get a call through) and Bang & Olufsen ICEPower technology for professional quality audio.
Other features include a 3 megapixel camera with power LED, a music player with Music Library feature and an FM radio with RDS. No news on price or networks right now.
Samsung website
It doesn't just look good - the Sony DAV-F200 BRAVIA Home Theatre system also packs in the features too
The DAV-F200 uses Sony's S-Force Front Surround technology, combining with 405w S-Master digital amplification to create virtual surround sound from just two speakers and a compact subwoofer. And there's also HDMI output, DVD upscaling to 1080p (to improve the look of your old DVDs), USB connectivity and a disc player that can handle DVDs, CDs, and file formats including MP3, Windows Media Audio, DivX and JPEG.
Price is still to be confirmed, but this should be available to pick up in the coming weeks.
Sony website
Apparently doing the round in various Vans stores and concessions, this Vans Sk8-Hi chair is now available to buy for your own home.
In Japan anyway. Made by Coarse Toys, the seat is shaped like the shoe in almost every detail - except for the size obviously (as you can see from the image).
Whether it makes for a comfortable seat is open to debate - but it's certainly an eye-catching one. It retails from LTD in Japan for around £250 - and they ship overseas.
Find out more at the LTD website
The latest Apple challenger on the market is the Samsung S3 'pebble' music player.
It features 1GB of storage, an FM radio, MP3, WMA and OGG file compatibility and a choice of green, purple, red, black or white.
No news on price or availability as yet - but I would guess 'cheap' and 'in the coming weeks'.
Got money to burn? You can set light to a serious amount by buying the Nokia Arte - Diamond Edition.
It features 24 carat gold accents on the front, with five bright white diamonds embedded in the back. And it's a phone too, with a 3 megapixel camera, 1GB of storage, 3G connectivity and Bluetooth.
If you have £1,195 spare (or you are a footballer), you can pick one up now from Goldstriker.
A slice of toast not enough in a morning? You could opt for something bigger with the Tefal Toast 'n' Egg.
Yes, not just a toaster, this one also has a poachng tray for 'muffin-sized cooked eggs' and a warming tray for heating cooked meats. Which means a hot breakfast is possible without much effort...or much washing up.
Available now from John Lewis, you can pick one up for £39.95.
You can create your own wallcoverings from just about anything with the Andrew Martin Panorama Wallpaper collection.
It's simple - just provide Andrew Martin with a digital image, picture or document to scan, together with the wall you are looking to cover and the company will do the rest - right down to customising the colours, should you wish.
The final product is supplied on vinyl wallcovering, with full hanging instructions and in a choice of 'grainy' or 'flatter' finish. The only downside is the price - £150 per square metre. And if you go for an old comic, it looks something like the above.
If you've been in a hospital, you'll know what the Colin O'Dowd Beats coat rack is based on.
Yes, the 'beats' is the beat of a heart - and this is what you'll see on the monitor. Except this is made of 8mm powder-coated steel wire and wall-mounted - so you can hang your coats on it.
Sized at 545 x 275 x 60mm, you can pick one up for £39.50.
A light fitting that looks interesting whether it is on or off - the Moooi Non Random light.
What does it look like? Well, balls of yarn, soap bubbles or some kind of web maybe - but you can make your own mind up from the image above. And you can also guarantee that the interest in the Moooi light will only increase when the switch is flicked to 'on' and the lighting effect hits the walls and ceiling.
Prices vary, depending on the size of the light, but start at £306.
Find out more at the Nest website
If you like to check your email and do a spot of internet browsing on the go, Sony Ericsson has two newly-launched handsets that might be of interest - the Z780 and G502.
The clamshell Z780 offers high-speed HSDPA connectivity, as well as built-in GPS, Google Maps, push email, web browsing with RSS feed, 2 megapixel camera, media player and Bluetooth. The G502 also features Google Maps, push email, web/RSS, 2MP camera, media player, Bluetooth and everything else you might expect from a basic handset.
The Z780 will be available in Grand Onyx and Amethyst Silver, while the G502 will be available in Champagne Black and Brilliant Hazel - expect both in the next few weeks.
It isn't going to fit into our pocket, but the Pocket Bookshelf is designed for the books you might carry on your person.
Designed by Karin Nyberg, you can use the Pocket bookshelf as you would everyday shelving or you can flip it horizontally (as above). Either way, it's ideally shaped to store your average paperback book - but can be used for other items as well as books.
Take your pick from a variety of bold colours for the lacquered MDF, all retailing for £289.
Scandinavian Design Center website
Available in the next few weeks in the UK, the LG KF700 mobile phone offers three methods of control and full web browsing.
Those three methods are a 3-inch touchscreen, a keypad and a shortcut dial for your favourites.. Also included is a widescreen for watching movies and viewing the web (including YouTube), high speed (HSDPA) connectivity, MP3 player, video player, 3 megapixel camera and Bluetooth.
Sold in black or silver, no price is listed as yet - although it's likely to be free should you have a contract.
LG website
The world's slimmest notebook now has a suitably stylish bag - the Orbino Arista Case for the MacBook Air.
This is a handcrafted case for Apple's latest laptop, made from the finest Italian leathers, maintaining the slim shape, but still offering protection for your latest toy.
Take your pick from a selection of different tannings, with each bag also featuring an adustable strap, a pocket for your adapter and cord and another for your mobile phone. Prices start at $349 (around £175).
We've come a long way since the wooden plinth for feeding the birds - you can now get something as stylish as the Pip Pip modern birdhouse by Stina Sandwall.
Available in a variety of colours, the Pip Pip offers the birds the same type of living as yourself, not to mention some shelter when the skies open.
Sold with the stand that goes into the soil, there's also an optional base for balconies and patios. Expect to pay around £45.
Kartell's 60s-inspired Ferruccio Laviani lamps from 2002 have had a makeover - now available in a gold or silver finish for 2008.
Not actual gold or silver obviously, just a new colour choice for the light. Aside from that, everything is as it was - a slim, minimalist pendant light, made of polycarbonate and made in Italy to an original Ferruccio Laviani design.
You can pick one up for £83.99.
Don't let those slightly retro looks fool you, the Ricoh G600 is a very modern camera.
This 10 megapixel model is resistant to both water and dust and can even withstand a 1.5m fall. Other features include a 5x optical wide-angle zoom lens, 3200 ISO for better shooting in low light, a 2.7-inch display with light sensor (constantly adjusting for better viewing) and a rechargeable battery.
The G600 will be available in May, priced at around £349.99.
Ricoh website
He might be in his 70s, but Eero Aarnio is still producing some of the most interesting and eye-catching design around - including the newly-launched Swan Lamp.
No prizes for guessing where the name came from - those swan-like curves made from a moulded plastic body that 'scatters light' around the room, the light coming from an energy-saving compact fluorescent bulb.
Take your pick from white, yellow and black, all available from this month for 239 Euros each.
Never mind your guests admiring your art collection - how about them admiring your own art? And you can easily make your own with the Cubist Torso construction kit.
As the name suggests, this is art in kit form - put the pieces together according to the instructions and onto the wooden base plate and you create a cubist-style torso for all to admire. But ignore the instructions and you can create something both cubist and surreal, but above all, something original.
Virtually everything you need is included in the kit, which comes in a rather smart wooden box. It sells for just £26.
Find out more at the TwentyTwentyOne website
Not the cheapest mobile phone on the market, but the Mobiado Stealth is one of the more exclusive.
Inspired by military aircraft, the Stealth is machined from a single piece of aircraft aluminium with a sapphire screen and buttons of sapphire crystal and stainless steel. Use it on any network, with features including 3G connectivity, 2 megapixel camera, 2GB of storage (using microSD card), surround sound, media player (audio/video) and Bluetooth.
Just 1,200 being made, selling for £1,495.
Find out more at the Mobiado website
When it comes to adding some colour or impact to a room, a rug is always a good way to go. Especially if you go for something like this Fez flat weave rug.
The bold pattern was designed exclusively for The Conran Shop and is hand-woven in cottages in rural Indian villages. Which makes each one unique.
That might get alarm bells ringing over price, but it's not as expensive as you might think - you can pick one up online for £150.
Find out more at the Conran Shop website
Keeping on a space age theme, Artemide has introduced this superbly futuristic Cabildo hanging lamp from Eric Solé.
This circular piece of lighting is made of die-cast aluminium, with light from a halogen bulb that creates a glow rather than a more typical shining light.
Available online, you can buy one for £205.58.
Find out more at the Made In Design website
Fancy a complete departure from the usual DFS/Land Of Leather rubbish? if you have the money, you could go futuristic with the Isobel sofa.
Designed by Michiel van der Kley, it features nosag springs and PUR foam for comfort, with a Dacron layer to guarantee long life. But the selling point here is the looks - striking minimalism and an attention detail, right down to the matching cushion.
Choose from a number of fabrics, with the sofa selling for around £2,085.
Lollipop Shoppe website
The same people who brought us the Levi's phone now have another themed handset on the market - the ModeLabs MTV3.3 mobile phone.
Launched initially in France (via SFR), the red sliding handset offers 3G connectivity, a 2.2-inch screen, 2MP camera, video/audio player, Bluetooth connectivity and embedded MTV content, including videos and wallpaper, ringtones and the MTV Cribs mobile game.
Expect it from April 23rd (if you happen to be in France), priced at the equivalent of around £40.
Is Armani a cool brand? That's a matter of opinion I guess. But if you believe it is, you might want one of these new Samsing/Armani HD-ready TV.
It's part of Armani's Casa home furnishings collection and said to be reminiscent of 'Hollywood's golden age'. Although it just look like any old black LCD TV to me.
It's a 42-inch TV with backlit remote control and 'specially designed' front-mounted power switch. Expect it over summer, with a 52-inch model to follow.
We all went mad for the Asus Eee PC (me included), so it's no surprise to see a new one heading to the UK.
The Asus Eee 900 is much the same as the previous model - only bigger. That means a bigger screen (7-inch becomes 8.9-inch), increased memory (1GB), more storage (up to 20GB) and the option of Windows XP instead of the Linux operating system.
Expect it from the 1st May, priced from £329 - which is a much bigger price tag too.
If you've had your eye on an Apple iPhone, but thought it a bit pricey, you'll be pleased to know it is now being offered by O2 with a heavy discount.
The 8GB model is now £100 less - at £169 - although you will have to pay out for a contract on top of that. The deal lasts until June, which could be significant as there are rumours of a new (faster) model appearing this year.
Then again, there might not be a new model - you'll just have to take that risk if you really want one at the cheaper price!
If the bulk of a traditional vase is too much for you, maybe the Outline Vase will impress.
It's a porcelain outline of a classic vase shape, with just enough room to stick in a flower or two, as well as a drop of water.
Available online, you can pick one up for £29.95.
Functional object or piece of art? You can make your own mind up about the Lightning Shelf from Save Our Souls.
It's made from sheet metal and in bold colours - ideal to break up a plain wall or just to add some interest to a room. And not just that - it also has various storage possibilities both inside and outside, depending on how you angle it.
It retails for around £212.
Save Our Souls website
You can get it as both a ceiling light and a floor lamp, but the Foscarini Lumiere really works best as a table lamp.
Designed by Rodolfo Dordoni in 1990, it can probably lay claim to being a modern classic - that polished aluminium tripod base and blown-glass shade/diffuser offering almost timeless style for any living room.
As well as the aluminium base, there's also an option of black chrome as well as a colour choice of shade. All retail for around £162.
Find out more at the Panik Design website
A very modern piece of interior design, with just a hint of 1960s influence - the Karim Rashid Orgy sofa and ottoman.
This circular piece of seating has a steel chrome base, with polyurethane foam upholstered in your choice of fabric for comfort. And that stool, which will tuck comfortably in the gap when not in use.
Not cheap, but the £7,000 outlay will turn a few visitors' heads.
If you need space for books, CDs, DVDs, magazines or folders - all of them will fit neatly into the Contraforma Quad storage case.
Designed by Nauris Kalinauskas, this freestanding unit is available in natural or black laminated plywood and with a choice of coloured back panels, all with a seemingly endless number of storage options - just as long as you don't mind everything at a jaunty angle.
Sized at H1200x W120 x D30cm, it retails for £895.
A simple light with a little trick up its sleeve - the Luceplan Superglu suspension light.
On its own the Superis fairly appealing, available in a choice of painted aluminium shades with a cord designed to be barely visible. But if you raise or lower the shade, there is a marked difference in the light given off - reflected either upwards or downwards, giving you two lighting effects for the price of one.
Available now, one will set you back around £217.
Loving the black and white look of the recently-launched Veloheld Urban Spring Classic bike.
Available to order (and with shipping out of its native Germany), the Urban Spring offers a more comfortable ride than the traditional racer, featuring a black Chris King, custom-made velocity-wheelset, black custom-made Thomson stem and a white Veloheld saddle.
Check with the company for more details or see more images on its Flickr gallery. Price is likely to be upwards of 799 Euros.
Find out more at the Veloheld website
Even if you have the laziest dog on the planet, you can still have the Wooferang returned to your hand.
It's the dog toy that comes back - based on the boomerang, you can throw it for your dog to chase, but if he/she doesn't fancy returning it, the natural spin will do it instead.
Designed and sold by Atypyk, it's yours for around £15.
Find out more at the Atypyk store
Two products in one with the She from Fontana Arte - it's a lamp and a shelf.
Available in two widths, the 'shelf' has a built in lamp, with the polished white interior designed to enhance the brightness.
Wall-mountable and perfect as a modern alternative to the bedside table, it retails for around £260.
Here's a phone you'll not mind leaving in the pub - the Hop-On disposable mobile phone.
It's designed to be thrown away, offering you basic phone functionality and a 'cool' design, but without the screen and sim card with all your details on. Which makes it ideal for anyone planning harassment or who wants to cover their tracks.
More seriously, it could slip in your pocket or bag in emergencies and at around £10, isn't going to cost the earth. Around 10,000 will hit Europe as a trial run - no details of retailers as yet.
Just launched in Europe (and sure to appear in the UK very soon) is the stylish T80 media player from LG.
As well as a DVB-T digital TV tuner, it has a 3-inch touchscreen, 4GB of storage, music and video player (playing all the main formats and more besides), FM radio, photo viewer, text reader and a built-in microphone for voice recording.
In Europe, it retails or 299 Euros.
It might look fairly anonymous, but the Spy Recording Watch hides a number of secrets.
For a start, it's a voice recorder, not to mention an MP3 player and file storage, courtesy of the 1GB memory, with headphones available to listen to your tunes and a USB cable to transfer them from your PC.
Powered by a rechargeable battery, it retails for $74.40, which is around £37.
Clever design and a useful object too - that's The Godfather.
Yes, on the face of it, this is a knuckle duster, but look closely and you'll notice the holes are to measure spaghetti - everything from child potions to adult and dinner party bundles, written in Italian and English.
Available online, you can pick it up for £30.
Everyone went wild for the Eee PC last year - and this year everyone is following suit with a budget laptop. HP is the latest company to jump in with arguably the best-looking of the bunch - the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC.
Starting at under £300, it weighs just 1.27 kg (due to a lightweight aluminum shell), with a 8.9-inch WXGA display, HP DuraKeys to protect your keyboard, a VIA C7-M ULV processor, integrated webcam, long-life battery, wi-fi, Bluetooth and options for storage and operating system (Windows or Linux).
You should be able to get one from May - but expect to queue.
There's an ever-growing amount of cool outdoor furniture on the market - including the Teo table.
It's a small polyethylene table, available in a choice of white, black or green (as above). Looks alone should earn it a place in your garden, but it has one more trick up its sleeve - a built-in lamp to brighten things up as night falls.
Available from BPA, you can pick one up for £219.
Tables lamps don't get much more stylish than the Steam from Holmegaard.
Designed by Rikke Hagen and available in two sizes (small and large) this futuristic (and hand blown glass) table lamp is designed to look like a cloud (hence the name), with all superfluous detail removed for added effect. Except for the cord, which is left in (and highlighted) for impact.
Available online, you can pick one up for £199 (small) and £297 (large).
It might be small, but there's plenty of audio options with the Roberts Sound 24.
That includes DAB/FM radio, CD playback, MP3/WMA, USB/SD card slots and connectivity for your iPod. There's also two speakers at the front and a sub woofer at the back for a decent audio output, clock/alarm with sleep and snooze, 20 presets, six display colours, a remote control and a decent design in brushed steel.
Available now, you can pick one up for £200.
Practical on two levels - that's the Ho Ladder Bookcase by Jocelyn Deris.
Available in red or beech, it's a great lean-to storage unit, with the ladders makng it easy to reach the high shelves. You could probably use it as a ladder in its own right too - but then you would have to remove your books, CDs and DVDs first!
It stands at a height of 240cm, with a capacity for around 200 CDs/DVDs or 100 books. You can pick one up for around £383.
Over on Retro To Go, we featured the Evisu denim scooter helmet. But that's not the only denim accessory on the market - Evisu has also teamed up with Zippo to produce the denim lighter.
And it's a very stylish object. A typical Zippo lighter, but clad in denim, with all the detailing you would expect on a pair of jeans, including pocket, tab and contrast stitching. There's even a chain so you can show it off when you're out and about.
Japan only right now, wher