Filed under: Accessories, iPhone
Get a Quirky Beamer for your iPhone (hint: it's not a car)
While looking at the headline for this post, you might think that we're talking about an oddly-painted BMW, but the Quirky Beamer is actually a case for the iPhone. Not just any case, mind you, but one with a built-in bright LED light that can act as a real flashlight or provide illumination for your nighttime photos.
Compatible with the iPhone 3G and 3GS, the Beamer uses replaceable lithium coin cell batteries to provide up to 10 hours of illumination without chewing up your phone's batteries. Pressing the button on the case once turns on the light for 10 seconds, enough to find your keys or take a picture of your buds. To turn the light on for an indefinite amount of time, press the button twice. A third press turns it back off.
Quirky won't produce the Beamer until 500 commitments at $32.00 are received on the site. As of 9 PM on Sunday night, 106 people had committed to the product. If you're looking for a way to flash your friends and not get arrested, the Quirky Beamer might just be the answer.
[Thanks for the tip, Chris T.]
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Aaron said 11:13AM on 11-09-2009
$32 for an LED, a couple of CR2016 batteries, and a plastic case? No thanks. Make it $10-$15 and we'll talk about it. For $32, add a plastic macro lens for the iPhone 3G.
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KP said 12:24PM on 11-09-2009
While I don't need one that badly, and I like the case I already have, there are plenty of iPhone cases that cost that much without a light or any other enhancements other than just being a case. And those are made by major manufacturers who can recoup their costs by selling hundreds of thousands. These people are producing in very small numbers.
For a niche product, I'd be happy to pay that if I wanted one.
Jeff Ramos said 11:34AM on 11-09-2009
I think it's clever. I support it!
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Orion said 11:56AM on 11-09-2009
So there's a light that's on that requires you to have to press and hold the button while trying to hit the button to take a picture? I'm not sure my friends would appreciate trying to keep there eyes open while I shine a bright LED in their face for 5 seconds as I ready my picture.
Good idea, but this needs to be hooked up to the iPhone and a program that makes the flash turn on at the proper time of taking a picture.
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KP said 12:25PM on 11-09-2009
I got the impression you hit the button once and it stays lit for 10 seconds. So you tap the flash button, then you take the picture. Shouldn't take that long.
rg said 2:01PM on 11-09-2009
Might want to read those directions again there sparky!
David said 12:01PM on 11-09-2009
I like the FastMac version much better, it includes an extended battery for the iPhone and it is rechargeable:
http://fastmac.com/iv.php
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rick said 3:02PM on 11-09-2009
the one from flashmac looks huge.
what i like about the quirky one is that it's otherwise indistinguishable from other close-fitting cases.
rick said 3:26PM on 11-09-2009
flashmac:=fastmac. urgh.
imalmostjesus said 1:36PM on 11-09-2009
So instead of a journalism site, this is now a site for advertisements of crappy products?
About:blank (or any free flashlight app) and brightness turned all the way up is probably way better than this stupid led flashlight. And it's overpriced.
What a waste of bandwidth this article is.
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Juaquin said 2:00PM on 11-09-2009
Did you miss the part about this being useful as a flash? Or just chose to ignore it to be a troll?
Zack said 3:30PM on 11-09-2009
I know that blogs are blurring/changing the definition of journalism, but it's silly to hold a blog to the same standards as traditional journalism outlets. At this time, you're setting yourself up for disappointment.
jax sedrin said 2:39PM on 11-09-2009
It's not a "flash" though, it's a light. The only options are "off", "on", and "on for 10 seconds". Without a flash mode, it's still going to make your pictures blurry unless you hold the phone absolutely still.
If you're just looking for night-time illumination then it might be worth it, but don't expect it to improve picture quality like a real flash would.
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Aten said 10:00PM on 11-09-2009
@jax sedrin
"don't expect it to improve picture quality like a real flash would"
You are wrong... flash adds noise to any picture