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BTrack tail light allows you to "be tracking" your stolen bike
By Ben Coxworth January 30, 2015
The BTrack Safe Light uses a SIM card to transmit a stolen bike's GPS coordinates
There are all sorts of high-tech locks designed to make your bike harder to steal, but what happens if it gets taken anyway? If it's equipped with a BTrack Safe Light, you'll know when it's been nabbed, and you'll then be able to track its location via GPS. And because it's a tail light, it'll also make you more visible to motorists.
The BTrack can reportedly be installed on the seat post within a few minutes. One USB charge of its battery should be good for about a month, depending on usage.
Along with its LEDs and GPS unit, the device also has an integrated accelerometer. Once you've parked your bike and locked it up, that sensor can be armed using an accompanying Android or iOS app. Should someone subsequently start messing around with the bike, the vibrations will be detected, and you'll be alerted by a text message on your phone. In order not to be alerted every time the bike just gets nudged a little, though, it's also possible to adjust the sensitivity of the alarm.
The BTrack can reportedly be installed on the seat post within a few minutes
Once the bike has been stolen (and assuming that the thief hasn't read this article, and taken the BTrack off), the app can then be used to pinpoint its current location on a city map. Because the device uses a SIM card to transmit its coordinates, users will be charged for data use.
The BTrack is made by Italy's Sartori Bikes, which also manufactures a more advanced "Black Box" system for use on e-bikes. The Safe Light is available now via the company website, for €130 (about US$145). Similar functionality is offered by the $153 SpyBike and $129 BikeSpike units, which are more difficult for thieves to remove, although neither one doubles as a tail light.
Source: BTrack
http://btrack.sartoribikes.com/en/
http://www.gizmag.com/btrack-safe-light/35855/
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MARINE
Modular Backyak is a sled, kayak, sailboat and backpack in one
By C.C. Weiss January 30, 2015
The Klepper Backyak is a portable, modular watercraft
Tucked away in one of the most distant corners of last week's Boot Düsseldorf show was one of the show's most interesting products: the ultra-versatile Klepper Backyak. As its name suggests, it's a kayak that can hike to water's edge on your back. But it's also a sailboat, a snow sled and a floating sun deck.
The full-size kayak has two adult seats and a hatch for a child (Photo: C.C. Weiss/Gizmag)The Backyak at the 2015 Boot Düsseldorf show (Photo: C.C. Weiss/Gizmag)The Backyak packed up and ready to trek (Photo: C.C. Weiss/Gizmag)Mount the harness and the Backyak is a large backpack (Photo: C.C. Weiss/Gizmag)View all
The carbon-constructed Backyak follows Klepper's century-old history of building folding kayaks for easy transport and storage. Only the Backyak doesn't fold; the six-piece vessel breaks down into two separate 22-lb (10-kg), drum-shaped backpacks that strap to the shoulders of two paddlers by way of the attachable harnesses. In this way, two paddlers can get the kayak to the water, no matter whether they're traveling by subcompact car, foot, bicycle or public transportation.
Not only is the Backyak far easier to transport than a standard single-piece kayak, it looks even easier than other modular designs like the Point 65 Tequila, thanks to the fact that it works as its own backpack.
All packed up and ready to hike
The backpacks don't exactly look compact or nimble enough for long backpacking treks or bushwhacking to first-ever river runs, but they're certainly more convenient than a one-piece kayak for hiking to the water. The design could be useful for hiking to pristine water bodies that can only be reached by foot, creating multi-activity hiking/kayak trips, and plenty of other trips that would be uncomfortable or impossible with a full-size kayak.
The Backyak is not quite as light or agile as a packraft or Trekkayak, but it seems to strike a nice balance of familiar kayak structure and superior portability. Klepper says that the design offers enough stability for rivers, lakes and oceans, though it does recommend using air sponsons in rougher waters.
At the water, the Backyakers pull the two packs off and construct the 17.7-ft (5.4-m) kayak, which is sized for two adults and one child. With the addition of the end caps offered in Klepper's "Fun" package, the tandem kayak can be broken down into two 8.8-ft (2.7-m) single-adult kayaks.
The 'Fun' package creates two small kayaks in place of a larger single one
The concept of a kayak-backpack hybrid is already a versatile one, but Klepper doesn't stop there. In addition to the single- and dual-kayak modes, Klepper offers the "Relax" configuration that transforms the two kayaks into hulls strapped together by a bathing platform. This design lets you paddle, float and sunbathe on calm water. Add the available sail, which constructs in about 15 minutes, and the Relax turns into the "Sail" catamaran sailboat.
With all the aforementioned add-ons, the Backyak has warm-weather water sports covered. If you want to give it life in the winter, you can make it an all-season vessel with the "Snow" package. This package turns the Backyak into a sled-for-two with a set of steerable front rails and a sharp sled nose.
The Snow package turns the Backyak into a fully functional sled that can hike up the mount...
Adding the extra equipment will increase the weight on your back, but all the components are designed to fit neatly inside the drum packs. The sail package is the heaviest, with each pack weighing 31 lb (14 kg).
The Backyak isn't a brand-new launch and has been around for about three years. Prices range from €5,000 ($5,650) for the basic single two-person kayak kit to €11,000 for the full five-configuration set-up. Klepper also offers other accessories like inflatable side sponsons, an electric motor and a rudder. The company told us that it is not shipping the Backyak at the moment due to manufacturing issues but plans to have shipping back up around April.
Source: Klepper
http://www.gizmag.com/modular-bakyak-kayak-sled-backpack/35798/
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