We are constantly coming across awesome Kickstarter Campaigns. In an effort to cover more of them (there are currently more than 4700 active campaigns), we are going to begin a new weekly article: “Kickstarter Campaigns to Fund Now.” So without any futher ado, here are the Kickstarter Campaigns that we are following this week:

Plinth – the World’s best stand for your Tablet / iPad

As anyone who owns a tablet can attest, it is downright difficult to find a good stand. The large variety of sizes and dimensions of tablets (aside from the iPads) make it hard to find the perfect stand, let alone one that you don’t have to spend a fortune on. While there are cases that act as stands there is really not a small, portable, lightweight stand on the market. No more.

This is the Plinth tablet stand. The Plinth stand is collapsible, lightweight and compact. When collapsed, the stand is slightly smaller than an iPhone and weighs in at 50 grams. Further, the Plinth stand has 5 different angle settings:

The stand is also incredibly sturdy and stable:

Made from tough engineering plastics with moulded-in soft protective pads and non-slip feet, your tablet will be held securely and prevented from slipping or getting scratched. Flip-out wings deploy stabilising rubber feet under each corner of the tablet, holding it rock steady on any surface ¹

Currently, the Plinth Stand is available on Kickstarter as a reward for an £18 pledge (just under $30 USD). Take a look at the Plinth Stand Kickstarter video to see the device in action:

LUPO – Find, Secure & Control your Smartphone, Mac or PC

Lupo is a pretty remarkable product. Lupo is a key-finder type object: stick it to an important object such as keys, phone, or computer and through its companion app, Lupo will help you keep track of the object. The device also takes measures to prevent object loss in the first place:

The Lupo can be set to activate anti-loss and anti-theft alerts, including audible and visible alarms and/or SMS like messages, when personal items are left behind or someone else moves them. In addition, Lupo can help to prevent data theft by automatically locking a computer when the user steps away from it, the first device of its kind to offer this service.²

However, the Lupo is much, much more than an object tracker. The Lupo Team was kind enough to answer a few questions for us earlier this week. When we asked them to describe the Lupo, the team focused on the additional features that really separate them from similar products:

But probably the biggest difference is the inclusion of a programmable button to allow control of other Bluetooth applications (e.g. smartphone cameras and presentations), supported by an SDK to allow software developers to build their own apps on the platform, including gesture-controlled apps.

The Lupo is available for a £24 pledge (just under $40 USD). Check out their Kickstarter Campaign video:

Skirmos: Open Source Laser Tag

The two previous campaigns are useful, practical devices. Although the Skirmos is not really practical, it is awesome. Skirmos is, “The most advanced open source laser tag system.”³ While there are currently tons of different laser tag products available, Skirmos takes the entire concept to a whole new level. Here is how the team describes the products:

Skirmos is an open source laser tag system that can be used for any and every game possible. It has the flexibility to be played indoors or out; in small or large games. Its unique open source nature allows anyone to make their own creative gametypes. Whether it’s free-for-all or capture the flag, a realistic simulation, or a replica from your favorite video game, Skirmos can be played in any manner you can think of. ⁴

What really makes the Skirmos stand out is the unique LED HUD (Heads Up Display). The display can show you all sorts of things: health, ammo, kills, deaths, team stats, game time, and really anything that you could possibly think of – this is where open-source comes into play. “For example, if you’re capturing an enemy objective, the LCD screen will show you are securing the area. If blue team pulls your flag, an icon displaying a flag will indicate it has been taken. Our main focus is making the LCD screen as dynamic as possible.”⁵ The Skirmos is as customizable as you want it to be. The Skirmos team recently explained the customizable aspect to Stuff:

The real magic words are “open source”. That means you get to create your own game whether it’s indoors or outdoors, capture the flag or a complete free for all. If you’re running out of creativity, replicate a scenario from your favourite first-person shooter game. Not one with chainsaws…It gets even more customisable. Sound of gunfire too obvious for you? Replace it with a sheep bleating if you wish. Need a reward system? If you’re on a killstreak, have the LEDs in your gun turn off automatically granting you the power of stealth. A little too quick on the draw? Each player has a unique ID so friendly fire won’t destroy friendships anymore.⁶

Right now, you can get one Skirmos for a pledge of $115, two for a pledge of $199, or four for a pledge of $420. Need more convincing? Watch their Kickstarter Campaign video: