The Air Umbrella, a must for all motorists

Have you ever tried to get into or out from your car in the rain, only to get soaked as you wrestle with a traditional umbrella? We bet you have and we bet you would like to find an alternative. The umbrella hasn’t really changed since it was first seen approximately 3000 years ago - a basic ribbed cage covered in some form of fabric. Now, sheltering from the rain has just gotten hi-tech and invisible with a new Air Umbrella that is making a run for it on Kickstarter.

Although there are video’s of a working umbrella on Youtube, the project is still very much at the R&D stage, with funding still required. There is a plan to produce three umbrellas, one at 12 inches for the ladies, another at 20 inches for men and one that is scalable. Not sure why they think women need a smaller umbrella though. One drawback is the battery life, which is at present just 15 minutes for the shorter umbrella and 30 minutes for the longer ones, so the device is going to be targeted at urbanites and in particular car drivers, with the hope that all cars of the future will have one.

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There are two other slight drawbacks with the new umbrella: firstly, the manner in which it works could mean that the rain that was falling on to your head will now be blown onto other people's heads; and then there is the price, which is set for about US$200 each, which makes it a darn expensive umbrella. But hey, don’t you want to be the first person seen getting out of your car and then walking down the street with one?

image: kickstarter.com