To fight the threat of soil degradation to food supply, design graduate Ryan Waterhouse has invented a portable device that monitors the health of topsoil. More about Terra Nova soil monitor aims to avert future food crisis
Japanese food and beverage company Kirin Holdings and researchers at Meiji University have developed a wearable device connected to a chopstick that uses an electric current to simulate food tasting salty. More about Taste-Adjusting Chopsticks makes food taste saltier without adding salt
American musician Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, and design technology company Kano have launched Stem Player, a pebble-shaped device that allows users to customise songs in the palm of their hand. More about Ye and Kano release MP3 player designed to "challenge what an album can be"
Postgraduate students at the Royal College of Art have created a portable tool to help women check their breasts for abnormalities. More about Dotplot device monitors changes in breast health
An electric fan is disguised as an understated side table in Brise, a student project from Hongik University graduate Wonho Lee. More about Wonho Lee creates Brise fan hidden inside a side table
German design graduate Rebecca Weiss has won a James Dyson Award for a male contraceptive device called Coso, which uses ultrasound waves to temporarily halt sperm regeneration. More about Rebecca Weiss designs ultrasound-powered male contraceptive device
Brighton College student Pietro Pignatti has designed a compact avocado cutter that can be used to safely open avocados while on the go. More about School student creates travel-sized Avogo tool to "eliminate avocado hand"
Students from London's Royal College of Art and Imperial College have devised a system that provides access to news coverage via a portable satellite modem during a government-enforced internet shutdown. More about Fallback device can bypass governmental internet shutdowns to give access to news
Retro handheld gaming meets contemporary design in the Analogue Pocket, a new device for playing old Nintendo Game Boy cartridges. More about Game Boy gets extra life in minimal Analogue Pocket
A hardware filter called Winston that users plug into their modem to protect their data has launched, in response to mounting concern over digital privacy and surveillance. More about Winston filter promises to give people control over their online privacy
Chicago-based tech startup Ovie has launched Smarterware, a line of food-storage products that alert users when the contents of their fridge are about to spoil. More about Tupperware-style products use the Internet of Things to help you reduce your food waste
Nendo has designed a wireless speaker for Japanese brand Bunaco, using a thin strip of coiled beech wood trapped inside a transparent casing. More about Nendo exploits acoustic properties of beech wood for transparent Bunaco speaker
This camera-style device designed by Royal College of Art graduate Arthur Carabott uses immediate audio and visual feedback to help musicians improve their posture and technique. More about Musician's Mirror uses instant feedback to alert performers to bad posture
Brunel University graduate Imogen Adams has created a portable allergen tester designed to put people with food intolerances at ease during meals out. More about Pocket-sized Ally device tests for food allergens in restaurant meals
This connected plant pot designed by Royal College of Art graduate Jen-Hsien Chiu feeds or starves a plant depending on its user's behaviour. More about Phabit device rewards your daily exercise by keeping a plant alive
For his project with Silicon Valley start-up Rythm, industrial designer Yves Behar had to make a computer comfortable enough for restless sleepers to wear on their heads overnight. More about Yves Behar looks to loungewear for design of sleep-aiding Dreem headband
This small device allows users to talk to, play with and watch their pets when apart, for the reassurance that they are happy and safe at home. More about Petcube Play lets you interact with your pet remotely from a smartphone
New York designer Karim Rashid has unveiled a smartphone charging device that neatly stores a metre-long cable in a loop around its outside (+ slideshow). More about Karim Rashid's Bump smartphone charger "eliminates the knotty tangle of power cords"
Dezeen's design editor Dan Howarth selects his pick of this year's gadgets, including concepts, prototypes and commercial products for cooking, cleaning, cycling and even masturbating (+ slideshow). More about Dezeen's top 10 gadgets of 2015
London startup Onomo has launched a Kickstarter campaign to support the release of its Haize compass, which uses flashing and colour-changing lights to direct cyclists to their destination (+ slideshow). More about Onomo's "magic compass" uses LEDs to guide cyclists