Google is attempting to improve the aesthetics of the home Wi-Fi router with coverings by 24 artists and designers, including a fake-fur sheath and a cover that turns a device into a fruit bowl (+ slideshow). More
Opinion: is the idea of the smart city really just another way for big businesses to make even more money, asks Reinier de Graaf, who revisits the subject against his own better judgement. More
Paranoid parents can remotely track their child's temperature using this lightning bolt-shaped thermometer that connects to a smartphone app by San Francisco studio New Deal Design (+ movie). More
Wearable technology company Doppler Labs has developed a set of wireless earbuds that connect with a smartphone app to augment the user's real-world audio experience. More
San Francisco start up Minna Life has launched a portable device that men can sit on to exercise their pelvic muscles and "amplify their sexual fitness" (+ slideshow). More
A biometric bike lock that opens using the owner's thumbprint has been launched on Kickstarter by a pair of Canadian engineers. More
London design studio Map Project Office has created a minimal compass that pairs with a smartphone app to point cyclists through the city (+ slideshow). More
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
San Francisco designer Yves Behar's studio Fuseproject is releasing a new home access system that includes a keyless lock and video camera that are controlled by a user's smartphone (+ slideshow). More
The "world's first smart menstruation cup" links with a phone app to provide women with information about their periods (+ movie). More
Security company Yale has partnered with Google-owned domestic technology firm Nest to release a door lock that can be remotely controlled via a smartphone. More
London Design Festival 2015: the studio launched by London designer Benjamin Hubert has partnered with environmental consultancy Carbon Trust to produce a concept wearable that could track individual carbon footprints (+ movie). More
Yesterday Apple unveiled the Apple Pencil, turning the humble writing instrument into a tech tool. Dezeen looks at other everyday objects, from cigarettes to spectacles, that have been reinvented as digital wonders. Your grandparents would recognise them – but would they know how to use them? More
Canadian company CycleLabs has launched a smart device for bicycles that is designed to help navigate and track routes, and prevent theft (+ movie). More
Maison&Objet 2015: French technology retailer Orée is launching a ballpoint pen that can digitally record and store notes and sketches made in a companion notebook (+ slideshow). More
Dutch researcher Paulien Routs has worked with conceptual design studio Droog to develop a spray for activewear that monitors wearers' hydration levels by reacting to their sweat (+ slideshow). More
Opinion: the limitless prosperity once promised by urbanisation has failed to materialise, leaving rapidly growing inequality in its wake. It will take more than some clever technology to solve the problems with the world's biggest cities, says Reinier de Graaf. More
Barber and Osgerby's creative consultancy Map and technology company SAM have designed a kit of "building blocks" aimed at simplifying the creation of internet-connected products (+ slideshow). More
Yves Behar has designed a connected thermostat for UK energy supplier British Gas aimed at ordinary consumers rather than technology lovers (+ movie). More
Science fiction writer Bruce Sterling has curated an apartment inside an old industrial building in Turin, Italy, bringing together various designs to create the "open-source connected home of the future" (+ slideshow). More