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8BitDo Pro 3 controller comes with swappable buttons and cross platform compatibility

8BitDo is on a roll, launching accessories for the gaming community, and also demonstrating that the industry is on an upward graph when it comes to popularity. The gaming accessories maker is giving every kind of gamer a reason to buy their gamepads. Be it someone who loves playing old-school arcade fighting titles, someone like me who fancies racing games more than anything else, or an indie game lover who is spoilt for choices.

The Pro 2 controller released in 2021 was a big hit, and now 8BitDo has released the upgraded version of the popular gamepad. Dubbed Pro 3, the gamepad visually resembles the PlayStation DualSense controller design. There are side-by-side sticks that now have drift-resistant TMR technology. This is the brand’s first-ever controller with easy swappable ABXY buttons. In a market flooded with good gaming controllers at reasonable prices, having one that is compatible with multiple platforms is a big plus. The 8BitDo Pro 3 fairs good in that regard with Switch 2, Windows PC, Apple, Android, and SteamOS compatibility.

Designer: 8BitDo

The TMR joysticks and triggers have Hall effect or the non-linear micro-switch mode for maximum precision while gaming. The gamepad with Bluetooth and wired connectivity option comes with extra bumpers, dual Pro paddle buttons on the back, and swappable magnetic ABXY buttons to play any type of gaming titles with no major handicaps. To bleed in the arcade element even more, the controller comes with a pair of ball-top joystick caps.

Another USP of the gaming accessory is its retro-styled charging dock, which makes it convenient to charge the controller for gamers who don’t want to go through the hassle of plugging in cables for charging. It also doubles as a storage dock for the 2.5 GHz dongle. The optional joystick module will make the controller ideal for playing fighting games and other retro titles. Also, the 6-axis gyroscope will make it well-suited for FPS titles and racing games where gamers love the freedom of movement with directional changes.

The Pro 2 carried a price tag of $50 when it launched, but the new Pro 3 has a price tag of $70 which is a bit steep but justified. That’s because the gamepad comes with a 1,000mAh rechargeable battery, which takes the total gameplay time to 20 hours on a single charge. 8BitDo Pro 3 in three color options can be pre-ordered right now and will go on sale on August 12th. These color options each match the retro vibe of the respective consoles: G classic resembling the Game Boy, gray reviving memories of the PlayStation, and purple reminiscent of the GameCube.

The post 8BitDo Pro 3 controller comes with swappable buttons and cross platform compatibility first appeared on Yanko Design.

Hand-chiseled Marble Washbasin looks so stunning you’ll think it was CNC Machined

What Kreoo is doing is the antithesis of industrialism. Instead of making things easier using machines, the company is taking a 180° and going back to the basics. Marble as a material has been a symbol of the elite for millennia (marble quarries can be found to date back as early as the 7th century BC), and for the most part of its existence, it’s been manipulated by tools held by expertly guided hands.

Over the past century, however, marble’s become more democratic. Machines ‘harvest’ marble from the earth, carry them to factories, where other specialist machines carve out the shapes in a matter of hours. A process that once took months (if not years) now can be procured for a couple of hundred bucks on some atelier website. What Kreoo attempts at doing is reclaiming marble’s rank in the echelon of greats. And it does so, not by using the ‘highest quality marble’ from the most sought-after quarry in Italy… but instead, by returning to tradition in a way that commands respect, just because of the weeks and months of expertise and literal sweat that goes into building each washbasin.

Designer: Christophe Pillet for Kreoo

The washbasin’s design looks fairly unassuming if you analyze just the silhouette, but hit the dramadic lighting and you see the staggering detail that makes it so noteworthy. Inspired by the grid-shaped patterns found on the inside of the Pantheon’s dome, the Dawn Freestanding Washbasin employs a similar soft ornamental grid that wraps seamlessly along the side of the basin. Except it doesn’t end there – step closer and you see that the pattern has its own micro-detailing, designed to look like the washbasin was carved by a computer-controlled drill or a CNC machine.

I can’t begin to imagine the hours that must have gone into individually carve all those grooves to sheer perfection, mimicking machines rather than having the machines mimic humans. The texture’s left unpolished, while the basin is capped with two polished blocks – on the top and on the bottom – that complete it. Although not shown in these images, the washbasin comes in 4 marble variants – Bianco del Re, Bianco Perla, Bianco Carrara, and a gorgeous dark Nero Marquina.

The entire basin stands at an impressive 35.5 inches tall, and weighs 157 kilograms or 346 lb. Pricing hasn’t been mentioned on Kreoo’s website, but don’t expect the Dawn to be even remotely affordable. This thing was literally made for a different class of people – the equivalent of the kind who would commission marble sculptures for their houses in ancient Greece and Rome…

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These Astronaut-themed artisanal keycaps let you ‘Escape’ into ‘Space’

Fifty-five years after Neil Armstrong’s boot touched the Sea of Tranquility, we’re still obsessed with that moment when humanity first stepped beyond Earth. The Apollo 11 landing remains our species’ greatest “hold my beer” moment, and now Moon Key has distilled that historic achievement into something you can literally put your fingers on. These aren’t your typical artisan keycaps with dragons or anime characters. These are miniature monuments to human ambition, cast in crystal-clear resin and hand-painted with the kind of reverence usually reserved for museum dioramas.

Each keycap functions as a tiny snow globe without the snow, capturing pivotal scenes from humanity’s first lunar expedition in exquisite detail. The astronaut figures, barely larger than grains of rice, are meticulously painted in their iconic white EVA suits, complete with the backpack and helmets that became synonymous with space exploration. The American flag stands proudly planted in the sculpted lunar regolith, its red, white, and blue clearly visible despite the miniature scale. Behind the astronauts, lunar modules and rovers dot the cratered landscape, creating a sense of depth that makes you want to peer closer, as if you’re looking through a telescope at Tranquility Base itself.

Designer: Moon Key

The collection extends beyond lunar nostalgia with amber-tinted Mars rover keycaps that feel like looking into the Red Planet’s dusty atmosphere. These variants showcase the robotic explorers that have been our advance scouts on Mars, their six-wheeled forms suspended in golden resin that perfectly captures the Martian sunset hues we’ve seen in countless NASA photos. The rovers appear to navigate rocky Martian terrain, complete with the kind of boulder-strewn landscape that Curiosity and Perseverance have made familiar to earthbound audiences. The amber resin creates an otherworldly glow under RGB backlighting, making your keyboard feel like mission control equipment from JPL’s Mars operations center.

The construction process involves multiple layers of colored resin to create depth and atmosphere within each keycap’s 16mm height. The lunar surface features realistic crater textures and that distinctive powdery regolith that kicked up around the astronauts’ boots, all meticulously hand-painted before being encased in the final clear resin layer. The Moon and Mars variants recreate the environments with great accuracy, opting for either that amber hue characteristic with Martian soil, or the mottled, cratered, ashy surface of the moon.

Moon Eye created 3 sizes of keycaps – the standard 1u caps fit on your regular keys, whereas the 1.75u and 2.25u sizes work on Caps Lock, Shift, and Enter keys on most keyboards. To be honest, they missed a major opportunity with crafting keycaps for Back’space’ and ‘Space’bar keys, given the obvious theme! The 1u fits perfectly on the Escape key and I wouldn’t recommend placing that cap anywhere else.

The keycaps are priced at anywhere between $50 to $59 (depending on the size). They’re designed with the SAR1 profile, making them compatible with Cherry MX switches and fit seamlessly into most keyboard layouts. They’re all individually handmade, which means there will be slight differences between the ones you see in the photos and the ones you eventually recieve, once shipping begins in end-October. That being said, the bespoke nature of the keycaps make them even more charming – especially to keyboard aficionados.

Each keycap weighs approximately 15 grams due to the solid resin construction, giving them a substantial feel that matches their symbolic weight. The MX-compatible stems ensure they’ll work with virtually any modern mechanical keyboard, though their sculpted tops make them better suited for accent positions rather than high-traffic typing keys. If Moon Eye’s reading this, I have two words – Backspace and Spacebar!

What makes these keycaps particularly compelling is their timing. We’re living through a new space race, with SpaceX’s Starship promising to return humans to the Moon and eventually Mars. Private companies are launching lunar missions, NASA’s Artemis program aims to establish a permanent lunar presence, and suddenly that 1969 achievement feels less like ancient history and more like the opening chapter of humanity’s cosmic story. These keycaps serve as both memorial and motivation, reminding us that we’ve done the impossible before and we’re about to do it again on a much grander scale.

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Forget Liquid Glass: This custom Ducati Monster 821 by Bandit9 looks like it’s made from ‘Liquid Metal’

We’ve covered Bandit9’s morphing-metal aesthetic here at Yanko Design for years, from their bullet-shaped EVE Odyssey to the manta-ray-inspired Supermarine, and each time their Vietnam-based studio delivers something that looks like it was poured from molten mercury rather than built from conventional parts. Their latest creation, the Ducati 821, takes this liquid metal philosophy to its logical extreme, creating what might be the closest thing to Apple’s Liquid Glass OS rendered in physical form. Where most custom bike builders bolt on parts and call it a day, Bandit9 has essentially dissolved the boundaries between aluminum and carbon fiber, creating a monolithic sculpture that happens to house an 821cc V-twin engine.

The story behind this particular machine reads like a love letter to obsessive craftsmanship. Originally commissioned by a rider who fell hard for Bandit9’s EVE Odyssey, this one-off build (now expanded to a limited run of 9 units at $44,900 each) started with a simple brief: build something to dominate mountain roads. What emerged was a complete reimagining of the Ducati Monster 821 platform, where every single component was hand-fabricated from scratch to achieve what Bandit9 calls “unity” – the distillation of disparate motorcycle parts into a single, flowing form. The result is a machine that looks like it was carved from a single block of metal, with polished aluminum seamlessly transitioning into MotoGP-grade carbon fiber in a way that makes traditional panel gaps and mounting points seem quaint.

Designer: Bandit9

Technically, this thing is a weapon. The 821cc 8v V-twin pumps out 110 bhp and 65.8 ft-lb of torque, launching this 175kg sculpture from 0-60 mph in 3.3 seconds and on to a top speed of 201 km/h. The custom tubular steel trellis frame combines with cast aluminum sections to create a rigid foundation that translates rider input without distortion – crucial when you’re leaning into corners at speeds that would make most riders reconsider their life choices. Non-adjustable 43mm Sachs forks up front and a preload/rebound adjustable Sachs rear shock handle the suspension duties, while dual 320mm Brembo discs with four-piston monobloc calipers provide stopping power that matches the bike’s aggressive performance envelope.

The exhaust system is completely integrated into the bodywork, exiting through a barely visible outlet that maintains the bike’s clean lines. The LED lighting system (headlights, DRL, signals, and taillights) is embedded so seamlessly into the body that it’s nearly invisible when not illuminated. Even the gas cap is aluminum-milled to match the overall aesthetic, while custom foot pegs, rear controls, and mirrors continue the theme of functional sculpture. The single-sided swingarm keeps the rear wheel visually clean, and even the screws are polished to maintain the obsessive attention to finish quality.

Where most bikes are assemblies of discrete components, the Ducati 821 reads as a single, continuous surface that happens to contain an engine, wheels, and rider. The transition from the polished aluminum front section to the carbon fiber rear happens so smoothly that it takes a moment to realize you’re looking at two completely different materials. It’s a design direction that’s typical to Bandit9’s work, bending metal in ways that make aluminum look like mercury. The references to T-1000 from Terminator will never get old.

The riding experience promises to be equally uncompromising. The aggressive geometry and 870mm seat height put you in a full racing crouch, while the 16-liter tank provides about 145 miles of range – enough for serious mountain carving sessions but not much more. The high-density polyurethane foam seat prioritizes form over long-distance comfort, and the minimalist controls strip away everything that isn’t essential to the act of going fast. This is a machine built for the kind of rider who sees mountain roads as a personal racetrack and considers traffic laws more like suggestions.

At $44,900, the Ducati 821 costs more than most cars, but that misses the point entirely. This isn’t transportation; it’s rideable sculpture that happens to be faster than anything else on the road. The fact that only 9 units will ever exist makes it less a motorcycle purchase and more an investment in automotive art. For the kind of person who commissioned the original build – someone who saw Bandit9’s EVE Odyssey and thought “I need that, but angrier” – the price is almost irrelevant. What matters is owning something that looks like it materialized from a future where form and function have achieved perfect synthesis, where the boundary between art and engineering has been completely erased.

The post Forget Liquid Glass: This custom Ducati Monster 821 by Bandit9 looks like it’s made from ‘Liquid Metal’ first appeared on Yanko Design.

Razer Core X V2 eGPU Enclosure Embraces Extreme Minimalism for Thunderbolt 5

Razer has always been known for pushing boundaries, but their latest eGPU enclosure takes a surprisingly different approach. Instead of adding more features, the Core X V2 strips away almost everything that made previous models convenient. It’s minimalism taken to an extreme that might leave some users scratching their heads.

The Core X V2 looks sleeker than ever, with Razer’s signature black aluminum chassis appearing even more refined. The enclosure is noticeably lighter and more compact than its predecessors, creating a cleaner desktop presence. You can tell immediately that this isn’t just another incremental update but a complete rethinking of what an eGPU should be.

Designer: Razer

Here’s where things get interesting, and potentially controversial. Razer decided to remove the built-in power supply and expansion ports that made previous Core X models relatively plug-and-play. Now you need to supply your own ATX power supply, which connects via standard cabling inside the enclosure. Need extra USB ports or Ethernet? You’ll have to buy a separate Thunderbolt 5 dock and daisy-chain it with the eGPU.

The big selling point is Thunderbolt 5 support, offering up to 120Gbps of bandwidth compared to Thunderbolt 4’s 40Gbps. That’s impressive future-proofing, but here’s the catch: Thunderbolt 5 laptops are still incredibly rare today. Most users won’t be able to take advantage of this bandwidth boost for months or even years.

Let’s talk about the real cost of ownership, because that $350 price tag is just the beginning. You’ll need to buy a decent ATX power supply for another $100-150, plus whatever GPU you want to install. If you need those missing expansion ports, add another $200-300 for a Thunderbolt 5 dock, or even $400 for Razer’s new Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma. Suddenly, you’re looking at around $750 before even adding a graphics card.

That’s significantly more expensive than previous Core X models, which included everything you needed in the box. Sure, those older models locked you into Razer’s choice of power supply and port selection, but they were genuinely plug-and-play experiences. The V2 trades convenience for customization, letting you choose your own components rather than accepting whatever Razer ships with.

The upside is genuine flexibility. You can install exactly the power supply you need for your GPU, upgrade it later, or even repurpose components if you move to a different setup. Power users and tinkerers will appreciate this modularity, especially those who already have spare ATX power supplies lying around.

Still, this feels like a product designed for a very specific audience. If you’re comfortable building PCs and want maximum customization, the Core X V2 offers compelling flexibility. But if you just want to plug in an eGPU and start gaming, the stripped-down approach might feel more like a step backward than forward.

Razer has made a bold gamble with extreme minimalism, betting that users will appreciate the freedom to choose their own components. Whether that gamble pays off depends on how much you value customization over convenience.

The post Razer Core X V2 eGPU Enclosure Embraces Extreme Minimalism for Thunderbolt 5 first appeared on Yanko Design.

Open-Source, Upcycled & Beautifully Functional: The Ultimate Eco-Friendly Chair for Modern Living

The Paper Tube Chair poses a profound question about design democracy. Designed the Dhammada Collective, the chair drew inspiration from Pierre Jeanneret’s celebrated teak library chairs, yet luxury teak was replaced in favor of discarded cardboard tubes. Dhammada Collective was founded by Nipun Prabhakar in Bhopal, and the interdisciplinary studio challenges the commodification of furniture through unique and radical material choices. The chairs beautifully capture the concept of “joyful frugality”, which involves making good design principles available to communities beyond metropolitan centers.

Construction begins with salvage operations at a local offset print shop, where cardboard cores accumulate twice monthly. These thick tubes face landfill disposal due to glue layers that prevent recycling, creating an abundant waste stream. The design intercepts fifteen tubes, cutting them like bamboo segments for structural assembly. Bright vermilion rope, leftover from weaving workshops, binds the components through continuous figure-eight lashing patterns. This rope system performs structural miracles, tightening under load while maintaining component replaceability.

Designer: Dhammada Collective

The assembly process unveils a deep and thorough understanding of material behavior. Early prototypes collapsed spectacularly, teaching the team to insert smaller tubes at critical joints and trust tension over adhesive bonds. The rope flexes with movement, accommodating user weight while preserving structural integrity. Each tube receives a thin varnish coat that seals fibers while preserving scratches and printer codes. This style of finishing cherishes material history, letting it shine, rather than concealing origins.

The lashing technique allows for easy disassembly and repair, making the chair genuinely sustainable throughout its lifecycle. Component replacement requires only basic materials and rope-working skills, democratizing maintenance processes. The structure adapts to various body types through slight flex in the rope connections. Weight distribution across multiple contact points creates surprising comfort despite minimal padding.

The studio decided to adopt an open-source philosophy, transforming the simple yet powerful furniture piece into a design template.  Prabhakar encourages adaptation and experimentation, sharing construction experiences and documented failures with interested makers. The project requires only print-shop tubes and rope, making replication accessible across different economic contexts. The chair perfectly aligns with the collective’s mission to serve Tier 2 cities and rural communities overlooked by mainstream design practice. The chair becomes a catalyst for local making culture.

Cultural resonance emerges through the design’s relationship with Indian modernist heritage. The bright vermilion rope creates visual warmth that softens industrial materials, referencing traditional craft techniques. This marriage of modernist geometry with vernacular making processes creates furniture that feels both contemporary and rooted.

FAQs

1. Is cardboard furniture durable enough for everyday use?

Cardboard furniture, when designed with thought and intention, can be surprisingly strong and sturdy for daily living. The Paper Tube Chair by Dhammada Collective shows this resilience through its structural use of thick, industrial cardboard tubes and a rope lashing system that tightens under load. Early prototypes revealed weaknesses, but the final design incorporates smaller tubes at critical joints and relies on tension rather than adhesives, creating a chair that flexes with movement and distributes weight efficiently. While it may not match the longevity of hardwood furniture, its construction is more than adequate for regular use, especially when users follow basic care and maintenance practices.

2. How sustainable is the paper tube chair compared to traditional furniture?

The Paper Tube Chair is quite sustainable when compared to conventional furniture. Instead of relying on new, resource-intensive materials like teak, the chair is built from discarded cardboard tubes—an abundant waste product from local print shops that would otherwise end up in landfills. The use of leftover rope for lashing and a minimal varnish finish further reduces environmental impact. Its open-source, repairable design extends the chair’s lifecycle and democratizes access to good design, making it easy to maintain and adapt.

3. How comfortable is a chair made from cardboard tubes and rope?

A chair made from cardboard tubes and rope can be pretty comfortable if created with care and understanding of material behavior. The Paper Tube Chair uses thick cardboard tubes for structure and bright vermilion rope for flexible lashing, allowing the seat to subtly adapt to different body types. The rope connections flex under weight, distributing pressure across multiple contact points and creating a gentle give that enhances comfort, even with minimal padding.

The post Open-Source, Upcycled & Beautifully Functional: The Ultimate Eco-Friendly Chair for Modern Living first appeared on Yanko Design.

OnePlus launches USB-C cable with POGO Pin connector for charging smartwatch on it

I recently bought the Apple Watch Series 10. I’m fully immersed in the Apple ecosystem now, but whenever I’m packing for the office or gearing up for a trip, I always find myself carrying at least two chargers; one for my iPhone and iPad, and an additional, wireless puck for the watch.

Just yesterday, I was thinking to myself, what if there were a multi-purpose charger that combined a USB-C connector and an Apple Watch puck on the same cable? It could make things so much simpler. Before I could get to the drawing board, or Apple could consider it, OnePlus has designed a 2-in-1 SuperVOOC cable, which is exactly what I thought. A charging cable that features a USB-C port for charging a smartphone and a POGO Pin connector for juicing up a smartwatch.

Designer: OnePlus

This one charging cable could really make a lot of difference. It would let you charge your phone and smartwatch simultaneously using one cable, while saving you the effort of having to pack multiple wires when traveling. The 2-in-1 SuperVOOC Cable 8A 1.2M – as it’s called – is compatible only with OnePlus smartwatches. So, no matter the phone on the USB-C end, the unique POGO Pin connection on the cable is only going to work with the company’s watches alone.

If you’re someone like me, away in the Apple universe, you wouldn’t have any fun here. A little recce led me to a similar Apple-specific cable from Nomad, the accessory maker that has its own brand value. And it’s reflected in the cost of its USB-C cable integrated with Apple Watch charging puck, which costs $100, almost thrice of what OnePlus is selling the SuperVOOC cable for. Anyway, until Apple or some other accessory maker thinks of a more affordable alternative, we will have to stick to the two-charger philosophy.

On the bright side, for those that are in the OnePlus ecosystem, the cable of all cables is here: It offers 80W charging power and costs only $30. It measures 1.2 meters. When the watch is connected to it, and the phone is charging simultaneously, the cable distributes 67W power to the phone and 10W to your smartwatch. The 2-in-1 SuperVOOC Cable 8A 1.2M is available through the OnePlus store. Interestingly, it features a USB-A on the other end of the USB-C, which implies that you would need a compatible charging block to use the cable.

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Ori Floor Lamp Folds a Single Sheet of Metal Into Sustainable Art

Most floor lamps follow a predictable formula: base, pole, shade, done. They’re functional but rarely memorable, blending into backgrounds filled with similar geometric shapes. Lincoln Chen looked at this crowded market and decided to take a completely different approach with his Ori Floor Lamp, drawing inspiration from Japanese origami folding techniques.

The story behind Ori started with a simple moment of creative curiosity. Chen was staring at a blank sheet of paper when he wondered, “Why not create something from this very piece of paper?” That question led to a floor lamp made from a single sheet of aluminum alloy, folded into shape without any welding or joints.

Designer: Lincoln Chen

The name “Ori” means “folding” in Japanese, and the lamp embodies this concept perfectly. What makes this approach so compelling is how it transforms industrial materials into something elegant and approachable. The aluminum construction gives Ori a clean, modern feel, but the carefully executed curve at the top softens the industrial edge where the lampshade seamlessly emerges.

Unlike the cubes, cylinders, and spheres that dominate lighting design, Ori’s form feels organic and unpredictable. The wide base provides stability while the narrow top draws your eye upward to that elegant curve created by a reverse fold. This isn’t just aesthetic flourish, either. The curve serves as a functional transition from the lamp’s body to its shade.

Chen chose recyclable aluminum alloy for several practical reasons. The material is lightweight, making the lamp easy to move around your space, and it’s environmentally friendly. The single-sheet construction means virtually no material waste during production, and the finished lamps can be stacked for efficient shipping, reducing carbon emissions during transport.

At 35 inches tall, Ori hits the sweet spot for reading light without causing glare when you’re relaxing on a sofa. The small footprint makes it ideal for compact living spaces, and its understated form works with various interior styles. The lamp uses a 24V Bi-pin LED light source for energy-efficient illumination that should last for years.

The sustainability aspect goes beyond just materials. By simplifying production through the folding technique, Chen demonstrates how thoughtful design can minimize environmental impact while maximizing functionality. The approach embodies both subtraction and addition, removing unnecessary elements while cleverly using a single sheet of metal to its fullest potential.

That said, the minimalist industrial aesthetic might not appeal to everyone. If you prefer more ornate or traditional lighting, Ori’s clean lines and industrial materials could feel too stark. The focus on a single material also limits customization options compared to more conventional lamps.

Still, Ori represents a refreshing take on floor lamp design. It proves that you can create something distinctive and sustainable without sacrificing functionality or elegance. For design-conscious consumers looking for lighting that tells a story while reducing environmental impact, this origami-inspired lamp offers a compelling alternative to typical geometric fixtures.

The post Ori Floor Lamp Folds a Single Sheet of Metal Into Sustainable Art first appeared on Yanko Design.