Think back to 2007, when the first Transformers movie debuted in theaters around the globe. Think back to being young, starry eyed, and just jaw-on-floor when you saw a Chevrolet Camaro transform into Bumblebee for the first time. I remember because that particular scene blew my mind, watching something transform into something else with such detail and precision. Not to be hyperbolic, but my mind got blown in the same way, watching the OMNI-R transform from a tiny metal rectangle into a scale 32 centimeters long, while simultaneously packing as many as 11 more features into its surprisingly compact design.
The OMNI-R transcends stationery… with a 12-in-1 design, it’s practically an EDC multitool. The scale has multiple hinge-points, a pivot point, a caliper, a pencil, a cutter, and even a spirit level, all somehow crammed into an object measuring 3.2 inches long when folded shut. Designed to appeal to both the technically nerdy as well as the EDC lover, the OMNI-R comes with a gorgeous all-metal design, flaunting 3 finishes – Anodized Aluminum, Red Copper, and actual Gr5 Titanium.
Designer: OMNI (Zhenlai Inc.)
Click Here to Buy Now: $69 $109 ($40 off). Hurry, only 10/240 left! Raised over $53,000.
With about as much functionality pack into it like a Swiss Army Knife, the OMNI-R turns the humble ruler/scale into a canvas of tools. After all, a scale might be great for measuring linear distances, but it can do so much more, and it has so much unused real estate… right? Well, at least that’s what the folks at Zhenlai thought when they decided the scale had to get a facelift. Each inch of space was reconsidered, before being replaced with a tool or a feature. The result is a scale that turns estate into efficiency, packing more features than your fingers could count. This one humble scale that could only calculate linear distances can now measure up to a 10th of a micron, draw circles, cut paper, measure angles, plot parallel lines, and even tell you if your furniture or your painting is offset or marginally tilted.
As far as rulers go, the OMNI-R does a banger job measuring objects and lines. A dual-folding design lets it go from a mere 3.2 inches in length to 12.75 inches long, effectively putting a foot-ruler in a form factor small enough for your pocket. Everything’s machined from metal, which means that all the folding and unfolding occurs at the tightest tolerances, allowing the ruler to remain ruthlessly accurate despite the moving and folding parts. Open the ruler up once and you’re left with a half-foot scale. Open it up a second time and it doubles in size, with metric as well as imperial measurements so you’re never left calculating distances mentally… or Googling them (like I usually do).
That second opening mechanism is what turns the OMNI-R into a circle-guide too. It opens radially, which means you can measure angles as well as draw hemispheres. Want to make full circles instead? Well, then you’ll have to tap into the OMNI-R’s ‘unlimited’ pencil. Tucked into one of the arms of the OMNI-R is a removable pencil that can either be used independently, or kept docked inside the OMNI-R for use as a circle-maker. Use it the way you would a compass, and spin the pencil around on a piece of paper with a fixed pivot point and you get perfect circles. The pencil itself is made from a special alloy that creates marks on paper without relying on graphite. This means it writes without ever going blunt or needing sharpening.
Built into the grip of the pencil is also a holder for scalpel-style blades. Flip the pencil over and use the reverse to cut paper, plastic, cloth, or even leather. The scalpel blades are detachable, which means you can take them out when you don’t need them, and on the off chance that a blade loses its edge or breaks, simply ditch the old blade for a new one and you’re good to go.
While the pencil sits on one arm, the opposing arm packs a Vernier-style caliper for hyper-accurate measurements. Precise to 1/10th of a millimeter, this lets you work with intricate objects and make highly detailed measurements that go as precise as 0.01mm – perfect for engineers, tinkerers, designers, and even architects working on small scales or with low tolerances.
Other fairly noteworthy features include a set of rollers, that allow the OMNI-R to move in a perfect straight line. This makes drawing/plotting parallel lines very easy, as the OMNI-R’s precisely engineered rollers move with linear accuracy, down to 0.3°. The result gives you parallel lines in less than half the time. A spirit level, on the other hand, gives you control over horizontality. While most architects and designers carry a separate spirit gage for leveling, the OMNI-R packs one in its body, making it easy to do things like measure whether a painting is mounted perfectly, or if a shelf is crooked or straight.
But even for a guy who probably doesn’t need all the features the OMNI-R packs, its design is by far the one thing that keeps bringing me back. That all-metal build, the joy of its weighted form in your hands as you confidently draw lines, measure distances, calculate angles, and cut objects, without any flimsy parts or plastic components to ‘bring costs down’. The only truly plastic part on the OMNI-R is the spirit level… and that’s by sheer design.
The OMNI-R starts at $69 for the aluminum variant, going up to a fairly reasonable $79 if you want to opt for the titanium version. There are multiple colorways to choose from, and a special copper + brass version will be unlocked as a perk on Kickstarter too. Each OMNI-R comes completely equipped, with its 12-in-1 design ready right out of the box. You also get 10 standard scalpel blades with the OMNI-R (and you can buy more at any stationery or hardware shop). In fact, the only thing you have to buy separately are the optional tritium/glow vials, which you can mount into the OMNI-R’s body thanks to a series of notches in its body, so your EDC multitool never gets lost in the dark! The OMNI-R ships globally starting October 2025.
Click Here to Buy Now: $69 $109 ($40 off). Hurry, only 10/240 left! Raised over $53,000.
The post This 12-in-1 EDC Ruler Might Be The Ultimate Stationery Gadget Ever Made first appeared on Yanko Design.