Stay occupied in vaccine limbo

BMW Motorrad Definition CE 04 PARKA AND RIDE

£tbc / bmw-motorrad.co.uk

It does look a bit Quadrophenia. It appears the Definition CE 04’s designers have been bingeing on the Mods vs Rockers classic, in between repeats of Blade Runner and Minority Report. Alongside the sharp styling, low-slung ‘floating’ seat and smartphone-enabled 10.25in TFT infotainment display, there’s a light-up accompanying parka for added visibility.

And the performance figures? BMW is keeping tight-lipped about those, but has stated that this scooter is designed for the urban environment, so don’t expect epic range or superbike-rivalling acceleration. Instead, it’s been designed for maximum convenience – think multiple stowage areas and a wireless charging slot for your phone.

So… will it see the light of day? BMW has a great track record of taking slightly mad concepts like this into production, and has already stated that the Definition CE 04 transfers the radical design of its 2017 Concept Link machine to “production readiness with almost unchanged design”. If that isn’t a hint, we don’t know what is.

That’s a far cry from the Aprilia scooter I had as a rebellious teen… You bet, and this one swaps the ‘wasp in a can’ engine note for a near-silent ride. It builds on the foundations laid by the C Evolution, a battery-powered city slicker launched in 2014. That hasn’t been a massive success for BMW, but perhaps we’re now ready for the next generation of emissions-free two-wheeled commuting.

But this is still a concept, right? Yes, it’s both a design study and a platform for testing out new tech… but also a finished article. In fact, don’t be shocked if the production machine looks very close to this.

NEWS DASHBOARD

MINI BUS

Have you ever wondered what a Mini campervan would look like? The Vision Urbanaut is a computer design study to show us the spacious Mini interior of the future. It can be configured for ‘Chill’, ‘Vibe’ and ‘Wanderlust’ driving modes and, no, we don’t know what that means. But we do know it has a ‘day bed’, which is nice. RAVING BULL

The Huracan STO is the maddest Lambo for some time, with performance credentials that are as close to a Super Trofeo racing car as you can get for the road. It has rear-wheel-drive, rear steer, ludicrous downforce and a 5.2-litre V10 that develops 631bhp. Oh, and a price tag that tickles the £260,000 mark. RUBI RAD

Jeep seems to be going against the green grain with an insane 470bhp version of its meaty Wrangler Rubicon. The 392 (a nod to its engine’s capacity in cubic inches) features a 6.4-litre V8 powerplant and components beefed up for off-road antics. Don’t expect it to go on sale outside the US, though.

Marque and ride AUDI ELECTRIC KICK SCOOTER

Riding an electric scooter on UK roads might still be a crime (for now), but that hasn’t stopped us drawing up a wishlist for when the law gets changed. Whizzing its way to the top is this two-wheeler from Audi, which, thanks to a little help from Segway, can hit a top speed of 12mph and keep going for up to 40 miles before its 551Wh lithium battery needs recharging – not much compared to one of its electric cars, but impressive for a scooter. It also comes with regenerative brakes, LED lights (but not indicators, of course) and a full-colour dash, which should make you the envy of the neighbourhood. Pick one up now and stick it in your shed until you’re allowed to tear up the street like Bart Simpson. €999 / audishop.ie Holy Moley, is the name a giveaway? Yep, British company Moley Robotics has launched the world’s first robotic kitchen that “cooks from scratch and even cleans up afterwards without complaint”. The brainchild of Russian mathematician and computer scientist Mark Oleynik, it can whip up 5000 freshly cooked meals at the touch of button using a pair of fully articulated ‘hands’ engineered to copy human chefs in motion. It translates those techniques into digital movements using bespoke algorithms. The dextrous robot is considered the height of luxury (and let’s be honest, downright laziness) and incorporates Italian design with German technology. Jackpot.

Shouldn’t it be called Gordon RAMsay? Groan. Actually, the Moley Kitchen was co-developed with Tim Anderson, the 2011 winner of MasterChef, along with fellow cooks Nicole Pisani and Andrew Clarke, who will be adding new recipes every month. Customers can also record their own family-favourite dishes using Moley’s recipe-creator software tool… although we’re unsure how well it will cope with roast turducken. On a more practical footing, it can retrieve ingredients from the smart fridge, adjust hob temperatures, fill pans and pour, and mix and plate up using a combination of cameras and other sensors.

You mentioned cleaning up… Those cameras can spot dropped food to clean up before and after cooking, while a UV lamp keeps the cooking area germ-free. If this all sounds wildly expensive, we’ve got bad news: it’s worse than that. The full system including bespoke smart appliances costs £248,000, roughly the same price as the average UK house. Yeah, but can a house cook and clean for you? Exactly. Anyway, Moley claims to have over 1000 potential buyers, with more affordable versions to follow. Until then, you’ll have to keep cooking and start saving up.

Park astride BELKIN BOOST CHARGE TRUEFREEDOM PRO

You know when you plonk your phone down on a Qi pad but it’s ‘incorrectly’ offset by approximately 0.001mm and doesn’t charge? Belkin does. Hence the clunkily named Boost Charge TrueFreedom Pro, with 16 charging coils that can intelligently work together to pipe 10W of fast charging to two separate gadgets placed on its surface. If your needs are more ‘kill all the germs’, check out the suitably named Boost Charge UV Sanitizer + Wireless Charger (£60) instead. This will only charge (and clean) one phone at a time, but you can pop smaller items inside as well, whereupon 99.99% of germs will be obliterated via UV-C. £149 / belkin.com