There’s one April Fools' gag that might actually be worth your money this year
Most folk in tech blogging claim to hate April Fools' day — presumably, because they hate fun. I’m a fan of the seasonal gags (when they’re good), but there’s one this year that has crossed over for me from joke to a legitimately useful thing. If you’ve ever wished you could buy a custom skin for something no one makes skins for, dbrand’s launched-as-a-joke DIY Kit mightactuallybe handy.
Fair warning, there is some skill involved in cutting a skin to precisely fit something. I’m a leather hobbyist, so I’m pretty experienced in very precisely cutting down a big sheet of material to make stuff, and I had no trouble applying a wood-grain skin to the front of my computer. But, if you don’t think you can cut a straight line, this might not be for you.
Two tips: Use a blow dryer on curves to get it to stick well, and be careful pulling too hard if you need to stretch it to stick right, it can spring back.
The dbrand DIY kits come in two flavors, but only one you can actually get. There’s a deluxe kit that comes with a 2x3 sheet of vinyl and extras like a Japanese-made ruler and knife. It’s just under $100, but it’s sold out already. If you’re skinning some smaller stuff, though, the $25 Classic skin set includes a 1x1 sheet of vinyl and nothing else.X-Acto knives cost almost nothingif you need something precise to cut it with.
Depending on how much stuff you buy, you may have to pay for shipping, at $5. You can seemingly get the DIY Kits in any variety of skin except leather. (When dbrand sent me a kit, that was my first choice, but no luck.)
Sorry, I’m one of those people with a cable-covered ugly desk situation.
While I’m not generally a fan of vinyl on something like a phone, where you’re handling something so closely you can easily see the resolution it was printed at, I dig the fake wood paneling vibes I was able to add to my desk. dbrand may have meant this as a joke, but I think they should just keep selling it — and add a leather option, please.
(While this is the best thing-you-can-buy April Fools' joke we’ve seen so far at Android Police, The Yetee’sgrass-scented t-shirtandsleeveless “Gaming Zone” hoodieare a close second.)
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