Awesome Concepts

Designed initially as a vehicle for Gran Turismo, the FT-1 has been brought to life as a full-scale concept car. It offers a dramatic, aircraft-inspired design, and pays homage to classics like the Toyota 2000GT, Supra and Celica.

ModCubes’ basic unit is a cube with pegs on top, similar to a LEGO brick. The idea is to align and stack multiple cubes into different shapes and sizes depending on your needs. Check out the prototypes on ModCubes’ Facebook page.

Some of Nendo and Hashikura Matsukan’s chopstick concepts. The Rassen have helical grooves so they make a single unit, while the Kamiai have magnets that hold them together. More on Nendo. Images by Akihiro Yoshida.

A concept hybrid car based on the Ford C-Max Energi. Its battery can still be charged on charging stations, but it also has solar panels on its roof. Using a special canopy, the car’s battery can be recharged entirely through solar power.

Razer wants to make swapping computer parts as easy as replacing batteries on devices. Project Christine’s components are modules that can be upgraded as soon as the latest hardware comes out through a subscription service.

The Audi Sport Quattro Laserlight Concept is a hybrid car with a 110kW electric motor and a 560hp 4L V8 engine. It has laser high beam lights with a 1,640 ft range and a 3D dashboard controlled via a touchpad on the center console.

Just like Microsoft and Corning, Samsung thinks interactive displays will become ubiquitous in the future. Some of their concepts are overkill – a touchscreen on a mug? – but bendable and foldable displays could be game-changing.

Henry Wang and Chris Curio’s patent-pending design is an update to the ubiquitous cardboard box. The Rapid Packing Container uses 15% less cardboard, needs no tape to be packed and easily pops open. Perhaps too easily.

A test flight of Amazon Prime Air, a concept for a drone delivery service that would get packages into customers’ hands in just 30 minutes after ordering. Amazon hopes to offer it in the US as early as 2015. More on 60 Minutes.

Mercedes-Benz AMG made a remote-controlled 1:1 scale model of its Vision Gran Turismo, a virtual car that will be featured in Gran Turismo 6. More images here. In-game footage here. Skip to 3:38s in the video to see the model in action.

The Kawasaki J is a three-wheeled electric narrow track vehicle. It has two front wheels with a handle attached to each wheel. The front wheels can stay close for high speed maneuvering or set farther apart in cruise mode.

Marie-Elsa Batteux Flahault’s concept is the Bear Grylls of jackets. It has a built-in thermal blanket, flotation device, signaling devices, hidden blade, eye mask, gas mask, first aid supplies and a compartment for food and water.

A preview of Infiniti’s future compact cars, the Q30 Concept borrows features from coupes, hatchbacks and crossovers, apparently with the nod of F1 racer Sebastian Vettel. We hope he likes other colors besides purple.

The evolution of the OSM Concept, the open-top S660 is looking more and more like a production car. It’s expected to sport a tiny 3 cyl. engine and lightweight construction for fuel efficiency. Debuts at the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show.

Designer Scott Jones made Bloc’d Sofa, a modular seat that you can easily change to adapt to your needs. Its cushions are small, firm blocks that you can easily remove and rearrange on the sofa’s steel and maple frame.

Top Speed does their best to extrapolate what we might see from the next gen of Nissan’s $100k supercar. Godzilla is getting a little long in the tooth after all. We especially like the sharper edges, sculpted lighting, and longer wheelbase.

Caterham’s F1 team took part in designing the future of the Seven series. The AeroSeven Concept has a wide and low carbon fiber body, a 237hp 2L Ford Duratec engine, traction and launch control and an F1-style steering wheel.

The Mercedes-Benz Concept S-Class Coupé is dominated by sloping lines and sterile colors both inside and out, which makes its aggressive nose stand out even more. It reminds us of BMW’s grand coupe concept.

Does your arm fall asleep when you try and spoon with your loved one? The Cuddle Mattress adds slots where you place your arms into the mattress without cutting off circulation. As an added bonus, it’s modular for easy transit.

The Monza Concept four-seater hybrid has a three cylinder engine that runs on natural gas. Gull-wing doors provide access to both front and rear seats, and it has a customizable dashboard that uses 3D LED projectors. More here.

While you could upgrade to a new phone every year, we prefer Dave Hakkens‘ modular phone concept, so you can upgrade your CPU, memory, wireless system, camera and other components. Show your support for Phonebloks Here.

In celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Sport quattro, Audi created this striking 21st century update, with a hybrid drivetrain powered by a 4.0L twin-turbo V8 and 110kW motor for 700hp combined. Hits 60 in just 3.7secs.

No, this is not a prop from some unreleased film adaptation of Spy Hunter. The Xhibitionist is just one of the many impressive luxury vehicle concepts that Gray Design has developed. Check out the site but be prepared to swoon.