Multi-functional

Looking back, 2024 had some exceptionally cool knife and multitool launches, from ultra-sleek, reimagined pocket knives, to modular multitools with limitless customization, to hypnotizing folders that you can't help but deploy over and over.

The Lumina camping lantern certainly packs a lot of features into a small(ish) package. Among other things, it can telescope up and down, serve as a flashlight, charge your devices, and cling to ferromagnetic surfaces.

Deep-tech startup Sinonus is working to commercialize a groundbreaking new breed of multifunctional carbon fiber. In its vision, the wonder-composite will serve as a structural battery for everything from electric aircraft to windmills.

We've all seen the multitool with a cache of folding tools inside a single body. We've also seen the one-piece multitool with many functions loaded onto a flat pry bar. Fetos Studio combines those two in what it pitches as the "ultimate" EDC partner.

The new Trustfire Mini X3 is as compact and lightweight as the Nitecore EDC27 we looked at earlier this year and also carries a multifunctional feature set with a right-angle floodlight, magnetic tail, green laser and UV light.

The SF-FR House by Mariano Ravenna is made up of four individual concrete volumes nestled between existing trees on the site, and is designed to adapt and evolve over time to accommodate a modern family and its changing needs.

A rugged micro-camper built to trail a 4x4 anywhere, the Hardkorr Xplorer is essentially a truck canopy that rides behind the bumper. The dual-purpose trailer works as a towable toolbox for the job site and an all-in-one shelter for the campsite.

Sim-Plex has created a stunning micro-home inspired by Japanese culture called the U. Izakaya House, which boasts clever space-saving storage elements and features a U-shaped kitchen inspired by a traditional Japanese izakaya restaurant at its heart.

Gerber is focusing heavily on the great outdoors in 2022. Its new spring collection includes a variety of outdoorsy tools ready to take large and small roles at camp and on the trail there, whether while backpacking, overlanding or car camping.

Austrian startup Printstones has been developing robotic 3D-printing robots since 2017, and has just pulled back the curtain on its latest prototype, a mobile multi-tasking construction bot called the Baubot.

Fitted at all four corners with removable gear pods, the rugged new Goat Box Hub 70 is more than just a cooler. It can pack everything from water purification and fire-starting gear to BBQ rubs and seasonings alongside the ice-covered food and drink.

The Pentax VD 4x20 WP is an innovative multifunctional optical tool that looks like an unassuming pair of binoculars but splits apart to increase viewing versatility. Share with a friend or fasten the two scopes together to increase magnification.