Work · alternatives · 2026
24 alternatives to Novatropes
Relaxing electro kinetic sculptures made by hand
Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Novatropes launched in 2021; newer entries below may have overtaken it.
- 1IS
2015 · hellorhei.com · its alternatives →
- 2IV
I bet you didn't knew you can use modelling clay (as opposed to 3d printing) to make nice devices by hand :)
Oct 2025 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 3
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- 6
Aero Hand Open▲156An open-source dexterous hand for research and makers
Oct 2025 · tetheria.ai · its alternatives →
- 7
- 8FLFeels Like Paper▲265
"Feels Like Paper!" is a series of prototypes about augmenting physical paper through AI. Various ML models, LLMs and a mixed reality headset are used to infuse physical paper and ink with properties of the digital world without compromising on their physical traits.
2024 · lukasmoro.com · its alternatives →
- 9
Hey guys, A couple weeks ago, I was in Shenzhen, China for a hackathon and on the first day, we all used the one-day PCB fabrication to make PCB badges to wear during the event. I decided to go a little crazy and make some cool 3D alchemical-cosmological badges. It's 3 PCB's stacked on-top of each other that's connected using testpoints on each board. The innerboard has a 10 cent CH32V003 MCU that powers the WS2812B neopixels on the outer rings using the testpoints and shines through using exposed soldermask. If you have any questions about how the design works, feel free to let me know!
Aug 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 10IB
I'm enthralled with using pen plotters to make generative art. Last August at SIGGRAPH, I built an interactive experience for others to see how code can be used to make visual art. The linked blog post is my trials and tribulations of linking a MIDI controller to one of these algorithms and sending its output to a plotter, so that people may witness the end-to-end experience.
2024 · lostpixels.io · its alternatives →
- 11AS
The little particles will gravitate to your cursor (or touch location), and can even enter stable orbits if the conditions are right! Mainly an excuse for me to experiment with wasm and WebGL, but it makes for a surprisingly good fidget toy.
2024 · aestuans.github.io · its alternatives →
- 12
Create beautiful standing waves with this kinetic art lamp.
2019 · its alternatives →
- 13
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- 15
Tech trends in AI, AR, VR, IoT, Blockchain, Etc
2020 · its alternatives →
- 16A2
My motivation was pretty simple: every “spinning ring” I tried felt a bit fake. They don’t actually spin — not like a real bearing. So I wanted to see if I could make one that truly does. At the end of the day it’s still just a ring. A small, minimal piece of jewelry. But it happens to hide a tiny bearing that can hit around 800 RPM with a single flick. That contrast is what makes it fun. The way I think about it is this: it’s like a normal-looking car that quietly turns out to fly. Nothing loud or showy — until you decide to reveal what it can actually do. If you’ve used a good fidget…
Dec 2025 · its alternatives →
- 17
60 LED arrays power an all new kind of time keeper
2021 · its alternatives →
- 18
- 19IE
Over the past few months I’ve been experimenting with how small a functional bearing-based mechanism can get while still feeling smooth, durable, and useful. This project started from a simple question: How thin can a real, free-spinning bearing be while still handling continuous rotation? Most “spinner rings” you see online cheat by simulating rotation — there’s no real bearing, just loose tolerance metal sliding on metal. True micro-bearing rotation needs precision, tight tolerances, and high surface finish, which is difficult when everything needs to be wearable on a finger. So I tried to…
Nov 2025 · its alternatives →
- 20
Comprises unique properties, has no analogues in the world
2019 · its alternatives →
- 21ZG
Im finally ready to share a fun side project that I've been working on. For 20 years, Ive been fascinated with Mandelbrot fractals. Back in the day, I made a MacOS9 app that rendered them, and I missed it. So, I decided to bring it up to the modern age and build a website to explore this and other similar fractals. In the process, I discovered some other types of generative art that looked fun, so I made those too. One is a spirograph, another is similar to an old AfterDark screensaver called Satori (anyone remember that?). Others draw paint splatters and random squiggly lines. The user is…
2022 · zazow.com · its alternatives →
- 22IM
I made this iPhone app called "Affine Tuning" which is a collection of body-interactive musical pieces: https://affinetuning.com/ It uses body tracking (Motion Capture from RealityKit) to shape dynamic compositions. The app is completely free and will be updated in the future with more songs and other interactive features.
2022 · its alternatives →
- 23
FITTURA▲62 mm carbon MagSafe design that fuses tech and fashion
Oct 2025 · kickstarter.com · its alternatives →
- 24
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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →