It’s a common parental problem. Your kid asking for a new pair of shoes every few months, because he has outgrown the old ones. Expensive too. You could take a cue from China and their women, and force your child’s feet to remain small forever by cramming them into a tiny shoe, but that only gets child services involved.

These shoes grow with the growing foot size of your child. Dubbed the INCHworm, they use iFit technology, with accordion-like material on the toe. With the press of a button it can be pulled out to increase the length of the shoe in ½ size increments up to 3 full sizes. Pretty sweet huh? It’s designed tough so all those days at the playground won’t destroy them.

If you find yourself slipping and sliding in the winter months, why not make like your car tires and get some chains on your sneakers? This is an absolutely brilliant idea. And they go nicely with the Tire tread iPhone case.

For $59, you can throw fashion out the window and make sure that your sneakers always have a firm grip in snow and ice. They feature “strategically placed stainless steel spikes connected to a dynamic flex-chain with a tough elastomer shoe harness”. And they don’t require any special buckles or straps.

Myself, I don’t feel the need to spend more than about $35 on a pair of shoes. However, if you are into cutting edge sneakers and the whole tech/foot experience, maybe a pair of VectraSense Technologies’ new $700 Verb for Shoes will get you excited about putting these in the closet.

For the $700 price tag, you will have shoes worthy of the Bionic Man himself. They feature an embedded computer with “Auto Comfort”, which means that they automatically adjust to the wearer’s feet, becoming firmer or more cushioned based on movement. They also feature “Contact Sharing,” which allows them to trade information with other smart shoes in the area.(Hey, what up? You stink as bad as I do? Damn this fool got nasty feet!) Through a wireless link, users can even sync information between their shoes and a PC. At $700, they better put themselves away when you remove them too.

These sneakers are fully functional hot spot finders. As you walk around town, an integrated display will let you know what the signal strength is on hot spots around you. The wearable Wi-Fi sneakers are named A Step in the Right Direction and were designed by mstrpln and Ubiq boutique.

The ASRD sneaker has an integrated wireless internet detection unit embedded under the flap of the left shoe. When the pressure sensitive insole is activated, the device scans the surrounding area for Wi-Fi signals and displays the result through LEDs so you can see it. Sure, geeks are going to love these, but aren’t there more convenient ways to find hot spots? Better yet, instead of trying to find hot spots with your shoes, maybe you should be trying to score with the ladies, Poindexter.

They have vending machines for everything else, so why not one for shoes. The shoe vending machine is located in London’s Carnaby Street and carries 24 pairs of running shoes in six different sizes. This is a great idea.

Maybe you just walked in a huge puddle and your shoes are soaked. It’s a great way to get a quick replacement pair. It should be a hit with tourists as well. How many women do you know who endure miles of pain because their stylish shoes are not comfortable? This machine could spell relief. Maybe you have a flat on your Walking Bike. It’s an easy fix with this machine.

Here’s another thing that we were promised in the then “future”. Shoes with headlights. These funky looking Pioneer shoes are from designers Feijun Chen & Bin Zhao. Not only will they illuminate your path, but the batteries are charged by the kinetic energy of your steps. The LEDs are bright enough to light up an area about five feet in front of you, so you can make like a spirit and perpetually head toward said light.

There’s also a green tail light in back. Great idea for safety reasons alone. For one thing cars will see you clearly and thus avoid killing you, for another it might help you avoid obstacles in your path that might otherwise plant your face in the dirt.

We first told you about this bizarre combo in early January on our sister site Poptherapy. It should be noted that this hybrid of powder flavored drink aka liquid crack, combined with sneaker is completely unnatural and I am now more convinced then ever that the apocalypse is among us.

Do you really want your feet to smell like various Kool-Aid flavors? If you wear them in the rain, will you create magical Kool-Aid puddles as you walk? I have no idea. I’m still too perplexed by the whole thing. I kinda wish the Kool-Aid guy would crash through my wall so I could ask him about this. Then I would sue that fat wet bastard for all his sneaker money. He broke my wall!

When the iShoes first rolled out, they looked fairly clunky, with 4 large wheels. But in no time at all, they have had an upgrade. They lost a wheel and look a lot sleeker now. These “shoes” are powered by electric motors and controlled by a wired remote. They can also hit speeds of up to 15 mph. Presumably more with their new sleeker upgrade and they come in men’s and women’s sizes.

Right now it is in the prototype phase still, but they hope that they will go 5 to 7 miles without having to recharge the batteries. Can you say Skinned knees? How about broken limbs?

Take a look at this design concept of a CD-playing athletic shoe. (We had considered titling this post “BoomShoe” but then thought again.) It comes with everything you need to play CD’s built-in, including a compact disc player, speaker, tweeters and a small knob for volume. It even has some controls for play, stop, forward and back embedded into the side.

The design picture is pretty cool but I would bet you would have some real “skipping” problems with this one. Throw in some Flash memory and a small LCD screen and I think we would really have something.

via Guzer

Hey, remember those bottle-opener sandals we told you about last year? Well, just in case you want to make sure that you have some booze handy when the need arises you may want to pick up the Dram Sandals from Reef.

Imagine the following: it’s a hot summer day. You and your buds are splashing around in the surf and then you spy some hotness approaching. You have an empty glass but what do you have to offer the lovely ladies to drink?? Aha, that’s right, you’re wearing your booze shoes! Just reach down, take one of your soles off and pour out some of your finest drink to offer the fair damsel.

Of course, the shoe makes for an excellent conversation starter too, and people far away will just see you pouring your shoes into a glass …

Many times I have been sitting in a room working away on my PC wishing my feet were not so cold. If only there were a way to warm them up, maybe with electricity that I don’t have to plug into a wall outlet? Maybe with electricity from my computers USB port?!?!

Well, after intensive searching I’ve found my solution. These USB slippers are the answer to the cold feet problem of computer geeks everywhere. They are two independently adjusted foot warmers that plug into the USB port on your computer and heat up to the desired setting to keep your feet warm. No electrical outlet needed.

The cords come at 118cm in length, but any USB extension cable can make them longer, and you can adjust the heat and power on/off for each slipper with an inline control. The heater portion is zipped …

How many times have you been somewhere and gotten a bottle that’s not a twist off when you don’t have an opener?

I do not routinely carry an opener and I have been faced with this predicament many times. I would usually spend the next few minutes searching around the area for some fixture or hardware that even remotely resembles an opener and the whole time contemplating using my teeth against my better judgment.

Well, those days may be over with these new Men’s Bottle Opener Sandals by Reef. These cool flip-flop style sandals have a handy bottle opener on the bottom of the sole that works perfectly for removing the cap from your bottle, even without having to take them off if it’s your first or second.

If you are anything like me, you are probably wondering how well this really …