It’s the middle of the night. You’re lying in bed when you hear a prowler. Not a problem at all thanks to the Safe Bedside Table by James McAdam. Just jump up out of bed, wear your tabletop shield and grab your table leg club. You may want to shout something cool, like “This…is…Sparta!” then go do battle. The thief will be caught off guard and momentarily stunned to see somebody actually brandishing a club and shield. One quick hit to the head and it’s all over. The wife won’t be questioning “that stupid little table” anymore.

Many people like to leave the TV on when they leave the house. The idea is that any potential burglars will see the flashing light of the TV and think that someone is home, making them pass that house up. Here’s an invention that serves the same purpose, without having to keep your TV powered on.

The $49 FakeTV uses an array of colored, flashing LEDs to create the illusion of the stroboscopic effect of the television. The bonus here, since you are obviously paranoid about burglars, is that the box uses only a fraction of the electricity of a real TV.