Rise Above Economic Woes with the Hover Chair

LONDON (Reuters) -A "Star Wars" inspired hover chair, a speedy electric motorbike andstereo speakers that cost as much as a small house are among theattractions at Britain’s biggest gadget show in London this weekend.

Organizers of Stuff Live hope thousands of visitors will forgettheir financial worries for a few hours and dream instead about thelatest high tech toys.

Scores of exhibitors will show off everything from a pocket-sized DJmixing desk, a solar-powered mobile phone charger and a "robot guitar"that uses tiny motors to tune its own strings.

Among the more unusual items on show is the British-designed Lounger, a chair that uses powerful magnets to float in the air.

Inventor Keith Dixon, of Sussex-based Hoverit Ltd, said he wasinspired as a child by the anti-gravity Landspeeder vehicles in the"Star Wars" films.

"The sensation you feel as you lie back and close your eyes istotally different — like floating on a cloud," said a Stuff Livespokesman. Its 6,000 pound ($9,620) price tag may bring visitors backdown to earth with a bump, however.

For those after something less sedate, U.S. company Vectrix has aprototype of a high performance motorbike powered by an electric motor.

The sporty aluminum bike has a top speed of 125 mph, a range of 44 miles and costs nearly 40,000 pounds.

That’s cheap compared to another star attraction: a pair of limited edition curvy metal loudspeakers worth 70,000 pounds.

The Muon speakers, made by Kent-based company KEF, are well over sixfeet tall and have a thick shell of aluminum to minimize vibrationsfrom the four-way speaker system.

KEF describes them as "a truly contemporary art form appropriate for 21st century living."

Computer maker Asus will show off a laptop covered in laminatedstrips of fast-growing bamboo rather than plastic in an attempt to makeit more environmentally sustainable.

* Stuff Live 2008 (www.stufflive.co.uk), organized by the technologyand gadget magazine Stuff, runs from Friday to Sunday at the ExCeLcenter in London’s Docklands.

(Editing by Steve Addison and Paul Casciato)