Miniaturization continues unabated, a ream of consumer products getting smaller and shrinking down to previously unthinkable new sizes. Our latest and slightly kind of amazing new example is the projector, that heavy, fan-blowing noisy thing you see hanging from the ceiling of a University classroom or sitting on the desk in a boardroom. Somehow, now, again, without any damn notice, there’s one that fits in your pocket and hooks up to an ipod. What the hell?

It’s the Optoma Pico, which hooks up to iPods, PSPs, Digital Cameras, and the like. If you’re an ad agency on the go and need to fire up a presentation to a client while you’re sitting in a bar, forget both crowding intimately over the screen of your iPhone. Pull this out, hook it up, and amaze everyone with an image on the wall.

The New York Times’s David Pogue, resident technology-for-the-masses guru, had an exclusive look at this device and wrote up a review of it, back on election day.

it produce[s] an astonishingly bright, clear, vivid video or still image. That’s right — from a projector you’ve pulled from your jeans pocket.

The minimum distance for this projector is eight inches from your “screen”; the maximum is 8.5 feet away, at which point you get a 65-inch image. And it really, really helps if you dim the lights or use a properly reflective movie screen.

Even so, the Pico projector is the first of its kind — other micro-projectors are on the way — and over all, it’s awesome. When it goes on sale in two weeks, it will give parents a completely portable backseat-of-the-minivan movie theater for the kids. It will let photographers display their portfolios with much greater size and impact than they’d get with a scrapbook — right from the digital camera, if need be. It will permit spur-of-the-moment demos or pitches for corporate presenters or independent filmmakers, wherever they happen to be, without having to set anything up or reserve a room.

Whether the consumer market will feel an urgent need for a pocket-sized projector is another thing: it’s easy to fall back on excitement and look past the notion of whether or not such a product is actually useful. But I’m sure it is–the very notion of miniaturizing projectors will eventually lead us to that golden, shining moment in the future, the moment wherein we’ll walk up to a touchscreen, press a button, and a tiny beam of light we can barely see will project some kind of spinning image of our dreams, right in front of us. Why is it that all my expectations of future technological direction can be traced back to 3 or 4 movies?

Getting back to the projector, though: it’s the versatility of it all that’s incredible. I think this is a ridiculous moment, overall, for the amount of new technology that is suddenly being crammed down into small spaces. We’ve got a full-fledged HDTV camera with interchangeable, pro-level lenses in the new Canon EOS Mark II 5D, the juggernaut that is the iPhone, a netbook revolution, and 3d Printers that don’t take up a room but rather just some space on your desk. The amount of time between these innovations keeps shrinking exponentially. What seems to be different this time is we’re not looking at leaps and bounds in say, processing speed, but in the physical nature of things: product size, digital imaging, incredibly small but still-usable products.

When the launch of the new Macbooks gets a video detailing the exact industrial design process as a crucial launch component, there’s some kind of new object-design era at hand, no? It’s a fun time to be buying stuff.

Wires are messy and ugly. When it’s time to charge something you own, and that time is every 2 or 3 days, you have to find an outlet, find the AC adapter, and then place that expensive item on some (precarious) surface for several hours.

During that time, many things can and often will happen: a beloved family member may stupidly trip over the wire, ruining the gadget, the adapter, or the wall outlet. If the device in question is a phone, its vibrating ringer might go off, whereupon it will do a small dance as it tries to heave itself off whatever ledge you’ve left it on, in hopes of cracking or breaking some part of its expensive display. Or someone might just sit on it. I charge things and leave them on chairs far too often.

None of this is very elegant or consistent or enjoyable, you can never find the right adapter when you need it, and the wires collect dust and hair if you leave them in one place for too long, or are lazy about cleaning.

This litany of factors has contributed to a convenient and somewhat obligatory new invention–the charging station. Several of these products are either on the market right now, in various stages of prototyping, or have been done by resourceful DIYers. Let’s take a look at ten fine contenders.

The Chargepod Base Unit

This isn’t really a charging station at all, but rather a device meant to eliminate all your AC adapters. How’s that for organization? You can just box up all those stupid wires and shove them in the garage, because you’ve got this magic miracle of electricity doing everything for you. Their slogan is “one charger. one outlet. infinite possibilities.” Yeah sure it’s a little grandiose, but hey, this thing might just live up to its life-changing slogan’s promise.

From their site: “Chargepod is a 6-way charging device that allows you to charge multiple cell phones, PDAs, headsets, and most other mobile electronics with a single power cord. Just pick out the manufacturer-specific adapters for your devices and throw away the dozens of power cords and wall warts that are cluttering your office and home. Chargepod uses voltage regulator technology and interchangeable power adapters to safely charge all of your mobile devices regardless of manufacturer or model.”

Ryan’s $25 DIY Charging Station in an Old Chest

This one (he did two, actually) is seriously perfect. This should be a product. Our man Ryan knows all about the aesthetic torture of ugly cables and various charging devices lying around. Here he takes his fondnessfor organization and sticks it in a vintage case. From his quality writeup: “I wanted a solution that would mesh well with my living room while keeping the functionality of the other stations. Something that was cheap but didn’t look it. Something that was easy to use and eventually modify down the inevitable upgrade road.”

KangaroomStorage Bamboo 3-Pod

This one is basically just a box that conceals a power bar/power strip, but it’s elegant, and it holds your iPhone, iPod, camera, or regular phone pretty well. From their site: “It has three built-in, roomy slots to hold your cell phone, PDA, mp3 player or camera. The sliding front door allows you to conceal a 10″ power strip (not included) and all the devices’ charging cords in one area. The charging station looks great on any desk or you can also mount it on the wall (dry wall screws included).”

The Powerwise, by Asa Elmstam and Johanna Strand

Here’s an elegant, minimal solution from Sweden, which also functions as an OK bench. Doesn’t seem to be on the market–just a design, for now. From the site: “The charge station Powerwise lowers energy consumption, reduces standby times and diminishes the risk of fires. It also keeps all your chargers in one place and frees your walls and floors from untidy and unsightly tangled cords and plastic gadgets. Collaboration with Åsa Elmstam, 2008″

The Folio Charging Station

Just for your mobile phone, but great. Minimal and useful. I’m sure IKEA is going to start selling something like this soon. I hope so, since this item no longer seems available from the Chiasso website I originally found it on.

Their writeup: “Here’s an innovative and attractive way to keep your mobile phone charged and ready for action. This modern design features a single piece of stainless steel that curves into a sleek cradle. It has a large hole at the top. Simply plug your mobile’s charger into the wall outlet, through the rubber-lined hole and wrap the cord around the attached pegs, on the bottom of the cradle. Keep the charger plugged in to hold the station in place and provide a home for your phone. Works with horizontal and vertical outlets and just about any mobile phone and charger. Stainless steel with rubber. Please note, rubber ring around opening should not be removed for your protection.”

Lessev Mobile Station

This one is extremely simple, but works perfectly. Stick a power bar (not sure if it’s included) and your various adapters inside, and whatever you’re charging sits on top. From the manufacturer: “This discreet yet stylish container hides all your unsightly chargers and cords, simplifying your space—and your life. With all of your electronic devices stored in one place you’ll never have to panic about finding them again, or about untangling a web of nasty cords.”

Instructables DIY: drocko’s Night Stand Charging Station Lamp

That name would probably have to change if this ever gets launched as a product, but it’s nice nonetheless, although it doesn’t have any sort of fancy storage for the items you’re charging. But whatever. Drocko says: “I had a beat up night stand that I wasn’t using. It would just sit there and collect dust. With a little bit of work and some new paint I turned it into a night stand that is also a lamp and a charging station for my portable devices!”

Another DIY project: Flickr User Strabes Hacks His Nightstand

Pretty straight forward, this one. “I decided to use a nightstand I had in my house for a lifehacker-style landing strip / charging station. The results are great.”

The Pottery Barn’s Bedford Smart Recharge Station

This one’s a little more country kitchen, but hey, everyone has things that need charging, even people with fancy Pottery Barn kitchens where this might fit in. From the website: “Enhance your home with the modern ease of technology without sacrificing the tradition of comfort and style. Each piece in our Bedford Smart Collection has a dual purpose – Smart Technology seamlessly connects you to high-tech accessories by keeping electronics and cords discreet while also organizing and holding household items.”

Instructables DIY again: PROD’s Ikea Power Charging Box

Not the most beautiful thing in the world, but it costs only 11 euro and doesn’t take very long to do, provided you’re comfortable with some basic wiring. Plus he’s got a fundamental energy-saving difference: “One major difference I wanted for my charging station: the ability to turn off each power supply individually instead of having all on while charging a single device.”

Did we miss any notable ones? Don’t care about charging stations and would rather risk the fire hazard and live with 15 adapters jutting out of a power bar at every which angle? Let us know in the comments!