Philipp Günther Design

YouTube has a surprising number of videos showing various methods of fixing dented ping-pong balls. The small white orbs are notoriously prone to accidental crushing, usually from stepping on the little rogues as they go skittering across the floor.

Philipp Günther Design, a German design studio, believes it has invented a better table-tennis ball. It's called the Airball. Right away, you notice how it looks like a miniature version of the Epcot center. Instead of consisting of a continuous round shape, it has openings all across the surface, like a mesh. This complex shape is achieved through 3D printing.

The Airball is very flexible. You can squish it between your fingers, and it pops back into shape. You can step on it, and it will still survive to play another game.

Philipp Günther Design is in the process of crowdfunding the ball on Launchbox. A nearly $14 pledge puts you in line for an Airball of your own. That price tag puts it on the higher end of the cost spectrum for table-tennis balls, considering you can pick up a six-pack of regular ones for about five bucks. However, the Airball is designed to outlast those crush-prone balls, assuming you don't lose it under your furniture or unwittingly surrender it to a cat.

(Via 3ders.org)