Denver start-up Octa wants to make your iPad more adorable
Denver-based Octa has created a new product that aims to make your iPad more user-friendly, and also more adorable in the process. 
The Octa whale tail, perfect for your next rave.
"When we got our first iPad, we said, 'This is really cool, but really hard to hold,'" says Octa co-founder Kevin "Prometheus" Trotsky.
So the group made a handle for it.
The solution came in the form of the Octa vacuum dock and attachable whale tail -- that's where the adorable factor comes in. The vacuum dock seals to the back of your iPad to create a convenient hand-hold that can be used by itself, or the whale tail can be attached to create a kickstand in the shape of, well, a whale's tail. The stand allows for an iPad to be used in bed or on another soft surface without wobbling, and also makes viewing with multiple people easier.
As Prometheus, Trotsky works as a video DJ "as a side hobby," explains co-founder Nikki Braziel. "He really wanted something that would let him get out from behind the booth and let him interact with the crowds."
The product debuted in January at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to good reviews from testers at the convention, says Braziel. The whale's tail, with its tripod-like shape, allows the iPad to be used on all sorts of surfaces while staying steady. Octa is planning on capitalizing on the success of that device by creating more animal-themed attachments.
"We are planning a line of follow-up tails which will be released later this year," says Braziel. "Each one of them will have their own shape and use, but for the rest of this year we are focusing on the animal shapes."
As for the company's name? It takes its inspiration from the octopus, and the idea of "someone trying to hold all of their gadgets," says Trotsky.
He describes the company as "a small group of artists and engineers who really love Denver." Since forming two years ago, Octa has been based out of offices on Blake Street. "We love being here, "Trotsky says, "and are inspired by technology and making things more user-friendly and we're having a lot of fun doing it."
The vacuum dock and whale tail aren't available in stores yet but can be found on the Octa website and Amazon; they're sold together for $49.95.
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