James Bond’s coolest and deadliest gadgets
In James Bond’s most recent adventure, Skyfall, the secret agent is given two items by his quartermaster before departing on a deadly mission – a Walther PPK/S 9mm short handgun and a radio transmitter.
Q tells Bond his division is no longer into exploding pens, and sends him on his way.
While MI6 may be going through budget constraints at the moment, the Bond films have a history of extraordinary and completely over-the-top gadgets.
With the next instalment in the 007 secret agent series – Spectre – due out before the end of 2015, we decided to look at the coolest gadgets and tech the various Bonds have used in their lifetime.
Lotus Espirit S1
The Lotus used in The Spy Who Loved Me was an on-road and underwater tank-come-submarine with style.
Fitted with cement blasters, machine guns, surface-to-air missiles, torpedoes, and landmines, enemies were wise to steer clear of Bond while he drove this.
When venturing into water, its wheels turned into fins and a small periscope came out of the roof. Very smooth James.
Lotus Esprit S1
Wrist dart gun
In Moonraker Bond saves himself from almost certain death by firing a cyanide-coated dart from his wrist, thanks to a hidden dart gun.
Killing targets in just under 30 seconds, Bond even has time for a clever quip while the bodies pile up.
Pen gun/Pen grenade
Used in Never Say Never Again, Bond uses the fountain pen gun – marked with a Union Jack flag – to kill Fatima Bush. Thanks to an exploding round and great marksmanship, Bond adds another kill to his count.
In GoldenEye, Bond has another crafty pen up his sleeve – this time one which doubles as a class-four grenade. When clicked three times, you have a few seconds before it explodes.
GoldenEye pen
Electromagnetic RPM Controller
The electromagnetic RPM controller in Diamonds Are Forever ensures the users always wins the jackpot when playing a slot machine.
RPM controller
Dagger shoe
Appearing in the Sean Connery era in From Russia with Love, the dagger shoe contained a poisoned blade which would slide out and give the wearer’s kicks an edge over their opponent. Simple, yet deadly.
Dagger shoe
Aston Martin DB5
The Aston Martin DB5 in Goldfinger would go on to become an icon of the movies, sporting revolving license plates, passenger eject seat, bulletproof shields, machine guns, and smoke and oil sprayers.
The DB5 made a return in Skyfall, when Bond went “back to basics”. Unfortunately, it did not come out in showroom condition.
Aston Martin DB5
Rocket belt
The rocket belt in Thunderball saves Bond’s skin when he is being chased by henchmen. After strapping on the rocket he flies off a rooftop to safety, while his enemies shoot at him from below.
Seiko wristwatch
The Seiko wristwatch used in For Your Eyes Only is the stuff little kids’ dreams are made of. Fitted with a 2-way radio transmitter for voice communications and a digital message read-out screen, Bond could always call for backup when in trouble.
The updated model used in Octopussy included a live video feed screen and homing device.
Seiko wristwatch
Philips keychain
Used by Bond in The Living Daylights, the keychain contained a capsule of stun gas and an explosive charge – both of which were activated by a whistle combination.
The keychain also held a lock pick which could open “90% of the world’s doors”.
Philips keychain
Signature camera gun
The camera gun used in Licence to Kill was assembled from innocuous-looking camera parts, and functioned as a sniper rifle. The gun could be programmed to fire for only one person thanks to a scanner built into the grip.
Camera gun
Ericsson mobile phone
The mobile phone used by Bond in Tomorrow Never Dies packed some serious hardware, including a stun gun, a fingerprint scanner – which is standard in many phones today – a lock pick, and a remote control for Bond’s BMW 750iL.
Ericsson phone
More on gadgets
How powerful your PC needs to be to run Oculus Rift
12 things you need to know about South Africa’s new drone laws
Loading ...