We cover a tiny fraction of the Kickstarter projects that approach us, mostly because there’s a limit to how many brush machined aluminum iPhone stands the world can handle in one month. But also because we’re kind of keen to avoid projects which seem destined for niche markets. Not so with this latest project, which we think will become a smash hit all over the world once it’s produced in volume later this year.

Makey Makey is an open hardware project dreamed up by Jay and Eric, two students from M.I.T Media labs, and it’s awesome. The system is basically an electronic invention kit for non-technical people. What that means is you can use it to craft an infinite number of crazy electronic projects, using nothing more sophisticated than the main board, some crocodile clips and a USB cable.

The examples in the video below include an automatic animal photo capture system, a banana piano and a bunch of fabulous computer interface modules. It’s all based around a computer of course, but it’s clearly going to be so hackable (and hacked) that we can see it ending up being used with lots of tiny computers like the Raspberry Pi and Arduino to create amazing projects.

Needless to say, the project made it’s funding goal in days, and is now powering on to grab lots more cash, which bodes well for the future. The possibilities for education alone are mind-boggling, especially since the kit works with all sorts of fun materials like fruit, Play-Doh, paint, foil, plants and basically just about anything that can conduct a bit of electricity. Key word here? F.U.N.