Pentax went color crazy when it released the K-x
digital SLR. The company now offers 12 different colors ranging from
olive green to pink to orange. Things seems to have calmed down a little
for its latest release, with the K-r only coming in three colors. The
new addition features a 12.4 megapixel sensor, huge sensitivity range
and six frames per second continuous shooting. It's also capable of
capturing 720p high definition video and benefits from a dual power
design. Read More
The development of a tiny new video projector has
recently been announced by Switzerland’s Ecole Polytechnique Federale
de Lausanne (EPFL) via its spin-off company, Lemoptix. The projector is
said to be smaller in area than a credit card, with a projection head
measuring one cubic centimeter. Developers of the device foresee it
becoming commercially available in smartphones, laptops and digital
cameras, with industrial applications including possible use in
operating rooms. Read More
Sanyo adds waist warmer to eneloop personal heating armory
By Paul Ridden
September 13, 2010
With the cold winter months approaching fast, Sanyo has announced the release of a new eneloop
universe waist warmer in Japan. Taking the form of an adjustable belt,
the warmth to belly and waist is provided by a thin film heater unit
powered by a mobile booster. The company has also given its neck warmer
an update to make it easier to use and added a new twin set of eneloop
kairo hand warmers. Read More
If you suffer from hyperopia, more commonly known
as farsightedness or longsightedness, you may be interested to know
that the world's first contact lens to correct the condition has been
developed. The correction, however, is temporary – a custom-made lens is
worn overnight to reshape the cornea, and when the patient wakes up and
removes the lens they have perfect vision for the day. Read More
'Prescribed music' could ease pain or depression
By Paul Ridden
September 13, 2010
Whether you're chilling out to some smooth jazz,
venting a spleen with the help of hard rock or jumping for joy to the
latest in bubblegum pop – there always seems to be a song or an album
that suits whatever mood you happen to be in. A research project at
Glasgow Caledonian University is currently taking a close look at why a
certain piece of music evokes a particular emotive response. It is hoped
that the research may lead to music being used to bring folks out of a
depression or even help with pain management. Read More
Spending time at an airport waiting for
connecting flights or just trying to negotiate your way to your hotel
can be frustrating, especially if you're on a tight schedule or budget.
Like lots of problems we encounter these days ... there's an app for
that. This one – FLYsmart – maps and displays all the immediate
information air travelers may need, so backpackers can easily navigate
their way to the cheapest form of transport leaving the airport or the
business traveler can make layovers as hassle-free as possible. Read More
Over the last couple of years there have been a number of wireless chargers hitting the market, such as the Powermat and the WildCharge.
These are designed to keep mobile devices charged and ready without
dealing with the hassle of cords and connections. The technology has
also been proposed as a way to recharge vehicles
while they are parked without having to plug them in, while some
companies are looking at charging cars while they are moving from electrical conductors embedded in the road.
Now, a group of students in Germany has taken that idea and run with it
by building an electric vehicle called the E-Quickie that runs on
wireless power transmission. Read More
This July, following the torrent of bad press surrounding the iPhone 4’s antenna issues, Apple implemented its Case Program,
which provided a free Apple Bumper, (including a refund if one had
already been purchased), or a choice of case from a number of
third-party suppliers. The company also applied a no restocking fee
return policy for dissatisfied customers. Apple has now announced that
after September 30, it will continue to offer only the Bumper case for free through AppleCare and the no restocking fee policy will end. Read More
Artificial pressure-sensitive skin created from nanowires
By Ben Coxworth
September 12, 2010
Using a process described as “a lint roller in
reverse,” engineers from the University of California, Berkeley, have
created a pressure-sensitive electronic artificial skin from
semiconductor nanowires. This “e-skin,” as it’s called, could one day be
used to allow robots to perform tasks that require both grip and a
delicate touch, or to provide a sense of touch in patients’ prosthetic
limbs. Read More
The size and efficiency of current photovoltaic
(PV) cells means most people would probably have to cover large areas
of their rooftops with such cells to even come close to meeting all
their electricity needs. Using carbon nanotubes, MIT chemical engineers
have now found a way to concentrate solar energy 100 times more than a
regular PV cell. Such nanotubes could form antennas that capture and
focus light energy, potentially allowing much smaller and more powerful
solar arrays. Read More
Gesture Remote looks to control the TV of the future
By Paul Ridden
September 14, 2010
How many device remotes do you have? One for the
TV, one for the DVD/Blu-ray player, one for cable/satellite box, one for
the hi-fi and perhaps even one for the computer – have I missed any?
Maybe you've tried to consolidate all of these various remotes into one
big universal control with lots and lots of buttons. The Gesture Remote
offers something a bit different. The simple interface is completely
free of buttons and spatial thumb gestures are used to access menus and
choose content. Read More
Samsung puts camera controls on the lens with new mirrorless NX100
By Darren Quick
September 14, 2010
Following on from the release of its first mirrorless camera, the NX10,
earlier this year, Samsung has announced the launch of the NX100. Like
the NX10, the mirrorless NX100 features a 14.6-megapixel APS-C size
sensor and a 3-inch VGA AMOLED screen. Setting it apart, however, is the
world’s first i-Function Lens, which communicates with the camera body
and allows users to control camera settings using the lens. Read More
Native Union's first product, which was basically
a classic 1950s Bakelite telephone handset with a cord that plugged
into a mobile phone, was an expensive piece of fairy floss, a visual
joke which soon stopped being funny. The company's premise for selling
it as an anti-radiation device was as thin as the phone's value
proposition and when I found that was all the company produced, I feared
for its future. It's taken them four models to create something
genuinely useful, beautiful and clever, but the new Moshi Moshi 04 is
worthy piece of kit indeed, even at its premium price of GBP150! Read More
According to the Pentagon, improvised explosive
devices, or IEDs, are the number one killer and threat to troops in
Afghanistan. Now a new tool that shoots a blade of water capable of
penetrating steel is headed to U.S. troops in Afghanistan to help them
disable these deadly devices. Developed by Sandia National Laboratories
researchers, the fluid blade disablement tool produces a high-speed,
precise water blade to perform some precision type destruction on
whatever IED it’s up against. Read More
As well as the super-thin, next-generation TV’s we’re all looking forward to, organic light emitting diodes, or OLEDs,
also hold great potential as a light source. They are extremely energy
efficient, dimmable, can produce many different colors, emit light over
an extended area and the light they produce is diffuse and non-glaring.
The thin, flat nature of OLEDs also makes it possible to create light
sources in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. However, until now, the
physical characteristics of OLEDs have meant they have had to be powered
from low-voltage direct current (DC) sources. Philips Research has now
developed the first ever OLED module that can be powered directly from a
mains electricity supply. Read More
Graphene
is pretty amazing stuff. Just a couple of months ago, we heard about
how the one-atom thick sheets of bonded carbon atoms had been used to
create the strongest pseudo-electric magnetic fields ever sustained in a lab – and that was just the latest use that had been discovered for it. Now, word comes from Harvard University and MIT that graphene could be used to rapidly sequence DNA. Read More
For many scientists who know about such things,
the question isn’t whether the first person to live forever has been
born, but how old they are. The basis for this belief is that, if a
person can survive the next 20 or 30 years, then breakthroughs in
biotechnology will easily allow them to extend their lifespan – not to
mention their quality of life – to 125 years. From that point, the
advances will keep coming to allow the prolonging of life indefinitely.
One of the first steps towards such a reality has just been announced by
a group of researchers who have discovered the first compound that
activates an enzyme called telomerase in the human body. Read More
The Fraunhofer
research organization is concerned about the world’s fresh water
supply. According to the statistics put forth by groups like the World
Commission on Water for the 21st Century, that concern is justified –
over 450 million people worldwide currently face severe water shortages,
and as much as two thirds of the world’s population could be
“water-stressed” by 2025. Likewise, a study by the UN has predicted that
water is due to become more strategically important than petroleum; in
other words, wars could be fought over it. In reaction to scenarios such
as these, 14 of Franhofer’s research divisions have joined together to
form the Fraunhofer Alliance SysWasser, with the aim of developing
sustainable water system technologies. The group will be presenting six
of these technologies at this week’s IFAT/Entsorga water trade fair in
Munich. Here’s a quick look at each one. Read More
ROAMpay credit card swiper for iPhones, Blackberrys, and Droids
September 13, 2010
The ability to turn a smartphone into a portable
credit card swiper makes sense for small business owners on the go, as
well as anyone who happens to be out of cash. Like Square,
the new ROAMpay device plugs in to the audio jack of your smartphone.
Using the company's app, you get the same functions as using a
traditional credit terminal and it's available on iPhone and Android.
Read More
The wait is almost over. From close to 500
entries representing 18 countries, the judges in this year's James Dyson
Award competition are now pawing over the final 15 projects. Amongst
the finalists are reader favorites as well as projects not yet featured
in Gizmag. So, let's take one last look at all of the designs that have
impressed the panel of experts, ahead of the winner being announced in
early October. Read More
“Clear” sound from Greensound Technology's glass speakers
By Darren Quick
September 15, 2010
As any cola-swilling child of the 90’s will tell
you, things are better when they’re clear. Water? Definitely better
clear. Conscience? Ditto. Speakers? Sure, why not? We’ve already had Harman Kadon’s GLA-55 speakers
featuring faceted cut-glass enclosures to expose the audio engine, but
the glass speakers from Greensound Technology are even more striking.
Looking like little more than a shaped pane of glass sitting atop a
base, the speakers use the glass to project the sound and deliver “true
360 degree sound.” Read More
Sharp shows new 3-in-1 oven - steam, grill, microwave
September 15, 2010
Sharp has announced the new Steamwave AX-1100, a
3-in-1 steam oven with a combination of steamer, grill and microwave.
The Steamwave follows the success of Sharp’s Superheated Steam Oven
and is one of the first multiple ovens to introduce steam and grill to a
microwave unit. Given that many households these days are centered
around becoming more health conscious, the idea of having easy access to
a steamer and grill will most likely prove popular. Read More
MSI set to release world’s first 3D multi-touch all-in-one PC
By Darren Quick
September 14, 2010
In April, NEC announced plans
to release a 3D all-in-one (AIO) desktop PC sometime this year. They
were probably hoping to lay claim to being the first company to bring
such a product to the market but they’ve been beaten to the punch by
MSI, who is set to release its Wind Top AE2420 3D AIO PC that also
boasts a touchscreen and is also the first AIO PC to feature USB 3.0
ports. Sporting a 24-inch Full HD (1080p) multi-touch display
comprising a 120Hz LED panel, the AE2420 3D comes with one pair of
rechargeable wireless active shutter glasses and 2D to 3D conversion
capabilities. Read More
For sale: World's most teched-out micro-trimaran
By Ben Coxworth
September 14, 2010
Are you “mediagenic, geeky, youthful, and
insanely adventurous”? Those are the qualities that Steven Roberts is
seeking in the new owner of his custom pedal/wind/solar-powered
micro-trimaran, the Microship. A self-described “technomad,” Roberts is a
huge fan of high technology and self-propelled solo adventuring, and
the quirky little boat is clearly the lovechild of those two passions.
It has a host of high-tech features, yet is intended for escaping the
rat race and living simply. Ironic? Maybe, but it comes with a great
story. Read More
‘Artificial ovary’ allows human eggs to be matured outside the body
By Darren Quick
September 14, 2010
We recently looked at a prototype implantable artificial kidney
and now, in a move that could yield infertility treatments for cancer
patients and provide a powerful new means for conducting fertility
research, researchers have built an artificial human ovary that can grow
oocytes into mature human eggs in the laboratory. The ovary not only
provides a living laboratory for investigating fundamental questions
about how healthy ovaries work, but also can act as a testbed for seeing
how problems, such as exposure to toxins or other chemicals, can
disrupt egg maturation and health. It could also allow immature eggs,
salvaged and frozen from women facing cancer treatment, to be matured
outside the patient in the artificial ovary. Read More
Fujitsu announces development of wireless recharging technology
September 14, 2010
We're all aware of how annoying a tangled mass of
electrical wires can be. Fortunately, a research effort from Fujitsu is
tackling the problem at its very source. During a conference held in
the Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers at
Osaka Prefecture University, the Japanese electronics giant announced a
major step in developing a wireless recharging technology that can work
simultaneously with multiple portable devices. Read More
Giving embarrassing old mobile tech a touchscreen upgrade
By Darren Quick
September 14, 2010
Too embarrassed to pull out your ancient, non-touchscreen mobile phone in front of your smartphone-toting
friends? Sick of the sniggers and jeers as you search through your
contacts using – gasp – buttons!? Desperately want to join the “in”
touchscreen crowd but are still stuck in a contract that’s you can’t
afford to break? Relax. New software, called TouchDevice, can give
touchscreen capabilities to an ordinary mobile phone by using the
phone’s microphone. In fact, it can even extend the touch surface beyond
the screen to include the entire phone’s casing. Read More
Touch-sensitive artificial skin created using rubber film
By Ben Coxworth
September 14, 2010
It’s truly touching news... no sooner do we hear about the pressure-sensitive artificial skin created at UC Berkeley, than fellow Californians at Stanford University
announce that they have also created such a material. While Berkeley’s
skin relies on carbon nanotubes to detect pressure, however, Stanford’s
skin utilizes a thin rubber sheet made up of tiny pyramids. It is
reportedly so sensitive that it can “feel” the weight of a butterfly.
Read More
Celebrity Cruises has gone beyond presenting its wine list on an iPad
to become the first cruise line to provide self-guided contemporary art
tours using Apple's tablet. The latest "first" closely follows the
company's introduction of “Celebrity iLounge” equipped with MacBook
workstations, a Mac accessories store and Mac short courses on the
ships. Read More
Smart home sensors use electrical wiring as an antenna
By Darren Quick
September 16, 2010
Smart homes of the future will automatically
adapt to their surroundings using an array of sensors to record
everything from the building’s temperature and humidity to the light
level and air quality. One hurdle impeding the development of such
intelligent homes is the fact that existing technology is still power
hungry and today’s wireless devices either transmit a signal only
several feet, or consume so much energy they need frequent battery
replacements. Researchers have now developed sensors that run on
extremely low power thanks to using a home’s electrical wiring as a
giant antenna to transmit information. Read More
“Seeing” NeuFlow supercomputer based on the human visual system
By Darren Quick
September 15, 2010
The brain’s ability to quickly visually interpret
our environment requires such an enormous number of computations it is
pretty amazing that it accomplishes this feat so quickly and with
seemingly little effort. Coming up with a computer-driven system that
can mimic the human brain in visually recognizing objects, however, has
proven difficult, but now Euginio Culurciello of Yale’s School of
Engineering & Applied Sciences has developed a supercomputer based
on the human visual system that operates more quickly and efficiently
than ever before. Read More
A lot of people try to lessen the load on the
local landfill by putting their organic waste in a compost heap, but
soon there may be something else they can do with it – feed it to an
E-Fuel MicroFusion Reactor. The new device, so we’re told, takes
cellulosic waste material and breaks it down to nothing but sugar water
and lignin powder within two minutes. The lignin powder can be used by
pharmaceutical manufacturers (although it’s not clear how you’d get it
to them), while the sugar water can be distilled into ethanol fuel.
That’s where one of E-Fuel’s other products, the MicroFueler, comes in.
Read More
Disapora social network source code released
By Darren Quick
September 15, 2010
The lads behind Diaspora,
the open source decentralized alternative to Facebook, have announced
the public release of its source code to developers. The group of four
students from NYU’s Courant Institute wanted to give users complete
control of their details and content in response to privacy concerns
regarding Facebook. Upon releasing the source code the developers say,
“this is now a community project and development is open to anyone with
the technical expertise who shares the vision of a social network that
puts users in control.” Read More
Molecular machines that seem to "walk" in living
organisms transporting proteins between cells are the subject of a new
study by University of California, Riverside researchers who hope to
find out more about how these remarkable machines behave, in a
development that could lead to important breakthroughs in medicine and
the manufacturing of electronic devices. Read More
Avion car goes border to border on one tank of diesel
By Ben Coxworth
September 15, 2010
Back in 1984, Craig Henderson and Bill Green
built a one-of-a-kind super fuel-efficient car called the Avion. In
1986, it set the Guinness world record for fuel economy by averaging
103.7USmpg (2.27L/100km) while driving from the Mexican to Canadian
borders. Unlike most autos from that era, the Avion is still on the
road... and breaking its own records. In October 2008, Henderson and
Green achieved 113.1mpg (2.08 L/100km) on a 263-mile (423 km) trip in
the US Pacific Northwest. Then, this August 29th, they departed from
Blaine, Washington (adjacent to the Canadian border) and drove 1,478
miles (2,379 km) to the Mexican border. They used just 12.4 US gallons
(46.94 L) of diesel and set a new record of 119.1mpg (1.97L/100km). Read More
Just as a successful TV show can yield spin-offs,
apparently so it is with mobile phones. Looking to capitalize on the
success of its HTC Desire, which launched earlier this year to positive reviews,
HTC has unveiled the Desire HD and Desire Z. The Desire HD features a
larger 4.3” display and is the first phone to be powered by the new 1GHz
Qualcomm 8255 Snapdragon processor. Meanwhile, the Desire Z is a QWERTY
slider and is the first to be powered by the 800MHz Qualcomm 7230
processor. In addition to the new hardware, HTC also announced an
enhanced HTC Sense experience centered around a new HTCSense.com service
that lets users backup, lock, locate and wipe data from their phone
remotely. Read More
Nestled amongst ten new products launched by Elonex at IFA 2010
were a threesome of eTouch tablet computers. Powered by the company's
own ARM-based LNX processor and running on the Android platform, there
are a couple of 7-inch (17.78 cm) models and a 10-inch (25.4 cm) version
– all with backlit touchscreen displays, 2GB of storage and Wi-Fi
connectivity. Gizmag visited the Elonex booth to have a look at the
e-Readers and tablets on offer. Read More
The cloning of human viruses may sound like the
stuff of biological warfare, but breakthroughs in the area are helping
in the development of antivirals and vaccines for life-threatening
diseases. Now Welsh scientists have made the first complete copy of the
virus Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) – a common infectious disease that is
responsible for congenital malformations and potentially deadly to
transplant patients or HIV/AIDS carriers. Read More
Canada’s Motive Industries grabbed some headlines
last month, when it announced that the body of its soon-to-be-unveiled Kestrel EV
was made from a hemp-based bio-composite material. Not only are its
panels impact-resistant, but bio-composites in general are said to be
lighter, less expensive and/or more ecologically-sustainable than
conventional composites. At the time of the announcement, the car’s
appearance was being kept under wraps. As part of this week’s Vancouver
EV 2010 VÉ Conference and Trade Show, however, all was revealed. Read More
Sorry, parents – video games are good for the mind
By Ben Coxworth
September 16, 2010
For some time now, it’s been one of those
“well-known facts” that playing video games increases one’s hand-eye
coordination... much to the consternation of parents and spouses trying
to convince family members that their obsessive gaming has no redeeming
value. Now, research conducted at the University of Rochester indicates
that playing action video games also increases peoples’ ability
to make right decisions faster. Ironically, an activity that involves
sitting on the couch helps people to think on their feet. Read More
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Vulture program,
which aims to develop and demonstrate technology to enable a single
high-altitude unmanned airplane (UAV) to operate continuously for a
period of five years, has entered phase II. Under the terms of an US$89
million contract, Boeing will develop a full-scale demonstrator called
the SolarEagle that will make its first demonstration flight in 2014.
The aircraft will have highly efficient electric motors and propellers
and a high-aspect-ratio, 400-foot wing for increased solar power and
aerodynamic performance. Read More
Sony's motion controlled gaming setup,
PlayStation Move, has arrived in stores, and if you believe the hype,
it's everything we wanted the Wii to be...and more. Is this the future
of gaming or just another expensive set of peripherals that will be
buried in the back of a cupboard by the end of the year? Read on for our
review. Read More
Self-regulating traffic lights would improve vehicle flow
By Ben Coxworth
September 16, 2010
If you’ve ever been frustrated by stop-and-go
traffic, you might have thought that traffic lights just don’t “get”
what’s going on around them... and you’d be right. Traffic lights are
programmed based on typical traffic patterns for the time and location,
but are unaware of what’s actually happening at any one place or time
(this wouldn’t include pedestrians hitting walk light buttons, or
stopped cars activating sensors embedded in the asphalt). Not only is
stopping and waiting for red lights irritating, but it is also a huge
source of wasted fuel and extra CO2 emissions. Now, however, researchers
have come up with something that may greatly reduce drivers’ periods in
the “red light zones” – a system that allows traffic lights to monitor
traffic in real time, and coordinate their signals accordingly. Read More
Two-photon walk a giant stride for quantum computing
September 16, 2010
Research conducted at the University of Bristol means a number of quantum computing
algorithms may soon be able to execute calculations of a complexity far
beyond what today's computers allow us to do. The breakthrough involves
the use of a specially designed optical chip to perform what's known as
a "quantum walk" with two particles ... and it suggests the era of
quantum computing may be approaching faster than the scientific
establishment had predicted. Read More
At a ceremony this morning in Washington, DC, the winners of the US$10 million Automotive X-PRIZE
were announced. Not surprisingly to those of us who have been following
the competition, the winner of the $5 million Mainstream class prize
was Virginia’s Edison2 team, with their four-seater combustion-engined
Very Light Car #98. When we were taking in the Finals stage of the
competition at the Michigan International Speedway in July, it became obvious by the end of the stage
that Edison2 would be receiving some of the prize purse today. Sharing
in that loot were the winners of the Alternative class: Switzerland’s
X-Tracer team took home $2.5 million for their electric E-Tracer #79 in
the Tandem sub-class, while North Carolina’s Li-ion Motors received the
other 2.5 for their electric Wave2 in the Side-by-Side sub-class. Read More
Space Adventures and Boeing team up for space tourism
September 16, 2010
Boeing and Space Adventures have joined forces to offer "affordable" travel to low Earth orbit for private space tourists.
A memorandum of agreement between the two companies could see flights
on-board the Boeing Crew Space Transportation-100 (CST-100) spacecraft
from 2015. Read More
Indie filmakers rejoice! Panasonic's AG-AF101 takes on DSLRs
By Mike Hanlon
September 16, 2010
IBC is a globally-important video and content
creation show held in Amsterdam each year. It’s where trends emerge and
this year it delivered irrefutable proof that the advent of Digital SLRs
such as Canon's 5D Mk II
has influenced the design of the video camera. The biggest benefit of
the huge DSLR sensor is the narrow native depth of field that allows the
videographer to isolate a subject. It’s the control which film and TV
creatives want, and has seen the 5D spawn an entire industry of gear
which turns the still camera into a ripping video camera – in just two
years. So successful has the DSLR become as a full-frame video camera,
that manufacturers are responding with cameras that take all the DSLR's
strengths and add in the features videographers want and/or need. The
belle of the ball is undoubtedly Panasonic's EUR 5000 (US$6500)
AG-AF101, so Gizmag's Noel McKeegan and Mike Hanlon went to see what all
the fuss was about. Read More
Kawasaki's Z750 has been a top seller in the
French, Italian and Spanish markets for its great handling and low
price. Triumph's Street Triple R and the Yamaha FZ8
have increased competition in the class, so Kawasaki has responded with
a new Z750R variant. The big changes are new suspension at both ends
plus radial mounts for the four-piston Nissin calipers for a price in
the vicinity of GBP7250. Read More
A team of biomedical engineers at Taiwan’s
National Cheng Kung University has created a new “on-chip” method to
identify bacteria. By creating microchannels between two roughened glass
slides containing gold electrodes, the researchers are able to sort and
concentrate bacteria. A form of spectroscopy is then applied to
identify them, providing a portable device that can be used for tasks
like food monitoring and blood-screening. Read More
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