Nokia's vision of a connected mobile world
From Mobile Technology
It’s not surprising that the world’s largest phone manufacturer has a grand vision as global mobile device subscriptions pass the four billion mark. Nokia’s latest white paper paints a picture of a connected global network based around the world’s most distributed and pervasive sensing instrument – the mobile phone. Thanks to an increasing number of built-in sensors - ambient light, orientation, acoustical, video, velocity, GPS - each device can capture, classify, and transmit many types of data with exceptional granularity. The perfect platform for sensing the world is already in our hands. If you only read one article today, this should be it. Read More
Single-sided front swingarm could steer the way to better motorcycle handling
From Motorcycles
If center-hub steering like that found on the Bimota TESI 3D isn't radical enough for you, perhaps this'll do the trick: Tier Motorsports have released a set of concept illustrations featuring a Yamaha R1 that's been modified with a single-sided front swingarm. The aim of the design is to provide a completely vertical steering axis for the front wheel, making for a much more direct and responsive steering effect than is possible with angled forks - and the idea also opens up the possibility of virtually frameless bikes, in which both the front and rear swingarms mount directly from the engine and no heavy steering stem/headstock is needed. Fascinating stuff. Read More
Meraki Solar powered Wi-Fi
From Electronics
Meraki, a company whose aim is to ‘bring affordable Internet access to the next billion people’, is hoping their solar-powered Wi-Fi unit will do just that. The Meraki Solar is designed to provide wireless coverage over large outdoor areas with a minimum of fuss by removing the need to run power cables. Each unit is self-contained and ready to mount on roofs, poles, or anywhere the sun shines and is designed to provide 24/7 uptime in most locations worldwide by running on its own solar charged battery. Read More
Toshiba to launch 16GB microSDHC
From Electronics
The ever-increasing rise in memory capacities continues with Toshiba launching an industry largest 16GB microSDHC memory card onto the market. They have also further extended their range by adding ultra fast read write 8GB and 16GB SDHC cards. Read More
The era of the personal Internet dawns with the Nokia N97
From Mobile Technology
Nokia today unveiled the Nokia N97, the world’s most advanced mobile computer, which Nokia is hoping will transform the way people connect to the Internet and to each other. Designed for Internet-savvy consumers, the N97 combines a 3.5 inch touch screen with a full QWERTY keyboard, providing an ‘always open’ window to favorite social networking sites and Internet destinations. Nokia’s flagship Nseries device introduces leading technology – including multiple sensors, memory, processing power and connection speeds – for people to create a personal Internet and share their ‘social location.’ The Nokia N97 is expected to begin shipping in the first half of 2009 at an estimated retail price of EUR 550 before taxes or subsidies. Read More
Gears of War 2 Review (Xbox 360)
From Games
The original Gears of War arrived to universal acclaim in 2006, including our Game of the Year award, for it's gritty look and feel, beautifully tuned gameplay mechanics and ridiculously addictive multiplayer game. Two years later (to the day) Epic's beast is back - and it's badder than ever. Read on for our full review. Read More
Remote observatory aims to solve Earth's magnetic mystery
Until November, Tristan da Cunha was home only to 271 people, a small flightless bird, and a piece of land named Inaccessible Island. Now the world's most remote inhabited archipelago is host to a Danish Observatory designed to help improve our understanding the Earth’s weakening magnetic field and the way this affects satellites.
The multi-skilled Dragon Runner ground robot
From Robotics
Both in the air and on the ground, unmanned robotic systems have been deployed to battlefields in growing numbers over the past decade and it's safe to predict that these numbers will only grow in coming years. The reason is simple - they keep human beings out of the firing line. The latest example to join QinetiQ North America's TALON family is the versatile Dragon Runner Small Unmanned Ground Vehicle (SUGV) - a lightweight, portable modular robot which can be quickly configured for both reconnaissance and improvised explosive device (IED) disarmament. Read More
Lotus Evora attracting celebrity waiting list
From Automotive
Lotus won seven F1 titles, and pioneered too many automotive engineering firsts to mention. Its road cars are legend for their roadholding, light weight and remarkable power-to-weight ratios and anyone who has driven one will perhaps also mention their distinctly spartan interiors and lack of creature comfort. That all changed this year with the announcement of the Evora. It will be the world’s only 2+2 sports car when it hits showrooms early next year and it has another significant world first – it’s the first Lotus with a luxury interior and, as the delicately worded press release puts it, “a more refined ownership experience.” Perhaps we’ll see a few more refinements in future Lotus models, as the order book already looks like a who’s who of celebrity car buffs – already signed on the dotted line for a 3.5-litre 206kW V6Evora are two out of the three Top Gear TV presenters (the nice ones), current and past 007s Daniel Craig and Pierce Brosnan, Boris Johnson (Mayor of London), Jay Leno, musician Jay Kay, supermodel Jodie Kidd, Beyoncé, Dave Grõhl, Kelly Rowland, George Clooney, Kevin Spacey, Patrick Dempsey and JLo. Read More
Sprig toys: eco-friendly, battery free fun
From Childsplay
Sprig Toys earn an eco-friendly tick on two fronts. Firstly, they are made from a child-safe composite of recycled wood and reclaimed plastic with minimal packaging and no decorative paint and secondly, rather than contributing to the mountains of used batteries littering the planet they use a "kid-powered" system to operate lights and other electronics. Read More
The US$55,000 Port-a-bach relocatable home (in a shipping container)
From Holiday Destinations
The appeal of regularly relocating where we live probably comes from our nomadic origins as a species, and over the years we’ve thrilled at the possibilities of some remarkable constructs designed to enable just that: the Icosa Pod, miniHome, Free Spirit Sphere, Nackros Villa, LoftCube, Trilobis, Kitahaus, and the relocatable sphere house. New Zealand is one of those countries where its near-to-no-one geographic location has created a hotbed of innovation through necessity and the Kiwi-produced Port-a-bach is particularly inventive because it is based around a remanufactured shipping container. As such, the NZD$100,000 (US$55,000) fold-out dwelling is not just rugged due to its natural steel exoskeleton, it’s as easy to transport internationally as it is to transport locally on a standard container truck. It has low environmental impact and can connect to local utilities or be entirely power, water and sewer independent. Read More
World's first wave farm up and running
From ecoGizmo
The world’s first commercial wave farm in Portugal is now operational. Three 750kW Pelamis Wave Energy Converters (PWEC) have been installed in the first stage of a project which, when complete, will provide enough clean energy to meet the needs of 15,000 households.
Good Vibrations: the musical and military instruments of Leon Theremin
From Inventors and Remarkable People
After the close of WWII, Russian schoolchildren presented the U.S. ambassador with a “gesture of friendship” in the form of a two-foot wooden replica of the Seal of the United States. Behind the beak of the eagle was a miniscule listening device so ingeniously designed that it took eight years before a routine check unearthed it. The era of electronic bugs had begun, and it was largely thanks to the brilliant mind of Leon Theremin: musician, inventor, and prisoner in Stalin’s gulag. Read More
Kia shows next generation fuel cell vehicle at L.A. Auto Show
From Automotive
Kia has rolled-out the latest chapter in its fuel-cell research vehicle development program at the Los Angeles International Auto Show. Continuing on from the Sportage Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV) technology demonstrator which made its European debut in Paris this year, the new Kia Borrego FCEV boasts significant improvements in both range (now over 400 miles) and performance (154 horsepower with a top speed of 100 mph).
CT dose reduction technology uses military technology
From Health and Wellbeing
The CereTom portable CT scanner is remarkable, but the latest improvement to the remarkable machine comes entirely through software – it’s a Noise/Dose Reduction solution for medical imaging. NeuroLogica’s CT post reconstruction filter is similar to military synthetic aperture radar systems which filter out “noise” while preserving signal quality to thus better “see” objects. These algorithms are computationally intensive but thanks to Moore’s Law and the advent of ever faster, inexpensive computers, we’ll inevitably see many new smarts being added to existing machines. The ingenious solution reduces image noise while preserving spatial resolution and noise texture. The advantage offered by the technology is in significantly reducing accumulated exposure of critical and pediatric patients to radiation without sacrificing image quality. Read More
The real-life Minority Report computer interface
From Personal Computing
The second best thing about the film Minority Report has to be the glove-controlled, wall-sized computer display (first place goes to the jetpacks). Oblong Industries is working on a computer interface that operates in a similar way – and rather than a case of tech imitating art, the Minority Report computer was actually based off early Oblong designs. Read More
The second incarnation of the MINI Convertible
From Automotive
The second iteration of the front-wheel-drive MINI Convertible broke cover last week and did so with a spectacular set of numbers behind it. Three convertible versions of the iconic vehicle will be available: a 90 bhp 109 mph MINI One, a 115 bhp 120 mph MINI Cooper and a 170 bhp 134 mph Cooper S derivative. With emissions and running costs now a key buying criteria, all three deliver frugality at the bowser compared to their performance – 40.4, 38.7 and 34.0 mpg respectively. All come with an alphabet soup (EPS, ABS, EBD, CBC and DSC, not to mention AIRCON) of standard technologies, but the showpiece is the fabric roof which operates in two stages – press the button once and the roof slides back 40 cm to create a unique ‘open sunroof’ effect. Press the button again and the roof retracts fully, folding itself behind the rear seats inside 15 seconds. Read More
EDG multimedia business card hits the market
From Mobile Technology
Three years ago we wrote rather optimistically about the coming of the rCard, a US$25 multimedia business card (and promotional give-away and gaming device and …). Now there's a similar product that comes in three versions, each with different capabilities. It’s called EDG (pronounced edge) and will be initially marketed as is a digital video card that enables pharmaceutical firms to build and maintain relationships with their key audiences, but are lots of very useful ways to use the card in almost any business where making a first impression and delivering a high value message to create an important relationship. Read More
Lenovo ThinkPad gets anti-theft Remote Disable feature
From Mobile Technology
Lenovo is introducing a new security feature for ThinkPad notebooks which allows users to remotely disable their PC via SMS. Developed in conjunction with Phoenix Technologies, the Constant Secure Remote Disable feature is effectively a kill switch that works by creating a mobile phone text command such as “lockdown now PC” or “PC shut off” and sending it to the computer's onboard broadband service. If the PC is turned off when the command is sent, it's automatically disabled the next time it registers on the network. Read More
Nikon's portable viewing surprise package: the Media Port UP
From Cameras and Imaging
Here’s one we didn’t see coming. Nikon is much better known for capturing media through its cameras and lenses so the announcement of a multi-tasking portable viewer might have slipped past the media gaze as one of those weird things photographers have. It’s not – it’s for everyone and we think the Wi-Fi ready Media Port UP headset, which offers video comparable to viewing a 50-inch large screen from a distance of three meters and motion sensor control, could well find a niche among the emerging crop of portable media viewing solutions. Read More
