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The 2010 CES event in Las Vegas doesn't start for a few days, but Intel has joined other vendors in jumping the gun and making announcements of new technology ahead of the event.
Hopefully this doesn’t mean you’ll have to buy another drive, and there’s one hell of a lot of science content involved (regarding something known as an i-MLSE), but the gist is that there is new technology coming.
Lead-acid battery technology has been around since 1859. Admittedly, that makes it a tried and true technology, and li-ion batteries do have a reputation for being dangerous if abused. Porsche is willing to look at alternatives to lead-acid, and will be offering a li-ion battery in their Boxster Spyder and 911 GT3. The biggest advantage is weight. The li-ion battery pack weighs 22 pounds less then the lead-acid alternative. In the world of performance cars, that much dead weight is huge. This new technology won’t come cheap however; expect to pay $1,700 for this option.
Using the Gas Cubby iPhone app to increase your fuel economy and keep your vehicle properly maintained can save you money and help the environment… but, if you’ve learned anything from CrunchGear, it’s that saving money isn’t much fun unless you can blow it on something cool and completely over the top. Well, one lucky CrunchGear reader gets to have their cake and eat it too. App Cubby, the developer of Gas Cubby, is giving away a Viper SmartStart kit to one lucky CrunchGear reader. If you own a car and an iPhone, surely you’ve heard about and have been lusting after Viper’s new technology that allows you to lock/unlock, open the trunk, and even start your car right from your iPhone. And for those still behind the curve on using your iPhone to improve fuel economy and keep track of maintenance, Gas Cubby will be on sale for only $4.99 until Cyber Monday. To enter, leave a comment below with your vision of “car 2.0.” How can mobile apps better integrate with vehicles to make your driving experience more fun, safe, efficient, and economical? Note: CrunchGear and App Cubby will be awarding the winner a $500 gift certificate (the retail price of Viper’s SmartStart kit) to Best Buy. The winner will be have to handle compatibility, installation, etc. We’ll pick a winner on Wednesday.
A new technology still in development supports input by motion controls and drawings.
Microsoft's Live Labs division demonstrated a new technology called Pivot today at PDC 2009. Microsoft Technical Fellow Gary Flake revealed Pivot as a standalone application based on Microsoft's established Seadragon and Deep Zoom technologies. The application highlights a new way of searching using a series of linked data. In the session Flake demonstrated Pivot several times and explained that the architecture is simple and based on existing web technologies. The application is a .NET client which uses Seadragon and Deep Zoom collections. Microsoft's trident layout engine (MSHTML) or better known as Internet Explorer is also used in the application. Pivot functions over HTTP and all the communication works based on how the web is today.
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 Time Inc just launched a new technology blog called Techland, headed up by one of our former CrunchGear editors Peter Ha. Time magazine’s senior tech writer Lev Grossman is also a contributor. Techland covers the intersection of gadgets and geek culture, and is aimed at a mainstream audience.
Some of the debut posts cover the movie 2012, Samsung’s new Android phone, and a recap of Apple’s legal victory over clone-maker Psystar. It’s a crowded field, but the appetite for gadget culture is seemingly endless.
Yup, that gigantic Dell box contained a huge color laser printer. But to my pleasant surprise, the 100 lbs 5130cdn isn’t nearly as boring and mundane as I thought it was going to be. I really don’t know if it’s the fastest printer in the world like Dell claims, but I do know that this printer could be a serious weapon in the hands of a comic book pirate. (I would like to think they exist)
I managed to get the printer set up after some issues with Windows 7. For some reason, this brand new printer doesn’t ship with Windows 7 drivers, instead I had share the printer on another computer and then the print speed wasn’t up to spec. But once Dell gave me the right drivers and assured me that I got a pre-production model and the retail version will have the compatible drivers, I was off to the races. The printer is rated at 47ppm in both mono and color and I found those numbers to be accurate. With just a random text-only PDF, I was able to get about 39ppm when printing over a wireless network and exactly 47ppm via a direct USB connection. Even when the document has a splattering of color, the speed isn’t noticeably affected.
But let’s say you want to print a full-color comic book for some random reason. Just how fast is it then? Well, the 5130cdn managed to spit out the 38 pages in 1:38 as shown in the video above. Trust me, that’s fast considering each page is a full color image around 800KB in size. Try that with your inkjet and see what you get.
The 5130cdn is available starting today for $1,549, which includes a 3 year next business day on-site service contract. Let me warn you though, if you do buy this monster, its shipping weight is 120 lbs on a pallet and your wife won’t like it if it sits in the living room all evening.
In the 15th century Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing process. This new technology changed the world forever. One specific task was made incredibly easy — the spreading of written words. eBooks take us to the threshold of a possible shift in the way we read books. In this editorial I would like to share my opinion. Earlier this week, I have already shared my impressions of the newly revealed eBook readers, direct from the floor of the Frankfurt Book Fair. eBooks were possibly the chief subject under discussion at this year's book fair. Amazon may be the most prominent player in the growing market of eBook readers, at least in the US.
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Toshiba has been announcing fuel cells for home use for ages now, but it seems the announcement [press release in English] they made today is really serious. The company has unveiled the Dynario today, a mini fuel cell that can charge mobile devices on the go. Japanese mobile gadget geeks can already order the fuel cell on Toshiba Japan’s online store (where it’s available exclusively).
Buyers get a methanol fuel cell that’s fairly large (size: 150×21x74.5mm), heavy (280g without fuel) and holds 14ml of fuel. Cartridges, which have to be bought separately, cost $32 for a set of five and hold 50ml each. The reaction between the methanol and ambient oxgyen triggers a chemical reaction, which then results in the production of electricity.
Shipping will start on October 29. The new technology comes at a high price though: Be ready to spend $320 for the fuel cell. Toshiba hasn’t said yet whether it will ever be sold outside Japan, but my guess is the company will see how sales go in Japan first.
Disney doesn’t want you to pass your treasured copies of their movies on to your children, or sell them at garage sales. Oh no… they own that property, and expect to be paid for it without it being loaned, traded, or sold on the secondary market. The Wall Street Journal reports that Disney’s new technology is called Keychest, and is expected to be rolled out next month. They’ve quietly been talking to electronics manufacturers about including the ability to access the content into their systems, however no information has been revealed about who exactly has bought into Disney’s new plan. The Keychest technology allows an end user to purchase a lifetime license to view a movie across multiple platforms. The movies wouldn’t be something that you can download, instead you would be able to stream the films to your devices over the internet or cable television system. Seems like an attempt to recover from the recent collapse of DVD sales, which has resulted in some companies reporting losses for the first time since 2005.
Business Week is reporting that a consortium of companies which includes the likes of Intel, Cisco, and Apple is set to release new technology called 'Wi-Fi Direct' which will turn a slew of gadgets into hotspots. Wi-fi (when considered 'outside' as in not at work or at home) is currently only available to the general laptop, netbook or phone user in a disjointed array of pubs and cafe's across the globe where users can intermittently enjoy broadband out of the confinement of offices and houses.
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Boozehounds and hobby alcoholics beware: A new technology developed by the Tokyo Medical and Dental University is able to analyze your breath odors and visualize their dispersal. But it’s not only good to detect alcohol in your breath but could also be used as an indicator for diseases in the future (sorry for the silly pic – the university doesn’t supply any). The person to be tested has to stand in a dark room and speak into a microphone-like device whose mouthpiece is covered by a special enzyme-treated gauze. The enzymes interact with components in your breath, resulting in a chemical reaction that produces light. This light is then captured by a video camera, with the footage serving as the object for analysis. The researchers say their system can accurately measure the amount of ethanol, methanethiol, or acetone in a person’s breath. It can be used as a breath analyzer for drinkers, but also to investigate the reasons for a person’s bad breath, to evaluate liver functions and possibly even to help in the analysis of serious diseases such as diabetes or cancer. Via Nikkei [registration required, paid subscription]
Microsoft has confirmed via its Genuine Windows Blog that only those Windows users running genuine, validated copies will be able to download and install the new Microsoft Security Essentials software. The Director of Microsoft's Genuine Windows team, Alex Kochis, stated in his post that, "During installation, you'll be asked to validate Windows running on your PC to make sure that it's genuine." Windows validation is by no means a new technology, and has been implemented in many of Microsoft's software packages with a few notable exceptions: Internet Explorer 8, for example, and Windows Update which allows users running pirated copies of Windows to download essential security patches without validation.
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The BBC has opened what could be described as the world's biggest zoo, in the form of a new website containing hundreds of pictures, audio and video from their vast collection of wildlife programmes and features, from spectaculars such as Planet Earth to regional news coverage. Made possible by new technology and funding, the BBC's "Wildlife Finder" has finally made the corporation's ambition to give it's natural history footage a permanent worldwide audience a reality, according to the Guardian. Starting with 370 animals, the website will have more added on a daily basis, creating a huge collection of online nature footage.
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As recently reported by Neowin, Intel has developed a new technology called "Light Peak". With its impressive duplex 10Gps connection it can transfer data at incredible rates. Today Intel has shown off Light Peak by playing a 1080P video over the connection while also transferring files using OS X. While incredibly impressive, what was even more interesting was that Intel appeared to be running OS X on a hackintosh computer. The video, which can be seen in full here, clearly shows OS X on the monitor but no distinguishable Mac can be seen.
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There’s an old Seinfeld episode where Jerry agrees to become a bootlegger. His skills at recording the screen with a tiny, hand-held camera are top-notch, so he’s roped into helping out the little kid on the street who can’t get into R rated movies. You know the episode I’m talking about, the one where Elaine dances all weird. (Here comes the horrible segue-way!) If this new technology is widely adopted, episodes like that won’t ever happen again. The National Institute of Informatics in Japan, along with Sharp, has developed some sort of IR-based anti-piracy measure that makes it impossible to record a movie theater screen. Quick pulses of light are blasted onto the screen from behind that, while not noticeable to the human eye, render a video camera’s recording unwatchable. Filters on the camera could try to filter out the light, but the picture would be quite blurry. No, I have no idea what the included pic is supposed to represent. “First you cry, then you cry again.”
The main idea is to use a special material that reacts to UV radiation. The liquid crystal molecules align in accordance with the direction of the radiation so that the screen can display dark blacks. Sharp says the the contrast ratio is enhanced by 60% to 5,000:1, compared with conventional LCD screens. The response time is even doubled, according to the company. The new technology also leads to a more efficient use of the backlight, which means you can save up to 20% energy when you watch TV. Sharp says production of LCDs making use of the new system will begin in a Japanese plant as early as next month.
If you follow the Dutch design scene as closely as I do, you’ll be thrilled to hear that the one and only Studio Tord Boontje has created “the industry’s first three-dimensional PC surface technology” and worked it into HP’s Mini 110 netbook line.
Okay, I’ll admit that I don’t actually follow the Dutch design scene as closely as I should because I don’t know what the hell HP is talking about here. Ah, some clarification:
Um… that’s… cool? Other than that, the Mini 110 will ship on October 18th for $399 with Windows 7 Starter preinstalled. The actual hardware looks like it hasn’t changed much – Atom CPU, 10.1-inch LCD, 2.68 pounds – the Mini 110 has been available for a while, after all. This new design has somehow gotten heavier, though: up from 2.25 pounds. Maybe all those crazy 3D layers add some heft.
Japan is getting more active in the solar energy field in recent months, and now, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has revealed a plan under which solar photons will be used to propel satellites in outer space [JP, PDF]. The aim is to make satellites in general more energy-efficient. The JAXA says their satellite would be the first object in outer space that’s propelled by particles of light. The particles accelerate the satellite and can make it change its direction, too. The solar photons will push against the satellite’s polymer sail, which is just 0.0075mm thick and will be partly covered with amorphous silicon solar cells. The sail itself is 20m in diameter. The new technology will provide more than 50% of the power needed overall. And the JAXA is fast: It plans to launch the satellite as early as the next fiscal year and test it for six months in outer space.
A group of researchers from Tokyo-based Dai Nippon Printing (DNP) and the University of Tokyo has developed a new technology [JP] that makes it harder for criminals to counterfeit paper money or other valuables made of paper, i.e. coupons or vouchers. It can also be used to make credit cards more secure, too. The new system is based on the holograms found on most of these papers. Special codes that are just 50 nanometers large are being imprinted into those holograms, and the researchers claim the codes are next to impossible to forge. They can only be read by near-field light reading machines that aren’t available to the general public. Dai Nippon Printing is still working on optimizing the technology and plans to be able to sell it to financial or governmental institutions by 2014.
IBM said it was issued a patent for a new technology that allows television viewers to blog and post updates on social networking pages using a television remote.
Right out of the gate, I feel obligated to tell you that the two flash memory camcorders written about in this post will cost $1100 and $1300 when they’re available in September. That being said, they’ll handle full 1080p HD video and feature 32GB or 64GB of internal memory depending on the model. That money will get you some decent features like 60 frames-per-second output to high-definition TVs, three-way SteadyShot (vertical, horizontal, and wrist roll), built-in GPS for geotagging videos and photos, and a “Face Touch” mode that allows you to touch someone’s face on the viewfinder and the camcorder will prioritize focus and color levels for that particular person. There’s more: back-illuminated CMOS sensor, six-blade lens aperture capable of producing bokeh effects, direct-to-DVD burning, zoom microphone, and expandability via Memory Stick cards (no SD cards or other similarly popular formats, unfortunately). So, perhaps maybe not features you necessarily need but if you want them, then the price might not seem that high. And let’s face it, sometimes “want” beats “need” — especially when it comes to gadgets. The 32GB HDR-CX500V will cost $1100 and the 64GB HDR-CX520V will cost $1300. Both available in September. Full press release:
It seems that Opera have come out and unveiled their planned announcement about 'reinventing the web' in the last few minutes, with a project they have called Opera Unite, something which seems very promising. So, what is Opera Unite? According to the press release, it is a new technology that consolidates any computer into both a client and server machine, which means it can "interact with and serve content" to other computers, disregarding any need for third-party servers. This is all well and good, but what benefits does this service provide?
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You might be able to squeeze a little more storage into those Blu-ray discs soon. Sony and Panasonic have been working on increasing the maximum capacity per-layer from 25 to 33.4GB, and the new version might be ready for market in the near future.
So you know that old lead acid battery in your car? It’s time to think about replacing it with something new. It never occurred to me, but it makes sense – why not replace that old technology with something a bit more efficient?
I love companies like Disney. They seem to think that just because they want something some way, it’ll happen. Take for instance their latest scheme. Instead of allowing you to “buy” their movies on DVD, Blu-ray, or even VHS, they are going to allow you to buy access to their content.
