Thursday, April 27, 2006

2636.aspx

Bluetooth Laser Virtual Keyboard for PDAs and smart phones

I cannot wait to get a Bluetooth Laser Virtual Keyboard just to watch the face of clients and colleagues when I start typing on the table...


Features:



  • Connects to PDAs Smartphones and Computers using Bluetooth

  • Projects a full size keyboard onto any flat surface

  • Allows the convinence of regular keyboard typing in a tiny form factor

  • Rechargeable battery lasts for 120 minutes of continuous typing

  • Tiny size only 3.5 inches high

  • Compatible with PalmOS 5, PocketPC 2003, Windows Smartphone, Symbian OS, and Windows 2000/XP. Limited Mac OSX Support.

2635.aspx

Instant Cool Can: fresh beverages any time

Warm Coca Cola and beer should be a thing of the past with The Instant Cool Can by Tempra Technology. Twist the base and the can lowers the temperature of the beverage by at least 30° Fahrenheit (16.7° C) in just three minutes



The advanced design utilizes the latest breakthroughs in thermal, insulating and vacuum heat pump technology. The self-contained I.C. Can™ is the approximate size of a 500 ml beverage can. This includes the beverage container itself and the integral self-refridgerating device.

When activated, the all natural desiccant contained within a vacuum draws the heat from the beverage through the evaporator into an insulated heat-sink container. It is this patented vacuum-power which lowers the temperature so dramatically and quickly, leaving the beverage inside cool and refreshing.


Miller beer should have the first cans on the shelves by mid-2007


Cool Or What?

Saturday, April 15, 2006

2618.aspx

High dynamic range imaging produces some awesome images

The HDR Pool on flicker produces some amazing images. High dynamic range imaging combines -at least- two images with different exposure. This image from Photomatix illustrates that the sum is greater that its parts:



Amazing!

Monday, April 10, 2006

2591.aspx

Zfone - Encrypt your VoIP calls

Phil Zimmerman, the guy behind PGP, is working on a new product; Zfone . Zfone encrypts voice traffic on the fly and works with VoIP clients like X-Lite and Gizmo that use the SIP protocol. The software uses a simple voice authentication system so there is no need to agree on encryption keys in advance or to type in long passwords.




In the future, the ZRTP protocol will be integrated into standalone secure VoIP clients, but today we have a software product that lets you turn your existing VoIP client into a secure phone. The current Zfone software runs in the Internet Protocol stack on any Windows XP, Mac OS X, or Linux PC, and intercepts and filters all the VoIP packets as they go in and out of the machine, and secures the call on the fly. You can use a variety of different software VoIP clients to make a VoIP call. The Zfone software detects when the call starts, and initiates a cryptographic key agreement between the two parties, and then proceeds to encrypt and decrypt the voice packets on the fly. It has its own little separate GUI, telling the user if the call is secure. It's as if Zfone were a "bump on the cord", sitting between the VoIP client and the Internet. Think of it as a software bump-on-the-cord. Maybe a bump in the protocol stack.

Thursday, April 6, 2006

2574.aspx

Improve TomTom 5 performance on Pocket PC

TomTom5 can be very slow displaying Points Of Interest on a Pocket PC. It gets slower the more POIs are added. The problem is that it takes forever to read the ov2 files. You can work around the problem by buying a very fast SD card or you can fix the problem in a couple of minutes by converting the OV2 files.



  • Download and extract the OV2 tools from TomTom 

  • Copy the OV2 files from your Pocket PC to the directory with the OV2 tools

  • Run Dumpov2.exe. It creates an .asc file for each ov2 file

  • Run Makeov2.exe for each .asc file using this command: for %i in (*.asc) do makeov2.exe %i

  • Replace the original OV2 files on the Pocket PC with the converted ones

POIs you download from POIGPS should already be optimized


Thanks for the tip Max!

Monday, April 3, 2006

2555.aspx

Wireless Extension Cord

Summer is coming, and working on a laptop in the garden below a tree sure beats sitting inside. The batteries don't last long though as I have to turn turn up the contrast on the screen and the WiFi is at max range. But battery life should no longer be a problem with a Wireless Extension Cord. It beams power up to 100 meters:



Very usefull, but take care where you point the antennas if you don't want to accidentally BBQ friends and family:



Even though these microwaves are about as harmful as the leakage from an ordinary microwave oven (not much), do not put computers, televisions, other sensitive electrical equipment, food, liquids, paper, glass, flammable substances, magnets, or living things in between the base and satellite units. Just in case.

2552.aspx

Lego NXT

Lego NXT is the new version of the Lego Mindstorms series. The kits will ship later this summer can be pre ordered at Lego shop and Amazon.


Lego has moved to the more versatile Lego Technic elements with NXT. It is a lot more advanced than the older Mindstorm kits and comes with a 32bit processor, more memory, better sensors and USB 2.0. Bluetooth lets you interact with it using Bluetooth compatible devices like PDAs and mobile phones. The best news if you plan buy the NXT for kids and not for yourself: programming the NXT robot got a lot simpler with a "drag and drop" GUI that allows you to connect sensors and commands.



The LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT Includes:



  • All-new NXT Intelligent Brick with 32-bit microprocessor, more memory and FLASH
  • 3 Interactive Servo motors feature built-in rotation sensors to align speed for precise control
  • New sound sensor reacts to sound commands, patterns and tones
  • New ultrasonic visual sensor responds to movement
  • Improved touch sensor reacts to touch and release
  • Improved light sensor detects different colors and light intensities
  • 519 specially selected LEGO TECHNIC elements for sturdy and durable building and improved functionality and movement
  • 4 input ports, 3 output ports and 7 6-wire cords
  • Matrix display
  • Real sound speaker
  • USB 2.0 and Bluetooth support
  • Easy-to-use PC and Mac compatible interface
  • Intuitive, icon-based drag-and-drop program "building" environment