Saturday, February 13, 2010

GPS and Sensor-laden ski Goggles

Remember those mind-melting Recon Instruments goggles that we caught wind of late last year? Admit it -- you never, ever expected those things to actually make it to market. Despite your pessimism, it seems as if those very specs are indeed making a beeline to the consumer realm, with Zeal Optics jumping in, working a bit of magic and relabeling 'em Transcend. Deemed the planet's first GPS and sensor-laden ski goggles, these things are purportedly capable of logging speed, altitude, temperature and time details, and the side-mounted toggle switches will enable you to view said data in real time (or not, if you're paying attention to the 50 foot drop ahead of you). Peek the read link for further details on the $350+ wearables (demoed after the break), and get ready to hit the slopes with a whole new mindset this October. more

eVouse Concept Mouse



We're not going to lie, it was a major let down when we found out that this glowing V-shaped mouse with faux Microsoft branding is nothing more than a splendiferous concept, but we're holding back the tears as best we can. The super futuristic-looking eVouse doubles as both a regular mouse and a pen sensor (in theory, anyway) or as its designer Marcial Ahsayane says, "it's a mix between a classic mouse and a tablet PC." We assume that means you can -- you know -- write digitally with it, but it will also work as an air mouse with touch sensitive buttons. Maybe you can discern a little more from the images below where it seems to morph into a boomerang of sorts, but in the meanwhile we'll be in the corner wishing this thing had a ship date attached to it. You hearing this, Microsoft? (www.engadgets.com)

Sunday, February 7, 2010

The 10 Golden Rules of Systems Analysis


The 10 golden rules of Systems Analysis by John E. Gibson, William T. Scherer, William F. Gibson.

Rule 1: There Always Is a Client
Rule 2: Your Client Does Not Understand His Own Problem
Rule 3: The Original Problem Statement is too Specific: You Must Generalize the Problem to Give it Contextual Integrity.

Rule 4: The Client Does Not Understand the Concept of the Index of Performance
Rule 5: You are the Analyst, Not the Decision-Maker
Rule 6: Meet the Time Deadline and the Cost Budget
Rule 7: Take a Goal-Centered Approach to the Problem, Not a Technology-Centered or Chronological Approach
Rule 8: Nonusers Must be Considered in the Analysis and in the Final Recommendations
Rule 9: The Universal Computer Model is a Fantasy
Rule 10: The Role of Decision-Maker in Public Systems is Often a Confused One

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Dublin's Luas Route Info - Android App

I have developed a very simple application to show Map Info of Dublin's Light Rail Tram System Luas. This will show you full route of Luas-Green Line and Luas - Red line stations and different fare areas. This application is built for Android plateform. You can download this application on your Android device simply by downloading from following link.

HTC HD2

From a pure specification standpoint, it's hard to knock HTC's HD2. Scratch that -- it's impossible to knock the HD2. A 1GHz Snapdragon CPU is just the tip of the iceberg, with the icing on the cake being the 800 x 480 resolution display, 5 megapixel camera, GPS and a downright stunning overall design. Unfortunately, phones are made or broken by the software that's loaded on, and Windows Mobile 6.5 isn't exactly the most nimble mobile OS on the market right now. That said, we're confident that more than a few of you have unloaded your savings accounts in order to posses one of the sexiest cellular telephones this world has ever seen, and now that the deed is done, we're eager to hear your opinions on how the phone really stacks up. Are you happy with the performance? Did you expect it to be snappier given the monstrous CPU? Would you have held out for WinMo 7 if Sir Patience would've allowed you? No need to go easy on anything -- tell it like it is in comments below.

Friday, February 5, 2010

Robonica's Roboni-i Programmable Robot

Life became duller ever since FedEx took away our last annoying little robot, so we got our hands on a new but less chatty plastic companion -- say hi to Robonica's Roboni-i programmable robot. Since its last Engadget appearance we've seen a drastic price drop from the original $299.95 to $159.95 at Hammacher Schlemmer, but the robot is no less awesome -- those unique wheels alone deliver plenty of coolness already, not to mention the bunch of peculiar accessories in the box for games and even interaction with other fellow Roboni-is. Read on to find out if this bot's a keeper.

Gesture Cube

You know how it is -- another day, another "magical" and "intuitive" input device -- not unlike Immersion's Cubtile, which we first saw about a year ago. This time around the culprit is Gesture Cube, the heathen spawn of Ident's "GestIC" electric field sensing technology (for 3D spatial movement tracking) and a couple German design studios. GestIC detects movements and distances in 3D space, enabling touch free gesture control. If this sounds good to you, wait until you see the YouTube demonstration, complete with all sorts of "magical" and "intuitive" interface ideas! It will really make you with you were a designer living in Germany, starring in YouTube videos for "magical" and "intuitive" design firms. We don't know how much of a hurry we are to see this implemented in our fave hardware, but who knows? Maybe we'll come around eventually -- after all, Grippity did wonders for our words-per-minute. Video after the break.

Samsung's Transparent OLED Laptop



So um, remember this crazy 14-inch transparent OLED display Samsung was showing off perched atop a laptop at CES? Yea, that might be in the shops within the next 12 months. If that doesn't get you tingling with excitement, we don't know what will. Samsung will start its big push toward translucency with the IceTouch PMP, which we found to have a gorgeous 2-inch display in our earlier hands-on, but it's already working away in the labs on turning the prototype above into a concrete retail product. The IceTouch is slated to make its US arrival early in the first half of this year, priced at around $332. European availability is as yet uncomfirmed, but the Korean's company is being very ambitious about its technology, suggesting that windscreen-mounted SatNav units could be next on the agenda and ruling nothing out as it strives to bring its transparent AMOLED displays into the mainstream

HDMI 1.4's 3D




3D's happening whether you like it or not -- but the good news is that there won't be any format war to go with the adoption of the new tech. At least that's the sense we've been getting, as most manufacturers are adopting active shutter glasses, delivery will happen on cable, satellite, and Blu-ray, and now the HDMI Licensing group has opened up the 3D portion of the HDMI 1.4 spec so non-licensees can make their gear compatible. There'll be some changes coming down the pike in HDMI 1.4a, but that's also due for public release, so really we'll all be one big dorky family in 3D glasses when this is all over.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Armatix Smartgun



Armatix has apparently been working on its so-called "smartgun" concept for quite a while, but it's now finally shown up at the Shooting Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show (SHOT, naturally) with its first actual product: a .22-caliber pistol that relies on a wristwatch as a safety. As you can probably figure out, the gun will only unlock itself when its in close proximity to the watch, which sends a "wireless arming signal" that, of course, also activates some green LEDs for good measure. Previous incarnations of the company's concept also relied on a fingerprint ID as an additional safety, but that seems to have been left off this production model, which will run €7,000 (or $9,700) when it starts shipping next month. more