Futuristic Car Solid is a Safety Compact Vehicle

Nowadays the emphasis is being given to private vehicles for maneuvering in and around the city. Also with this increase in vehicles, the parking spaces are getting cramped up by the day. It is but obvious to have an amicable solution for the same. In comes Solid – the vehicle. Designed by Nikita Gutsalenko, currently pursuing fifth year in Product Design and Transport Design at the Ural State Academy of Architecture and Arts, Russia

The Solid vehicle does have the standard protection means, like safety-belts and airbags. It also has two special elements installed in front and in the back of the car. These elements provide additional maneuverability by turning around. They also are very strong in if a crash occurs as they take the damage on itself and thus saving the booth.

The deformation of the Booth is prevented by a frame ring. In the interior, a display is installed thus creating a panoramic view. The Airbags installed in wheel of the car will operate at the side. With an approach sensor it turns on the auto brake system. The car creates the sensation of reliability as its Image is associated with specialized machines, all we can say is welcome to the future.

Fisker Karma Hybrid Sports Car

Fisker Karma is a hybrid sports car with sleek and luxury design. This environmentally friendly car is powered by Q-Drive, a system developed by Quantum Technologies that combines a four-cylinder engine sending power to a generator to propel the four-door sedan. Fisker claims that Karma can perform at 0-60 mph in 6 seconds, top speed of 125 mph, pretty cool for a hybrid car.

Fisker Karma has two different modes, “Stealth Drive” which is a pure electric mode and “Sports Mode” which integrates the four-banger for peak performance, and according to Fisker, this will make the Karma sound like a combination of a jet fighter and an F1 car.

Spycam: 2011 Ford Fiesta

What you're looking at are the first spyshots of the U.S. version of the 2011 Ford Fiesta, which was spotted recently prowling around Ford's Dearborn mothership.

The subcompact Fiesta is the first of a number of new global cars coming from the Blue Oval under the watch of Ford CEO Alan Mulally. The automaker is switching gears toward a smaller, more fuel efficient lineup, and the Fiesta is a major cog in Ford's future North American plans.

The Fiesta will be similar in appearance to the Ford Verve Concept shown at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show and should go on sale sometime in 2010 as a 2011 model, about a year after its European and Asian counterparts debut.

The North American Fiesta will be built at the automaker's Cuautitlan assembly plant beginning in early 2010, which is being transformed from a truck to a small car production facility as part of a $3 billion investment in Ford's Mexican operations.

Apparently, Ford heard the cries of hatchback fans here, and both the three and five door hatch versions of the vehicle bound for other markets will reportedly make it to the U.S. as well.

"Take the five-door Fiesta," says Ford global design chief J Mays of the Fiesta sedan, "and graft on the trunk of the Verve sedan concept, and you'll be 99 percent there." Mays' team has reportedly put extra effort, and dollars, into the cabins. The I.P. designs are sweeping, with deep, pod-like gauges, and the center stack has a "personal electronics" feel. "I believe this is one B-car that has C-car amenities," adds Mays.

There's no talk of U.S.-spec powertrains yet, but the Euro Fiesta, which shares front-drive chassis architecture with the Mazda2, runs a 1.6-liter four with a choice of manual or automatic transmissions. It's also possible that the 2.0-liter four from the Focus could a part of the U.S. powertrain mix.

Slide Future Smart Car for Urban Space

Slide is a city car for one individual, in which you don’t sit but stand. The low cross-section in this case should be effective against the parking situations of tomorrow. Unnecessary empty rides of one individual in a car with two or four seats, especially in the city, belong to the past. Through an open design and the upright position during the ride, the user is able to communicate with the other participants of traffic in a special way. They are in an equal position of eye height with pedestrians and cyclists. The drive of Slide works about the clean electrical engine technology. New, lightweight and innovative materials, like Maylar plastic film and Carbon fibre, for motorcars stands in a balance to the new drive technology.

So, the new concept should bring near to the user the new, clean drive technology, through design and drive behavior. With Slide a new concept for a smart car was developed, in which the union of environmental aware, social responsibility and fun character was the important view.

Phoenix: A 6 Legged Robot Spider Rises to Win Indie Robot Competition

The winner of the recent Trossen Robotics Contest, indie roboticist Kåre Halvorsen has created Phoenix.

It's self-contained, and remotely controlled robot using Bluetooth. The movements are calculated using an Excel spreadsheet, and it moves similarly to a real spider.

Kåre Halvorsen was inspired to build his Phoenix from viewing the Hexapod Nursery

Robotic Exoskeleton Enables Superhuman Strength

Robotic engineering company Sarcos, based in Salt Lake City is under contract with the U.S. Army, to build robotic suits that amplify human strength and endurance up to 20 times (video).

Much as the brain sends signals to tendons to get muscles to move, the computer sends instructions to hydraulic valves. The valves mimic tendons by driving the suit's mechanical limbs, replicating and amplifying the wearer's movements almost instantly.

Chief designer of the robotic suit, Stephen Jacobsen,. says the invention, in essence, provides a way for people to increase their mobility and lift heavy objects with ease.

Although it's still in a beginning stage, the inventor envisages the suit as a valuable contribution to not just the military, but also to factory workers, firemen, and the disabled.

Hyper-sub: Worlds First Submersible Powerboat

The Hyper-sub is capable of high speed surface travel over long distances. The video, however moreso shows it submersing and surfacing, accompanied by some action guitar playing.

.... the Hyper-SubTM Submersible Powerboat, a revolutionary new vessel with a design flexible enough to open the seas to industry, individuals, and the military in ways never before thought possible. The Hyper-Sub is the first small craft built with the horsepower, sea-keeping, and range to allow operation on the high seas, which also functions as a self-charging, autonomous, one-atmosphere submarine.

The Hyper-Sub is a dual function surface boat and submarine. It holds 4 people, travels at 40 knots on top, has a range of 500 miles and can dive to 250 feet.

Rinspeed sQuba Zero Emission Amphibious Sports Car

Rinspeed will present its new sQuba, the worlds first diving car, at the Geneva Motor Show (March 6-16). The car is not only able to drive on roads autonomously with a push of a button (thus without a driver, passenger or further assistance), but can also transform into an amphibious vehicle which can be submerged in water up to 10 meters (33 feet). An electric motor with powerful torque drives the rear wheels, while the propulsion on the water is ensured by two propellers in the stern and two powerful jet drives in the bow propelling the vehicle under water while diving. When underwater, the driver and passenger are enclosed in the vehicle thanks to light weight body components made of futuristic Carbon Nano Tubes and are supplied with fresh breathing air by the self-contained on-board system.

This car can drive under underwater like a submarine, or, like the Lotus driven by James Bond in "The Spy Who Loved Me." The main difference is that the sQuba is a convertible. You'll need scuba gear to take it underwater.

Future Aircraft To Use Hydrogen Propulsion

Boeing has successfully completed tests for a hydrogen propulsion for future aircrafts. The craft entitled HALE is an extreme endurance plane that will be able to fly for seven days non-stop in the stratosphere. The engine was developed by the Ford Motor Company and was tested for three days under the simulated conditions of a 65,000-feet flight.

Chris Haddox of Boeing's Advanced Systems has said that it may be "several years before HALE flies" however, even while the hydrogen engines look like a good option for reducing carbon emissions, we ought not expect this technology to hit a Dreamliner anytime soon. It's primary purpose is communications for military or commercial purposes. Since it will be able to stay aloft for seven plus days, it would also be used for persistent intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance purposes. The long endurance autonomous aircraft will be a propeller-driven, lightweight structure with a high-aspect-ratio-wing.

Future Aircraft To Use Hydrogen Propulsion

Boeing has successfully completed tests for a hydrogen propulsion for future aircrafts. The craft entitled HALE is an extreme endurance plane that will be able to fly for seven days non-stop in the stratosphere. The engine was developed by the Ford Motor Company and was tested for three days under the simulated conditions of a 65,000-feet flight.

Chris Haddox of Boeing's Advanced Systems has said that it may be "several years before HALE flies" however, even while the hydrogen engines look like a good option for reducing carbon emissions, we ought not expect this technology to hit a Dreamliner anytime soon. It's primary purpose is communications for military or commercial purposes. Since it will be able to stay aloft for seven plus days, it would also be used for persistent intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance purposes. The long endurance autonomous aircraft will be a propeller-driven, lightweight structure with a high-aspect-ratio-wing.

Femtocell--Your Own Base Station

If you are having coverage issues with to your wireless operator or Wi-Fi provider,now you can have your own base station--Femtocell.Femtocells are tiny base stations that go into homes or offices to improve voice and data coverage. Femtocells behave like small WiFi access points that communicate over IP broadband connections (e.g. DSL, UMA) to a gateway. The Femtocell creates the mobile user “home zone”. An operator has the opportunity to offer new services and tariffs designed for the “home zone”.They look pretty sleek, no bigger then a wireless router.

These tiny gadgets are packed with features like

-Core Network Emulator for testing of different access technologies, such as UTRAN and UMA
-Multi-RNC support
-Support of hybrid environments; concurrent support of UTRAN over ATM and Femtocell over IP
-End-to End voice and UDI video calls
-Load Test Capabilities for IuCS over IP and IuPS over IP
-Intersystem Handover allowing a mobile subscriber to move from the “public zone” to the ”home zone” during an ongoing conversation.

Google Bomb

The recent attack on the Church of Scientology website introduced me to the term Google Bomb. Apprently this attack was a result of Google Bomb.

A Google bomb (also referred to as a 'link bomb') is Internet slang for a certain kind of attempt to influence the ranking of a given page in results returned by the Google search engine, often with humorous or political intentions. The process of manipulating the results of Google by placing a link to a single webpage on several domains. The other most famous incident of Google bombing was when around 32 webmasters put the text “miserable failure” on their websites and placed a link under this text to George Bush’s autobiography. Causing this webpage to rank #1 in Google for the search term “miserable failure.”

Antirollover technology

In new york all new vehicles will be required to have antirollover technology by the 2012 model year, the government said yesterday.

The Transportation Department said the technology, called electronic stability control, could save 5,300 to 9,600 lives annually and prevent up to 238,000 injuries a year once it was fully deployed into the nation’s fleet.
“Like air bags and like seat belts, 10 years down the road we’re going to look back and wonder how the E.S.C. technology was ever lived without,” the transportation secretary, Mary E. Peters, said at the New York International Auto Show.

Electronic stability control senses when a driver may lose control of the vehicle and automatically applies brakes to individual wheels to help stabilize it and avoid a rollover.

Many vehicles, including sport utility vehicles, already have the technology, and several automakers have outlined plans to make it a standard feature in future cars. The mandate has been widely supported in the industry because of its far-reaching safety benefits.

“There seems to be general recognition from auto manufacturers and the suppliers and safety advocates that this is technology that will save” thousands of lives, said Nicole R. Nason, administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

More than 43,000 people are killed annually on the nation’s roadways; more than 10,000 of them die in rollover accidents, although only 3 percent of crashes involve rollovers.

Ms. Peters said nearly 40 percent of 2007 vehicles already had the technology, including about 90 percent of S.U.V.’s.

The traffic safety administration said the proposal would cost about $111 a vehicle on those that already include antilock brakes, or $479 a vehicle for the entire system.

The requirement was first proposed last year, and the final regulations include a swifter phase-in plan. Stability control will be phased in starting with the 2009 model year, when 55 percent of new vehicles will need to have it. By the 2011 model year, it will be in 95 percent of new vehicles.

Ad Manager: New Google App Announced

Google is not just a search engine anymore, it’s your complete online platform through which you can do anything. I think we must say that “Google is a verb”, because people are treating Google as a verb.

Today! Google announced & revealed their upcoming web application related to ads management. It’s called Google Ad Manager and it allows you to manage ads on your website and make better use of your advertising inventory. Basically Ad Manger will help publishers and bloggers to manage their advertising solutions under one roof.

Google Ad Manager is in it’s private beta phase and there are few companies/websites which are using it on test basis. Google Ad Manager is just like the Open source ad server OpenAds through which you publishers can add their banners in one place and can use those banners on multiple sites using javascript code.

Get Your Adsense $$$ via Western Union Quick Cash in Pakistan

Google Adsense is no doubt the world’s best ad network but until now the most annoying thing about it was that it did not allow fast payment methods like Western Union Money Transfer or Bank Wire Transfer rather it was restricted to the traditional check delivery system which came through regular mail and could take weeks to reach you. Plus you had to then deposit your check to your bank account and wait 1 month more to get it processed but the good news is that Adsense has introduced a new fast method of getting your payments.

Google has introduced a new payment option for Pakistan and some other countries. Western Union Quick Cash is a payment option that lets you receive your Google AdSense payments in cash via the worldwide Western Union money transfer service.

It means that now:

• No more wait for check through standard delivery
• No more extra Bank fees
• No more long term clearing times as associated with deposit checks
• Fast money making and Fast delivery

Payments will be available for pick up at your local Western Union Agent the day after they are sent according to the normal payment schedule. That’s right, just one day waiting time!

Now you can opt for Western Union Quick Cash option in your Google AdSense account. To find out whether this option is available in your account, login to your AdSense account, go to Account Settings under the My Account tab, then click the [edit] link next to the Payment Details. If you see a Western Union Quick Cash section above the check options, then you are the lucky one!

For further details, check out Google AdSense Help Center here: https://www.google.com/adsense/support/bin/topic.py?topic=10830

Happy blogging and earn money

AdSense Optimization Tips & Tricks

Google Adsense is no doubt the world’s best ad network in contextual advertising. You can generate more revenue than that you are currently earning with just few fine tunings. Google held a webinar for AdSense publishers in July, 2007. They gave out some great adsense optimization tips that they have gathered over the past few years. The original Webinar transcript is very lengthy, so here’s a quick summary:

• Ad Location - “the middle, above the fold location perform best.” Also “if you have an article page with a long body of text, the bottom of that article is actually pretty successful”
• Ad Formats - “the top three formats are the 336×280 that you see on the page; the 300×250 medium rectangle; and then the 160×600 wide skyscraper.” Additionally “the wider ad formats are doing better than the other ones and the reason is that they actually take up fewer lines. And so with every additional line, you have a chance of losing that interested user.”
• Ad Colors - Pick colors that blend well with the site. Matches the background color, and compliments the site. Make them feel like a part of the site. They give an example where a customer went from blended background to yellow, and clicks dropped 65%
• Ad Blindness - if the colors stick out too much, readers may immediatly identify them as ads and not even look at them. Also frequent readers may stop reading ads so you could alternate positioning and colors to get their attention. “The more you blend in with the site, the less chance that ad blindness will occur.”
• Experiment - this was a big theme in the webinar echoed by all experts. Use channels to test different colors, positioning, and formats to find out what works best. They show that you can more than double your revenue just by finding the right color, position, format combo.
• Image Ads - If you want to maximize revenue they recommend turning them on. I personally disable them in my account, because I find them too distracting/annoying to the user. Yes you may increase your CPC, but you will probably decrease impressions over time.
• Link Units - Don’t take up much space, and also “allows the user to refine what they’re interested in. So if they may not be interested in specific ads on your page, they might be interested in a particular topic, and by clicking on a link unit and a link in the link unit, they’ll be able to specify that they’re interested in that specific topic and get a lot more options and variety on the ads that might appear.” I also bet google remembers what they click on and then tries to generate better ads for the page… just my speculation.
• AdSense For Search - You can use this for your site search, and you get a percentage of ad clicks.
• Never click on your own ads - One of the callers asked the question “I was just noticing that someone asked about clicking on their own ads and it says you’re not supposed to. And I don’t remember reading that. And I occasionally do click on the ads… So is that detrimental in some way?” - I can’t believe they said that to google. Google’s response was: “Yes, that’s sort of chief among the terms and conditions”.
• Impression Counter - Google confirmed that Page Impressions are counted when a public service ad (or alternate ad url or color) is displayed.
• Your site is unique - all these things may not matter, the best location, format, and color is different for every site. So again, go experiment.

Haven’t signed up for AdSense Yet?

Generate revenue from your website. Google AdSense.

New NEC Infrared Camera Module for Sharp Night Vision

NEC introduces the HX0830M1 infrared sensor module with integrated image processing circuitry. This module can be used for car night vision and is supposed to deliver sharp images comparable to B/W TV images. IR heat detection is one of the technologies to see in the dark. To enhance the security while driving at night, car makers are adding night vision technologies into their cars. Here is a video demonstrating night vision from BMW:

The world's longest phone?

(Credit: Yanko Design)

Finally, a mobile phone that bucks the trend. For those sick and tired of claims like "the smallest," "the thinnest," and "the lightest" from mobile manufacturers, here comes a handset that touts itself for a different dimension--"the longest."

Exactly how long? Well, designer Tamer Koseli doesn't say, but his Super Phone certainly doesn't look pocket-friendly.

The idea behind the extra long design? There's more screen estate naturally, which means there's plenty of room for touch-screen functionality. There are, in fact, two displays: One OLED that shows basic info, the other for scrolling. And from the pictures, while there's no digital camera onboard, there appears to be an expansion slot of some sort. Unfortunately, until this Super (long) Phone gets made commercially, it's a claim that's likely to remain an empty boast.

IceTech's i9005 portable solar charger not portable enough

(Credit: IceTech)

Recently, I started to become fascinated with portable solar chargers/batteries. Something about being able to charge up my many gadgets anywhere the sun is shining appeals to me. (Of course, I'd have to actually remember all the necessary USB cables as well, but no matter.) It's not as if I'm some huge outdoorswoman, but my inherent paranoia about getting myself into a sticky and potentially lethal situation in the middle of nowhere gives me an appreciation for survival gadgetry. Clearly, I've lived in the city too long and watched/read one too many horror stories (see: The Ruins). Not that having my MP3 player fully charged is going to save my life, but at least I could perish to some death metal.

Last week, I got my hands on one of the many portable solar chargers to hit the market in recent years, the IceTech Solar i9005. In fact, this unit is also a battery, which can also be charged via the sun's rays. Here's the thing, though: it's a brick. Well, not quite. The device measures 5.4 inches by 3.1 inches by 1 inch and weighs 8.5 ounces. Although reasonably compact in the scheme of things, it's still a great deal larger than anything I would carry for its purpose. I want something that folds down to the size of a matchbook and still manages to fit USB out and a built-in battery. Oh, and what the heck? Let's get really wishful here and make it weigh about an ounce. It's true: tech editors are a difficult bunch to please. However, the Solar i9005 works as advertised, and I have to say it was pretty neat to sit out in the CNET courtyard at high noon and recharge a battery while sitting nowhere near an outlet.

(Credit: IceTech)

The Solar i9005, which sells for between $70 and $90 online, works with "99 percent of MP3 players, PDAs, and cell phones," or anything that uses a voltage of between 4.5V and 9.0V (a switch on the side lets you choose the proper setting). IceTech includes seven adapters for various devices, mostly cell phones, although--bizarrely, since it's a portable setup--there's no case for carrying the charger/battery and all the adapters. If there's no sun in sight and you're just using the i9005 as a backup battery, it can be charged through the wall with the included power cable.

IceTech's i9005 portable solar charger not portable enough

(Credit: IceTech)

Recently, I started to become fascinated with portable solar chargers/batteries. Something about being able to charge up my many gadgets anywhere the sun is shining appeals to me. (Of course, I'd have to actually remember all the necessary USB cables as well, but no matter.) It's not as if I'm some huge outdoorswoman, but my inherent paranoia about getting myself into a sticky and potentially lethal situation in the middle of nowhere gives me an appreciation for survival gadgetry. Clearly, I've lived in the city too long and watched/read one too many horror stories (see: The Ruins). Not that having my MP3 player fully charged is going to save my life, but at least I could perish to some death metal.

Last week, I got my hands on one of the many portable solar chargers to hit the market in recent years, the IceTech Solar i9005. In fact, this unit is also a battery, which can also be charged via the sun's rays. Here's the thing, though: it's a brick. Well, not quite. The device measures 5.4 inches by 3.1 inches by 1 inch and weighs 8.5 ounces. Although reasonably compact in the scheme of things, it's still a great deal larger than anything I would carry for its purpose. I want something that folds down to the size of a matchbook and still manages to fit USB out and a built-in battery. Oh, and what the heck? Let's get really wishful here and make it weigh about an ounce. It's true: tech editors are a difficult bunch to please. However, the Solar i9005 works as advertised, and I have to say it was pretty neat to sit out in the CNET courtyard at high noon and recharge a battery while sitting nowhere near an outlet.

(Credit: IceTech)

The Solar i9005, which sells for between $70 and $90 online, works with "99 percent of MP3 players, PDAs, and cell phones," or anything that uses a voltage of between 4.5V and 9.0V (a switch on the side lets you choose the proper setting). IceTech includes seven adapters for various devices, mostly cell phones, although--bizarrely, since it's a portable setup--there's no case for carrying the charger/battery and all the adapters. If there's no sun in sight and you're just using the i9005 as a backup battery, it can be charged through the wall with the included power cable.

Garmin and BlackBerry: lifetime buddies, for a price

Today, Garmin announced a new plan that will give BlackBerry users unlimited, lifetime access to its Garmin Mobile for BlackBerry navigation application. Designed for those who don't want to be bothered by monthly subscription fees, the lifetime plan only requires a one-time fee of $99.99 and then you can get navigation assistance till you can drive or walk no more. Garmin Mobile for BlackBerry services includes Navteq maps, turn-by-turn, voice-guided directions, points of interest, as well as real-time traffic, weather, and fuel price data. You can use the service on the latest BlackBerry models, including the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 series, BlackBerry Curve 8300 series, and the BlackBerry 8800 series. If you're not lucky enough to have one of the GPS-equipped BlackBerrys, you will need to get a Bluetooth GPS receiver to get any type of real-time tracking capabilities. For more information or to purchase Garmin Mobile for BlackBerry, you can head on over to Garmin's Web site.

Nokia Maps 2.0 gets Web component

Nokia Maps on Ovi

Planning trips on your Nokia smartphone is about to get a lot easier. Today at Where 2.0, the Finnish cell phone manufacturer announced Maps on Ovi, a Web component designed to complement its mobile mapping software, Nokia Maps 2.0. As part of the Ovi brand of Internet services, which includes the Nokia Music Store and N-Gage gaming platform, Maps on Ovi will allow users to plan their trips on their desktop or laptop and then synchronize (automatically or manually) it with their smartphones. Conversely, if you're already out on the road, you can record routes and points of interest on your handset and then upload them to the Ovi service when you return home to share with family and friends. The interface on the Web side is similar to what you'd see on your phone for ease of use and a more seamless experience.

We got a brief demo of Maps on Ovi, and it looks very cool. Despite being booted off the hotel's Wi-Fi and some technical glitches with search (the service isn't even in beta yet), we can already see the benefits of such a service. The obvious benefit is not having to sit there and peck out addresses on your phone's alphanumeric dialpad, and it's especially helpful when you're planning a multidestination trip. The synchronization from the Web to the phone was smooth. Plus, we like the sharing aspect of Maps on Ovi, and this is a point that Nokia emphasized during our briefing. Michael Halbherr, vice president of context-based services at Nokia, said now it's not so much about route calculation (since that part of the technology is pretty solid) as it is about what we can do with the data. The next step is about discovering, collecting, and sharing those experiences. And this is certainly something I can get onboard with. Having covered portable navigation systems for the past two years, I find that most models offer the same core functions (text- and voice-guided directions, points of interest database, etc.) and do them reasonably well, so now the challenge is to find services that will further improve the driver's or walker's experience (and I don't mean adding multimedia features, people!)

Nokia hopes to have Maps on Ovi ready for public consumption later this summer, and though it will initially only work with S60 series smartphones, such as the Nokia N and E series models, the company said it hopes to develop it as an independent software for all types of form factors. Hear hear!

Denon goes after Bose with the AH-NC732 noise-canceling headphones

The Denon AH-NC732 noise-canceling headphones, with accessories

Denon entered the headphone game just last year, but for a freshman competitor, the company had a lot to offer. Most of the models we auditioned--both full-size home headphones and travel-friendly in-ear models--ranged from good to excellent. Now the company is expanding its offerings with a noise-canceling model. The AH-NC732 On-Ear Noise Cancelling Headphones offer a lightweight (160 grams), acoustic optimizer (said to offer deep bass), and compact hard case. A single AAA battery is needed for the active noise cancellation, which counteracts ambient noise with an inverse soundwave. In other words, the new Denons look to be targeted directly at the similarly styled--and very popular--Bose QuietComfort 3s. Look for the Denon AH-NC732 On-Ear Noise Cancelling Headphones to hit in August for $300--a cool $50 less than the Bose.

Seagate launches wireless hard drive

Seagate is showing off its new "Dave" technology mobile hard drive. Available in 10GB or 20GB capacities (bigger drives coming later), its unique feature is that it's wireless. You can connect to it via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, or via USB cable if you're feeling old-fashioned.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

The Bluetooth thing I get, and it's interesting: You could use it as outboard storage for a cameraphone or a future camera that has Bluetooth. The fact that it connects via Wi-Fi means that, essentially, it's also a portable, wireless, battery-powered network-attached storage device too. And that's just plain cool.

Uncool (at least for dudes): It looks much like a cosmetics compact.

Hands-free Camcorder: VholdR

If you ever need to record something on video while on the move, the VholdR camcorder from Twenty20 is the answer to your dreams. The VholdR can be clipped onto helmets, sunshades, goggles, or handlebars to record TV-quality-video to a MicroSd card. The camcorder can record about two hours’ worth of video on a battery charge. It comes with a USB cable and desktop software to watch, label and share your videos with family and friends on the Web. Weighing only 4.8 ounces, the VholdR is elegant and stylish in an aluminium casing with a groove to fit a camera mount.

The VHoldR camcorder makes a fabulous Christmas gift for the adventurous including those who like sky gliding, parachuting, racing, mountain-climbing or extreme sports. It’s sure to catch some exciting action and cool pictures and definitely worth its weight in gold.

World Smallest SPY Camera

The manufacturer of spy cameras, Misumi has recently introduced its new MO-R803 Snake Camera, which measures only 4.4mm in diameter and 15mm long. According to the company, this latest spy camera is the world’s smallest camera and it can record 320×240 pixel QVGA video through its integrated 1/18” colour CMOS camera chip.

With the bendable wire that attached to the barrel of the camera, you are allowed to hide and adjust this small and tiny camera to take some videos without notice. It’s seem good for surveillance purpose, right? In addition, it’s also available with two different lenses which are (standard) 55 degree or (wide angle) 105 degree field of vision.

The new MO-R803 Snake Camera will include an LED light for filming in dark places but still have no words on its pricing yet.

Canon VIXIA HV30 HD Camcorder With Advanced DIGIC DV II Image Processor

Canon has recently announced the launch of its latest VIXIA HV30 HD camcorder, which is the successor to the highly acclaimed, award-winning Canon HV20, incorporating Canon exclusive advanced features to bring knowledgeable and demanding videographers the ultimate in HD video and digital photo quality.

The latest Canon VIXIA HV30 is the stylish and compact camcorder which able to capture 16:9 format, true 1080 High Definition resolution video to MiniDV cassette tapes.

Key Features Of Canon VIXIA HV30:

• 2.96 Megapixel Full HD CMOS Sensor (1920 x 1080)
• DIGIC DVII image processor
• SuperRange Optical Image Stabilization
• 2.7-inch Multi-Angle Vivid Widescreen LCD
• Instant AF (Auto Focus)
• HD Video Lens - 10x HD Genuine Canon Optical zoom
• HDMI & Advanced Accessory Shoe Terminals
• 30p Progressive Mode and 24p Cinema Mode

“With the exception of those features, the product is the same as the HV20. Is it a revolutionary product? No. But it’s a very strong product as the HV20 was a very strong product and we added just a couple of features…to make it even more attractive to a wider range of consumers,” said Mitchell Glick, assistant manager of Product Marketing, Consumer Division for Canon USA.

The new Canon VIXIA HV30 HD camcorder is expected to be available at the end of February for $999.

AMD finalizes DTX motherboard specification

First announced at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, AMD's new DTX motherboard specification has now been finalized. AMD is releasing DTX as an open industry standard with what it describes as "reasonable and nondiscriminatory" licensing terms. Although DTX is an AMD initiative, DTX boards will be able to support both AMD and Intel CPUs.

DTX boards are a bit smaller than micro-ATX boards, measuring 9.6" x 8.0" (micro-ATX boards are 9.6" x 9.6"). There is also a mini-DTX spec; those boards will measure 6.7" x 8.0". DTX motherboards will be able to fit in either DTX or ATX chassis, and DTX chassis will also be able to handle mini-ITX boards. The board sizes offer some manufacturing advantages over other form factors, as standard manufacturing panels will yield four DTX or six mini-DTX boards.

Expansion slots on DTX will be minimal: two slots, at least one of which will be PCIe. There was also to be an XpressCard hookup on the motherboard for WiFi and Bluetooth support, but it doesn't appear in the final DTX documentation. DTX systems will run relatively cool, as they are designed for CPUs with a maximum thermal design power (TDP) of 65w. Mini-DTX systems will be limited to CPUs with a TDP of 35w or less.

A micro-ATX board showing the DTX layout. Image courtesy of AMD

AMD sees an opportunity in the market for DTX. Small form factor systems are growing in popularity, especially as more of the functionality previously handled by PCI slots moves onto the motherboard. "We're not trying to eliminate ATX," AMD told Ars. "But we believe that continued growth in the SFF market can be accelerated with a mechanical interoperability standard."

In addition to targeting SFF manufacturers and enthusiasts, AMD hopes to entice home and small business users who don't need a full ATX solution. The company also plans to pitch DTX to enterprise IT, highlighting its small footprint, quiet operation, and lessened electricity consumption.

The Future of Search: The head of Google Research talks about his group's projects.

Peter Norvig, Google's director of research, is an expert ace at building machines that answer tough questions. An authority in programming languages and artificial intelligence, he has written an oft-cited book on AI (Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach), has taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Southern California, and was the head of computational sciences at NASA. In 2001, Norvig came to Google to be the director of search quality. Four years later, he became Google's director of research, overseeing about 100 researchers who investigate topics that range from networking to machine translation. Technology Review spoke with Norvig to get a hint of what we can expect from search technology in the years to come.

Technology Review: What does Google Research do?

Peter Norvig: The core of what we do is still search and advertising. A lot of researchers are working on that. They're working to give better-quality search results and to match ads better. Another area of research is gathering more sources of information, such as text in books, still images, video, and now audio in terms of speech recognition. I think another focus is to understand how people interact with Google and interact with each other on the Web, in general. How do people operate in these social networks? Understanding that question can help us serve them better.

TR: Which research has the most people and funding?

PN: The two biggest projects are machine translation and the speech project. Translation and speech went all the way from one or two people working on them to, now, live systems.

TR: Like the Google Labs project called GOOG-411 [a free service that lets people search for local businesses by voice, over the phone]. Tell me more about it.

PN: I think it's the only major [phone-based business-search] service of its kind that has no human fallback. It's 100 percent automated, and there seems to be a good response to it. In general, it looks like things are moving more toward the mobile market, and we thought it was important to deal with the market where you might not have access to a keyboard or might not want to type in search queries.

TR: And speech recognition can also be important for video search, isn't it? Blinkx and Everyzing are two examples of startups that are using the technology to search inside video. Is Google working on something similar?

PN: Right now, people aren't searching for video much. If they are, they have a very specific thing in mind like "Coke" and "Mentos." People don't search for things like "Show me the speech where so-and-so talks about this aspect of Middle East history." But all of that information is there, and with speech recognition, we can access it.

We wanted speech technology that could serve as an interface for phones and also index audio text. After looking at the existing technology, we decided to build our own. We thought that, having the data and computational resources that we do, we could help advance the field. Currently, we are up to state-of-the-art with what we built on our own, and we have the computational infrastructure to improve further. As we get more data from more interaction with users and from uploaded videos, our systems will improve because the data trains the algorithms over time.

Google VP: Mobile phones the future of the Internet

The future growth of the Internet lies in the hands of mobile phone users, not computers, according to Google Vice President Vinton Cerf. Speaking in Bangalore, India this morning, Cerf said to reporters that while the Internet population has exploded from 50 million to 1.1 billion since 1997, it still only reaches a sixth of the world's population.

The only way to reach the remaining 5.5 billion people on the planet will be to make it more affordable to access the Internet, according to Cerf. Internet access via mobile phone has been slowly gaining momentum in developed countries—over 50 percent of those surveyed toward the end of 2005 had used at least one data service on their phones. However, such mobile access could be the key to quickly getting large populations in developing countries online due of the marginal cost of a mobile phone compared to a computer.

Cerf pointed out in his presentation that there are 2.5 billion mobile phone users worldwide so far, with India alone adding seven million more every month. "The mobile phone has become an important factor in the Internet revolution," he said. Google, which has a research and development facility in Bangalore, hopes to expand its services in countries like India for this reason and is looking to focus more of its services on language and culture in order to reach more of India's 1-billion-and-counting population, only 40 million of which are currently online.

Meanwhile, cell carriers have been putting pressure on Google for their mobile services lately, arguing that Google's apps use too much precious bandwidth (not to mention that Google's apps often compete with the cell companies own offerings). Customers have been making use of Google Local for Mobile to access maps and traffic information, as well as checking Gmail on their phones and make use of Google's mobile search page. If service providers keep trying to wedge themselves in between various services and their customers, then it may present a challenge for companies like Google who are looking to expand exponentially in developing countries.

Google Hiking

EcoGeek is noticing, for what we always tell ourselves is the first time, our metabolism slowing down. Gone are the days of eating with impunity in our teens, eating with minor repercussions in college and eating with noticeable but easily concealable effect in our early twenties.

So it's a change of diet and an exercise regimen we need which means, of course, that we are at an impasse. Bogus. At least Google Earth, increasingly EcoGeeky with each passing day, can help: now featured content includes hiking trails. Finally! An excuse to try to solar power our iPod and rock out to Alanis--look, we're way out in the woods, it's obviously guilty pleasure time--while doing the legwork to take the "Google" out of "Google Earth."

(By the way, EcoGeek happened to already have the latest version of Google Earth, but just hadn't noticed this particular feature--so you may not even have to download again.)

Open up your Google Earth, and display the following layer: Featured Content > Trimble Outdoors Trips. Then start looking around where you'd like to hike. Double-click the trailhead icon for more information on individual hikes, then you can send to your phone or a friend. Not bad!

Via LifeHacker. and the Google Blog

Toyota Develops Automatic Brake System Assisted by GPS Technology for Safety Driving

As part of the efforts to ensure safety driving on the road, Toyota Motor Corporation has just announced the new auto braking system which involves advanced GPS (Global Positioning System) technology for accurate position monitoring for vehicle braking system to work automatically. It will recognize the stop signs at the intersection and then alert users with both audible and visual warning and eventually apply sufficient brake power to avoid any vehicles collision on the road. This is slightly different concept as compared to Pre-crash safety system

developed by this giant automobile maker before but with same purpose.
The mechanism behind is an intelligent and accurate coordinate sensing using GPS system with the assistance of rear-mounted camera module. When the vehicle is at a distance of 100 meter away from the stop sign, the rear-mounted camera will start detecting the initial stop sign marking on the road and then alert the driver through soft audible alarm. While the vehicle is approaching, approximately four seconds before the stop sign, the automatic brake system will be activated to continue monitoring if the driver has intention to stop the vehicle and if not, additional force will be applied to further slow down the vehicle automatically. The braking system is linked back to GPS for accurate location calibration with real time monitoring.

Enjoy Photo browsing and Navigating Experience with PicLens Version 1.6

How about spicing up your photo browsing or navigating experience with some 3D effects? With the recently released PicLens Version 1.6 by Coollris, you can enjoy your image viewing with Flickr, Picasa, MySpace, Facebook, Yahoo and other websites that support Media RSS with 3-dimensional experiences. PicLens can transform photos or images from the web into a full-screen 3D interface. While enjoying the 3D effect, users can also do photo search and use other built-in functions such as drag, click, zoom and zip for the images.

PicLens is an excellent plug-in for various web browsers such as Firefox, Windows XP, Windos XP and Mac OSX. Users can download Piclens V1.6 via the link here. Once users have downloaded and installed it, they can start using this application by clicking on a small translucent icon that appears atop the image on the selected websites. A PicLens slideshow interface will appear and users can enjoy the photo slideshow and also control the photo transition. The photo transition is fast in loading and playing. The photo resolution in the slideshow is low. However, when you zoom into it, you can get higher resolution photos.

Latest Cowon N3 PMP With 7-Inch Touchscreen Display

The South Korean electronics company, Cowon has introduced its new N3 PMP which features 7-inch touchscreen display (resolution of 800 x 480), GPS, DMB TV tuner, 128MB RAM and SiRFStar III GPS chipset, along with an 4W Stereo speakers. This stylish and cool Cowon N3 is runs on Alchemy AU1250 600MHz CPU and Windows CE 5.0.

The latest Cowon N3 portable media player which measures 191×120x26mm is expected to be available by early January 2008 but no words on its price yet.