MAgnetic bike lights

http://www.gizmag.com/magnetic-bike-lights/22381/

Thursday special:

Wearable tech: anti-odor socks

http://www.springwise.com/fashion_beauty/from-japan-underwear-nanotechnology-combat-body-odor/

IKEA Cardboard Camera

IKEA, the pioneers of DIY-furniture, have revealed a digital camera, made of cardboard. It can hold up to 40 pictures and it will go into retail in near future. It even comes with a build-in usb-plug.
Finally, the world have a disposable digital camera... if it is indeed the first time? More of this on thursday.

Chromebooks

So, ever since I heard of the first Android phone, I said to anyone in earshot: Give it 10 years and all of our software will be run through a webbrowser and they will be powered by Google.
People thought me a madman! Rocks were thrown, I was cast out of my village, forcing me to live in a cave, searching the dark for edibles, plotting my revenge.
Years went by and suddenly I hear this: Google have released computers! And to top it all, all programs are run like a webbrowser... Who is the fool now, villagers?! HAH!

Even better, they are available for sale at their homepage!
http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/devices/features.html#tab6

Sorry for the delay

A lot have happened in these past weeks where we have been offline, sorry for that. We are thrilled to tell you that we have a lot of new stuff coming up first thing monday morning!

Stay tuned!

Film farming

So this is not as much of a gadget as it is an awesome progression in technology.
Dubai-based Agricel have developed a farming system that requires no soil and only a tenth of the water of normal farming.

The film is a sort of hydromembrane which allows the passage of roots, nutrients all the good stuff that plants need. The membrane also hinders pathogens from entering the plants, which is key to healthy agricultural produce.
The idea in itself is useful in parts of the world, where water and hygiene is scarce. This could revolutionize agriculture in third world countries.

The Kohler Numi

Take a look at your home; which room would you like to modernize first? If you answered the bathroom, we've got just the thing; a toilet that plays music, warms your feet, works as a bidet, is compact in design and uses 20% less water per flush.
Numi is the name of the $6,390 toilet made by Kohler. This luxury toilet provides an amazing range of features, such as heated seating, built-in deodorizer, auto-open and -closing mechanics and of course comes with a built-in database of "toilet-friendly" music.
To top it all off, the whole thing is controlled by a touchscreen remote control, as it is easier to wipe off for cleaning.

The Numi is in retail in the US and Canada only, but might find its way to Europe soon.

Ethics #2: SpeechJammer; The Silence Gun

It is time for another discussion in the ethical corner. If you did not read last week's ethics discussion, make sure to check it out here.


The case:
Japanese developers Kazutaka Kurihara and Koji Tsukada have designed and developed the controversial "SpeechJammer". The device enables its user to aim at a specific human target and silence them, whenever they are speaking. It consists of a directional microphone, a directional speaker, a laser, a distance sensor and of course a trigger.
The way it works is that the SpeechJammer picks up the conversation of any subject, processes it and then sends it back to the victim with a delay of about 0.2 seconds.
The delay renders the target unable to focus on what they were saying and as a effect, the target stops talking.


Discussion:
The Japanese developers made it as a means to silence people when they spoke out of turn in debates or at the office, or simply as a means to enforce silence in waiting halls and so on.
Potentially this technology could be used towards more sinister goals, e.g., censoring speakers of different beliefs.

Pros:
The SpeechJammer is a tool to enforce silence towards people, who do not respect regulations on silence in specific areas, (e.g., libraries, hospitals, sleep train cars, etc.) and may be used to shut some people up when speaking out of turn. Some environments would potentially benefit greatly from this invention.

Cons:
Censorship. The liberty of free speech may suffer greatly from a device such as this. The SpeechJammer puts the power of our own words in other people's hands, rendering us powerless when trying to express ourselves. If this technology is further developed, would it find its way to the police weaponry? Would it be used to silence a crowd, a demonstration?

Frozen beer foam

Weekend is upon us, and for most of you this means getting a beer after work, getting one extra for the other leg and possibly a lot of rejections from other patrons, due to the amounts of saliva that you've just formed in your mouth after the 6th beer in half an hour. You will probably wake up saturday and think "what the hell did I do last night?", then log on to facebook and relive the moments. If you think this will never apply to you, open this blog tomorrow and read this: "I told you so!".
If it still doesn't apply, fool's on me.

But I digress, let's take a look at that ice cold beer you're going to enjoy tonight:
Imagine the cool beer standing there in front of you. The foam is just about the right size, the temperature is chilling, without being too cold. You grab the beer, take a sip, talk to your friends.. and then everything goes wrong; the beer is tepid and the foam is all gone. The rest of the beer is just not that interesting.

Kirin, the japanese beer brewery, heard that their customers had the exact same problem as us, so they made a machine that freezes beer in its foamy form and then added it to the chilled beer, like softice into a cone. The result was consistent foam and chilled beer for a longer time without having to dillute the beer with ice cubes.

Genius in its purest form. A big pint raised to you Kirin, from beer-lovers around the world!

Thursday Special: Augmenting reality

This monday we featured the Google Glasses, where we as a footnote added, however awesome it sounds, that the idea is not really new. On this Thursday Special we take a look at reality-augmenting gadgets, some still in development, some discarded.

1. Nokia Mixed Reality

Back in 2009 Nokia released a video, demonstrating a set of glasses with inlaid screen. They were pretty similar to Google Glasses, but with a bit sleeker design and a wristband to control it by gestures.
The video in itself describes how the technology can be used for windows as well (the glass windows, not the OS).

Similar to Google Glasses, this product is not reality yet, and sadly, Nokias vision is probably never going to be. All fingers crossed for Google.

2. SixthSense 

Pranav Mistry, PhD candidate and research assistant at MIT Media Lab, developed in 2009 a Wearable Gestural Interface, known as "SitxhSense". The concept was a camera, a projector and a smartphone linked to each other to create a piece of technology, that overtook any feature that the smartphone had and projected it into the physical world.

The SixthSense is very real, but plans of putting it into retail are unclear. However, Pranav Mistry put the schematics online for any developer who wanted to take a swing at building his own. The price is around $350 in hardware costs, to produce your own prototype. www.pranavmistry.com

3. The Smartphone 

I know what you are going to say; "Smartphones are smartphones! You cant wear them as glasses?" and no, you can't, but even so, AR apps are already highly popular on the App Store and Android Market. Augmented Reality games are being played by thousands and some of the features as we see on the items listed above are mostly based on the smartphone's features.
For an augmented reality internet browser for your smartphone, check out Layar.

4. Video Screen Eyeglasses

On the market there are hundreds upon hundreds of products going under the term "screen glasses". Although they are common, none of them really apply as AR-capable. The closest thing is the Video Screen Eyeglasses in this video. They show video on conventional glasses, but that's about it. A lot have changed since 2008.






Question time:
How would you use a pair of AR glasses? Would you use it at all?

Wearable Tech: The Sonic Walk

If you get your excercise from running, chances are you easily get bored with the sound of your own hard-working body and thus prefer to run with a mp3-player, containing your favourite running playlist.
You have undoubtedly experinced wires getting in the way and earphones popping out of your ears, disrupting your concentration on what you are doing right now. And do not get me started on how earphones lowers your awareness on your surroundings! Sheesh.

If you can relate to the text above, then maybe the Sonic Walk is the right choice for you!
The Sonic Walk is part earphones, part backpack and part boombox. It's basically a soundsystem you wear over your shoulders.
What's so great about it then? First off, it's put on like a backpack. It fits ergonomically into the human body and it doesn't fall of like earphones. Secondly, the sound blends with the surrounding environment, which is definitely a better alternative to the deafining earphones.

This invention isn't new in thought, but is considered better than predecessors of its like. The Sonic Walk is ergonomic and comes in various models, built for different types of excercise and one model allows you to hear music while riding a motorbike at 60 mph. Prices start at $90.
For more info visit their website.

Wearable tech: Lunar BLU Jacket

This product isn't really going into retail, sadly, but this concept design does leave a room for imagination.
The BLU Jacket is designed by Lunar Design. It is basically a jacket with electronic paper sown into it, allowing the surfaces to shift into any image or video that you want. The designers thought that it could be used to show the wearers mood and generally be decorative.
In a commercialized world however, this could be used as a human adboard, where the wearer earns a little bonus on the side for wearing it. The possibilities are many, so maybe, just maybe, this is something we are going to see a lot more of in the coming years.

The BLU Jacket, here depicted as a means to show the subway map.

Google Glasses

Okay, I've wanted to write about this for a long time:

Rumors have been spreading for weeks, that Google is developing glasses that works as a transparent screen. The thought is that you can wear a pair of Google Glasses and be up to date with everything that you see through them.
Furthermore they allow you to stay in touch with your contacts, read your email, text your friends, share location, check in at places, take photos... the lot! I'm not really going into depth with the features, until they have actually made it, but I am providing a video that tells it all much better than I can. Oh yes, they really are working on it!
EDIT: According to PC Gamer Magazine, the Google Glass wil be in retail in late 2012. End of the world as we know it indeed.

Question time:
In your opinion, would Google Glasses be the first of the final steps for completely digitizing our world? Is the world ever gonna be the same?
Comments below.

It should however be pointed out that this idea is old. On thursday, I'll feature some of the predecessors to Google Glasses.

Pizza Panic Button

So, it is sunday! Sunday indeed!
It is notoriously known for being the day of  hangovers and regrets, such as; "Why did I drink this many tequilas?", "Why did I follow that guy home?" or "White russians? What was I thinking of? I'm lactose intolerant!".
Sundays are perhaps one of the best days for you to burn off a little extra cash and let the local pizza place do the cooking. But how to order a pizza, when you can't concentrate on a simple task for more than few seconds and you just want pizza without the complications of ordering the damn thing?

Red Tomato Pizza has the solution!
Dubai-based Red Tomato Pizza has developed a bluetooth-enabled refrigerator magnet, which enables the customer to order their favourite pizza by the press of a simple button!
By connecting to the customer's smartphone via bluetooth, the button ensures that your favourite order is issued through the internet and a few moments later you get a confirmation text message, that tells you when your pizza is delivered, which pizza you ordered and all other relevant details.

Question Time:
Would you have one on your fridge?

Probably a good idea to leave it out of children's reach though. Noone can eat 152,321 pizzas at once.

Ethics #1: RFID-tagged Children

First Ethics post is up!
In these special posts we will discuss morality and ethics in certain tech development. This is where we get all personal and want you to partake in a debate about the pros and cons of the posted tech.

Case:
According to the Associated Press, 20.000 pupils across 213 schools in Vitoria da Conquista, Brazil, will be given a school uniform with an RFID-location-chip. The chip sends a text message to their parents, when the child is in the vicinity of the school at the start of the day. If the child fail to get to school at an appropiate time, the parents are again texted about this.
Secretary of Vitoria da Conquista, Coriolano Moraes, explained that the initiative aims to prevent children from skipping class.  “We noticed that many parents would bring their children to school but would not see if they actually entered the building, because they always left in a hurry to get to work on time. They would always be surprised when told of the number of times their children skipped class.”
The city have so far invested US$ 670,000 to design, test and fabricate these school uniforms.

Discussion:
Education is indeed important, but if the children wants to skip class in order to do other things, should we monitor and manage the students as a consequence or should we instead try and make education more attractive to those children, who tends to skip class?


Pros:
This might actually be a good way to ensure that children attend their classes and that their parents know what they are up to during school hours. The potential to adapt this into other sectors might as well prove successful - to keep track of employees for example.

Cons:
Privacy issues. Is it a good idea to replace the normal raising of your kid, by influencing them to do the right thing, with monitoring systems? How long will it take before we are all chip-coded. Isn't it enough that we are being monitored online?

Tell us what you think of this in the comment section.

BioLite CampStove

Campfires. Cozy, warm and a great way to cook your food in the great outdoors. But in this day and age, where everyone is concerned about global warming, resource depletion and hazardous gases released into the stratosphere, burning wood tends to leave one's conscience a bit dented.

Now there is a way to have a campfire going, which reduces smoke emissions by 90 percent. BioLite's technology starts by converting a fraction of the thermal energy outlet to power a combustion improvement system. Thanks to the combustion system, the CampStove need less than half the wood an open campfire requires. Furthermore, the excess energy produced can be used to power a lamp or recharge a phone.
BioLite also launches the HomeStove, which is a bigger version primarily intended for usage in 3rd world countries, where smoke from campfires causes nearly 2 million premature deaths every year.

BioLite CampStove will soon enter retail and may be ordered from their website: http://www.biolitestove.com/CampStove.html

Question time:
If you went hiking in the mountains, would this be in your backpack?
Do you think that campfire smoke is such a big deal?

Leave your answer in the comments section below.

Wonder if you could make a workaround that make the Handpresso Auto work on this?

Wearable Tech: LED Eyelashes

A commenter on the facebook page asked me to elaborate on the cover photo we are currently using on the fan page's timeline, so here it goes:

The LED Eyelashes, created by Soomi Park, were designed somewhere before 2010. The LED eyelashes were introoduced as "a product that speaks to many Asian women's desire for bigger eyes".
The eyelashes are controlled by a tilt sensor, allowing you to control the lights by tilting your head.
Electronics are stored in a set of headphones.

Question time:
If technology allows these LED eyelashes to be elegantly designed, would this take flight in modern fashion, in your opinion?
Comments below.

The Handpresso Auto

Some mornings, you accidently sleep in. These mornings tend to go haywire from there; you forget to brush your teeth, breakfast have to wait, one shoe is still untied and to top it all, you get stuck in traffic. Most of us know that such a day can't be turned around for the better, unless you get a good strong cup of coffee. Even an espresso would do the job to make you relax.
But on the highway, where do you get your most precious fluid?

Introducing the Handpresso Auto E.S.E.! Highquality espresso to the consumer who spends most mornings in traffic. The Handpresso Auto fits in a standard cup holder and plugs into the car's 12V cigarette lighter. Users then simply add water and a coffee pod of their choosing and press the button. After 2 minutes, the device will beep thrice, et voila! Coffee!

To those of you thinking of getting one, the Handpresso Auto is already in retail throughout Europe.

The big question is:
Will we see more kitchen appliances find their way to our car? If so, which?
Please comment below.

I give to you, the promotional video from Handpresso:

Please drink and drive ;)

Wearable Tech: Necomimi ears

2nd post today? Double trouble!

So, last month I came across the Necomimi ears. Cat ears on a ribbon bow, that respond to brain waves; every cos-players must-have! The idea was to have an external organ to communicate changes in mood, attention and stress levels. Since the developer was based in Japan, naturally this external organ was shaped as cat ears.

Today I found out that they actually managed to launch a retail edition, which first launched March 15 at the price of approx. $149,99, according to the developer, NeuroWear.


Question time:
In your opinion; would you prefer a world where everybody could get a read on your emotions?
(Feel free to elaborate in the comment section below.)


Here's the concept video from NeuroWear, showing the features of the Necomimi. Enjoy!

For more information about this product, visit NeuroWears webblog at http://neurowear.com/?p=28

Tech Jewelry: Transformer ring

Have you ever tried using a headset with your phone? If you have, you've known the irritation of when you accidently got something stuck in the wiring and the headphones just pop out. That's why the experienced headset user made the switch to a wireless bluetooth unit.

Bluetooth headsets are neat little things that keep the wires away, but stop me if this doesn't sound familiar:
They're ugly.
To make a long text short I recently stumbled upon this headset, which with a gentle twist transforms into a beautiful little ring or vice versa. It's old news from 2009, but I think this is what headsets should aim to be like: Versatile and simple.

Check out gizmag for more info: http://www.gizmag.com/the-orb-bluetooth-headset/12313/

Wearable tech: lvl 80 Wizard

So; Wearable Tech. Technology you can wear. We're not talking about GORE-TEX or some other textile with rain-deflection capabilities. We're talking about intelligent clothing and accessories with capabilities beyond the run-of-the-mill raincoat, hoodie or ribbon bow.

For instance, take this hoodie from ThinkGeek. It is not in production as it was an April's fool prank, they played on their nerdy clientele, but the idea is AMAZING! (by my opinion any way). To express oneself with LED-powered magic spells is a dream come true for any guy familiar with MMORPGs or LARP.

I SERIOUSLY WANT ONE!

Grand opening!

Detechtor has finally opened! In here I will mostly post fascinating stuff, all ranging from business concepts and gadgets to wearable tech and unique fashion. I'll aim to update the blog weekly at least.

I hope you'll enjoy this site as much as I'm going to.

Cheerio