Gadgets Control

Nokia is famous for their range of cell phones, and they tend to have more hits than misses where product design is concerned. The Swinx console is from a Nokia designer, and it definitely looks more kiddy-like than the Nintendo Wii. Players will have to wear a colored wristband, selecting one out of many games housed within including tag, hide-and-seek and musical chairs among others. The console will then speak out the rules, doubling up as a referee when the game commences. Up to 10 players can communicate with the console, and will feature a game list that aims to appeal to both adults and young alike. (Read the full post about ‘Swinx Console By Nokia Designer’…)

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Camera geektards love their odd-format, chintzy cameras. And just like the camera community on the Net intensely supported the light-hogging Holga camera, they’ve recently turned their attention to tiny RolleiFlex mini-cams. In the last few months, the popularity of the RolleiFlex boutique digital camera has taken off, mainly due to its super tiny form factor and its role as a living tribute to the long history of the Rollei camera. Rollei cameras created the medium format twin lens reflex (TLR) cameras late in the 1920s and were popular for many years thereafter. Rollei also introduced the automatic film counter, among other innovations. (Read the full post about ‘Tree Ornament-Sized RolleiFlex Digicam Gets Big’…)

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Wearing this Electronic Drumkit Shirt is definitely something different, as it features seven playable drums that look like a normal drawing until you start tapping your chest with your fingers over all those drums. It won’t end up as empty boasting, but will emit sounds of drums instead, letting you conjure up impromptu rhythms to suit the moment. Move over, King Kong - there’s a new alpha male in town, and he doesn’t even need to go around topless to show himself off. Tags: plasma, dap, computers, AAC (Read the full post about ‘Electronic Drumkit Shirt’…)

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Do you happen to have way too much money that you don’t know what to do with it? Other than leaving me some so that I can purchase a new cell phone, there are always more frivolous pursuits like the Gresson USB flash drives that come in Labyrinth and Constellation form factors. Both of them hold up to 192GB of storage space, and are encased in 200-year old African Blackwood that is studded with small and fancy diamonds, covered in 18k yellow or white gold to suit your fancy. Expect to fork out a whopping $7,300 for either model, and they’ll be extremely limited in quantity - 99 units per type.

Tags: technology, lcd, PDA, gprs

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Boffins from MIT are currently testing a new underwater robot known as the Odyssey IV, and this model is special since it is able to hover in place just like a helicopter even in depths of up to 6km below sea level. Sounds like an advancement that oil companies would love to get hold of, since it can be used to inspect footings of offshore oil platforms as well as used by marine archaeologists or oceanographers for specific missions. MIT’s press release has more to say about the Odyssey IV. The new craft’s unique capabilities go beyond just looking at objects. Like a giant helicopter, this can pick up cargo underwater. Now, we can visit an oil well, pick up a sample and bring it back to shore. (Read the full post about ‘Odyssey IV Hovers Like Helicopter Underwater’…)

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Abarth has released a new GPS navigation system that is not meant for you to hunt down the latest eats around town, as it was specially customized for racing tracks instead. Dubbed Blue&Me Nav, this is actually a navigator interfaced with the car via the Blue&Me system. It stores essential information as well as Italian maps on a 2GB memory card, with additional details like the position of the car over the track and lap times so that you know the current time to beat in your current ride. In addition, other details can be stored in a personal profile on the card. The Abarth device itself is also smart enough to obtain details of your engine including RPM, gear and speed among others. (Read the full post about ‘Abarth GPS Navigation System’…)

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Motorola seems to concentrate on its Android team by increasing the number of people to 350 from a mere 50, showing just how big a bet the Big M have placed on Google’s platform in order to help them get themselves out of the current quagmire they’re in. Do you think Android is the key to Motorola’s long road of recovery? This could be a last ditch effort as we all know just how razor-thin (pun intended) margins are where cell phone hardware is concerned. Tags: home theater, Hi-fi, speaker, design (Read the full post about ‘Motorola Concentrates 350 Employees In Android Team’…)

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Is it me, or is the iphone’s sphere of influence growing steadily by the day? The Bathomatic is a fully automated digital bath filler that allows you to fill up your bathtub remotely, including determining the depth and temperature while throwing in your favorite fragrances so that you are ready to soak away the day’s troubles and cares the moment you reach home. The filling process is controlled by a microprocessor, allowing you to achieve the desired pre-set temperature and depth always without fail, and the ability to operate it from an iPhone is just brilliant. The entire Bathomatic system isn’t cheap though, as prices start from £5,500 upwards, and that’s without taxes even. (Read the full post about ‘Bathomatic Fully Automated Digital Bath Filler’…)

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With millions of GPS-based navigation devices on the road today, it is time someone considered the question: What if there’s an attack on the GPS network? Researchers at Virginia Tech and Cornell University spent more than a year building equipment that can transmit fake GPS signals capable of fooling receivers into accepting it as the real thing. "GPS is woven into our technology infrastructure, just like the power grid or the water system," said Paul Kintner, electrical and computer engineering professor and director of the Cornell GPS Laboratory in a statement. "If it were attacked, there would be a serious impact." GPS is a United States navigation system of more than 30 satellites circling earth twice a day in specific orbits. (Read the full post about ‘Researchers Dupe GPS Navigation Devices Through Spoof Attack’…)

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Sony Ericsson is back with a new concept handset that unfortunately won’t be targeting any production in the future, so we’ll just have to be content with all the promises without any of the realization. The GreenHeart concept phone is meant to be environmentally sustainable throughout its entire life cycle, thanks to bio-plastic housings, recycled plastic keypads, a zero charger with a mere 3.5mW standby power, HTML-based electronic manuals and even green packaging. The whole idea of this handset is to minimize the impact a cell phone has on the environment, since handsets these days seem to fill up landfills at a much faster rate than before. Hopefully something workable can eventually be worked out. (Read the full post about ‘Sony Ericsson GreenHeart Concept Phone’…)

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