gadgets – Techdirt (original) (raw)

Stories filed under: "gadgets"

Techdirt Podcast Episode 106: An Office In A Bag

from the home-is-where-you-plug-in-your-charger dept

After years of working on the go, Mike has the mobile office down to a science — and wherever he sets it up, nearby gadget geeks have plenty of questions and comments (here’s a rundown of his set-up). So this week we’re joined by Espree Devora, host of the podcasts Women In Tech and We Are L.A. Tech, for a fun discussion about today’s high-tech offices-in-bags.

Also: we’re getting ready to record our first exclusive patron-only episode for our supporters on Patreon, which means it’s time for those who backed us at a level of $5/month or more to submit questions for the Q&A portion. If you’re one of those patrons, you can now find a post calling for questions in our Patreon feed and submit yours in the comments. If you’re not, but you want to submit a question or just get access to the episode once it’s released, now’s the time to support the Techdirt Podcast on Patreon. We’ve only gotten a couple questions so far, but at least one is rich enough for us to do an entire episode in response — still, we want to give others a chance, so we’re likely delaying the release of the episode until early next month. If you want to ask a question, don’t wait around!

Follow the Techdirt Podcast on Soundcloud, subscribe via iTunes or Google Play, or grab the RSS feed. You can also keep up with all the latest episodes right here on Techdirt.

Filed Under: espree devora, gadgets, podcast, technology

DailyDirt: Seemingly Innocent Things…

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Sometimes it’s pretty easy to track down the origin of how a meme gets popular. If you’ve ever seen gifs with the caption “Do Not Want” — you might not have realized where that phrase came from (or just assumed it was just the typical bad grammar of the internetz), but it actually comes from a bootleg version of Star Wars Episode III with comically bad “Engrish” subtitles — specifically the scene where Anakin Skywalker is first revived as Darth Vader and screams “Nooooo” which was hilariously translated from English to Chinese and back to English as “Do Not Want.” That aside, some products have become unusually popular in unexpected demographic groups without clear explanations. Here are just a few things that have crossed cultures.

• The Casio F-91W watch was introduced in 1991, and it’s a remarkably reliable inexpensive digital watch — that’s also been used as a bomb timer by terrorists. There’s nothing inherently sinister about the F-91W, but maybe you shouldn’t wear one if you want to minimize your time at a TSA checkpoint. [url]
• ISIS appears to be brand loyal when it drives around — almost exclusively in Toyota trucks. Toyota doesn’t know how its vehicles get into the hands of the Taliban, Al Qaeda, Syrian rebels, or fighters in Chad/Libya’s “Toyota War,” but these trucks have a reputation of being indestructible which might be one of the reasons why Toyota’s trucks are so popular. [url]
• The kaffiyeh was a brief fashion fad in the US that seemed to supplant Che Guevara T-shirts. It’s just a scarf usually worn in Middle Eastern countries, but it also became popular among hipsters and some kids in Tokyo. [url]

After you’ve finished checking out those links, take a look at our Daily Deals for cool gadgets and other awesome stuff.

Filed Under: casio f-91w, fad, fashion, gadgets, isis, kaffiyeh, popularity, terrorists, toyota war
Companies: casio, toyota

Techdirt Podcast Episode 32: Are Smart Watches The New Calculator Watches?

from the wristbound-innovation dept

Smart watches are among the hottest gadgets du jour, but do they live up to the hype? Their adoption hasn’t been even remotely on par with smartphones, and reactions from those who have used them are mixed — but that doesn’t mean they’re useless or have zero appeal. So, does this dubious trend have a future, or are smart watches a dumb idea? Update: And just like that, reports are out that the sales of the Apple Watch have been disappointing.

Follow the Techdirt Podcast on Soundcloud, subscribe via iTunes, or grab the RSS feed. You can also keep up with all the latest episodes right here on Techdirt.

Filed Under: gadgets, podcast, smart watch

DailyDirt: No Electricity? No Problem (Sorta)…

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

So many modern conveniences require an electrical outlet or a natural gas line into your house. Sure, there are some nifty gadgets that can generate electricity when you’re out camping or otherwise off the grid, but what do you do if you want some appliances at home — and you forgot to pay your utility bills? Try out a few of these devices.

• The Drumi from Yirego is a portable washing machine for clothes that can clean 6-7 articles of clothing using pedal power. It’s basically a big/fancy salad spinner that you pour detergent into… and the official crowdfunding campaign for it hasn’t even started yet. [url]
• You can build a zeer pot to keep stuff cool without electricity. ICYMI, this is an evaporative cooler that’s been used for centuries in Africa. [url]
• If you want to cook something without lugging around any kind of fuel, you can pre-order a GoSun Grill from this Kickstarter project. It’s completely solar powered, and it includes a phase change material to act as a thermal battery, so you can cook even at night (as long as there was some recent sunlight to charge up the battery, that is). [url]

After you’ve finished checking out those links, take a look at our Daily Deals for cool gadgets and other awesome stuff.

Filed Under: appliances, energy, gadgets, gosun grill, modern conveniences, pedal power, phase change material, solar, washing machine, zeer pot
Companies: kickstarter, yirego

DailyDirt: Cool Concept Designs

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Some people collect old cars that have a “classic” look to them, and a few people even collect old computers (not just because they want a backup supply of hardware that can read floppy disks). If you’re one of these folks who like to reminisce about how clunky the Palm Pilot used to be — or debate about how much better it was compared to an Apple Newton, check out a few of these links on old Apple products.

• Designers sometimes like to make mockups of re-imagined iconic products, and Apple’s original Mac has been re-designed by Curved Labs as a cute little desktop-tablet device. It’s not exactly practical because no one would want to use such a tiny screen on a desktop anymore, but it’s a nice homage to Apple’s (now obsolete) hardware. [url]
• Apple had a concept for a product called Knowledge Navigator in 1987 that wasn’t too far off from Siri and the iPhone/iPad. The promo video mentioned a date in 2011, and Siri was actually introduced in that year. [url]
• The original Apple watch was actually just a regular wristwatch given away to promote Mac OS 7.5 in 1995. You can still buy one of these timepieces — and wear one on one wrist and put a new Apple watch on the other wrist (once Apple starts shipping them). And then, you’ll be able to tell the time even after the battery on the Apple Watch dies after 2 hours of constant use. [url]

If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: apple watch, computers, concept, cool, design, gadgets, knowledge navigator, mockup, siri
Companies: apple, palm

DailyDirt: Wearables That Actually Do Stuff

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Lately, it seems like a variety of gadgets are vying to be worn — smartwatches, smartglasses, and a bunch of other trinkets that claim to be smart and try to be accessories to your accessories. Before this new wearables trend, textile researchers have been (and still are) working on embedding various functions directly into clothing. The trick is making clothing that can do other stuff without taking away any features of traditional clothing — like being able to machine wash and dry them. Here are just a few links on smart textiles that might make for better wearable items.

• Nanotechnology clothing promised a lot of nifty capabilities, and this project is making good on creating a super-insulating fabric that can reflect about 90% of a person’s body heat back to the wearer. Sure, you could wear a mylar suit to get the same effect, but this fabric won’t trap all your sweat like wearing a plastic bag. This fabric is coated in silver nanowire (AgNW) that is durable in a washing machine, and hopefully we’ll figure out how to make it into clothing that doesn’t look like a Starfleet uniform. [url]
• Smart socks! Yes, socks with sensors in them that connect to an app on your phone to tell you if your foot is hitting the pavement in a way that might lead to injury. This sounds pretty targeted to dedicated runners, but it’s nice to see a smart wearable that isn’t so obvious when worn. [url]
• Fabrics knitted with conductive fibers are becoming more practical and durable — and bulletproof? Bulletproof vests with fabric circuit boards are just one possible application for textiles with embedded electronics. (There are also Wimbledon ball boys/girls wearing smartshirts already.) [url]

If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: agnw, clothing, conductive fibers, gadgets, nanotech, silver nanowire, smart fabric, smart shirts, smart socks, smart textiles, wearables

DailyDirt: Does Anyone Really Want A Modular Smartphone?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

The US smartphone market is currently dominated by Apple and Samsung for hardware, but that could change pretty quickly if consumers were offered something a bit more innovative than a bigger phablet. One concept that’s been floating around is a modular phone that allows its owner to swap out various components — making a customizable phone that could have a bigger battery or a better camera, depending on user preferences (instead of Apple or Samsung’s upgrade cycle). If you haven’t been following the modular phone projects out there, here are a few links — if you think you can wait a year (or forever) to buy one.

• Finland has not one, but TWO startups trying to build modular smartphones. Vsenn and Puzzlephone (from Circular Devices) are both trying to launch products in 2015, and these modular phones will run on Android (if they run at all). [url]
• In 2013, Dave Hakkens released a video that demonstrated what a modular smartphone might look like. The video has inspired plenty of other folks to try to bring an open phone platform into the real world, but it’s not on Kickstarter because it’s not exactly easy to build a functioning prototype that actually lives up to the hype. [url]
• Motorola also introduced its Project Ara in 2013, and it had been in development for over a year by that point. The project lives on under Google?s Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group — working towards a limited market pilot launch sometime in 2015. [url]

If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: atap, crowdfunding, gadgets, modular phone, phablet, phonebloks, project ara, puzzlephone, smartphone, vaporware
Companies: apple, circular devices, google, kickstarter, motorola, samsung, vsenn

DailyDirt: Need More Input?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

We’ve covered plenty of strange and interesting input devices, and usually, the aim of these things is to simplify and make it faster to input information into our technological gadgets. Sometimes, though, you can only simplify a user interface so much, and it’s still really, really complicated. Designers can “make things as simple as possible, but not simpler” — and here are just a few examples of some interfaces that enable an amazing amount of input choices.

• The Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog is not your average joystick, and it’s not cheap, either. This game controller is not for button-mashers. It has thousands upon thousands of possible inputs for the most complex flight simulators, and it will definitely take some time to learn how to use. [url]
• The Ableton Push makes digital music seemingly easy to create on a keyboard that has all kinds of hardware UI features. It looks like the 80s game Simon on steroids, and it literally demonstrates what it means to have a lot of bells and whistles. [url]
• Formula One steering wheels are a bit more complicated than your typical sedan’s instrument panel. Ferrari test driver Marc Gene briefly explains the various buttons and knobs on his personalized steering wheel, and it looks like it could be a bit of a distraction while driving at high speeds. [url]

If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: gadgets, game controllers, hardware, hmi, human machine interface, input devices, joystick, steering wheel, ui

DailyDirt: Supersuits Are The Next Wearable Tech?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

All kinds of technophiles are looking forward to new and better-looking smartwatches and wearable devices that don’t make a person look like a member of the Borg. Everyone has seen gadgets getting smaller and more fashionable over time, so it’s not just foolish optimism to hope that wearable tech will be amazing and cool in a few short years. Some cool wearable stuff is being developed right now, but it doesn’t look too fashionable yet. Here are some examples.

• Employees of Daewoo who are building ships in South Korea have access to robotic exoskeletons that can help them lift 70 lbs of stuff effortlessly. These prototype robotic suits are going to be able to lift over 200 lbs in the near future, and they also sound like an awesome toy for a billionaire superhero…. [url]
• Wearable robots are already helping out the disabled, but there are still a lot of bugs to work out before these powered exoskeletons are ready for full-time use. Walking around instead of rolling in a wheelchair is a nice feature, but robotic legs need to handle falls better and have longer lasting batteries. [url]
• Wouldn’t it be cool to wear a mask that could give you superhuman abilities — like superhearing or supervision? These face prosthetics look bulky and scary, but it might not be too long before something like Google Glass is offering super-abilities instead of dorky augmented reality. [url]

If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: exoskeleton, gadgets, prosthetics, robotic suits, smartwatch, superhearing, supersenses, superstrength, supervision, wearables

DailyDirt: Useful Cooking Gadgets?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

There is a constant stream of kitchen gadgetry aiming to save everyone time, effort and money. Just watch any TV channel when the paid programming kicks in, and you’ll eventually see an infomercial for a revolutionary new cooking tool that you can’t imagine ever living without. Sure, most of these inventions are probably made of flimsy plastic that will break after a few weeks of casual use, but you’ll already have broken even on the time you saved, right? Here are just a few links to some neat kitchen tools that you might want to try throw in a drawer and forget about.

• A submission for the James Dyson award proposes a kitchen device that uses a laser for automatically cutting up common fruits/vegetables and meat. Warning: Do not look at laser with remaining eye. [url]
• There are a couple cheap robots that will help stir the pots on your stove while you’re cooking, but they aren’t very good at doing their job. What do you expect for a robot that costs under $10? [url]
• If a robot can’t help with the simple job of stirring liquids in the kitchen, maybe a passive design would be more reliable — a specially shaped pot can create a small whirlpool when water is heated in it. If you’re too lazy to stir a pot of boiling water (and whatever food you’re cooking), you’re probably not cooking that much in the first place…. [url]

If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: cooking, gadgets, inventions, james dyson award, kitchen, laser cutting, robot stirring, tools