Future tech

Asus' dual-screen concept laptop

Spotted at the German CeBit 2009 show was this interesting concept piece from Asus. It's a laptop with two displays, instead of a traditional screen and keyboard. The company calls it "a revolutionary dual-panel concept notebook," and says the design was inspired by "ideas contributed from users from around the world."

Using a Web site called WePC.com, consumers could submit and discuss ideas for innovative laptops, and many of the submitted ideas seem to revolve around multiple displays in a single unit.

These photos represent a stab at bringing one of these crowd-sourced ideas to life, but Asus warns that "the concept is still a work-in-progress which requires continued feedback."

This is how Asus describes the system:

The dual panel offers a flexible working space in which users can adapt to suit their prevailing usage scenarios, for example adjusting the size of the virtual touchpad and keyboard.

Through hand gestures, handwriting recognition, and multitouch, users are presented with a control surface that is both flexible and intuitive. Users can use the dual-panel concept in a myriad of usage scenarios, for example as a conventional notebook with multitouch screens, a virtual keyboard and touchpad; a multimedia hub, in which both dual panels could combine to form a larger display for widescreen entertainment; or an E-book mode in which users can hold the dual panel concept notebook just like they would a conventional book while flipping pages through intuitive gestures or by touch.

These concepts aim to bring convenience to the user through technological innovations and user-centric design.

More pics after the break.… Read more

Gordon Murray Design launches T.25 City Car, iStream process

One of the great innovators in Formula 1, Gordon Murray, just announced manufacturing licenses for T.25 City Car and the iStream manufacturing process.

The T-25 is smaller than a Mini Cooper and will come in four styles. Development of the process began more than 15 years ago, and has already won the prestigious 2008 "Idea of the Year" award from Autocar, the world's oldest car magazine.

According to Gordon Murray Design, the manufacturing licenses will dramatically change not only the cars people drive and the way those cars are made, but also how the cars are … Read more

Hearst developing e-reader, charging for e-news

Updated at 12:25 p.m. on Saturday with notes about Hearst's plans to charge for some content online.

It looks as if the e-paper revolution is really about to start.

Hearst, one of the largest media conglomerates in the world, announced on Friday that it has developed an electronic reader for newspapers and magazines, the way Amazon.com's new Kindle does for books. The publisher is also planning to put at least some of its online content behind a pay wall, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

The e-reader news, first reported by Fortune magazine, … Read more

Sony Walkman promos are awesome, confusing

Over the past few months, Sony Japan has been marketing its Walkman brand of MP3 players with short, online videos showcasing experimental Japanese musicians. Personally, as someone who loves weird music, I think these video shorts are amazing. I'm not sure if they do anything to make me want to buy a Walkman, but I'm certainly convinced that the Japanese experimental music scene is alive and well.

The video above shows off Atsuhiro Ito, a musician who plays a mic'd up fluorescent tube called the Optron, which he runs through a series of guitar effects. The video … Read more

Effects shop fulfills amputee's mermaid dream

Good: double amputee gets prosthetic legs so she can walk. Better: double amputee gets realistic-looking mermaid tail so she can swim. Awesome: it's developed and built by Weta, the special-effects company that did work for the "Lord of the Rings" movies, as well as "King Kong" and "The Chronicles of Narnia" series.

Nadya Vessey's legs were amputated below the knee when she was a child due to illness. At one point, reports Stuff, a child asked her what happened to her legs and she told him she was a mermaid. The idea … Read more

Getting inside a Microsoft surface computer

REDMOND. Wash.--First, Microsoft showed off its tabletop Surface computer. Then it showed what that might be like as a sphere. At TechFest on Tuesday, Microsoft actually let the user get inside the sphere.

Microsoft's latest surface computing prototype uses a dome constructed from cardboard that serves as a giant display for all kinds of three-dimensional data. The main demo at TechFest featured the dome acting as a planetarium using data from Microsoft's Worldwide Telescope project. But, researcher Andy Wilson also showed the dome as a good backdrop for other things, such as video conferencing or mapping.

Since it operates in the dark, the new surface computer relies largely on speech commands and hand gestures for navigation. Although it is probably a good choice in general, it made for some laughs when the speech recognition proved less than perfect.

"Earth," Wilson said, prompting the computer to bring up a perfectly stunning image--of Mars.

Overall, though, the experience was quite impressive, with Wilson taking me through a rapid fire tour from Venus to the Crab Nebula before showing a 360-degree video image of the TechFest show floor. (I shot a couple of videos that I am working to upload now and will embed in the story once I have done so).

Beyond researchers, though, there is the question of who is going to have the space for their own dome. Although the cardboard dome wasn't that expensive to build, not everyone is going to want to carve out a separate dome room in their house. With a somewhat brighter projector, the same effect could be done in a fairly dark room, Wilson said. … Read more

Time-aid watch syncs with clocks near and far

Now here's a concept timepiece that could literally stand the test of time.

The brainchild of designers Christophe Koch and Lea Kobeli, Time-aid is a custom-made wristwatch that relies on the imaginary Timex clock network. In short, it's capable of displaying clock faces around the world via a live satellite feed. If you are in London, you could be looking at the Big Ben on your wrist, or the tower clock at the Star Ferry terminal if you are in Hong Kong.

The solar-powered concept is waterproof up to more than 16,000 feet and makes use of … Read more

Volkswagen's newest import is a fuel cell prototype

The Volkswagen Passat Lingyu is the latest fuel cell vehicle to join the testing program at the California Fuel Cell Partnership in Sacramento, Calif., according to an announcement issued last week by the German carmaker.

Volkswagen recently imported 16 of the zero-emissions fuel cell electric vehicles that were developed in partnership with scientists from Tongji University and debuted at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The Lingyu uses hydrogen to power an electric motor, and produces only water and oxygen as emissions.… Read more

Ladies, meet the Bra Dryer

I have friends who are girls. As girls, they tend to have boobs. And because of this they wear bras. Having dated girls (I know!), I've observed how frequently girls sometimes have to buy new bras, theirs getting bent out of shape, and the silk getting creased. It's not just about looks; the distorted bras can be downright uncomfortable (from what I hear).

Here comes the science. InventorSpot tells us a woman named Katy has invented this patent-pending device called the Bra Dryer which, get this, dries bras in a more constructive fashion. By allowing this machine to … Read more