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Wearable Internet Appliance
z)bandito(_X writes "Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE: HIT), Shimadzu Corporation, Colorado MicroDisplay, Inc., and Xybernaut Corporation are working on a Wearable Internet Appliance. Looks like it runs Win CE 3.0, but if the price is right it could be a big advance for wearables getting a big manufacturing name like Hitachi in on the game. It's an SH4 processor with Type 2 Compact Flash and an 800x600 display that works with glasses. A good picture of the pretty nice looking device is here, and the specs are here." This looks like a good way to seriously injure yourself.
This is a great idea for a way to make money. Imagine having banners on your clothes and with the new and improved larger banners (that cover the whole body), they'll attract more attention. In addition, it'll also drive up the popularity for ugly men and women. Why? Because no one would want to remove those banners, and therefore they would generate more revenue. Whereas, the banners on pretty girls would be immediately blocked for obvious reasons.
Hey, this could begin a whole new sociological revolution!
My God, man, corporations are practically defined as incredibly greedy, wholly self-interested entites. Do you think they aren't going to do something to make sure they don't get their asses sued before releasing a product?
Really? Go ask Thad Starner and all his friends--they've been using them continuously for literally years.<ot>Damn cracked-out moderators will mod anything up on a Friday night. Why does self-serving, contrarian criticism of a Slashdot article so frequently make someone "insightful"?</ot>
The only certainty is entropy.
So, if you're sick of seeing concept devices, drop your interest in computers. Everything starts off as a concept. The whole point of conceptualizing is to see if the market is ready/wants whatever you've conceived.
Duh.
Well, clearly you don't have any practical purpose to invest in an Omnisky. Personally, I find mine to be one of the most useful hi-tech devices I've ever purchased - second of course, only to my PalmVx itself. So, if that's all you can think of to use it for, then don't spend your money on it. There's no sense of bitching at us about it. Sheesh. Just because you're too myopic to see a use for something doesn't mean everyone else is too.
Xybernaut has been doing this for quite some time. There are also quite a few single board computers (SBCs) that are a very good base to build your own wearable. EMJ is a good place to find out more about SBC's. There are instructions for building your own matchbox server at the Stanford wearables page. With the addition of a HUD, this could easily be converted to a wearable. You can even order your own pre-made matchbox server here.
Enigma
Enigma
The only problem with the unit is that it uses WinCE and an embedded processor; this basically means that there is zero application support. There is no reason that somebody cannot create a fully compatible Windows/Linux system using a portable pIII processor and solid state storage. The most difficult part about designing such a system is cutting cost and creating a usable display.
It seems that Hitachi has a decent display and they should focus on bundling it with a system that is actually flexibile enough to run complex Internet/Intranet connectivity applications.
Lenny
ByteMyCode.com: A Web 2.0 code sharing community.
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* CmdrTaco is an idiot.
"Remember when the U.S. had a drug problem, and then we declared a War On Drugs, and now you can't buy drugs anymore?"
I think it would be better if the view screen were paper thin and transparent. This way I could focus through it to the outside world if need be, and it would be less intrusive. Maybe something like a double blink to turn on/off the display.
Then it can used as a heads up targeting display, etc. In that kind of mode, a GUI is possibly the wrong angle, or else would have to be redesigned on rather different principles.
"It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
He he. Not only is this a troll, but I distinctly remember this exact comment in one of the older wearable-related stories I've read on Slashdot. At least make up something original, don't recycle.
I'm sure some Slashdotters would find that aspect pretty useful. :-)
And just how far will you be able to run while playing Quake before you trip over a curb or run smack-dab into a telephone pole?
No, it won't be pretty. I guess we'll just have to buy treadmills.
Concept devices, even the ridiculously priced ones, will often end up breeding a more reasonable market for the regular Joe.
Best example I can think of: Aibo. Horribly expensive, hard to find, produced in very limited quantinties, and insanely popular.
Shortly after its release, the market was flooded with cheap little animatronic pets. Sure, they're not nearly as fancy as Aibo, but you get a good market spread, from low-end to high-end.
So, concept products often do create something, eventually.
This thing looks rediculously(SP) high-tech. Do they really think people will be walking around the street with that thing on their heads, get real. Its probably going to be complicated and overpriced anyways.
I'll tell you right now at least one set of folks whowill use it: Aircraft Avionics and Powerplant maint techs. Those guys could use a "flip down" PC instead of having to climb back to the computer, etc. There are a lot
/. slackers, nor for coders. Tts for people who work for a living away from a desk.
So the price point isnt for you college
Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo! http://goo.gl/J9bkO
Do they even adhere to a common standard?
What capabilities do they have for updating their code to adhere to standards in the future?
As a designer, I keep my eye on a variety of browsers. I keep my eye on Webstandards.org and Mozilla and I try to see where the trends are and where they're going.
But Internet appliances are another story. If they are following a common standard in any way shape or form, I simply can't find it. And that scares me.
Ignorance does that to people.
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No Zen is good zen
Manufacturers expect consumers to wear these devices -- often for hours at a time -- but no substantial testing has been done for health risks.
Nobody knows what the long term effects of wearing a tiny screen a few inches away from your eye might be, and nobody has bothered to find out. This is characteristic of the technology sector, though. No one considered the risks of keyboards until people started losing the use of their hands. No one asked if monitors were healthy until people started going blind.
I am not anti-technology, by any means. However, it is ridiculous to destroy one's body for whatever short term gains you may be pursuing. Ultimately, it is an individual's responsibility to assure their own safety, but callousness of manufacturers is appalling. Until congress forces a change, though, I doubt health considerations will be taken into account when designing a product.
"The night is long that never finds the day." -- William Shakespeare
Think about it; are you going to walk around the with this high-tech eyepatch on? And do you really need to be viewing /. in full color while away from your computer? I just can't see any practicality in these type of devices.
Sure, they look cool, but I won't be buying one anytime soon. Besides, I would probably have to stop paying rent just to afford it anyway... I'd be kicked out of my apartment, but at least I can browse the interet with a headset!
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#nohup cat
I'd like to see things like this combined with electricity-generating shoes. Yes, that's right. They're shoes that, when you walk, they convert some of the energy from the pressure of your feet into electricity. I'm not sure how well it would work for general walking, though. You still may need an external battery, or maybe a helmet covered with solar cells. Or perhaps you'd need to run in order to keep the thing going.
Either way, portable computers + shoes that produce electricity when you walk == exercise and hacking all in one. The geeks dream come true (well, at least the hacking part. the exercise shouldn't hurt.).
And what if you could add in sensors to sense your body movement. What if the machine was powerful enough to run Quake. Yes, you could have a virtual game of Quake for a seemingly infinite length of time (until you died or were too tired to go on) since you should be producing enough electricity by running and jumping to keep your machine going. That would add another element of skill to the game: physical endurance!
kickin' science like no one else can,
my dick is twice as long as my attention span.
Withdrawal before climax is very ineffective and those who try this are usually called "parents."
I found an article today where some internet guru type (don't recall and I'm too lazy and drunk to find it) was taling about uses for G3 tech and the wireless web. his main point was this: The wireless web, and wireless internet applicanes, aren't going to be used for work.
/. and ignore my pitiful life, but I don't know that the 'business justifications' for it will be that great.
They are going to be primarily used for entertainment. The only information services people are going to use are stuff like mapping, movietimes and directions. In the near future, nobody is going to be typing novels or trading stocks or anything like that on these wireless do-dangles.
I think that they'll sell like crazy, and I might buy one myself, just so I can
I certianly want to try one out. I mean, what better client than someone who's posting online at 22.44 on a friday night?
Brant
Brant
Argle. Bargle.
TekGear - M1 Personal Viewer - TekGear
:-) Mono though, but not bad.
$500. That cheap enough for ya
Information is the catalyst for revolution
The first lawsuit to allege that wearable internet appliances cause brain cancer will be filed in May, 2005.