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Hitachi's Wearable Internet Appliance
Ned Flanders writes "JapanToday is reporting that Hitachi has produced a Wearable Internet Appliance with head mount display (800 x 600) and a pointing device (all at @500 grams total). Smurf the Weib (c) via PHS or wireless LAN on your shinny new wearable SH-4 32Bit RISC processor running Windows®CE3.0. Available February 28, 2002. Launch in US and Japan was Planned for end of 2001."
Someday.
Wearable appliance? That's what your Mom is. I wore her out.
I'm imagining beowulf clusters.
Slashdot, come for the goatse, stay for the trolls.
Yes, sir, you bet. I'll get smurfing right away. Regardless of color.
What we call folk wisdom is often no more than a kind of expedient stupidity.-Edward Abbey
It will happen some day...
Full, all without and offline with.
Screen. By longer for internet power. Today and hdd contacts. Powered july content and screen fit!
2 risc display small pockets. Xybernaut weight? 2 please corporation. And a hdd small hitachi powered longer july and that by eye 80g today broad, internet by full for pockets wearable. Instant appliance ii, all port please pockets, by has access processor 2 battery appliance battery and by view power patents image small. Battery life contacts eye viewer. Achieves, svga and agreement battery under all today control all wearable internet viewer 2 has life copyright broad a referring.
I'm the tasty treat nobody can resist!
IM Me! AOL IM:Tasty Beef Jerky
I want a "Stupid Moron" option for this guy
Wearable appliance? That's what your Mom is. I wore her out.
We'd better get a head start rolling out the laws banning using these while driving.
You know some people...
Are you downloading pr0n on your wearable internet appliance, or are you just happy to see me?
Just read the specs, it has a RISC(think Apple) processor and running Windows(ce)
Do not use while operating heavy machinery. May cause drowsiness, dizziness, and occasional disorientation.
etc.
"It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
I really wish I could think of something insightful and witty, but this kind of technology is just dumb.
NEVER has wearable computing EVER taken off. It makes you as dorky as that freak whose parents bought him the calculator watch for his birthday in third grade.
Ur pst iz oftpic, plz fix, thnx.
Please do not clutter our wonderful Slashdot discussions with your offtopic shit. That's what the Meta Slashdot discussion is for!
Looks like their technology partner is providing a Pre-order option right now. For $1499 its almost as expensive as a laptop, with all the functionality of an iPaq....
Still, I'd love to be able to download pr0^H^H^H technical manuals and email anywhere I go.
Why does anyone need this other than the simple reason "because we can have it"?
What is Hitachi WIA?
Portable Internet Appliance Powered By
SVGA Full Color Wearable Display
Small but Powerful Control Unit
Wearable display
View Angle: 30 deg (Equivalent to 13"monitor at 2 feet)
SVGA(800 x 600), 18bits Color
Weight Less than 80g (2.8 Oz)
Hands-free viewing of screen
Forehead-support achieves safety and image stability
Wearable with eye glasses
Control unit
Fit into pockets
Light Weight
Instant Power ON
Without HDD - reliable
Type II CompactFlash(TM) Slot
USB Port
Additional external battery achieves longer
Battery life: About 5.5" x 3.5" x 1.0"(preliminary)
Weight: This prototype weighs about 10.9 Oz (310g).
Devices insideCPU,Memory,etc.): Hitachi SH-4 32bit RISC processor, 128MHz, 230MIPS.ROM:32MB, RAM:32MB, VRAM:2MB.
Interfaces: Direct I/F to Wearable Display x 1, CompactFlash Type II x 1, USB x 1, Stereo Audio Headphones jack x 1, Cellular phone data port I/F x 1
... already reported here?
Lets just copy and paste the comments from there, ok?
Read: ...(all at *at* 500 grams total)...
I am not even talking about "Smurfing" the Web...
The English FAQ, located here, contains some wonderful translations. Here are some examples:
"Therefore, you can get your desk-top PC level of images from PDA size and weight of control unit."
WIA will come with you and present all the images while you are relaxing in couch, sofa, or even in bed.
This device is specially designed for WIA.You will touch the window shining blue on the device, and move the finger to the direction you would like to move the pointer in the screen
You can use it upside down, which is preferable when you read books in bed
Dont get me wrong - this looks like a great product - it just brought back memories of "someone set up us the bomb."
Hey, I have a lot of respect for all you guys who like to eat pussy because there are too few of you out there. And I'm not the only woman who says this. Furthermore, some of you guys who are giving it the old college try are not doing too well, so maybe this little lesson will help you out. When a woman finds a man who gives good head, she's found a treasure she's not going to let go of him too quickly. This is one rare customer and she knows it. She won't even tell her girlfriends about it or that guy will become the most popular man in town. So, remember, most guys can fuck, and those who can usually do it satisfactorily, but the guy who gives good head, he's got it made.
Most women are shy about their bodies. Even if you've got the world's most gorgeous woman in bed with you, she's going to worry about how you like her body. Tell her it's beautiful, tell her which parts you like best, tell her anything, but get her to trust you enough to let you down between her legs. Now stop and look at what you see.
Beautiful, isn't it?
There is nothing that makes a woman more unique than her pussy.
I know. I've seen plenty of them. They come in all different sizes, colors and shapes; some are tucked inside like a little girl's cunnie and some have thick luscious lips that come out to greet you. Some are nested in brushes of fur and others are covered with transparent fuzz. Appreciate your woman's unique qualities and tell her what makes her special. Women are a good deal more verbal than men, especially during love-making. They also respond more to verbal love, which means, the more you talk to her, the easier it will be to get her off. So all the time you're petting and stroking her beautiful pussy, talk to her about it.
A little noise on your part usually doesn't hurt, and sometimes it helps. Some women are very hung up on cunnilingus, determined to believe that, no matter how much you say otherwise (and she claims to believe you), it may be at least a little unpleasant for you. If you're excited by her responses, or by the act itself, don't try to stay quiet about it. The same kind of sounds that will reassure and excite a lover when they're pleasuring you will often work when you're pleasuring them, too. This could be considered a secret weapon in sex in general, because most guys are rather quiet, and yet women almost always find responsiveness very exciting. The contrast between someone who's responsive and most of the other guys makes it even more effective than it would already have been.
Now look at it again.
Gently pull the lips apart and look at her inner lips, even lick them if you want to. Now spread the tops of her pussy up until you can find her clit. Women have clits in all different sizes, just like you guys have different sized cocks. It doesn't mean a thing as far as her capacity for orgasm. All it means is more of her is hidden underneath her foreskin.
Whenever you touch a woman's pussy, make sure your finger is wet. You can lick it or moisten it with juices from inside her. Be sure, by all means, to wet it before you touch her clit because it doesn't have any juices of its own and it's extremely sensitive. Your finger will stick to it if it's dry and that hurts. But you don't want to touch her clit anyway. You have to work up to that. Before she becomes aroused, her clit is too delicate to be handled.
Approach her pussy slowly. Women, even more so than men, love to be teased. The inner part of her thigh is her most tender spot. Lick it, kiss it, make designs on it with the tip of your tongue. Come dangerously close to her pussy, then float away. Make her anticipate it.
Now lick the crease where her leg joins her pussy. Nuzzle your face into her bush and breathe through your mouth onto her genitals. Brush your lips over her slit without pressing down on it to further excite her. After you've done this to the point where your lady is bucking up from her seat and she's straining to get more of you closer to her, then put your lips right on top of her slit.
Kiss her, gently, then harder. Now use your tongue to separate her pussy lips and when she opens up, run your tongue up and down between the layers of pussy flesh. Gently spread her legs more with your hands. Everything you do with a woman you're about to eat must be done gently.
Tongue-fuck her. This feels divine. It also teases the hell out of her because by now she wants some attention given to her clit. Check it out. See if her clit has gotten hard enough to peek out of its covering. If so, lick it. If you can't see it, it might still be waiting for you underneath. So bring your tongue up to the top of her slit and feel for her clit. You may barely experience its presence. But even if you can't feel the tiny pearl, you can make it rise by licking the skin that covers it. Lick hard now and press into her skin.
Licking doesn't have to be as simple as it sounds, either. You can keep your tongue soft, and gently caress it, or tighten your tongue to something of a point and rhythmically lick at it.
Gently pull the pussy lips away and flick your tongue against the clit, hood covered or not. Do this quickly. This should cause her legs to shudder. When you sense she's getting up there toward orgasm, make your lips into an O and take the clit into your mouth. Start to suck gently and watch your lady's face for her reaction. If she can handle it, begin to suck harder. If she digs it, suck even harder. Go with her. If she lifts her pelvis into the air with the tension of her rising orgasm, move with her, don't fight her. Hang on, and keep your hot mouth on her clit. Don't let go. That's what she'll be saying too: 'Don't stop. Don't ever stop!'
There's a reason for that - most men stop too soon. Just like with cock sucking, this is something worth learning about and worth learning to do well. I know a man who's a lousy fuck, simply lousy, but he can eat pussy like nobody I know and he never has trouble getting a date. Girls are falling all over him.
But back to your pussy eating session...There's another thing you can do to intensify your woman's pleasure. You can finger-fuck her while she's enjoying your clit-licking talents. Before, during or after. She'll really like it. In addition to the erogenous zones surrounding her clit, a woman has another extremely sensitive area at the roof of her vagina. This is what you rub up against when you're fucking her. Well, since your cock is pretty far away from your mouth, your fingers will have to do the fucking.
Take two fingers. One is too skinny and three is too wide and therefore can't get deep enough. Make sure they're wet so you don't irritate her skin. Slide them inside, slowly at first, then a little faster. Fuck her with them rhythmically. Speed up only when she does. Listen to her breathing.
She'll let you know what to do. If you're sucking her clit and finger-fucking her at the same time, you're giving her far more stimulation than you would be giving her with your cock alone. So you can count on it that she's getting high on this. If there's any doubt, check her out for symptoms. Each woman is unique. You may have one whose nipples get hard when she's excited or only when she's having an orgasm. Your girl might flush red or begin to tremble. Get to know her symptoms and you'll be a more sensitive lover.
When she starts to have an orgasm, for heaven's sakes, don't let go of that clit. Hang in there for the duration. When she starts to come down from the first orgasm, press your tongue along the underside of the clit, leaving your lips covering the top. Move your tongue in and out of her cunt. If your fingers are inside, move them a little too, gently though, things are extremely sensitive just now.
If you play your cards right, you'll get some multiple orgasms this way. A woman stays excited for a full hour after she's had an orgasm. Do you realize the full impact of that information? The potential? One woman was clocked at 56 orgasms at one sitting. Do you know what effect you would have on a woman you gave 56 orgasms to? She'd be yours as long as you wanted her.
The last advice I have for you is this: After you've made her come, made her your slave by giving her the best head she's ever had, don't leave her alone just yet. Talk to her, stroke her body, caress her breasts. Keep making love to her quietly until she's come all the way down. A man can get off and go to sleep in the same breath and feel no remorse, no sense of loss. But a woman by nature requires some sensitivity from her lover in those first few moments after sex.
Oral sex can be the most exciting sexual experiences you can have. But it's what you make it. Take your time, practice often, pay attention to your lover's signals, and most of all, enjoy yourself.
The G-Spot
This does exist. And in over half of the women out there, it works better than anything else you can do to cause a strong, prolonged orgasm. The original name is the Grafenberg spot, after a doctor, Earnest Grafenberg, who documented the area (which may have been known by people here and there throughout history) in the fifties.
This "spot" is a small "mound" of tissue inside the vagina, between a penny and quarter in size, which responds to being pressed upon. It's almost certainly not the skenes glands, (which are located around the urethra, which is behind the G-spot area), as has been suggested by a few people. In fact, the G-Spot is the tissue in that raised area of the vagina, which has a higher concentration of sexual nerves, and produces hormones similar to those made by the male's prostate gland.
A sort of map to the area -- Imagine your lover lying on her back, legs spread. Your position is between her legs. You would slide a finger inside her vagina, palm up. With your finger straight back, middle finger is best, you would curve it toward yourself, gently, as if you were gesturing to someone to "come here". In doing so, the area you press on should be pretty near her "G-Spot" area. If you know enough to follow the urethra (the tube that leads from the bladder to where the pee comes out), along the inside of her vagina, you may feel a slight swelling (if she's excited) at the point where the g-spot is.
She must be excited, especially if either you or she is new to the g-spot, for the g-spot to have any real effect at all. It's not the ideal area for getting your lover aroused.
But when she is excited, this area (more often than not) is the best way to bring her to orgasm. You work your way back to it gradually, teasing her (typically, this works best) with your fingers, slowly and gently. It's easier to hit the right area with two fingers, but this may not be comfortable for her, depending on how "tight" she is at that moment. When you have your fingers around the right area, try gently pressing, not too quickly. The movement should be fairly rhythmic. It's typically best if you're licking her clitoris (or near it, depending on the woman) at the same time...don't make a big deal out of the "quest", this will often make her feel self-conscious, or distracted. The licking should seem to be the primary activity.
When you find the right area, she should respond by getting more excited. Most of the vagina's inside surface isn't really that sexually sensitive, believe it or not...most of the excitement of randomly inserting fingers is more psychological than from the actual stimulation.
While more complicated techniques work with some women, some of the time, the best basic technique, upon finding the g-spot, is to continue to slowly, rhythmically press on it, while licking her clitoris (for a few women, the labia (lips) are sensitive to licking, too).
This should cause her to build up to an orgasm.
A G-Spot orgasm is different (always, when it works at all) than any other kind women have. It is possible, with some women, to have different qualities and kinds of orgasms from vaginal, clitoral, anal, and even breast stimulation...but with other women, those kinds of orgasms are all pretty much the same. But the G-Spot orgasm not only feels different; it also causes her body to react in a different way.
First, it often causes a "push out" orgasm. The area around, or "above" (farther inside, that is) your fingers seems to swell up or to contract toward the opening of her vagina.
If you find the right combination of pushing back when this happens, and slacking off to let it push out, you can cause (in perhaps half of the women) her orgasm to continue happening, long after normal ones would have subsided. In some women you can even keep her at a "plateau" (raised level) of sexual excitement, like a prolonged orgasm (or a little less than one) afterward, building up to an even bigger climax. I've managed to keep this pattern of build-up, orgasm, plateau, orgasm, build-up, orgasm for over four hours, with one lover. We stopped when, though she wanted to go on, she was so exhausted that she really had to stop.
That brings me to another important point; G-Spot orgasms sometimes causes a huge amount (relatively speaking) of lubrication (juices, wetness)...far more than even the most excited woman gets from "conventional" stimulation. It's a good thing, too, because otherwise g-spot orgasms can only be prolonged for as long as she does not get raw/sore from it...which is yet another reason to be gentle. When that extra wetness combines with the push-out orgasm, you get actual ejaculation...like a guy, but much better tasting. The built up juices can shoot out in such volume that you, or she, may be afraid that she lost control of her bladder. That is (almost always) not what happened. The fear that she peed can be enhanced by the fact that the urethra is behind the g-spot, so that in rare cases the woman can sometimes get the feeling that she needs to pee, even though she does not.
In reality, in both men and women, enough sexual excitement prevents peeing, unless you try really hard. This is a built-in reflex, because urine is something of a spermicide. The "pee hard-on" that men get in the morning is partially his body taking advantage of this reflex, to keep him from accidentally wetting the bed with the urine that built up while he was sleeping.
Licking the Alphabet
Believe it or not, licking the alphabet, one letter at a time, on and around her clitoris/vulva actually works. The real goal is to be able to keep regular, rhythmic motions going, but to change them in some gradual pattern that isn't so different it throws her off, but isn't so redundant that she grows insensitive to it. The alphabet is probably the longest chain of shapes that you can be sure to repeat smoothly and rhythmically, without loosing track of where you are. Unless you are a victim of public education, I suppose, in which case you may have to stick to the letters of your name, or the numbers one through nine (being too confused by where to put the zero).
I would not suggest combining this with the g-spot stimulation, at least not with the intention of really giving her g-spot orgasms. The two techniques conflict a bit, as the focus of arousal is so different.
Around the World -- or the Sea, Anyway
Once you have your lover "used to" the whole g-spot stimulation thing (she will actually get "better at" cumming from g-spot stimulation, the more it's done to her), you can try, occasionally and for variety, stimulating her g-spot until she starts to really respond, then switching back and forth between pushing (as gently as normally necessary for that particular lover) her g-spot and pressing the length of your finger on the opposite side, as per the last section. Sometimes you can even get to the point of doing one press on one side, one on the other, back and forth, which can feel amazing and a bit "what on earth are you doing? No, I didn't say to stop" to her. Most likely, though, it'll work better if you switch every several seconds, not every time you press.
I should not fail to mention the cervix. You may not have even noticed it, by touch, but it's there and once you find it you'll wonder how you missed it (unless your lover has had histerectomy, in which case it's missing, no big deal). This is yet another area where you definitely want to build up to stimulating, as it can actually be painful to even touch if she's not excited enough...but, despite assumptions to the contrary, it can be very useful for stimulation, done correctly.
As I said, issue #1 is that she must be very aroused. Well, bearing in mind that everyone's different, of course.
The Cervix is also about 180 degrees around from the g-spot, but it's in much deeper (typically). It leads back to the rest of her reproductive organs, like the womb. If she's pregnant, don't mess with this at all. Watch out, too, for IUDs and diaphrams and the like. Hopefully you are on good enough terms with her to already know if she's using one of these contraceptive devices, which fit over the cervix.
The cervix is not an abtract "area", it actually juts up, like a little flesh mesa or something. It has an opening at its very "peak", but this is normally closed pretty tightly.
The best way to start is to gently caress around the sides and base of the cervix. Remember, she should already be very "hot" before you even start this part. Eventually, build up to circling it with one or two fingers, around and around, gently staying in contact with it so she can feel the motion through the cervix itself. How hard you can press depends a lot on the specific woman. This is also something that probably works better as a change of pace, not the "main course" of the cunnilingus session...unless she really gets into it.
That circling motion may get another round of "what on earth are you doing...hey! Don't STOP doing it!".
You may even, and in my experience this rarely works, but works well when it does, be able to press directly on the tip, with your finger or fingers, pressing it the way a penis might if one happened be entering her at the right angle to hit her cervix.
Taste
Anyone who likes, say, coffee or beer should have no room to complain about the way most women taste. No, I don't mean it tastes like coffee or beer, genius...I mean that beer and coffee are, at best, acquired tastes...they are not naturally pleasant to a human being, no matter how much your addiction to one or both has convinced you otherwise. Most people, whether they remember it or not, had to learn to like the taste of beer/coffee, and had the desire to be Like the Adults to help them along. Well, I'd list taking pleasure in cunnilingus above drinking addictive beverages on the list of things that prove maturity. Aside from that, there's the fact that many people who give it an honest try genuinely enjoy the taste/smell.
Rest
If you do have a lover who can experience repeated, extended orgasms from g-spot stimulation, and you (for some reason) need to take a break, the absolute best way to do this is to give her a clitoral orgasm. This can be as simple as pushing even more gently and slowly on her g-spot, while giving her clitoris more attention (it can often take more direct and firm stimulation by that level of arousal), so that her next orgasm is really caused by the licking, not the pressing of your finger(s). This works because, with many women anyway, clitoral orgasms leave her feeling very sensitive, and momentarily satisfied (or at least wanting to take a breather).
There is, on the other hand, a very interesting trick for staying "in the game" when your tongue is getting tired. Switch from moving your tongue directly, to using your whole jaw to move your tongue, by slightly opening and closing it. If you tire of this, move your entire head, so that it's doing the actual work that makes your tongue move. When even your neck tires, it's on to the final backup-plan, but the one that works the longest; gently rock your entire body back and forth, at the same speed that you were doing each of the other, so that it's your body that's actually doing the work to move your tongue. For someone who hasn't built up the mighty endurance that's useful with a lover who can have hours of orgasms, this is a great trick. Of course it mainly works when you're going simpler, rhythmic motions...save the fancy tongue stuff for when your tongue's doing all of the work (you should be able to switch back to tongue-only motion regularly, as it gets rested).
Amazing! The Japanese promo literature is all correctly spelled, while the Slashdot story has at least three egregious errors. Unless "smurf", "shinny", and "Weib" are meant as some kind of sophisticated humor.
Ms. Anderson "Little johnny please pay attention"
Little Lohnny *watching pr0n on his headset"
Ms. Anderson " JOHNNY WHY IS YOUR HANDS IN YOUR PANTS!" *CLASS , GROSS*
Smurf the Weib (c) via PHS or wireless LAN on your shinny new wearable SH-4 32Bit RISC processor running Windows®CE3.0
Shinny? Do you wear it on your leg or something?! What am I missing!!
i hate pansy republicans
Its really a dumb idea. This whole wearable computer business. Why would I want to wear a computer? do I wear my remote control? do I wear my cell phone? do I wear my PDA?
I use a frying pan all the time, but do you see me lugging a pot on my head all day long!
I can see it now... First wearable computers.. Next edible computers.... And finally... disposable computers..
how lame.
This is the same thing that was posted a little while ago. It's being sold in the U.S. by Xybernaut.
That looks f'ing sexy as hell!
:)
Hmm, but of course I won't be approaching any women wearing that
this looks just like the xybernaut poma?
poma
feints within feints, wheels within wheels
wow. a wearable internet appliance. for the kids who just couldn't get beat up enough in school.
--
CmderTaco is an idiot
Every wearable computer to date that I've seen won't fly... because it's waaay to visible (See: All the Dork comments). Saying that, from the specs and (small) number of pictures of this one, it might actually be useable. If you can really put that thing in your pocket, and just have the pointer and HUD when you need it... well, maybe. It'd sure be a lot better then lugging around a lap top (at 11 oz and 5x3x1).
I'd like to see people actually wearing it. Is it fairly invisible? Does it look like you should have a helicopter hat on? Something in-between?
-Greg
Now you no longer need a high powered network to smurf the we(i)b. Do it from the comfort of the sofa or bed!
I'm sure some Slashdotters would find that aspect pretty useful.
While mocking a poor translation on the site's Q&A page may seem a bit trivial, I think that this is a valid portrayal of why this will not work well in the US. Not only will they not supply the necessary marketing hype to get this thing off of the shelves and on to peoples heads, but as evidenced by their site's translations they are hardly catering to an English speaking market. Furthermore, in a country whose citizens are as vain about their appearance as Americans are (I know, I'm one of them...), I doubt that walking/driving around with one of these carbuncles attatched to your face is going to catch on quickly...
Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. -- Benjamin Franklin
Or at least, I believe it is. It's been mentioned here before.
The Xybernaut Poma is their OEM version of the direct-from-Hitachi model. Fifteen hundred bucks US gets you delivery before the end of Q1 2002.
It runs Windows CE, has no audio inputs, and I don't think anyone on the wearables mailing list has actually gotten one yet to see what development will be like, but it's very interesting, at least.
Excuse my lack of Windows CE knowledge, but don't the vast majority of CE applications run on StrongARM processors instead of SH's? I thought SH-x's for WinCE were somewhat obsolete?
Oh, and seeing as how it hasn't been asked yet...
<Slashdot> Can we put Linux on it?
"[T]he single essential element on which all discoveries will be dependent is human freedom." -- Barry Goldwater
Here's a quick translation of the Japanese news release:
------
Industrial-use wearable Internet appliance launched in Japanese market
Hitachi, Ltd.'s venture company, Net-PDA, (CEO: Matsuoka Shigeru) will begin shipping the WIA-100NB wearable Internet appliance, with head-mounted display, from February 28.
Mobile computing needs are increasing with the spread of wireless communication infrastructure and Internet access from mobile phones.
The company completed an OEM licensing contract for wearable Internet appliances with the U.S. Xybernaut Corp. in June of 2001, and has conducted marketing in Japan. As a result, it judged that wearable Internet appliances are an effective solution for work environments such as clean rooms and machine rooms where printed materials cannot be used, as well as for hands-free viewing of blueprints and Internet/intranet access via PHS [a Japanese form of mobile phone] and wireless LAN.
The WIA-100NB, in order to meet these needs, weighs 310 grams for the main body, with the head-mounted display weighing a mere 80 grams, and the total package weighing less than 500 grams even with the addition of a pointing device. By rubbing the pointing device's optical sensor with a thumb, it is possible to move the cursor on the head-mounted display, allowing the operation of the unit in any position.
Used as terminals for improving work efficiency, wearable Internet applicances are predicted to form a major part of the market for portable information devices. The company aims to develop this valuable market further.
-------
Then it lists the specs, and where to buy it (here, but you'd better know Japanese).
Gosh a Beowulf cluster of these would be....you could just strap them all over your body and...
OK, I feel better now.
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety" - BF
The first lawsuit to allege that wearable internet appliances cause brain cancer will be filed in May, 2005.
From the Q&A on the website:
Q: Does it have focus adjustment?
A: It is not necessary. Screen image will be presented at 2 feet from your eye. To see it is exactly the same as you see real objects at 2 feet from your eye. If you need corrective eye glasses or contact lenses, you can use them while wearing the display.
Obviously the display is not 2 feet from your eye, i.e., sticking out from your forehead by two feet. So there must be some optic gimmick to make it appear 2 feet from your eye. What kind of gimmick is this that would never need focus adjustment for any reason, such as, oh I dunno, I have a big protruding forehead so my display is further from my eye than the next guy's? Can someone familiar with optics shed some light on this (no pun intended)?
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.
"...running Windows®CE3.0."
And where did they put the Reset button ?
Gak! It's bad enough trying to hold a conversation with someone who just has to answer their phone when it rings. Now it's going to be "You've got mail!"
And all those people who get useless calls on the bus. Now it's going to be like being on a bloody Borg ship!
Gotta get me one of those! :^)
One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
I, for one, am delighted to see this announcement. This appears to be very nearly the device that I have been saving my pennies to purchase. I had not actually expected to see one, though, so I was preparing to buy one of the Linux-based Sharp Zaurus thingies.
The fact that this dream device is being pre-announced is obviously a move to keep me from buying a Sharp in the immediate future. So that means that Hitachi must have found out that the production release of the Sharp is going to happen any day now.
So HOORAY! The Sharp is on the way!!!
Or not.
DONE!!!
not sure about the whole shinny thing though...
Oh god, that woman is John Romero!
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.
This is exactly the same as Poma from Xybernaut
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.
So now I can read slashdot everywhere I go, and won't have to ever be without it for more than 10 minutes. Maby I can get some first posts in too...
First off, for those who mentioned this looks like the Xybernaut Poma, you are correct.
From the main english Hitachi page: FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA, July 18, 2001 - Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE: HIT) and Xybernaut Corporation (NASDAQ: XYBR), today announced that Hitachi has entered into a license agreement under Xybernaut's broad patents for wearable computing and communications to develop a Wearable Internet Appliance (WIA) for the consumer market.
That said, I played around with one of those for a little bit when I visited the Xybernaut booth at Comdex. My thoughts? They are ok items. The screen projection is not too bad. Until you can focus one eye on the screen and simultaneously focus the other eye on faraway objects, you'll still only either chew gum or walk...if you know what I mean. The screen does flip up so both eyes can be used to focus on the task at hand when needed.
Someone asked about the input device. The one I played with (and you can see in the photos) has a hand-held input device. It has a touch screen which you move your finger (or rather thumb) around on to move the mouse pointer. I don't remember a keyboard, but I think another model might have had small keyboard you strap to your forearm. Otherwise, I think the model I played with had an on-screen keyboard you can bring up and tap out virtual keystrokes with the mouse pointer. This of course was some what a pain in the arse for me...but I guess YMMV.
This will be fairly useful in warehouse situations. Maybe on an assembly line: you can work on your task, and if computer assistance is needed, just flip the screen down and look up a part number or whatever. These still aren't the best for long-term computing sessions.
-A non-productive mind is with absolutely zero balance.
- AC
That all depends on what you're looking at.
"She's a West Texas girl, just like me" - G.W Bush Iraqis
Q: Wow, can you imagine a beowulf cluster of these?!
A: Yes I can, it's called a Borg Collective.
--
Damn the Emperor!
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!
Full color.Color depth is 18 bits, 260,000 colors
WTF? 18 bits?
Guys, isn't this great?! What a great day, when some day in the future, ENTIRE CITIES will be built around this technology!
I smell a new website akin to www.engrish.com ... just for /.
Someday (hopefully in my lifetime!) high-speed access will be pervasive, affordable, and not require constant hand-holding when used by ordinary people. When that happens, the IAs will come thick and fast. Until then, they're just another way to fritter away VC cash.
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.
The only thing that makes me nervous about these things is that essentially your eyeball is just a few millimeters from a bright light source. Has anyone seen any research information about the long-term effects of close-proximity displays? I've got a gut feeling that it just can't be good for your eyes.
It's bad enough that I'm a dork. Now I have to look like one, too?
$1500 bucks for an embedded processor, Windows CE driven headgear that will scare away potential mates and attract the law enforcement?
Other than the hands free viewing of pr0n, 800x600 on a 13 inch display at 24 inches probably WOULD make you go blind. Would it even be possible to read characters on the screen? Especially when it seems it would be more like a HUD than a monitor (i.e., look through, not look at).
I have been holding out for the olympus Eye-Trek
One of these days...
Acts of massive stupidity are almost never covered by warranty. --me.
When I take my laptop down the bar, girls might find me attractive. They might confuse me with a writer or something.
That'll never happen with one of these.
Countdown to Snow Crash!
;-)
Right now this is Just Another Geeky Toy, but it doesn't seem like it's that far of a leap from the numerous PDAs that people love to carry around.
Personally, I'm waiting for x-ray goggles!
-- D
now the excuse can go from:
"Sorry officer, I didn't see that other car, i was too busy shaving and drinking my coffee..."
to...
"Sorry officer, I didn't see that other car, i was too busy checking my e-mail and reading the latest stories on slashdot...."
Help! My shoes have a virus and my jacket just got caught in a nonzero loop!
I admit that the wearable idea is pretty intriguing, but wouldn't this be even easier to steal than a laptop?
Imagine walking down the street, surfing the web, when suddenly you feel someone jostle your side. Your expensive new Xybernaut is yoinked off you and the thief takes off at Mach 1 while you're still trying to click the Back button.
Until the price of wearable PCs drops down to the price of a cell phone (or world peace spontaneously occurs), a wearable PC will be like a sign that says "I'm a big, rich, nerd. Please rob me."
Must be the newest cadillac...
http://hitachi-magic-wand.com
Don't forget your G-Spotter Attachment Accessory!
Recently divx was ported to the Dreamcast (see the pocketdivx forum at http://forums.projectmayo.com) i wonder what kind of graphics chips this uses (i know the dc one uses the pvr in the dc for yuv overlay double buffering stretching soon flipping and a bunch of other complex things that would eat up a lot of cpu time)
Now you can be a lonely isolated loser out in public!
you`ll be laughing at this in a few years!
`Check this one out! Check your email on the move!! Yeah, but wait until you get home before you can reply!`
Surely the future of communications is speech, not converting what you would normally have said into words, and then typing them in?
As if listening to cell phone conversations wasn't annoying enough, now we'll be listening to AIM conversations as well.
"...I love you. Smiley face. Ok, I've got to go. I'll see you tonight. Wink smiley face."
"No, you log off first. No, you first..."
Blah!
Then you grow the seeds...
Then you eat the seeds...
This isn't a MS bashing comment or anything, but WinCE seems to me like the wrong OS to use for a device like this... The only consumers who are going to be interested in this device are, well, Geeks! Geeks would much prefer a Linux or BSD based OS for this type of device.. something that can really be played around with.
I don't see many applications in a corporate setting either, and even if there was, corporations can pay people to develop apps on whatever OS they want.
Either way.. it's probably way too early on for this type of device to catch on.
Hitachi basically needed something that was going to get them to market ASAP. Windows CE is essentially the only embedded OS that has enough integration support to maximize the cost and time to market aspects of this product, far more than Linux or VxWorks (WindRiver: who I keep hearing worse things about every week).
Now, the product itself looks really dumb, but hey, that's the Japanese market for you.
I don't want to put anything that transmits radio waves near my body. These corporate fools who create this technology never bother to test its effects on people. Or no, I should say they do know now that cell phones are dangerous; that's proven. So why should I put some Hitachi piece of junk on my hip? Wanton lust for technology will not make me do it.
I was just wondering whether this is the kind of
device Bill Gates hides his face behind when he
appears as a
slashdot icon from time to time...
This kind of thing is really usefull...in niche markets, not for joe shmoe. Think about refineries or oil-platforms and imagine having the technical drawings right in front of you when you're repairing/lookinf for something. Or what about military applications? Battlefield awareness, anyone? And then there is the medical aspect, or maybe airport security (to name a hot topic).
Damn, where do you guys get your clue-by-four's? I think I'd like to use one round about now...
But with out a hatachi brand name...
autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
I always have to carry around an extra toothpick to reset my WindowsCE device. It only locks up about 1 time every 6 months.
Why not just use the stylus?
autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
you'll be the last person picked to play in a dodge ball game
Only because most geeks are sedentary. At my school, dodgeball players were picked based on the performance that they had demonstrated, not on any character stereotype. Sure, the agile geek might get picked near the end before the first couple games, but that can change quickly.
See also "Recess." (Yes, I know Di$ney is evil, but still...)
Will I retire or break 10K?
I thought I could only get so much internet porn a day. Now, I can get it while I drive, go to the bathroom, and attend church. Technology is so great. I thought I was going to have to sign up for the playboy service that sends dirty pictures to your cell phone to get my daily fix, this is gonna be great.
If your not cheating your not trying. If your not trying your not winning and if your not winning why play?
Oh god oh why?? why WinCE 3.0??? it has to be the single worst oparating system (mobile or otherwise) since the dawn of mankind. _Any_ OS is better. Its devoid of even the most basic functionality and features. Its unstable, its full of shit, and just to top it off, its made by them... Just look at the Pocket PC user sites, the most popular programs are just utilities that add basic things like being-able-to-switch-and-close-tasks... why would they leave this out of such an OS? were they in a big rush to finish the entire thing in under a week? because thats what it looks like. But seriously, could someone please tell me why it is so crap?
This comment does not represent the views or opinions of the user.
so when I see something cool, I can SHOW someone else instead of just describing it. also, with the video stream being captured to a more powerful machine, I could teach it to recognize stuff, so I could ask "where did I put my keys?" and it would respond by showing the last captured frame with my keys in the picture. Add some face recognition stuff and I don't have to remember names anymore, they'd just automatically show in my status bar when someone approaches.
it'd be nice to change the focus to make the image appear farther out so you could walk and have GPS sensors point out items of interest as you go....
I wonder how well this thing would capture video and audio from a USB cam and transmit it to a remote machine on a wireless lan?
"The Most Fun Possible on 4 wheels" is at SunBuggy in Las Vegas
Yes, I know there are geeks out there who would have a display adapter wired directly into their brains if they could - but we're talking minority.
I just don't see what is so wonderful about a wearable computer. Yes, there are probably niche applications where they will be cool like someone who needs computer access while doing work with their hands, or some other type of function. Handicap accessibility, yup - great. But again, we're talking niche here. As an IT technician, do I really want to walk around to people's desks with a wearable PC on my head just to pull up reference docs? Nah - I'll take a laptop.
I know people swear one day we'll all talk to our computers or 'think' commands into them - but I sincerely doubt it. I for one think wearble headset computers with retinal displays will be the thing of sci-fi movies for ever except in niche areas. Me? My 3lb laptop is just fine. Just because we can doesn't mean we should.
Top Most Bizarre/Disturbing Error Messages
A slashdot headline which is actually correct and meaningful, even though it sounds like a Japanese motherboard manual telling you to get excited about an upcoming auction.
Why is Grand Theft Auto a much more serious crime than Reckless Driving?
If whitey-tighties make it uncomfortable for your sperm, just imagine what a Pentium 4 in your pocket will do.
Is it possible to intall some decent OS on it ? It would be nice to compile a kernel while jogging in the forest ;-)
-- javaDragon is an instance of JavaDragon.
No, actually you're mistaken. You still do look geeky whipping out a Palm Pilot. Only in very secluded gatherings of similar Palm-bearing geeks is that appropriate. Cell phones in grocery stores is just now becoming acceptable, although the true geeks are those who let the phone ring six or seven times just to have other people stare at them. A great litmus test for those geeks who are at least aware that they can't be objective rating geekfactor, is "the homeless chic". When you see a person using a device, and also holding "I will work for food" cardboard sign, you know you can use the device openly in public. Attention: the dangling cord attachment to the cell phone is not yet in use by the homeless guy = this is still geeky.
I've heard that some of the early versions of camcorders equipped with the Night Vision feature could "see" through various levels of clothing / materials. Of couse, some scientific method could be employed here in some pursuit of knowledge1. Ideal lighting conditions, ideal clothing for maximum effectiveness.
Anyone?
Then we could frag our way to/from school on the bus. You get come home to see that the bumpy ride home threw you off the ngWorldStats top 100, wait hell you can check that while your backtracking home because you missed your stop.
flak cannon = UT weapon immune to bumpy rides
I do believe I heard a Linux port to the SH-4 is underway. It may work already.
32MB ROM and 32MB RAM should rock. All it has to do is communicate and display.
Are there any CF 802.11b cards out yet?
Cpt_Kirks
pr0n!
pr0n, pr0n, pr0n, pr0n, pr0nitty pr0n, pr0n, pr0n, pr0000000n!
In London Docklands, their light railway public transportation system (that is, a monorail type system but with two rails) already has a very useful functionality where you can pull up the 'next trains' information on your mobile phone:
At Canary Wharf, Platform 1:
1 Bank 10 mins
2 PRINCE REGENT 17 MINS
3 PRINCE REGENT 37 MINS
You can also pull it up on the internet:
http://www.dlr.co.uk/daisy/
It's really quite useful for knowing when to leave the office to get on the train to Bank.
:-d.... I do think this is a pretty damn awesome piece of tech... except for the "winCe" bit... horrible OS.... But how hard would it be to seperate the display from the CPU. etc...? As for usefullness... i think this is probably the first usefull piece of tech ive seen in years... er the first significant advancement... of course the first few versions are gonna be trial and error crap... but i dont think it would be too hard for people to change the OS or to make user adjustable display elements.... such as transparency / display on-off / depth /distance...etc.... i dont think thats a problem at all...
Can you imagine if APPLE got it hands on this tech? That would be one heck of a computer.
--Idiots, Every single one of YOU, A flaming mass of conglomerated morons, hey wait a second, isnt that how RAID works?
Anyone know the expected retail price?
Being an SH-4 can I play my Dreamcast games with it. :)