Tomorrow's Coolest Tech

conq writes "BusinessWeek has an interesting piece on some of the Coolest Products currently being developed. It includes a product from Plantronics Bijoux, a headset that looks like jewelery. The earbuds fit snugly and the speakers hang around the neck. "The set is as stylish as any pair of earrings and a matching pendant." Another product making the list, ultrathin MicroMedia Paper as a basic media-player."

Comments

Speaker?

[HTH NE1]

The earbuds fit snugly and the speakers hang around the neck.

It's a telephone headset: the speakers are in the earbuds, it is the microphone that hangs down.

Re:Speaker?

[Seumas]

Anyway, who wants earbuds? I hate earbuds. Even for a phone. I hate my bluetooth earpiece because of that (and the fact that wearing it automatically makes me a total dick).

Re:Speaker?

[heinousjay]

Pssst... it's not the earpiece.

(I'm kidding. I just can't resist a big fat meatball over the plate.)

Nokia Strapup phone bracelet downright Laputian

[HTH NE1]

The Strapup isn't really a phone. It's a device that you program with personal movements or gestures to trigger relevant text messages. For example, when you dance, your motion prompts the transmission of text that lists nearby nightclubs to friends. The idea is to allow you to communicate without wasting precious time talking -- or typing.

For it is plain, that every word we speak is, in some degree, a diminution of our lungs by corrosion, and, consequently, contributes to the shortening of our lives. An expedient was therefore offered, "that since words are only names for things, it would be more convenient for all men to carry about them such things as were necessary to express a particular business they are to discourse on." And this invention would certainly have taken place, to the great ease as well as health of the subject....

[M]any of the most learned and wise adhere to the new scheme of expressing themselves by things; which has only this inconvenience attending it, that if a man's business be very great, and of various kinds, he must be obliged, in proportion, to carry a greater bundle of things upon his back, unless he can afford one or two strong servants to attend him. I have often beheld two of those sages almost sinking under the weight of their packs, like pedlars among us, who, when they met in the street, would lay down their loads, open their sacks, and hold conversation for an hour together; then put up their implements, help each other to resume their burdens, and take their leave.

But for short conversations, a man may carry implements in his pockets, and under his arms, enough to supply him; and in his house, he cannot be at a loss. Therefore the room where company meet who practise this art, is full of all things, ready at hand, requisite to furnish matter for this kind of artificial converse.

Another great advantage proposed by this invention was, that it would serve as a universal language, to be understood in all civilised nations, whose goods and utensils are generally of the same kind, or nearly resembling, so that their uses might easily be comprehended. And thus ambassadors would be qualified to treat with foreign princes, or ministers of state, to whose tongues they were utter strangers.

-- Jonathan Swift, "Gulliver's Travels"

Some more cool vaproware

[SharpFang]

http://www.brp.com/en-CA/Media.Center/Whats.New/1/ 09.07.2004.htm
Planned: 2025

Philips Momento reinvents "random access" video

[HTH NE1]

If you've ever been a fan of snow-globe souvenirs, you'll gravitate to the Momento digital-video player. Like a snow-globe, the Momento is designed to fit in your palm. Thanks to motion sensors, it turns on when you approach it. The sensors allow you to move from video clip to clip by shaking the device. You can transfer clips from your camera-phone via Bluetooth, so there are no messy wires to tangle or to mar the streamlined aesthetic of the ball-like gadget.

The team at Philips Design came up with the idea of Momento as an example of a video player that could function without any standard navigational feature like buttons or dials. While it has plans to make it, Philips predicts that a device based on this concept could hit the market in three to five years.

Philips: putting the "random" back into "random access".

Not just cool; Chilling, in fact, like in Siberia.

[Anonymous Coward]

Hopefully, this will go better than their attempt with the .Audio 110 headsets, which was more or less copied after the Icemat Siberia headset.

Pretty stylish thing there =)

-JaL

Great Gadgets

[satcomdaddy1]

Don't confuse these wafer-thin devices with other prototypes of "electronic paper" on the market, mainly targeted for publishing text. Lunar Design's MicroMedia Paper -- in concept stage only -- is a highly visual, rather than text-driven, concept.

"But Sir, it's only a 'waffer thin device'"

Is it just me, or does the 'snowglobe' video device conjure up images of "Help me Obi-Wan"?

Re:Great Gadgets

[SharpFang]

feels more like Spielberg's AI world, with all that "cute" yet inherently scary in its underlying, almost sensibly evil technology.
You can almost feel the ball to drop to the floor, break and recall thought to be long-erased family pics of your evil uncle, posing with your wife and daughter whom he later murdered.

Philips Illusion home-entertainment system

[HTH NE1]

To operate this minimalist home-entertainment center, you must unleash your inner Harry Potter. Grab hold of the Wand, essentially an intuitive remote control, pictured here atop the system. Point the Wand to activate a component via motion sensors, and then wave it to control its actions.

For example, if you want to increase the volume, gesture upward. If you want to fast-forward a DVD, wave it to the right. The faster you move, the quicker your action will be.

Until someone throws an electric pencil across the system's on/off sensitive airspace. Lose the wand and go with hand gestures and substitute "Harry Potter" with "Zaphod Beeblebrox".

Last slide

[dcapel]

Whoever designed the last slide's product has been watching the revolution media info :)

Looks bulky

[bdulac]

If you ask me (which most of you did not) I think that wearing a headset and mic around your neck is still to bulky and stupid looking.

I can't wait for smellovision and...

[g-san]

Be great when we get olfactory tracks and sensory tracks on our media, then the hi-tech jewelry stuff will really take off. I can have a chain from my ear hooked to my nose, then though a hole in my lip, down my shirt to my...

Headset

[Carpe PM]

It would be nice if they could make a telephone headset look like the diamond tiara I wear when I'm doing MS tech support. It would help me keep the proper attitude toward the peons I have to deal with.

Are buttons really that hard?

[AuMatar]

I mean comeon- are there really some people who can't understand buttons to the point we need to make everything motion based? And are those people really going to have the patience and intelligence to train it?

And the braclet thing- not only is that a recipie or mistaken messages, it'd get you blacklisted from my phone on the first time.

Re:Are buttons really that hard?

[woolio]

No. But operating under the assumption that everything should be motion-based is a great way to drum up some publications!!!

How about something long the lines of :
"Adaptive Motion-based Detection for Multi-User Collaborative Controls"
(with application to television viewing)

VapidVapourVare

[RandomInAction]

Don't confuse these wafer-thin devices with other prototypes of "electronic paper" on the market, mainly targeted for publishing text. Lunar Design's MicroMedia Paper -- in concept stage only

Yeah thats right don't confuse with existing prototypes, beacuse Lunar Design's MicroMedia Paper is in the does not yet exist stage only.

Flexiable/foldable electronic paper, capable of full color video has been in the concept stage for a long time.

The other products look damm fine though.