Consumer
HotSpot Episode 10: Numi, The King of Toilets
April 29, 2013 2:09 pm | Videos | CommentsThis week on WDD's HotSpot: Kohler announces Numi, a feature-packed toilet that makes the bathroom the place to be. With a Bluetooth receiver that allows users to directly stream their music from a smartphone, the porcelain throne also features an SD card....
Guns are only as ‘smart’ as we are
April 29, 2013 9:48 am | by Stephanie Carmichael, Contributor | Blogs | CommentsI’m uncomfortable with the phrase "smart gun." Maybe that’s because the words make me think of Skynet in Terminator, or the great lesson to man about the dangers of artificial intelligence gussied up in a blockbuster action-movie franchise. While it’s probably not going to rebel and nearly exterminate all of mankind, in the wrong hands, real-world technology can become a tool for evil.
AT&T to sell home automation, security packages
April 26, 2013 11:48 am | by PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsAT&T Inc. is launching its home security and automation service in 15 cities Friday, with an eye toward getting customers hooked on security cameras, thermostats and locks they can control from phones and tablets. AT&T's "Digital Life" packages will be sold in cellphone stores in markets including Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and Miami.
Samsung profit at record high on smartphone boost
April 26, 2013 11:46 am | by YOUKYUNG LEE, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsSamsung Electronics said Friday its first quarter profit jumped to a record high as smartphone sales remained strong despite the April launch of an updated version of its flagship Galaxy phone. Sales of consumer electronics usually slow in the first three months of the year after the holiday shopping season...
Regulators feature constant on-time control architecture
April 26, 2013 10:16 am | Product Releases | CommentsAlpha and Omega Semiconductor Limited released AOZ1237, the latest addition to a family of high efficiency, easy-to-use synchronous EZBuck regulators featuring a proprietary Constant On-Time (COT) control architecture that enables smaller solutions and simplifies designs.
Computers are sorcery! Kill them with fire!
April 25, 2013 4:13 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsIt's hard to believe we were ever this dumb. And it's hard to believe the '90s ever happened. This wacky decade — when we were all still finding our digital bearings — spawned gems like "Komputer Tutor", a VHS series from "America's Digital Goddess", Kim Komando, that takes simple computer concepts and dumbs them down even further ... and further and further. It's comedy gold.
The newest storybook: Scannable pjs
April 25, 2013 1:49 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor | Blogs | CommentsIt was really only a matter of time before QR codes invaded bedtime, but at least they made it interesting. Smart PJs (patent-pending) are a new kind of clothing complete with QR code-like scannable patches that could make bedtime a little more fun.
With wave of the hand, researchers create touch-based interfaces
April 25, 2013 11:34 am | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsResearchers previously have shown that a depth camera system, such as Kinect, can be combined with a projector to turn almost any surface into a touchscreen. But now researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have demonstrated how these touch-based interfaces can be created almost at will, with the wave of a hand.
Going through smartphone withdrawal
April 25, 2013 9:34 am | by Meaghan Ziemba, Editor, WDD | Blogs | CommentsI recently attended a concert in Madison, WI. I placed my phone in my back pocket to avoid carrying a purse and to have it easily accessible when I wanted to update my status and snap a few photos. Unfortunately, after a visit to the facilities and a horrifying plop, I knew that I was in trouble.
VCXO delivers small size combined with low jitter
April 24, 2013 1:55 pm | IQD Frequency Products, Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsIQD’s new IQXV-40 series Voltage Controlled Crystal Oscillator (VCXO) launching at Design West 2013 satisfies market demand for smaller package styles and low jitter. Measuring just 3.2 x 2.5mm and housed in a hermetically sealed package with a grounded metal lid for low EMI radiation...
New LED streetlight design curbs light pollution
April 24, 2013 1:10 pm | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsStreetlights illuminate the night, shining upon roadways and sidewalks across the world, but these ubiquitous elements of the urban environment are notoriously inefficient and major contributors to light pollution that washes out the night sky.
Review: Galaxy S4 decent, but filled with gimmicks
April 24, 2013 10:39 am | by ANICK JESDANUN, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsI've seen Android phones get better and more powerful over the years, as Google and phone manufacturers pack devices with more and more features. There comes a time, though, when less is more. I'm afraid we've reached that time.
CBS buys small stake in mobile TV startup Syncbak
April 23, 2013 10:19 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsCBS Corp. says it has made a minority investment in Syncbak, a technology company that allows mobile device users to pick up signals from their local TV stations over the Internet. Founded in Marion, Iowa, in 2009, Syncbak allows people who download the app to watch local programming, even over a cellphone connection.
Yahoo's email service in China to close in August
April 23, 2013 10:16 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsYahoo's email service in China will close this summer as part of an arrangement worked out with its partner in that country, Alibaba Group. The service is scheduled to close Aug. 19. Yahoo is recommending users of its free email service in China transfer their accounts to another provider such as Aliyun, an email alternative offered by Alibaba.
iBeetle: Everything you never wanted in an infotainment system
April 22, 2013 2:59 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Associate Editor | Blogs | CommentsWe’ve talked A LOT about safety and innovation when it comes to infotainment systems in cars. We've talking more regulation, less regulation, new systems and crazy ideas. The discussion revolves primarily around how to integrate electronics
Portable ATMs, phone-charging in China quake zone
April 22, 2013 10:46 am | by GILLIAN WONG, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe tent village that sprang up in two days to house quake survivors in mountain-flanked Lushan is no ordinary refugee camp. China's full range of disaster response is on display: Trucks with x-ray equipment, phone-charging stations, bank tellers-on-wheels — even a tent for insurance claims.
STMicroelectronics powers advanced generation of smart IPTV
April 22, 2013 10:24 am | by STMicroelectronics | News | CommentsSTMicroelectronics, a global semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications and a top supplier of set-top box ICs, has revealed that its Orly system-on-chip is powering a new generation of advanced set-top boxes from NTT Plala, a leading Internet / IPTV service provider in Japan.
Former Google CEO shares vision in tech treatise
April 22, 2013 9:38 am | by MICHAEL LIEDTKE, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsSome illuminating books already have been written about Google's catalytic role in a technological upheaval that is redefining the way people work, play, learn, shop and communicate. Until now, though, there hasn't been a book providing an unfiltered look from inside Google's brain trust.
This is the most ridiculous phone ever
April 19, 2013 3:48 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor | Blogs | CommentsThe words “mega” and “phone” should never be combined when it comes to cellphones, but that didn’t stop Samsung from making the most ridiculous phone yet. The company has blown away the competition when it comes to screen size with their new 6.3 inch (diagonally) and 5.8 inch Galaxy Mega phones. For the sake of comparison, the Apple iPhone 5 is 4 inches.
Ubiquitous computing: A gadget for every body part
April 19, 2013 12:50 pm | by Stephanie Carmichael, Contributor | Blogs | CommentsAs a culture, we’re obsessed with cool gadgets, and we’ve come a long way from the household coffeemaker. Now we’re creating motion-sense devices that can control others from afar with just a flick of the wrist. Enter the Myo armband, which shows how dependent on technology we’ve become. We want to do everything with one fancy gizmo.
Google's 1Q shows more progress in mobile ads
April 19, 2013 12:09 pm | by MICHAEL LIEDTKE, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsGoogle's latest quarterly results provided further proof that the Internet search leader is figuring out how to make more money as Web surfers migrate from personal computers to mobile devices. The first-quarter numbers released Thursday show that a recent decline in Google's average ad prices is easing.
Twitter can give power to the people
April 19, 2013 11:28 am | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsTwitter can easily teach people about social movements such as Occupy Wall Street and even entice them to participate, according to a new study by a Michigan State University education researcher. The social networking site – which lets users read, send and group together 140-character messages known as tweets....
Intelligent network interface controller features a USB 2.0 high-speed device port and an integrated coax transceiver
April 18, 2013 3:10 pm | Microchip Technology Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsMicrochip Technology announced the OS81118, the first MOST150 Intelligent Network Interface Controller (INIC) with a USB 2.0 high-speed device port and an integrated coax transceiver. The MOST150 technology was successfully deployed in the first car models in 2012.
Industrial mobile handheld computer utilizes the Windows CE 6.0 R3 operating system
April 18, 2013 2:58 pm | Adlink Technology | Product Releases | CommentsADLINK Technology announced the IMX-9000, an industrial mobile handheld computer using the Windows CE 6.0 R3 operating system. Combining high-performance RFID, a barcode scanner and GPRS/WLAN wireless transmission functions to satisfy diverse working requirements, the IMX-9000—with superior resistance to impact, water, and dust—can be applied in a variety of industries....
Vent designed to provide dust and splash protection for acoustic openings
April 17, 2013 5:02 pm | W.L. Gore & Associates | Product Releases | CommentsThe new GAW113 acoustic vent from W. L. Gore & Associates’ Portable Electronic Vents group is designed to provide dust and splash protection for acoustic openings in portable electronic devices such as scanners, two-way radios, tablet and laptop PCs, and other devices where reliable performance is essential.
