The Gadgets Page

I talked about the WidgetStation previously. It’s one of a new category of ambient displays—devices that will sit next to your computer (or on a desk with no computer) and provide a display of useful information, avoiding taking up space on your screen.

While WidgetStation is neat in theory, it’s not available yet, and it will be expensive. If you just need a simple display to tell you the latest headlines or stock quotes, there’s an alternative. Mister Tipster, from FeedVision, is a text-based display that works with Windows to display anything in the RSS syndication format. This means you can have a display of headlines, stock quotes, or posts from your favorite weblog.

This unit hooks to any PC (Windows XP or Vista certified) with a USB cable. It provides a basic display—just 4 lines of text—but Mister Tipster does one job and does it well. It’s available now, and starts at $99. It even comes in three colors, and a “Pro” version includes alert lights that can let you know when keywords you define appear in the RSS feed.

The included software is easy to use, and lets you choose one or more RSS feeds from a database. Headlines are displayed as they appear from any of the feeds. You can also define keywords that light up one of the indicators in the Pro version or blink the display in the basic version. If you see an interesting headline on the Tipster display, a couple of clicks on the software’s icon will bring up the full article.

For system administrators and hackers, their use of the open RSS format makes it very easy to use this display for just about any text.

FeedVision even offers customized Tipsters for businesses to give away to clients. A device with a custom faceplate advertising your company can sit on the client’s desk and display your company’s stock price or special offers. While it’s expensive for a giveaway item, companies with valuable clients might find it worthwhile.

While I’m sure there will be tons of super-colorful information displays available in the coming years, Mister Tipster is here now and immediately useful. I’m tempted to cover my desk with them…

Some people can never have enough screen space – for example, gamers and system administrators. With more and more applications (such as watching videos) using a computer’s full screen, various devices are beginning to appear designed to give you a bit of extra space for a list of incoming email, IM alerts, server status messages, or the latest stock quotes or sports scores.

One of the nicest we’ve seen so far at CES is WidgetStation from Emtrace Technologies. WidgetStation is a clock with two LCD screens, each of which can display different “widgets” such as clocks, email lists, weather reports, or calendars.

Widgetstation is scriptable by advanced users and they plan to have a wide variety of widgets available online. The nice thing about this unit is that it is an independent low-power computer itself, with a WiFi connection – it can sit on your desk displaying your calendar and stock prices even if your computer is turned off.

Now the bad news: Like many of the products at CES, it isn’t available yet. According to Emtrace, the product will be available in the second quarter of 2007, with a price of about $250. I hope they make the deadline because I would find this product very useful, although the price would have to go down before it became practical for people who aren’t information crazy like myself.

Microsoft was showcasing their XBox 360 with various games. Guitar Hero I and Guitar Hero II have been available for a while for the Playstation 2, but soon it will be available for XBox 360. We played with it for a few minutes at the Microsoft booth. They didn’t take a picture of me when I rocked the house, but I took a picture of Matt Strebe when he tried it out.

The gameplay was exactly the same as the Playstation 2 version. The graphics were a little crisper, but when I was playing, all I cared about was the big red, yellow, and green buttons flying by on the screen. The XBox 360 version adds nothing compared to the less expensive console version. It’s nice to see that XBox has one game that isn’t a first person shooter or racing game, but PS2 had them beat by months. Sadly, I have still yet to find a reason to plunk down the big bucks for the XBox 360 console.

The technology to detect brain wave states has been available for a while, but Ologic and Neurosky have created a computer controller that detects two brain waves. They’ve assigned the concepts of “attention” and “meditation” to the two brain waves. I tried to test their headset, but I have too much hair for it to work, so we had our correspondent, Matthew Strebe, try it out.

They had us in a room in the game HalfLife, navigating with the mouse. The focus of the game was to move the objects on the screen. “Attention” moves the object toward you (using the gravitation device) and “meditation” levitates the object. I was unable to to get anything to work because my hair got in the way. Matt, however, was able to move and levitate many of the objects on the screen.

I talked to Dr. KooHyoung Lee, the CTO at Neurosky. He said that they were able to test the product on a small sample of ADD children and Alzheimer’s sufferers. The ADD children showed an improvement in concentration in as little as two weeks. Most showed improvement within three months. Sadly, there was no significant improvement in the Alzheimer’s sufferers. He was quick to point out that their technology was only tested on a small sample, which made me like him even more.

This technology has been around for a while, but I like that there are companies out there trying to harness the power of our minds.

This watch is first on my list of things I want, but can’t buy. It’s a small watch from Aigo that plays MP3s, movies and even has eBook reading capability. I played with it for a few minutes before I even asked if it could tell time. Fortunately, it tells time.

The only catch? You can’t buy it yet (if ever).

It’s pretty obvious why we were clamoring for it when you see the list of features:

• Video player
• E-Book reader
• Digital voice recorder
• Photo and file browser
• Clock interface with time and date dislayed on the same screen.
• MP3 player
• Rechargeable Li-ion battery

It’s the best product that I can’t buy that I’ve seen at CES so far this year. We even asked if we could buy the displays after the show. The few displays at their booth are the only ones that exist, however. They couldn’t sell us their prototypes. This is what I love about CES: I get to play with prototypes and talk to the people who invented them.

We just got out of the Panasonic press conference. Sadly, they spent the entire time trying to convince me that plasma televisions are better than LCD televisions. They completely ignored their audio technologies and only mentioned their awesome cameras in passing.

I am the closest thing Panasonic has to a fan. I’m their one passionate user, but their press conference didn’t speak to me. It sounded like they were talking to stockholders.

Their press kit came with these earbuds. I have a particularly hard time with earbuds. After trying these ones out, I’m pretty impressed. The bass sounds great and they actually stay in my ears. I didn’t give them the jogging test yet, but for casual use, they’re perfect.

Too bad the press conference didn’t tell us anything about them…

Here is an article from CNN Money about a partnership announced between Ford and Microsoft.

• CNN Money – Microsoft, Ford reportedly set to unveil wireless pact – Jan. 1, 2007

They are talking about a system that will be in the new Ford cars that will let them wirelessly download email, MP3s and allow you to talk hands-free on your cell phone. It just shows me that Ford doesn’t get it. I don’t need my car to download MP3s.

Here is a list of five things that the tech-saavy person needs from their car:

• Several Electrical Plugs: I want to plug in whatever I need, whether it’s my laptop, cell phone charger or a DVD player. Preferrably, I would like a plug for every seat, an extra plug for the driver’s seat and two plugs in the trunk. Sure, I can use a converter, but why should I? If you want to make me happy put some REAL electrical plugs in the car instead of those nearly useless cigarette lighter units.

• Gas-Efficiency: Why are they wasting time trying to get my car to download MP3s when I’m paying almost three dollars for one gallon of gas? Being gas efficient is just as high-tech as MP3s. Wow me with a car that can get 50 MPG without plugging it into the wall. That’s the kind of gadgetry I can really get behind!

• Drink-Holders: I don’t think car companies realize how much we live in our cars. I want built-in drink holders that will hold ANY drink I want. This technology hasn’t been perfected yet and convenience stores and beverage companies are constantly trying to create containers that will work in our cars’ pathetic drink holders. If I have to commute for an hour in traffic, I don’t always want a coffee. Maybe I’ll want a Big Gulp. Maybe I’ll want a soda in a bottle. Impress me by inventing a drink holder that will work with whatever drink I might be obsessed with right now. When I’m driving from one end of the country to another, I’m going to be drinking a wide variety of drinks. Make a drink holder that works with all of them and you’ll have my heart.

• Unique Design: All the cars look the same. Right now, you can choose between sedan, van, compact and SUV. That’s it. Every car from every manufacturer falls into those categories. I want a car that looks DIFFERENT. That’s why the VW Beetle, the P.T. Cruiser and that funny box of a Scion are interesting to folks. They don’t look like all the other cars. Sure, they pigeon-holed the Beetle into the compact car category, but nothing else looks like it. Quit designing the same car over and over. Give me something completely different.

• Standardized Stereo Units: It is so difficult to change the stereo in a car that there are technicians who are hired to do that every day. A smart car company would adopt standardized stereo units that can be swapped out easily. To prevent theft, they should require a key or RFID tag of some sort, but I want to be able to just pull it out of my car like an old 8-track tape. I want to be able to swap easily between a GPS system, fully functional stereo or even a DVD player for the passenger seat. I don’t want to have to worry about whether there is a free technician to install my new GPS system. I want to be able to just pull out the old one and easily plug in the new technology. Since I expect my car to last longer than the lastest technology, I want to be able to replace the stereo without involving anyone else.

It seems like car companies are wasting their resources trying to get their cars to wirelessly download MP3s and have a person online who can unlock your car remotely when what I really need is pretty simple. Stop listening to what other companies tell you what you need and start listening to your customers. We’re here, screaming our needs to you and it feels like you never listen.

Tech Digest has released the twenty strangest gadgets of 2006. Some of them were featured here, like the Beer Belly, but others are new to even me.

• Tech Digest: The 20 strangest gadgets of 2006

I had no idea that there were so many useless gadgets being created. I usually reserve this kind of amazement for a visit to Brookstone. My favorite of all is the luminescent clothing. Sure, it might be superficial if you’re using it at a disco, but if you could buy a glowing jacket for when you’re jogging in the dark, wouldn’t you?

Via: Meriblog: Meri Williams’ Weblog » links for 2006-12-28

Last year at CES, I was able to test all the games for the Xavix console. Now that Nintendo has released Wii, it seems that active games are all the rage. How does the Xavix console compare to the Nintendo Wii?

• They both work: Unlike the Sony Eye Toy, the Xavix console and its games work. When you pitch the Xavix ball, it really does something on the screen. When you throw a punch with the boxing gloves, the character on your screen lands its fist into the jaw of your opponent. Both the Nintendo Wii and the Xavix console work pretty well. If I had to choose, I’d say the Xavix console is more accurate than the Wii, but they both work well enough that the controls of the game are unnoticed.

• The Wii has better graphics: There has been a lot of talk about how low-res the Nintendo Wii graphics are compared to the PS3 and the Xbox 360, but they are stellar compared to the Xavix console. Sadly the games on Xavix look like the simplistic graphics of five to ten years ago.

• Priced Similarly: At first glance, you might think that Xavix beats the Wii on price because their console is only $79, but after looking at the price of each game, you realize that Wii is actually a better deal. It comes with Wii Sports, which is similar to several of the Xavix games that are each sold separately for $45-$80 apiece. Nintendo did an excellent job of creating a controller that can be a steering wheel, a baseball bat, a tennis racket, boxing gloves and a golf club all in one. Since you don’t have to buy anything more than the controller and nunchuck, the Xavix console and the Nintendo Wii are on a similar pricing field.

In the end, I would choose the Nintendo Wii. Nintendo has a long track record for creating games for their consoles and many other companies are jumping at the chance to create interesting games for the Wii. Unfortunately, it looks like Xavix is a dead end. If you invest in their console now, you’ll probably find nothing more than the games that are currently available. They are an exciting company with great ideas and if Sony or Microsoft were smart, they would buy their technology and incorporate it into their new console systems. As it is, your best best is still the Nintendo Wii.

Sony got the jump on Nintendo on the active video game market, but no one noticed. Sony released a slew of games that worked with Eye Toy: Kinetic, Groove, Antigrav, Operation Spy, Play and Play 2. Play 2 is strikingly similar to Wii Sports, allowing you to box by punching the air with your fists, hit homeruns, and play table tennis.

Why did no one really notice Eye Toy? Why is Nintendo Wii getting so much attention?

Because Eye Toy DOESN’T WORK!

I thought I would do a head-to-head battle between Nintendo Wii Sports and the Sony Eye Toy, but all of that was cut horribly short by the fact that I couldn’t get Eye Toy to work well enough to even try to play the games. There are very detailed instructions on how to get the Eye Toy to work, but even with extra lighting in the room and the sensitivity turned up to the maximum, Eye Toy was a frustrating experience.

Additionally, the software required that we navigate through tons of menus and even try to input personal data before we could even adjust the Eye Toy. Bad programming and even worse execution makes Eye Toy worse than just a toy. It’s a disappointing and frustrating atrocity that isn’t worth the money.

If your kids are clamoring for a Wii and they already have a Playstation 2, don’t think that you will satisfy their hunger by buying an Eye Toy for the console that they already have. It will only be a pathetic letdown compared to the Nintendo Wii.

Here are some quotes from the reviews of the products on Amazon.com that explain the frustration level that comes with Eye Toy:

“I was so excited when I received this game. However, I had to clear out my entire basement and put in a floodlight for it to work with the eye toy. I can’t get far enough back from the screen and the annoying cartoon guy keeps telling me every minute or so to step back. If it wasn’t for that, it would be a lot of fun.”

“Some of the games are more frustrating than challenging, and the instrutions in the booklet aren’t very clear. Like most Eye Toy games, you have to turn on all the lights nearby and open the curtains to get decent enough lighting. Even when the camera is set to Dim Room. The video messaging is terrible.”

“This game is the best and worst of the eyetoy. When it works well it is an awesome game. When it doesn’t respond, which is way too often, then it sucks. I’ve tried lots of light, little light, freaking spotlights even. The problem is that when the camera craps out it totally removes all the enjoyment of the game. Say for example you are racing and all of the sudden the eyetoy thinks you are moving to the left (but you are standing up straight). So you try to compensate and end up crashing into a wall. You then pause the game and try to recalibrate. It works ok for a while and then it thinks you are ducking or you hand is your face or something. By this point you have lost the race and are cursing furiously. Repeat as necessary. It totally pulls you out of the game.”

Sure, Sony got the jump on Nintendo with active games that let you get off the couch and control the game with your body, but the execution was so poor that it ends up more frustrating for the player than helpful. Nintendo did things exactly right with the Wii. They waited until they had a system that worked with a light bar, gyroscopes and accelerometers. With all of that data, the accuracy rate on the Nintendo Wii is good enough that gameplay is seamless and enjoyable instead of infuriating.