Black Cherry technical

Eizo has gamers in its crosshair with the FlexScan HD2452W LCD monitor, featuring the following :-

• 24″ Full HD (WUXGA) screen
• Contrast ratio of 1,000:1
• 450Cd/m2 brightness
• Dual HDMI, DVI-D HDCP, D4-Video, S-Video, D-SUB, component port, and 24p true cinema mode

Sounds like the perfect LCD monitor to purchase if you’re a PS3 or Xbox 360 owner, as well as a movie buff who is starting to build up a respectable Blu-ray movie collection. Strangely enough, the response time stands at a lame duck 16ms which is really unconducive for gaming or movies, but is sufficient for everyday Word documents.

Looks like technological advances seem to make sci-fi shows of yore get more and more realistic by the day, and this palm “tricorder” scanner is yet another example. Bearing an uncanny resemblance to those medical scanners found in the Star Trek universe, this device is a portable imaging tool that enables quick and unobtrusive scanning of tissues when held over the patient’s skin. Developed by researchers at Georgia Tech, it relies on narrowband filter mosaic that makes provision for multispectral imaging, improving the use and functionality of medical scanning techniques that results in subsurface characterization. Medical and technological jargon aside, this device will enable untrained personnel to assess the severity of an injury at a glance. I wonder how long will it take before the technology is perfected and commercialized.

I must say the RM-mp1 media remote control looks more like a stylish cell phone at first glance, but this wireless device doesn’t do phone calls. Instead, it is meant to allow you to wield your slideshows with impunity, featuring a touch pad mouse, a laser pointer, relevant multimedia buttons and a wireless USB receiver that makes it possible to walk all over the stage without losing control of your slideshow. In addition to presentation slides, the RM-mp1 is also a nifty media center remote that will definitely find a spot in any worthy living room. No idea on pricing or availability, but it will come in either black or white colors.

Qualcomm is prepping itself to promote a new display technology known as reflective interferometric modulation (IMOD), but such a long name could get in the way of its popularity which is why Qualcomm has decided to go ahead and market it as Mirasol. IMOD displays will share many a quality with OLED displays such as low power consumption, visibility in outdoor lighting, and no backlighting requirement, so it will be interesting to see which technology emerges triumphant in the end. For those itching to get their hands on a Mirasol display, the 0.9″ Mirasol screen will debut in an upcoming Freestyle Audio player.

So the Sony PSP not only plays games, surfs the Internet, doubles up as a (hefty) portable media player, and acts as a Skype device, it will most probably function as a GPS navigation device in the future. Apparently this GPS feature is rumored to hit the US within the coming year, with maps provided by TeleAtlas. Certain cities will be blessed with 3D buildings, and chances are these won’t be backwater states. The GPS software can run straight off an UMD or Memory Stick and will be priced between $100 and $200. Well, if you aren’t too hard up for a GPS device, I suppose you can wait for another year or so.

And you thought that only comic book covers receive variants - Sony Ericsson’s highly sought after (at least, before the HTC Touch Diamond was released) XPERIA X1 will be receiving a couple of variants in the near future, where the XPERIA X1a will arrive on US shores under the AT&T banner, taking advantage of its 3G network. As for the rest of the world, they will have to settle for the XPERIA X1c. What’s the difference between the two? Why, choice of 3G frequency support, that’s all. The X1a will sport a quad-band GSM (850/900/1800/1900Mhz) radio and a tri-band (850/1900/2100Mhz) UMTS/HSPA radio for 3G data connectivity, whereas the X1c relies on a tri-band (900/1900/2100Mhz) UMTS/HSPA 3G radio instead.

Guess Samsung has not ditched the Q1 UMPC idea just yet, as its engineers are hard at work on a second revision. Samsung won’t introduce anything revolutionary, but will instead build on the existing platform with a revamp of internal parts. Needless to say, we can look forward to faster and more spacious specifications, with perhaps some improvement to the current form factor. Word on the street has it that Samsung will be rolling out the third version of the Q1 UMPC at the beginning of 2009. Do you think this is a dead end for Samsung, or are they really on to something here?

Talk about a truly creative name - the Our Lady of the Trunk device is one system that could potentially help prevent unwanted accidents on the road, especially when backing out and failing to detect a child or pedestrian just walking right in your blind spot. This device requires just two wires for installation, where the speaker is attached inside the trunk. When the reverse gear is selected, a loud and assertive feminine voice will announce in a 100dB voice, telling all and sundry to make way as though the Queen of England herself is walking through. While the spoken language of Our Lady of the Trunk is in English, the instructions that accompany this $10 kit comes in 3 different languages.

Talk about a blatant rip off - CECT isn’t new to the phone clone scene, and here they are with yet another rip-off, this time taking on the form factor of the Nokia N96. Surprisingly, it looks extremely close to the real thing, and will feature the following specifications :-

• Tri-Band 900/1800/1900MHZz
• 2 megapixel camera
• Bluetooth stereo connectivity
• Dual 3D stereo speakers
• 3″ 262k color LCD display
• Video and audio playback
• microSD memory card slot

Definitely won’t be able to hold a candle to the real Nokia N96 in terms of specifications, as you can see above.

This Yamaha-branded Deus Ex Machina concept motorcycle was dreamed up by Art Center Pasadena student Jake Loniak, and I must say it looks really mean. You get the best of exoskeletons and motorcycles crammed into a single vehicle, and being a concept Jake has certainly gone wild with its specifications. It will be powered by ultra-capacitors and doped nano-phoshpate batteries (same as those found in hybrid cars), where 36 pneumatic muscles and 2 linear actuators set along a spine consisting of seven artificial vertebrae are what keeps it in control. Heck, even the helmet is pneumatically attached for superior ease-of-use. Jake also claims that this design can hit a top speed of 75mph, but I hope the wearer will be adequately protected in the event of an accident.