http://www.viddler.com/player/d3527997/ Several companies — large and small — were demonstrating alternative input technologies at IFA today. Most, like the Pong video above, were exploring how to use motion tracking to control various on-screen elements. More video after the jump. → Read More
http://www.viddler.com/player/adffa1f0/ In the Home Appliances section of IFA 2008 are dozens of brands of coffee makers, most doling out freshly brewed joe to bleary-eyed conventioneers. The video above demonstrates one of the larger of such displays. A small pad on the bottom of the coffee cup contains an icon, which a camera under the table identifies and tracks as it slides around the surface. When it comes to a full stop for a few seconds, information panels fly out and are then activated by touching the tabletop. As you can see in the video, I press first one then another widget to get information about the delicious coffee I was enjoying. → Read More
Like many other companies at IFA, Loewe was touting their own whole-house networked media solution, evidenced by the first photo above. Their Connect line of televisions include built-in LAN and WLAN, along with the expected USB ports and is positioned to be the display component for the media backend. The Loewe Reference Mediacenter digital hub contains a hidden Blu-Ray player, iPod dock, and an RS-232 port for connection to home automation systems. One notable feature of the Reference Mediacenter is that it uses mirrored hard disks to protect your digital media from any single drive failure. Another benefit is that it speaks UPnP so it can, in theory, integrate with home media devices from other vendors. The Reference Mediacenter is slated for public availability in summer of 2009. → Read More
Oh man, who thought this was a good idea? Pretty much all the big companies were handing out goodie bags, so to speak, at IFA. Inside is the usual assortment of swag you’d find at any trade show: pens, buttons, maybe an extraordinarily cheap pair of headphones, etc. Not Sharp, though. They went above and beyond the call of duty. They were handing out these giant inflatable, I don’t know, floaties or whatever. Who cares, sure, but picture this: ever third person on the crowded show floor—at some point, IFA opened to the public—carrying one of these, blocking walkways, getting in the way of products, etc. Just annoying from soup to nuts. So to Sharp: let’s kick it down a notch next time, okay? Just a friendly request. → Read More
T-Mobile has a rather large booth at IFA this year, and it’s no surprise that the iPhone is front-and-center. It goes even further, though, as the German carrier has a huge touchscreen installed, there for everyone to screw around with. At one point—that video up there—T-Mo turned down the lights, and Mac OS X-esque intro music started playing. → Read More
First off, Photosynth only works on Windows machines. That includes creating them and merely viewing them. I made this one using Boot Camp on my MacBook. That out of that way, this is a quick little Photosynth of Samsung’s booth at IFA 2008. Theirs was probably the most visually impressive at the show. More stuff on the way, as I just found out that the video I took with my cellphone is actually watchable. Amazing, this technology. The Photosnth is HERE! → Read More
Above, these agents are investigating claims that MSI infringement from patent firm Sisvel. And, yes, pics show that these ladies and gents are in fact armed because we all know, us nerds can get a little territorial over our gadgets. via Reg → Read More
