Friday, March 28, 2008

Apple Tablet Concept

It's no secret that Apple will soon take a stab in bringing back the tablet computer. I don't know if the tablet will look like my giant iPhone concept above but we should be certain of some things already:
- It will utilize multi-toch interface and utilize many iPhonesque functions and more
- It will have a Solid State drive and no moving parts
- It'll be light as a feather

I kind of wish it to be this extra widescreen UMPC style tablet which should be roughly the size of a full size laptop keyboard. What do you think Mr. Ive?

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Let the milking of GranTurismo fans begin. Prologue is hitting shelves on April 15th for $39.99; it can also be downloaded for the same price. I've been playing the game for couple months now but there was a catch. I tricked a PS3 console in thinking it resides in Tokyo and downloaded the Japanese version; it was a bitch to get thru the JP screens though; now we can play it properly.


What should you expect from this Prologue to the GT5 game which is coming in Xmas?
- 60 cars: (don't worry the GT-R and EVO X GSR are there) - 6 tracks (London & Suzuka are my fav)
- Drift Mode
- Tuning on the fly
- Up to 16 player online
- This new cockpit view


Since these games started to look insanely realistic, I think now it's up to the hardware to allow the user to experience real driving feel. Logitech wheels are good built but not on coffee tables they don't feel realistic. We can tuck a giant home exercise rig under the couch, Prosumers everywhere need driving rigs to attach their wheels too; so they can tuck that under the couch when they're done driving. They need precise adjustment features on their gaming controller and they need 1080p TVs to experience these games in full resolution. If GT5 is going to make you say "enough; I am getting a PS3" and assume you have an old ass TV set; let's see what you need to shell out: PS3 $500 + 1080p display (say 32") $700 + Game $100 (Prologue + GT5) + Logitech Wheel $200 = $1500 + tax

You can go and buy a used Nissan 300ZX with that cash vs driving the simulation GT-R below but you wouldn't now would you?


Monday, March 24, 2008

Machines Building Machines

One manufacturer was showing me this unmanned production line. A product which was done by 35 people production line just last year is now about 10 times faster when fully automized and runs 24/7.

Travelling 220 mph

I am back from Asia and I have to tell you that it was a fast paced trip. Stayed in 6 different hotels over 14 days. First time this trip I've also visited Zuoying which is a town south of Taiwan. Unfortunately, I can not yet tell you what I was doing there but the way I got there was pretty exciting. I took this bullet train from Taipei doing 350km/h top speed. Check out the video.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Hong Kong Bound

I am off to Hong Kong in few hours. After spending about a week there working on my products, I will go to Taiwan for another week. I will try to post stuff but do have an insane schedule so expect the detailed trip notes after my return.

Monday, March 3, 2008

Giant Earbuds


I thought it was pretty clever; it's from a company called Fred. Here's their pitch

Sometimes bigger IS really better, especially when it comes to sound. That’s why we took a puny pair of earbuds, put them in Fred’s highly technical Way Big machine, and created 500XL - it’s 500 times the size of the original! How great will these look on your desktop alongside your mp3 player or PC? 500XL includes a built-in amp and 3-way power - it runs on batteries; you can connect it to your PC’s USB port with the supplied cord; or plug it into the wall with a generic power supply (not included). The stand-up, peggable clamshell packaging really makes a statement

www.worldwidefred.com

Macro Art

Sony PSP Optic Reader via Cybershot T30 :: click to enlarge


Light Cast HDMI


Have you ever find yourself behind your entertainment system trying to figure out where that damn cable supposed to plug in? With the Light Cast HDMI cable your frustration comes to an end. OK, I know this is not groundbreaking and a cable is a cable and you plug it once and forget about it. Yet with HDMI cables having huge margin buffers why not have some unique features built in? Monster Cable calls out platinum plated contacts for their HDMI cables as if it means a thing for a digital cable which is supposed to transmit nothing but ones and zeros.