Thursday, September 30, 2010
Switch multi-tool knife
The Switch is another demonstration that the multi-tool pocket knife, with us since the mid-1890s with the development of this type of knife by Karl Elsener, inventor of what became known as the Swiss Army Knife, continues to attract designers looking to extend the bounds of pocket knives.
Recently I wrote here of the impressive, though somewhat absurd Wenger Giant Swiss Army Knife, with its 87 tools. The Switch takes a more modular approach. There are 18 tools, but you can pick and choose which of the 18 you want to include. As demonstrated in the graphic below, you simply place the tools you require of the 18 between the top and bottom cover plates, tighten, and you�re ready to be your own personal MacGuyver. Ready for any catastrophe, needing only your Switch knife, bamboo, and elastic bands to make a machine to help you escape from captivity, or evil henchmen.
What tools does the Switch knife have?
All up, the Switch pocket knife, tool, call it what you will, has 18 attachments you can employ. They are:Standard Knife, Pliers, Scissors, Nail File, Tweezers, Thin Flathead Screwdriver, Phillips-Head Screwdriver, Eyeglass Phillips-Head Screwdriver, Eyeglass Flathead Screwdriver, Wood Saw, Serrated Blade, Corkscrew, Combination Bottle Opener/Flathead Screwdriver, Combination Can Opener/Wire Stripper, Pen, Magnifying Glass, LED Flashlight, 1GB USB Memory Stick.
Where can you buy the Switch?
The Switch is available from the Qwirky website, at a price of US$79.RIM UNVEILS BLACKBERRY PLAYBOOK 7 INCH TABLET
Research in Motion (RIM) has officially unveiled a tablet computer called BlackBerry PlayBook. The PlayBook is designed to serve a variety of purposes including web browsing, multimedia and business. The BlackBerry PlayBook measures less than half an inch in thickness and weigh 0.9 pounds. It has a 7-inch multi-touch capacitive display with a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels. The tablet runs the
LENOVO LAUNCHES THINKPAD EDGE 11 THIN AND LIGHT LAPTOP
Lenovo has made a new addition to its ThinkPad Edge family with the launch of the ThinkPad Edge 11. The 11.6 inch ThinkPad Edge 11 measures 1.1 inches in thickness and weighs less than 3 pounds. It is actually the smallest and lightest ThinkPad Edge available at the moment. The Edge 11 is available with a choice of Intel Core / Pentium or AMD Vision Pro Athlon processors. Lenovo claims that the
HP TO CALL ITS WEBOS TABLET PALMPAD
It is now almost official: The upcoming HP WebOS tablet will be called PalmPad. An HP executive referred to the tablet as PalmPad yesterday. The WebOS is the operating system that powers the Palm Pre and Pixi smartphones. And ever since HP acquired Palm and the WebOS, it has been rumored that the compnay will launch a WebOS tablet. The WebOS powered PalmPad will reportedly launch in early 2011.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
India�s $35 Tablet
Kapil Sibal, the human resources development minister, says that �this is our answer to MIT�s $100 computer,� referring to the XO-1 from the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative. The cost is expected to go down to about $20, and then to $10.
This is obviously not a powerhouse computer, there is no hard drive (it uses a memory card instead), and the processor is likely not very fast, but with subsidies bringing the price down to $20, this is nonetheless an amazing feat.
Could this finally lead to companies selling products at a fair price, instead of paying for a label? Maybe not completely, but it might have an impact. As for the students that will be able to access the internet and actually own a computer (probably for the first time in their life), the effects will be monumental. When the average household in India makes $735 a year, a $100 laptop is still something of a luxury, and even a $35 device comes out to 1/21 of the family�s income. To put that in perspective, the average income in the United States is around $50,233, and 1/21 of that is $2,392.05.
I was part of an �experiment� where a class of students was given PalmPilot�s, to see whether it would help us learn more. While there was the inevitable goofing off, I do think that we all came out better off, having learned how to use these devices, gave us a better feel of the (then-new) technology. Moreover, using the interactive study guides they came with was fun and useful. I would love to see the day when these tablets can literally be given away for free to all students, especially if the internet access is free/very cheap.
Unusual Cigarette Lighter Designs
SHARP LAUNCHES GALAPAGOS ANDROID TABLETS
Sharp has introduced two new Android tablets. The company is positioning the devices as eBook readers, but with their color displays and Android OS they have specs that meet the definition of a tablet. Sharp says that the two new tablets are designed to work with the company's new eBook service. The Sharp Galapagos tablets are due out in December. They will have access to a library of 30,000
ACER TIMELINEX 1830T GETS INTEL CORE i - SERIES PROCESSOR
Acer has updated its 11.6 inch Aspire TimelineX 1830T thin and light laptops with Intel's Core i-Series processors. The TimelineX 1830T originally shipped with Intel core 2 Solo processors. Now Acer is offering the ultraportable with your choice of an Intel Core i3, Core i5, or Core i7 processors. The updated models have prices ranging between $600 and $900.The base model which is now available
Monday, September 27, 2010
TOSHIBA LAUNCHES SATELLITE L635 KIDS PC
Toshiba has teamed up with Best Buy to launch a notebook for kids. The Toshiba Satellite L635 Kids PC is the kid-centric version of the original Satellite L635. The Satellite L635 Kids PC is designed for kids aged five to ten. It has several features that would make it stand out from other kids laptops in the market. The notebook has a 13.3 inch display, a keyboard that can be cleaned and a matte
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Concept: Peugeot EX1
The Concept: Peugeot EX1 is pretty much one of the baddest looking mammyjammers on the road. Except, as a concept car, it�s not really on the road, but if it were, it would be like saddling up a four-wheeled hog. If that doesn�t get your attention, then you should really consider finding that Man Card. Working on two electric motors at the front and rear, the Peugeot EX1 is capable of 340 horsepower with clean acceleration and ability to maneuver.
The driver and passenger seats fit like a glove with a cockpit style that will recreate the sensation of flying through the stratosphere in a World War I fighter plane without the skin-blasting winds and the encroaching enemy aces nipping at your heels. Unfortunately, there is no price and availability at this time, but you can always consider sneaking in to the Peugeot plant and hijacking one for yourself.
Photographer Gadgets
CLEVO X7200 GAMING LAPTOP WITH DUAL GEFORCE GTX 480M UP FOR SALE
Taiwanese laptop maker Clevo has introduced a 17.3 inch gaming laptop called X7200. The notebook is powered by dual GeForce GTX 480M video cards and Intel desktop CPUs.Besides two GeForce GTX 480M graphics cards in SLI configuration with 2GB of GDDR5 video memory, the Clevo X7200 also has Intel Core i7 LGA1366 processor, up to the six-core i7-975, and three DDR3 SoDIMM memory slots for up to 12GB
HP SLATE 500 TABLET CAPTURED ON VIDEO
More video footages of the HP Slate 500 tablet have surfaced. The new video features a look at the packaging and docking station with HDMI output and detailed specs. It is also rumored that there will be both retail and enterprise models of the tablet. HP had previously stated that its Slate 500 Windows tablet would be targeted at business customers. Here�s a rundown of the specs:Processor:
Saturday, September 25, 2010
ProMini Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard
Copenhagen Wheel Takes E-Bikes to Next Level
Have an iPhone? Want an electric bike? The smart folks at MIT recently have unveiled a wheel that transforms your old bike into a hybrid e-bike that even provides feedback on traffic, pollution, congestion and road conditions, all in real time.
The Copenhagen wheel (unveiled recently at the Copenhagen Conference on Climate Change) works by storing energy as you step on the brakes in a special battery, which then returns that power when you need it to climb a hill or boost your speed. A sensor inside the hub measures your effort when you ride to provide that extra �oomph� precisely when you need it, extending the distances you might consider bike-able.
Using sensors and a Bluetooth connection, the Copenhagen wheel can actually talk to your iPhone mounted on the handlebars. Through the Copenhagen wheel app, you can check your speed, direction, and distance traveled and even get information on traffic conditions and smog. The Copenhagen wheel will be available within a year for $500-$1000 (the standard cost of an e-bike) through online retailers, consumer electronics vendors, and possibly bike stores.
ACER ASPIRE ONE D255 DUAL CORE LAPTOP REVIEWED
In terms of looks, the Acer Aspire One D255 isn't all that different from other netbooks Acer introduced this year. But under the hood, the D255 is a different machine. It has a 1.5GHz dual core Intel Atom N550 processor. In fact, the Aspire D255 is one of the first 10 inch netbooks to hit the market with a dual core Atom processor. The netbook has been reviewed by the folks at Laptop Magazine
Friday, September 24, 2010
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