Retrevo blogs

Video of the Week: Sony Xperia Z Ultra Unboxing

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 08 Aug 2013 11:46:26 -0700

Video of the Week

Sony Xperia Z Ultra Unboxing

Keeping with the all Sony theme here’s a look at the very large Sony phablet from our friends at TechnoBuffalo.

How Sony Is Making a Comeback

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 08 Aug 2013 11:43:10 -0700

How Sony Is Making a Comeback

Just as we were beginning to think Sony was slipping away, they appear to be coming on strong with some new products and a profitable quarter to boot. We think it’s partly due to some exciting new products and aggressive stance on 4K TV. Here’s a list of some Sony products we think are pretty cool, but first a little history. Around 1960, U.S. manufacturers turned down a new aperture grille TV technology that made for a brighter and sharper image, which became Sony’s flagship TV technology called Trinitron. It looked better than shadow mask CRTs and was used not only in TVs, but high end computer monitors. The Trinitron color TV helped put Sony on the consumer electronics map. Sony went on to popularize the personal music player with the Walkman and game consoles with the PlayStation. In recent years Sony has struggled to compete with consumer electronics giants like Samsung and Apple, but is now starting to show its old brilliance with some very appealing new products.

Sony’s New 4K TV Uses Quantum Dots for a Better ImageSony has invested heavily in 4K TV technology making it part of every new XBR TV. Whether you think 4K TVs are ready for prime time or only make sense for very large TVs, Sony TV sets like the 65-inch XBR65X900A is a state-of-the-art TV that includes new quantum dot nanotechnology. One of the problems with LEDs as backlights is that white LEDs are made from combining blue and yellow exploiting a property called metamerism to trick our eyes into seeing white. Quantum dots are nanocrystals that emit light in different frequencies when energized and can add missing red and green to backlights resulting in better contrast and color fidelity. Although they have never explicitly stated it, to the best of our knowledge, quantum dots are the technology behind Sony’s trademarked TRILUMINOUS TVs. Sony has also added lots of processing power in the form of their X-Reality™ PRO chip used to upscale HD content to 4K content so you can take advantage of 4K resolution without having to wait for native 4K programming to be delivered to your TV.

Lots More 4K Home Entertainment Products

Sony has many other 4K products to go along with their 4K TVs. They offer a range of 4K receivers including the $699 STR-DA1800ES 7.2 channel Wi-Fi A/V to the $2099 STR-DA5800ES 9.2 channel receiver that offers 130 watts per channel and all kinds of connectivity options including the ability to use your smartphone as a remote control.

Until native 4K programming can be delivered to your set from a cable or satellite provider, on an optical disc, or by some other means, Sony is offering the $699 FMP-X1 4K Ultra HD Media Player with 2 TB of storage that comes pre-loaded with 10 in 4K movies along with some bonus material. At some point you’ll be able to download more content or have the media player reloaded.

Okay, we admit at $24,999 is a little out of range for the average consumer, but if you want the same 4K experience you get in many movie theaters today, the VPL-VW1000ES 4K Home Theater ES Projector with its ability to light up a 200-inch screen, you might want to consider one of these devices instead of that new car you were planning on buying.

Too Bad the New PS4 Game Console Won’t Play 4K GamesThe successor to the Sony Playstation 3, the PS4 is waiting in the wings. We understand that it will support 4K video and photos but 4K games aren’t going to be part of the equation when it goes on sale. We can sort of understand that it would require a very large hard drive and high data rates, but wouldn’t 4K games look great on a new 4K XBR TV. We also wonder if there will be support for 3D games on 4K TVs.

New VAIO Laptops Also Use Quantum Dots
The new $1249 Sony VAIO Pro 13 Ultrabook at 2.34 lbs. claims to be the lightest Ultrabook (a 13-inch MacBook Air is 2.96 lbs.). The new VAIO Pro uses a touchscreen version of the TRILUMINOUS display similar to the one used in their new 4K XBR TVs. Although the VAIO’s resolution is 1920 x 1080p, a 4K display would probably not make sense on a display this size.

Handhelds, Smartwatch and a Bluetooth Handset
If there’s one complaint we have heard about all the cool new mobile gear from Sony, it’s their naming system; too many things named Xperia and too many letters to remember. For example the 5-inch, 13MP Xperia Z bears almost the same name as the brand new 6.4-inch phablet called the Xperia Z Ultra. We’re especially interested in the Ultra with its TRILUMINOUS 344 ppi display and super light 212 grams and super thin 6.5 mm case (a 4-inch iPhone is 7.6 mm and 112 grams). The optional Sony Bluetooth handset pairs with any Xperia Z using NFC so you can leave the phablet or smartphone in a pocket or pocketbook. The new Sony Smartwatch 2 will go nicely with an Xperia Z or any Android phone allowing you to handle phone calls, email, social media or other functions from your wrist.

New Sony Cameras Are Different

The Sony Alpha NEX cameras with their big sensors and interchangeable lenses have received high marks from users and experts, but the new DSLT cameras with their translucent mirrors offer an interesting alternative to the traditional DSLR. Translucent mirrors don’t have to physically move out of the way of the sensor. DSLTs, as they are called, use a translucent mirror that transmits around 70% of the light onto the imaging sensor while reflecting the remaining light up to the camera's phase detection autofocus (AF) sensor. What you see on a high resolution electronic viewfinder comes from the digital image. The Sony Alpha SLT-A58K is a 20.1MP, 5 fps DSLT with a high resolution OLED display that costs around $600 the top of the line $2800 SLT-A99V offers 35 mm full-frame format and 14-bit RAW output.

Bottom Line: This Was Not a Fan Letter
We’ve been watching Sony for the last several years as it struggled to regain its footing under leaders like Sir Howard Stringer. Yes Samsung, LG, Apple and others have cool products but it just seemed like it was time to recognize Sony for, what appears to be a big comeback.

Coolest High Tech Watches

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 01 Aug 2013 12:58:13 -0700

Coolest High Tech Watches

Despite the fact that cell phones have put a dent in the wristwatch market, not everyone uses their phone as their watch. In fact, the watch industry is very much alive and well with some very fashionable and high tech products to choose from. There are watches only the rich and famous can afford, watches for special purposes like sports and outdoor activities, high tech watches with Bluetooth connectivity and now there is about to be a wave of smartwatches that work with smartphones including one from Sony along with some rumored smartwatches from Apple, Samsung and Google. Here’s a roundup of some watches we think are pretty cool.

Worlds Thinnest Watch Is a Kickstarter Project That Hasn’t Shipped YetThey’ve raised over a million dollars from “investors” who are showing signs of getting antsy but if you’re willing to take a chance on throwing $130 bucks away, you could be the owner (someday) of a 0.5mm E-Ink watch in a stainless steel band. One big benefit of using the same display technology used in e-readers is very long battery life and excellent readability in bright daylight.

The Pebble Watch Was a Kickstarter Project That is Shipping NowPebble Technology has shipped close to 100,000 Pebble watches after grabbing over $10M in Kickstarter funding. For $149 you can own this E-Ink display smartwatch in black, white or red that works with iOS or Android devices. Reviewers have been impressed by its design and large selection of apps and watch faces and its ability to display alerts and notifications. Android users will be able to receive more kinds of notifications than iOS users.

You Can Talk to a Martian SmartwatchMartian smartwatches are analog watches with a digital personality. Unlike some of the other new smartwatches, these watches have a microphone and speaker built in so you can use voice commands or Siri to initiate calls or use it as a speaker phone. A tiny 96 x 16 pixel OLED display can alert you to messages or other notifications. You can even use one as a remote trigger for your smartphone camera. The Martian watches come in colors, and range in price from $249 to $299.

Traditional, Very Expensive, Elegant and State-of-the-Art You won’t find Bluetooth 4 connectivity in the TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre 1887 Chronograph but you will find a 39 jewel, column-wheel and oscillating pinion movement for extreme accuracy and reliability. The black titanium carbide steel bezel and titanium cage adds a touch of class to a watch that will cost you close to $4,000.

TAG Heuer has been showing off a couple of high-tech watch prototypes including the Carrera MIKROGIRDER which represents a departure from the traditional hairspring and balance wheel mechanical watch that has been around for centuries. The MIKROGIRDER, “instead of a spiral shape in a classical hairspring, uses a coupling blade/girder and excitatory blade/girder system working with a linear oscillator.” We have no idea what that means but it sounds impressive and we understand, among other advantages, it makes it less susceptible to effects from gravity and increases precision. Another concept watch, the TAG Heuer Carrera MikroPendulum claims to be the first high-frequency watch moved by magnets that includes a “dual chain platform with a balance-wheel system” and “a hairspring-less pendulum system for the chronograph” allowing it to beat faster and more accuratley. The case is made of sandblasted, fine-brushed titanium with a sapphire crystal.

A Chronograph for World TravelersProfessionalsThe Breitling Transocean Chronograph Unitime Pilot will cost you around $11,000 but will make it easy to adjust the time to anywhere your private jet happens to take you. You spin the dial to change time zones on this 56 jewel water resistant (100 meters), glare-proofed sapphire crystal watch that comes in gold or steel.

Breathalyzer Watch Could Be a Life Saver
Coming out of Japan is the $149 Kisai Breathalyzer Watch that measures alcohol level from someone breathing into the side of it. The LED lights turn yellow or red depending on the alcohol level or green if you’re sober. There’s also a game you can play to help determine your ability to perform a task. For more interesting watches in this vein check out the watches featured on Tokyo Flash Japan.

GPS Watch For Athletes, Hikers and Others
If you’re willing to pay around $400 to save you the trouble of pulling a smartphone out of your pocket or want the convenience of having lots of information about you outdoor activities available on your wrist, the Garmin fenix might be just what you’re looking for. In addition to the GPS, the fenix has all kinds of sensors including barometric, altitude, temperature and a 3-axis compass and it’s waterproof down to 50 meters too. You can hook up other sensors like a heart rate monitor using ANT + or connect with a smartphone via Bluetooth. With Garmin Connect or Garmon Basecamp applications you can do all sorts of things with the data that the fenix generates.

Casio G-Shock With Bluetooth 4 Low Energy Connectivity

Casio wrote the book on techie watches starting with their line of calculator watches. The Casio G-Shock Bluetooth Watch with Bluetooth 4 “Smart Ready” technology sells for around $180 and can notify you (with a vibration if you want) of incoming calls and emails through a connection to your iPhone (sorry Android users). The G-Shock Bluetooth is also, as the name implies, a rugged watch that gets good, but not great ratings from users.

Stylish Smartwatch From Italian Designers
We wonder if Apple is going to come after the folks at i’m for using a lower case “i” in their product name but the $299 (just reduced from $399) i’m Watch is a stylish Bluetooth connected watch that has a touchscreen and actually resembles an iPod Nano on a watchband. It runs its own apps, plays music and displays notifications and messages coming from your smartphone. It’s an attractive device that, along with other smartwatches, may run into some competition when the rumored iWatch makes an appearance.

Sony Smartwatch 2 vs. Samsung SM-V700

Sony is about to release a follow-on to their Smartwatch which works with their Android phone as well as others. The Smartwatch 2 has a 1.6-inch (220 x 176) touchscreen display, NFC and Bluetooth 3 (didn’t Sony get the message on Bluetooth 4?). Sony claims a 4 – 7 day battery life for the Smartwatch 2 that performs functions similar to other connected smartwatches. Meanwhile Samsung appears ready to unveil their entry in the field with a smartwatch called the SM-V700 of which little is known other than the name (will it be also called the Galaxy Watch?) and an image of a prototype. We expect to see the smartwatch race heat up as all the big players like Apple and Google announce their products.

Video of the Week: Watch Robots Manufacture the Tesla S

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 01 Aug 2013 12:03:13 -0700

Video of the Week

Watch Robots Manufacture the Tesla S

Here’s a behind the scenes look at how a Tesla S car is made from start to finish from our friends at Wired.

Strange and Unusual USB Gadgets

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 25 Jul 2013 10:59:50 -0700

Strange and Unusual USB Gadgets

It’s time again for our regular roundup of unusual USB gadgets. Although some of these may be hard to find or may not work as well as expected but they all get two thumbs up for originality. Although you can find many of these on specialty sites we discovered a good number of them on ebay.

Whether it’s two beef patties in a sesame seed bun or a Swiss Army Knife, if you can imagine it, there’s a good chance it’s been turned into a flash drive. And who can forget the gyrating dog flash drive that is guaranteed to amuse your friends and family.

How about a flash drive filled with beer, or a bottle opener flash drive for the real thing?

The concept is interesting; a tiny vacuum cleaner for getting crumbs out of your keyboard but unfortunately users report that it doesn’t work quite as well as they expected. At least the duck vacuum cleaner looks pretty cute. You can find some USB vacuum cleaners here.

For the low price of $6.99 you can buy a USB disco ball or spend a couple dollars more for a real plasma ball. We’re sure it will impress your co-workers.

How about a $5 USB lava lamp for a good distraction from your work or a “think” bulb that lights up when you come up with a great idea?

Just add water to R2-D2 and it will add some moisture to a dry environment. You may have a problem finding R2-D2 but there are plenty of USB Humidifiers listed on ebay.

You can find an assortment of USB-powered electric toothbrushes with built-in UV lamps to sterilize your toothbrush. Philips sells their Sonicare electric toothbrush for $219 that can be charged from the wall or a USB connection. The Yanko Design group designed a stylish version that doesn’t appear to have ever made it to market. You can also find plenty of affordable USB electric toothbrushes on ebay.

We wouldn’t count on these on a very cold day and they might tend to drain your laptop battery a little faster but they might make a good novelty gift for someone who complains about cold hands or feet. There are warming slippers for your feet and gloves for your hands.

These USB fans can display a simple message and keep you cool at the same time. You can find USB message fans on ebay for less than $10.

There are USB gadgets you can use to cool a can of soda or warm up a cup of tea. For around $13 you can buy a travel cup that works off of a 12V or USB connection and will keep your beverage warm.

And the award for strangest USB gadget goes to this pair of speakers disguised as a pair of stiletto high heels. The product description says they are “perfect for shoes lovers.”

Last but not least, here’s something you shouldn’t leave home without, a USB-powered soldering iron, only $50. Don’t try it on a heavy job as they say it’s only good for “light” soldering tasks.

Video of the Week: New Nexus 7 and Chromecast Event Highlights

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 25 Jul 2013 10:57:28 -0700

Video of the Week

New Nexus 7 and Chromecast Event Highlights

See the new Nexus 7 with its 323 ppi display along with the Chromecast streaming device in this under 5 minute video from our friends at Verge.

What You Need to Know About 4K TVs

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 13:26:58 -0700

What You Need to Know About 4K TVs

Source: SonyThe next generation of televisions are beginning to emerge; they are called UHD or 4K TVs and they provide a much higher resolution display than your HDTV. You would think that higher resolution displays allow you to see more details however, the big question is whether or not your eye can see the difference. Many experts will tell you that higher resolution screens are a waste of money but we don’t agree and, in fact, we have always been amazed at the level of clarity and detail we could see in the large screen 4K TVs on display at CES in recent years. Ultra High Definition TVs or UHD TVs, as 4K TVs are called, are a natural progression from HDTV just as HDTV grew out of Standard Definition (SD) TVs. The new 4K TVs are expensive and there isn’t a lot of programming available for them just yet but everything seems to be coming together around UHDTVs including content, codecs, a new HDMI standard and more. UHDTVs are beginning to appear in the market and although they are little on the pricey side now, we expect the prices to come down fast so if you’re planning on buying a new TV you might want to consider purchasing one of these now if you’re an early adopter and want to own the state-of-the-art in televisions or you could also wait a little while until they become more affordable.

What is 4K TV?The current resolution for Full HD, 1080p HDTVs is 1920 x 1080 pixels. UHD doubles each dimension to 3840 x 2160 which although is technically not 4K (4096), it is close enough to be called “4K.”. Although there is lots of 4K content being produced including movies which are shot with 4K cameras like the Arri Alexa and Red Epic and then shown in movie theaters across America, 40% of which have 4K projection systems. Distribution to homes will be one of the challenges of 4K TV requiring new compression techniques, new optical discs and even a new over-the-air broadcast standard; all of which are in development. It’s a common believe that 4K only make sense for the home on very large TV screens like 70 – 80-inches and for viewers sitting very close to the screen. In fact, the rule of thumb for viewing distance for HDTV which is 3X the height of the TV has been adjusted to 1.5X the height for a 4K TV. Despite these new constraints we think you’ll still find 4K TVs smaller than 70-inches more enjoyable to watch even at distances greater than several feet.

What Programming is Available?In addition to providing 4K content to outlets that can currently display it, most studios and content creators are migrating to 4K and putting a “4K master in the archive.” We understand that many TV shows are now shot in 4K including many sporting events and have read about a possible 4K transmission of the 2014 World Cup match. In a recent article in Trusted Reviews listing some good reasons why 4K TV is on the move, John Archer mentions that employees at Sony’s Colorworks facility say, “it’s only once you get up to the 4K pixel level that you can scan 35mm film into digital form without losing significant amounts of the texture, detail, graduation subtlety and color refinement contained in the ‘analogue’ celluloid image.” According to TVNewsCheck, ESPN “is building a brand new, massive sports production center that Chief Technology Officer Chuck Pagano says will be future proof — able to handle upcoming 4K and 8K production.” Pagano added, “My current production facility is all 720p. This next one will be somewhat format agnostic, but the core will all be 1080p. That doesn’t mean I am going to be distributing a 1080p product, but I am going to master it in 1080p natively, but also have a mechanism for me to deal with 4K or 8K in the future with relative minimal disruption in the plant.”

Programming Distribution ChallengeGetting 4K content into the home will be a major challenge for cable and satellite providers as well as disc makers. For $699 you can buy a Sony Ultra HD Media Player that comes pre-loaded with 10, 4K movies and some other 4K “bonus” material but a more affordable solution will require a new Blu-ray standard or other medium like a flash memory-based media card. Currently Blu-ray is limited to 50GB however, a compressed 4K movie may require twice that (100GB) and for an uncompressed movie it could run in the 200GB range. Word is that the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) is expected to announce support for a new Codec (compressor/decompressor) called H.265, more commonly referred to as High Efficiency Video Coding or HEVC which will be the successor to the current H.264 or MPEG4. The Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) is also working on a new broadcast standard called ATSC 3.0 which will include UHDTV broadcast signals for over-the-air reception.

HDMI 2.0 is Coming SoonThe current version of HDMI, 1.4a can handle 4K signals but only up to 30 frames per second which is adequate for most content but a new spec is about to be released that increases the throughput per channel from 3.4Gbps to 6Gbps or 18Gbps total max TMDS which would allow for 60fps 4K video. Waiting for HDMI support might be another reason to hold off on a purchase of a new TV, receiver, or Blu-ray player.

Upconversion or Upscaling Will Have to Do For NowUntil a practical distribution scheme for 4K programming materializes the next best thing to actual 4K content will be 2K (or less) content that is upscaled to 4K content. Upscaling requires processing power and sophisticated algorithms to make a calculated guess about what additional pixels would be like based on what’s present, and it has to do it in real-time. If done poorly, upscaling can make the image look worse. Furthermore the better the original material the better the upscaled image can be. Toshiba recently released their first 4K TV sets with a 2nd generation CEVO processor they claim produces superior upscaling. Sony is promoting 4K-mastered Blu-ray discs that although won’t play 4K content may look better when upconverted to 4K by a Blu-ray player like the Oppo BDP 105, Samsung BD-F7500, a receiver or the 4K TV itself.

4K TVs Could Revive 3DTV3DTV which has not been well received by consumers requires either an active glass technology whose glasses require batteries and tend to be a bit bulkier than passive glasses but deliver two 1080p frames unlike passive 3D that only delivers 540 lines per frame which can create a noticeable “raster” line. 4K TVs will not only allow passive 3D to deliver two 1080p frames but could also help make autostereoscopic or glasses-free TV an acceptable experience. Sony has been promoting the ability of their 4K BRAVIA TV to show two different 2D images on the same screen to game players which is another cool feature of 4K TVs

4K TV Roundup There are currently only a handful of 4K TVs on the market and they are a bit on the expensive side although a lot less so than just a year ago.

Two “Affordable” XBR 4K TVs From SonySony has been very aggressive in the 4K market offering two TVs priced somewhat reasonably and other 4K gear including a media player, projector, receiver, and even the PlayStation 4 which supports 4K content. For $4999 you can buy a Sony XBR-55X900A with “4K X-Reality™ PRO Picture Engine, two 65W front-facing speakers, TRILUMINOS display, Dynamic Edge LED backlight, Motionflow™ XR 960, wireless smartphone mirroring technology, plus 4 pairs of 3D glasses.” For $2,000 more you can get the Sony XBR-65X900A 65-inch Ultra HD TV.

Seiko is Back With a Low Cost 4K TVYou can get this 50-inch Seiko SE50UY04 4K for under $1,000 (it retails for $1499) but early reviews indicate you may get what you pay for with this set, as one reviewer said, “the SE50UY04 is a mediocre TV that just happens to be 4K,” although to be fair reviewers do say a 4K image does look pretty good close-up.

LG’s New 4K TVs Have Lots of High-End FeaturesLG recently announce two new 4K TVs in its LA9700 series; a $6,000 55-inch model and an $8,000 65-inch model. They both incorporate LG’s Nano full-array LED backlight technology which creates 144 local dimming “zones.” A novel new sound system includes a motorized soundbar that slides out of view when not in use and a subwoofer that hides behind the screen. These sets use LG’s four-step Tru-Ultra HD technology to upscale HD content and they are also some of the first sets we’re aware of to offer an HEVC decoder. Only thing missing is HDMI 2.0.

Toshiba’s 4K TVs Could Be the Upscaling ChampsToshiba’s $4,999 58-inch, $6,999 65-inch, and $16,999 84-inch, Series L9300U 4K TVs are set to go on sale next month. Each of these sets include Toshiba’s CEVO 4K Quad Dual Core processor which according to Toshiba incorporates their newest “Color and Depth Adaptive Resolution+ and Texture Restoration algorithms.” Toshiba’s latest TVs also offer lots of cool features including a Cloud TV with lots of connectivity options like Wi-Fi, Miracast and WiDi.

Samsung Affordable 4K TVs Make Their DebutAt CES this year Samsung was showing off its large $40,000 85-inch UHDTV set. When Sony launched their XBR sets Samsung didn’t counter until just now with a the $5,499 55-inch UN55F9000 and $7,999 65-inch UN65F9000. The new 4K sets offer the same “Precision Black Local Dimming with Micro Dimming Ultimate,” that reviewers liked so much in the UNF8000 sets. The F9000 also includes a built-in camera for Skyping and gesture control along with voice recognition and a touch-pad remote. Unlike the Sony and LG sets Samsung is sticking with active shutter glasses which should look pretty good with 4K 2160-line frames to each eye. Samsung claims its upscaled images will look better than its competitors with its “Quadmatic Picture Engine.” The sets also offer a beefed up 70-watt sound system.

Bottom Line: 4K TVs Are Definitely NOT a Stupid IdeaIn an industry where timing is everything, we have to ask if this is the right time to be purchasing a 4K UHDTV set. Although the prices are somewhat reasonable for the 55-inch sets, you may have to sit pretty close to them to fully appreciate the clarity and level of detail. Some say an 80-inch set is the optimal size for a 4K TV but we think you would be happy with one as “small” as 65 inches. We also don’t think there will be much native 4K content easily accessible for a little while but we’re also confident that everything will fall into place in that department soon. Aside from waiting for the prices to come down and programming to appear we also might be inclined to wait for HDMI 2.0 and HEVC-equipped sets. Unlike our friends at CNET we don’t think 4K TV is “stupid” and based on what we’ve seen with our own eyes we would love to have one in our living room right now.

Video of the Week: First Look at the Sony SmartWatch 2

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 13:24:24 -0700

Video of the Week

First Look at the Sony SmartWatch 2

With the rumored Apple iWatch waiting in the wings, here’s a glimpse of the latest smartwatch from Sony from our friends at BGR.

Future Tech That Could Show Up in Your Next Gadgets

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 11 Jul 2013 11:53:50 -0700

Future Tech That Will Show Up in Your Next Gadgets

We’ve always got our eye out for the latest technology trends like metal oxide backplanes, new MEMS sensors and applications of nanotechnology. Here’s a roundup of some new technology we have started to see in gadgets currently on the market and some we expect to see in future gadgets.

Waterproof Nano CoatingsIn order to make a smartphone waterproof you used to have to put it inside a watertight case. Now you can send your phone to a company like Liquipel where they use a vapor deposition process that “coats” the outside and inside of a device with a nanoparticle material creating a “hydrophobic” waterproof barrier that doesn’t interfere with the operation of the device. Other companies like HzO, Neverwet and P2i offer similar nano-polymer coatings that repel water. There is a standard in place from the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) referred to as IPX7 which requires a device to withstand immersion in at least 1 meter of water for 30 minutes. Sony currently offers the Xperia Z and Samsung recently announced a version of the Galaxy S4 that are both IPX7 compliant and presumably use some sort of nano coating to make that possible. We expect to see future devices come with water repellent nano coatings.

New Display Backplanes Offer Higher Pixel Density and FlexibilityMost all of today’s LCD displays use a backplane made of thin-film transistors (TFTs) that are used to turn pixels on and off. As the demand increases for smaller and denser pixels for products like Apple’s phones and tablets with Retina displays, display manufacturers have turned to polycrystalline or polysilicon backplanes which work well enough for small screens but not as well in larger screens like HDTV sets. Fortunately, new backplane technologies have recently emerged that use metal oxides like Indium, Gallium, and Zinc oxides called IGZO by Sharp, one of the leading companies in this field. CBRITE, a competitor to Sharp offers what they consider to be a superior metal oxide backplane that they claim offers higher performance at a lower cost and similar to IGZO, can produce displays with pixel densities well above 400 ppi as well as flexible displays that can wrap around objects as a watch would wrap around your wrist. One other significant benefit of these new backplanes is lower power. They can also be used to make large screen OLED devices more practical. Samsung showed some possible applications for flexible displays at their CES press conference and Sharp has been showing an 8K, IGZO TV at shows as well. We wouldn’t be surprised to see the rumored Apple iWatch using a flexible metal oxide display or one based on Corning’s super thin and flexible Willow Glass. We also expect to see the display industry move to metal oxide backplanes for everything from tablets, smartphones and smartwatches to giant 4K UHDTV sets.

Super-Fast LTE Advanced Coming SoonThere’s a newer faster version of the wireless LTE standard called LTE Advanced that promises to increase data rates significantly over the current LTE or 4G network. Although U.S. carriers are in the process of upgrading their service, the word is it will be available later this year or early next year. There are many new features in LTE Advanced including MIMO antenna technology, heterogeneous networks (HetNets), spectrum diversity with easier handoffs to Wi-Fi networks and carrier aggregation that will translate into higher capacity, more reliable, and higher throughput networks. The latest rumor out of Cupertino indicates that a new version of the iPhone could come with LTE Advanced offering download speeds on the order of 150Mbps or twice as fast as the current version. An iPhone equipped with LTE would also help speed the deployment by the carriers. Samsung announced an LTE-A version of the Galaxy S4 and we’re sure LTE-A will be one of the must-have features on the next wave of smartphones.

Futuristic UI with HTML 5 Development FrameworkA company named Famo.us has been developing a framework for developers who want to easily create a 3D interface that resembles something out of the movie Minority Report. Despite the reluctance among developers to fully embrace HTML 5 as an alternative or even a complement to native apps like those for iOS or Android, we think developers would be wise to check out the framework available from Famo.us. We also hope to see Famo.us incorporated into devices like tablets or smartphones that could benefit from a fast 3D interface complete with a speedy physics engine. You can see a demo of the Famo.us interface here, note how fast and fluid the 3D images move. You can also check out famo.us Stress Test Demo for another look. We think this could represent the next generation user interface.

New MEMS Sensors Will Add New FeaturesWhether you know that MEMS stands for microelectromechanical systems or not, if you own a smartphone or tablet you’ve experienced what they can do. MEMS is a nanotechnology that produces microsensors and microactuators that have been used to create tiny accelerometers, gyroscopes and other sensors inside integrated circuits. These are the components that helped make smartphones and tablets such a huge success. This year the MEMS industry thinks a pressure sensor that can precisely measure altitude (along with GPS data), will help make things like indoor navigation practical. Companies like the BodyMedia, which was recently acquired by Jawbone, plans to add an electrocardiogram (ECG) and fluid volume (hydration) measurement to its fitness device that currently measures body temperature, ambient temperature and galvanic skin response (for accurate calorie measurements) in addition to inertial sensors like accelerometers. MEMS will continue to offer new features in future gadgets.

Video of the Week: Personal Projection Mapping Prototype

Andrew Eisner — Thu, 11 Jul 2013 11:51:06 -0700

Video of the Week

Personal Projection Mapping Prototype

Some time ago we shared a video of projection mapping onto the exterior of buildings. Here’s a variation of that for your living room call IllumiRoom that projects visualizations to augment a game you’re playing or something you’re watching on your TV set.