Hasta La Gadget!

The Arduino has long since proven itself to be one of the biggest boons to DIY heads since the soldering iron, but that doesn’t mean it’s not still able to impress, as amply demonstrated by this simple but effective homebuilt 3D scanner. While there’s not exactly much to guide the rookies out there, the project does seem to be straightforward enough for anyone with a bit of experience, with the scanner itself comprised of nothing more than the Arduino, a couple of servos, and the Sharp GP2Y0A02YK Long Distance Measuring Sensor — plus the necessary code, of course, which is conveniently provided at the link below. Once you’ve got everything pieced together, you should all set to make polar coordinate scans of your surroundings and watch the time fly by.

[Via Hacked Gadgets]

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Arduino finds yet another use in homebuilt 3D scanner originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Apr 2009 08:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Much like the toaster, the microwave and the sandal, the flashlight hasn’t changed an awful lot since being first engineered in the late 1300s. Thankfully, we’re finally seeing a little innovation in the space with Hammacher Schlemmer’s Infrared Flashlight Video Recorder. Upon first looking it over, it’s hard to tell that this thing is different from any other heavy duty tactical flashlight; underneath that matte black finish, however, are 17 infrared LEDs and a video camera capable of capturing footage (with audio!) up to 13 feet away from the device itself. Both video and snapshots are captured in VGA (640 x 480) quality, and while only 15 seconds can be logged on the 128MB of built-in memory, the miniSD expansion slot opens that up immensely. The rub? Nah, it’s not the absurd $399.95 price tag, it’s the “three C-sized batteries” requirement. Drat.

[Via OhGizmo]

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Tactical flashlight records late night jungle excursions originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember the blurry blob of pixels reputed to be Samsung’s entrance to the Android handset market? It was initially expected to come into focus sometime after July, but word from Dr. Won-Pyo Hong, a Samsung VP, is that the phone will see international release a month earlier, in June. He has also confirmed that two other Google-powered handsets are in development by the company, both set for US release sometime in the second half of the year. The phones are said to be “totally different” from each other and will be so at odds they’ll have to go to separate networks or risk creating a hilarious feud of the type we haven’t seen since TV’s Perfect Strangers. Both are said to offer considerable enhancements and tweaks to Android that should distance them HTC’s offerings, but will the two ever stand a chance of getting along? Don’t be ridiculous!

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Samsung’s Android phone arriving to the party earlier than expected, bringing friends originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A new cable from Vuzix will let iPhone owners hook up LCD glasses to watch movies in 3D. The cable hooks into the iPhone’s dock connector and will work with 3D movies in  side-by-side, interlaced and anaglyph modes.

Why bother? Well, even if 3D isn’t your thing, the iWear specs offer a considerably bigger viewing area than the iPhone’s screen, giving the equivalent of a 44-inch screen as if viewed from nine feet. There are built-in headphones, too, so you won’t get too overloaded by cables, although you may end up looking like a certain Star Trek engineer.

All iWear AV230XL headsets bought from now on will come bundled with the cable. The headsets cost $200 and if you already have one, the cable alone costs $40.

Product page [Vuzix. Thanks, Greg!]

If anyone doubted that Barack Obama is the techiest president ever, they can drop their crazy ideas forever. When the president and his wife, Mrs. O, met the Queen of England this week, there was the traditional exchange of gifts.

The Queen presented the Obamas a rather lame present — a photograph of herself and her awesomely un-politically correct husband the Duke of Edinburgh. The picture came in a silver frame.

And what did the prez bring for the Queen? An iPod, fully loaded with Broadway show tunes plus video clips of the Queen on her 2007 US visit. Sadly, amidst all the reports of this momentous gift-giving session the actual iPod model is not disclosed. We’d like to think that it’s the Touch, but whichever it is, one thing is clear: The Obamas put a lot more thought into their gift than did the Royals. According to the Guardian, the Queen is "delighted."

President Obama gives the Queen an iPod
[Guardian]