The past decade has now seen at least three industry-wide technologies vie for the future of television — HD, 3D and now 4K or UHD. The first of these — HD — represented a massive change for television that affected nearly every aspect of the TV experience from how it was captured to how it was consumed. A decade later, it is nearly impossible to purchase a TV that does not support high-definition. The second — 3D — was a mixed bag. While the technology became commonplace on high-end TVs, it has remained relevant for only a small fraction of programming. The question, then, is which of these paths, if either, 4K will follow.
This week at Mobile World Congress 2013 we’ve seen Nokia‘s own Lumia 820 and 520 getting their own custom casings (not just covers, that is) with the MakerBot Replicator 2 – live and in-action! While it was just this January when Nokia first released their own 3D case printing files for the Lumia 820, MakerBot quickly revealed their own MakerBot Replicator 2 Destkop 3D Printer optimized shell that Nokia uses this week. This ultimate team-up showed what it could do with the publicly available files – all you need is your own maker to make your own!
Nokia has branded this event as the “world’s first live social 3D printing experience” – so fancy you’ll barely be able to handle it! Attendees as well as users at home were able to win customized cases for the 820, and even though there was no large news blast inside the main Nokia keynote, the demonstration was swamped almost non-stop. The hands-on video you’ll see here shows one of the very rare times when the 3 MakerBot Replicator 2 machines weren’t surrounded by a sea of bodies.
You’ll find the scaly example of a case shown above and below to be made of two separate pieces as you’ll be wanting to create when you’re busting out your own design. The reason for this is the relative rigidity of the material you’re creating with. With a second piece pushing out from the inside, you’ve got a bendable set of bits that function as buttons, as they should.
And that affords you the ability to have more than one color, too. You’ll be busting out a black case with yellow buttons – perhaps a case with your school’s colors? The outer bits and back of your Nokia Lumia 820 (or 520 in the very near future) are yours to create. Check the back of the case in the gallery below to see some key-carrying action as well!
Also be sure to check the rest of our Mobile World Congress 2013 coverage in the MWC 2013 tag portal right this minute. Keep your eyes to the Nokia tag for our reviews of the new 720 and 520 in the very near future too – hot stuff!
It seems like people are taking Phil Dubost’s lead when it comes to resumes. In case you haven’t heard of Phil, he’s the one behind the Amaz-ing Resume that promptly went viral after he posted it. Apparently, many seem to agree that a fake Amazon product page beats a boring old CV any day.
That was followed shortly by the chocolate bar resume of Redditor elilanger’s friend Nicholas, which went viral after it was posted online. (In case you were wondering, yes, he got the job.) Hot on the heels of both unusual resumes is Floyd Hayes and his 3D-printed head resume.
Geeks who are into fast cars and stereoscopic displays must think that watching F1 races in 3D is the bees-knees. However, FIA, the sport’s governing body, has often been resistant to new technology — only adopting HD a few years ago. That’s why when the FIA asked Sky to produce a test-broadcast of the practice testing laps in the run up to the Barcelona Grand Prix, the British broadcaster jumped at the chance. Naturally, BSkyB wanted to show off its technical marvel, and so invited us to come and see what it was like. Of course, like the good geeks that we are, our attention was focused on keeping Sky’s chief engineer Chris Johns in a corner and needling him with questions. Curious to find out what he said (apart from “please go away,” of course)? After the break is where all the cool kids are at.
In case you’ve forgotten the power and versatility of today’s mobile devices, Autodesk’s 123D Creature app will be one hell of a reminder. The app has all you need to create your own 3D character, from building a skeleton to sculpting and painting and even ordering a 3D print of your creation. Now you can create alien genitalia monsters wherever you are.
Watch the demo to get a better idea of what you can do with the app:
How awesome it that? Seriously. It’s like reverse Skylanders. Can you imagine showing this to a kid who loves to doodle and draw monsters? You’ll vaporize his very soul with this revelation. Good luck explaining that to his parents. Unfortunately for Android users, Autodesk 123D Creature is only available for the iPad. Get it from the iTunes App Store (link opens iTunes) for $1.99 (USD).
3D printers are undeniably cool, but their price also puts them out of the reach of most; that’s where 3Doodler steps in, a 3D printing pen hitting Kickstarter today and promising to make sketches physical. The chubby stylus squirts out of a stream of thermoplastic from its 270 degree-C nib, which is instantly cooled by an integrated fan. By laying different streams of plastic, tugging up streams of it to make 3D structures, and piecing different layers together, you can create 3D designs on a budget.
In fact, early Kickstarter backers will be able to get the 3Doodler from $50, though that award tier is already nearly halfway claimed at time of writing. Next is the $75 bracket, which should stick around a little longer, with the eventual Kickstarter goal being $30,000.
Unlike traditional printers, which require programming, the 3Doodler takes a more abstract approach. You can freeform draw sketches, or alternatively trace out patterns that have been printed, and then peel the set plastic off; 3Doodler suggests possibilities include jewelry, 3D models, artwork, and more.
It’s not going to be the way you print your next coffee cup or car wheel, as we’ve seen promised from regular 3D printers, but the plug-and-play approach has plenty of appeal nonetheless. The Kickstarter runs for the next month, with first deliveries expected in the fall of 2013 assuming it’s funded.
We all go through phases where we feel like we’ve seen every possible Kickstarter project that we’d ever want. And then one like Mycestro comes along and reminds us that this is just the tip of the iceberg. It’s a 3D mouse that you strap to one of your fingers and it looks like it could become a huge asset for multi-tasking.
If you think about how you use your computer, be it a desktop or laptop, you know that your hands move from the keyboard to the trackpad or mouse constantly, over and over again. It’s wasted movement for the most part, especially when you see the possibilities that Mycestro unlocks. The only thing left is for it to get funded, because it looks like all of the prototypes work perfectly.
Its founder and creator, Nick Mastandrea, has been tinkering on this project for quite a while, having been featured in Engadget a few years ago, but it looks like it’s ready for primetime. You’ll be able to pick one up for a $79 pledge in white, or $99 with your choice of color. The estimated shipping date is sometime in October of this year, if all goes well.
Have a look at some of its features, which include touch buttons that allow you to navigate your computer without the need for moving your entire hand to a dedicated area on a computer, thanks to 3D technology and space recognition:
Here are the specs for the 3D Mouse:
– Size of a wireless earpiece. – Light, weighing next to nothing. – Internal battery can be charged via USB. – Battery life is estimated to be eight hours depending on usage. – Two different replaceable clip sizes.
This isn’t a completely perfect situation though, as you’ll have to re-learn how to use a mouse. The other thing is that if you’re in a coffee shop or somewhere in public, people are going to look at you like you have some issues. The thing is called the Mycestro for a reason; it looks like you’re conducting your own private orchestra. In other words, you’re going to look weird. If you’re okay with that, then the benefits outweigh the public shame and looks you might receive.
The device works from 30 feet away from your computer, thanks to Bluetooth, so you could use this for presentations at work. The touch technology it has reminds me of Google’s Project Glass, which allows you to tap a panel on the side of the wearable device to make things happen, like a mouse or trackpad. The other plus is that it’ll work with any iPad or iPhone, with Android support coming by the end of the year. This could be a nice way to have a lean-back experience with a tablet, or do the driving while someone else holds it.
Check out this demo using it with an Internet-enabled TV:
It reminds me of the Xbox Kinect a little bit, but it’s in your hand and requires no setup.
With 38 days left to go on its Kickstarter campaign, Nick Mastandrea and his team has raised $39,735 out of $100,000. I think if people can look past the Mycestro as a curious oddity and understand how this could make them more efficient on the computer, this thing will get funded, and then some. The team says that a version for lefties will come a bit after the original model. Personally, I use the trackpad and mouse with my right hand, even though I’m a lefty.
So who cares if people think you’re making hand gestures into thin air to nobody in particular. Aren’t people who use Bluetooth headsets already weird? Exactly.
3D video is a fade but still make a lot of victims on its way out! Today’s victim is the iPhone5/4s/4 with Donya’s latest binocular 3D Video mount for iPhone5 compatible with YT3D (YouTube 3D Videos). And for just 2,999 Yen you will now be able to enjoy these piece of 3D art on the go on your iPhone and enjoy the same that goes along with whenever you will use these iPhone mount on the train or while enjoy a nice “cup of Joe”.
The Holocaust is one of the most well-known events in history, and while there are still a handful of survivors out there, that number is quickly dipping. So, in order to preserve stories from survivors of the Holocaust, USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies and the USC Shoah Foundation Institute have begun working on full-body interactive holograms that feature the survivors themselves.
The man featured in the image above and in the video down below is 80-year-old Pinchas Gutter, who spent his childhood in a Naxi concentration camp in Poland, and was about to turn 14 years old when World War II ended in 1945. Gutter was interviewed and recorded in 3D inside a 26-foot-wide dome lit by 6,000 LEDs with a green screen backdrop.
The recordings from the interview were then converted into a hologram that is meant to be shown in museums and other exhibits. The team behind the project are definitely on a time crunch, and are trying to get as many Holocaust survivors interviewed and recorded before most of them pass away. It’s an undertaking that involves a lot of fast acting.
Of course, holograms aren’t anything new. Last year, the late Tupac Shakur was turned into a hologram and performed live at the Coachella music festival back in April. However, the team putting together the Holocaust holograms say that the process is a bit different. Whereas holographic Tupac used stacked 2D images projected onto a nearly-invisible screen, holographic Gutter are projected onto open space to make it look more accurate.
For all the dimensions that Doctor Who has explored on TV, the third has been a rarity — there was an early 3D experiment in 1993 for the series’ 30th anniversary, a 2010 trailer, and that’s that. For the show’s 50th birthday, the company is willing to make a return trip through a two-part 3D special. Most of what’s in store for the unique event is being kept secret, although we imagine we’ll see plenty of Sonic Screwdriver action. We’ll have to see how closely the special’s broadcast date aligns with the official anniversary in November; hopefully, it’s far enough into the future that Whovians can prepare with a little TV shopping.
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