Hasta La Gadget!

Finally, an invention John Waters can get behind. When the harbinger of filth brought the odiferous experience to screenings of Polyester, he took the scratch-and-sniff route — including scents like glue and feces — now a team of researchers at the University of California in San Diego are expanding on the smell-what-you-see concept, albeit in a much more high-tech fashion. In collaboration with the Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, the team has developed a method for generating odors that could pack the appropriate hardware into a device “small enough to fit on the back of your TV.” Basically, scents are produced by an aqueous solution, like ammonia, which is heated by a thin metal wire, and eventually expelled, as an odorous gas, from a small hole in its silicone elastomer housing — and, bam! You’ve got Smell-O-Vision. The team has tested its method using perfumes by Jennifer Lopez and Elizabeth Taylor, but have yet to create a working prototype. For the sake of innocent noses everywhere, let’s hope Mr. Waters doesn’t get a whiff of this.

Scent generator threatens to waft Odorama into the 21st century originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 06:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The never-ending battle between active and polarizing 3D alternatives still isn’t anywhere near its impossible-to-determine finale, but it’s pretty clear that LG’s intent on supporting the latter. Those who aren’t fazed by losing resolution so long as batteries aren’t required in their 3D glasses should be elated to hear of the outfit’s latest Cinema 3D sets, with the 32-inch 32LW5700, 42-inch 42LW5700 and 47-inch 47LW5700 pushing three-dee down to smaller scale displays. We’ve never been particularly fond of the 3D effect on bedroom-sized panels, but those looking for something a bit less gargantuan may beg to differ. The trio will support USB HDD recording, an integrated tuner, and of course, the inclusion of an IPS panel should make both 2D and 3D images alike look downright ravishing. Those fine to settle for the way we’ve always watched TV can opt for the 2D-only 47LZ9600 (47-inch) / 55LZ9600 (55-inch), both clocking in at 8.8mm thick and offering a native 1080p resolution, a built-in TV tuner and support for USB recording. The whole lot is expected to hit Japan later this month, with other dignified nations to surely follow suit shortly.

LG trots out ultraslim Nano Full LED TVs, polarized Cinema 3D sets originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Jun 2011 13:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you remember last year’s EX231W (note the lack of “p”) then you pretty much know all you need to about the company’s latest business-class 23-incher, the EX231Wp. It’s got the same 14.6mm bezel, 250-nit brightness, 25,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, and 1920 x 1080 resolution. It even kept the pair of sensors for measuring ambient light and detecting meatbags sitting in front of it, which allow the screen to adjust its brightness and conserve energy. Really, the only big difference is that NEC has managed to trim the power consumption from an already respectable 31W to just 27W under normal use. The display will start shipping in July for $319 and you’ll find more spec fun in the PR after the break.

Continue reading 23-Inch NEC MultiSync EX231Wp makes desktop displays a little bit greener

23-Inch NEC MultiSync EX231Wp makes desktop displays a little bit greener originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Jun 2011 17:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Everyone ’round here knows that Samsung has a lusty 10.1- and premature 7-inch version of its Galaxy Tab tablet. But we’ve heard nary a peep from Samsung about that $469 8.9-incher announced alongside its bigger, just-as-thin sibling back in March. We might know why. According to Korean news site Etnews, Samsung is having trouble getting it to market due to low yields of the 8.9’s G1F touch-panel which uses one less film layer than conventional GFF (glass fiber filter) panels. This G1F architecture is behind Samsung’s Super Clear LCD which you’ll find on Sammy’s own Galaxy Player, (Russian) Nexus S, and Wave II handsets. Etnews claims that Samsung will offset the G1F shortfall with GFF-type touch panels that are 30 – 40 percent thicker and dimmer, thanks to the extra layer. If true then we have one question: which regions will get the chunkier Galaxy Tab 8.9 when if finally does launch this summer?

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 8.9 troubled by screen issues, chubbier version the result? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jun 2011 07:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kopin’s a company known for diminutive displays destined for duty as electronic view finders in camcorders and digicams. At E3 this year, the company’s subsidiary Forth Dimensions Displays has unveiled a new use for its teeny tiny screens — virtual reality. Called Replicating Reality, it uses two .8-inch 1280 x 1024 LCD panels and head tracking to place you in a 3D virtual world. We got to test the system through a racing game, and found that it works pretty darn well. Graphics were of console quality, with nary a hint of image distortion from the system’s magnification lenses and pixel pitch was imperceptible to our eyes. Basically, there was no indication that the screens our gaze was fixed upon were less than an inch across. The sharp picture combined with the system’s head tracking — which let us look around while taking turns and weaving through traffic — to create quite an immersive experience. Of course, it still looked like a game, but there’s a pixel packed 2048 x 1536 panel in the works that the company claims can deliver visuals nigh-indistinguishable from the real world. We were told that prototypes of these QXGA screens will be ready in ten months, and they’ll be suitable for public consumption in a year. So, the real question is: will your eyeballs be prepared to handle such prodigious pixel density by then?

Replicating Reality demos 3D virtual reality system powered by pixel-rich microdisplays originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Jun 2011 04:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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