OUYA managed to capture the imagination of the Kickstarter community and tech world at large with its dream of a low-cost Android-based gaming console. We’ll be speaking with Julie Uhrman, the company’s CEO to discuss its plans to disrupt an industry controlled by three giants.
For a full list of Expand sessions, be sure to check out our event hub.
Voice search has pervaded nearly every aspect of our gadget lives, from our smartphones to our TVs to our navigation programs. Today we’re talking with Tamar Yehoshua, director of product management at Google, about how speech-activated search is changing — and improving — the way we interact with technology. Meet us here at 4:15PM EDT to catch the action.
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Google
Hot off his interview on the Expand main stage, Matt Rogers, Founder and VP of Engineering at Nest, saddled up to the rather more temperate seat in our backstage interview room with Joseph Volpe. Among other things, Matt opened up about design in the 21st century household and Nest’s ultimate plan to take over the whole home. Check out the video after break for the full interview.
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Filed under: Household
Our own Tim Stevens (literally) rolled into Fort Mason this morning to kick off Expand and shortly after walked his way backstage to chat with Myriam Joire about — you guessed it — Expand. To find out more about where the event came from, where it is and where it’s going, check out the full interview after the break.
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The Smart Knob promises a smarter, more secure deadbolt lock that lets us issue time-limited unlock codes or give trusted visitors a way in. Thanks to some hands-on time here at Engadget Expand, we’ve learned that it’s even more clever than we thought. The PIN-verified, phone-based code generation system cycles through a seemingly “infinite” range before it hands out a number; someone overstaying their welcome isn’t likely to stumble across the new code by accident. And while some might be disappointed that there’s no built-in Bluetooth or WiFi to get codes, that actually works to its advantage, according to the project’s Clark Li and Merrick Lackner. As Smart Knob doesn’t need an internet connection, it could be useful even out in the woods.
As for the lock itself? Having had a look first-hand, we’re more inclined to believe claims that it’s easy to install. At least from what we’ve seen in the prototype, it really is just a keypad resting on top of the existing deadbolt. There isn’t anything special that goes behind or through the door. To us, that makes it easier to justify the $99 price the Smart Knob team is targeting for the base hardware — it’s something you could put on your front door at home, not just at the office. The only added costs would be for ongoing notifications and similar services that would require a more extensive effort. We should know how well the Smart Knob works when it launches closer to the end of the year.
Zach Lutz contributed to this report.
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Gallery: Insert Coin: Smart Knob hands-on
Filed under: Household
He’s just taken the title of inaugural speaker here at Expand, now Kickstarter co-founder Yancey Strickler is giving us even more face time in our first ever backstage interview. Since its launch in 2009, the crowdfunding powerhouse has become a household name, bringing us success stories like the Pebble smartwatch. Myriam Joire sat down with Yancey to talk about Pebble, OUYA and the future of Kickstarter. Check out the video after the break to watch our backstage interview in its entirety.
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Filed under: Internet
Yes, ladies and gents, it’s time to talk mobile. We’ll be sitting down with big wigs from some of the top companies in the space, including HTC’s VP design Scott Croyle, Samsung’s Design America’s head of design studio Miloseski and Sprint’s director of product development Ryan Sullivan.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Those looking to tinker with humanoid robots aren’t exactly lacking for options these days, but Cognitive Spring is taking a slightly different approach than most with its Arduino-based cSpring bipedal robot — one of the semifinalists in the Insert Coin competition here at Expand. Rather than offering a readymade robot like Nao that largely makes software the focus of user customization, cSpring is designed to be highly customizable (and open source) on both the hardware and software fronts. Indeed, the company is hoping to encourage such development by rewarding crowd-sourced work with what it calls “paid achievements.”
As for the robot itself, it’s currently designed to work with an 11-inch MacBook Air that conveniently doubles as its torso, and it relies on a PrimeSense motion sensor to monitor its surroundings. One of the real selling points for potential developers, though, are the array of servos that power the robot’s legs, which can operate simultaneously and provide some 40 pounds of lift apiece. Those also give the robot a decent range of movement, although it hasn’t yet learned to fully walk (that’s one area the company suggests could be expanded upon by others).
Gallery: cSpring robot hands-on
Filed under: Robots
Source: Cognitive Spring
Moedls (pronounced moy-dles) inventor John Fehr, being a semifinalist in our Insert Coin competition, is obviously on hand here at Expand. While we were impressed with what we saw from afar, we were really excited to see the low-cost 3D scanner in person. The laser-cut housing for the lasers is delightfully DIY, but it will eventually be replaced with a more polished case. The specially sourced lights, which cast a delightful green glow, are part of what allows the scanner to create surprisingly high-quality results. For the moment they don’t actually connect to the companion app on the phone, but Fehr promises to at least consider the possibility if he wins our $20,000 grand prize. There’s no need for a direct connection, however. The camera on your smartphone is ultimately what is really doing the heavy lifting here. In conjunction with the aforementioned app of course.
The biggest stumbling block when trying to generate these 3D models is stability. To that end, Fehr has built a custom mount for a phone, based around a standard dashboard version. The robust joints minimize movement and the spring-loaded holster allows it to fit practically any device… at least until Samsung’s 6.3-inch Note VII hits the market. The belt-driven turntable is also specially sourced — this is not just a hacked up record player. The prototype is still a little bulky and wobbly, but the final version will be slimmed down, have an aluminum base and ball bearings under the platform to minimize vibrations. The models come together pretty quick under the app, which is still clearly under development and has a view rough edges, though it’s certainly functional. In total we’re still looking at about $300 in hardware and you’ll have an opportunity to throw your weight behind the project on Monday when the Kickstarter launches. Head on after the break to get a quick video tour of the device.
Gallery: Moedls hands-on
Filed under: Misc
Joining the handful of Insert Coin finalists at Expand is Azorean’s cute Ziphius aquatic drone. While Fort Mason is located by the seaside, the folks actually brought their own little pool along to let their Raspberry Pi-powered robot splash around in; though it can happily operate in seawater as well and thus adding more use case possibilities — be it for entertainment (including autonomous ball-chasing, for instance) or for environmental monitoring. Through a direct WiFi connection we were able to use an Android tablet to control both the Ziphius’ surprisingly powerful motors and its camera’s vertical position, as well as watching a live video feed at the same time.
The final version of the drone will come with an interchangeable chassis to suit different purposes or simply for personalization, and internally it’ll be equipped with Raspberry Pi’s upcoming high quality camera module, which will enable even better streaming and onboard 1080p 30fps capture. According to CEO Edmundo Nobre, the Kickstarter campaign will launch before the end of the month, and he’s hoping to bring the Ziphius to the mass market with a price point at around $200 to $250. Not bad, huh? Check out our hands-on video after the break.
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Filed under: Robots
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