Just a couple of weeks ago I thought that this versatile 3D printer was the 21st century printer, copier, scanner and fax machine. I was wrong. AIO Robotics’Zeus 3D printer is that machine. It prints, scans, copies and faxes 3d objects. Yep, fax.
With Zeus, AIO Robotics is aiming at consumers who may not be as tech savvy as the other early adopters of 3D printing technology.
You can clearly see from its appearance and its user interface that the Zeus is designed to be accommodating and convenient. That’s why it has a fax function. Faxing with Zeus is a remote version of its copying function, which in turn is a combo of scanning and printing. When you select fax, Zeus scans the object to be copied then sends the 3D file to another Zeus printer via the Internet. The receiving Zeus printer will be the one to print the copy of the object, just like with a faxed document.
Pledge at least $1,999 (USD) on Kickstarter to get a Zeus 3D printer as a reward. How awesome would it be if you could just ask Amazon – or your local pizza restaurant – to fax your order to you?
Last year when I saw YEI Technology’s Unreal Engine demo of their 3-Space Sensors, I mentioned how it might be able to integrate with the Oculus Rift for a more immersive virtual reality experience. Turns out the company had the same plan all along. YEI recently launched a Kickstarter fundraiser for PrioVR, an improved and affordable version of the 3-Space Sensors.
The PrioVR sensors are significantly smaller than the 3-Space Sensors and will also include an input unit. The latter is for plugging in additional external input, i.e. physical controllers such as a joystick or a gamepad. Data from sensors and input units will be sent to a “centralized wearable wireless hub architecture”, which in turn will beam the data to a base station that has a USB output.
PrioVR currently comes in two developer kits: PrioVR Lite includes 11 sensors, 1 input unit, the wireless hub, the base station plus the straps needed to wear all of the electronics. The PrioVR Pro kit adds 6 more sensors and 1 more input unit to the Lite kit. As expected, the kits will come with SDK and API so developers can adapt or build games around PrioVR. YEI Technology also said that “major game engines will be supported” and that they will also release “demo projects and open source code examples.”
Pledge at least $450 (USD) on Kickstarter to get a PrioVR dev kit as a reward. I wonder what gaming companies and console makers think of all these virtual reality hardware. The Omni VR treadmill in particular seems to be in direct competition with the PrioVR. I also find it hilarious that Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft seem to have given up on motion-controlled gaming when in fact they popularized it with their respective efforts, especially with the Wii and the Kinect. I guess they weren’t able to connect the dots to virtual reality. Perhaps no one really did until the Oculus Rift hit the scene.
However, while the PrioVR and other VR hardware have immense potential, I think it’s safe to say that we’re still years away from seeing consumer versions of any of them. I think the manufacturers need to sort out who their partners will be and eventually release a complete package for consumers and game developers alike. They can’t expect us to buy various VR hardware separately without knowing which games they’ll work with. Remember, as of now these sensors and headsets are separate from PCs and consoles – you know, the machines that actually run games. If folks are already balking at the Xbox One’s price, imagine how they’ll react when they find out you have to shell out hundreds of dollars for a console or a gaming PC, $300 for the Oculus Rift and then $450 more for the sensors. Holy crap. A subscription-based cloud gaming setup – with free-to-play games – almost makes sense from my wallet’s perspective.
The Roomba cleans your house, but who will keep the Roomba fresh and clean? ColorWare will. The company known for customizing computers, consoles and media players now customizes iRobot’s popular Roomba 780 robotic vacuum cleaner. They’ll even make it look like dirt if you want.
As always, ColorWare offers a variety of metallic and solid colors to paint the Roomba 780. You can specify different colors for seven of the cleaning robot’s parts. However for some reason, ColorWare won’t touch the robot’s butt; that part will always be black. So don’t make fun of my Oreo-themed Roomba. I did the best I could.
The only thing more fun than customizing the Roomba 780′s colors is hearing about its price. If you already have a Roomba 780, ColorWare will give it a paint job for $249 (USD). Don’t have the robot? ColorWare will gladly hand you a custom painted Roomba 780 for $899.
There are plenty of amazing watches out there, but this is the first watch I know of which allows you to evaluate the timing rate on the fly, so that you can fine-tune the mechanism, depending on the conditions you’re in.
The titanium and steel Urwerk EMC Watch has got a Witschi watch tester built-in. This device is electronic, but wound up manually, which is kind of cool. The Witschi listens to the watch’s rhythm and balance, and displays this information for the prior 24 hours. This is perfect for anyone for whom having accurate time is paramount.
The mechanism is designed to allow wearers to tweak timing based on the minor variances that can happen due to position, temperature and shocks. Its maker says “thanks to EMC’s unique and pioneering monitoring unit, not only can the wearer obtain the precise timing rate on demand, they can then use that information to accurately adjust the precision of their watch to suit their own personal rhythm.”
The watch is expected to retail for around $120,000(USD). Horologists, get ready to mortgage everything you own.
The computer keyboard has been a staple tool for both work and play for decades now, but it’s still one of the most uncomfortable devices to use. Its descendant, the touchscreen keyboard, is even worse. An unusual invention called TREWGrip wants to solve both the problem of ergonomics in desktop computing and the efficiency of typing in mobile devices. How? By putting the keys at the back.
The TREWGrip is a Bluetooth keyboard and air mouse. Inventor Mark Parker split the traditional keyboard arrangement into two halves and then arranged it horizontally at the rear of the device. Ideally this setup – along with its wireless capability – provides a more comfortable typing position because your arms remain close to your body. Because it’s also a mouse, you can lean back and maintain proper posture.
The familiar layout of the keys and the visual cues in front should help with the learning curve of using the TREWGrip. The suction pad in the middle holds mobile devices up to 5.3″ wide.
So how fast can you type on the TREWGrip? Parker and his company held a typing competition where seasoned touch typists were required to use the TREWGrip. The winner, Robert Price, typed 115 words per minute to win the contest. I dare you to type that fast on your touchscreen.
Pledge at least $249 (USD) on Kickstarter to get a TREWGrip as a reward. They’ll need to rally a lot of backers within a few days though; as of this writing they’ve only raised $15,794 of their $100,000 target. I don’t know how hard it is to learn how to type on the TREWGrip, but other than that I would love to use such a device on my desk. But on the go? I think it needs to be more portable – thinner and perhaps foldable – especially since it was meant to be used with smartphones and small tablets.
Is it possible to improve the Ferrari 458 Italia? Well, even Ferrari seems to think so, thanks to the plethora of different versions of the car that are available right now. The latest and greatest is the Speciale, which will premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show on September 10th, in Germany.
When compared with a stock 458, the Ferrari 458 Speciale has an improved aerodynamic efficiency index, making it more slippery at faster speeds. It’s got a more powerful naturally-aspirated 4.5L V8, that develops 596 hp and 398 lb-ft of torque. This will make it go pretty fast – from 0 to 62 mph in just three seconds. It’s also got the highest lateral acceleration (1.33 G) of any Ferrari.
It will launch in a couple of weeks, so all of you speed freaks can start salivating. It’s definitely got awesome performance, but I kind of cringe at discovering the retail price (which hasn’t been announced yet).
Thanks to DVRs, you can watch your favorite TV shows anytime you want. TiVo’s new Roamio line of DVRs will let you watch anywhere you want as well. The Roamio DVRs let you record four to six shows at once. They also integrate with the TiVo app so you can browse shows and schedule recordings on an iOS or Android device. Best of all, you can stream or download media on an iOS device. But all of this wizardry comes at a price.
The first potential dealbreaker with Roamio is in figuring out which model to get, because the DVR has three models. There’s the Roamio, the Roamio Plus and the Roamio Pro. The Roamio can’t stream or upload media to mobile devices on its own. You’ll need to buy the TiVo Stream to get that feature. The Pro and the Plus on the other hand both have that streaming functionality built-in. But if you’re using an HD antenna, the Roamio is your only choice because the Plus and the Pro will only work with a Cablecard from your Cable TV provider.
If you’ve emerged from the jungle of jargon and you’re still interested in getting a Roamio, it’s time for the good parts. As I said, all three models work with the TiVo mobile app so you can browse shows and schedule recordings even if you’re not in front of your TV. The Roamio can record up to four shows at once, while the Plus and the Pro can both record up to six shows at once.
All three models also have Wi-Fi connectivity, although they still have Ethernet ports.
As I mentioned above, the Pro and the Plus will let you stream or download media to iOS devices. For now, this only works while you’re on your home network. But TiVo will soon add a software update that extends this feature to any Wi-Fi connection. Both the Pro and the Plus will also get an update that will allow you to watch live TV from an iOS device. In fact the only difference between the Plus and the Pro are their hard drives. The Pro has a 3TB drive while the Plus “only” has a 1TB drive, but since all three models have two USB ports, I’d say save your cash and get the Plus. You can connect additional storage as you need it.
You can order the Roamio, Roamio Plus and Roamio Pro from Amazon, Best Buy or directly from Tivo. The Roamio costs $200 (USD), the Roamio Plus costs $400 and the Roamio Pro costs $600. But you also have to sign up for TiVo’s service, which is another $15 a month. Whew. And that’s the TiVo Roamio line: confusing and a bit costly, but convenient. Now I know why people love Netflix so much.
In July, Mercer published its current list of the most expensive cities in the world. Curious about the cost of living for expats, we created a collection of the priciest apartments and rentals in these cities. But what about hotels? How much will one night in the world’s most expensive towns set you back?
Keyboards and synthesizers are some of the most complex electronic musical instruments. Even the basic ones are loaded with a variety of tweaks that help you achieve a variety of sounds. But unlike a guitar where you can bend, pluck or hammer the strings to modify the sound on the fly, keyboards and synths require you to make your adjustments using separate sliders or knobs. This is where TouchKeys come in.
Andrew McPherson and his colleagues at the Queen Mary University of London’s Augmented Instruments Laboratory came up with TouchKeys. These multitouch sensors stick to standard-size keys via an adhesive backing. They’ll work on keyboards and synthesizers that can output in MIDI or OSC. The sensors can detect up to three simultaneous touch points per key and can even distinguish whether it’s being touch by the fingertip or the pad of the finger (presumably by the area covered by the touch). This not only gives you a more convenient way to tweak your sound, it lets you adjust your instrument to your needs instead of the other way around.
Pledge at least £195 (~$305 USD) on Kickstarter to get a set of TouchKeys as a reward. You can also pledge to get a full TouchKey instrument if you have the cash.
Have you ever wished you could capture your pet and train them as your Pokémon? Then take a look at these 3″ Pokéball replicas. Really, just look at them, because that’s all they’re good for. They don’t even open. They’re really shiny though.
These Pokéballs are made not by the Poké Mart but by a shop called Pallet Town Exports. They will be available in six types, but for now the shop only has images of the regular Pokéball, the Premiere Ball and the Ultra Ball. The other three will be replicas of the Master Ball and Luxury Ball, plus a 1.5″ version of the regular Pokéball.
As you can see in the images, the replicas have light-up switches and can be customized with either a clean or battle-worn look. Do Pokéballs battle?
Choose your wallet and go to Pallet Town Exports to order. If you want to be the very poorest trainer that ever was, you can also order the shop’s trainer belt replicas.
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