Hasta La Gadget!

CES is slowly coming to an end, but we’ve heard of a lot of new LEDs coming out this year from multiple manufacturers. LEDs look incredible, but they can look even more incredible thanks to fireflies.

A study was conducted by the University of Namur in Belgium that took a look at how exactly fireflies create their light in order to modify existing LEDs to run more efficiently. During the study, they identified a pattern in the scales of the Photuris firefly that boosted the amount of light that is created in its lantern, which is an organ located on its abdomen used to attract females. The way the Photuris firefly has its scales were in such a way, that it was able to produce more light from its lantern.

Scientists studied the scales of the Photuris and attempted to mimic it by using a laser to etch a profile similar to the scales on the Photuris onto an LED bulb. The result of the test allowed the LED bulb to emit approximately 55 percent more light than it had before.

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[CES 2013] In case you couldn’t tell by the monster amount of content coming from us this week, CES is currently going on and if you’ve ever been to it, or any other kind of conference, you know Wi-Fi is a must-have as cell phone service is usually nonexistent as thousands of people converge into one convention center. The problem is, at its current 2.4MHz spectrum, often times Wi-Fi at conferences don’t work that great either, leaving you without any form of communication for hours. The FCC announced today it’s going to make some changes to help you tweet out your photo of you posing with Wolverine as fast as possible, right from the convention floor.

FCC Charman Julius Genachowski has announced they plan to open up 195 megahertz of wireless spectrum within the 5GHz band in order to “relieve Wi-Fi congestion at conferences, at airports, and in people’s homes.” The change will increase Wi-Fi speeds to at least 35 percent and the FCC is expected to review the proposal next month.

The spectrum the FCC will be opening up is currently used by the Department of Defense as well as other federal agencies. Once approved, the spectrum would end up being shared with government purposes.

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[CES 2013] As a teenager, I played a lot of PC games. But one thing I couldn’t stand anymore was the amount of cheating that went on in popular first-person shooters like Counter-Strike. Players would be able to see through walls to know where exactly enemies were located at all times and even be able to kill enemies with an automatic headshot using an “auto-aim” cheat. But what if something like the auto-aim was possible in real life? That’s exactly what an Austin-based startup is trying to do with its precision-guided firearms.

Each of the three customized hunting rifles are equipped with advanced computerized scopes powered by Linux. What the hunter sees through the scope is a video image taken from the scope’s objective lens, instead of being a direct visual scope. You can tag your target, which the scope will take into account a number of variables. The marked target is then kept in the scope’s field of view, and when the hunter pulls the trigger, the hunter will need to match the position of the reticle with the marked target, which will then fire the rifle.

TrackingPoint’s rifles start at around $17,000, which is pretty high in the gun-buying world, but when you consider you can perform a real-life auto-aim with it, then that is something you’ll want to show off with your other hunter buddies.

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Redbox Instant launched in beta last month, but it looks as though those who didn’t get invited into the beta won’t have to wait too long to experience their online streaming video service as it’ll be launching out of beta in March 2013.

At $7.99 a month, Redbox Instant will launch $1 cheaper than Netflix and will allow its members to rent up to four DVDs each month, which can be picked up at one of their 42,600 kiosks across the U.S and is one benefit we’re sure many of you Redbox users will appreciate. Of course, Redbox Instant will also have online streaming video, which as of now is filled with 4,500 films ready to be streamed with more expected when it launches. As much as Redbox users enjoy going to their local market or mall to pick up physical DVDs to rent, we’re sure there are times when going out to rent a DVD is completely out of the question.

Movies will be Redbox Instant’s bread and butter at its start, but CEO Shawn Strickland said in a media-only event earlier today the company is open to the possibility of making TV content available on its service in the future.

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You know, it seems to be that the number of people who actually read books these days have dwindled, with the advent of portable electronics and the Internet that ushered an age of digital information. When combined, we end up with information right at our fingertips, and reading books has become passe – heck, even e-book readers are coming into age, as more and more people adopt this method of media consumption. For those who still prize their paper tomes, here are the $30 Katana Bookends which you will surely appreciate.

You need not be a ninja to own the Katana Bookends, and whoever drops by your place should fall in love with what you have done, making sure that all your books remain nice and upright, and yet are sandwiched by the Katana Bookends for that improved aesthetics. Out later this March, the length of the “katana” really depends on how long your bookshelf is, as well as the number of books you have.

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