Hasta La Gadget!

Google made a lot of people excited about the future when the company showed off a concept video for the Project Glass computer. A month after that, a some of us wet our already wet pants some more when the Leap controller was unveiled. And now we have the Meta, which as far as I can tell is a combination of those two products.

According to its press release[PDF], Meta was founded by Meron Gribetz in December 2012 with help from Columbia University Professor Steven Feiner, a computer scientist who specializes in wearable computing, 3D user interfaces and augmented reality, among other things. Most of the company’s 15 employees are also from Columbia University, including Gribetz himself. Whereas Google seems to prefer the use of voice commands for their wearable computer, Meta is putting its money on gesture control, hence the need for a 3D camera.

Like Google, Meta has yet to reveal concrete details about their product. So which future would you rather have? The one where everyone’s talking to the air or the one where we’re all waggling our arms about? Just kidding. The future will obviously contain a lot of both. And people bumping into things.

[via Meta via Geeky Gadgets]

In the market for a serious portable gaming machine? While you might have your eyes set on Nvidia’s upcoming Project Shield, here’s a very capable system you can buy right now. The JXD S7300 HD Gamepad2 is a power-packed portable that’s ideal for playing both retro emulated games and today’s latest Android titles.

The just-released Android 4.1.1-based handheld offers dual, true analog sticks, a real D-pad, dual shoulder buttons, Start, Select and ABXY face buttons, so it’s perfect for controlling just about any game you can throw at it. It’s got an ample 7-inch 1024×600 display, which also supports 5-finger multitouch. It’s also got the requisite 3-axis motion sensors for games that depend on those controls. It includes software for mapping buttons and joysticks to your Android touchscreen games as well. Dimensions for the handheld are 9.5″(W) x 4.77″(H) x 0.56″(D) – about the size (but not the thickness) of the Wii U GamePad, and it weighs 0.90 pounds – about mid-way between the weight of an iPad Mini and an iPad 4.

It comes pre-loaded with full-speed emulators for the original Sony PlayStation, Neo-Geo, Nintendo 64, Game Boy Advance, NES (Famicom), Super Nintendo (Super Famicom), Sega Genesis (Mega Drive), and Capcom CPS1/CPS2 systems. But since it’s running Android, it’s easy to add more emulators, like MAME4droid. It even comes with Superuser pre-installed, so you can root the system in seconds and install pretty much anything you want on it.

Under the hood is an Amlogic MX dual-core chipset (Cortex A9 CPU, ARM mali400 GPU), running at 1.5GHz, and 1GB of system RAM. Connectivity is 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, and “external connection to Ethernet and 3G” whatever that means – presumably via its USB 2.0 port. It’s unclear if it supports Bluetooth though. And while it can’t wirelessly send content to your HDTV, it does have an HDMI output, so you can mirror its display to your big screen in full 1080p resolution. It’s even got a small 0.3MP user-facing camera for video chats, and true stereo speakers. You can check out all the detailed system info below (the 976×600 screen resolution reported is because AnTuTu doesn’t take into account the height of the title bar.)

Here’s a video showing the system emulating the N64 classic Super Mario 64 at a buttery-smooth frame rate:

And if you’d like to play something more modern, how about Shadowgun – with physical joysticks and buttons?

The guys over at WillGoo are now stocking the JXD S7300, where it sells for $165.99(USD), or you can grab a bundle with a 32GB SD card for $186.99. Currently, the white model is sold out, but you can still get one in black (though it has a textured finish unlike the white one.) You can also pick up a pair of them for just $299.99, which might be cool since the system supports local Wi-Fi multiplayer.

Seems like this thing is pretty loaded for the price, never mind the fact that it works as a full Android Jelly Bean device, complete with web browsing, media playback, apps, etc. If you decide to buy one, there’s already a good discussion board for the JXD S7300 going on over at Dingoonity, so you can find out the scoop from others who have purchased or who are interested in the handheld.

When you’re out in the woods, there’s no assurance when you’ll be able to juice up your gadgets, unless you go back to your car. That being said, it’s always good to have some power alternatives. This solar generator is reasonably portable, and could be ideal in case of emergencies, i.e. getting lost in the woods, camping, or surviving the zombie apocalypse.

The Goal Zero Yeti 150 Solar Generator Kit weighs about 12 pounds, and is small enough that you can lug it around in your car. It will provide you with a stable source of electricity to charge up your phone, laptop, tablet, and other electronic devices via its USB, 12V and AC connectors. The Yeti 150 has a 150 watt battery and it uses solar energy or AC power to recharge. It can be charged up in the sun in 15 hours thanks to its companion Boulder 15 Solar Panel.

Pricing and availability have yet to be announced, but this might be an essential piece of kit if you spend a lot of time in the great outdoors – or fending off zombies.

[via Ubergizmo]

One of the coolest things about the newer iPad models is the Smart Cover that turns the tablet on and off when you open or close the cover. There also have been a number of iPad Bluetooth keyboards, but most of them add significant bulk to Apple’s slim tablet. Archos has just unveiled a keyboard for the iPad, which they claim is the world’s thinnest, and functions like the Smart Cover too.

The keyboard is, appropriately enough, called the Ultrathin Keyboard for iPad, and is a scant 5mm thick. The keyboard also weighs 240 g making it roughly half a pound. Archos says that the aluminum-backed white keyboard is the thinnest and lightest iPad keyboard available, noting that it’s almost as thin as the Smart Cover itself when attached to the iPad. With the keyboard fitted to the iPad, the tablet weighs 1.9 pounds and is 13.4 mm thick, working out to a bit over half an inch.

The keyboard has a stand that allows you to prop the tablet at various angles for typing comfort, and locks your tablet into place using the same magnetic method as the Smart Cover. The keyboard will also turn the iPad screen on and off when you open or close it. The QWERTY keyboard also has shortcut keys for iOS functions and connects to the tablet using Bluetooth.

Archos expects to ship the Ultrathin Bluetooth iPad keyboard this March for a retail price of $79(USD).

Even though they’ve been around for thousands of years, umbrellas still have two main parts: a canopy and a shaft. But this concept for an umbrella by 22-year old industrial design student Quentin Debaene gets rid of the canopy in favor of something cooler, er drier: air.

Debaene calls his concept the Airblow 2050. He imagines it will use Dyson’s digital motor, which today powers Dyson’s famous bladeless fans and powerful vacuum cleaners. The idea is for the motor to suck air from around the bottom of the shaft and then force it out in a small arc on top, making an invisible canopy. You won’t have to deal with a wet or broken canopy or bumping into other people’s umbrellas. You may even be able to use it to literally blow people away.

I don’t know enough about engineering and physics to fully judge if the concept will work as intended. I’m also wondering why it still looks like an umbrella or at least, an umbrella’s handle. Wouldn’t it be better if it was a small device that you could clip on your backpack or hat? Would we be able to use the Airblow 2050 to carry our stuff and/or friend? Could it be modified and used as a lethal weapon? If a small child pointed it downwards, could said child then use it as a means of transportation? So many questions.

[via Coroflot]