Hasta La Gadget!

Mountain View’s kept itself as the gatekeeper for Google Glass with dev signups at I/O and a social media contest, but now it’s letting some users spread the wearable computing love. Google+ is lighting up with reports that Glass Explorers are receiving emails from Page and Co. allowing them to invite a friend to snag a device by joining the program. In order to be eligible, invitees must be a US resident, at least 18 years of age, and willing to pick up the hardware in San Francisco, New York or Los Angeles. Google’s told us that a “small subset of Explorers” have received the message in its continuing effort to expand the affair. Earlier today, the search giant announced that it cast a wider net for Explorers by enlisting five film schools to suss out how the contraption can be used for everything from character development to production. Head past the break for the full list of institutions.

Filed under: Google

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Via: The Next Web

Source: Marketing Land, Zagg

Like most tech-savvy humans, we’re big fans of Tokyoflash watches here at Engadget — after all, what’s not to like about eccentric design and blinkenlights? Now Cylons everywhere can proudly get in on the fun thanks to the company’s latest timepiece, the Kisai Neutron. This futuristic-looking LED watch is available for $139 during the next 48 hours and features an integrated motion sensor. It can be set to display the time (or date) by pulsing in and out or waving up and down. The light show is activated by flicking your wrist or pressing a button — there’s even a bonus “always on” mode. Color options include black, gold and gunmetal for the stainless steel and plastic case, plus red, white and blue for the LEDs. A USB-rechargeable battery completes the package. Enjoy the gallery below, then hit the break for a video of the new timepiece in action.

Filed under: Wearables

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Source: Tokyoflash

It’s not the first time we’ve seen NFC embedded in odd products – the folks at Geak have even tried to make ring of their own – but here with John McLear’s invention, uses appear unlimited. Here with what’s called – quite simply – “NFC Ring”, McLear suggests that you’ll be able to do anything a standard NFC tag would be able to to, including linking to webpages, sharing codes and URLs, and sending commands to phones (just so long as they’ve got the right app to do so). What’s not to like?

These rings are designed to look stylish, too. They’re not bulky, not made of plastic and blasted out with bright colors – they’re metal. And they’re not just a simple piece of aluminum, mind you, they’ve got several layers of materials. Inside and throughout most of the ring you’ve got a lovely titanium/steel mix which makes up most of the color of the ring – from there it gets interesting.

NOTE: The tag this ring works with attaches – if you wish – to an official NFC Ring app, which at the moment has some limited built-in profiles. Various options for other apps exist as well – this NFC ring works with a standard NFC protocol for reading and writing, so go wild!

To hold the whole mix in, there’s a clear RFID passive coating front and center – this can be worn above your finger, below your finger, wherever – just know that this bit is the part you’ve got to tap to have your devices recognize the NFC tag within. Below this cover layer is another inlay cover, this above the NFC inlay with NTAG 203 chip itself.

Below that is a bit of RFID reflective material to make sure you’ve got the signal as strong as possible, and the whole device is made to be solid and work forever. The first run of rings – according to McLear – will take 2 weeks to make and will be a run of 1,000 rings. Have a peek at the “making of” journey here and let us know what you think!

VIA: The Verge; Fast Company

NFC ring aims to open doors, literally is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

In addition to announcing the Moto X’s official unveil date, this week the folks at Motorola Mobility have had a bit of a spill. This spill – if you could call it that – consists of details surrounding their next generation of smart devices, particularly sitting in the “wearables” realm. Could it be time to see what was most recently hoped for in the Motorola MOTOACTV rebooted here in 2013 to mix it up well with the company’s newest fully fashionable hero smartphone release?

This spill comes in the form of a list of hires, job postings made by the company that are looking to help with the expansion of “a new world-class wearables design group within Motorola.” If that’s not a good indicator for a possible big-time expansion of the sector we’ve not yet heard of, we’d like to hear what is.

“Create beautiful, Functional and Desirable objects.”

What you’ll see in the job listing – if it’s still up by the time you see this article – is a suggestion that Motorola’s search requires, first and foremost, a person that will “provide strategic leadership, champion innovation and institute best practices to create a new world-class wearable’s design group within Motorola.”

“Specifically, the Industrial Design Team collaborates closely with our internal work partners to create compelling, usable and innovative products that define our brand with over a million consumers worldwide. The wearables design team will lead the establishment of our brand in the massive competitive and growing space of wearable connected products.”

So what’s this all got to do with Moto X?

Have a peek at the Moto X reveal event invite and observe the design language:

Can you spot the smartphones?

You’ll find the white version and the black version of Moto X in the hands of these hipsters, and you’ll find at least one accessory – in addition to the phone – on each of these young, cool fashionistas. Even the fellow (we’ll assume it’s a fellow) to the left is wearing a tank-top – certainly not something you wear to the office.

Add to this original Moto X advertisement released on the 3rd of July. Both humans – we’ll assume they’re humans, anyway – are wearing straight black as they jump into the sparkling greatness that is the future, straight above them the brand new Motorola logo complete with rainbow ring.

Click image for full-sized JPG file.

A posting to Motorola’s Google+ page shared on the 11th of July dropped this image tied to the note: “3D printers, Velcro vans, and really smart people. +MAKEwithMOTO, we like your style.” Of course MAKEwithMOTO has been around for a while longer than this tip, it’s not hard to imagine the initiative crossing paths with Moto X quite easily in the very near future. How about for those back smartphone casings, fully customizable the lot of them?

This equation is adding up quick: soon after the Moto X is launched and Motorola’s new aim – the user – becomes more important than making the device destroy all other devices with specifications alone, the company will set its sights on attaching itself to another appendage.

While it’s not immediately clear how Motorola, a Google company, will aim to release any sort of wearable device with Google aiming to release the ideal unit – Glass – this notoriously resilient company will make another move that’s unique.

Will it be another smartwatch? Something to keep track of your steps when you head out for your daily run – or lack thereof? Hardly.

Motorola will be getting a bit more under your skin than that.

Moto X then wearables: here’s how Motorola gets fashionable is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It would appear that Apple is going all-in on what’s still code-named iWatch, a wearable device that’s commanding the attention of next-generation device hopefuls here in the summer of 2013. While Apple hasn’t directly confirmed the existence of the iWatch exactly, a whirlpool of rumors, tips, and reports on the matter paint a rather interesting picture of a watch that’s not just an accessory to play second-fiddle to the iPhone.

In a report published by 9to5Mac this week, a collection of experts has been tapped as possible parts of the full iWatch team (which may or may not exist). A lot of the flame that’s growing this summer stems from comments sent out by Apple’s CEO Tim Cook at this year’s AllThingsD D11 conference.

“I think wearables [are] incredibly interesting. It could be a profound area. … There are lots of gadgets in the space. I would say that the ones that are doing more than one thing, there’s nothing great out there that I’ve seen. Nothing that’s going to convince a kid that’s never worn glasses or a band or a watch or whatever to wear one. At least I haven’t seen it. So there’s lots of things to solve in this space.” – Tim Cook for Apple

Cook continued by saying wearables were “ripe for exploration” and, though he wouldn’t comment directly on if Apple would be part of the wearables party with a device of their own – much less an iWatch specifically, he did say that wearables in general were “ripe for us to get excited about.”

As for the team Apple is assembling – this so-called hiring spree has appeared on our radar before. Hiring YSL executive Paul Deneve was no secret back at the beginning of July.

With such a hire comes the promise of luxury quality in future devices – but as Apple has been notoriously balanced on their aim with a more common market, it’s fair to say we won’t see any Sapphire Crystal Displays heading the iWatch if or when it’s delivered.

You’ll find fitness expert Jay Blahnik being reported by 9to5Apple as being hired by Apple as well. This man worked previously on the Nike Fuel Band and likely came in contact with Tim Cook more than once in the recent past. Cook is a member of the Nike board of directors and is a known fan of the Fuel Band on its own.

Leaders of the iWatch project are said to be Apple VP Kevin Lynch and Apple senior hardware director James Foster. The obvious in Jony Ive’s Industrial Design team are suggested to be working side-by-side with Lynch, Lynch’s team reportedly made up of former members of hardware and software elements in the expanded iPod range of years past.

For processor finesse, it’s reported that Apple’s Bob Mansfield has been teamed up with former members of processor creators Infineon and XMOS. As with the rest of the reports in this article, we’ve yet to see direct confirmation on each of these hires, so you’ll certainly need to take it all with more than just a pinch of salt.

The whole idea of a team like this being assembled does seem realistic, on the other hand. If Apple were indeed setting themselves up for the release of an iWatch, they’d be sure to make efforts on a grand scale to make sure it’s as large a release as such an everyday all-day object would require.

Have a peek at a few recent mentions of the iWatch in the timeline provided below, and see what you make of this device that could very well be appearing publicly by the end of next year.

IMAGES: Concept work from Martin Hajek

The iWatch team: wearable experts tipped to assemble is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.