Hasta La Gadget!

United Airlines, touted as the world’s largest airline in terms of destinations and passengers flown, is the first U.S. airline to offer onboard satellite-based Wi-Fi Internet connectivity to its international flights. It’s important to note that onboard Wi-Fi is already widely used on domestic flights. Other international non-U.S. airlines have been offering a similar kind of service, but U.S. has yet to introduce one. Today, United is the first U.S.-based international carrier to offer such service. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class Is Most Aerodynamic Production Vehicle, iPhone Hack Lets You Start Your Car By Sending An SMS,

Even with cheap hard drives and scanners and all this talk of moving data to the cloud, the truth is most of the world’s offices still have tons of paper documents. A company called iMicroData aims to bring the convenience of digital filesystems to physical archives with the Smart Paper Filing System.

The Smart Filing System uses RFID tags and Wi-Fi to keep tabs on physical files. iMicroData claims that their system can keep track of up to 4 billion folders, the equivalent of 40 million standard size file cabinets. The drawers in a Smart Filing System file cabinet have conductive rails on which special folders with built-in LEDs rest.

The idea is for users to enter the name of a folder on the Smart Filing System’s program, along with any relevant keywords or tags. I’m not sure if the program then automatically reserves a space in a particular filing cabinet or if the user also has to mark the folder in some way. iMicroData just says that “[t]here is a motherboard installed in the cabinet, which generates the system address of a given folder.”

But after that mysterious indexing process the user is free to forget where he placed the folder. As shown in the top picture, when a user searches from the application the drawer that houses the folder automatically unlocks while an LED on its door blinks. Inside there’s another blinking LED that points to the folder itself. There’s also another LED that shows if a folder’s tab is properly connected to the conductive rails.

Users can also tell the smart cabinets when they have moved a file by pressing a re-file button on the cabinet, which prompts the system to save the new location.

According to C|NET, iMicroData is selling a master filing cabinet for $2,000 (USD) each, while secondary linked cabinets go for $1,500 each. It sounds like a primitive version of the file system on computer operating systems doesn’t it? Plus it still leaves a lot to humans. The indexing thing is the system’s weakest link. Not only does it depend on whether the person filing a folder uses tags and titles correctly, it sounds like a massive effort for companies with lots of existing files. I can say the same thing about the whole re-filing thing. But I suppose it’s a lot better than expecting a few people to know exactly where a single document is.

[via C|NET]

Corsair has been a name in the computer accessory and peripheral market for a number of years. The company first made its reputation for creating some very speedy memory for enthusiast computers. Corsair also makes a number of USB devices such as flash drives and more. At CES 2013, Corsair unveiled a new mobile storage device called the Voyager Air.

The Voyager Air is an all-in-one wireless mobile drive and home network storage solution. The portable hard drive comes in capacities of 500 GB or 1 TB and has integrated Wi-Fi, a rechargeable battery, Ethernet, and USB 3.0. When connected to an Ethernet cable, the Voyager Air acts as network connected storage.

The integrated Wi-Fi means that the Voyager Air can also act as a wireless network hub and repeater. An internal battery promises seven hours of use per charge. Corsair also has apps available for computers and smartphones which will allow users to stream video from the Voyager Air directly to their devices. The 500 GB version of the drive will sell for $199(USD) and 1 TB version will sell for $229 when they launch this February.

[via Engadget]

I was digging around on the Wi-Fi Alliance website checking out the latest certified devices today when I came across an interesting batch of small displays from LG, all with Wi-Fi support built in.

It appears that a wide variety of LG’s small LED-backlit LCD televisions, ranging in size from 22″ to 29″ will offer Wi-Fi in the upcoming model year. While I’m not certain of the use for the wireless connectivity, I’d bet it’s to provide access to LG’s Smart TV or other digital services through these more compact displays. Up until now, LG’s internet-connected displays have been designed for the living room, but this new feature could put streaming video, images and other digital media in your bedroom, den, kitchen or other location where a large display doesn’t make sense. Sure, you could always buy an add-on box like a Roku or Apple TV for those locations, but having the feature built into the set should keep the cost lower for consumers.

The exact details on these sets have yet to be revealed by LG, but I’d bet they’ll turn up at CES 2013 in a couple of weeks.

I can’t remember exactly the last time I paid for a webcam, probably 8 years ago, or something like that, however if you use your webcam a lot, it makes sense to buy something with a better sensor than the one you’ve got stuck on the top of your laptop. Check out Belkin’s NetCam, a webcam that’s got night vision.

The NetCam is a Wi-Fi camera that can see in the dark, and it will allow you to easily monitor your home remotely. It’s also got a wide-angle lens, so that you can get a better view of the room it’s placed in. Video can be saved to mobile devices, allowing you to quickly share it with others. Unlike some other cameras of this class, the NetCam also captures audio. It works with iOS and Android devices, and will directly hook up to your Wi-Fi router. Its greatest feature is that it will send you an alert when it senses movement, and include a snapshot of what caused it.

The Belkin NetCam will sell for $129.99(USD).

[via Ubergizmo]