Hasta La Gadget!

We gotta hand it to Google: if its goal was to own the technology news cycle for 48 hours, mission accomplished. The Mountain View-based company spent the first two days this week laying out pretty much every big announcement it possibly could: a new flagship phone coming next week (the Nexus S), a new Android build (2.3 Gingerbread), a preview of the next Android build (Honeycomb) on a never-before-seen Motorola tablet, the debut of its cloud-based laptop platform (Chrome OS) with hardware, and a giant plunge into the growing e-book market — and that isn’t everything. We’ve done our best to condense all the days’ highlights into something easier to digest, so read on for a recap on all things Google!

Continue reading Google’s big week: Nexus S, Honeycomb tablets, Chrome OS laptops, and eBooks to boot

Google’s big week: Nexus S, Honeycomb tablets, Chrome OS laptops, and eBooks to boot originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Dec 2010 13:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As the video above shows, Zebra Imaging’s so called ZScape prints pull off some pretty amazing 3D visual effects despite being based on old school hologram technology. These prints are made using a variety of 3D data sources — think AutoCad and the like — that are then rendered as thousands of holographic elements by recording laser light onto a single film-based material. The resulting images are easily viewed without glasses or spinning mirrors, and just require a run-of-the-mill halogen or LED light source to reveal 360-degree, full color representations — akin to what a physical model might look like. Fancier versions can also be made using overlays and layering techniques to show more information. To date, over 8,000 ZScapes have already been developed for the US military, but surprisingly their prices range between $1,500 for a 12- x 18-inch version to $3,500 for the largest 2- x 3-foot size, making them relatively obtainable for those not on Defense Department tabs. If the video of Seattle pulling an Inception above didn’t impress you enough, be sure to check another embedded video after the break.

Continue reading ZScape 3D holographic prints take maps to the next dimension, sans spectacles

ZScape 3D holographic prints take maps to the next dimension, sans spectacles originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Dec 2010 00:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google has just unveiled their new, refreshed Maps 5.0 app for Android, launching soon. What’s new about it? Well, it renders buildings in 3D, loads faster, works offline and will automatically rotate the map according to the phone’s compass. More »

This article was written on September 13, 2007 by CyberNet.

Apparently Google and NASA are best buds these days. Despite the fact that NASA’s Moffett Federal Airfield is off limits to private aircraft, they decided to allow Larry Page and Sergey Brin’s Boeing 767 plane land at their field. The reason Google’s co-founders want to land there is all a matter of convenience.  You see, Moffett field is located in Google Land (a.k.a. Mountain View, California) which means when they land, it’s only a short drive (about 2 miles) to the Googleplex.

The clearance to land the Google Jet at Moffett Airfield didn’t come for free though, it’ll cost Page and Brin 1.3 million each year. And not only do they have to pay the parking fee, they’re also required to carry NASA scientists and equipment on the various Google planes. I suppose when both co-founders are worth $17 billion each, they have the money to splurge on a jet, and the fee to land at the airfield of their choice.

Below is a Google Map which shows just how close the Googleplex is to Moffett Airfield which helps to explain why Larry and Sergey wanted to make a deal with NASA.

It seems a bit ironic to me though, that Google focuses so much on "going green" with their Googleplex Solar Power Project, and their recent investment in green transportation solutions, yet they own 3 jets with one of them large enough to hold 180 passengers but modified to hold 50 passengers once "amenities" were added. Sounds like a waste of energy to me!

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You know the drill: You’re on vacation, wandering a strange but beautiful city, and you need to take a look at the map. You pull it out, signifying your tourist status with the huge paper flag, while at the same time you struggle to find your spot as the wind snaps an edge from your hands. Finally you orient yourself and, as you try to fold up the map, it tears, ripping in two. You start looking for a store that sells Scotch tape.

This ugly scene could have been avoided if only you had bought the Crumpled City, a map that is meant to be screwed up in a ball like paper from the typewriter of a frustrated writer in old movie montage sequences. It is fashioned from a tough, waterproof material that won’t rip or tear, and can be scrunched and unscrunched to show the correct spot as you move around the city.

Designed by Emanuele Pizzolorusso from Milan, the maps are available for London, Paris, Berlin, Rome and New York. Fully flattened, they measure 87×58cm, or 34 x 23-inches, and should you not want to follow the designer’s advice to “just screw it up, stuff it back into your pocket, and carry on.” you can also wad it back into its accompanying bag.

For bonus stealthy-tourist points, you should smear it with a little ketchup and keep it in a fast-food takeaway bag. €12, or $16.

Crumpled City product page [Palomarweb. Thanks, Emanuele!]

See Also:

• A Heads-Up Map Display for iPhone-Using Bicyclists
• Technoporn: Maps
• Ingenious Zoomable Paper Map