Dec 31
The ergoheads at Herman Miller design its new Embody chair to support your body in such a way that it’s actually decompressing while you work.
Dec 31
The Brammo Enertia electric motorcycle is so light that even readily available batteries can make one commute-worthy. And the 13-kW packs quite the punch for such a feathery ride.
Dec 31
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
NEW YORK – Popular technology blog Gizmodo has set up shop in a Manhattan art gallery to showcase some of the rarest and most intriguing gadgets from the past hundred years or so, including never-released Apple prototypes, the first Sony Walkman, a flying aerial surveillance camera and more.
The Gizmodo Gallery opened Thursday at the Reed Annex (151 Orchard St.), but we snuck in Wednesday night to photograph the most fascinating stuff on display here. The show runs through Sunday afternoon, giving New Yorkers, tourists and gadget freaks a chance to gaze upon important pieces of our technological history, and interact with some more recent gadgets.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
Nico Reyes of the Reed Annex sits blissfully unaware of the Draganflyer X6, a flying surveillance device that “makes crane shots obsolete,” according to its creators. That may be the case, but we can’t fight off our initial impression that this could be the last thing we will ever see.
With an expert at the remote control, the aerial carbon-fiber shutterbug navigates tight indoor spaces with ease according to Gizmodo editorial director Brian Lam, who said the beast is capable of holding steady in winds of up to 18 mph. A “failed motor logic” system keeps the system in operation even if two of the motors crap out.
Lam said the Draganflyer X6 accepts a night-vision camera or HD camera in addition to the vanilla flavor, and communicates its location to the remote using a GPS. As great as this gadget is for filmmakers and photographers, its potential application as a weapon is a bit worrying in a Terminator sort of way.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
Here’s the portable audio player that started it all: the original Sony Walkman, on loan from Sony’s archives in Tokyo. Initially panned by critics, the Walkman became a worldwide sensation, eventually selling 340 million units.
Oddly, the device that kicked off the portable-audio revolution includes two headphone jacks for sharing music — surely, unintentional prescience on the part of Sony, which could never have predicted the later connection between portable music formats and music sharing.
Model Alyssa Miller holds the original-model Walkman.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
Legendary Silicon Valley design firm Frog Design lent Gizmodo a couple of Apple prototypes to display, including this MacBook Tablet mock-up, modeled here by Paulo.
Apple and Frog Design conceived this prototype using their Snow White design language, according to Gizmodo’s Brian Lam. Although this portable tablet computer never saw the light of day, echoes of its design can be seen in the Apple IIc.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
Atari never released a portable version of the Atari 2600 game console, but if it did, it may have ended up looking a lot like this Atari 2600 VCSp, seen here in the hands of writer Lisa Katayama.
The Atari 2600 VCSp is the work of hacker extraordinaire Benjamin Heckendorn (better known online as Ben Heck). This model is the first Heck ever made; he went on to build scores of vintage gaming mods that earned him a following among geeks and fans of vintage gaming.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
This double-sided MIDI controller allows musicians to build loops of sound by pressing LED buttons arranged in a 16-by-16 grid.
This video explains how it works, but the gist is that you control which loops play, and when they start and stop, by activating and deactivating the lights.
Unlike some of the other gear on display, the Tenori-On will be playable by gallery-goers who can listen to their own performances through a pair of headphones.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
Gizmodo’s Brian Lam told us that the original Dyson vacuum cleaner was initially crippled in the U.S. market because manufacturers were worried it would cannibalize the multimillion-dollar market for replacement vacuum bags.
Luckily for inventor James Dyson, this version of his design was manufactured in Japan starting in 1983, giving Dyson the financial wherewithal to start making them himself. Twenty five years later, the descendents of the original Dyson are probably the world’s most coveted model — itself something of an accomplishment. Who would have predicted that vacuum cleaners could become such a hot topic?
Gizmodo’s Matt Buchanan wields this original Dyson.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
One of the largest Lego sets ever released, this Death Star was destroyed on its way from Lego to the Gizmodo expo. Luckily, the company introduced Gizmodo to Lego enthusiast Jonathan Lopes of Brooklyn.
The self-described “Lego nerd” arrived on the scene to perform a reverse Luke Skywalker on the Death Star, rebuilding it in time for it to be displayed Thursday morning — no small feat, considering that it’s made from 3,800 pieces and that he worked only from a picture of the fully assembled version.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
Another Apple prototype loaned to Gizmodo by Frog Design, this early ’80s conception of an Apple phone featured a handset and a monochromatic screen and stylus, allowing the device’s potential owner to sign checks electronically over phone lines.
When Apple finally released its first phone in 2007, it didn’t even come with a stylus, and the screen was much smaller.
Gizmodo’s Matt Buchanan picks up the handset.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
One of the most useless pieces of electronics we have ever laid eyes on, Thanko’s USB tie and gloves provide you with heat or cool when they’re connected to your computer’s USB port — perfect for commuting and outdoor sports, assuming your USB cable is long enough.
The gloves heat up, while a compact fan located in the necktie’s knot generates a gentle breeze — worthwhile in theory, if not in practice. As Gizmodo’s Matt Buchanan points out, “All USB gadgets are awesome in some way.”
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
When this Bell Labs Picturephone debuted at the 1964 World’s Fair, many of those who saw it in action, paired to an identical model in Disneyland, probably thought that every phone would feature video by the year 2000. They were close; instead, nearly every modern computer is capable of live videoconferencing, while home phones still largely resemble the models of the past.
A 1956 version of the Picturephone was capable of transmitting one picture every two seconds. This one apparently improved on that frame-rate by adding another two lines to the connection. This (nonfunctional) unit was borrowed from the AT&T Archives and History Center.
Adam Lam uses the Picturephone pictured here to attempt contact with gadget freaks of the past, or so we imagine.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
Goggles that let you watch video on a little virtual screen have been around for years, but many of them are plagued by poor image quality, low resolution and headache-inducing optics.
This pair, from the widely respected camera-lens manufacturer Zeiss, is an exception, with 640×480 resolution and an individual diopter for each eye that allows eyeglass-wearers to use the goggles. Battery life is four hours — enough for all but the longest films.
In this shot, Gizmodo’s Matt Buchanan watches a video stored on a video-capable iPod Nano.
: Photo: Eliot Van Buskirk/Wired.com
We wondered why two hunks of red foam and metal were included in the gallery, until Gizmodo editorial director Brian Lam took a break from overseeing the construction of displays to demonstrate them.
With each step, a thunderous, robot-stomp sound emanated from his slippers, and by the end of his demonstration, we were convinced that they did in fact belong in the gallery. Sometimes, technology is as much about whimsy as it is about scientific progress.
Dec 31
If spotting a cop
in your rearview mirror tends to make you tremble now, just wait. Fed up with earbud-wearing, cell phone-yakking motorists who don’t heed sirens, police across the country are turning to a new attention-getting tool–low-frequency sound waves so strong they can actually be felt up to 200 feet away. “It feels like a tremor inside the vehicle,” says Tom Morgan, police market vice president for Federal Signal, which makes the seismic sirens.
Dubbed the Rumbler, the system emits a 10-second, 109-decibel burst through two subwoofers mounted on the patrol car’s bumper. The idea is that when a cruiser pulls up behind a distracted driver, the hit of bone-rattling whomp will get the space-case to glance up from text-messaging long enough to realize there’s an official vehicle bearing down.
So far, more than 200 police and
sheriff departments nationwide have bought thousands
of the $400 setups, and a hundred more are trying them out.
What if the sonic booms don’t work? Well, the cops could always try adding some hydraulics to bounce the front end up and down to the beat.
Dec 31
A number of churches, synagogues, governments and ordinary citizens have given up on old-fashioned padlocks — or trust — and are putting their faith in technology to protect holiday displays from pranks or prejudice. Eager to avoid the December police blotter, many jumped at a security company’s offer of free use of GPS systems and hidden cameras to guard their mangers and menorahs.
Dec 31
As
album sales continue to decline, gadgets and games may help ensure the survival of the music business. Indeed, the most tech-savvy bands
are already recording songs for distribution exclusively through new channels
opened up by the iPhone, the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3.
"I
don’t really look at the last 10 years of music business as a
negative," Weezer bassist Scott Shriner told Wired.com. "A lot of
people are sad — nobody buys records anymore and everyone’s
downloading and all that. But I think there’s more interest in music
than ever, and I just want to use technology to reach people as much as
possible."
Sad or not, the rise of digital music has been a double-edged sword for artists and their record labels. The fourth quarter of 2008 looks to be the worst ever in terms of CD sales — down 27 percent to date — as consumers abandon physical media in favor of downloads. On the plus side, the streamlined distribution of music by services such as the iTunes Store as well as
illegal P2P channels has people listening to more music than ever
before. Given the exploding popularity of digital music, MP3
players and music-based videogames, many bands have embraced, rather
than resisted, the newly gadget-centric universe.
Hoping to gain exposure and give album sales a boost, artists are distributing their music through iPhone games, Rock Band and remixing wizards. What do they have in common? They give fans a way to engage the music more interactively, turning them from listeners into
participants, riding the social-networking wave better known as Web
2.0. And we can expect this trend to continue, moving beyond game
consoles and the iPhone onto other handsets and mobile devices. Why simply play music when you can play with it?
"Working with videogame developers, it’s not surprising that they have an innovative take that the music industry can capitalize on," said Susan Kevorkian, program director of consumer markets at IDC. "This is just a time when the music industry needs to develop not just one key new channel, but multiple ones."
Weezer has used the new technology to promote and distribute its music more than most bands have, and in innovative ways. For instance, lead singer Rivers
Cuomo fielded a collaborative songwriting project recently, posting a series of videos collecting contributions from fans on YouTube. Cuomo will choose the best video responses and knit them into a song titled, "Let’s Write a Sawng."
Also, Weezer’s latest Red Album was
one of the first to be sold on a microSD card in October 2008. And most recently,
Weezer recorded covers of Christmas songs exclusively for an iPhone rhythm game called Christmas With Weezer, selling it through the phenomenally successful App Store.
Another group piggybacking off the iPhone’s success, Nine Inch Nails, is selling a similar rhythm game in the App Store for $5. It includes tracks from the albums The Slip and Ghosts I-IV.
Developers and bands are loath to disclose just how much artists are
making off these iPhone games. But we know that Apple takes 33
percent of each sale in the iPhone App Store, so the remainder is
shared between the game developer Tapulous and the artists. That’s potentially a
far better split than most artists get from music labels.
The idea to sell songs through iPhone games comes from the vastly popular console game Rock Band, a booming success. Artists old and new, including Weezer, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Radiohead, are selling some of their songs through the Rock Band
music store for $2 a track. This method is an effective hook to
get players to pay for music, because the fans get to play with the
music, not just listen to it. (Downloading Radiohead’s song "My Iron
Lung," for example, allows Rock Band
players to sing, bang drum pads and play fake guitars along with the
original track.)
Rock Band developer Harmonix announced last week that its store surpassed 28 million song downloads. And the sequel — Rock Band 2 — was the third bestselling game in the United States in September.
Gerd Leonhard, a media futurist who authored the book Future of Music, explained that hopping on digital distribution channels such as Rock Band will take awhile to pay off, but the earnings will be big. According to Leonhard, the Rock Band
Store takes about 30 percent of each transaction, while 65 cents of
every dollar goes to the label, and the artist earns about 6 cents.
"It’s all about getting an audience," Leonhard said. "When they get
the audience, eventually they get the money. Part of the problem in the
current industry is they’re thinking money before they have an
audience. With [games like Rock Band] we’re seeing a shift in priorities."
On top of giving album sales a boost, distribution methods like Rock Band are just plain fun for bands, too, Weezer’s Shriner said.
"Down
the street these kids had me come down and play ‘My Name Is Jonas,’ and
they played on Expert and they absolutely annihilated me, so that was a
good time for them," Shriner said. "It’s kind of bad to get beat by a
bunch of 15-year-olds playing your own song, but I’m a good sport."
Radiohead took a bold step when it offered the new album In Rainbows using a donation model, asking listeners to pay anything they wanted. Analysts estimated
that the band earned millions in donations, and there was a glimmer of hope
that this method would revitalize the music industry. But three months
later, the band shut down the promotion, saying it was a short-lived success that likely couldn’t be repeated.
Radiohead
hasn’t given up, though. The band’s internet campaign remains one of
the most noteworthy in the music industry: Instead of asking for
donations, the band is inviting fans to remix its music. The latest song up for grabs is "Reckoner."
For the same amount you’d pay for a regular track, you get the song
broken into "stems" — bass, lead vocals, backing vocals, guitar, piano,
strings and drums.
But why should huge bands like Radiohead be
the only ones to bank off community-mixed music? Radiohead’s idea gave
birth to a startup called MixMatchMusic that’s aimed at getting smaller and independent bands in the interactivity game, too. Like
Radiohead’s remix project, MixMatchMusic allows artists to sell their
music as remixable stems. Participating artists earn 85 cents for every
dollar of sales on the site.
"A remix promotion is a great way to give fans a new interactive music
experience that really makes them care about the music, and it also
really more actively engages them," said Alan Khalfin, director of music at MixMatchMusic.
"You could argue Beethoven is a remix of his own creativity of Mozart.
You can argue that early rock and roll is a remix of African rhythms and
the mashup of R&B and country…. This idea of remixing is going to
become more and more important in the overall music landscape."
With 1,500 members, MixMatchMusic is still in its infancy, but the
site is quickly gaining momentum. Just recently punk rock band Slightly
Stoopid signed up to do a remix promotion through the site. And smaller
artists such as The Bayliens, Trifonic and MC Lars are working on remix campaigns as well.
"It’s really hard developing fans when there are a million other bands on MySpace," said Laurence Trifon, keyboardist of electronica duo Trifonic. "So with MixMatchMusic we’re just trying to get the fans engaged with our music. I feel you have to do anything you can to stand out and be more appealing."
Clearly, new tech-savvy methods are working, and they’re effective enough to sway The Beatles. The British pop-rock band recently entered into a deal with Harmonix to make a Beatles music game. This move signifies a change of heart for The Beatles, who are continuing to avoid selling their music through the iTunes Store.
"The Beatles continue to evolve with the passing of time and how
wonderful that The Beatles’ legacy will find its natural progression
into the 21st century through the computerized world we live in," said Beatles drummer Ringo Star, in a statement. "Let
the games commence."
Screenshot: Weezer, Nine Inch Nails and Daft Punk recently released music games for the popular iPhone.
Photo: Brothers Laurence and Brian Trifon are using a remix wizard to promote their electronica band Trifonic. Jon Snyder/Wired.com
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