Developages - Development and Technology Blog

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Far from being the first LED-infused floor we’ve seen hipsters and hippies break dance and boogie down on (respectively), Sensacell’s latest contraption still manages to stand out by bringing back memories of when mouse trails really were the coolest thing about an operating system. Flashbacks aside, the installation — which is currently at the entrance to the Comunitat Valenciana in Spain — possesses over 1,000 interactive modules, each of which include capacitive sensors and a LED lighting system. The integrated tech enables it to recognize when someone is walking over it and consequently light up as if to leave an eye-catching LED trail of their path. Can you imagine how many hours days you could entertain an ageless kid with this? Video after the jump.

Continue reading Video: Sensacell’s interactive floor shows trail of LED footprints

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

It’s hard to say what kind of individual seeks out lighting instruments that even look like eyes, let alone lighting instruments with cloned details of their own eyes, but just in case you know one such person, here’s the perfect FYI for ‘em. Paris-based 5.5 designers are offering a service that enables you to send in images of your eyes (along with a very large sum of money, we presume) in order for the craftspeople to construct eyeball lamps with hints of you splashed all over. Sure gives Rockwell’s one and only jam a whole new meaning, yeah?

[Via ShinyShiny]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

It’s hard to say what kind of individual seeks out lighting instruments that even look like eyes, let alone lighting instruments with cloned details of their own eyes, but just in case you know one such person, here’s the perfect FYI for ‘em. Paris-based 5.5 designers are offering a service that enables you to send in images of your eyes (along with a very large sum of money, we presume) in order for the craftspeople to construct eyeball lamps with hints of you splashed all over. Sure gives Rockwell’s one and only jam a whole new meaning, yeah?

[Via ShinyShiny]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras, GPS

Geotagging devices are cropping up at a pretty steady pace these days, and it looks like you can now add one more company to the bandwagon, with Sellgino now showing off its GS-200 GPS Photo Tour device. Like other similar options out there, this one relies on your photo’s EXIF data to match ‘em up with the locations logged by the GPS receiver (a SiRF Star III, in this case), with some software provided to merge all that data together and plot out your travels on Google Maps. Somewhat more uniquely, this one will also double as a USB handset for VoIP calls (hence the design), and it can apparently be used as an external USB drive, though it’s not clear how much storage space it packs. No word on a price or release date either, unfortunately.

[Via Slash Gear]

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Original post by Donald Melanson

Japanese company Planex Communications Inc. just released a new external HDD called the “PL-35STU-500” equipped with a special software which has the ability to directly download YouTube videos into the device. The software is named “Dohga Bannou” which translates to “Video Versatility.” As long as the external HDD is used with Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 operating systems, YouTube clips could be downloaded with a single click. Additionally, “Dohga Bannou” also mediates downloading of videos from YouTube to PMPs including the iPod Touch and the iPhone. And, connected to a DLNA-compatible media server, it could even be used to project any of the stored videos onto a TV screen.

Even if the “Dohga Bannou” software only works with select Windows operating systems, the HDD itself could be used with other Windows OS versions and even Mac Os X versions 10.3, 10.4 and 10.5. The PL-35STU-500 external hard disk drive uses a 3.5-inch hard disk with 500 GB storage capacity. It can handle a 480Mbps transmission rate for USB 2.0 and 12Mbps for USB1.1. The Planex HDD in question has a price tag of approximately $191 in Japan, although prices might vary depending on the region.

Original post by Mariella Moon

Filed under: Household, Wireless

Frustrated with that exorbitantly high water bill stemming from all the H20 wastefully spewed out from that non-intelligent sprinkler system? Enter the Cyber-Rain XCI, which gives owners wireless control of up to eight watering zones. After hooking up the controller(s) and plugging a wireless access point into your PC via USB, users can look forward to the solution automatically tweaking their irrigation system based on weather conditions, seasons, etc. It’ll even log water savings and chuck out a graph to prove its value. C’mon, you know it’s worth $349 to make your thumb look way greener than it actually is (and save some water, too).

[Via Unplggd]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Cellphones

Want the Internet in your pocket? Good, because that’s what LG is offering to South Koreans with its new LG-LH2300 Touch Web phone. This ain’t your father’s baby Internet mind you, the LH2300 features a new “Hello UI” riding atop 800 x 480 pixels spread across a 3-inch touchscreen LCD. LG didn’t stop with the web though as the LH2300 also packs T-DMB mobile TV, Bluetooth 2.0, microSD memory, and a jog wheel for easy page scrolling. Its 3 megapixel camera sports face recognition and anti-shake tech. No specifics on the included “high speed” data service. Nevertheless, that front facing camera’s a pretty good clue that this pup won’t be riding EDGE when it launches in Korea next month for a mere $600 US equivalent.

[Via AVING]

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Original post by Thomas Ricker

Filed under: Cellphones

Want the Internet in your pocket? Good, because that’s what LG is offering to South Koreans with its new LG-LH2300 Touch Web phone. This ain’t your father’s baby Internet mind you, the LH2300 features a new “Hello UI” riding atop 800 x 480 pixels spread across a 3-inch touchscreen LCD. LG didn’t stop with the web though as the LH2300 also packs T-DMB mobile TV, Bluetooth 2.0, microSD memory, and a jog wheel for easy page scrolling. Its 3 megapixel camera sports face recognition and anti-shake tech. No specifics on the included “high speed” data service. Nevertheless, that front facing camera’s a pretty good clue that this pup won’t be riding EDGE when it launches in Korea next month for a mere $600 US equivalent.

[Via AVING]

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Original post by Thomas Ricker

Filed under: Announcements, Features

We’re creeping up on the Oscars, which means it must also be time for you to vote in the 2007 Engadget Awards! Based on your nominations (and a couple of our own) we’ve compiled a list of over 150 gadgets and technologies that made 2007 the blockbuster year it was for consumer electronics.

Votes will be tallied until Saturday, March 1st; after we’ve checked for abuse we’ll publish the results alongside our own Editors’ Choice picks the following week. May the best gadgets win!

Continue reading Vote for the 2007 Engadget Awards!

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Original post by Ryan Block

Filed under: Storage

Believe us, we know just how foggy things get when trying to remember back to the 13th day of December 2007, but sure enough, it was on that faithful Thursday that we received our first sneak peek at QNAP’s (then) forthcoming TS-409. Today, however, we’re looking at the official product: a 4-bay, hot-swappable NAS that supports such beautiful features as online RAID capacity expansion and RAID level migration. Reportedly filled with “disaster-proof enhancements,” this unit also includes an HDD S.M.A.R.T. function that provides complete hard drive information including temperature and overall “health.” No concrete word on price, but a quick scan of the intarweb pegs it right around $600.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Features

A gentleman named Robert was spotted wearing this contraption at a Starbucks in the East Village. Apparently he calls it a Portable Gadget Center. We call it hilarious. Close up after the break…

Ryan: “The Dylan of his generation, Bobby could type AND dial a call with his tongue at the very same time.”
Evan: “Why yes, this IS the first date I’ve ever been on; how did you know?”
Chris: “Years of latte-infused spittle had rendered Robert’s array of devices useless, but a longstanding disinterest in using his arms — indeed, the inspiration for the contraption itself — had prevented him from wiping them with a damp cloth.”
Dante: “I thought it made you look cool until I spotted the baby blue G-Shock.”

Continue reading Caption contest: the harmonigadget

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Original post by Evan Blass