DeviceReview - hi-tech

Sony's SmartWatch promises to bring tweets and emails from the smartphone to the wrist. But do consumers want that? Credit: Sony

While it might not be as cool as Dick Tracy‘s two-way radio watch, Sony’s SmartWatch is one more example of a device that brings phone and tablet functionality to our wrists.

Twitter, Facebook, e-mail, text messages and weather: Yeah, the SmartWatch can handle all that. Sort of.

With a 1. 3-inch OLED touchscreen, don’t expect to tap out a full-fledged tweet or status update from the new Sony gizmo — even in morse code. But with the SmartWatch, you should be able to peruse your latest inbox arrival, check the rain forecast, and even preview who’s calling the smartphone that’s buzzing in your pocket — provided that phone runs on Google’s Android operating system, and is synced to the watch via Bluetooth.

And if you have a Bluetooth headset, you can use the SmartWatch to remotely answer your phone, and quickly begin talking. How well does it work? We won’t know until we get a review unit, and put the watch through its paces. But like the Pebble smartwatch we reported on Thursday, we eagerly await quality time with the new Sony device.

The SmartWatch just hit Sony’s retail stores on Thursday at a price of $150, with interchangeable wristbands in white, blue, grey, green and pink at $20 a pop. Other retailers will start selling the SmartWatch soon, says Sony.

Sony’s new timepiece will be competing for space on your wrist with a number of other gadgets: Motorola’s Motoactv, Apple’s iPod Nano and rival smartwatches such as the Pepple and the Wimm One.

Are consumers really interested in these products? It’s still an open question. Sony has been trying to break this space open for the last couple years, most recently with the Sony Ericsson LiveView Phone Remote watch, which ran many similar apps and also used Bluetooth to pull info from Android phones.

But, hey, if nothing else, the name Sony SmartWatch is a much easier to say than Sony Ericsson LiveLive Phone Remote.

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Livestream Broadcaster pre-orders available now, shipping at the end of May for $495 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Apr 2012 06:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It doesn’t matter how comfortable your computer chair is. Give it a few hours and you’ll probably be slouching or bending your head this way or that as you do your work. It’s not very good for your posture or bones, but you probably already know that. Now the problem is, what can you do about it?

One alternative is to change your monitor and get Philips’ ErgoSensor display. Aside from offering a vibrant 24″ LCD screen, it’s also equipped with a sensor that detects if you’re sitting in the correct and ergonomic position.

In addition to alerting you to maintain good posture, the ErgoSensor also keeps track of the time you’ve spent in front of your monitor and reminds you to take a break every one in a while. The monitor’s green too, since it automatically goes into power-saving mode if it detects that you’ve stepped away from your desk.

You can check out Philips UK for more information about the ErgoSensor display.

[via Wired via Oh Gizmo!]

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Here you are a new Android Tablet, the Meopad AQUA from TAXAN in Japan. Unlike your average Android Tablet, the Meopad AQUA has been tailored to fit a rather unique purpose: A Multimedia Bathroom tablet!
Indeed, beside the usual functionalities found in most Android 2. 3 tablet including a 5Mpix rear camera and a 1.3Mpix front facing one, WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth… The Meopad AQUA comes with a unique IP54 Waterproof body a 1Seg TV tuner as well as being MobacomHQ Video compatible (DRM Video sold on …

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Designers of the Pebble E-Paper watch were looking to fund $100,000 in a  matter of month so they can start producing it. Instead, they got $1,782,477 in less than two days. So what's so amazing about this watch?

The Pebble E-Paper Watch is a fully customizable watch with different internet connected apps that you can download. It can also connect to your iPhone or Android via Bluetooth and can alert you of incoming calls, emails, messages, Twitter and Facebook alerts, weather alerts, as well as silent vibrating alarm and timer.

Watch how it works in this video:

You can pre-order your Pebble watch right now for as little as $99 (will retail for $150 after production). Click here to visit the Kickstarter page and order.

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The Canon EOS-1D C is the 4K DSLR that many filmmakers have been clamoring for. It costs $15,000, which means you can’t afford it. Bummer? Hardly. Canon’s paving the road to a beautiful super-high-resolution future. Get excited. More »

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Karanvir Singh:

Furniture with integrated technology and multimedia capabilities is something that has always impressed the geeks. We have earlier seen some of the best multimedia chairs, including the ergonomically designed iPad chair. And, the latest in furniture for the geeks is the intelligent P@d ichair that lets you relax, communicate and work at the same time, and it can also transform into a traditional upholstered chair when you are not working.

P@d ichair

Rossin, an upholstery manufacturer since 1964, has introduced this exclusive P@d ichair which is based on the idea of regeneration and communication. The P@d is an intelligent and high-tech chair that comes with folding swivel trays for all kinds of gadgets including the mobile phone, mouse, laptops, drinks, pens, books and many more. Crafted with elegant aluminum elements boasting classic, discreet and timeless design, the chair is practical and functional.

P@d ichair

Designers have fabricated the frame in plywood and finest quality solid wood, and its belts and flame retardant polyurethane foam is covered with special fiber wadding. The chairs basement is built in matt-chrome plated steel, and its table top is built with toughened acid-etched glass.

P@d ichair

The P@d ichair with the Acoustable, a high-tech coffee table that features a built-in sound system will make a perfect arrangement fin urban homes.

Acoustable

Via: <a href=”http://www.rossin.it/nc/en/collections/contract/pd/gallery.html?

A new car seat developed by the Advanced Institute of Industrial Technology in Tokyo can automatically identify the person who is sitting on it. The seat uses a system of 360 pressure sensors that can remember what it feels like to be sat on by various people. So basically it is a butt recognition system.

Tests have yielded a 98% percent recognition success rate. The data gets sent back to a laptop where it is aggregated into a reading of your specific butt. Then it can be used as the “key” to keep others from using your car.

It might also alert you to the fact that you are gaining weight if it one day refuses to turn on the car. That will teach you to eat the entire bag of chips.

[via TechCrunch via Geekosysytem]

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If you ever have the need to record what people are saying in a conference room, here’s a cool looking microphone which might help you capture better quality sound than you might get from traditional microphones.

This unobtrusive desktop mic from Philips was designed by GP Designpartners. It’s designed specifically to be used for recording meetings and conferences, but can also be used as a microphone for phone conferences if your phone system can accept an external mic.

The slightly-sloped disk has been designed to guide sound waves bouncing off of the table into the mic, and it can capture audio in a full 360-degree circle around the table. The mic’s bottom surface has been rubberized, so it will stay in place. There is also an integrated cable management system underneath it, so excess cable can be neatly tucked away.

All in all, if you need a desktop mic and don’t want anything too big, then this might be the way to go. You can get your hands on one over at Amazon for $145 (USD).

[via designboom]

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