Google Goggles is the future. But not the ‘eventually we will have something that can do that’ future, since it already exists, but the ’10 years ago, we thought we would have something that could do that in 100 years, but now we have it today’ future.
To use Google Goggles, you just take a picture of something with your Android phone using the Google Goggles app, and it automatically searches Google for the thing in the image. For instance, snap a picture of the Golden Gate Bridge, and it will automatically show you the search results for that landmark:
You can take pictures of landmarks, books, business cards, artwork, places, wine, or even a logo, and it will do its best to figure out what you’re trying to search for. And while that’s a neat trick on its own, the future part comes into play when you think of what this could enable with a few small tweaks.
Imagine if you had a pair of glasses with a camera in the front and screens on the inside. (See the Vuzix Wrap 920 for an example.) Then imagine that the camera is connected to the Google Goggles app, so that whenever you look at something, it automatically pulls up additional information from the web and displays it right in front of you. Suddenly you’re walking around like the Terminator with an augmented reality style display giving you extra information about the world around you in real time.
That might sound futuristic, but the technology to make it happen exists today, and all that’s needed is for someone to put the pieces together and get everything to play nicely with one another. Throw in a machine gun and add some Michael Bay to the mix, and you’ve got yourself one hell of a party!
When speed is everything, anything that shaves off a few seconds can mean the difference between winning and losing, so for Shimano’s new bicycle derailleurs, they’ve gotten rid of cables all together and replaced them with computer controlled motors and gear selectors in an effort to provide smoother and more consistent shifts during the most demanding of races.
They’re not without their detractors however:
“People choose bicycles precisely because a bicycle’s motion requires only human effort, and nothing could be more simple, independent and autonomous,” said Raymond Henry, a cycling historian in St. Etienne, France. “Any source of external energy, however weak, runs counter to this philosophy.”
As with any new technology, these things don’t come cheap, and initial systems are expected to add about $1,250 onto the cost of an already expensive system, but if they can prove their reliability and speed up a rider’s pace, they just might be shifting the gears of every high-dollar race bike in a few years time.
Etymotic Research’s ety8 Bluetooth Wireless Earphones are “the world’s first in-ear high fidelity, noise-isolating earphones”.
By using the optional 8•Mate adapter for your iPod, you can send music wirelessly to your earphones, and enjoy the crystal clear sound that Etymotic Research is known for. (They don’t call themselves the “World Leader of In-Ear Technology for nothing!)
The full kit includes a leather case, various eartips, a USB charging cable, and a filter changing tool and filters. Plus, if you’re using these on a device that already has Bluetooth built in, you can skip the iPod adapter and save a few bucks as well.
Microsoft has been testing their Photosynth software for some time now, but with so many people snapping away with their cameras during the Inauguration, now’s probably the perfect time to see what getting ‘synthy’ is all about.
The goal of Photosynth is to take a bunch of photos and create an experience that has the cinematic [...]
When the V10 equipped Audi R8 hits the streets, it will be the first car in the world to have both high and low beam LED headlights as standard equipment. (The 2009 Cadillac Escalade Platinum will be the first vehicle in the world to offer the all-LED technology.)
You’ve probably already seen Audis driving around with [...]
