Gadgets Mobile

Omron’s newly announced XF3A is an ultra-slim 0.6-mm connector for FPCs (Flexible Printed Circuits) which will be available for purchase sometime this summer. Boasting an ultra-low profile, you also get a pitch of 0.3 mm, a height of 0.6 mm and a depth of 3.8 mm (when locked), which makes up for a stunning 33% reduction compared to previous Omron models. Somehow typing ‘Omron’ too many times often leads me to read it as ‘Moron’, but I digress. When available for purchase, the XF3A can pride itself in being the industry’s slimmest commercially available FPC connector with a backlock mechanism.

Having heart problems is no laughing matter, and most people will have to take plenty of medication, keep up a good exercise regime and watch their diet. They too, will need a heart rate monitor of some sort in order to make sure nothing untoward happens during the course of the day. These devices tend to be bulky, and they’re awkward to carry around. Enter the Vital Jacket heart rate monitor courtesy of BioDevices, which is actually an ordinary t-shirt that continuously monitors heart rate and ECG waves, making it one of the most ideal solution for elderly patients with plenty of potential for fitness applications too.

The Vital Jacket is a wearable vital signs monitoring system that joins textiles with microelectronics. It was designed and developed to be a usable pragmatic approach for different clinical and normal life scenarios, in hospitals, home or on the move, that need continuous or frequent high quality vital signs monitoring from the patient or healthy subject. The concept was designed and specified based on the long tradition on biomedical instrumentation and telemedicine of the IEETA institute of the University of Aveiro, Portugal. The Vital Jacket HWM mobile device is an intelligent wearable garment that is able to continuous monitor electrocardiogram (ECG) wave and Heart Rate for different fitness, high performance sports, security and medical applications.

Two versions are currently available - the HWM100 that stores all its data on an SD memory card for further analysis on a PC later on, while the HWM200 boasts on-line visualization using a smartphone/PDA. I wonder what the battery life on this thing is like, and certainly putting it in a regular washing machine without disconnecting wires or anything of that sort just won’t do. There is no word on pricing at the moment, but surely it can’t be dirt cheap!

Source: MedGadget

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It goes to say a whole lot when even PC makers themselves want to extend Microsoft Windows XP’s shelf life beyond what the software giant themselves want. Currently, the deadline stands at June 30 where PC makers can no longer sell PCs with Windows XP after that date, and it is interesting to see some of the different PC makers take a creative approach to this apparent dilemma. Both HP and Dell plan to offer machines running on Windows XP way after June, taking advantage of the “downgrade rights” offered as part of the Windows Vista license agreement. Pretty interesting, as these computers are actually Vista Business or Vista Ultimate machines which have been factory downgraded to XP at the customer’s request. That’s the theoretical part, and we all know that rarely anything happens according to theory. Chances are these are XP machines that come with an already paid-for upgrade to Vista assuming the customer chooses to do so.

HP has given the final date where it will stop selling “pre-downgraded” desktops, notebooks, and workstations to its business customers - that is, until July 30, 2009. Dell, on the other hand, is trying to pitch a similar option on its online site while promising potential customers that its models will hang around long after Dell stops taking standard XP orders on June 18. Various other computer makers have yet to decide on a strategy, but they have expressed interest in selling Windows XP beyond Microsoft’s myopic June 30 date.

I don’t get it - why can’t Microsoft do the right thing and just extend the deadline? Windows XP is one of the most stable Windows builds ever, and with all the relevant service packs, it is one formidable operating system. There are tons of detractors for Windows Vista, so it is surprising to hear Microsoft saying that “customers and computer makers aren’t demanding a longer life for XP”. What a bunch of bollocks.

Source: News.com

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The scourge of Hello Kitty on all things electronic has not stopped with the Epson Endeavor NJ2100 being the latest ‘victim’ to fall to the white Japanese feline. This pearl white laptop has two variants with one featuring Kitty flying an airplane while the other is Kitty amidst some flowers. Specifications include :-

• Intel Celeron 540 1.86GHz processor
• 1GB RAM
• 80GB hard drive
• DVD drive
• FireWire connectivity
• 3-in-1 memory card slot
• 15.4″ WXGA display at 1,280 x 800 resolution

These laptops will be available on sale only from May 25th onwards, and prices start from $1,470. Pretty expensive for a Celeron, no?

Buy.com has already listed the Nokia N810 WiMax Edition on their site. The N810 is currently listed for $455 with a suggested retail of $479, but as we would expect, is not currently in stock. The listing, although a little early seems to fit the time frame as Nokia announced it would be available beginning in the summer of 2008, however we cannot help but remember that the WiMax coverage would be delayed. Think I can hold off buying a device that is built specifically for a technology that is not even available.

Product [Buy.com] Via [TabletBlog.com]

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It just last week when Nokia introduced the 5220 and 5320 and we now see another three hitting the market. This time its the 6600 Fold, 6600 Slide and the 3600 Slide.

Nokia is promoting the new handsets as “beautiful to use” which would make on think that these new handsets have nothing much to offer except for an eye-pleasing design. True to the tagline, the first two phones which bear the same model number 6600 are your usual Nokia mid-range mobile handsets with nothing much to offer in terms of high-end functionality. Well, aside from the 3G support in the 6600 Fold and a 3.2-megapixel camera in the 6600 Slide. Even the GPS functionality of the 6600 is not an inherent feature but an optional one instead.

The 3600 Slide suffers the same fate as the first two handsets. Aside from the 3.2-megapixel camera, the 3600’s major feature is a background noise cancellation technology that makes up for a good music listening experience. In addition a TV-out feature was also included to connect the 3600 Slide to most TV sets.

Other than these main features, all three handsets are pretty much your standard Nokia mobile phone fare. The Nokia 6600 Fold, 6600 Slide and 3600 Slide will have retail prices of $430, $391 and $273 respectively. All three handsets will begin shipping in Europe during Q3 of this year.

Read [Nokia]

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A laser pointer is a small (often battery-operated) laser device designed for pointing at objects by illuminating them with a collimated visible laser beam. The typical use of a hand-held laser pointer is to point at some screen or chart during a presentation.
The output power of a laser pointer is measured in milliwatts (mW).

The laser pointer is generated by combining three different beams in three orthogonal transverse modes, two of them in a squeezed-vacuum state and one in an intense coherent field. A basic low power office type laser pointer is still clearly visible in a brightly lit room at distances over 100 feet.

Because the human eye is 3-4 times more sensitive to green light than it is to red light, a green laser pointer is 3-4 times brighter to the human eye.

The laser pointer is a cool gadget for offices and schools. Executives use them in their presentations and teachers use them to point the important aspects of a lesson.

These gadgets can be used to have fun with. You can light matches from 5 feet with a lens and do much more like star pointing and other fun things.

If you want to learn more about these cool devices there is a good laser pointer forum that I recommend to read.

For buying a laser pointer go to WickedLasers.com. They have a large selection of lasers, affordable prices, live chat, toll free phone and the most important consumer reviews and videos.

Fancy getting an adrenaline rush? Why not check out the RolerBall - do make sure you take the necessary precautions beforehand though.

Once inflated this behemoth stands about three metres high, and is rather like a spherical cushioned igloo. The idea, which sounds insane, is to put it at the top of a slope (we suggest a very gentle one with a long unobstructed run-off), strap yourself in, and then roll down the hill trying not to lose your lunch. Inside the centre shell are two harnesses, so you could have two people feeling the adrenalin rush, and probably the queasiness, together. There is a version of this mad sport that requires you to remove the harnesses, add a bucket or two of water, tie in the seal (which comes with the ball and straps into the opening), and launch yourself off. Not in a month of Sundays would we do that, but there you go. The ball is made from a very tough material, and comes with a puncture repair kit, but nevertheless you want to be sure you’re using it in a clear area - and ONLY EVER on private land, and with supervision.

You can pick up the RolerBall for a massive £999 from IWantOneOfThose.com.

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Weekend Washbag - For Him
I’ve never done it myself, of course, but crashing out on the floor of a chum’s flat can be a soul-destroying experience, particularly if it’s on a school night and you find yourself facing a slog to work the next morning, unshaven, unkempt and reeking of stale cider.

See price

by Joshua Fruhlinger, posted Apr 27th 2008 at 6:33PMWaiting for a price drop on the Nintendo Wii or DS? Don’t hold your breath. Nintendo’s Satoru Iwata told analysts on Friday that there are no price drop plans for the hot-selling units. Iwata insisted this is because Nintendo doesn’t want to annoy those who already paid full price, but it’s pretty clear that there’s also just no need to drop the price on something that’s already selling like mad.

[Via Joystiq]

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