Technabob » glass

Sony Cybershot DSC-TX200V: 18.2 MP, 1080p/60 Video, and Covered in Glass

Range — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:00:13 +0000

You got to hand it to Sony, they do occasionally release some really cool products, like this new Sony Cybershot DSC-TX200V which was just announced. It’s a compact camera that sports the highest resolution for a point-and-shoot camera yet. It’s also sandwiched between glass plates, so it does look quite fetching.

But this camera doesn’t just look good, it’s actually got some impressive specs. The DSC-TX200V has an Exmor 18.2 megapixel CMOS sensor, and it can shoot 1080p video at 60 fps. It’s got a 3.3-inch 921k resolution touchscreen, a 5× optical zoom as well as a 10× digital zoom, and has a BIONZ processor to reduce noise. The camera is even waterproof up to 16 feet. It’s also dust resistant and you can use it in temperatures as low as 14°F.

Sony has also included a dual-record function that lets you capture still images will videotaping. It’s also got a built-in GPS and compass which can record photo location data. The camera weighs a pocket-friendly 4.6 oz, and comes in silver, red and violet.

The only real problem I can see with this camera is its price – the DSC-TX200V will retail for a rather spendy $500(USD) when it hits stores this March. It’s available for pre-order now over at the Sony Store.

[via designboom]

R2-D2 Etched Glass: The Droid You are Drinking from

Technabob — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:00:01 +0000

If you want to buy me something nice for the holidays, I think I just found it. I would definitely be happy with a set of these intricately-etched R2-D2 glasses from Japan.

This isn’t some cheap piece of glass. It’s a 10-ounce whisky glass, done up with the ancient Kiriko glass-etching technique – dating back to 1824. Unfortunately, I have expensive taste, as a single one of these collectible R2-D2 glasses sells for 50 bucks. Yeouch. So much for my dreams of owning a set of 8 to share with my friends.

Well, I guess I should be glad that Kotobukiya is out of stock of these, since that would be just one more thing for me to spend money on that I don’t really need. For now, I’ll just look at the pretty pictures of the world’s most fragile droid.

Multitouch Glass Keyboard and Mouse of the Future Already in The Works

Hazel Chua — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 12:30:59 +0000

Futuristic films that involve computers and stuff always include a scene where the characters are using extremely high-tech computers with screens and keyboards made of glass.

But what would you think if I told you that you could possibly be using a multitouch, tempered glass keyboard and mouse by April of next year? Well, you really would, if you made a pledge of $350 or more (to get both), $250 or more (to get the keyboard), or $150 or more (to get the mouse) on this Kickstarter project by Jason Giddings.

These next-generation computer mice and keyboards are made from special, curved tempered glass and have cameras at the base to detect your fingers’ movements using infrared light. Both devices are still unnamed, but Jason is giving anyone who pledges $10 and $25 a chance to name his babies (these babies, and not his real ones, if ever he has any.)

Jason’s goal was to raise $50,000 and it looks like the project is well on its way, as the current pledges already amount to over $48k. Way to go!

[via Oh Gizmo!]

People People’s Invisible Speaker: Now You See It, Now You Don’t

Range — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 18:00:01 +0000

This speaker doesn’t look like much, since it’s mostly made out of transparent materials, but it sure looks nice. It’s People People’s invisible speaker, and it’s made for people who want a speaker that doesn’t look like an ordinary speaker.

People People’s Glass Speaker makes it easy to blend in with your decor at home, since it lets you see through to the environment around it. The transparent case blends in with almost everything, yet is big enough to offer a good sound quality. The speaker comes with a small, rechargeable wireless transmitter that can be plugged into any computer, music player or smartphone’s headphone jack.

The speaker itself ships in a small package that fits in a mailbox. That’s because the glass sheets have to be ordered through a local glass repair shop, which will cut down on shipping costs and breakage. It’s not clear from the pictures if the frame of the box is somehow crammed into that small box too.

There’s still no information on price or availability of the invisible speaker. Still, it looks pretty interesting, although the glass will make it somewhat heavy and fragile.

[via NOTCOT]

The Stained Glass AK-47

Shane McGlaun — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:50:11 +0000

The AK-47 has been around for a long time and is one of the most widely used weapons in the world when it comes to fighting wars. This unusual version of the AK-47 was posted on DeviantArt by artist shanti1971 and is called The End of the Revolution.

It is cool with the AK made from shards of pink, red, and purple glass. That blob on the end of the rifle is supposed to be a red poppy slower to symbolize remembrance of for the people that died in wars around the world.

I like the project; it’s an interesting piece that looks really cool. There are some contradictions here; stained glass always reminds me of church and peace while the design is a weapon often used in war. It’s cool no matter what you see in the art.

Plus, unlike a real AK-47, the worst harm you could do with this gun is drop it and cut yourself with the glass shards.

[via Neatorama via NerdApproved]

Triton 36,000 Submarine Gets Stronger Under Pressure

Shane McGlaun — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 18:32:19 +0000

I like to swim and I have always though SCUBA diving would be cool as long as it was in water shallow enough that sharks couldn’t sneak up on me. I’m not for diving down to the kind of depths in a submarine where the pressure is so great you are one leaky valve from getting a testicle shot off by a billion psi of ice cold ocean water squirting through a crack.

I imagine that is exactly what would happen if you were to say, spring a leak at the bottom of the deepest oceanic trench on earth. A really cool looking submarine has been unveiled called the Triton 36,000. The sub is designed to dive as deep as the ocean goes with two lunatics sitting inside the clear glass dome.

That dome is most of the high-tech science here. The thing is made from some sort of fancy glass concocted at Rayotek Scientific. The design of the dome allows it to actually get stronger the more pressure is on it. The sub is strong enough to dive at 500 feet per minute to the bottom of the 35,797 foot Challenger Deep, which is the deepest part of the Mariana Trench. A leak at that depth and the last thing you would hear would be your co-pilot screaming “OW! My Balls!” Would you ride this thing to the bottom of the ocean?

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

[via Thescuttlefish]

Boba Fett Helmet Pipe: The Empire Strikes Back, Then Has the Munchies

Technabob — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 04:27:10 +0000

Ok, this could to be the strangest Star Wars item I’ve ever come across. It’s a glass pipe in the shape of Boba Fett’s helmet.

I guess when Boba Fett needs a break from a hard day’s bounty hunting, he straps this thing on, and mellows out. Yep, apparently the mouthpiece is inside of the glass helmet, so you smoke it while you wear it.

Do you think Darth Vader would have hired Fett to find the Millennium Falcon if he knew he was a stoner? Guess the Empire might want to think about starting to administer random drug tests.

[via Obvious Winner via Geekologie]

Corning’s Vision of the Future is Filled With Glass (and Computers)

Lambert Varias — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 14:16:06 +0000

Videos that depict the future of computers crop up every now and then, and although they are fun to watch, most of them are more flash than substance. This clip from Corning Inc. – the glass and ceramics company that gave us Gorilla Glass, among other things – is no better, since it’s obviously a very biased conceptualization, but it does contain a few neat, if not mind-blowing, ideas. Take this one for example, a fridge door where the pictures are digital. Animated GIFs on your fridge door ftw!

Here’s the video:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Isn’t it funny, yet inevitable, that our visions of the future are always constrained by what’s in our present? For example, why are the interfaces so reliant on touchscreens? Did you see how inconvenient it was for the mom to type on her bathroom mirror and set up the map in her car? We already have voice-recognition software like Dragon Dictation; I’d like to think that the future will have more of that. Why type when you can dictate? Hell, KITT exchanged witty banter with Michael Knight.

What about wild ideas like controlling computers with your eyes, or with your thoughts? Or phones that don’t look like transparent iPhones? What about a phone that’s embedded in our ears and eyes? Where are the holograms? And where are the actual keyboards?

But I may be asking too much of Corning, because the video is an advertisement more than anything else. And as I said the company does have a few neat ideas, especially when it comes to what they know best – tough glass, large seamless displays, appliances with multipurpose glass parts – but I’d like to think that the future of computing is not just more of what we have now, but something better.

[via Emergent Futures]

Beaker Lamps Remind Me of Muppet Babies

Shane McGlaun — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 18:16:19 +0000

I used to really like Muppet Babies when I was a kid. Beaker and his pal always getting blown up really cracked me up. These geeky and very strange Beaker lamps remind me of that old cartoon show. I also learned in college that you can’t put a beaker on a flame without liquid inside unless you want to clean up a mess and loose points on your mid-term test. I have a sordid history with beakers.

These cool lamps are certainly geeky enough and would look great on my desk. They are very old fashioned looking with wrought iron fixtures and old fashioned looking bulbs. These Beaker Table Lamps are placed on top of old beakers that are filled with some sort of black sand. The sand would undoubtedly keep them from tipping over easily and it looks really cool too. They look especially great with those retro-filament bulbs atop them.

Speaking of Beaker…

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

[via Inhabitat]

Greensound Glass Speakers: Perfect for People in Glass Houses

Technabob — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 23:58:02 +0000

I’ve definitely seen my share of unusual speakers over the years, but this is the first time I’ve come across speakers made out of glass.

These speakers from Greensound Technology manage to produce 360-degree audio, emanating from a flat glass tower. They’re available in a variety of configurations, and there’s even a glass-encased subwoofer available. The tall Serac towers are inspired by the ice of a glacier, and can handle 25-watts of power and offer 300Hz-15kHz frequency range. Adding the Bravura subwoofer gives you lows down to 40Hz, driven by up to 150-watts of power. The Floe speaker series offers a decidedly more curvy base unit than the Serac, are a bit smaller, and come in a wireless version.

Here’s a brief video showing off the speakers up close and personal:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

All of the glass speakers offer lighting options, providing colorful illumination through the pane of glass. No word on how much the Greensound glass speakers sell for, but judging from the schmancy picture below, if you have to ask, you probably can’t afford them.

[Thanks for the tip, Buster!]

Broken iPhone 3g Screen? Check Out This DIY Repair

Range — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 14:34:27 +0000

Did you just break the screen of you beloved iPhone? Annoyed at paying $200 to have Apple replace the screen? Well, Morten Skogly will give you the means to repair your screen yourself, DIY style.

One of the most common mishaps of having an iPhone is that sometimes they fall (klutz!) and the screen breaks. A lot of the time, it’s just the glass of the display screen that breaks. Which is why this article [PDF] over at Make Magazine will help you replace your screen yourself for about $30 bucks – assuming you have an iPhone 3G or 3GS. iPhone 4 users with cracked screens will have a much harder time, and still have to rely on Apple repair because the glass is glued to the LCD panel itself, rendering them pretty much inseparable.

Kipkay has been kind enough to put together this video walkthrough of Morten’s repair article if you don’t have the patience to read the tutorial.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

It’s a relatively easy process to complete, assuming you’ve got experience with DIY projects. Plus, it will cost you a lot less than $200 bucks.

[via Make:]

Piece of Glass Staircase From Apple Store Auctioned Off on Ebay

Lambert Varias — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 12:46:32 +0000

In a ridiculous attempt to cash in on fanboyism, eBay seller heylookitskibbe tried to auction off a piece of the spiral glass staircase from the Apple store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. One glass stair. Check that: one cracked glass stair. The starting bid: $200 (USD). The buy it now price: $2500. Surely no one would take up the offer!

But of course, the house that Steve Jobs built has its zealots: two people actually placed bids, at $250 and $300, for the stair. But for some reason heylookitskibbe ended the auction prematurely.

I guess it’s not too outrageous to assume that someone did buy the damned thing outside of eBay. It’s worth noting though that the seller claims that the 250-lb. glass stair is originally worth $10,000. I don’t know how much a cracked one is worth though.

[via TUAW]

Ideum Mt-50 Multitouch Table: Surface Who?

Technabob — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 16:29:55 +0000

Multitouch displays are cool – no question about it. However, most of the larger multitouch displays out there are one-off custom builds. And while Microsoft sells their multitouch Surface as a turnkey solution, it’s only got a 30-inch display. The guys over at Ideum have upped the game with their ready-to-use MT-50 multitouch table, which comes with a high-def 50-inch tabletop (though viewable area looks closer to about 40-inches diagonal).

The Ideum MT-50 retails for about $21,000 (USD) and is designed for use in museums, tradeshows and other exhibitions (why not my living room?) and features a massive 50-inch multitouch glass surface. It can detect up to 40 simultaneous points of input, so multiple users can interact with it at the same time. The MT-50 is designed for durability too. It’s built from aircraft-grade aluminum and steel, and the tempered glass tabletop is designed to be nearly indestructible.

The Ideum table offers a 1280 x 720 display, and ships with Gestureworks, a library which allows true multitouch interaction using Adobe Flash. By comparison, Microsoft’s Surface only has, 1024 x 768 resolution display, and requires that your develop apps using Microsoft proprietary toolkits such as WPF, XNA and Expression Blend. The MT-50 also bests the Surface standard build with a beefy 3GHz quad core CPU, versus Microsoft’s 2.13 GHz dual core.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The MT-50 has already found its way into numerous museum exhibitions, such as this recent mashup between Google Maps and Flickr used in an exhibit at the California Science Center.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

And if the production 50-incher isn’t enough for you, the guys at Ideum have already built a custom 100-inch version of the table for one client:

Now all I need is one of these in my living room, and I’ll be all set.

Hoload Displays Show Objects in 3d Without Glasses

Technabob — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 15:40:16 +0000

Sure, sure, everyone at CES has shown off their fancy new 3D wares, but the vast majority of 3D tech requires that the viewer wear a pair of glasses, and doesn’t actually let you walk around the object in question and see it from the sides. HoloAD technology from Taiwan’s Innovision does just that.

As is the case with all 3D tech, HoloADs work by fooling the brain into thinking it’s seeing something that doesn’t really exist. HoloAD displays work by using a set of three independent images, projected onto the trapezoidal sides of a see-through glass pyramid (the back side is flat), so you can walk 180-degrees around the projection. The result is an image that looks like an animated, full-color hologram. In addition, the display units can hold an actual object under the glass, and can be made to look like that object is the originating source of the 3D projection. Just load up the properly prepared FLV video footage onto a USB flash disk, and the HoloAD unit does the rest.

While the brief shakycam videos I shot below give you a little sense of how HoloADs work, the effect is nothing short of spectacular when you see it up close and personal.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

And here’s an “official” video from Innovision that shows off a couple more 3D objects:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

While the demos I saw at CES included such mundane things like an iPhone and a silly looking pufferfish, I really want one of these loaded up a tiny R2-D2 projecting a repeated graphic of Carrie Fisher saying “Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope.”

Arabesque Glass Speakers Are Fragil-Eh, but Not From Italy

Technabob — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 21:41:40 +0000

These towering speakers from Crystal Cable are really unusual, thanks to their see-through design. And by the way, they’re constructed out of something you don’t usually build speakers out of – plate glass.

The 55.7″ tall, 227 pound Arabesque speakers are hand-assembled from large sheets 3/4″ facet-cut glass, carefully glued together to form a sound enclosure. The unconventional tear-drop shape of the glass isn’t just there for looks either – it’s actually precision-engineered to help create a wide dispersion pattern in a variety of room setups.

Each tower has a 140mm ribbon tweeter, and three 180mm paper-cone mid/bass speakers. While they may look delicate, they’re designed to crank out some serious volume, with 115dB peak SPL, and frequency response from 27Hz to a ear-piercing highs of 100kHz at-3dB. Not too shabby for a speaker made out of glass. And according to the guys over at HiFi+, they really do live up to their specs.

Oh, I neglected to mention the most important part. These glass speakers retail for £45,000 (appx. $71,800 USD) a pair. That’s about what a really well-outfitted Lexus or Infiniti would set you back if you’re keeping track of how you spend your money. Pocket change, no?

Imbibe Me Up: Star Trek Wine Glasses

Alisha K. — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 13:40:01 +0000

It’s beginning to look a lot like a Star Trek holiday season. First we’re faced with killer (and economical) stockings, and now a pair of etched wine glasses, for the grape-loving fan in your life.

Perfect for a little Springwine, am I right? And they’re nice, thick glass, so they might be useful in case someone dares make fun of your geek glasses. I’m always in favor of dual-use objects.

They’re available at Etsy for $18, if they don’t keep selling out, that is. Apparently, wine glasses and Star Trek fans go together like a Ferengi and money.

[via Geek Crafts]

Pac-Man Pipes to be Used for “Legal Purposes Only”

Technabob — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:29:06 +0000

The guys selling these Pac-Man glass pipes have them listed as a “flo new art glass borosilicate pyrex glass PAC-MAN scene landscape video game 420 high score spoon pipe heady 420″, which certainly could be used for legitimate purposes – like for smoking small pieces of meat. But no matter what you decide to use it for, you should definitely stop if you start to see blue ghosts floating around the room.

The “high” score of 420 on this handmade glass vessel is an especially nice touch. For those of you not in the know, 4:20 is the time of day when I usually like to take a nap. And if that isn’t enough, there’s also a glow-in-the-dark version too. Whoa. Like, whoooaaaaa.

Keep in mind that in purchasing these pipes you agree to “use the products… for legal purposes only.” So be sure to invite a lawyer or two over to your next shindig.

You can find these over at Novaflo’s Etsy shop. And stay tuned for upcoming Donkey Kong, Frogger and Tron versions. All I can say is that the Donkey Kong version better have this image on it.

Hand Grenade Xmas Ornaments: O Holy Hand Grenade

Technabob — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 02:39:56 +0000

I know, I know. Halloween isn’t even here yet and I’m talking about Christmas already. But when I saw these new ornaments over on Suck UK‘s site today, I had to mention them.

These Xmas Declaration ornaments are perfect for sending a bold political statement with your holiday tree this year. Each shiny plastic ornament is modeled after a hand grenade, and is guaranteed to not actually blow up your tree – unless you decide to fill yours with black powder. The ornament hanger that looks like a grenade’s safety pin is a nice touch.

They come in sets of six over at Suck UK for £20 (appx. $32 USD) , and a portion of each purchase will result in a donation to Ctrl.Alt.Shift‘s fight against global injustice.

The Real Mac Tablet is a Coffee Table [Casemod]

Technabob — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 12:43:35 +0000

With all of the buzz on the ‘nets about Apple’s upcoming tablet Mac, I think I’ve got the scoop on the original Mac Tablet.

Yvan of Switzerland’s Cosm!k’ Art Deco Team built his Tablet Mac into a coffee table.

The Tablet Mac was built using the brains of an old iBook G4 laptop (running OSX Tiger). The laptop circuitry was set underneath a 37-inch flat panel LCD screen. Everything is self-contained in the table, with the only thing sticking out at all being the power cable.

While the display isn’t a full touchscreen (it should be), there are six tactile control buttons around the perimeter of the display which allow interaction with the apps on screen. Being true MacGyvers, the circuitry for the buttons came from a cheap six-button joypad.

Notice the DVD loading slot there? Clever hiding place. An embedded Griffin PowerMate USB controller on the front edge of the table also provides for basic interactions like scrolling and adjusting volume. There’s also a wireless keyboard and mouse if six buttons and a scroll wheel aren’t enough for you.

While the interface is limited in its capabilities, it’s more than sufficient for controlling tracks in iTunes as shown in this video clip…

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

It’s all built into a sturdy steel-framed table with thick tempered glass tabletop to protect the screen from spills and other damage. If only there were a true multitouch display and it ran Snow Leopard – I’d be sold. Still I wouldn’t kick this thing out of my living room if one showed up at my door.

You can check out more photos and the complete build log here (Google Translated from French).

Qlocktwo Clock Tells the Time With Words

Technabob — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 02:30:28 +0000

The QLOCKTWO is a gorgeous modern timepiece uses letters, not numbers to tell you the current time.

Designed by Biegert & Funk, the QLOCKTWO displays text that describes the current time using statements like “IT IS NINE O’CLOCK” or “IT IS FIVE PAST TWO”. Individual minutes are conveyed through the tiny white dots in the corners of the clock. A flip of the switch, and the seconds appear as a giant dot-matrix display behind the letters. And if you’d prefer your time in a language other than English, you’ve got a choice of German, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, or French versions too.

The handmade German clock features a painted acrylic or stainless steel face, which tops a sturdy wood box that houses an array of LED backlighting and circuitry required to tell the time. This sophisticated timepiece uses an atomic-synchronized time-signal reciever and automatically adjusts its brightness based on the ambient light around it.

Here’s a demo of the QLOCKTWO in action (in German):

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

As much as I love the design, the QLOCKTWO isn’t cheap. It retails for €1099.99 (appx. $1565 USD), and interchangeable color faceplates are available starting at €95 (appx. $136 USD) each over at the Biegert & Funk store.

Now for the good news. If you happen to own an iPhone or iPod Touch, you can now grab a nifty little program over on the App Store that simulates the QCLOCKTWO’s functionality on your wonderdevice for just 99 cents. That’s definitely within my budget.

[QLOCKTWO via Design Milk]