Technabob » iris

Cardnetics Brings You Business Cards with a Twist

Hazel Chua — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 12:00:51 +0000

Analog cellular phones became WiFi-capable smartphones. Vinyl records became MP3 files. The abacus became a calculator, which later on evolved into the scientific calculator. But amidst all these changes, one thing that stayed the same was the business card.

Well, of course, there’s the electronic business card, but that’s not exactly something you can physically hand out to people as you meet them, right? But thanks to sites like Cardnetics, you can hand out interactive cards that will grab your prospective client’s attention (which is obviously something that you’d like to do.)

They work best though, if you’re a photographer or someone who’s offering similar services. That’s because the Iris Cards come in the shape/form/likeness of a camera with a mechanical iris that you can find in cameras. Move the lever up and down and the cardboard iris in the middle of the card opens and closes with your movements. Cool, huh?

You could also consider these business cards more of a novelty and only hand them out to high-paying (or sure) clients because they don’t come cheap, starting at $6 a pop.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

You can have Cardnetics print out colored Iris cards for you or order a kit off the site and assemble the business cards yourself. Now that’s being literally hands on.

[via Oh Gizmo!]

Aperture: Light-Reactive Interactive Display

Technabob — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 01:44:59 +0000

I’m not sure how I missed this amazing interactive display concept when it first surfaced, but it’s cool enough that I thought it deserved a mention, even if it is but a distant memory.

The system used an array of thousands of individual mechanical irises, each designed to react to the amount of light in front of it. The darker the subject, the wider the aperture would open, resulting in a real-time halftone effect.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Designed by Berlin interactive artists Gunnar Green and Frederic Eyl, Aperture never made it past the prototype stage. It’s a really cool idea, reminiscent of the mechanical mirrors of Daniel Rozin, and I hope someday they decide to resurrect it for more of us to see up close.

Sony Vpl-Aw10 and Vpl-Aw15 Projectors From $1000

Technabob — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 17:56:32 +0000

Sony today announced a new series of agressively-priced LCD front projectors, the Bravia VPL-AW10 ($1000 MSRP) and VPL-AW15 ($1300 MSRP).

Both projectors feature a widescreen 3-LCD panel with 720p native resolution, and a bright 165-watt UHP lamp. They both include versions of Sony’s well-reviewed advanced iris system, providing the AW10 with a 6000:1 contrast ratio and a 12,000:1 contrast ratio for the AW15. The more expensive of the two models also includes lens shift capabilities to provide installation flexibility. They’re also designed for quiet operation with a low noise fan mode that can be as quiet as 20dB.

If you’re looking to set up a really big screen home theater set up (say between 80 and 200 inches diagonal,) and don’t have a lot of money to invest, this looks like it could be a great way to get into the game. Sure, the projector doesn’t have the full 1920×1080 resolution of today’s more expensive models, but it is capable of handling 720p, 1080i and 1080p sources, so you’ll be able to enjoy all high definition content regardless. Both projectors are both expected to start shipping this June.

[Press Release]