RELEASE: APRIL
Movie Toaster
Samsung tramples the line betweenThe Godfather, Part II and Quake III to bridge the living-room generation gap. Using the long-anticipated NUON chip from VM Labs, Samsung's DVD-N2000 crunches movies as if they were videogames.
The $499 player lets you zoom in anywhere on the screen; its multiple-picture strobe shows 16 small consecutive frames to help locate stills. And with Multiple Angle Discs - most popular for porno titles and New Age music videos - you can switch shots midscene, choosing from thumbnails along the bottom of the screen.
The device also plays NUON DVD games, includingIron Soldier and Tempest 3000, which take advantage of the format's big capacity and the chip's fast processing. And the DVD-N2000 even uses its video chip when playing regular audio CDs, generating a colorful, abstract light-show synchronized to the music.
Samsung Electronics:www.samsungdigital.com.
RELEASE: SPRING
Big Kerbang Boom
Even those who aren't into patching USB cords and tweaking bit rates have heard about the downloadable-music revolution - secondhand. Now Kerbango, like its chief rival, PenguinRadio, makes Internet listening PC-free.
If you've mastered FM, you can use the Kerbango - it even looks like a regular radio. The device uses a data line instead of an antenna, but the interface is pure RCA, complete with dials, buttons, and knobs. The first time you plug it into a power outlet and connect it to your phone modem, DSL, or high-speed cable line, the radio leads you through a onetime configuration procedure. After that, you use the LCD screen to look through listings of sites that serve audio content, whether live or recorded, streaming or otherwise, in RealAudio, Microsoft Media, and MP3. Sound quality depends on the original source, the format, the proximity of the server, and your connection, but people with broadband pipes will generally get near-CD quality.
Since this is the Net, you can kiss standard programming good-bye. While Kerbango can certainly play NPR, CBS, and Top 40 radio, it also receives remote international stations, "mature" comedy outlets, and even big-city police scanners.
The radio unit will find stations through Kerbango's database, which has been part ofwww.kerbango.com for several months. The searchable database is a great resource, and the new gizmo helps Kerbango leverage the online property. Sales of hardware should provide another source of revenue, and the company also plans to make a little extra cash every time you buy music-related items like concert tickets through the radio's trusty Buy button.
Kerbango: +1 (408) 257 1400,www.kerbango.com.
RELEASE: SPRING
A Way for PCs to Feel
Tactex Controls' MTC Express looks like an ordinary mouse tablet, but it can tell the computer how hard you're pushing down as well as where. And unlike other peripherals, it registers multiple touches, all at once, over its whole surface. The pad can serve as a simple pointing device, or you can program it for more sensitive endeavors like gaming, art, or music.
MTC Express' Smart Fabric consists of a dense network of optical fibers embedded in cushy foam. It works by sending light from LEDs through the fibers; when pressure bends the passageways, light bounces backward instead of continuing through. An array of sensors measures the level of backscattering. The harder you push, the more light is lost, so the synthetic skin distinguishes between a tickle and a poke.
Product beta testers were mostly computer-music types - including Robert Moog - who used Opcode Systems' music-control language MAX to make the pad imitate musical instruments like keyboards, where position and pressure determine pitch and volume. Companies have already begun designing instruments based on the patented material.
Inventor Robert Inkster sees even more capabilities for Smart Fabric. As a result of a recent demo, one major auto manufacturer is considering it for bumpers and car seats.
Tactex Controls:www.tactex.com.
STREET CRED
Camtastic
The Drive to Drive
Bot-Conquest
Is That a V Series in Your Pocket ...
Scripting With Sharks
A Brighter Idea
This Life's for You
Read Me
Music
Meat and Greet
The Rite Stuff at JPL
Headset Smasher
Thief of Arts
Just Outta Beta
Think Small
Finding the Fast Lane Fast
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