Archive for April, 2004
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Thursday, April 15th, 2004
Timken StatusCheck Monitoring System
We can thank industrial automation research and development for our trusty home automation systems… so when I read that Timken is releasing the StatusCheck for monitoring industrial machines, I started thinking where we could use that or something like it in the home. StatusCheck is used to identify potential machine malfunctions before catastrophic failures occur. Because it’s wireless, it can transmit vibration and temperature data from otherwise hard-to-reach machines. The StatusCheck system includes up to 100 wireless transmitters, a data receiver and a companion software program. Pretty good use of wireless technology, but I still can’t think of where I’d use one around the house… anyone?
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Thursday, April 15th, 2004
Name That Tune…
AT&T Wireless has announced the availability of a new music recognition service that allows people to identify songs by placing their phones near a music speaker. The service is the first of its kind in the US. To use the service, a customer dials “#ID” (#43) from any AT&T Wireless phone. When prompted,
customers then hold the phone near the music source for approximately 15
seconds. Users will immediately receive a text message on their wireless
phone with the name of the song title and recording artist. First time is free, $.99 cents each time afterwards.
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Thursday, April 15th, 2004
WiFi Enabled SmartPaper
This has to be one of the coolest technologies I have seen in a while… Wagner Zip-Change is releasing the ZipVision eSignage Reader Board, it’s a large format display that’s based on Gyricon’s SmartPaper(TM) technology. Long ladders are a thing of the past with this product, the WiFi enabled reader board allows you to manage and change the sign(s) content from a central location. SmartPaper technology was invented at the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) and is a reusable display material that is electronically writeable and erasable. The ZipVision is suitable for indoor and outdoor applications making it a more cost effective alternative than LCD, LED, or Plasma displays. I’m still waiting for WiFi enabled paint… anyone?
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2004
The Garmin Marine Network
Garmin International Inc. announced today the Garmin Marine Network, a fully-integrated, plug-and-play system that puts GPS, weather, sonar, radar, and other important data literally at a boater’s fingertips. There will initially be two units that feature this new service, the GPSMAP® 3010C and GPSMAP 3006C. The two multifunction displays (MFDs) show data in a user-configurable format. You won’t need to mount these units away from the elements because they are waterproof and feature a sunlight readable, 256-color, 640×480-pixel VGA display in either a 10.4″ or 6.4″ diagonal screen size. The MFDs are powered by a high-speed processor and graphics controller for fast redraw of charts and weather graphics. A unique feature to the Garmin Marine Network is the addition of the GDL™ 30 weather data receiver. Through a partnership with the XM WX Satellite Weather data service, mariners for the first time can access real-time graphical weather data directly on the GPSMAP 3010C or 3006C — without the need for a separate PC interface. The XM WX Satellite Weather data service will cost about $50/mo (other tiers available to suit your needs) and a fully equipped system can cost up to $4000. This XM stuff is starting to look very compelling!
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2004
smart to Launch SUV in 2006 for US Market
If you’ve been to Europe, you’ve seen the unique smart brand vehicles on the street. smart, the global automotive brand that has changed the design, production and marketing of premium small vehicles around the world, will enter the U.S. market in 2006 with a new SUV specifically designed for the American consumer. Named the smart formore, the new smart utility vehicle will bring the brand’s unique engineering, design and exuberant character into one of the market’s most popular segments. Can’t wait to see this vehicle in person! For the complete details click the link below. [via PRNEWSWIRE]
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2004
Shell HomeGenie
Does anyone else find it strange that Shell, the oil company, is coming out with a home management solution that will be available off the shelf at your local CompUSA? I like the idea of an inexpensive solution for the masses and maybe this is their way of trying to teach us to conserve energy. Anyways, the starter kit comes with a Motorola Gateway, Programmable Thermostat, wireless camera, and a power switch that lets you conveniently schedule appliances and lights to turn on or off as you wish. You can expand the system to suit your needs but don’t expect it to compare with a system that was specifically designed for your home.
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2004
Wireless Presentation Gateway
D-Link has released a wireless 802.11g Presentation Gateway that connects directly to a projector via a standard 15-pin VGA cable, making it compatible with almost all projectors on the market. 802.11g wireless technology enables the DPG-2000W to transfer presentations, JPEG images, and applications to a projector or monitor in real time (No word yet if it can transfer full motion video perfectly). All that is needed is a laptop or computer with an 802.11g adapter card to transmit the video to the projector. I bet we will start seeing more of these type of devices that will be used to transfer video to flat panels throughout our homes eliminating the mess of wires. Estimated street price will be $249.
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2004
NVIDIA Launches GeForce 6 Series
NVIDIA Corporation is finally introducing the long awaited NVIDIA GeForce 6800 models of graphics processing
units (GPUs). The NVIDIA GeForce 6
Series, which includes the flagship GeForce 6800 Ultra and GeForce 6800, is
designed to deliver the latest 3D performance, new superscalar 16-pipe architecture that delivers more than twice that of current industry leading NVIDIA GPUs, Microsoft DirectX(R) 9.0 Shader Model 3.0 for ultra-realistic cinematic effects and unprecedented on-chip video processing engine enabling high-definition video and DVD playback.
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2004
Price Drop On Squeezebox
I just got word that Slim Devices is lowering prices on their popular network music players-Squeezebox
Wired, the ethernet-only player, will retail for $199 and Squeezebox Wireless,
with built-in wireless support, will retail for $279. Squeezebox supports many popular digital music formats including MP3, AAC,
Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, and uncompressed audio (AIFF or WAV), making this a great little device to run your whole house audio system.
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2004
New Water-look-alike Technology
Tyco Fire & Security has announced the New SAPPHIRE™ Fire Suppression System that utilizes a new sustainable chemical agent that fights fires without causing any damage to electronics, works of art, or your irreplaceable PEZ collection. What makes all this possible is because the use of 3M’s NOVEC™ 1230 Fire Protection Fluid. The stuff looks exactly like water, but does not cause the type of damage associated with water when putting out a fire. The most amazing property about this fluid is that items can be fully immersed in the
agent and it will quickly evaporate, safeguarding items – and leaving them unaffected. There is no mention if this stuff taste like water… but I’m guessing not.
About the archives
Welcome to the archives here at MAVROMATIC.
These are a collection of our previous posts. If you'd like to read about the latest and greatest, click here.
Welcome to mavromatic! My goal is to bring to your attention the latest DIY projects, the greatest home automation and home theater products. As well as, the occasional offbeat entry, to spice things up a bit.
