11 2 / 2012

Spray-on antenna revealed: best thing to come in a can since Easy Cheese (video)

[shared via Google Reader from Engadget]

Ever found yourself without a signal and wished you could just spray one on like magic? Well, maybe soon, you’ll be able to do just that. Chamtech Enterprises has developed a spray-on antenna it says is more lightweight and energy-efficient than current technology. Revealed at Google’s inaugural Solve for X shindig, the antenna can be “painted” onto almost anything, including trees, walls and fabrics. Chamtech’s already talking with government-based customers, and as such can’t spill too much detail on how it works, but said it uses organic elements to tinker with magnetic and radio-frequency fields. The start-up’s CTO, Rhett Spencer, claims the antenna could increase mobile energy efficiency by 10 percent. It was also found to work particularly well under water, and being organic, we presume, would make it ideal for sub-aquatic telecom infrastructure, and of course, rainy days.

Continue reading Spray-on antenna revealed: best thing to come in a can since Easy Cheese (video)

Spray-on antenna revealed: best thing to come in a can since Easy Cheese (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Feb 2012 07:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Wall Street Journal  |  sourceChamtech  | Email this | Comments

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03 2 / 2012

U.S. Gov: We can update Android phones in 2 weeks

[shared via Google Reader from Mobile]

The U.S. government has settled on Google’s Android platform for secure phones, mainly because the software is open and can easily be modified. CNN reported the news this morning, noting that Apple was asked to provide access to its code so the operating system could be modified specifically for secure government use. Apple declined to offer such access.

The modified Android software will be installed on commercially available handsets and can be used to support top-secret dispatches; something that the government doesn’t yet allow for. In the future, soldiers could use the handsets to locate other troops or quickly communicate orders to a group securely.

Ironically, the government group formed to manage the Android software project has already made a bold claim that makes the carriers look silly from where I stand.

Information-security director at George Mason University, Angelos Stavrou, is a contractor on the project and said when Google updates its Android software, an update to the secure Android phones can be ready within two weeks. Given that carriers can take 6 months or more to provide Android updates on some handsets, one of them should hire Stavrou away from this project!

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31 1 / 2012

Amazonian Mushroom Eats Indestructible Plastics [Science]

[shared via Google Reader from Gizmodo]

We use polyurethane to make just about everything—garden hoses, furniture, the entirety of my local 99-cent store. It’s easy to produce, durable, and dirt cheap. What it isn’t is recyclable—there isn’t a single natural process that breaks it down. That is until a newly-discovered Amazonian fungus takes a bite. More »


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31 1 / 2012

360-Degree Trucks Make This Skateboard Ride Like a Surfboard [Video]

[shared via Google Reader from Gizmodo]

Fixed skateboard trucks, no matter how loose, just can’t flex enough to match the carving ability and dynamic movement of a surfboard. The SurfSkate’s specially-designed front truck, however, lets you carve tarmac like swells in the Pacific. More »


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31 1 / 2012

BOXX electric bike: two wheels, four corners, all-electric transport for one

[shared via Google Reader from Engadget]

Has bicycle design reached its pinnacle? Or are electric bike manufacturers just not trying hard enough? The YikeBike begs to differ, and here joining it is BOXX Corporation’s diminutive BOXX. Coming in at just under a meter (or 36-inch inches) long, the 120 pound aluminum “bike” has a top speed of 35 miles per hour and can even haul up to 300 pounds of heft. Yet, despite that compact footprint, the company hasn’t skimped on tech, as it boasts traction control, anti-lock brakes and yes, even LED lights. Available in one of ten colors, $3,995 nets you a base 40-mile range model, which can optionally be doubled to 80 by ticking the $599 CORE 2 box. And for those willing to spruce even further, there’s a $149 heated seat and $349 1-hour charger on offer. Ready to literally hunker down on electric mobility? Go on, peep the source links below — do it, we’ve even linked the configurator.

BOXX electric bike: two wheels, four corners, all-electric transport for one originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PC World  |  sourceBOXX (1), (2)  | Email this | Comments

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30 1 / 2012

Use Your Hand to Estimate Your Portions [Diet]

[shared via Google Reader from Lifehacker]

When you’re staring down the barrel of a new diet, your portions are one of the most difficult things to measure and keep track of. Your kitchen scale may be great in the comfort of your home, but it’s not practical to carry with you all day. Instead, just get to know the rough estimates with your hand. More »


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30 1 / 2012

Could This 5.4-Megapixel, 0.61-inch MicroOLED Replace Optical Viewfinders? [Displays]

[shared via Google Reader from Gizmodo]

For purist photographers, there is no alternative to the optical viewfinder. Current LED screens are, by comparison, like looking though the bottom of a bottle. But could this tiny, high-res display change that? More »


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28 1 / 2012

F-BOMB $50 surveillance computer hides in your CO detector, cracks your WiFi

[shared via Google Reader from Engadget]

F-BOMB $50 surveilance computer hides in your CO detector, cracks your WiFi
What happens when you take a PogoPlug, add 8GB of flash storage, some radios (WiFi, GPS) and perhaps a few sensors, then stuff everything in a 3D-printed box? You get the F-BOMB (Falling or Ballistically-launched Object that Makes Backdoors), a battery-powered surveillance computer that costs less than $50 to put together using off-the-shelf parts. The 4 x 3.5 x 1-inch device, created by security researcher Brendan O’Connor and funded by DARPA’s Cyber Fast Track program, is cheap enough for single-use scenarios where costly traditional hardware is impractical. It can be dropped from an AR Drone, tossed over a fence, plugged into a wall socket or even hidden inside a CO detector. Once in place, the homebrew Linux-based system can be used to gather data and hop onto wireless networks using WiFi-cracking software. Sneaky. Paranoid yet? Click on the source link below for more info.

F-BOMB $50 surveillance computer hides in your CO detector, cracks your WiFi originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Jan 2012 08:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceForbes  | Email this | Comments

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26 1 / 2012

This Simple Wood Contraption Lets the iPhone 4 Film Both Sides of a Story [Video]

[shared via Google Reader from Gizmodo]

Billed as the “lowest-tech accessory” for the iPhone 4, the limited edition Love Box lets you record both sides of a conversation through the use of a simple sliding mirror. Without the need for a special app or any post-production. More »


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26 1 / 2012

Decide for Android Monitors Electronics Prices, Tells You If It’s a Good Time to Buy [Android Downloads]

[shared via Google Reader from Lifehacker]

Android: Free app Decide lets you scan barcodes in the store and see if that item is at a low price point or if you should wait for an upcoming drop. More »


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