High Tech Household

Forget the iPad, this tablet by Freesource can run Linux, Chromium OS, or the Android OS.  It has a 7″ screen, can run HTML5 video, and retails for $199, roughly $300 cheaper than its Apple counterpart.  The look is pretty cool, and the open architectures of Linux/Chromium/Android make the possibilities for development far greater than for that of the Apple iPad.  It is still a prototype, but it looks pretty cool.  A video of the workings of prototype in action is below the break.

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Cool gadget? Apple’s first dud (recently)? There’s been a lot of buzz about the announcement last week of Apple’s new gadget.

• First, from the horse’s mouth: Apple’s official iPad page
• Some fairly mainstream press from CNN
• And a technical critique

In my own opinion, I think this is a disappointing release. I think it does everything that an iPhone or another smart phone does, but now it’s not big enough to put in your pocket. Also, the iPad might have been a great video chat device, but a camera was left out.

To carry it around, you’d need a bag for it, anyway So why not spend hundreds of dollars less, carry a couple of pounds more, and just use netbook or laptop? It’s definitely got the cool factor, but it just doesn’t seem usable enough to me to be of interest to anyone beyond the usual Apple enthusiasts.

For my money, I’d rather just use a smart phone. With today’s bright beautiful touchscreens, even reading for long periods is a pleasure on a smaller, more practical device.

Sensing the tone of this write-up, Mike’s wife found an interesting slideshow of prior Apple mis-steps.

Anyone who has been to the movies in the last year has noticed the latest trends of releasing movies in 3D.  Movies ranging from films such as Pixar’s Up to James Cameron’s blockbuster Avatar have made heavy use of 3D technology in a way that hasn’t been tried since the failed 3D movie craze of the 1960s.  The conversion from analog to digital has made 3D much more workable and less gimmicky, so motion picture studios are scheduling even more 3D films.

The emergence of 3D is also set to impact homes.  With HD becoming far more mainstream, the latest trend among TV manufacturers is the 3D television experience.  At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) earlier this month, home-3D was the largest new innovation, with all of the major TV manufacturers unveiling HD 3D offerings.  While pricey at the moment, technology prices typically fall as demand increases, so look for affordable 3D-HD TVs in a few years time.

Besides movies and TV shows, video games are the next logical step.  As the big three (Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo) fight over the next round of video game and console wars, will 3D enter the picture?  Some say yes, especially for the hard-core gamers.

3D also has its detractors.  There are many who say that the glasses are uncomfortable, and that the forced perspective that 3D creates can take away from appreciating a film and cinematography in general.  3D also can cause eye strain, nausea, and motion sickness.  So while 3D is an interesting new technology, and is all the rave this year, it remains to be seen if it is simply a fad or is here to stay.  The emergence of digital certainly improves the 3D experience, but as the failed experiments of the 1960s and 1980s show, just because the content creators want to make it, it doesn’t mean that people will want to buy it.  We shall see.

A new technical standard, WHDI has been developed that promises wireless 1080p HD resolution at distances of up to 100 feet.  The standard utilizes the same bandwidth area as the newest WiFi protocol, 802.11n.  Gone will be the days of endless cables, and forcing all devices to be in proximity to your television.  Think of the possibilities:

• A computer across the room that uses WHDI to stream Hulu or YouTube to your TV
• A smaller, portable television for your kitchen that simply receives its signal from the wired cablebox
• A home media server stored in a closet used to archive movies and recorded television without taking up precious space on your TV cabinet or living room.

Upon first release, WHDI devices will likely be fairly expensive, but over time will come down in price.  The move to WHDI will likely have a similar effect on homes that WiFi has had, making it easier for people to create complex media ecosystems without complex wiring schemes.

I have been wanting to build a Home Theater PC for a while, but was waiting for the launch of Windows 7 to do so.  When Windows 7 was released on October 22, I started researching what I would need to assemble my own Home Theater PC, and began ordering parts.  Last week, the parts arrived for building my home theater PC using Windows 7 Media Center.  I spent a good deal of Friday night and Saturday putting it together and getting it ready for use.  By Saturday afternoon, I had the PC up and running and connected to my television.

Windows 7 Media Center has a lot to offer as a Home Theater PC (or really, a Home Entertainment PC), including Recording and Playback of TV (DVR-functionality), Movies and Netflix, Hulu and Internet TV, Music and Photo Libraries, and more, all controlled via a remote control and optional wireless keyboard.  Media Center also supports hardware (called Media Center Extenders) that allow you to stream your Media Center content to other TVs throughout your home.  What sets Media Center apart from just a traditional DVR or TiVo is the extensibility.  Third party developers, enthusiasts, and hobbiest programmers can create programs that extend the functionality of Windows 7 Media Center, much like people write apps for smart phones such as the iPhone and Google Android.   Best of all, it comes included in all editions of Windows 7.

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Professor Masahiko Inami of Keio University has created a new advancement in the field of robotics – a robot to do the most mundane of chores, the folding of laundry.  The robot receives instructions on how to fold the laundry via a Windows program, and then works on its own to fold what you give it.  As it is a prototype, this RV-style robot is somewhat impractical for the average household, but has huge commercial implications.  Now, if they could only get a robot to mow the lawn…

As the world gets more wired, and the practical uses of computers continues to evolve, the concept of having a computer in your kitchen is becoming more and more common (HGTV even has an article on their website about it and how to best place a kitchen PC from a design standpoint).  A kitchen PC can have many practical uses beyond being just another gadget toy, such as:

• Keeping Shopping Lists
• Searching the vast array of food blogs (shameless plug:  My wife has a food blog called Domestic Pursuits) for finding recipes
• Storing and easily retrieving recipes, both thoes found on food blogs and those originally on paper
• Monitoring Children’s Internet Usage
• Checking on important emails while waiting for food to cook
• Using Skype or Google Voice as a primary audio/video phone

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I love Chipotle.  I also love cool technology.  Put the two together, and you have Chipotle’s new online ordering iPhone app.  The app seems very straightforward.  It detects via GPS where the nearest Chipotle is, and then allows you to customize your burrito order, making ordering take-out even that much more easy.  The app is so thorough, it even has selections for two different kinds of meat and the various toppings!

Unfortunately for me in this case, I don’t have an iPhone.  My phone is a company-issued Blackberry Tour.  One can only hope that Chipotle sees the wisdom and business sense of releasing its app to other Smart Phones.  On second thought, however, NOT having the Chipotle App on my phone is probably very good for my waistline.