HelloFax, goodbye old printer
HelloFax is a simple website which lets you do a range of things you’d usually have to depend on a fax machine and a printer to do, like (obviously) fax documents, fill out forms and sign contracts. We can imagine this will save a lot of time and make everyday admin tasks much more bearable.
Via Swiss Miss. Image via Mark Hillary.
Magic Cube Laser Keyboard – the answer for mobile typing?
Lugging around a heavy keyboard to go with a lightweight mobile device may be too much of a contradiction for some people, but how about this laser keyboard? All you have to carry around is this little cube. You can preorder from Celluon for May delivery, for about two hundred bucks. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, tablet PC, and most other devices.
Via bookofjoe.
Cosmetic Mirror Lets You Try on Makeup Virtually
It’s not a magic mirror, but it’s still pretty cool. The Digital Cosmetic Mirror allows women to try on make up without having to go through the time consuming step of applying the makeup. Created by cosmetics company Shiseido, the interactive display allows users to check out new products using augmented reality.
Users simply stand in front of the computer’s camera and let it scan your face. The image is then loaded into the computer and it gives you a number of colors to try out. Users then select a color via touchscreen and the computer applies the makeup to the virtual image. If you like what you see, you can print out the photo and pick up your new cosmetics.
The Digital Cosmetic Mirror can apply eyeshadow and lipstick as well as recommend different products and makeup techniques. So far this is a Japan-exclusive but I would love to see this in my favorite cosmetic store in the near future,
Via Japan Trends
Is the Apple iPad “magical”?
Today was 2010’s first iDay- the announcement of a new or updated Apple product, predictably following months, or in this case years of feverish speculation. Steve Jobs gave the gathered press the first glimpse of the super-tablet himself, proudly declaring the new iPad not just revolutionary, but magical. It is undeniably sleek, beautiful, and impressive to look at but is it necessary, especially for people already toting around iPhones or iPod Touches, along with a MacBook or a MacBook Air?
Here are the specs:
-9.7″ LED backlit, fully multi-touch display, with IPS technology (IPS provides wide viewing angles and good color reproduction, important for a tablet that you may use both laptop-style, and as a media player). There’s also a special fingerprint-resistant coating, obviously good for a screen with a touch interface.
-Up to 10 hour battery life for video, music, and wifi surfing.
-Half an inch thick, weighs 1.5 lbs, 9.5″ high, 7.5″ wide.
-Wifi, Bluetooth, and optional 3G through AT&T (yay, not). Assisted GPS on 3G models only.
-On-screen keyboard only- but wide enough, apparently for something approaching touch-typing. Jobs typed with all his fingers, not just thumbs during the demo. There’s also an optional hardware keyboard which also charges the iPad.
-The iPad will run all current iPhone/iPod Touch applications, plus have its own iPad-only apps.
-The iPad is an advanced e-book reader, using the iBooks app for reading and the iBookstore app for browsing and buying books. iBookstore has licensing deals with some of the biggest publishers so book selection should quickly get competitive with the Amazon Kindle’s, plus iBook supports the EPUB standard, which offers thousands of free books. The best part? The Amazon Kindle and BN Nook use low-powered e-ink displays which are easy on the eyes and give great battery life, but they are not backlit or in color. The iPad is both, and while battery life is sure to be less than the Kindle’s, 10 hours is still really, really good.
-iWork, Apple’s answer to MS Office will be available for the iPad. Pages, Numbers, and Keynote (Apple’s versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) will be $9.99 each, a great price for a full featured app.
What are the advantages of the iPad over the iPhone or iPod Touch? The screen, obviously is almost three times the size, a huge improvement for web surfing, watching videos and viewing photos, email, and working on documents. The on-screen keyboard, which will surely elicit much discussion, won’t please everybody, but will surely be more comfortable for typing longer docs and emails, and there is the optional hardware keyboard.
Ritmo Advanced Pregnancy Sound System
Any expectant mother can tell you, it’s never to early to start communicating with your child. Besides having extended conversations while baby is in-utero, music has been proven to assist with positive fetal development including displaying “advanced intelligence, coordination, and learning abilities.”
Nuvo Group’s new device helps deliver soothing sound to your baby with the Ritmo Advanced Pregnancy Sound System. Kind of like a speaker system for your unborn bundle of joy, Ritmo is a lightweight belt that fits comfortably around mommy-to-be’s tummy. The belt has four built-in speakers that utilized patented Safe&Sound Technology to make sure that the sound level is perfectly safe for baby’s ears. The belt also comes with a controller used to plug in an mp3 player.
