Size does matter

While it may not compare to standard cinema screens or the gargantuan 18.8 metre by 26.3 metre IMAX in Manchester, Samsung is the current record holder for the largest commercially available 3D-capable TV on the market. Measuring 75 inches from corner to corner, this imposing black monolith would need a pretty big living room to house it. But this isn’t all the Samsung D9500 has to offer, with an internal software system that renders 2D broadcasts into that all important third dimension.

A resolution solution

As theatres across the UK upgrade their projection technology with the likes of Sony’s incredible 4K system, which offers the highest picture quality possible, 1920 x 1080 pixel  high definition televisions have almost become the standard for most homes.

In May 2011, however, Sharp unveiled its latest ‘Ultra High Definition’ panel – capable of a screen resolution of 7680 x 4320 pixels. While it isn’t expected to hit the mainstream market until 2022, it certainly seems like soon ‘full HD’ won’t quite mean the same thing.

Sounding out the competition

There are a whole raft of Dolby Digital, 5.1, 7.1, SDDS and DTS-enabled sound systems you can have in your home nowadays and it really only comes down to how much you are willing to spend. Of course, a home cinema kit that rivals something you would hear in the cinema isn’t going to come cheap, but it’s important to remember that, unless you are a Premiership footballer, you’re probably not going to have the same kind of space to fill.

At the end of the day, audio quality can be very subjective… so there’s no reason why you can’t have theatre quality in the comfort of your own home.

Universal release dates

One of the biggest obstacles there seems to be around having a home experience that rivals what is available in theatres is content. It seems like Hollywood will never truly be able to have a universal format release for its films, as the knock-on effect for cinemas large and small could be fatal. Just last year, film news websites were reporting that certain chains were threatening to boycott Disney’s Alice in Wonderland after its DVD and Blu-ray release was brought forward.

There’s been talk of universal releases that allow people to pay a premium to download films the day they come out in cinemas, but this has yet to materialise. Fingers crossed for this one – but don’t hold your breath.

So far, it’s making me think about games in a whole new way.

Until I get a review up, take a look at Jane’s 20-minute TED talk:

Join the movement here.

This picture of a woman sprawling her legs, giving birth; fellow females holding what looks to be a newborn baby, on-lookers and someone flagging down an ambulance was making the rounds on Twitter yesterday as another sight captured by Google Street View.

The pictures Google has captured are often shrouded in mystery and fail to tell the full story. Which is why people can’t help questioning, ‘is this real?’, ‘Is that girl dead‘, ‘why is that man naked’, because we can’t be sure at face value.

As @Neoshappy suggested to me on Twitter, this particular picture looks to be a fake. And, according to the latest internet reports, it is. Aggregator site, Reddit, the first site to post the picture, admitted it too.

I think it’s a shame it was exposed. There’s artistic value in the creation of the photo. The German artists responsible for the picture staged it outside the homes of people who have opted out of Street View, preventing picture of their houses being put onto Google Maps, which has served to fuel the debate.

Does the Google Street View project invade personal privacy or should we accept that we share the world we live in?

Let’s face it; technology isn’t a sexy industry. To remedy that, technology companies have been throwing pink at all of their products. Legally Blonde’s Ellie has been blamed for starting a pink tech renaissance after sporting a pink Gateway 450 Notebook in the film. But whether or not Hollywood is to blame, pink tech is still hitting the shops. Earlier this month, Sony launched another pink product: the Sony VAIO notebook (as reviewed by Pocket Link) is more pink than pink.
But there’s only so much splashing pink around can do. And some lady geeks are getting their tech-knickers in a twist. LadyGeek founder, Belinda Parmar recently asked, “why do technology companies think that pinking up and dumbing down their marketing is the way to get professional, well educated women to part with their cash?

“PC World is telling me my world is pink (it has not been pink since I was seven)”, she continues, “And I need a new laptop to match my outfit (it would never even occur to me to match my outfit with my technology). Samsung is asking me, “What Colour is my Life?” (hello?) and Dell is telling me that technology is like candy (do me a favour).”

But not all women are offended; blogger, Theodora, says, “I have to say I don’t completely agree with women who get all annoyed with girlie looking computers and gadgets and see it as degrading. If I’m buying a laptop, I expect it to boot up fairly quickly, have a wireless card, decent screen size, good sound, good picture quality, enough memory for my photos and the occasional cheeky Glee or Big Bang Theory episode and powerful enough processor and RAM so I don’t want to shoot my brains out whilst waiting for Photoshop to load. Now if I can get all this and a nice looking albeit NOT PINK laptop with a stylish bag that can double up as a hand bag, well let’s just say the feminist in me won’t be particularly offended.”

But no longer to women have to battle over feminist ideals and pink technology. Pink isn’t women’s only fashionable alternative to grey hunks of metal and Atom chips. Fortunately, there’s been an underground surge of fashion designers and designer technology hitting the scene.

The ‘CREATE’ collection by Jason Wu has been hailed as the “UK’s first fashion camera”. Launched at Graduate Fashion Week this year, the 27-year-old fashion designer, Jason Wu, recently came under the spotlight for designing Michelle Obama’s inauguration ball gown. Now, he’s joined General Imaging to launch a range of ‘fashion cameras’. With a leather body and case, this camera is designed to look as good as it performs.

Nokia’s novero has also launched Bluetooth sets to look more like jewellery. More than £100,000 each, these luxe headsets aim to make technology more beautiful and fashionable. (see picture, left, ‘Stripes’ is molded from contemporary, black silicone and hatched with bright shafts of traditional, brushed gold. It’s like a technology choker).

According to Financial Express, statistics show that there is a surge in the percentage of women using trendy technology like internet, computer, mobile phones, PDAs and other consumer devices. A large demographic, nearly 70% women in the west, use the internet as the primary source of information for family activities, recipes, health, news, and entertainment listings. For a majority of women, internet highly influences their purchasing decisions. A good half of women use it for social networking and to keep in touch with family and friends when away. (Source: The Centre for Women’s Business Research).

Can fashion designers make technology more, um, fashionable? Will gadgets become the new must-have fashion accessory? Tell Witch Tech what you think.

A recent survey claims 94 per cent of summer holidaymakers will be logging onto the web while abroad this year – double the number of people doing so two years ago. Websites like WiFi holidays even offer the opportunity to search holiday accommodation by internet access. But as much as I’m a tech-lover, being online and on holiday doesn’t fit my concept of ‘getting away from it all’.

Rob Webber, Broadband Expert’s commercial director, says:  “The growth in popularity of smartphones has made it much easier and more convenient for more consumers to get online while abroad.  Couple this with the pull of social media networking, and it seems us Brits are keen to stay connected to the Internet even while taking a well-deserved break.”

Webber concludes, “The fact that just six per cent of people say they wouldn’t get online shows that Brits can’t bear to be away from sites like Facebook, Twitter, news sites and email; which have become part of the daily routine for so many of us.”

But going on holiday is not part of our daily routine. It’s not every day I get to lie on a beach so why should I transfer my daily routine to the beach? For a start, mobile phones and laptops are not beach-proof. All that sand and salt water and sure to clog up your qwerty keyboard and damage your iPhone touch screen before you’ve even managed to accept a call or write a text.

Aside from the impracticalities of using gadgets on the beach, it’s easy to see why some reach for their Crackberry alongside a poolside cocktail. A survey by AlphaRooms.com in the UK showed that 80 per cent of Britons worried about their work while on holiday, while three-quarters made or received a work telephone call while away. AlphaRooms.com is now calling for Blackberries to be banned from the beach and for a return to holidays being an escape from work pressures.

While logging in on holiday keeps work-stressed employees connected with work (and some of the worries at bay), for some, accessing the internet abroad is not a bad thing at all. In fact, it’s a practical resource. “On my holiday last year, I used the internet to look up sun-stroke remedies after my wife’s “little wanders” in the midday heat,” says musician and software developer, @tvcruelty. “It’s important to check to make sure it’s raining in the UK too”, he adds.

“In my line of work, if I did not have a internet connection; my day would stop. And with free internet around the world, in pubs and restaurants, it makes my life much easier,” says games journalist, Ricky Stone (@garyth3duck).

“Having internet access abroad is important because of the ability to share pictures with loved ones and family members still at home. And with Skype, and other similar services, it’s even easier for loved ones to stay in touch,” he says.

Even if you want to go gadget-free on holiday, it might be harder to remain offline in the future. A hotel is trialing using iPhones and Blackberrys as hotel keys. Yet, while I sometimes imagine I’m on a beach while sat at my desk, I don’t want to take my desk with me. Sorry little laptop, there’s no room in my suitcase or my beach bag for you this year. Too many shoes.

Is being able to access the web while on holiday important to you? Let Witch Tech know. Drop us an email.

Main image used via Flickr Creative Commons Licensing courtesy of RubyBlossom

Is the frock a 3D-step too far?

 You need 3D glasses to participate in any form of media these days. Next week, tabloid newspaper, The Sun, will publish a 3D issue (as reported in The Guardian), every new film release is in 3D, there’s 3D TVs, 3D adverts, heck, you can even get 3D scratchcards. By 2012, it is predicted that half of all games will by in 3D. Will all this in mind, it’s useful to know where to buy 3D glasses and even how to make them in case an impromptu 3D media moment happens upon you.

How to make 3D glasses:

 

Test them out:

Film your own 3D:

Where to buy:

If you’d rather buy some stylish 3D glasses thanmake them (and avoid the freebie cardboard pairs), Look 3D is a new website dedicated to bringing style to 3D. While these are intended for ‘home 3D’ they are polarised unlike, for example, Samsung’s active shutter technology 3D glasses. Check the tech before buying these for your new 3D tellybox.

According to recent research, it’s not just my family that has upturned traditional roles. Research conducted by Tesco claims women are better at DIY than men with the main reason for women taking up tools is that they are fed up of waiting for their other halves to fix things. Tesco found nearly two-in-three women are now shopping for DIY items – three times as many as a decade ago. To read full article published, visit Running in Heels. Or, scroll down for some DIY inspiration from online fix-it manual, iFixit; women’s how-to expert, Barbara K on how to put up a shelf and Instructables’ How to Make a String Pendant Lamp.

According to Production Weekly, Zooey Deschanel is in talks to play the world’s first female computer programmer, Ada Lovelace, in “Enchantress Of Numbers”, to be directed by Bruce Beresford and released next year.

Born in 1815, Augusta Ada Byron – now known as Ada Lovelace – wrote the world’s first computer programme. She has become a figurehead, representing the need to recognise inspiring women’s achievements in tech and science.

Do you think Zooey is the obvious choice to play history’s first girl-geek? Let Witch Tech know who you would cast?

Meanwhile, the Mix Me In iPhone app by Fried Green Apps has reached the ‘New and Noteworthy’ section of Apple’s App Store. Musical technology has reached every corner of the gaming market.

But, as we’re busy being Guitar Heroes, Elton John on the DS piano, in the Beatles’ rock band and a DJ for Jay-Z, has play-along music gaming reached a dead end?

For the full article, please visit Dork Adore.

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