Wireless Resonating Power from Intel Research [Wireless]

Intel researchers are working on wireless power that doesn't use a conductive pad. Instead, it uses magnets and a tuned directional transfer coil to send music from an iPod a couple of feet to a speaker. It works!

This setup is deceptively simple. There's an electro-magnetized ring of wire sending 1-watt signal at 7.6-something MHz. From there, a carefully placed and wound coil of wire (yellow) sends the magnetic signal in a direction where another smaller coil (green) specifically tuned to receive the power and send it to a tiny speaker. It reminds me of the way a generator or motor work, somehow. The range was about 3 feet and the music was quiet by audible and worked when I moved the speaker in different directions. Impressive!

The chances of this making its way into mobile gadgets that charge with no cables or pads, ever? We're far off. The range and power are dependent on the size of the coils and the exact way they are wound, so they resonate the magnetic signals just right. Maybe a micro array of these, optimized several generations from now, will do the trick.

Or maybe the Dharma institute already has the answers.

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Sony Vaio NW Is A Blu-ray-Toting $880 Notebook [Vaio]

Sony has just trotted out the Vaio NW, their new line of Blu-ray equipped, mid-market notebooks, and at 1.2-inches, they are quite slim too.

The NW features a 15.5-inch widescreen display (albeit 1366x768), along with a HDMI output connector for plugging it into a TV, so you can enjoy the full 1080p goodness of your Blu-ray discs. There is also a "display off" button, which does exactly what you would expect, ideal if you have got this plugged into a big screen in a darkened room.

Specs include an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 4GB RAM, up to 400GB hard drive and an optional dedicated ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570 graphics card to improve your movie watching. Slot-wise there are three USB ports, ExpressCard, SD and Memory Stick PRO.

Available this summer the Vaio NW can also come without the Blu-ray drive for a saving of $80... but given this is all about HD and movie watching I really don't know why. [Sony]

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Samsung debuts first 32GB DDR3 memory module

Samsung has been making promises about a 32GB DDR3 memory module since it rolled out its first 50nm 4Gb DDR3 memory chip way back in January, but it looks like it's now finally delivered. While it won't be headed for regular desktops or laptops just yet, the company does have a new 1.35 volt 32GB module for servers which, in addition to packing that record-breaking capacity, also boasts a 20% better throughput compared to previous 1.5 volt modules and, of course, a lower power consumption to boot. As some math not performed by us will reveal, the module itself is made up of 72 of those 4Gb memory chips, which are lined up in rows of nine quad-die packaged 16Gb DDR3s mounted on each side of the circuit board. No word on pricing just yet, nor is there any word about Samsung's promised desktop and laptop memory, which are apparently still in the works -- in the form of 8GB DIMMs, at least.

Filed under: Desktops

Samsung debuts first 32GB DDR3 memory module originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Samsung's e-passport turns your head into a rotating government specimen

Samsung (and your local government) hasn't been shy with its plans for electrifying passports. Yet we still haven't seen video of its e-passport with flexible OLED display in action, 'till now. The 2-inch, 240x320 AMOLED displays a disembodied, rotating head in 260k colors and 10k:1 contrast when activated by an RF source reader. No details were provided as to when these might enter production but we have the icky feeling it'll be sooner than we want.

[Via OLED-Info]

Continue reading Video: Samsung's e-passport turns your head into a rotating government specimen

Filed under: Displays

Video: Samsung's e-passport turns your head into a rotating government specimen originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 05:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Researchers Cram a Camera Into a Sheet of Fiber [Future Tech]

Another day, another innovation from MIT researchers. This time, it's a camera built in the middle of a 25mm fiber sheet, which might be the coolest invention we will never use (save for an appearance in Splinter Cell 10).

MIT Tech Review says Noel Fink, the man responsible for the breakthrough, isn't even entirely sure what it could be used for, except for weaving it into clothing for some military reconnaissance. But the fact that it's designed to be foldable.

Researchers worked this magic by embedding 8 sensors in an arrangement around the center of the fiber sheet which allows it to detect light and color from various angles. Even better, the sensors can detect the angle at which light hits the fiber, which would make 3D imaging theoretically possible. (the MIT article goes into even greater depth as to how they pulled this off, but I'm trying to keep you awake). Anyways, cameraphones are so 2000s. In the '10s I want a goddamn camerasuit. [MIT Tech Review]

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