Object of my obsession» techy

Polaroid SX-70 documentary, written & directed by Charles & Ray Eames

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 04:26:04 +0000

Fascinating 11min doc on the Polaroid SX-70, written & directed by Charles & Ray Eames.
While I was first watching this, I just kept thinking how this was so similar to the way Apple conveys their products in commercials. It also made me think about how Polaroid was ‘the future’ of that time. Not only was the process of taking a photo easy, but the idea that you could have it instantly printed without long hours in the dark room. So the common user can just pick one up and naturally use the product with ease. This idea seems similar to idea that Apple has pushed on their own products. Apple must have totally taken notes on this.

The documentary also touches on how the polaroid works and develops the photos, including close up on the gears and the slow-mo ‘how things work’ shots. I love those.

BergCloud’s Little Printer

admin — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 14:30:31 +0000

This Little Printer seems pretty cute. I think since we’ve got so digital the past few years, the idea of analog things seem fun again. It is basically a receipt printer that prints out some daily to-dos and news. It would be interesting to see what other partners they will get in the future, it could become kinda useful. The social aspect of sending other people little messages is kinda neat, but I think the likelihood of my friends getting one of these as well is kinda slim. That aspect reminds of me of the Nabaztag Rabbit one of my friends had and that I wished I had, until you realize it’s kinda useless (but cute).

Little Printer lives in your front room and scours the Web on your behalf, assembling the content you care about into designed deliveries a couple of times a day.

You configure Little Printer from your phone, and there’s some great content to choose from — it’s what Little Printer delivers that makes it really special. We have an incredible group of launch partners, and in the run-up to shipping we’re working with them all on custom publications.

You can read a bit more about it on the BergCloud Blog.

**Edit**
There is an interesting article by Berg, predating the Little Printer, talking about turning receipts into ‘paper apps’.

As well as this post by Tom Taylor about microprinting.
********

(credit: @preciousforever)

Is this the end of blurry images? Adobe Photoshop’s new feature

admin — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 05:12:08 +0000

Adobe always shocks me with their little sneaks of new features. They may not work always exactly with every circumstance, but by god are they amazing. (i.e. last years Content-Aware Fill)

It’s hard to see in the video, but you can tell by the audience’s reaction how amazing it must look.

(via @cap by way of @Mickeleh)

Fyels.com : the easiest file uploading site

admin — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:50:35 +0000

Fyels.com is a super easy file upload site that lets you upload files up to 9GB, which is more than you get with a free Dropbox account. You don’t even have to make an account, just login with twitter.

Once you log in with twitter, it seems to customize your screen to match your twitter background. It also adds a comment feature (via facebook) on an uploaded image, which is interesting. Fyels will be offering unlimited file storage for $2 a month. Right now it’s invite only and will be launching in 2 weeks.

(credit: @SPCreates)

Screeny mac app : Simple Screen Recording (free today only)

admin — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 17:05:19 +0000

Screeny is a mac app that allows you to simply take photos or video of your screen, good for showing quick demos of websites or how-tos. It’s free today only.

Screeny gives you the freedom to capture your videos or images at any size. You can click & drag to resize the capture area or input the exact pixel dimensions to set to the size of the capture area. All the while you will get instant feedback on the capture area’s current pixel dimensions.

Acquire iphone app : Upload photos straight to Photoshop

admin — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 14:40:52 +0000

Acquire ($1.99) is a new iphone app that uses Photoshop’s (CS5 only) Remote Connect feature to send the photos directly over wifi from your iPhone to Photoshop. An Android version is said to be coming out soon.

This explains how it works in more detail:

**Edit: If you don’t see the Remote Connect in Photoshop (edit > remote connect) you might want to check to see if you have any updates.

JAMBOX the wireless speaker and speakerphone

admin — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 17:30:36 +0000

Adam Lisagor aka Lonely Sandwich made a new video for Jambox, a new product by Jawbone (maker of bluetooth headsets).
It runs about $200 and acts as a wireless speaker and speakerphone that you connect with through your iphone or ipad. Watch the video, starring Tetris Kelly (@TetrisStarMusic), for a better explanation, it looks pretty sweet.

JAMBOX by Jawbone is simply the smallest, best-sounding wireless speaker and speakerphone on the planet. Just place it anywhere in a room and enjoy pristine streaming audio from your phone, tablet, computer and other Bluetooth devices. It’s the perfect companion to all your mobile devices. Bring music, movies and all your mobile audio vibrantly to life—all in the palm of your hand. Available for $199.

THE BIGGEST SOUND IN THE SMALLEST PACKAGE
JAMBOX delivers stunning stereo audio in a speaker so compact you simply won’t believe it until you hear it. Unlike other compact speakers, JAMBOX’s proprietary acoustics bring music, movies, conference calls and all your mobile audio vibrantly to life with shimmering highs and thumping bass that you can literally feel.

GO ANYWHERE & GO WIRELESS
JAMBOX is the perfect companion to all your mobile devices. Just place it anywhere in a room and enjoy pristine streaming audio from your phone, tablet, laptop and other Bluetooth devices. No cord, no docks, no hassles. Take it with you from room to room or throw it in your bag and enjoy on the go.

IT ONLY GETS BETTER WITH TIME
As the world’s first intelligent speaker, JAMBOX downloads apps, software and new features at Jawbone’s industry-first online platform, MyTALK. It’ll always be up to date. No other speaker system on the planet is intelligent and updateable—then again, nothing else is quite like JAMBOX.

25 years of Apple Mice

admin — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 17:03:20 +0000

Flickr user, Raneko, has a photo collection of all the Apple mice
For those interested, a more detailed post about The Evolution of the Apple Mouse (minus the Magic Mouse).

Apple Macintosh Mouse Design Evolution.
2009 /Apple Magic Mouse
2005 /Apple Mighty Mouse (2006 /Wireless)
2003 /Apple Wireless Mouse
2003 /Apple Pro Mouse (White)
2000 /Apple Pro Mouse (Black)
1998 /Apple USB Mouse
1993 /Apple Desktop Bus Mouse II
1986 /Apple Desktop Bus Mouse
1984 /Apple Macintosh Mouse M0100

(credit: Cult of Mac)

Lego iPhone Photo App

admin — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 16:52:29 +0000

Make your photos lego-ized.
You can either take photos directly with your camera or from your gallery. The app says that its better to use photos that are shot at a close range with a solid light colored background. You can change the colors of the legos used in the photo by touching the screen after the photo has been lego-ized. P.S. the app is free!

I tested this out for myself. It’s super easy to use.

Original: (isn’t my niece cute?)

Filter 1:

Filter 2:

Filter 3:

Filter 4:

Final that I liked:

(credit: Brian Hoff)

Esquire’s Augmented Reality Issue

admin — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 06:23:44 +0000

Esquire’s Augmented Reality Issue
Esquire has done interesting things with magazines in the past. In this issue certain pages of the magazine contains 2D barcodes which the user scans using their webcam to activate the augmented reality. The video below explains more on how it works. (It’s a bit more gimmicky, than useful.)

The Augmented reality sections of the magazine have been developed with digital-services firm The Barbarian Group “We wanted to create something that wasn’t just about showing off the technology but actually adds value to the story,” said Barbarian CEO Benjamin Palmer. The magazine features six different interactive sections: A 3D cover featuring Robert Downey Jr., a weather-changing fashion portfolio, a time-sensitive Funny Joke from a Beautiful Woman (Gillian Jacobs), plus a song, a photo slideshow, and an ad from Lexus.

(credit: Graphic Statement)