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Toshiba’s supermarket object scanner might replace barcodes

Toshiba Object Scanner — Toshiba Tec, Object Recognition Scanner

A new supermarket scanner developed by Toshiba Tec may make conventional barcodes in supermarkets obsolete. Using object recognition the scanner instantly recognizes the merchandise no matter if it’s fresh produce or packaged goods, by identifying it directly via a camera. The technology behind it, is being developed by Toshiba and it utilizes pattern recognition that let’s the Object Recognition Scanner differentiate the difference between merchandise and other objects and discarding the latter as noise. This allows the scanner to operate at high speeds, and also identify the object if even if it’s not being held completely still during the process.

At most supermarkets a laser scanner is commonly used to recognize barcodes, but with fresh produce like vegetables and fruit this can sometimes lead to holdups as the cashier tries to identify item. This issue is becoming more common as it’s currently a popular trend to stock the supermarket with more exotic fruits and vegetables. Even in the cases where if the cashier knows what the item is, they still needs to type in the price manually, or scan a barcode from a predefined list since fresh produce commonly are not marked with a barcode. Adding to the hassle this only works if the fresh produce is added to the system correctly.

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Apple just announced “The New iPad”

Today Apple just announced the “The new iPad”. On the surface it looks just like the iPad 2, including the classic home button, but the internal hardware has been upgraded quite a bit. First thing you will notice is the new retina display giving a 2,048 x 1,536 resolution, and the CPU have also been upgraded to a dual-core Apple A5X. (The speed of this is not yet clear however).

Apple also announced it will sell the iPad 2 alongside the new iPad, and the price for the iPad 2 will drop to $399. At this price level it can better compete with a lot of new mid-range tablets that has come out at a lower price point, including the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus and Amazons Kindle Fire. The strategy to sell the new iPad along side the iPad 2 can be a bit risky in the current financial climate, and could possible effect the sale figures for the new device in a negative way. If have been thinking about buying an iPad 2, but felt it was to expensive, you now just might buy this instead of the “new iPad”. It also depends on what you intend to use your new tablet for, do you need a dual core processor to browse the web?

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Nokia launches amazing 41MP sensor Nokia 808 PureView

Today at the Mobile World congress, Nokia introduced the new revolutionary Nokia 808 PureView with a large, high-resolution 41 megapixel sensor. with high-performance Carl Zeiss optics and new pixel oversampling technology. At standard resolutions (2/3, 5 and 8 megapixels) this means the ability to zoom without loss of clarity and capture seven pixels of information, condensing into one pixel for the sharpest images imaginable. At high-resolution (38 megapixel maximum) it means the ability to capture an image, then zoom, reframe, crop and resize afterwards to expose previously unseen levels of details.

With superior low-light performance and the ability to save in compact file sizes for sharing in email, MMS, and on social networks, the Nokia 808 PureView makes it possible for anyone to capture professional looking images in any conditions.

In addition to superior still imaging technology, the Nokia 808 PureView, also includes full HD 1080p video recording and playback with 4X lossless zoom and the world’s first use of Nokia Rich Recording. Rich Recording enables audio recording at CD-like levels of quality, previously only possible with external microphones. The Nokia 808 PureView also features exclusive Dolby Headphone technology, transforming stereo content into a personal surround sound experience over any headphones and Dolby Digital Plus for 5.1 channel surround sound playback.

Press Release

LG Optimus 4X HD to be showcased at MWC

Information about several new LG phones to be unveiled at MWC have already showed up on the web before the actual event. The latest, and possibly the most exciting one to be revealed is the LG Optimus 4X HD.

Said to be the successor to the LG Optimus 2X, this new phone features a 4.7-inch screen with True HD IPS LCD giving a resolution of 1280×720. It will be the first to use a 1.5GHz quad-core Tegra 3 CPU. The device also features a 2,150mAh battery, 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage, and despite a very large screen is has a thickness of only 8.9mm.

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Panasonic Eluga smartphone officially coming to Europe

Panasonic has officially named its first smartphone for Europe, the Panasonic Eluga. A 4.3-inch Android handset which is dustproof, waterproof, and a generally touch and resilient smartphone. It was fist reveled in December 2011 but then unnamed and without an official release date. The Eluga is now planned to arrive in Europe during April 2012.

The device uses a qHD 960 x 540 OLED display and also will support NFC. It uses a super-thin frame and a big screen with a 66% display area ratio. Panasonic say the design is very ergonomic, that should make it easy to control everything with one hand. Hinting that it might be able to also work as a remote control for Panasonic HDTVs.

Measurements are: 123 x 62 x 7.8 mm and the device weighs only 103g

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New UV Light Bottles from Camelbak Cleans Water In 60 Seconds

CamelBak have just introduced their new CamelBak All Clear Bottles that turns nearly any tap or natural water source into potable drinking water in just 60 seconds. Using UV light technology it enable you to cleanse and microbiologically purify water fast and easy. The bottle is equipped with a ultraviolet light source, fitted inside its screw-off top which purifies your water with UV light and kills off almost all of the unwanted germs and bacteria. You can also get an optional filter that when attached will help to clear out potential debris and dirt from the water. Very useful if your water source is for example a stream or a pond.

The UV light utilises proven UV technology to effectively neutralise microbiological contaminants to EPA standards. It is powered by an internal battery which can be recharged via the built-in USB port. A fully charged battery will hold enough power to purify a 80 full bottles of water, equivalent to 60 liters or about 16 gallons.

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Docomo announce two new Android devices that support NOTTV

Docomo NOTTV Devices — Docomo Devices for V-High Broadcasting Services

TOKYO, JAPAN, February 16, 2012 — NTT DOCOMO, INC. announced two Android™-compatible mobile devices. One is a smartphone called the AQUOS PHONE™ SH-06D, and the second is a tablet called MEDIAS TAB N-06D. The two devices are the first in Japan that are compatible with the V-High multimedia broadcasting service. Users of the two devices will be able to watch mmbi, Inc.’s NOTTV, a mobile multimedia broadcasting station that will begin operating on April 1.

NOTTV is a new terrestrial broadcasting service and its stakeholders include Docomo and Dentsu, and also private-sector broadcasters. This service will use frequencies that became available when the broadcast of analog TV ended in July 2011. During the first year NOTTV will be available mainly in the Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka areas, but there are plans to then gradually extend the coverage.

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Spark Linux tablet up for pre-order next week

There’s a new tablet coming soon called “Spark”. Announced at the end of January this new device uses an open Linux stack on unlocked hardware and comes with an open content and services market, and uses KDE Plasma Active UI.

The tablet will be available for pre-order starting next week, and will start shipping worldwide in May. Approximate price will be about $265 USD.

The hardware is based on the Zenithink C71, using a 7-inch (800×480) multi-touch screen, a 1GHz AMLogic ARM processor and Mali-400 GPU. It will have 512MB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage (with a microSD slot for expandability), 802/11b/g WiFi, USB ports, a front-facing 1.3MP webcam, and an audio jack. There are plans to add GPS and 3G functionality in future versions, but for now you will have to manage without.

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HTC Edge equipped with Penta-Core processor?

A very common feature in new mobile phones during 2011 was dual-core processors, and this was most visible among new Android devices. Much like the “megapixel wars” from years in the past, a dual-core processor became a must have for a lot of users, and many times it seemed like users ignored if the system could utilize it or not. In heated discussions some even compared one brand with another and judging them, and sometimes ruling them out based on if they had a phone with a dual-core or not.

The tech world moves fast, and dual-core processors might already be old news. Early talks in 2012 indicated that further discussions for the year would be all about quad-core processors, with a lot of rumors of new devices mentioned both before and after CES. It now seems HTC is bringing one more core to the party, flexing it’s muscles with a penta-core processor.

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