Green Gadgets

Apple positions the iPad and iPhone on the awe factor. Play a little jingle, feature some unique, unforgettable apps on an ultra-thin screen and white background, and just like that, intrigue is sparked for the Apple brand and Apple products. Now, imagine all those elements in the iPad or iPhone with an added element of intrigue: 3D.

Months ago, Toshiba announced the advent of limitless 3D, an LED TV in a new dimension without the need for glasses. Nintendo, months earlier, introduced 3D gaming (Nintendo 3DS) on its portable device and like Toshiba, it too requires no need for glasses. Recognizing an unnecessary flaw, both Toshiba and Nintendo capitalized and will no doubt continue to capitalize on others’ fundamental flaw: the requirement of overly expensive, overly bulky glasses for 3D viewing.

Sony has been a monster in the electronics market with their sales of flat screen TVs as well as the introduction of innovative products like the Walkman. They've had disappointments alongside their successes, though. Betamax is only a memory and the MiniDisc format didn't live up to the hype. Sony's taking a more aggressive stance with their Reader line in hopes of cementing themselves as the e-reader leader in Japan.

It’s hard to believe now, but listening to music on 8-tracks once was the state of the art. The speed of technology often outstrips the capabilities of the latest gadgets and makes them obsolete. A recent innovation may make the Kindle the next victim. While Kindle vies against the Nook for supremacy, a new electrowetting technique may cast the current e-readers into the trash bin of technological has-beens.

The displays on most e-paper devices are based on electrophoretic technology. Millions of tiny particles are treated to have an electric charge and suspended in a solution between two parallel plates. The unit manipulates electric charge at precise points, making the particles migrate between the plates and resulting in words appearing on the screen. The most widely used e-paper devices, including the Kindle and the Nook, employ electrophoretic technology developed by E Ink.

Oprah, known first as a broadcasting icon, has become almost as well known in the past decade for her marketing prowess as for her on screen personality. The Oprah brand, worth over $1 billion, has spread well beyond the syndicated TV show into just about every form of media; beyond her media supremacy, her brand also amplifies just about every product’s life cycle, that is if she endorses it. It’s been coined the “Oprah Effect” and her recent endorsement for Sony 3D TVs may turn the tide in the 3D TV market.

The “Oprah Effect” has turned near bankrupt companies into flourishing businesses and unknown companies into household names.

When it comes to media empires, you can’t get much bigger than Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. They own a wide range of properties including the Fox Network, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post. Now Murdoch has plans to get into the digital market by creating an iPad-only publication with some help from Apple.

You may not agree with Murdoch’s politics, but you can’t argue with his success in business. From TV to print he’s amassed a media empire due to the fact he knows what sells and News Corp. is the third largest media conglomerate in the world. And now, he’s the future of print publishing tied to Apple’s tablet. Called “The Daily,” the iPad based publication will be published every day and cost ninety-nine cents a week or $4.25 a month.

At some point in the holiday season, everyone finds themselves up against a person that’s the very definition of difficult when it comes to gift giving. You may end up purchasing a gift card to their favorite store or opt for an e-certificate that doesn’t even require shipping. With the popularity of e-readers like the Kindle and companion apps, it’s no wonder that Amazon has now set up a gift feature for e-books.

Vizio, in late June, had every intention to revolutionize the 3D market: come in late, make a splash, and offer affordable 3D TVs with affordable glasses. In the past few years, Vizio has confidently stepped into the ring to battle the biggest TV contender, Samsung, in LCD TVs, seesawing for the top spot; now, a few months later, it hopes to besiege the top spot in the 3D market with its new lineup of 3D LED TVs, without its passive 3D TV and 3D glasses.

The idea of affordable glasses is certainly admirable as it dispels many of the complaints the 3D naysayers have about an overly expensive viewing experience for multiple viewers. Buying multiple sets of active shutter glasses can add up, and quick. Vizio's recent lineup, however, has no passive 3D model with the affordable (around $10) glasses.

Barnes & Noble is fighting hard to gain market share in the e-book reader space and the NookColor is it’s latest effort toward that end. The NookColor essentially takes most things that were good about the original Nook line and replaces an E Ink screen with a color LCD version. Barnes & Noble is well aware that LCD has a reputation for causing some eyestrain, and it’s made a couple of tweaks to address that problem.

LCD causes eyestrain because it’s backlit, and because it creates glare when other lights surrounding the screen create reflections. Barnes & Noble changed the screen bonding process to eliminate the air gap between screen and underlying touch sensors (that helps a lot with glare).  It also added a laminate that it thinks will make reading the NookColor easier for longer periods of time. While an interesting concept, the NookColor may hold little interest for those looking for a book-like reading experience.

As Black Friday gets closer many Americans will be tempted by ads offering deep discounts on LCD TVs. They are hot items due to their slim profile, HD capability, low energy use, and overall cool factor. Now imagine if that technology didn’t end up under your tree but in a convict’s prison cell? Some of Scotland’s most dangerous criminals will be getting new LCD TVs so prison administrators can meet their “green targets” and reduce their “carbon footprint.”

Even if you aren’t a fan, you have to admit that Martha Stewart is a savvy businesswoman. She built her empire from a small catering company in the northeast into one of the biggest brands in American history. Her latest tech-related maneuvers have put her previous love affair with the Kindle on the back burner in favor of a new iPad app and an e-book deal with Sony.

With help from Adobe, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia created a way to translate their magazines into a more fluid form for the iPad. The idea of the app is to expand on the functional aspects of Martha Stewart Living magazine beyond recipe cards and how-to guides.