Meet Nook– the “World’s Most Advanced eBook Reader,” or so Barnes and Noble says.

In a previous article we were introduced to the world of eBooks; here is an example of one of the newest and more developed eBook readers. Called the Nook, this piece of technology is about the size of a paperback book. Its specifications are:

It is not your typical eBook reader. This gadget allows you to gain access to over one million eBooks, eNewspapers, and eMagazines in two different ways. One way is via 3G wireless technology while the other way is using a simple Wi-Fi connection–allowing you to download books in seconds. You can buy books, even new releases or best sellers for prices such as $9.99, and you can share your books.

Some people are concerned about buying an eBook reader because they do not think that they will enjoy reading off of a screen; I know I dislike e-versions  of my text books because I hate reading off of my computer screen for ridiculous amounts of time. However, Barnes and Noble obviously kept this fact in mind when designing their Nook and was able to design this gadget so that it has a E Ink® Vizplex™ Electronic Paper Display. This display allows Nook users to read off of the screen as if it were a printed page. How does that work? Well, by reflected light. This allows for not only a more natural reading experience, but it is also easier on the reader’s eyes. You also can adjust the screen brightness and pick from the 16 different shades of gray! The E Ink Display also has a high-resolution 600×800-pixel screen.

You can test out this Nook at your local Barnes and Noble store. It will be available starting November 30th. It is $259, but if you think about how much that could save you in terms of buying shelves, storage space, and more, it might be worth the splurge! I honestly think that this Nook is not your average eBook read and would choose this over lugging books or reading off of my computer screen any day.

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Everyone out there has, at least once, wished for a robot to do at least one of his or her tasks, especially the undesirable ones.  Now, with modern technology, we have robots to carry out many of these tasks.

I was at my friend’s house one night, and I noticed that they had Roomba and Scooba robots.  We got into talking about them and how they work, thus leading into this rundown of what I consider the 5 coolest robots (real, not fictional):

1. I think that the ASIMO robot is just awesome.  Standing at 130 centimeters and weighing 54 kilograms, the robot resembles a small, white suited astronaut wearing a backpack and can walk or run on two feet at speeds up to 6 km/h .
2. In second place, Multifunctional Utility/Logistics and Equipment Vehicle (MULE).  Now maybe I have Ghost Recon on the brain, but this thing is cool.  It is an Unmanned Ground Vehicle  that will support ground troop and helicopter or airborne assaults.  There even may be a tank-killer variant.
3. Of the flying robots, the Sikorsky Cypher beats all.  It is essentially a robot with the rotor blade within the body, and is about 1.75 meters in diameter.
4. The Roomba/Scooba series are freaking awesome.  I want one to clean my room!  They have a few math algorithms that makes sure they cover the whole room and sensors to stop them from falling down the stairs!  The even have a portable charging dock.
5. The Japanese Paro robot.  It is a robotic baby Harp Seal designed for therapeutic purposes.  It is so cute…

My only worry is the creation of artificial intelligence.  Once this day comes, I  fear mankind will be wiped out in a Matrix or Terminator like fashion.  Also, a country with a robot military could be over-run with some simple hacking.  Or, of course, we could end up like the humans in the movie Wall-E, who are morbidly obese because of robots.

In all, I think that robot technology is cool and quite successful.  We have many options now, and much more to come, just don’t give them the ability to think!

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Remember that time when you really wanted to show someone a picture, but you really did not have a good way to show it because you were not near a computer or TV and your screen is a little small? Remember passing your camera around to the whole group of people who were trying to see if they blinked or not or seeing people hit heads as they crowded around your camera? Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just project the image on a wall or something?

Well, Nikon has made this wishful thinking into reality. That is correct, they have built a small projector into one of their cameras. I never would have thought to do this, but I think that the design is a good idea.

Called the COOLPIX-S1000pj, this little gadget is the first camera with an ultra-small built-in projector (as of July 2009). The VGA projector is able to project about 40-inches onto a wall up to two meters away. The camera also comes with a remote control and a stand for your personal viewing convenience.

Not only does this camera come with a projector, but it is a good camera as well. I was surprised to see that Nikon did not sacrifice anything too drastic, except perhaps thickness, to create this camera and instead they added on all of the nifty features that you usually do not need but are cool to have. For instance, their Smart Portrait System now includes a Skin Softening feature as well as In-Camera Red-Eye Fix, Smile Timer, Blink Proof and Blink Warning. It also has a neat auto-scene selector that automatically recognizes the scene in your picture and adjusts camera setting.

More importantly, it has a 5 wide angle zoom and shoots up to 12.1 Megapixels. It has a 5-way VR Image Stabilization System that will aid in preventing blurry pictures, and it has a Bright 2.7-inch High Resolution LCD.

Here are the approximate dimensions:

Height: 2.5 in. (62.5mm)
Width: 4 in. (99.5mm)
Depth: 0.9 in. (23mm)

And here is the approximate price: $430…. yikes.

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Over the past few years, there has been a lot of buzz about eBooks.  However, unlike many other fleeting obsessions, eBooks really are entering the mainstream.  They are not just a trend anymore, electronic books are here to stay.  There are industries forming around them as we speak.

As an author, they are an attractive item because it is extremely expensive to publish and market traditional hardbound books.  There are inventory issues and the problem of what to do with unsold copies.  These issues are not present in the eBook format.  Thanks to technology, the future for these is so bright, they might have to wear shades.

The major issue from day one of the eBook is the annoyance of having to sit at the computer to read a book and the strain of the monitor on the eyes of the reader.  No one wants to read an entire book while sitting in some office chair.  Thanks to eBook readers like the Kindle and Sony, they have gained major steam with the everyday reader.  These eReaders are portable and are easy on the eyes.   They almost appear exactly like the page of a book.

eReaders are great for those who like to read multiple books at a time because many of them can store hundreds and even thousands of books.  There is no need to carry large books around anymore.  In fact, the Kindle allows you to buy books from Amazon right where you are.  Even my iPhone has an application for reading eBooks.  There are more readers popping up quite frequently.

Another advantage in addition to carrying your whole collection with you is the ability to have some privacy.  I hate reading a book and having someone come up to me and talk about why they liked it or even why I shouldn’t read it.  Besides, I look smarter when people don’t suspect I am reading Calvin and Hobbes.

Lastly, eBooks are much cheaper than the real thing.  I just bought an electronic college book for a $100 discount.  Whether you’re an author saving cost or a literary enthusiast eBooks are here to stay.

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Are you in the market for a baby monitor?  Then your last stop is the Summer Infant Best View Color Handheld Video Monitor.  This monitor is a wireless camera with many features for those who want to be on top of every moment when you are not in the room.

I know most people don’t think the topic of baby monitors is an interesting one, but this monitor is very cool and actually could be used for many different applications.  However, my favorite is the intended purpose…watching my little girl when she thinks I am gone.

The baby monitor comes with a handheld video monitor with a  2.5″ color video screen.  Although, the kit only comes with one camera, up to five can be added.  The monitor also allows you to hear the noises baby makes along with a sound sensitivity bar in case you want to mute the volume.  Lastly, the best feature of this monitor is a remote control pan of the camera with zoom.

You read it right, the camera is adjustable by remote control.  The camera can be tilted up and down and rotates roughly 270 degrees.  This mobility lets you see almost every area of a room.  I am very pleased with the motion and angles you can achieve with ease.  The zoom is not controllable other than zoom in and zoom out.

When there is ample light, the monitor provides a color view and the night vision feature displays in black and white.  Automatically, the night vision kicks on when the light disappears.  Honestly, there is nothing you need to do except point the camera where you want to watch and enjoy.

My only objection to the system is the mount.  If you are placing it on a flat surface like a table, there is nothing to worry about.  However, if you are mounting it to the wall there can be some challenges.  The camera has all the weight and extends outwards, so if you are not into the stud it will pull the screw right out of the wall.  Forty pound drywall anchors worked for me.

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After realizing that I was constantly craving the ability to have a web browser in the palm of my hands during the school day, I decided it was time to invest in either a Microsoft Zune or an iPod Touch 3g. I knew that the 3g was not what people were expecting and that it was a major let down, but after comparing the prices for a used 2g via Amazon or Ebay to the prices of a new iTouch, I decided that I was going to get something brand spanking new.

I will put this out there, I hate iTunes with a passion. I had decided that the ZuneHD was the toy for me based solely on the fact that I would not have to deal with iTunes and would instead be using the Zune Marketplace. For instance, the Zune Marketplace offers a great deal where you can listen to any music that you want for $15 per month and at the end of the month you can pick 10 songs to download. I then held my friend’s Zune in my hands.

Let me tell you, that thing is fantastic. It is so small, but it does have a generous 3.3 inch (diagonal) screen. It is extremely light (75 grams versus Apple’s 113) and a beautiful player. The Zune had pretty much sold itself to me when my friend put it in my hands. It self-orientated faster than the touch, it was well organized, and its sound quality was absolutely astonishing. Oh, and did I mention the built in radio or the OLED screen–making video crystal clear? It also is offered in a 16gb version while Apple cut that one out of the production line.

Needless to say, I went with the iPod touch. I had gotten rid of my first one because I wanted built in speakers and microphone compatibility– two things that the Zune did not have. I know that I bought something that comes with iTunes and that has a lesser quality screen (though it is bigger) and sound. I also know that Apple is probably going to come out with this killer new update next year, but I cannot wait a whole year. So, we’ll see how this Touch goes…

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In my, opinion, many people buy iPods, not because of capabilities, but because of the name.  There are many equal, but under loved competitors.

Let’s talk about the biggest, but still relatively unknown competitor, Microsoft’s Zune.  The Zune is a digital audio player produced by Microsoft. The line also includes Zune software and the Zune Marketplace services sold by Microsoft, which provide online music, video, and podcast downloads.  The Zune 30, the first generation Zune music player, has a 30 GB hard drive, 3” screen, and simple directional pad for menu navigation.  The second generation set of Zunes includes the Zune 4, 8, 16, 80 and 120.  The Zune 4, 8 and 16 are smaller in size and hold 4, 8 and 16GB of flash memory, in the same order. The Zune 80 and 120 are replacements for the Zune 30, as they are thinner and lighter than the original.  The Zune HD was confirmed for release in fall 2009 by Microsoft.  This will be Microsoft’s version of the iPod touch.

One of the best features of the Zune is the Zune Marketplace.  The Zune Marketplace is an online music, video and podcast store , equivalent to iTunes.  Purchases are made through Microsoft Points, in which users prepay $5.00 for 400 points that can be applied to downloads at 79 points per song.  As an alternative to Microsoft Points, the Zune Pass is a subscription service that allows users to pay a flat monthly fee of $14.99 . Zune Pass subscribers can download unlimited music from the Zune Marketplace, but this music will be lost when the pass runs out.  However, you can keep ten songs a month.  You can sync this info wirelessly.  Unfortunately, you need Windows Vista or XP to use a Zune.

The Zune also can play music though an Xbox 360 and create play lists for gaming.   More features supposedly are coming to the Xbox.

So, what are you waiting for? Think outside the box!

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