Po-Go

The day Polaroid had stopped production of their instant cameras, must have been a sad one for many a photographer. It was one of the few truly innovative products. Imagine point shoot and viola you have a photo in your hand. I always wondered what they would do different. Would they just join the digi-cam race with another camera, or would they do something different. Well they did both.

They have come up with the Digital PoGo camera and a compatible wireless printer that uses no ink. You have to, of course, load their ZINK Photo paper. The output is on a 2x3in. paper which even has a peel off back so that the photo can be used a sticker.

The printers are USB and Bluetooth enabled and also come with rechargeable battery. Back to the good old days of instant photography!!

They may also bring back their classic instant cameras.

The age of living digitally

The dlna (digital living network alliance) is a standard being used by manufacturers of electronic media devices, which allow them to interact with each other.

Your flat screen would be able to play media or other content from your laptop or other device across a home network. A person could buy a device of any brand and also be sure that those devices would work with each other, seamlessly.

As of August 2009 there were over 5,500 devices certified as being dlna compliant. So the next time you are out shopping, make sure that the device you are looking for is dlna compliant.

Sun shades

DOW chemicals has recently announced their latest product. Solar shingles. Called the POWERHOUSE, this will  lead the way in changing how solar energy has been harnessed. A major part of the cost of implementing a solar power plant, lay in the production of solar panels and their installation. With this new invention there will be huge cost cuts in both these factors, leading to easy accessibility and adoption by the general public.

The shingles (roof tiles) are made of low cost, thin film CIGS (Copper Indium Gallium diSelenide) technology which is  proven to be cost effective for building integrated photovoltaics. The installation is easier, and is installed along with roof shingles using the same methods for ordinary roof shingles. The arrays are not complicated and would be easily connectible.

Dow invests $1.5 billion annually in R&D and has been the recipient of US government funding up to the tune of $20 million. That is one grant that has paid off.

Up until now, the biggest barrier to installation and adoption had been the cost of implementing a solar generation power plan, but with these cheaper shingles that is all set to change. The new panels are slated to be available by mid 2010. But from then on, it would be green technology in the hands of the common man. If governments are serious about reducing green house gas emissions, then they should subsidize roofing or energy bills for those who adopt the new shingle.

Lost sheep found..label cartridges

I decided to post this separately because BEST DENKI really made my day. I heard about the opening day fiasco. Trying to get a 20 KD IPod Nano, means saving 30 KD from the normal price, but also would mean 50 KD of trouble, getting stuck in crowds, traffic, dispersal and now even H1N1 – avoid crowded places!!

So I decided to check it out one Monday morning. I was walking around checking out the goods on the shelf, and there it was… the CASIO KL 300 EZ label printer that I had posted about earlier.

Flash back:I had purchased only a single label cartridge with the machine itself, but in the excitement of having a label printer, my son & I went through it in a matter of days. 2 to be exact. A couple of weeks later I passed by the CASIO showroom and they told me it was out of stock and not to expect it as the product was end of life. I went to the extent of trying to see if a BROTHER cartridge would fit…no such luck! This machine was destined to gather dust, take up space

Present day: They had stock of the KL 300 that meant that there was a remote possibility that the tape cartridge would be available. I got hold of a gentleman wearing a red waist coat, who seemed to be Japanese – he was senior management I realized later, and asked him if the cartridges were available. He guided me to the consumable section, and there among the printer inks and cartridges were different types of label cartridges 6mm, 9 mm 12mm, yellow, green, gold, blue..it was all there. It cost 2.500 KD a far throw from the .990 KD I paid 2 years ago…but I’d rather use the machine. A different model no. but the same thing.

BEST DENKI has a good range of laptops, a gaming section, and a floor dedicated to Flat panel screens. I didn’t check out the basement though. If I was able to find something not available at the authorized distributors…they’ve probably got their head screwed on right..

Samsung STORY

I was checking out Best Denki at Hawalli, the latest electronics showroom to open in Kuwait, when I saw the pile of boxes with Samsung STORY written on it. on closer inspection turned out to be a 1 TB external Hard Drive. The cost 29.500 KD. Add to that the humans insatiable need for digital storage space and it ends up in a purchase. That works out to what roughly 300 fils per GB…right?

The Samsung STORY Station is a USB external Drive. Comes with its own power supply. The body is made of gun metal and the best thing about it… it has an on/off switch. This is quite convenient as you no longer need to disable the drive and then unplug it. The switch also doubles as a dimmer for the activity indicator light under the drive, which gives it a ubercool effect, only if you are going to switch off the lights. The form factor is suitable for stacking more stories on top, as the vents are below the drive and the space between two would provide ample ventilation.

The usual tools needed for creating a secure folder and back up, that are now available in most drives can also be found on the drive.

Now to move all my media files and connect my NEUROS OSD to stream video to my TV…muuhuuhuhahahaha!!!