Kickstarter is on everyone's lips these days, and no wonder. It began as a service with a goal is not entirely clear, but now, there you can find ideas that tempt users and encourage them to invest in future products, moving millions of dollars in the process. Some of these ideas have already been through ItsAnews before, but the common element in the projects you see here is that they have managed to surpass the million-dollar mark, or have flirted closely with that amount.
In recent times, virtually any project that does not find a place in the market, a remake that is not adopted by any producer of video games, daring or idea that can not overcome the "risk threshold" of investors, Kickstarter ends. Now, the truth is that there is no such thing as a guarantee to publish something in Kickstarter. Persons responsible for the site frequently updated their statistics, which indicate that the percentage of "success" in the projects just over 44 percent, and in his four years, the projects that were funded successfully reached some $ 252 million . In other words, who has an idea to redirect the effort to convince investors to convince potential customers.
I prefer to identify Kickstarter with the term "collaborative investment." The user / customer / user is no longer a sponsor, and reward, rather than a specific monetary interest, is the privileged access to a product / service, which can be obtained several times below the planned cost. Who organizes a project knows that's not enough, and that's where the rewards come over. Trips, parties and private meetings with the creators of the project are some of the things that are given to those who demonstrate a greater financial commitment. In some cases, this commitment has been outstanding. The million dollars is presented as "magic barrier" for many reasons, and Kickstarter is no exception. Some projects were very, very close to the million, while others went over like a stampede. Today we will take a look at some of those who have been economically more relevant so far.
Pebble: $ 10,266,846
Oddly enough, the most successful project in the history of Kickstarter is a clock, but not just any clock. The Pebble is a "smart clock" that its capacity has the function to connect to devices via Bluetooth Android or IOS, and run applications. It can also be customized, and even used as a remote control to control various functions of a smartphone. $ 99 was the minimum that enabled access to a pebble on an estimated price of $ 150. The demand was so great, that should limit the pre-sale orders. The first deliveries will be in September.
TikTok + Lunatika: $ 942.578
No, Ke $ ha thankfully has nothing to do with it. The latest generation iPod Nano is priced at $ 129 U.S. (125 euros in Spain). It has incorporated a significant amount of features compared with previous models, but someone felt he could do even more, and that someone was responsible for the TikTok and Lunatika. Convert the sixth generation iPod Nano into a watch may not be as attractive to the naked eye, but more than $ 940,000 said the opposite. Both products are already on sale, and the developer has created two variants, in addition to funding another project in Kickstarter: A stylus tablet that doubles as a pen.
Research carried out by scientists from the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, with the Centre for Organic Photonics and Electronics at the Georgia Institute of Technology, is leading to a theoretical framework that can improve dramatically the performance of devices based on what is known as "Plastic Electronics", among which are found as leading to OLED displays and certain types of organic solar cells. The paper talks about a method used to eliminate "energy traps" which falls a percentage of electrons, while the current flows within these polymer semiconductors. Find out all the details of the find in this article.
During his tenure in semiconductors, while giving rise to the phenomenon we know as "current flow", there is a proportion of electrons that are "stuck" in certain load traps are no longer useful, lowering the efficiency of OLED devices , for example. "This process reduces electron capture the circulating current (appears as a resistor) and generally, this type of energy traps are moved toward the center of the device, where the electrons are converted into photons or vice versa, for the For solar cells, "the team from the University of Groningen and the Georgia Institute of Technology. Although several mechanisms, or simulation models have been proposed to explain the workings and nature of such traps, until now, no one knew for sure how it occurred, its nature, nor how it could build an antagonistic mechanism, capable of neutralizing its negative effect in normal operation of a traditional semiconductor element.
"We set out to solve this puzzle by comparing the properties they acquired these traps in nine different types of polymers. The comparison showed that the traps in all materials, had a similar energy level," said Herman Nicolai , author of a paper on the subject in Nature Materials ("Unification of trap-limited electron transport in semiconducting polymers"). As part of development work, the Georgia Tech group, led by Jean-Luc Bredas, used as models to study the electronic structures in a wide range of possible pitfalls. "What we found out of the calculation is that the energy level of traps, measured experimentally, coincided with the effects that might induce a complex (or combination) of water and oxygen.
"Although the devices were fabricated Nicolai studied in an atmosphere of nitrogen "these" impurities "(water-oxygen), can easily be introduced during manufacture of semiconductor material, even if the process is done under controlled conditions. Nitrogen can not prevent the contamination with small amounts of oxygen and water. " According to these results, the traps that are now known to effectively thanks to these studies, have a similar energy level, therefore the flow of electrons in different plastic materials can be estimated more easily, and opens a possibility stronger to support the design and building materials free of traps.
"The energy of the trap is in the forbidden energy gap," said Nicolai. This interval is the gap (space) representing the energy difference of the outside of the circle in which electrons orbit the nucleus in its ground state, higher orbit and why they should move (or move) to become mobile charge carriers (those forming the electron current). For example, when a moving electron flows in the vicinity of the area inhabited by a "trick" that is mentioned in the energy space, fall into this trap because it has a lower energy level. "From this research, if the chemicals could (or could) design semiconducting polymers where the energy of the traps is greater than that of the superior orbital in which electrons move through the material, they would not fall into the traps reaching the effectiveness of a material far superior to those of today. "said Nicolai.
In both devices, LEDs, plastic and plastic solar cells, "The flow of electrons should not be hampered by power outages. From now on, with our discovery, the designs can be made with more efficient results." The experimental work was conducted at the Institute for Advanced Materials Zernike (ZIAM) in the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Groningen in the Netherlands.
Apple launched the iPhone 5 and iPad Mini, both products of the second part of the year, on 12 September and will sell the 21 as one of the hundreds of rumors circulating on the internet on both devices. iMoore says his sources are reliable. The Guardian also ensures that the presentation will be in mid-September. Last year, the iPhone 4S was announced on October 4, and put on sale 10 days later, on 14. This time, if the rumor is confirmed, the event will move up by two weeks.
In the case of mini iPad nothing is yet known with certainty, except that more and more sources in the technology sector are assured that Apple will compete with the Nexus 7, Google and Amazon Kindle Fire with a smaller version (and cheaper ) of its successful iPad. Google has already exhausted the 16 GB version of the Nexus 7 in the U.S. market. The iPad Mini, if the forecasts, it would be just like today, except for size.
Any release of Google always comes accompanied by hundreds of rumors, surely part of Apple's strategy to keep their brands in dance every day. To see if iPhone and iPad mini arrive in mid-September, only six weeks left.
Apple announced last few dates the financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2012, ended June 30, 2012. The company sold 26 million iPhones during the quarter, representing growth of 28 percent in number of units over the same quarter last year. In the same period placed on the market Cases 17 million, which represents a unit growth of 84 percent over the same quarter last year.
I swear when I first saw all the memories I have of "Patlabor" came running from a dark corner of my mind, and just ran over me. We have heard and read several times about a Japanese project that sought to create a wick pure and simple, but it seems that you no longer need to explore further. Suidobashi People Heavy Industry presented its prototype Kuratas, a 4.4-ton robot can be yours ... for just over a million euros.
It is assumed that someone has to do first. And that something is a fuse (or mech) Functional sold in the market. We have absorbed a lot about exoskeletons and hydraulic systems. We have also seen developments of robots that can move using two legs and adapt to the complexities of the terrain. But there is no wicks. We do not see "Labors" building buildings or armies that use something like Gundams or armor tactics as Gasaraki. They may not be more than a delirious unfeasible at present, but the same was said of both cars and airplanes. And now comes the Kuratas, or rather, "Suidobashi Kuratas Heavy Industry." Wick has to name.
Four meters high, 4.4-ton diesel propulsion, thirty hydraulic joints that allow movement of arms, legs and torso. V-Shido interface to control their movements, even from a smartphone over a 3G connection. You can shoot rockets (water, grrrr ...), and compressed air guns that can fire up to six thousand bullets per minute, using as trigger the smile of the pilot. In Suidobashi are looking for ways to mass produce, and the price that has transpired is 1.35 million dollars, something like 1.1 million euros. Whoever decides to buy a Kuratas can change the exterior color (16 available) and access other extras, such as a coaster.
I admit I felt a little disappointed to see that the Kuratas moves using wheels, however, apparently bipedal version is in the plans of the engineers. The official site Suidobashi allowed customize the wick in different ways, but guess what? Anyone who attempts to receive a huge 503. Perhaps few will have a million euros to buy a Kuratas, but this makes it clear that many people want to have a fuse. Tony Stark in his armor to stay if you want, and do not care much if Suidobashi presented to Kuratas as "piece of art" rather than an actual match. Every step brings us closer to a VF-1, is welcome.
The battle against malware continues, as our exploration of tools that could be helpful in fighting infections, but mainly to avoid them. More and more programs that integrate multiple security features in order to protect the computer, and ROBOSCAN is one of them. The program advertises itself as a "security package for Internet", and in addition to antivirus and antimalware capabilities, brings a firewall for those wishing to replace the solution on Windows.
I would imagine that every one of our readers have at hand a security solution to keep digital bugs when away from their computers, no matter what platform they use. In computer security there are no guarantees, but we must never cease to be alert. Anyway, always is an example that reminds me that the weakest link in computer security, the user is. The last system I should check in the week was full of strange and bars advertisements that nobody seemed to take over. There are very comprehensive security programs, but the conduct (or might say "self-preservation") at the computer user is also essential to avoid problems. Returning to the software, you probably can not convince you to change your current solution by a new one, but if you are exploring alternatives, or just need to assemble a computer antimalware software, you may want to check out ROBOSCAN.
ROBOSCAN offers several security modules, even in its ad-based free version. On the one hand has an antivirus and antimalware engine that can intercept threats in real time. Manual methods of analysis are divided into Fast, Basic and Advanced, each with a different depth level. ROBOSCAN can take care of yourself with a self-protection module, but can also do something similar in the installation of Windows, as it is able to check whether the operating system needs updates via Windows Update. It is also necessary to highlight the presence of a firewall. There are many users who are not convinced of the robustness of firewall available in Windows, and if you're one of them, you can turn on the ROBOSCAN (automatically disable the Windows firewall). ROBOSCAN announced in the Activity Center, and because of its many functions may not be convenient to install along with other similar programs. ROBOSCAN seeks to replace, not complement.
Perhaps what could be considered negative points are its size ROBOSCAN download (over 130 megabytes) and the delay in the first update (19 minutes!). Apparently its developers have not kept up firms into the executable, so you should find that ROBOSCAN update items that were about half a year old. If you want to use ROBOSCAN not put off updating because it is a good idea, especially when you have many associated functions. Beyond that, ROBOSCAN has not given us problems, we have not noticed that you consume too many resources, and delivers quite a change from an ad or two. Another option, if you need one.
If anything Google Glass project has generated so far is a wave of inspiration, and no, I speak of those skits that can be seen on YouTube. The almost instantaneous dynamic translation and language would be an excellent feature for a device like Glass. This has also been explored under concepts from different companies, so it is not something that is completely off the radar. Still, one ahead of Powell Will all using augmented reality glasses, and the help of two Raspberry Pi. The translation is not as "fast" as we would like, but that is another story.
The language barrier is still there, beyond translation resources that technology can offer us. I still see people intimidated by a manual is in English, and although manufacturers have been able to expand the contents of the instructions for their products into other languages, this is not always so. Many people are curious about other languages, and make every effort to learn it. But neither are those who show immediate rejection by texts and conversations that can not understand. Unfortunately, we are still far from something as dynamic and precise as the universal translator from Star Trek, however, there are several shortcuts that can be taken. After the noise that caused the Glass project of Google, someone thought it would be a good idea to add a dynamic translation subtitles to augmented reality glasses, and appealed for it to no less than two Raspberry Pi.
When you add hardware combo glasses themselves (1200 Vuzix Star), iPhone, iPad (will not be exclusive to IOS devices), a television, two microphones, and a transformer. The glasses are connected to the terminal S-Video of a Raspberry Pi (both use Debian Squeeze operating system), while a microphone is connected via Bluetooth to a smartphone or tablet to implement noise cancellation. Captures what the microphone is then sent through a local network API translation of Microsoft, the slowest point of the whole process of generating subtitles according to Powell, even with the existence of a cache to improve performance common sentences.
Powell required the help of his sister Elizabeth, who has some knowledge of Spanish, and despite his accent, the translation is more accurate than I would have personally expected. It is also worth mentioning that the system would not be limited to a Spanish-English conversation, since the API can process up to 37 languages, with different levels of accuracy. This is something very complex that it becomes a final product in the short term, and the cost of glasses (five thousand dollars), make it unlikely to reproduce this project. but it is one of the best things I've seen so far involving the Raspberry Pi.
How many mobile phones have been sold so far? If you've ever asked you, do not worry, as the World Bank can give you an idea. At the end of 2011 there were registered 5.900 million mobile phone subscriptions. That means that right now we have passed the mark comfortably six billion. But the World Bank indicates that there will be more mobile subscriptions than people on this planet. Is this a new era in mobile telephony, or fear of a collapse in that market has become a bit more tangible?One of the many causes that led to the famous Great Depression in the '30s was an extreme increase in production capacity. Basically, if you make too much of "anything", and there is nobody to sell, you have a problem. Eighty years later, one of the markets we certainly can identify with one extreme is the production of mobile phones. However, there has been no further depression, because the majority of people have taken a refresh cycle moving quite short. The documentary "Buy, Pulling, NOW" Cosima Dannoritzer (which you can access through our forum) explores this point momentarily when a young man reveals that changes your cell phone "once a year." The year 2011 ended with 5.900 million mobile subscriptions, so we would be closer to that strange condition equivalent to that of a "mobile per capita."
But is it really so? A recent World Bank report called "Maximizing Mobile" (244 pages, if you're interested) tells us we are on that path in terms of subscriptions, while making a significant difference: One thing is a mobile, and another is a subscription . The World Bank says that in a total of 90 economies around the globe, the mobile phone penetration has exceeded one hundred percent over last year. The first indicator to consider is that a person can have more than one SIM card at your disposal, and even use them at the same time depending on phone model you have, while another describes the use of mobile as a central element of communication many homes, shared among family members. Another fact revealed by the report is that voice communication (though the signs tell us otherwise) remains the main use for mobile phone text messaging but followed very closely. On average, 80 percent of the gain comes from the text operators, more than 106 billion dollars in 2010.
Historically, countries called "rich" are the first to receive care from providers and manufacturers, but entire regions flirting with the point of saturation, may have to start looking to other markets that were originally considered low-income, and now can access more widely to mobile phone through a reduction in the price of basic devices. The best proof of this is still retired Nokia 1100, with 250 million units with a significant advantage retains the title of "best-selling mobile" on the planet. Distribution may not be partners, but we are in the path of an equivalent to a SIM card per person has several questions, starting with this: How many lines can sell?
FC Barcelona has managed to win in recent years the world of football and mobile applications. The Catalan club has a game, FC Barcelona Fantasy Manager, which has been hit with mobile users. In an attempt to replicate results, the club has decided to launch FC Barcelona Starscup. This is a game of real-time strategy game that allows players against friends anywhere in the world. FC Barcelona is developing Starscup matches 1 to 3 minutes, in which players have to interact in turn to develop their strategies.
The players have cards with different values that will enable them to victory. The strategy is central Starscup FC Barcelona, as it is important to use the best cards at key moments to get the opponent to submit. In the game there are three different types of letters, whose combination will depend on the final victory. On the one hand there are letters tactics that allow the team to move in the field in a certain way. Players is the second letter, with which users can use the players. Finally, the cards represent orders Trainer users during the game.
FC Barcelona Starscup application can be downloaded for free from the App Store. The game can be used in iPhone, iPad, iPod provided they have the IOS version 4.3 or later.
Infrared transmitter and receiver, detector investment pulsation interaction, as pressure switch, microphone, simple and smart play what you learn. Both the intelligence agency was not allowed to enter their offices. Not talking about a smart device, but a bear. A doll that sold more units than many of the consoles of the time and whose evolution was so strange that now is coming out the third generation of Furby, with LEDs, more connectivity and the same useless and always overvalued. The return of Furby, prepare 'wallets.
It is novel that thousands of people to do line for hours and even days waiting time to enter the mall to buy a tablet, mobile phone or a console. These things happened before. For example, never understood why and how did Hasbro, by Tiger Electronics, the point could subdue the minds of humans and deFurbys sell 40 million in the first 3 years after launch. Marketing, adorability and some other fictional and fashionable term over the late 90's had to do the dirty work. But it did and the story is undeniable. The point is that this hybrid stuffed bat, cat, owl and lemmingque personally think it was horrible, came to have two versions. One in 98 and again in 2005, and both generations of this electronic bug "smart" learning to speak as the days passed. You are now back, and with changes in tune with our times.
As before, but this time more powered by the 7-year difference in technology with the previous generation, the Furby will be endowed with a personality that will try to be unique to each bear. Personality will be created as children, adolescents and adults to play with it and even download an application to power virtually the tamagotchi hairy, as we saw in the video. I mean, the Furby. He speaks, what moved the human pre 2000, will again be the madness of crowds to hear him talk in Furbish and go making changes to the user's language. As they have the 2005 version, the Furby can move and be moved to balance the stomach when talking or laughing. In addition, its infrared port can be used for some hackers may attempt to interact with it in the most diverse and strange ways.
But the best for last, and is the biggest update comes from the expensive LED eyes, which are basically two mini screens that will manifest the emotions of the Furby and react when it is petted, fed or tickled. Connectivity is not specified, but is a security that the activities will be linked to the tablets and smartphones, as well as Internet-connected computers. Taking advantage of the upcoming festivities, Hasbro plans to launch the Furby to the boxes in the coming weeks to make it available for $ 60. This is the return of Furby, will it so successful?
Determine the world's most powerful laser can be more complicated than it seems. The Lawrence Livermore Laboratory announced a 1.25-petawatt shot in 1996. In March 2008, the "Texas Petawatt" reached the 1.1 petawatt. But now, Lawrence Livermore has returned to the attack with a shot that hit a power of 500 terawatts. The difference is that this laser combined total of 192 rays in a simultaneous firing, delivering 1.85 megajoules of energy, therefore, would be the most powerful in its class.
Obtain the appropriate conditions is critical to science. The limitations can take many forms, beyond the extraordinary advances in research and development. It took something as massive as the LHC to draw us as possible to the Higgs boson, yet will require a huge amount of analysis to determine with sufficient accuracy level whether or not the originally called "particle damn" . As for firing a laser beam, the scientists also need an enormous amount of both energy and power, and the reason for this is to start the ignition of hydrogen, or fusion. We have about sixty years trying to achieve controlled thermonuclear fusion, and the National Ignition Facility (NIF) of Lawrence Livermore National Laborarotio has taken a big leap towards that goal.
This is the firing of a laser with a power of 500 terawatt, on a target of only two millimeters in diameter. Actually, the shot was composed of a total of 192 rays, and consistency between them was within the range of one percent, so that the laser is not only the most powerful in its class, but also more accurate. According to NIF director Edward Moses, the laser is "fully operational", while scientists are taking "important steps" toward the goal of ignition, which among other things, would allow access to a clean energy source clean.
The laser fired three shots from March. The first served as a "prelude" to deliver 1.8 megajoules and 411 terawatts of peak power. The second was held on 3 July, reaching a peak of 423 terawatts with an energy of 1.89 megajoules. The third was the "trip record" with an energy of 1.85 megajoules and 500 terawatts. The consistency between the energy values is another indication of the stability of the laser, so that the NIF is close to reaching the goal that was displayed at the time construction began in 1997. As if that were not enough, this achievement will also accelerate the development of other laser systems with similar goals around the world.
I apologize if the title phrase is redundant, but the point is not usually see this kind of advertising. While companies choose to take the road of aesthetics and performance, Oppo people added the path of resistance. The new mobile Oppo Finder has not only kept the title "world's slimmest mobile phone," but also has sufficient strength to assume the role of the hammer.
Advertising also evolves over time. I remember that some ads were much more open to attack when the competition (just need to find some classics of those two famous cola drinks on YouTube, for example), but also used and abused the stress tests. There are many products that have been presented as very durable, or directly "indestructible." That has not been the case with smartphones. In fact, you're evidence of impact on the latest models of smartphones, you'll see that the results tend to be (yet) disappointing. If you go to a store and request a phone that is tough, maybe put the seller in a hurry ... unless you offer something like this.
The Oppo Finder had entered the phase of pre-sale last June, but is likely due to their extreme similarities with both the iPhone and other devices with Android, the smartphone is exclusive to the Chinese territory for a long time. Its specs are interesting: dual-core processor 1.5 GHz (some sources report the use of a Cortex-A15), 1 GB of RAM, 16 GB of storage, super AMOLED capacitive screen Plus 4.3-inch (800 by 480 pixels), 1,500 mAh battery and Android 4.0 operating system shape the Oppo Finder. His 6.65 millimeters thick making it, at least for now, the world's slimmest mobile phone, a detail that clearly shows the incredible advances in the design and miniaturization of components. And yes, you can use as a hammer.
I think the most striking of the video is his "honesty" at the end: While the Oppo Finder retains its functional state, it is inevitable the presence of marks on its surface, and in various sections of the video we see that the person doing the show pretty excited with the idea of using the mobile as a hammer. How could it be otherwise, and reviews have appeared speaking of tricks, mobile false, and that hits the nail using specific areas of the phone, but the intention behind not change: It has come to our attention, and beyond their strength, at first glance looks like a pretty decent phone. The price reported on its official site is 2.498 RMB (or yuan, as some prefer), about 320 euros.
Some companies are very quick to talk about beginnings and endings of eras, but the truth is that even with certain devices, or developments that caused a "hinge effect" on the market, you need a transition time. We have heard a lot of ocasciones Apple representatives say that the PC era was over. Reports of the death of conventional computer have been greatly exaggerated in recent years, but now Microsoft adds a log to the fire by saying that this is not the end of the PC era, but a new era: PC +.
I am part of the generation that saw live and in the abandonment of DOS and jumping to graphical interfaces. Pieces of hardware that were considered essential at the time have been reduced to simple low-cost components. I watched closely how the mobile phone went from a portfolio to achieve the size of a pack of cigarettes. And now, with the remarkable progress of the tablets, the concept of computer is in jeopardy as never before. I will not deny it: I am comfortable with the computer as it is. I know him well, I have control over their hardware and their updates. I can repair, modify and improve it. The idea that everything comes to an end that causes me some concern, but I'm very interested to know what's to come. The tablets have a question. Are they something different and need to be developed in parallel, they replace the computer, or are nothing more than the next step in the evolution of the PC?
The Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference ended in yesterday. There is usually a conference that teaches great things for the consumer market, but this time was the COO Kevin Turner who decided to play the delicate issue of "post-PC era", and did so with a spicy statement: Apple is wrong. In mid 2010, Steve Jobs stated that the post-PC era had begun, while Tim Cook, currently CEO of the Cupertino giant has not only said that the tablet and the PC are two different things, but does not believe in hybrid formats. For Redmond, Apple is "a great hardware," but the computer is entering the era PC +, an idea based on a 1999 article written by Bill Gates called, "Why the PC will not die." Gates mentioned in this text to anticipate the death of the PC became a kind of "annual ritual" and also speaks of "devices that have not even dreamed of yet." One tablet would be today.
How could it be otherwise, Turner hinted that Windows 8 is a cornerstone for the PC + era, and that's where I think the preacher loses some strength. Windows 8 is a change, and one large, even more than the passing of Windows 3.x to Windows 95 for nearly seventeen years. But the market is not the same, the hardware is not the same, and basically, users are not the same. If the change conveys the feeling of being "good" inmiedato is absorbed, but before the first question listed stocks. And Windows 8, or should I say "the interface Metro", is a sea of doubt. Microsoft is betting nearly himself on the success of Windows 8, but if anything it has taught us both the computer and consumer electronics is that the first of its kind, regardless of whether they succeed or not, always have a sharp edge. It happened to iPhone, iPad happened, and certainly happened to Windows 95 at the time. Windows 8 is, taking into account everything you said Microsoft, the first of its kind, and that system is based PC + era. When we get to October, we'll know who was right.
