A smart ball for the next football season!

Technology in sport mainly revolves around one aspect, optimizing performance. Sometimes so obscure and sometimes in a rather simple way. Adidas is an excellent example with its miCoach device. They persist and sign with a new ultra-connected football.

The new Adidas smart ball comes with its own application and show you a myriad of information.The speed of the ball, the number of rotations, the distance, and  the direction, to name a few.

All these movements are examined under a microscope with a variety of sensors, the official specs have not yet been disclosed. But what we're sure of is, that it is able to transmit these information in real-time.

Adidas has been working on such products for a long time, and FIFA has selected one of these devices in 2014. Therefor, the amount of data at the next football season will be ridiculously large.



Source : Engadget.

New lithium-ion battery that recharges 1,000 times faster

This time, the innovation lies in its charge time. It is a microscopic battery developed by a team of researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.



  

Recharging mobile gadgets in seconds, is the main objective of this ingenious battery. The share of the traditional principle of the anode assembly, cathode and electrolyte, but in another form concept. This time the researchers rely on micro-structures consisting of 3D electrodes. To maximize the flow of ions and electrons, these mini-cells form a structure of microscopic polystyrene spheres.

The anode is formed by a mixture of nickel-tin whilst the cathode, is composed by an ore called manganese oxyhydroxide.  

In the end, this type of battery would be 2000 times more powerful than existing batteries. Better yet, with its smaller size, it is able to recharge 1,000 times faster.
This innovative battery will be submitted to testing by the end of the year.

For more details check out this link: http://www.extremetech.com/computing/153614-new-lithium-ion-battery-design-thats-2000-times-more-powerful-recharges-1000-times-faster

Glass: The Future of Google Gadgets (Infographic)

Guest post by: Gerri L Elder 

No one knows for sure how Google’s latest project, Glass, is going to do in the consumer marketplace. Hardly anyone who isn’t a Google developer has one, as purchases were limited to those initiated into Google’s Explorer program, where a select few were allowed to pay $1,500 for the product so long as they agreed to provide user feedback. Combined with a high price tag, the fact that Glass can’t access the Internet without a supplemental cell phone data plan or Wi-Fi connection is putting off critics.
The device does have its high points, of course. When users wear the brow band, a small screen sits above their right eye, giving them access to handy info like driving directions or flight information and allowing them to take photos or video. Its functions are controlled by voice command, head movement or a tap on the brow.
On the flip side, Glass isn’t the most attractive headgear. One would be hard pressed to find a fashionista strolling down Fifth Avenue in such a strange-looking device. It also creates an opportunity for privacy violations, as those around the wearer may not be aware that they are being videotaped or photographed. Also, anyone who can’t see without corrective eyeglasses won’t be able to use the device.
Even without knowing what the future holds, rival companies are working on their own questionable futuristic devices to compete. Apple has hinted at a mysterious watch rumored to be capable of making phone calls, pulling up maps and offering health tips. Another company is performing tests on LED-based contact lens that would project images in front of the wearer’s eyes. Perhaps most interestingly, Fabrican hopes to release a spray-on fabric that allows users to create clothing from out of nowhere, spraying clothes onto their skin from a spray bottle. The formula dries on the body, creating a thin layer of fabric that can be removed, washed and worn again.

Guest post by: Gerri L Elder
Source: Great Business Schools

How to download torrents from your workplace

If during your work hours, you skim the net looking for cool torrents, but you can not download from your workplace, here's a little trick.

The solution is very simple. All you have to do is to install the Phrozen Dropbox Torrent on your computer at home, then drag and drop it into your Dropbox folder (or any cloud storage service: Skydrive, Owncloud, FTP ... etc.,).

Phrozen DropBox Torrent detect new torrents from a remote location ( let's say the next day at work) and automatically start to download the associated content. And if you have good internet at work, hopefully, once you get home, your downloads will be completed.

Note that uTorrent also offers the option. And I'm sure there is a lot of other clients that might have the same option. On the other hand, you can find some web applications such as Transmission that also allow your remotely download torrents.

So you get it. There's a million way to get the same result, you just have to pick the application that suites you the most.
And I wish you the best of luck exploiting your employer's internet connection.

A brilliant app and an awesome android smartphone..

First let's take a look at this awesome and free app that lets you wirelessly manage your Android from your favorite browser.

It's called AirDroid:

Not only this app is capable of many functions that could be achieved with additional third-party apps, but it also looks extremely slick.

 And once you succesfully connect, it will take a few seconds to show you the beautiful “desktop” where you can see your phone’s memory and free space, manage your phone’s files, share URLs and more.

The application is very secure and it is completely free. You can get it from google play store.

Would you give up your private life for a pair of glasses?

Demonstrations of the latest Glass Google did not fail to glamorize the latest gadget from Google. If the promised opportunities seem interesting, some are already worried about the impact of these devices on our lives, and talk about "the end of privacy."

It is difficult not to address the issue of privacy when wearing glasses connected, equipped with a camera capable of shooting constantly everything seen by the wearer. 
Cory Bernardi, an australian Senator raises the question of how these privacy issues will be managed by Google: "Google Glass has the ability to record video and audio of everything that happens during your day. No need to enter your iPhone and click to capture the moment. (...) This can go if you are a user, but what if you are the unwitting victim of this type of recording?"

For now, Google did not comment on the management of privacy for users of Google Glass or their surroundings. But it seems clear that the issue will eventually face the Mountain View company and that it will respond. 

Last August, the CNIL had again pinned on Google Street View imagery and Wi-Fi data collected by its cars.

A featherweight HD video cam?

It seems that The Raspberry Pi Model A won't be the last hardware release for this year. Blogger Liz, posted yesterday, an article on the  Raspberry Pi website, showing off the new Raspberry Pi video camera, a tiny, single-lens unit that will be released this year.
This post was followed by a thread on the RP forum, unveiling some specs of the new camera :

•  The PCB is 25x20x9mm (approx). Weight currently unknown but very light.
• The module is an OV5647. 
• Fixed focus 5MP sensor capable of 2592x1944 stills, but also 1080p30, 720p60 and 640x480p60/90. 
• Working on the faster frame rates, but stills capture and 1080p30 are already working. 
• There is still some work to do on the camera driver and on image quality.
• The module package is 8.5x8.5x5mm.

The camera will connect directly to the Pi and offer hobbyists the opportunity to build vision-based applications. It’s attached to a nice long ribbon that connects directly to the Raspberry Pi.
The total cost of this module is  $25.

Android mini pc

Running Android 4.0, the MK802 Allwinner A10 Mini PC is about the size of a flash drive and, also like your favorite USB storage device, enjoys being plugged into things. HDMI inputs to be precise. Unlike flash drives, however, the MK802 also enjoys having things plugged into it. A keyboard. A mouse. A micro SD card. The little brick with the Android brain is truly a wonder of versatility and skill.
When launched through the HDMI input, the MK802 Mini PC runs as a media player, internet browser, game machine, or for "general use". I'm not sure exactly what "general use" means, but I have a feeling it has something to do with either spreadsheets and word processing, or porn. For Internet browsing (no ethernet port is included in the MK802 model, so you'll need WiFi connectivity), both Chrome and the Android browser are enabled. Free and premium games come courtesy of the Android market, or users can install emulators to play vintage games in HD. Desktop PC mode on the MK802 runs on Linux, which allows access to a wide range of software.

Other Mini PC specs:

What's hot today?

Well, since most of my readers are from the US and there is a huge time span, the post title to you should be what was hot yesterday.

Anyhow, since today I'm too lazy to figure out what to write about and I don't want to just write anything, I decided to spare you some time and bring you the hottest topic in the technology blog sphere today.

And this is a reminder to myself so you can skip it : (today is January 4th)



So here's the top 5 topics/news online for today: