Samsung intros internet-enabled SMT-i8080 phone
(Credit: Engadget)
LCD-packin' phones with internet connectivity have certainly been around the block, and while we can't imagine the demand being extraordinarily high 'round these parts, Samsung is probably hoping that a few folks in Hong Kong take interest in the SMT-i8080. The IP phone reportedly enables users to view TV on the screen, video-conference with others, tune into music, shop online (for realz?), and even reserve movie tickets. Granted, the more technically adept may prefer a more fleshed out interface to handle the aforementioned duties, but we certainly wouldn't quetch if The Man replaced our current cubical phone with this gem.
Gadget Of The Day!
(Credit: Engadget)
Dahan T&S 42-inch widescreen multi-touch LCD
Just months after displaying Dahan T&S' 120-inch multi-touch panel, the firm is now showing off its 42-inch widescreen LCD that incorporates the same technology. This living-room-friendly display contains "multi-dot recognition functions to control image size and direction by [using your] fingers," meaning that a single press will translate into a left-click, while using two fingers will replicate a right-click. No word on resolution, price, or a release date just yet.
LaCie unveils 5TB Biggest S2S SATA RAID tower
(Credit: Engadet)
LaCie is apparently looking to grab video editors' attention with the introduction of its latest RAID tower, which comes stocked with 5TB of storage and is scalable to up to 20TB for HD multi-stream support. The 5TB Biggest S2S five-disk RAID boasts a 3Gbit/sec eSATA interface, direct eSATA-to-SATA connection, burst rates of over 200MB/sec, and the ability to link up with three other S2S units on the eSATA PCI-X / ExpressCard to achieve the aforementioned 20TB solution. Furthermore, the disks are hot-swappable and the tower is hot-pluggable, and it can even be setup to beam out email alerts in the event of disk failure. The 5TB S2S is available now for $3,699 with a PCI-X card, or you can toss in an extra Benjamin and go for the PCI-E bundle.
Space hotel sees 2012 opening
(Credit: www.Cnn.com/tech)
ts Barcelona-based architects say the space hotel will be the most expensive in the galaxy, costing $4 million for a three-day stay.
During that time guests would see the sun rise 15 times a day and use Velcro suits to crawl around their pod rooms by sticking themselves to the walls like Spiderman.
Company director Xavier Claramunt says the three-bedroom boutique hotel's joined-up pod structure, which makes it look like a model of molecules, was dictated by the fact that each pod room had to fit inside a rocket to be taken into space.
"It's the bathrooms in zero gravity that are the biggest challenge," says Claramunt. "How to accommodate the more intimate activities of the guests is not easy."
But they may have solved the issue of how to take a shower in weightlessness -- the guests will enter a spa room in which bubbles of water will float around.
When guests are not admiring the view from their portholes they will take part in scientific experiments on space travel.
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Galactic Suite began as a hobby for former aerospace engineer Claramunt, until a space enthusiast decided to make the science fiction fantasy a reality by fronting most of the $3 billion needed to build the hotel.
An American company intent on colonizing Mars, which sees Galaxy Suite as a first step, has since come on board, and private investors from Japan, the United States and the United Arab Emirates are in talks.
Plenty rich enough
If Claramunt is secretive about the identity of his generous backer, he is more forthcoming about the custom he can expect.
"We have calculated that there are 40,000 people in the world who could afford to stay at the hotel. Whether they will want to spend money on going into space, we just don't know."
Four million dollars might be a lot to spend on a holiday, but those in the nascent space tourism industry say hoteliers have been slow on the uptake because no one thought the cost of space travel would come down as quickly as it has.
Galactic Suite said the price included not only three nights in space. Guests also get eight weeks of intensive training at a James Bond-style space camp on a tropical island.
"There is fear associated with going into space," said Claramunt. "That's why the shuttle rocket will remain fixed to the space hotel for the duration of the guests' stay, so they know they can get home again."
In an era of concern over climate change, Galaxy Suite has no plans so far to offset the pollution implications of sending a rocket to carry just six guests at a time into space.
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