Remember the HAL exosuit? I’ve been fascinated ever since stumbling across it way back in 2009. It basically gives the wearer superhuman strength, and will soon be used to help one man easily carry a second disabled man to the rocky tops of Mont Saint-Michel in France. More »
If the iPad seems a bit extravagant and the JooJoo’s sordid past turns you off, the 7″ iLet Mini HAL might be device for you. It’s no powerhouse, but at least you’ll be able to say you own a tablet. More »
I’m pretty square, fashion-wise. I own few intentionally ironic t-shirts, and fewer skinny jeans. Buchanan bags on my style choices regularly. That’s why, when he ordered me to ditch my old backpack, I picked Timbuk2′s new HAL. More »
I haven’t carried a Boy Scout backpack in years, but the laptop feature in Timbuk2′s latest sounds great: The sleeve is sideloading, meaning you can pull out your laptop without busting open your whole bag and spilling crap everywhere. More »
Instead of renting a HAL exoskeleton for $US1000/month, you can now buy one for $US4200. It’s a limited run of 400, though, so that dream of 10X strength may have to wait. [BotJunkie via DVice]
Products like the Human Assistive Limb exoskeleton have a frustrating tendency to remain in the labs and universities that spawned them, usually for reasons of impracticality or cost. But this one is going mainstream.
The day for you to strap yourself into a robotic exoskeleton and fight crime the way your normally flabby limbs would never have let you has come! Cyberdyne, the Japanese company responsible for the HAL (hybrid assistive limb) prototype robot suit, is starting rentals this week. The price for being superhuman: about $US2,200.
John Seabrook wrote a recent feature in The New Yorker about interactive-voice-response systems (I.V.R.) commonly used with customer service and tech support telephone hotlines. Seabrook spent time at B.B.N. Technologies watching these systems transcribe callers’ words and analysing the tone of voice for emotions present. While breaking down the history of automated telephone services and voice recognition innovations, he attempts to tackle the larger question of whether or not we can create a fully conversational, quasi-conscious robot, akin to 2001: A Space Odyssey’s Hal 9000. Judging from the number of experts interviewed for the piece, the answer is a resounding no.
Chauhan Studios and Humax had this awesome concept TV on display at the Milan Design Show, which looks straight out of the spaceport in 2001: A Space Odyssey. And being named HAL, it’s likely where the designer drew influence from. The LCD also has an extra set of speakers in the base to add sound depth. And with most design shows, there were no details on pricing for the HAL TV, or even a release date. [MocoLoco via Unplgged]
