We’ve seen all-digital concept dashboards before, but none seem as impressive 3D (or close to reality) as Futuremark’s. It scraps everything behind and to the right of the wheel in favour of a smooth, uninterrupted display onto which an OpenGL powered 3D engine renders everything you might need–instrumentation, navigation, entertainment system controls, climate controls, everything.
We are always looking for the best ways to improve our rigorous physical workout routines, and the Informance smart sunglasses look like a worthy asset to our arsenal of workout gear. The instrument is intended for use by professional athletes, and will allow them to view vital statistics in their peripheral vision using a projected image on one of the lenses.
This Microsoft patent describes a heads up user interface on windshields that shows useful information for the driver right where the eyes are. The patent takes information from phones, car stereos, your GPS, maps, weather, temperature, email, car instruments and probably the Zune, and places it your eyeline. Much more useful than taking a big ass table with you into the car. [Patent via Slashdot via Crave]
I didn’t even realise you could buy a self-installing speedometer HUD, but the crew at Digital Reviews have tested one out in a Ferrari (’80s old school) to see if its worth the trouble. I’d love a HUD – I like to watch my speedo. But installing my own?
Turns out it’s a pretty good GPS receiver too, and they’re thinking for the money that’s almost reason enough.
For mine, I see an unsightly cable running across the car. Which pretty much kills my interest. How about Bluetooth from a concealed unit up to the HUD? Have I just designed the next gen edition? -Seamus Byrne
GlobalTop Bluetooth HUD GPS HG-100 Speed Meter Reviewed [Digital Reviews Network]
Here’s something that could be a godsend for the hard of hearing who feel they are not getting their money’s worth in the movie theater. A nifty little idea thought up by some clever people at Madrid’s Carlos III University for the Spanish Center for Subtitles and Closed Captions, this gadget fixes onto a person’s glasses to give them access to subtitles—even in a subtitle-free showing.
The technology is simple: There is a computer in the cinema that emits the subtitles to within 50 meters, and also deals with their synchronization. A receptor in the glasses captures the signal and projects it onto the microscreen, which fits over the right-hand lens. It’s easy as pie to use—one button turns the gadget on and off and another one restarts it. – Ad Dugdale
Gafas con subtitulos a la carta [El Mundo]