February 24, 2006, 6:56 PM CT
Snooper Evolution

Snooper Evolution

The first GPS speed camera detector to include a European database. This product is ideal for those people who wish to drive in southern Ireland and France where the use of fixed cameras and mobile speed detection system is on the increase.

The Snooper S4 Evolution / Snooper Evolution R is the latest edition to the Snooper S4 family and although it looks familar, the Snooper S4 Evolution is packed with new features.

1. Snooper have included the latest GPS engine and Antenna improving the performance and speed of the unit.
2. New intelligent software reduces the chances of detecting cameras on roads running parrallel to the one you are on.
3. Different alert pattens for all types of cameras.
4. Auto Ranging, which selects different alert distances automatically based on the roads speed limit.
5. The only unit to provide a UK and European speed camera database.
6. With the Optional S100 RLD the Snooper S4 Evolution is the only portable system on the market that will detect mobile radar.

What we don't likeThere not much to complain about, however, drivers of cars with UV screens will need a re-radiating antenna. Provided FREE if requested on day of purchase.To conclude we really love this product and our opinion is one of the best portable systems on the market.

Source

February 24, 2006, 6:56 PM CT
Road Angel Navigator

Road Angel Navigator

At long last a combined Satellite navigation system and speed camera detection product is announced by Blackspot. This product is based on the latest Road Angel but has an integrated satellite navigation system.

Key Features:

1. Full postcode search facility
2. Street-level UK mapping
3. Full postcode search
4. Safety camera alert system
5. Accident blackspot school and congestion charging alerts.

Watch this space for more details..........

Source

February 24, 2006, 6:56 PM CT
Road Safety Bill out of time
Road Safety Bill

Government plans to outlaw the detectors collapsed when the Road Safety Bill ran out of time at the end of the last parliament. Thousands of motorists who each had paid around £200+ for the dashboard-mounted detectors had cause to celebrate. However, there is a new threat to drivers with old traditional style radar detectors.

Motorists who rely on the traditional non gps radar detectors to keep them out of trouble with speed cameras could find that technology has overtaken them. But now a new device is now in place that doesn't rely on radar and therefore can't be picked up by a motorist's detector.

The new system relies on video images and works out speed in a similar way to the human brain. It uses a camera that doesn't emit any energy and is therefore "invisible". A video camera inside the box is linked to a computer that compares the speed of a car to a motionless target - such as a tree by the side of the road. The system can potentially calculate the speed of a vehicle as accurately as a radar device.

"The camera is passive so that the motorist cannot detect if he or she is being monitored," says Warren Dixon, one of the inventors at Florida University. "If a dispute is raised in court the officer even has a short video sequence of the car involved that proves beyond doubt that the motorist was speeding." The inventors say it would be easy to equip police in America or Britain with the technology. The US military is also interested in the system.

Lucky for motorists the speed enforcement technology moves fast but the whizz kids who design speed camera detectors move faster. The advent of GPS has brought about a new generation of speed camera detectors that even the government can't ban. These units do not detect but use GPS (Global Positioning Systems) to warn drivers as they approach speed cameras. Units such as the Origin B2 claim to have a 100% record in detecting the exact location of speed cameras.

Such Units include the:
Road Angel
Micro RoadPilot
Origin B2
Origin B2 Solo
Snooper Evolution
Talex
TR30

The government will reintroduce the Road Safety Bill but a smooth passage through parliament is by no means assured now that Labour's majority has been reduced.

Source

February 21, 2006, 9:33 PM CT

Hybrid Engines

NTRC scientists are developing and applying new diagnostic tools and control strategies to help American automakers and engine companies improve the efficiency of internal combustion engines (ICEs), while simultaneously reducing their harmful exhaust emissions to levels so low they are difficult to measure.

Because modern diesel engines are 30 to 50% more efficient than gasoline engines in cars and light trucks, NTRC scientists have set their sights on drastically reducing the emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter, which threaten respiratory health, so the vehicles will meet federal environmental standards and become more acceptable to American consumers.

For several years NTRC's Fuels, Engines, and Emissions Research Center (FEERC), led by Johney Green and Ron Graves, has focused research on emissions controls and catalyst-based after-treatment technologies for exhaust from diesel engines. Two unique FEERC inventions, the SpaciMS and a phosphor thermography instrument, were used together to map the dynamic, subtle changes in the chemical composition and temperature of emissions passing through a catalyst.

By combining FEERC's diagnostic tools with state-of-the-art electronic engine controls, the center's scientists are elucidating the interactions of exhaust species and the operation of lean-NOx traps, a leading technology for controlling diesel emissions.........

Posted by: Ryan      Permalink     

February 21, 2006, 8:33 PM CT
Newspaper to test "electronic paper"....

This is good news, someone is finally going to really try out e-ink - "Instead of buying your daily paper, from April 2006, 200 subscribers will be able to start the day by connecting a portable electronic device supplied by De Tijd to the internet and start downloading their daily paper. Updates will be automatic during the day, if subscribers have access to wireless technology." [via] Link.

Pictured here, my hacked Sony Librie with MAKE: e-ink edition (you can make your own ebooks for e-ink devices now). The Librie's e-ink tech is from the same company developing the newspaper reader (e-ink).



Read more....

February 20, 2006, 10:30 PM CT

Hand-held Device Brings Speech To Impaired

A middle-aged woman makes plans over the telephone to get together with a friend, even though she cannot talk after suffering a stroke. She is able to communicate using a hand-held device that speaks for her. University of Virginia neurolinguist Filip Loncke has the only research site in the United States using the apparatus - a barcode reader called the B.A. Bar that was developed in Switzerland by the Federation Suisse des Teletheses and made available in that country in 2001.

Loncke, an assistant professor in the Communications Disorders program of the Curry School of Education, will discuss his work on Feb. 20 at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in St. Louis.

From children with autism or Down's syndrome to adults who have speech loss due to a stroke, more than two million Americans are not able to communicate easily or at all with words.

One of the advantages of the B.A. Bar (pronounced BA-bar) is its versatility - it has been used with people from the ages of 2 to 89 and has helped them learn or relearn how to speak and become more independent. Loncke and his research team are using it for several research and clinical applications.

The barcode reader provides auditory feedback when passed over the same kind of black-and-white strip used on grocery store products. In this case, the device is first used to program the barcodes with words or phrases; the barcodes can then be fixed to objects, pictures or places. The user scans the barcode with the device, and it says the word or phrase. Loncke's research shows that it is more helpful than simple pictures.........

Posted by: Ryan      Permalink         Source

February 20, 2006, 7:59 PM CT
HOW TO - Nintendo Wifi over dial-up

Pokemonfan18 has an article on use the DS over a dial up connection - "This tutorial is to help you get connected to Nintendo Wifi with a dial-up connection. Even though lots of people think that wifi with dial-up would lag and cause the people with high speed internet to go slow, that is not true. At normal dial-up speed (56kb) it will go just about as fast as high speed internet.." Link.

Read more....

February 19, 2006, 11:02 PM CT

PlayStation-3 To Be Launched In September

Sony is aiming to launch PlayStation 3 (PS3) in September 2006 according to an article reported in the Next Generation. The article suggests that both U.S. and Japanese markets will see the launching of PS3 in September.........

Posted by: Ryan      Permalink     

February 19, 2006, 2:15 PM CT
Road Angel Bluetooth Dongle

Road Angel BlueTooth Dongle

Use your Road Angel as a Bluetooth GPS receiver at the same time as being warned about blackspots & speed cameras.

Connecting your Road Angel to a PDA has just got a lot simpler thanks to Holux. Holux have developed the first Blue Tooth Dongle that will allow you to use your Road Angel as a GPS receiver without the need for untidy wires.

This is ideal for anyone running the latest TomTom Navigator software on a PDA that supports bluetooth.

Read more....

February 19, 2006, 2:15 PM CT
Dension ICE>Link Plus

Dension ICE Link Plus

The ultimate car integration kit for your iPod....The ice>Link Plus plays high quality music from your iPod through your existing car entertainment system's CD changer port. There is no longer a need for cassette adapters, cigarette lighter chargers or bulky FM transmitters. You can start enjoying crisp, clean CD quality music with charging and iPod control from your exisitng car entertainment system. Imagine having access to over 10,000 MP3s at the touch of a button.

The ice>Link Plus' modular adapter design allows for easy installation letting you enjoy your music sooner than you think.

The ice>Link Plus circuitry is designed to offer the cleanest sound possible from an mp3. A built in signal amplifier sets the output signal from the iPod to the optimal level to be received by your radio. This ensures crisp, undistroted sound even at higher volumes.

The ice>Link Plus Menu is the main part of the ice>Link Plus user interface. You can use the menu to access any of your playlist, change iPod charging settings, select playmodes (scan, AlbumPlay, repeat, shuffle....) and change the way you control your iPod. There are many customizable options to make the ice>Link work the way you want.

Dension Features

1. Text Display on iPod and supported radios
2. Advanced play modes include playlist browser, albumplay and more
3. Special charging options
4. Adjustable output +/-4 V

To purchase the Dension ICE Link Plus or for more information on this product please post your questions here or visit our website.

Dension ICE>Link Plus

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