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'Hope Floats' is a seaborne bot that spams lawmakers with calls
On a plain white wall at a large Brooklyn gallery, a seemingly old-fashioned phone booth sits about five feet off the ground. The words "Hope Floats" are painted in white on the black box, which houses a computer, a screen, a keyboard and a handset. It's a nondescript façade for a potentially subversive art-meets-tech project. Hope Floats is a two-part interactive installation that encourages you to pick up the phone and make your voice heard, and it is also a commentary on the aging technology that powers the American political system.
Phosphor's latest watch can E Ink its way through 24 time zones
Tired of waiting for Seiko to produce an E Ink watch that mere mortals can touch, much less afford? A little company by the name of Art Technology has been delivering mass-market wearables using the technology since 2007 -- and its latest model dials up the functionality factor just a smidge by adding support for twenty-four time zones, two of which can be displayed simultaneously. Granted, it's using a segmented display, not dot matrix -- which means it bears a closer resemblance to that Timex you owned in the late '80s than Seiko's wild active matrix model -- but again, like we said, this one's actually quite affordable and it's available right this second. Depending on your choice of band style, you'll pay anywhere from $150 to $195; follow the break for the full press release.
Engadget's recession antidote: win a Phosphor E-Ink watch!
This whole global economic crisis, and its resulting massive loss of jobs got us thinking. We here at Engadget didn't want to stand helplessly by, announcing every new round of misery without giving anything back -- so we decided to take the opportunity to spread a little positivity. We'll be handing out a new gadget every day (except for weekends) to lucky readers until we run out of stuff / companies stop sending things. Today we've got a curved E-Ink wristwatch from Phosphor up for grabs. Read the rules below (no skimming -- we're omniscient and can tell when you've skimmed) and get commenting! Hooray for free stuff! Special thanks to Phosphor Watches for providing the gear!The rules: Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, but if you want to share your proposal for "fixing" the world economy, that'd be sweet too. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine. Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad. Winner will be chosen randomly. One (1) winner will receive one (1) E-Ink Digital Hour Clock Watch with Stainless Steel Band. Approximate retail value is $195. If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. Entries can be submitted until Wednesday, July 15th, at 11:59PM ET. Good luck! Full rules can be found here.
Phosphor intros new line of curved E-Ink watches
Yes, e-books and phones are awesome -- but there are plenty of other applications for E-Ink tech out there, and Phosphor has been selling its analog / digital combo E-Ink wristwatches for a while now. The company's now adding to that stable with a line of curved-display models available in your choice of leather, rubber, and stainless steel bracelets and one of two faces; one can be toggled between a large digit and graphical view of the time, while the other offers an always-on monthly calendar and a smaller time display up top. Prices start at $175 for the new designs and hit streets now -- and stay tuned, because we'll be giving away a few of 'em! We've had a chance to play with the watches, and the displays are as clear and crisp as E-Ink units we've seen; ultimately, we'd like to see what they could do with a matrix display, but segmented is a welcome first step. The models feel solid and well-built (the stainless steel versions, in particular, are pleasantly weighty on the wrist) and we get the impression that you could pass them off in virtually any social situation without the awkward "holy cow, you're a geek of epic proportion" moments. Click on through to the gallery to see both face styles and all four bracelets in action.
