ASUS is launching (and re-launching) a bunch of new gear at Computex, and somewhat lost in the shuffle is the R710 GPS, which looks otherwise ordinary but apparently features a built-in projector that allows it to present information on the windshield HUD-style. That's literally all we know -- the unit only scored one short paragraph in ASUS's Computex PR package -- but we're planning on sending our crew out to dig up some more details on this bad boy when the show opens tomorrow.

Just as expected, Lumus-Optical is all set to showcase its microdisplay-packin' spectacles at CES, and while it doesn't seem that the technology has changed since we first heard of them, we've now got a slew of photographs to go by. Apparently, the glasses will boast twin microdisplays and an ultra-thin LOE lens, which can purportedly immerse the wearer by creating the effect of viewing a 60-inch screen from ten feet away. Also of note, the company claims that unlike gaudy alternatives, these won't make you look like a complete tool, but judging by the image above, we aren't so sure that's entirely accurate.

Read - Press release [PDF]
Read - Photos

The GlobalTop HD100 GPS heads-up display is pulling a formal review over at DigitalReviews. This is the same Bluetooth GPS receiver with speed alerts that we went hands-on with in March. This highly portable navigation stick packs a MediaTek chip capable of a 1 second hot start acquisition time or 36 seconds cold. Although they have yet to take the device on the open road, they've already found the bright and constantly blinking LEDs (even after GPS and Bluetooth device acquisition) to be rather annoying and likely distracting during nighttime use. The device also requires that you stick a reflective film to your windshield before getting your HUD on. Fortunately, the two included film strips are much smaller than the early prototype we saw at CeBIT. The worst news? We'll have to wait a few more weeks before they get around to testing the device on the open road. Worth the wait to see just how well the device hooks into the navigation software on Bluetooth-equipped phones and PDAs.

[Thanks, Anton]

We had the chance to briefly go hands-on with the GlobalTop HUD GPS device this afternoon at CeBIT. Unfortunately, this occurred within the confines of a demonstration booth, not a fine German car. The heads-up display was certainly readable on the tinted screen. However, it was barely visible when we moved it to the side. Ok, it's a prototype device, but we left the booth wondering just how visible the speed and direction indicators would be along an open stretch of sunny PCH roadway -- especially when these are supposed to pop as early as next month in Europe for about $100. Best wait for a proper review before plunking down on this one.

It's practically a foregone conclusion that eying your handy GPS unit a bit too much whilst cruising down the freeway can indeed put you and your fellow motorists in peril, and while robotic turn-by-turn voiceovers do quell the staring fits somewhat, we still tend to rely a tad too much on sheer visuals. GlobalTop is hoping to make the roads a safer place to navigate with its forthcoming GPS HUD Speed Meter, which will supposedly makes its debut at CeBIT. This Bluetooth-enabled device purportedly "displays your speed and other navigational info, like direction, onto your car's windshield," and also enables handsfree communications with your BT-equipped cellphone. Moreover, the speed meter can be setup to alert the driver when exceeding a user-set limit, and while you may not be familiar with the brand, it's reportedly a spinoff of f-tech, which bodes fairly well for us actually seeing this thing beyond the Photoshop stage. As expected, there's no pricing or availability deets surfacing just yet, but all that should change come next month.

[Via NaviGadget]

Siemens VDO -- the same in-car gurus that brought us the oh-so-snazzy eCorner contraption -- is back at it again in an attempt to jazz up the plainly styled dashboards that we've (begrudgingly) grown accustomed to. While adaptive cruise control has become somewhat commonplace in higher-end automobiles, that technology simply keeps you from resetting your speed every time the cabbie in front of you eases on and off the accelerator; Siemens' traffic sign recognition system boasts a camera attached to an internal computer which automatically recognizes common road signs and displays an alert in the driver's heads-up display. Not only will the driver see a digital rendition of the sign without taking his / her eyes too far off the road, but he / she will have the option of enabling the vehicle to dynamically adapt to changes in speed limits, theoretically eliminating any previously valid excuse you could give the boys in blue once pulled over. While we're sure those speed freaks will happily turn down this convenience on their next car purchase, those of us who need all the help we can get in taming that lead foot (and skyrocketing insurance premiums) can look for this speed-dictating option in 2008.

[Via The Raw Feed]

Dude, screw the transparent OLEDs, it's all about transparent circuits, which some Oregon State University scientists seem to have created. The significance, of course, is clear (ahem): you save a lot of space in devices -- especially portables -- when your circuit board is your screen, not mounted on a wafter in a package on a board behind it. Apparently the scientists even expect clear, glass-mounted indium gallium oxide circuitry to ultimately be cheaper to produce than silicon. The military's in on the gig too, the Army Research Office is a project sponsor (as is HP and the National Science Foundation), probably for the project's obvious heads-up display uses. Will we, um, not see this gear any time in the near future? Hard to say, they're only up to 26 transistors in a single array as of yet (compared to the hundreds of millions in chips nowadays), but we'll be waiting.

[Thanks, James F]