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Modu actually launches in Israel, gets hands-on treatment as proof

by Ross Miller posted Jul 23rd 2009 at 3:48AM

You know, we really didn't believe it at first, but looks like Modu has finally launched in some part of the world, and just as rumored, the inaugural carrier is the Israel company's local network Cellcom. Likely because they knew we still wouldn't be convinced, the crew at Mobo have gone hands-on with the phone. All in all, no difference from what we saw back in February -- jackets and all -- but hey, it's crossed a major threshold and hit "retail product" status. So is it time to talk about touchscreens yet?

Israeli cable TV provider tries its hand at streaming games on demand

by Ross Miller posted Jul 20th 2009 at 7:58PM

Although it won't beat OnLive out the gate -- assuming that company sticks to its winter 2009 target date -- Israeli cable TV provider Hot has unveiled its plans to provide streaming games on demand, with all the processing power done server-side so you can keep that weak cable box as is, thanks to technology from local company PlayCast. A trial program is in the cards for 1,000 customers, with access for everyone coming in early 2010. If this screen shot's any indication, it's not exactly looking to stream Crysis -- if anything, we're expecting something more comparable to what we saw on our last visit to Holiday Inn, which is still infinitely better than the nonexistent streaming gaming options our cable TV companies are currently offering stateside.

Modu cellphone reportedly launching this week in Israel

by Darren Murph posted Jul 19th 2009 at 11:18AM

Take this one with a grain of salt, but word from across the Atlantic is that Modu will finally (finally!) launch its long-awaited, self-titled handset in just a few days. If you'll recall, we actually toyed with the revamped handset as well as a few "jackets" back at MWC this year, but at that point, no one wanted to share any details surrounding the grand launch plan. Now, however, a report from Israel states that the phone -- along with one jacket -- will go on sale this Wednesday (July 22nd) for 500 Israeli shekels, or right around $130. So, does this mean that elusive touchscreen Modu is just a few days/weeks/months away, or what?

[Thanks, Dror]

Video: Solar-powered night garden fills Jerusalem with tranquility, world peace soon to follow

by Vladislav Savov posted Jul 13th 2009 at 6:19AM

Juxtaposing the manmade and the natural in artistic expression oftentimes leads to creepy results. It is no mean feat, then, that the Jerusalem night garden -- built out of steel wires, laser-cut panels and 1W to 3W Power LEDs -- feels like a warm and welcoming place to visit. Whether it is the clean energy source, producing 720W of electricity per hour, or the ethereal light and movement of the flowers, something about the exhibition awakens the wistful child we've got locked away in the Engadget dungeons. He cries out for more of this aesthetically pleasing eco-friendly design, which in this case even comes with a specially composed soundtrack. To see if you agree with such juvenile enthusiasm, check out the video after the break.

[Via inhabitat]

Continue reading Video: Solar-powered night garden fills Jerusalem with tranquility, world peace soon to follow

AORA builds sci-fi-looking solar/hybrid plant in the Israeli desert

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Jun 15th 2009 at 5:23PM

A company called AORA has developed a hybrid solar power plant in the Israeli desert. Comprised of a number of 100kWe base units, the operation is modular (additional units can be added) and it should be complete sometime in the next ten days. When operational, thirty mirrors will track the sun and direct its rays up to the 98.4 foot tall "flower," where the concentrated sunlight heats compressed air, which in turn drives an electric turbine. When the sun has set for the day (or if it's cloudy) the turbine can be run off of biodiesel, natural gas, or fossil fuels, allowing the plant to operate twenty-four hours. The only downside we can see is that the huge tower is sure to attract psychopaths like Lord Humungus and Wez -- so you'll want some weapons. More pics after the break.

[Via Inhabitat]

Continue reading AORA builds sci-fi-looking solar/hybrid plant in the Israeli desert

Israeli military develops robot snake for battlefield, children's nightmares

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Jun 9th 2009 at 6:03PM

While this is by no means the first time we've seen a robotic snake prototype, it ain't every day that we find one so close to deployment. This self-propelling, two foot long robot can crawl along the ground, climb through debris, and even stand erect to give the operator a better view through the forward-mounted camera. The Israeli Defense Force says it will use this thing for "routine surveillance and reconnaissance." And if this is not enough? In that case, the prototype can be wired with explosives -- making it, in the words of the Jerusalem Post, a "suicide snake." Fun! And rather upsetting. No proposed price or timetable yet, but you can see the thing in action for yourself after the break.

Continue reading Israeli military develops robot snake for battlefield, children's nightmares

Video: Better Place's automated electric vehicle battery switch station is faster than Melvin Dummar

by Thomas Ricker posted May 13th 2009 at 8:10AM

It's massive, costs $500,000, and is just a prototype; but you're looking at a possible solution for swapping out heavy car batteries from future electric vehicles. Kind of important if you're hoping to take your EV on a trip a bit further than the supermarket or city center without having to stop for a lengthy recharge. This switch station, unveiled in Japan by Better Place, can swap out a spent battery in less time than it takes to refuel the tank in that baby-killer of a car you hold so precious. These battery swap stations are just part of the enormous infrastructure required to support Better Place's subscription approach to electric vehicles -- infrastructure easily estimated to cost $250 million or so for countries like Israel or Denmark on up to the $1 Billion already pledged by San Francisco Bay Area mayors. Better Place admits that the swap technology is a work in progress but hopes to have 150,000 charging stations and about 100 battery swap stations deployed in Israel by 2011. Check the video after the break.

Continue reading Video: Better Place's automated electric vehicle battery switch station is faster than Melvin Dummar

Prototype piezoelectric road could generate power by simply sitting there

by Darren Murph posted Dec 13th 2008 at 1:20PM

By sitting there and getting ran over by motorcars, that is. In an effort to best other power-generating highway options that involve solar panels and enlarged blender arms, Britain's Environmental Transport Association is looking to test a prototype highway that's embedded with piezoelectric crystals. Essentially, the process would work much like the power-generating Tokyo station floors we saw earlier this week; each car that squishes a crystal would contribute a tiny bit of energy, and the collective effect could be enormous. In fact, it's estimated that a single kilometer of roadway could generate 400-kilowatts of energy, or enough to power around eight small cars. And we're no rocket scientists (nor physicists), but we're assuming these whiz kids already made sure these magic crystals weren't friction-generating, too. Right?

Zoybar open-source DIY guitars for Steve Vai-types only

by Laura June posted Nov 25th 2008 at 5:02PM

If you've ever thought about building a guitar for one second, you know that it's so insanely complicated that it's almost not worth the effort. The Zoybar kits aim to reduce a lot of those complexities -- the components are all open-source, extremely customizable, and modular. They boast seemingly endless options for the guitar (or whatever you choose to build), not to mention the possibilities of the special effects displays. It looks like it's going to be pretty simple to get creative with the kits, but it's a little hard to tell. There's no word on what the components or kits are going to cost, but they claim to be launching in December. Looks like we know what we're getting cousin Yngwie for his birthday! Hit the read link for several insane videos of the extremely wild, ingenious results.

Back-typing keyboard prototype doesn't need a desk, your attitude

by Laura June posted Nov 14th 2008 at 1:02AM

We've seen plenty of out-of-the-ordinary, so-called ergonomic keyboards concepts, including some that are configured so that the user types on the "back." This prototype, from Israeli startup Grippity, is especially odd looking, as it appears to be a full-sized QWERTY keyboard with gamepad buttons that's completely handheld -- "no desk needed" as the developer says. We don't have a ton of detail about the apparently patented design, other than the fact that it's not yet in production, but the makers expect it to cost about $1,000 once available. That's an expensive keyboard, but if it frees us up from the necessity of hunching over our desks for 12 hours a day, we just might give it a try. Check out two more photos of the device after the break.

Continue reading Back-typing keyboard prototype doesn't need a desk, your attitude

Israel's Guardium warbots probably not as lame as their promo video

by Nilay Patel posted Apr 29th 2008 at 4:38PM

We've seen a couple armed defense bots make the scene now -- the US military even has a couple deployed in Iraq -- but the promo video for the $600,000 Guardium bots recently commissioned by Israel isn't exactly a fearsome demonstration of next-gen force. Not only do the rendered old-school CRT displays offer warnings like INTRUDER NONCOMPLIANT, all the bot seems to be able to do is sneeze out of a cloud of white smoke. Terrifying. Maybe these things play better at defense contractor conventions, but something tells us that an actual angry dog might be a little more effective. Check the whole video below.

[Via Danger Room]

Continue reading Israel's Guardium warbots probably not as lame as their promo video

Israel developing autonomous "digital general": run, John, run

by Evan Blass posted Jan 24th 2008 at 6:13AM

Israel is reportedly developing a sophisticated piece of software meant to help troops make quick decisions during battle and, under the right conditions, autonomously manipulate the nation's defense systems. First reported in Defense News (subscription required), the unnamed system would primarily be used for tactical decisions during periods of heavy bombardment, although in a worst-case scenario, the complex algorithm would supposedly be capable of taking over total military control. Yes, we know what you're thinking, but don't worry: Israeli officials have already sworn up and down that "there's no way we're letting this thing go Terminator on us -- no freakin' way."

[Via Danger Room]

Nissan, Renault and Better Place team for electric cars, charging points in Israel

by Paul Miller posted Jan 22nd 2008 at 11:25AM

While there are many rational and irrational reasons for the delays we've seen in production of a mass-market and massively adopted electric car, most of the major issues seem to be addressed by this new initiative going down in Israel. One of the primary problems with electric cars is refilling, and that's going to be nicely addressed by entrepreneur Shai Agassi's Project Better Place, which will build a charging network of 500,000 plug-in points across the country. Other issues were a bit more easily addressed: since Israel is a small country, the limited range of electric cars isn't as much of an issue, and the government subsidies should make prices competitive -- with the eventual cost of ownership significantly less than gas cars to sweeten the deal even further. Nissan and Renault plan to built the cars, naturally, and hope to port the concepts into other vehicles in other countries in the near future. The plan is to launch the first cars in Israel around 2011.

Explay intros oio nanoprojector, plans to launch in 2008

by Darren Murph posted May 23rd 2007 at 6:38PM

Explay is apparently trying to ensure that its micro-projector doesn't become just one of the crowd, as it's trying to outdo the competition by showing off its oio at SID 2007. While we'd seen offerings from Explay before and even heard whispers of a 2007 launch, it looks like it'll be next year before the oio hits the hands of the general public. Nevertheless, the firm was off parading its accomplishment in Long Beach, California, dubbing its minuscule PJ the "first truly mobile and fully operational nano-projector." Of course, we're sure more than a few outfits would love to disagree on that very point, but Explay went on to praise the oio's ability to function in a variety of locales from a "dimly lit bar to a bright office." Notably, it sounds like the company will be aiming for more dollars than those held by mere gadget freaks, as the oio marketing team will be targeting "medical, security, and even artistic" fields whenever Explay can get these things out of the door. Click on through for a closeup of the oio itself.

[Photo courtesy of Explay]

Continue reading Explay intros oio nanoprojector, plans to launch in 2008

SHL's CardioSen'C transmits ECG results to your physician

by Darren Murph posted Mar 27th 2007 at 9:30PM

There's a growing number of devices that not only monitor one's health, but can also transmit pertinent information back to remote caregivers, but SHL Telemedicine's latest gizmo takes things a step further by beaming your ECG results directly to your physician's mobile phone. The oddly-named CardioSen'C is a portable heart-monitoring system that gathers information from twelve electrodes strapped to one's chest and upper body, and once activated, transmits the results of the electrocardiograph instantly to a user-selected handset. Unlike similar systems already available in the US, SHL's iteration will be aimed at the Israel / European markets initially, and while we aren't exactly sure how much coinage such an advanced machine will cost to wear, you should probably make sure your insurance covers spontaneous service calls before you start lighting your doc's handset up with ECG results.

[Via Israel21c]