Make no mistake, Terrafugia's outlandish airplane / motorcar hybrid has been on the drawing board for years, but it looks like the rubber is about to hit the proverbial road (or take to the skies, whichever) this July. A team of ten is working feverishly to ready the Transition for its debut at this year's AirVenture, where it hopes to catch more than a few eyes with its zany "roadable aircraft." As you can likely guess, this thing is meant to both fly and drive, and yes, that means it'll have to pass safety regulations from both the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. If all goes well, the startup expects to deliver its first vehicle to a customer in 2009, while mass production isn't scheduled to happen until 2012. We're no experts in the field, but it seems like it'll take a Christmas miracle for either of those feats to actually be accomplished.

[Via Slashdot]

If you weren't enthused about the SteelSeries 7G for whatever reason, Gigabyte looks to have another alternative headed down the pike. At the company's Spring Break event and Plug-Fest 2008, folks from Tweaktown were able to spend a few hurried minutes with the GK-K8000 gaming keyboard. We're told that "design issues" were holding 'em up from being released right now, but we get the impression that it's certainly nearing completion. Initial thoughts were that typing felt great and the unit itself seemed mighty sturdy, but why take our word for it? Hop on down to the read link for a few more snaps.

The ever-boastful MTI Micro is back again, just days after showing off a fuel cell-powered GPS prototype in Atlanta. This go 'round, the company is announcing a newfound partnership with an elusive Japanese developer of digicams in order to "evaluate the feasibility, development and production" of Mobion products. The love affair will enable the two to work together in evaluating and adapting the aforesaid technology for use in "various precision imaging applications, including digital cameras." Best of all, work is apparently already ongoing, and MTI Micro is expected to deliver prototypes later this month. Going from prototype form to the store shelf, however, will be the hard part.

Finally we can all sleep at night, safe in the knowledge that Sony has created a prototype fuel cell system that fits in the palm of your hand. The combination lithium-polymer battery, backup battery, and control circuit are destined for future mobile devices. According to a company engineer, "We have been aiming to mount (a fuel-cell system) in mobile devices and finally reached a level of commercial design." The tiny power-pack uses methanol as a fuel and controls supply with a hybrid pump, which allows it to regulate the amount of power used based on a system's needs. The company claims that just 10ml of methanol can power a mobile device through 14 hours of 1seg movie watching. Sure, it sounds good on paper, but does this mean soon we'll have to visit tiny, methanol refilling stations manned by a team of mice in jumpsuits? Probably not.

MTI Micro is edging dangerously close to vaporware status, but until 2009 comes and goes, we suspect we still owe it the benefit of the doubt. The ever-boastful company is at it once again, this time showing off a purported fuel cell powered-GPS prototype at the International Small Fuel Cells Conference in Atlanta. The Mobion-powered device promises to provide "three times as much energy as GPS devices powered by four disposable AA batteries," meaning that users could see up to 60-hours of continuous use on a large, full-color screen navigator. You'll also find an integrated USB port for using it as an energy source, so you could theoretically utilize your NAV to charge your handset / PMP / ray gun. At this point, however, we wouldn't get too excited here -- it's not like there's any guarantee that we'll ever see this thing in commercial form.

[Via I4U News, image courtesy of John S.]

If you're vaguely remembering a mention of MLD, you're not crazy. Around this time last year, PureDepth announced that it was teaming up with Samsung to crank out a 46-inch Multi-Layer Display LCD. Fast forward to now, and we're hearing that the first MLD wares should be hitting the streets relatively soon. The technology itself consists of building displays that are in fact two or more layers of LCD panel that share a common back-light source, thus creating a depth effect when viewing material. As it stands, the outfit has signed agreements with Samsung (obviously) for development of displays in mobile handsets and Sanyo for mobiles, gaming solutions and automotive electronics (including in-car navigation). Interestingly enough, Q1 2008 saw quite the surge in support for the 3D sector, making the launch of MLD that much more applicable to the apparent desires of content viewers. Check out a few sample images and product prototypes in the gallery below.

Though certainly not the first gizmo designed with aerial photography in mind, the Aeryon Scout is a notch above most alternatives. The hovering platform enables users to capture still shots and log digital video from up above, and while it can be controlled remotely, we're also hearing that autonomous navigation isn't totally out of reach. Currently, the device is still looking to escape the prototype stage, but its creators are already eying police forces, security firms and surveying / engineering businesses in hopes of landing a few clients. Considering the stunningly high $30,000 to $50,000 price tag, we'd say they're looking in the right (read: only) direction.

[Via Coolest-Gadgets, image courtesy of InventorSpot]

Damn, sexy huh? That's Sony's 0.2-mm (0.0079-inch) thin OLED display. Granted, this 3.5-inch prototype is only capable of 320 x 220 pixels, just shy of a cellphone standard QVGA resolution. However, that panel's fracking impressive when compared to those relatively chubby 0.67-mm (and that's a world's slimmest), 320 x 240 pixel LCDs capable of just 2.2-inches of display. And just look at those blacks -- you can barely see the bezel.

Update: Oh my... we just noticed that Sony's also showing off a 0.3-mm thin, 11-inch OLED with 960 x 540 pixel resolution. That's 10x slimmer than Sony's XEL-1 OLED TV. See it pictured after the break.

Rest assured, we've seen some seriously sophisticated takes on the famed Post-It Note, but Girton Labs may have the most ingenious twist of all. The Ixp-Note, which is listed as "currently in development," is little more than a recyclable, reusable Post-It with oodles of intelligence. The device relies on low-cost electronic circuit printing technology, enabling users to select a time / date via the printed scroll in which they'd like to be reminded of whatever they just jotted down on the highlighted strip. When the time comes, an alarm similar to that found in a musical greeting card will sound, jolting the memory of the note holder and potentially saving the day. As it stands, there's no telling how much each of these will cost, but considering that the battery should last at least a year, you won't have to have too many spares around, anyway.

[Via Telegraph]

On a typical day, anything shown off at CTIA with a "coming in 2010" sticker would cause some serious unrest, but given that we've already found that LTE is eons (or so it feels) away, we're just taking things in stride. The MSV prototype shown above will purportedly become a proud member of the L-Series, and its satellite / cellular hybrid system will enable it to play nice on traditional cell bands as well as snag sat coverage anywhere in North America. Apparently the firm is planning on shooting up a pair of birds in 2009 as well as landing a deal with an undisclosed US carrier, and the 0.6-inch thick unit itself should feature a 480 x 320 multi-touch screen, WiFi and an integrated camera. No word on a price just yet, but feel free to check back in a few years.

We've been waiting so long for Intel to stop talking and start producing its own line of SSDs that it's actually kind of shocking to finally see some progress. Nevertheless, one Knut Grimsrud managed to spend some time with a pre-production unit and was noticeably satisfied with performance. 'Course, we all know the benefits of solid state discs by now -- we're ready to see those buggers snapped above available en masse. Any day now, Intel.

[Via CNET]

Well, would you take a look at that. Right on cue, Dolby and SIM2 are collaboratively showcasing a 46-inch 1080p display built around the former firm's high dynamic range technology. The HDR-enabled LCD HDTV boasts 1,836 LED-based backlight units (designed / developed by SIM2), a full 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, brightness level greater than 4,000 cd/m2, an "infinite" contrast ratio, 16-bits of luminance and a Xilinx Virtex field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) chipset. Additionally, the prototype employs a design created by Giorgio Revoldini, and while we can't imagine hearing of a release date anytime soon, the two firms aren't wasting any time putting the new set on a world tour to presumably wow onlookers. Hey SED, you taking notes here?

Researchers at GE have created the world's first roll-to-roll manufactured OLEDs -- a newspaper printing-like process that is the first step to plentiful, cheaply produced, flexible lighting. Production of the thin, organic materials in this manner could lead to a wide array of innovations in the use of lights, sensors, and displays, and could make a noticeable impact on the efficiency and environmental performance of lighting and electronics. The company envisions a new playing-field for businesses, architects, and lighting designers who need access to cheap, energy-conscious materials, and see this research as a first step to an emerging field of commercialized OLED lighting. Yes, a new vista of discovery, wealth, and prosperity awaits those who take this bold step into the wide, wonderous, and uncharted worlds of scientific research and prototyping -- let's just hope it doesn't end up all Bioshock-y and weird.

[Via MetaEfficient]

So we finally had the chance to lay palms to Meizu's M8 prototype. Better yet, we set it up side by side with it's muse, the Apple iPhone. Let's be clear, the prototype is not functional by any stretch of the imagination. It simply turns on and then slaps up one of three images representing the home screen, dialer, or media player depending upon which of the three physical buttons you press along the bottom of the main display. The capacitive touch panel does not work at all. While the physical components may or may not be in place, this is clearly a very early engineering sample. Having said that, Meizu claims that the hardware is complete and final -- they are only working on their Meizu OS tweaks to the Windows CE 6.0 base. However, the GUI and icon designs are pretty much locked in at this point with only minor changes expected before this hits China this August for a to be determined price. Unfortunately, Meizu is still working on their international deployment strategy (duh, they're looking to sign up distributors at CeBIT) so they are not willing to commit to any dates or prices. Gotta say, for all our justifiable M8 bashing, the mini One felt good in the hand and the additional hard buttons, 720 x 480 pixel display, 3 megapixel camera and likely el cheapo price tag have once again perked our interests. Still, it's a long way from it's original 3G HSDPA and kitchen-sink roots and a bit too late (GSM/EDGE in 6 months, Puh-leeze) at this point to be anything more than a novelty outside of China. Nevertheless, the development lifecycle has been fun to watch. Click through for the main features and specifications expected at launch. Video in a jiffy.

Update: Video now available, also of the UI.

We'll be honest with you -- IDL Motors' installation at Toy Fair 2008 was a bit short on details, but we're certainly digging what we saw. Apparently, both the Bullet Train & Cars and Z-drive creations were on display, and while the former used linear propulsion to whiz magnet-laden "cars" around a track, the latter enabled similar vehicles to climb steeper slopes than their previous prototypes. Still, we know what you're here for, so click on through to take a peek at the video.

[Via MAKE]