Scanners
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NVIDIA's AI will help GE speed up medical image processing
Deep learning tech is making itself at home in hospitals by helping radiologists examine medical scans for just a buck per image. Now, GE Healthcare is bringing that AI tech directly to the scanners, thanks to partnerships with NVIDIA and Intel. It announced that it will update 500,000 of its medical devices around the world with NVIDIA AI tech, most notably its Revolution Frontier CT scanner (below). The tech "is expected to deliver better clinical outcomes in liver lesion detection and kidney lesion characterization because of its speed," GE wrote in a press release.
Epson's $650 FastFoto scanner is ludicrously speedy
Even though the vast majority of people have switched to digital photography, someone in your family likely has a box of old pictures stashed away somewhere. Birthday parties, Thanksgivings, bar mitzvahs -- there's probably some record of your childhood trapped in there. (My family certainly does.) Add in the fact that there's less and less need to own a printer, plus the tedium of scanning, and it all means those memories are likely to stay offline. Epson is looking to unearth that treasure pile of moments with the new FastFoto FF-640, which can scan, sort and even post your entire photo collection at a rate of one photo per second.
A rare fossil makes an appearance at the Natural History Museum
A nine-year-old girl patiently looked on while a technician pulled up a scan of her specimen. A 3D skull with a pointy beak popped up on the computer screen. The child, wearing clear-framed glasses and a light gray tee with a sequined star on the front, walked up to her father, who carefully put away the skull of a duck inside a round plastic container. They had found the tiny head on a beach and had decided to bring it in for Identification Day at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
The best cheap scanner
This post was done in partnership with The Wirecutter, a buyer's guide to the best technology. Read the full article here. By Lizz Schumer After more than 40 hours of researching scanners and testing the four units that made our final cut, we found the $90 Canon CanoScan LiDE 220 is the fastest, most accurate, and most intuitive flatbed scanner for everyday users. Whether you're saving an old photo, a child's artwork, or an excerpt from a book, the LiDE 220 produces the clearest scans with the sharpest lines and most vivid colors. In our tests, it also offered the most accurate text recognition across all documents. This light and compact unit can work upright, as well, and because it requires just one USB port, it won't clutter up your workspace.
SuperScanner! is an impressive emergency radio scanner for your iPad
This app brings back memories of my trips to Radio Shack back in the day to look at scanners to listen to police, fire, aircraft and other emergency frequencies. SuperScanner! (US$9.99) recreates those days with a slick iPad app that gives you access to these stations. You're not stuck with just your local police and other public frequencies, but can hop all over the US and the world. When running, the app looks just like the beloved 16-channel hardware scanners. The major difference is that you can search for any location, program frequencies in, and then listen for hours. You can program favorites, have the app switch frequencies at a set time, or touch an active frequency to hold it there. SuperScanner! can be set to give you background audio if you want to do something else, but not miss out on the action. I spent some fun time exploring my local channels, then took a virtual trip down to New Zealand, and then over to New York and Los Angeles where the channels are very active. SuperScanner! can also "travel" the world at random looking for activity. SuperScanner! has a great deal of power, but the user interface is not terribly intuitive should you want access to the deeper features. Help is built-in, but a trip to the developer website answered more of my questions. I had a lot of fun with SuperScanner! It mimicked the old analog scanner hardware, but added features those old scanners could never offer. SuperScanner! requires iOS 6.1.3 or greater, and an iPad 2 or newer. I'd love to see this app in a universal format so it could run on my iPhone, but there are many similar apps offered that will work on the smartphone. Some of the more well-reviewed apps include the 5-0 Radio Pro Police Scanner ($2.99), the free Emergency Radio app, and Police Scanner+ ($2.99). These apps aren't as feature rich as SuperScanner!, but are all excellent. %Gallery-194789%
Fujitsu outs ScanSnap iX500 scanner with iOS and Android apps, improved speeds
Fujitsu's been making scanners for years now, and it's even figured how to bypass the PC altogether so that you can send files straight to an iOS or Android device. The last time it released a phone-friendly scanner, though, it was more of a portable device, one that was only capable of scanning so many pages per minute. Now, the company's coming out with the ScanSnap iX500, a very similar product except for the fact that it's meant to live on your desk, and has enough power to scan documents twice as quickly. Thanks largely to a new feeder system, it can scan up to 25 double-sided pages per minute, compared with 20 ppm on Fujitsu's last desktop model. It also packs a new processor that will help the scanner auto-rotate images and make other corrections more quickly. Additionally, Fujitsu claims this does a faster job at making PDFs searchable, adding all the appropriate metadata your computer would need to find the file. Finally, the main Quick Menu is now customizable so that you can pick and choose which apps receive scanned files. For instance, Photoshop isn't an option by default, but you can make it one through a short setup process. The scanner is available today and priced at $495: expensive, yes, but about what you would've had to pay for the last-gen model too. Follow all the latest CES 2013 news at our event hub.
Canon outs redesigned arsenal of printers and scanners for its PIXMA and CanoScan lines
Thinking about pulling the trigger on a new printer or scanner in the near future? You may want to sit tight for a bit. Canon has outed its newest grouping of the aforementioned peripherals with retooled frames and a smattering of other improvements. For those looking for an all-in-one solution, the PIXMA MG6320 and MG5420 carry the multi-function moniker and a snap-edge design that makes getting to those precious ink cartridges a breeze. The new exterior also relocates the paper handling to allow the unit to rest flush against a wall or the back of a shelf. What's the difference, you ask? Well, the MG6320 (pictured above) wields a 3.5-inch touch-screen LCD while the MG5420 houses a regular ol' 3-inch LCD. However, both feature a truckload wireless printing capabilities from both computers and mobile devices. No word on a ship date, but the pair will be priced at $200 and $150 when they make their debut in stores. If a single-function unit is more your style, the PIXMA iP7220 might just do the trick. The wireless printer touts a Quiet Mode for less noisy operation and ramps up the output speeds to 15 images per minute (ipm) in black and white and ten in color. Details are scarce on an arrival here as well, but the peripheral will set you back $100 when it hits. Last but certainly not least, the CanoScan 9000F Mark II photo scanner is poised to handle that hefty cataloging project whether it consists of 35mm film, slides or other visual artifacts. The 9000F boasts a max DPI of 9,600 x 9,600 for film and 4,800 x 4,800 for other types of media alongside Auto Document Fix that insures scans are top-notch. Again, an exact sale date remains elusive, but the archival aid will ship for $200. All of the particulars on each of the four models awaits in the full PR just past the break.
Amtrak conductors to "punch your ticket" using iPhones
Here's a modern twist on a time-honored tradition for train travelers. Since last fall, Amtrak has been training conductors to use an iOS device to scan passenger tickets on some selected routes, including Boston to Portland, Maine, and San Jose to Sacramento, California. According to the New York Times, 1700 conductors will be using the new system -- which combines an iPhone with a custom hardware sled for receipt printing -- across the country by late summer. The Amtrak tool was developed in part by Seattle's Übermind agency, which was acquired by the consulting arm of Deloitte at the start of 2012. Passengers will still be able to print their tickets, but alternatively they can show a 2D barcode on their mobile phone screens, eliminating paper completely. This is similar to Fandango's app for movies or air travel boarding pass apps. This is a big switch from the classic hole puncher the trains have been using since, well, forever. Where I lived there weren't a lot of useful train routes the family could take, but I'm always reminded of that old chilling Twilight Zone episode where passenger James Daly gets on a train and heads to a simpler world when his ticket is punched for Willoughby. That episode kept me off trains for a long time. This new ticket tech might get me back on one.
Apparent announces WiFi-powered Doxie Go scanner
Apparent has announced a new model of its popular Doxie Go scanner with Wi-Fi support. The tiny appliance can be charged up, slipped into a bag and carried around for on-the-go scanning of documents, receipts or other slip of paper you want to digitize and save. When we reviewed the Doxie Go in December, a workaround with Eye-Fi Wi-Fi / SD cards enabled wireless scanning of sorts, but now the devices have wireless functionality built in. Documents scanned with the new model can be sent to your computer, mobile device, or to Evernote, Flickr, or an FTP account. Its street price is listed at US$239. Check back with us all week as our team at Macworld | iWorld is providing complete coverage of all the goodies on the expo floor.
IRL: Spotify, Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300 and Oakley's AP backpack 3.0
Welcome to IRL, an ongoing feature where we talk about the gadgets, apps and toys we're using in real life and take a second look at products that already got the formal review treatment. In this, our last edition of IRL before worldwide eat-Chinese-food-and-go-to-the-movies day, we're unpacking our gifts a few days early. Darren replaced his document scanner after his old one went to wherever it is that deceased scanners go, Joe finally settled on a gadget bag stylish enough to go with his skinny jeans and Brian's given himself the gift of a Spotify premium account. So how's it going, here in real life? Head past the break to find out.
Apple lists Snow Leopard-compatible printers and scanners
I'll come right out and say that I don't like scanners. Granted, I haven't used any high-end models, but in my experience, scanning a simple image to my Mac was akin to piloting a space module. As a chimp. While Mac OS X Snow Leopard includes a great number of scanner (and printer) drivers, some readers are reporting trouble with their particular machines. This week, Apple has published a list of both scanners and printers that are known to work. You can read it here. I've got an Epson R300, and luckily it's covered. Heck, even my beloved HP 952c still works under Snow Leopard. It's a comprehensive list, and we're hoping your machine is there. Of course, if your peripheral stopped working after installing Snow Leopard, you ought to visit the manufacturer's website for an update. And by "visit" we mean "pester." [Via Victor Cajiao]
Book scanning gets a 1,000 fps turbo mode
No matter how fly or flashy modern scanners become, there's no getting away from their page-by-page assembly line style of operation. Or so we thought. The Ishikawa Komuro Lab at Tokyo University has demonstrated a prototype scanner capable of recording the contents of pages as they turn. Using a laser range projector to estimate page geometry, the camera adjusts for light and movement distortion as necessary and retains faithful copies of the original. At present it's more a proof of concept for the underlying vision processing unit than a commercial venture, but all it needs is one major manufacturer to pick it up and the paperless revolution can finally get started in earnest. [Via Plastic Pals]
Animations to die for
I was chatting with a friend the other day (shut up! I do too have friends!) and we were playing reference poker -- you know, someone makes a comment referring to some aspect of pop culture, and the other person replies in kind. She said ' ... you are eaten by a grue.' I made the obligatory Zork return reference and we moved on, but the bit about being eaten stayed with me for some reason. That night, I was running around in WoW and realized that nobody in Azeroth is eaten by anything.Why can't we have encounter-specific death animations? I, for one, would love a chance to be messily devoured by a Sludge Beast! I can imagine the horrific wounds as it slid over me, eating away at my flesh until only bones remained. A much more affecting experience than merely swooning and dropping dead, as though nothing more mortal than narcolepsy had occurred. Or how about a set of pre-built death animations, available at the touch of a key? Everything from 'clutching at your heart: myocardial infarction', to 'going white as a sheet and dropping dead from fright', to 'Scanners cranial explosion'. In fact, wouldn't this make pulling off the ol' 'Feign Death' trick a lot more fun? I'm telling you, it's the little things in life that make existence bearable. Let's see more creativity with our dying moments, developers! Believe me, you stand to ... make a killing. Hahaha! Oh, I slay me.
Wave Scanner: bulky DS attachment ups the fun
There's probably no small overlap among folks who play fantasy video games and those who while away the hours engrossed in Magic-style card battles, so we're thinking that a new attachment for the Nintendo DS has a real shot at succeeding. Capcom and TakaraTomy will jointly be launching the so-called Wave Scanner in Japan next month, finally bringing the fun of collectible playing cards to the Megaman series of games. The rather bulky scanner works with a number of different Rockman Star Force titles (Rockman is Megaman's original Japanese name), and allows players to swipe special cards for influencing gameplay. We're not really sure why this ¥4,200 ($35) add-on needs to be so big and thus hinder the whole portability thing that the DS has going for it, but who knows, maybe it takes a Cell processor and some serious RAM to process those complicated bar codes.
Biometric ATMs coming to rural India
Considering all the ATM hacking that's been going on of late, it's not all that surprising to see those "uber-secure" fingerprint readers hitting mini-banks in Japan and Columbia, and now a pilot program is getting set to install 15 biometric ATMs at "village kiosks in five districts across southern India." The fingerprint-reading machines are expected to serve around 100,000 workers, primarily farmers and other laborers, who will finally be able to withdraw funds directly from a machine rather than suffering through the corrupt hand-me-down process that often steals money away from already poor workers. AGS Infotech, who is supplying the first batch of systems for the trial, is interested in seeing if the system actually works out, as many villagers have trouble interacting with any type of computing interface, and because many villages have their own dialects, making a UI that can communicate to everyone is difficult. Of course, there are individuals who suggest that these systems will only incite crime, as thieves look to new methods (read: hacking a thumb or two) to extract funds, but proponents of the system say that this is no different than armed criminals forcing someone to give up their PIN number at gunpoint. Nevertheless, the trial is slated to start soon, and there's quite a few outsiders watching intently to gauge its eventual success or failure, as analysts predict that "over 100,000 ATMs" could be necessary to handle India's booming economy in the next few years.
UK cops to trial public fingerprinting
If you just so happen to live across the pond, and have been staying out from behind bars thanks to your clever facade and charming manipulations, things are about to get a whole lot tougher. Over the next year, pilot projects in "Essex, Hertfordshire, Lancashire, North Wales, Northamptonshire, West Midlands, West Yorkshire," and other various locales will place portable biometric scanners in the hands of police. The backers hope that giving the boys in blue quick, handy access to "6.5 million fingerprints" will land more sly criminals in jail than are currently being sniffed out. According to reports, around "60 percent" of suspects are giving out entirely false identities while out and about, but considering how immensely difficult it is to alter that telltale print, British cops could be rolling quite a few more perpetrators than usual back to the precincts. Interestingly enough, suspects can only be scanned "after giving permission," which isn't likely to happen to any sane, sober, and halfway intelligent crook. Nevertheless, "project Lantern" should kick off in Beds real soon, arming contemporary cops with "PDA-like" scanners to patrol the streets and (hopefully) curb the frequency in which those oh-so-susceptible ATMs are being violated (and emptied).
New methods surfacing to rat out hostiles at airports
It seems that flying the not-so-friendly skies is becoming quite a hassle these days, as airport security is getting beefed up even more to account for the recent scare in the UK. Having to suffer through countless checkpoints as if you're guilty until proven innocent definitely flies against what we freebirds are used to, but apparently that's the price you pay if you want some sense of security while cruising the friendly skies. One company is trying to take lemons and make lemonade by offering up sophisticated filtering and detection systems that can supposedly distinguish a highly explosive Pantene bottle from your average (i.e. non-destructive) bottle of shampoo, while another outfit is lobbying to get its "intention analyzer" booth installed in commercial airports. Guardian Technologies is in talks with the TSA to get its PinPoint imaging software integrated into airport X-ray machines, which can reportedly analyze the density of liquids and determine the difference between "organic and explosive" substances (The timing here is somewhat intriguing, eh? Reminds us of how Parallels came hot on the heels of Boot Camp). The software transforms its density measurements into colorized images which provide an easy visual for spotting harmful materials, even through innocent-looking containers. Meanwhile, Suspect Detection Systems, Ltd. is also in cahoots with the TSA as it looks to install a number of "booths" in airports to rat out potential felons; any suspicious individual could be asked to answer a series of on-screen questions (such as "are you smuggling drugs?") while placing their hand on a biometric scanner within the booth -- the built-in algorithms analyze the heart rate, blood pressure, sweat quantity, etc. (think snazzy polygraph) to determine if the subject truly has an ill will or not. The Israeli-based company expects the $200,000 machine to accurately select "90 percent of potential saboteurs," while inconveniencing "only" 4 percent of non-thretening travelers. We're not sure which is more disturbing about this scenario: the fact that one in ten cool and collected terrorists can slip through undetected, or that millions of innocent travelers will be scrutinized for nothing. Regardless, with hijackings and terrorism becoming a seemingly growing threat, we can probably expect that these off-the-wall security measures will impact some of us just trying to catch a last minute flight, but aside from the impending aggravation, we're all better off safe than sorry.Read- Interrogation booth [subscription required, via Boing Boing]Read- PinPoint imaging [Via The Inquirer]
