VeinScanner
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Sony's FVA-U1 reads veins, coming to Japan this month
Sony has finally delivered on its Mofiria promise with what it claims is the world's smallest and lightest finger vein reader. That assertion may be challenged by Hitachi, whose 3mm-thick scanner promises to be even smaller, but the critical difference here is that the FVA-U1 is about to go on sale in Japan come December 18, whereas Hitachi's hardware is nowhere to be found. The Sony scanner weighs a measly 33 grams, hooks up via USB, and adds an extra layer of biometric protection for your most precious data. Whether carrying around an extra dongle just to protect some Excel spreadsheets and your Outlook account is worth it, we leave up to you.
Hitachi builds 3mm-thick vein scanner in its Transylvanian lair
Hitachi has always been hot for vein authentication modules, and its latest iteration takes the whole tech down to just three millimeters in thickness. Given that the current generation requires 23.5mm (nearly an inch) of space to operate in, it's easy to see why your netbook doesn't have one, but Hitachi hopes that's all about to change. Using a CMOS sensor to take almost instant readings, the vein scanner is deadly accurate -- there's only a one in a million chance of it authorizing the wrong person. Volume production is expected within two years, meaning that by 2011 you'll finally have a reliable way to keep your parents out of your "Misc" data folders.
