handwriting
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Apple looking to put handwriting recognition into the iPhone?
We know Apple's had its Inkwell handwriting recognition software in OS X for years now, so we might have otherwise just totally glossed over this Handwriting Recognition Engineer job listing on Apple's site. Except for the part that reads: "The recognition technology you create may extend beyond Mac OS X to other applications and the iPhone." They always love to throw those little tidbits in there, don't they?[Via Macrumors]
Cheap keyboard boasts handwriting recognition
Initially, the thought of having a keyboard with a built-in writing pad seems pretty nifty, but when you realize that this particular one is understandably missing a numerical keypad (not to mention any signs of quality), your opinion may change. Nevertheless, this interesting hybrid device, labeled by A1Pro, reportedly touts the ability to recognize your handwriting and withstand the expletives that are sure to fly when fishing about for the incredibly tiny Backspace key. 'Course, that about rounds up its feature list, but hey, what else would you expect for a mere $25.48?[Via CNET]
EPOS Technologies' digital pen records your writing
Have you ever been sitting around and suddenly thought of the cure for cancer, or figured out how to build the world's largest hamburger, but you didn't have any way to get your idea down? Sure, you could write it on a piece of paper, but what if that paper got ripped, or blown away by a strong gust of wind? Well luckily, EPOS Technologies thought about all of this and came up with a solution: a digital pen which records your movements on a piece of paper, and then saves them to a USB flash drive for later use. The two-part combo utilizes the company's proprietary system of transmission which employs ultrasonic acoustic waves to help measure the distance and position of the pen, so apparently all you have to do is clip the flash drive to a notepad or related writing surface, and off you go. The whole wacky set-up is available for the bargain-basement price of $79, and should be available by the end of the year.
Hanwang's handwriting recognition mouse one-ups Chinese keyboard
It's tough enough to peck and hunt when you've only got 26 or so primary characters to fool around with, but trying to construct something meaningful in Chinese just has to be a tad more complex than we'd like to imagine. Hanwang's latest mouse is looking to ease the pain suffered while penning an email with wildly elaborate characters by offering a more natural approach to keying in text, as built-in top-mounted screen accepts handwritten input via the integrated stylus (seen after the jump). As expected, users can actually write characters on the LCD rather than typing it in, presumably making things a bit easier on those who'd rather handle a writing utensil than fight with a keyboard. No word on pricing or availability just yet, but we're still not entirely convinced a mouse-sized panel would be classified as "convenient" when trying to pen a dissertation.[Via EverythingUSB]
Motion Computing unveils RFID-reading C5 medical tablet PC
Although we sincerely hope your only encounter with a clinical assistant tablet PC comes by way of your occupation, it looks like Motion Computing is busting out a medically-focused device to help the dear LPNs keep things in order for the high-falutin' doctors. The C5 touts a vertically centered design, top-mounted carry handle, handwriting recognition, built-in digital camera for documenting wounds, time-stamp / voice-tag capabilities, and even an optional RFID reader to easily check patients in by scanning their wrist straps. Claiming to be the world's first device in the new mobile clinical assistant (MCA) category of PCs, it packs a 1.2GHz Intel Core Solo U1400 processor, Windows Vista Business or Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, a 10.4-inch XGA touchscreen, up to 1.5GB of DDR2 RAM, 30 / 60GB 1.8-inch hard drive options, 802.11a/b/g, Bluetooth, and a rechargeable Li-ion to boot. Furthermore, it weighs in at just 3.1-pounds, so toting this bad boy around the office shouldn't be too much of a burden, and the "durable, semi-sealed enclosure" shouldn't have any issues handling the daily mishaps of your average doctor's lounge. So if you've been looking for a way to digitize your office and get far, far away from those paper-filled drawers, we're sure your IT rep will be hitting you up soon to sneak a peek at this $2,199 tablet.[Via GottaBeMobile]
Sony Ericsson Z558i does pen input
At first glance, the new Sony Ericsson Z558 looks like nothing more than a rehash of the Z550 geared toward the Chinese market. By and large, that's an accurate assessment, save for one critical detail: the new model packs a touch screen and stylus for handwriting recognition -- a feature that seems like overkill for Latin characters, but thinking about Chinese puts things in an entirely different perspective. Much like the Nokia 6108 before it, the Z558 sports handwriting recognition for the sole purpose of making life a little easier on folks whose languages are composed of thousands of characters (though as you can see from the press photo, you can write in English too, if you're into that sort of thing). Other features include a 1.3-megapixel cam, 18MB of internal memory expandable to 1GB via Memory Stick Micro cards, and a 900 / 1800 / 1900MHz GSM radio with EDGE; look for it in Z558c and Z558i variants for mainland China and the rest of the world, respectively.[Via Slashphone]
