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Node gives your iPhone sensory input
Sensor technologies are all the rage right now, and for good reason. As a kid one of my favorite watches was a Casio with a temperature sensor in it, yet my iPhone 5 has to traverse a network of hardware devices to tell me the temperature, and even then the sensor is miles away. If we want our devices to be smarter, they're going to need more sensory input about our surroundings. I interviewed Dr. George Yu, the man behind the Node, a platform for sensory input which happens to work with iOS devices. Today there's news of the Lapka set of sensors for your iPhone, and a few days ago I read news of the SCOUT, a sort of personal medical Tricorder (although nowhere near as powerful as the ones featured in Star Trek). While Lapka looks nice, how many people really need to measure radiation on a regular basis? Also, logging your EM field for the day is great, but what's the practical use? What's been lacking in the past has been a sort of basic utility device with attachments that you can add as needed, all of which enable your iPhone to "see" the world around it. As if the iPhone were compatible with Batman's utility belt. Enter Node, a sort of Wiimote-meets-Tricorder device that's more of a platform than iOS accessory. It's designed to be functional, has high-grade equipment inside and is hacker friendly. Dr. Yu founded Variable Technologies after building a gas sensor for the government which attached to the iPhone. When the product was never brought to market, Yu's passion for tinkering took over and a Kickstarter project launched the first round of Node base units and sensors. While we rarely cover Kickstarter projects because they are often one-off products which often fall short of expectations, Variable Tech's use of the Kickstarter platform was merely the beginning. It, along with some years of experience in building the gas sensor, allowed Yu's team to go from concept plans to product in 11 months. He says they can now go from the concept of a sensor to actual production in a mere three months. This isn't just a company rethinking iPhone sensors, it's rethinking how we make hardware. Speaking of hardware, the Node is exceptionally well built. The white plastic cylinder looks and feels as tough as a Wii remote, and the internal components were chosen for performance, not price. In particular, the Bluetooth module is fast, making connecting much less of a chore than in the past. Compared to some other devices the pairing was fast indeed, and Bluetooth 4 is now supported across all Apple mobile devices. A simple USB port connects for charging and this "Kore" unit contains motion sensors like the iPhone and Wii remote, allowing you to wake the device up my a gentle shake. The Node is based on the Kore unit, and additional sensors are attached at either end of the Kore's cylinder. The Clima module is like my old Casio, with a temperature gauge and barometer, ambient light and humidity. Other sensors currently shipping include the Therma, a point-and-shoot temperature sensor, and the Chroma, a color sensor. The Chroma sounds puzzling at first, but if you've ever tried to match colors on a wall when you go to the paint store, only to discover this nifty thing called "automatic white balance" is driving you insane, you will immediately understand the Chroma's utility. Of course Variable Tech has much more planned, and I saw the Oxa gas sensor in person although it is not yet shipping. That sensor goes back to Dr. Yu's roots, and yet is still one of many more sensors in the works, he assured me. He envisions "modules like apps," and at the rate they are able to execute, I'd say that's about right. As I said earlier, the Node is a platform. Instead of a locked-down, proprietary method of exchanging data, the Node has an API. Data files are kept clean and simple. The hardware itself can even be tinkered with, similar to Arduino. The awesome thing is that developers can write applications for the Node platform, opening up a whole new world of possibility for sensor-based apps. In years gone by dedicated hardware would be required for these tasks, and the costs were higher as a result. But the Node starts at $149, and sensors are around $75 (more or less, depending on the cost of components). Even if you bought the range of sensors (and the flashlight) you're looking at a cheaper, more powerful toolkit than what a trunk full of gear would have been just five years ago. That's significant, and the sensory evolution has only just begun.
Motorola considering Nike+ SportWatch contender?
It looks like Motorola might be prepping to give the Nike+ SportWatch a run for its money. An intrepid tipster sent along a screenshot from a recent survey showing off what looks like a tricked out nano watch. Described as an "all-in-one fitness and music personal fitness device" (redundant much?) that packs a GPS for "accurate performance tracking," the as of yet unnamed gadget also sports a "smart music player" that compiles a list of songs based on the tunes that help you sweat your best. It also lets you wirelessly sync to your PC for workout analysis, and apparently does the same for Android devices. Among the possible names listed in the survey is the MotoActive, hinting at, but certainly not pinning down, Motorola branding. Of course this is just an online survey, so we wouldn't get too excited about your new running mate just yet. [Thanks, Anon]
KORE gets fresh video, screens
Snap Dragon's KORE has once again clanked into our eyeline, thanks to the release of new media over the weekend. The Wii already has a truly great 3D platformer, but it could certainly do with more than just Super Mario Galaxy. KORE makes an impressive start by sporting finely animated cut-scenes (embedded after the jump) and nifty art design -- think The Nightmare Before Christmas crossed with Death Jr.: Root of Evil with a sprinkling of Ratchet & Clank -- throughout its six worlds.Stomp past the break in an oversized robot suit to see more videos, or into our gallery for fresh screenshots.%Gallery-23516%
Recently revived KORE makes its 'krazy' video debut
We initially dismissed Zoink and SnapDragon Games' KORE when it popped back into the news a few months ago -- after all, how good could a game that was initially designed for the original Xbox, cancelled, then revived for the Wii possibly be? Our hopes for the title were admittedly low -- however, a pair of videos for the redesigned platformer, including the trailer above and an 11-minute gameplay montage (embedded after the break), recently made their way onto GameTrailers ... and into our hearts.Okay, we're still not entirely sold on KORE quite yet, but the robo-platforming and Psychonauts-esque visuals are more than enough to pique our collective interest. We'll be keeping an eye on the resuscitated title as its ambitious developers continue revamping it -- we just hope they kan limit the inkorrekt usage of the letter K. It upsets the English majors among us.
Wii gives shelved Xbox title a second chance
We admit that the Wii is capable of many things, arm cramps and printing money chief among them, though even we had not counted resurrection among its laundry list of features. Yet that appears to be the case, at least with regards to formerly defunct original Xbox platformer The Kore Gang (shown above), with the title having been given new life as an upcoming release from Zoink Games and SnapDragon Games for the Wii.Originally developed by Unique Development Studios, a Swedish outfit that closed its doors in 2004, the game now carries the shorter, and all-capital name KORE. As a title that originally began life on Microsoft's freshman console, thankfully the name is not all that's being revised. Publisher Zoink notes that much work has gone into the game's design and story, which tells of a trio of characters stuffed into a mechanical suit as they protect the center of the earth from bad guys, leaving us hoping that at least one of them is Brendan Fraser.
KORE makes the Wii its core console
Swedish developer ZOINK is partnering with Snapdragon Games to bring KORE to the Wii -- not to be confused with C.O.R.E., which we wrote about earlier today on our pretty little sister site, DS Fanboy.There's a chance that you've heard of KORE before, only you'd probably remember it as The Kore Gang instead. It was originally being made for the Xbox, but when the previous publisher (UDS) went out of business, things got flipped around. In any case, this platformer is now Nintendo-bound.The story revolves around three characters who are trapped inside a robot. This robot's abilities change depending on who's controlling it, which will be an important aspect of progressing through the game. It's up to these robot users to save the world from aliens, who are building a doomsday device in the Earth's core.According to ZOINK's developers, this title is also going to be full of lots of humor and silliness. We're all about games that don't take themselves to seriously, so we'll be looking into this fun-sounding platformer as it progresses.*Note: The screens and art shown here are from the Xbox version, as these are all we have to go on for the time being.%Gallery-23516%
TR demolitionist shows how a novelty build goes boom
Their game having only been out for two months now, Tabula Rasa players really haven't been able to indulge in the curious wonder that is the novelty build. You know the type; that player who directs a veritable laser focus on making his character excel in a very specific, though usually not entirely practical or ordinary aspect of his game du jour. The difficulty of building one of these hyper-specialists varies from game to game, and Tabula Rasa's casual-friendly cloning dynamic favors this kind of experimentation and specialization.The video shown above, plucked from the Planet TR forums, shows a player named Kore from the Cassiopeia server demonstrating the extraordinary explosive potential of a speed freak demolitionist build. Seeing a demolitionist at all is rare enough, as the specialist classes still haven't seen the full buff that the designers have promised, but spotting a demolitionist decked out in motor assist armor and popping pump 5 sprint is perhaps rarer still. Looks pretty fun to me though.
