magic

Traditional mice have flirted with touch-based scroll bars for at least four or five years, but we've only had full-surface touch-capable mice since Apple debuted the Magic Mouse in 2009. Microsoft followed with its own Touch Mouse last year. Logitech's M600 Touch Mouse is the latest contender.

None of these mice works as intuitively as a smartphone, and they all still rely on a traditional spring mechanism to register clicks. They're not bad, though, and with a few simple gesture systems, they're all easy enough to pick up. As the category matures, perhaps after touch-focused Windows … Read more

Starbucks is giving its augmented reality mobile app a little bit more love. Literally.

As part of a new update, users of the company's Cup Magic app can now point their phones at Starbucks Valentine's Day-themed cups to see new, love-themed effects that appear to be happening on the cup itself.

Starbucks originally launched its Magic Cup app last November on both iOS (iTunes) and Android (Market) to coincide with the coffee chain's annual run of holiday-themed cups. Users would point their smartphone's camera at one of the seasonal cups and it would pull up an augmented reality scene that matched up with whatever character was on the cup.

This new addition is a little more limited, with the company only using one type of cup that will be carried in its stores through February 16. … Read more

While the LP revival is still in full swing you rarely hear about the other 12-inch, grooved vinyl record format, the RCA VideoDisc.

It was a grooved, carbon-loaded PVC disc. The grooves were 48 times smaller than an LP groove, but they were still tracked with a diamond "needle"! That was possible because unlike an LP's zigzag grooves the CED's grooves were hills and dales. That difference also minimized groove wear, so the discs could be played hundreds of times. VHS and Beta tapes would wear out faster than that. The VideoDisc also had stereo soundtracks.… Read more

I'll let you in on a little secret: I haven't been thrilled with any iPad keyboard case solution, despite testing and reviewing about half a dozen of them.

Sure, some of them are excellent products. Still, I don't find them essential. This is why I don't use my iPad during mission-critical trips to trade shows and live-blogged events. This is why I don't use my iPad as a laptop replacement. Not entirely. Not yet.

I agree with a lot of what Harry McCracken refers to in his experience with his iPad and the ZaggFolio keyboard case. Ideally, having such an ultraportable, flexible device with a long battery life would be a perfect travel tool. For me, however, that perfect tool hasn't materialized yet.

I'd love to have some sort of evolved hybrid of an iPad and a MacBook Air. I've been dreaming of it for a while, actually. Apple's clearly leaning toward a fusion of sorts between iOS and Mac OS X. Lion was the first step. iOS gets a bit more advanced every year, taking baby steps toward being a true operating system for hard-core computing tasks.

There are several reasons it won't work right now, and the biggest by far is the good old-fashioned trackpad--or lack of it.… Read more

LAS VEGAS--Apple's wireless keyboard lacks a full-fledged number pad, and while most users can do without, for some a number pad is a must.

Instead of adding another accessory to your desk, taking up more valuable desk space. Mobee has came up with a way to convert the Magic Trackpad into a Magic Numpad.

We were able to get our hands on the Magic Numpad here at CES 2012, and while we couldn't see a full demo due to Bluetooth interference in the hall, so we've included a video from Mobee below of the Magic Numpad in … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Last year LG released only one TV with our favorite kind of LED backlight, but for 2012 it has announced three sizes, from 47 through 60 inches.

All three of the LG LM9600 series offer that rare full-array local dimming LED backlight, but only two--the 47- and 55-inchers--utilize the "Nano" structure found on the 2011 55LW9800, which allows for a thinner cabinet design. The non-Nano 60-incher will have a thicker cabinet, although all three will boast the company's new thin Cinema Screen bezel, measuring "less than 5mm" according to a company rep we spoke … Read more

LG has a number of new features in 2012--namely the upgraded Magic Motion remote, nonexistent bezels, and 3D gaming--all of which reside in the new LM8600 LCD.

As we predicted, slim bezels are in this year, and the LM8600--part of LG's Cinema Screen range--features a bezel less than 5mm thin. While some reports have it at 1mm, LG has confirmed to CNET that the edge-lit LED Cinema Screen bezels are all 5mm; a 1mm bezel is reserved for the company's OLED TV.

LG was one of the first companies other than Apple to use a one-sheet-of-glass design, and … Read more

Apple will spend $5 million to settle a suit filed by Elan Microelectronics over the alleged violation of a patent for multitouch technology, Elan said today.

As part of the settlement, the two companies have also received authorization to use each other's patents, according to Reuters.

In April 2009, Taiwan-based Elan filed its suit against Apple in U.S. District Court, accusing the iPhone maker of violating a 1998 Elan patent covering a method to detect the use of one or more fingers on a touchpad. Apple then countersued Elan for alleging infringing on two Apple touchpad-related patents.

Elan … Read more

Inventor and engineer Jason Giddings hopes you have a few extra bucks to back his idea for a multitouch mouse and keyboard concept made entirely out of glass and metal.

The combo looks like the input device used on the Gibson supercomputer in "Hackers," but Hal and the Plague would probably be more psyched to use Giddings' wireless peripherals.

The glass surface of the keyboard and mouse shrug off food crumbs and most liquids, and both use Frustrated Total Internal Reflection (FTIR) technology with the help of an embedded camera to pick up infrared light reflected off the inside walls. Proprietary software then picks up the location of the tap and engages the appropriate key press.

Did I mention the software is open source? Yep, that means any developer can potentially manipulate it beyond the functionality of other multitouch peripherals like the Apple Magic Trackpad and the Optimus Maximus keyboard.

You can see visual mockups of the keyboard and mouse set at the Kickstarter donation page, but Giddings still has a long way to go before he reaches the $50,000 goal needed to build prototypes and enter preproduction.

Pledge $10 for a chance to submit your ideas on what to name this thing--the winner will receive the first production model! More concept photos after the jump.… Read more