(Credit:
Dell)
Sure, Polaroid might be 6 feet under (or is it?), but casual photo enthusiasts can still enjoy instant gratification with Dell's Dell Wasabi PZ310 Mobile Printer, just announced today.
The Wasabi uses Zero-Ink (ZINK) technology that replaces cumbersome print cartridges with dye crystals embedded right into the proprietary ZINK paper. The crystals are heated as the paper passes through the printer, rendering clear, sharp images in less than a minute for each 2-inch by 3-inch photo.
ZINK also licenses its technology to other companies for their own unique products. For example, look for cameras and ZINK printers to converge in the Polaroid Pogo, to be released in the spring.
The printer uses Bluetooth to connect wirelessly to a variety of devices, and there's also a PictBridge port on the side for wired printing. The Wasabi comes in three iridescent colors, available now for $99. Each printer ships with stick-back photo paper, perfect for displaying your pictures on any hard surface.
(Credit:
Polaroid)
People are still lamenting the passing of Polaroid Instant Film into history, but thanks to technology featured in its tiny portable PoGo printer launched in 2008, the company is offering a new shoot-and-print option: the Polaroid PoGo Instant Digital Camera. And despite its parent company's woes, Polaroid has no intention of curtailing product plans in 2009.
Plans for a 21st century Polaroid camera were announced in August 2008, but the product itself was announced at CES 2009.
The camera, which has a certain retro boxiness to it, is pretty big in comparison to most point-and-shoots with its camera specs. The 7-megapixel camera/printer measures 4.7 inches wide by 3 inches high by 1.3 inches deep and weighs 10 ounces--without paper, battery, or SD card. Keep in mind though: the original instant-print cameras didn't fit in a coat pocket, but this one does.
There's a 3-inch LCD on back and controls are simple. The only disappointment is the lack of an optical zoom, likely due to space constraints (there's a 4X digital zoom, though).
The camera uses Polaroid's Zink (zero ink) 2-by-3-inch paper. The LCD simply pops up, you insert a deck of 10 sheets, and you're ready to go. Shoot something you want to print? Hit the Print button on back, pick the photo, and press OK. In less than a minute you have a print.
I have had a chance to play around with the camera and I've got to say that it's a lot of fun, but definitely not for everyone. The print quality is just OK, which for a photo that small is fine (though I hope Polaroid can figure out how to do larger print sizes). Also, the camera itself is comparable with any other inexpensive 7-megapixel camera.
No pricing was announced, but I would guess it to be around $200 when it ships in spring 2009.
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EPISODE 116 |
Sheruken Magnets (thanks Shalin!!)
Bellysonic speaker pouch will soothe you and your pregnant belly
New baby storage concept: Wall mounting (thanks Shalin!)
Snore Pro to help frazzled wives
Remote, sound-emitting anti-barking devices
For the romantically inclined: Thermal leak detector
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The $19.99 Pogo has an ultralight aluminum body with an anodized finish and laser graphics.
(Credit: Ten One Design)Most people use their fingers to operate their iPhones and iPod Touches because Steve Jobs made sure the touch-screens of those devices were finger-friendly. But that hasn't stopped Ten One Design from making a special stylus, the Pogo ($19.99), for those of you who just don't think your fingers cut it when it comes to operating your iPhone or iPod Touch.
Ten One Design's marketing materials sum up the new stylus this way:
The sleek design of the Pogo Stylus features an ultralight aluminum body with an anodized finish and laser graphics. The soft tip glides easily over the surface of the display, making it fun and easy to sketch, draw characters, or just slide to unlock. Sized for accuracy, it does away with the awkward typos and misfires common to fingertip-only use.
Eliminating fingers has the added benefit of keeping the screen free of smudges and grease. Designed to firmly hug the contours of the iPhone 3G, the Pogo Stylus travel clip will keep your stylus close at hand. A second clip is included for the original iPhone and iPod touch.
What do you guys think? Are you not satisfied with your fingers when using your iPhone or Touch? Would this help with banging out e-mails faster with the virtual keyboard?
I personally would probably lose the thing within a month--even with that clip-on holder, which impinges on the sleek design of both products. But that's just me.
The PoGo inkless printer produces wallet-size pictures that can be turned into stickers.
(Credit: James Martin/CNET News.com)Polaroid, the company that brought the world the iconic snap-and-print camera, is ready to introduce a new instant-photo product fit for the Digital Age. The PoGo, a mobile, inkless printer with a cute name, is small enough to fit in a pocket and prints wallet-size pictures that can be turned into stickers.
The company--which continues its attempt to transition from an analog past to a digital future--hopes the Polaroid-on-the-go will revolutionize instant photo printing.
The PoGo is small enough to fit in a pocket.
(Credit: James Martin/CNET News.com)Polaroid showed the little 8-ounce PoGo to CNET News.com on Tuesday. The product receives images via Bluetooth from a camera cell phone or through a USB cord from any digital camera. Then it uses inkless Zink technology to heat up the photo paper and bring out the colors embedded in the paper's dye crystals.
Without ink heads, printers can be smaller and save money on ink. However, the Zink paper will still cost extra--an average of 35 cents per print. Future plans include larger prints that rely on the the same mobile, inkless concept.
Jon Pollock, vice president and general manager of product planning and new technology at Polaroid, said the product is aimed at teens and young adults who want to print from their cell phone cameras and get instant access to their shots.
The back side of the photos can be peeled, turning pictures into stickers--perfect for slapping on an unsuspecting victim's back, but ideally used for decorating or making collages.
Although Polaroid sells digital cameras and other gadgets, it almost missed the digital wave. Pollock admitted the company suffered about five years ago when it still dealt with analog cameras, but it appears ready to climb back to the top of the photography world. By 2009, the classic instant Polaroid camera will finally fall by the wayside. Pollock said the PoGo is its replacement.
Polaroid's PoGo will be available at Best Buy on July 6 and in most department stores by the fall. The printer retails for $149.
Don't you love when innocent playground activities meld with extreme sports?
(Credit:
Hammacher Schlemmer)
The same crazy folks at Hammacher Schlemmer that brought us the Mountain Scooter, Gravity-Defying Boots and Push-Free Skateboard, are now pushing The Pneumatic Drive Highest-Jumping Pogo Stick.
This is not the pogo stick of our childhoods. No, no, this one's inner compression spring generates more than 1,500 pounds of thrust capable of hurtling you seven feet in the air, which incidentally is the world record for pogoing set by--you guessed it--The Pneumatic Drive Highest-Jumping Pogo Stick. Air can be added by bike pump or air compressor to the pneumatic cylinder to make pogoing as dangerous, and expensive, as possible. This toy will set you back $350, and may require that you wear a helmet.
But really, who cares that one false move could mean eating through a straw for the rest of your life? It's FUN.
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