Tampa authorities will utilize Microsoft's Surface touch-screen device, along with other technologies, as part of Super Bowl Sunday security, according to Ars Technica.
For well over a year now, more than 60 federal, state, regional, local, and municipal authorities have been working with the E-Sponder technology partnership to plan security details for Super Bowl XLIII, one of the only major sporting events that receives national security status.
Beginning this week and continuing past the final game whistle, E-Sponder will connect on-site and remote authorities, allowing them to remotely track all activities in real time with mapping, as well as 3D displays, two-way radio integration, and immediate communication.
Together with Infusion Development's Falcon Eye technology, the Tampa Incident Command staff will use the E-Sponder portal to visualize all aspects of Super Bowl goings-on.
The Microsoft Surface device will display a Microsoft Virtual Earth map of the entire region, tracking events and incidents in real time using its large display and multi-user, multitouch, and interactive capabilities, and also allowing it to communicate with remote devices and PCs.
With a quick hand gesture, the map can zoom in and display a 3D image of the city, including detailed views of buildings and streets and real-time resource tracking.
This weekend, crunchy snacks are going to be consumed across the country in staggering amounts. All the Super Bowl parties filled with delicious treats can only mean one thing: somebody has to clean it all up. Well, now, maybe not a somebody, but rather, a something.
Powered by two AA batteries, the Mini Robo Vacuum skirts across your kitchen table (or Super Bowl spread) picking up crumbs or other small bits of unwanted trash. All you have to do is push the button on top of its little robot head and off it goes.
The small robot vacuum cleaner measures 5 inches by 4 inches, and comes in three different colors. As a regular addition to your normal tablescape it should fit right in.
At only $20, the Mini Robo Vacuum isn't going to compare with a powerful robotic vacuum cleaner such as the Roomba. However, I would rather have one of these little guys scuttling about my kitchen countertop.
Certainly this weekend, robot cleaners large and small will be put to good use. Considering the amount of pretzels, potato chips, and crackers that will be consumed over this Super Bowl weekend, the robot cleaners are going to be working overtime no matter how close the game is.
(Via Dvice)
News.com Poll
For millions of people, this Sunday will be all about the Super Bowl. But for others, the big game may not be tops on their weekend to-do list.
What about you? Which gadget could most successfully distract you from watching the Steelers and Cardinals face off in XLIII?
The Super Bowl is one of the must-watch TV events of the year, and it can be a complete viewing experience.
On The Early Show on Tuesday, CNET TV Senior Editor Natali Del Conte presented super ways to make watching the big game as good as it can be for the serious living-room fan, showcasing some high-tech gadgets providing premiere ways to watch.
She also showed those who don't want to purchase anything how to make the best of what they already have:
The serious splurge: Panasonic 65-inch Premiere
This model is the Ferrari of televisions, and it only began shipping last week. It is sold only through really high-end retailers, and it cannot yet be ordered online. It has a professional studio-quality monitor and the richest black detail of any TV on the market. The plasma technology offers clear motion reproduction, deeper blacks, and a wider viewing angle.
Price: $9,995
There is no CNET review yet for this model.
The more affordable: Vizio 37-inch television
This model is not only affordable for a flat-panel TV, it gets great reviews from technology sites and magazines. It has accurate gray-scale and primary colors. This model also has one of the most important things that you should always look for in an HDTV--more than one HDMI port. This one has three, in fact, as well as one PC output. If you are looking for a solid and advanced LCD at a decent price, this is it.
Price: $730 ... Read more
TiVo might be overstating the fabulosity of the advertisements aired during Sunday's Super Bowl broadcast.
See the headline TiVo used to lead its press release regarding the most-watched ads during the game: "Talking and Trading Baby Blows Away Star-Studded Super Bowl Competition."
Um...really? Were we watching the same game?
Even if you're not a sports person, that game was "one for the ages," as sportswriters like to say. Even in the midst of a five-hour broadcast inflated with as many empty pleas for your dollars and attention as Fox could possibly fit, the star was the game itself, a succinct demonstration of why it is that we love sports.
From a sports perspective, it was the classic set-up, the epic storyline fans, broadcasters, and writers love: An established football dynasty, the New England Patriots, on the verge of achieving the rarest of feats (an undefeated season) prepared to steamroll the fifth-seeded New York Giants en route to a much-deserved place in the annals of sports.
Instead, we viewers got a gem of a game, the kind that leaves lifelong fans seriously wondering if they've even witnessed a better Super Bowl, or football game, in their memory.
But, TiVo would rather crow about which multimillion-dollar ad spot (which you're likely to forget by next week, anyway) was watched the most. The talking E-Trade babies "upstaged" every other commercial, according to TiVo audience stats, including the Doritos user-generated mouse trap, the Life Water "Thriller" spot, as well as the one where Justin Timberlake is dragged all over creation for the sake of Pepsi.
But was a CGI baby talking stocks really more memorable than young quarterback Eli Manning somehow escaping a near-certain game-ending sack to curl out and heave a pass 30-plus yards to a falling David Tyree--who didn't as much "catch" the ball as clutch it with one hand to his helmet?
Maybe I'm belaboring the point, but TiVo's urge to jump on the coattails of an amazing exercise in athletic competition seems to cheapen a classic matchup, and, more importantly, an unforgettable end to a story.
Go chowda! Er, I mean Patriots.
There's more at stake than usual in the Super Bowl this Sunday. There's bragging rights for not only Giants and Patriots fans, but also between Manhattan and New England clam chowder lovers nationwide. In other words, it's "chowder vs. chowda." There's even a friendly wager between New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino where the loser will donate local foods (such as pizza, Dunkin' Donuts, and chowder) to charity in the other mayor's city. So, may the best team/soup win! To get in the spirit, here's a free playlist featuring songs about football and soup. Artists include Bloc Party, Kate Nash, The Doors and more.
Listen to our free Super Bowl playlist: Chowder Bowl
More free music on Download Music
Best bang for your TV buck?
(Credit: Best Buy)It looks as if the obituary for CRT TVs will have to be postponed yet again. Sales of the bulky tube models bested the flat-panel and projection TV competition in the run up to the Super Bowl, according to data released by the NPD Group. Sales of tube TVs were up 61 percent the week before the big game (compared to the previous week), as opposed to a 40 percent jump for flat-panel LCD TVs, a 23 percent increase for plasmas, and a 25 percent rise for projection TVs (such as DLP and LCoS models).
While the sales figures may look surprising at first glance, they're really not. Millions of Americans simply refuse to spend more than $300 on a new TV. At that price, you can get either a 27-inch tube (with a built-in digital tuner) from an established name-brand manufacturer or a 19-inch flat-panel from an upstart brand. For most people, that's a no-brainer: Go with the bigger screen size, no matter what the form factor.
Found on CNET News.com.
By now you know it: one, Peyton Manning is pretty fantastic; and two, there was no big announcement from Apple last night involving the Beatles. No "Beatles Edition" widescreen iPod, no Fab Four tunes in the iTunes Music Store, nada. Guess we can file that one under "unsubstantiated Mac rumors."
The ad everyone's talking about, according to the similarly disappointed Cult of Mac, is the Coca-Cola spot that spoofed Grand Theft Auto. Kind of reminded me of that South Park episode where half the action took place in World of Warcraft. So, here it is; maybe watching it will erase some of the bitterness about Steve Jobs failing you.
UPDATE: Speak of the devil--no announcement has been made concerning the availability of Beatles songs on iTunes, but Apple just announced this morning that its longstanding feud with the similarly-named Beatles record label appears to be over.
I wonder what Peyton Manning craves
(Credit: YouTube)With Super Bowl Sunday just days away, plenty of tech blogs are highlighting the party gadgetry that they're recommending for the big event. Here at Crave, we're going to ask you: what are your recommendations for the ultimate Super Bowl party gadget? You can go with the obvious (um, an HDTV), the supplementary (a margarita mixer), or the downright ridiculous (does anybody out there make a Peyton Manning USB bobblehead?) Yes, it has to be a real gadget. Leave your picks in the comments.
We'll post your suggestions on Friday, so that you can spend Saturday waiting in line at Best Buy or Target or wherever.
(Credit:
Westinghouse)
Citing those deep holiday discounts for big-screen HDTVs, such as the $999 Westinghouse 42-inch LCD, analysts told CNNMoney.com that this year's Super Bowl won't occasion the same kinds of price cuts. Previous years have seen lineman-size reductions in HDTV prices during the two weeks leading up to the big game, but this year outlets such as Circuit City and Best Buy, whose profits were hurt by a blitz of holiday sales, will instead focus on kicker-size price promotions (the deepest discount analysts saw so far is a $250 Vizio deal at Costco) and bundles. If you were a holdout till now, however, you might want to wait until after the big game, when prices are expected to fall to make way for 2007 inventory. (Source: TVPredictions.com)
- prev
- 1
- next
