My father used to go on and on about how a Morgan would be the perfect car for me. Because of their over-sized, smog-producing, hand built British engines, the old Morgan’s from the 50’s were eventually banned from the US and I never saw one. Morgan, one of Britain’s oldest independent sports car maker has now updated itself and is going to begin selling it’s new Morgan Aero 8 in the US this year. The look has been updated but it’s classic styling remains. I think I understand what my father was getting at. Now if I only had $100k to spend on a car. . .
Tag: hardware
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Skiddaddling Alarm Clock
Ever had one of those mornings where you hit the snooze bar one too many times and end up having to rush out the door with a bagel in your mouth because you’re late? Gauri Nanda, a researcher at the MIT Media Lab has a device that will solve that for you.
When the alarm clock goes off and the snooze button is pressed, Clocky will roll off the bedside table and wheel away, bumping mindlessly into objects on the floor until it eventually finds a spot to rest. Minutes later, when the alarm sounds again, the sleeper must get up out of bed and search for Clocky. This ensures that the person is fully awake before turning it off. Small wheels that are concealed by Clocky’s shag enable it to move and reposition itself, and an internal processor helps it find a new hiding spot every day.
Problem solved until you’re one of those people with a pistol in your bedside drawer.
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Keen, local footwear
I’ve been seeing more and more of these funky looking mocs around town that I began to wonder if this was some kind of local favorite. Keen Footwear broke onto the scene with such subtle force that it was hard to pin where their fanbase was coming from – it just seemed to be that everyone you met at the local Edison School was sporting a pair.I saw them again on the cover of the June issue of Business 2.0 where they were featured as one of The New Instant Companies and then again, today in Alameda Magazine where the article goes on to say that they are based in Alameda where they plan to stay, no matter how big they get.
Yeah! I cool and subtle badge to promote my local homies on the Island.
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Harley-Davidson, Japanese Engine?
I took my father in law out to visit a motorcycle distributor where he was hoping to get a distributor for the high end wheels made by Dymag, a company he owns. While it’s always interesting to step into a new industry and learn a bit about it, one of the more juicy bits of gossip that I learned was the nasty rumor that the Harley-Davidson is not really as American-built as some would like to believe. Not only are the wheels on most models made by an overseas company called “Inky” but the buyer we met also assured us that if you look carefully on the engines, you’ll see that they’re made in Japan!
He couldn’t remember which Japanese company makes the Harley engines which is a shame. According to him, all the engines are shipped to the US where they are assembled along with all the other parts which are sourced overseas. Makes me wonder if it’s all done under cover of darkness by a secret guild of factory workers sworn to secrecy.
If this is indeed true, it would be quite a scandal for the company that, when faced with cheaper imports from Japan, unsuccessfully tried to trademark the unique sound of their V-Twin engine.
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iPod Scroll Wheel
Ask any iPod user what they like the most about their device, and most will probably mention the scrollwheel. Here’s the story behind the company that makes it (hint: it’s not Apple).
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Toilet Tank
Don’t worry, the toilet flushes without disturbing the fish and you have to admit, it’s something to look at while relieving yourself. What’s interesting is that Aquariass was covered by Popgadget, which advertises itself as a personal tech site for women, who will not be able to enjoy it’s beauty in quite the same way as men.
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Ride of the Valkyries
I’m not normally a muscle bike type of person but the image of the new 1800cc Honda Valkyrie caught my eye. I think I feel a mid-life crisis coming on!
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E-book revival
Sony has just released it’s LIBRE e-book based on the Boston-based company, E-Ink technology which they have licensed. This is a recycling of an old concept that Sony has tried before (remember their custom-sized CDROM Databook?) and hope to make a successful go of it this time.
At 40,000 yen a pop with 300 yen to rent an e-book for 60 days, it’s questionable this can beat the incumbent technology. It’s hard to improve on a technology that allows for rapid access, can accept scribbles in the margin, can be loaned to friends, can be used to swat flies and protect you from the rain, supports full color, and runs on no batteries. I’m talking about the plain old paperback.
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Cyber-shot DSC-T1
One of the great things about the inlaws visiting from Tokyo is that they bring with them the latest techie gadgets from over the horizon. This Christmas was particularly special as they brought with them Sony’s latest and greatest digital camera and, even better, it was a gift!The camera is the size of a thin deck of cards and slides easily into a shirt vest pocket and boots up almost immediately. It’s got a 3x optical zoom and a huge 2.5 inch LCD monitor. Most impressive is the 5 megapixel resolution, ability to shoot MPEG movies, and docking station which makes uploading real easy.
Combined with the iMac, iPhoto, and my .mac account I’ve been able to upload photos and movies with ease – thanks to you Mama Takei, they’ll be more pictures this year than ever before!
