AGE OF TECHNOLOGY: GENERATIONAL VIDEO VIEWING PREFERENCES VARY BY DEVICE AND ACTIVITY
Philip Lelyveld comment: my only question is, how does such a high percentage of people find TVs outside of the home?
Google could turn your home’s walls into screens
The technology interacts with walls that are coated with photo-reactive paint. The projector works by emitting a beam of light or a laser at the painted wall. The paint reacts to the light and adjusts to display the colors. That image would stay on the wall until the user projects an image with a computer or smartphone. The patent suggests the technology will be able to project images fast enough to support video. Because the paint is transparent, it could be used on any surface.
See the full story here: http://qz.com/388002/google-could-to-turn-your-homes-walls-into-screens/
HTC Vive Developer Edition Signups Now Open, Free for Selected Devs but Not for Sale
After a buildup of rumors, Valve officially revealed the HTC Vive headset in March at GDC 2015, complete with the ‘Lighthouse’ positional tracking system that can track the headset and controllers in a ‘room-scale’ space of 15×15 feet. Prior to the reveal, Valve secretly met with select indie developers to create a suite of demos that were shown running on the SteamVR platform at GDC 2015.
On the form, Valve asks developers to specify the development company’s name, website, a description of their VR project, when that project is estimated to launch, how large the development team is, and standard contact information.
In addition to two Lighthouse base stations, the HTC Vive Developer Edition will include two SteamVR game controllers which are tracked by the same system. The controllers have sombrero-looking crowns which position the Lighthouse sensors to reduce occlusion by the hands.
See the full announcement here: http://www.roadtovr.com/htc-vive-developer-edition-signups-open-steamvr-free-selected-devs-not-for-sale/
Google’s Chief Technology Advocate Joins as Wearlity Sky CEO as Kickstarter Passes $60,000
Wearality Sky has surpassed half of its crowdfunding goal of $100,000 for their VR smartphone adapter, a device that offers a 150 degree field of view (FOV) for 5–6 inch phones. With former Google Chief Technology Advocate Michael Jones signing on as new CEO of the startup...
Signed on to the project is also long-time VR advocate and developer Mark Bolas, director of the ‘MxR’ Mixed-Reality Lab at USC...
Long-time computer scientist Alan Kay is advising on the project, joining Vi Hart, founder of eleVR.
See the full story here: http://www.roadtovr.com/googles-chief-technology-advocate-joins-wearlity-sky-ceo-kickstarter-passes-60000/
CinemaCon: Carmike Bringing Interactivity to Theaters Via TimePlay System
Carmike Cinemas is teaming with interactive technology developer TimePlay to bring interactivity to select cinemas, starting with roughly 100 Carmike screens in the U.S. The first sites will offer the system beginning next month.
By downloading the free TimePlay app, which the companies liken to a game controller, moviegoers will be able to interact, in real-time, with content on the screen while competing for prizes and receiving special offers from Carmike and advertisers.
The deal marks TimePlay's first major foray into the U.S. The platform is currently used on 725 screens across Canada, and the company reported that it regularly achieves a 40 percent participation rate among frequent moviegoers and a 35 percent redemption rate for advertising offers. Pilot programs have also been run in Mexico and Europe.
See the full story here: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/behind-screen/cinemacon-carmike-bringing-interactivity-theaters-790209
3D Billboards to Take Over Times Square
TriLite has built a 3D screen works when the viewer is 10 to 70 meters away, making it perfect for billboard use. By also using high-powered lasers instead of the usual LED pixels, the screen is visible and readable even under intense sunlight.
TriLite told NY Magazine that their latest prototype is a 9-by-12 array the size of an A4 sheet and could be joined together up to whatever size. Each pixel in the sheet is capable of producing red, green or blue pixel to build an image.
See the full story here: http://www.psfk.com/2015/04/3d-billboards-times-square-trilite-technologies-autostereoscopic-displays.html
The World’s Largest Market Has Seen VR and It’s in Love
With minimal publicity, the event went viral. According to Ben Rudick, co-founder of Transist Labs which hosted the event, “We were overwhelmed by the response. Originally we planned for a maximum of 100 attendees. Those spots were filled in just hours. So we lifted the RSVPs caps and quickly hit 500. We had to cut it off; any more and we’d get shut down for fire code violations.”
Hundreds of teams across China are working on VR hardware. While some of it is copying existing products, there’s innovation as well. Chinese teams are hacking together VR headsets, omni-directional treadmills, tracking and input devices, reactive chairs, VR mobile holders, and everything else under the sun. Notable companies include Noitom Technology (which raised $571,908 on Kickstarter last year for their motion tracking device), KAT (omni-directional treadmill and racing chair), and Dexmo and Ximmerse (both working on VR interaction hardware).
While content is lagging behind the hardware, there’s progress here as well. Tianshe Media (天舍), one of the organizers of the SHVR event, is developing a VR multiplayer adventure game for the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and Morpheus using the UE4 engine. BaoFeng Mojing, mentioned above, is partnering with indie VR developers to distribute their games; at last count, they’re offering 26 Chinese-made, original VR games. With the entire gaming market in China estimated at $17.9 billion, there’s likely much more to come. Beyond games, at least three Chinese animation companies are working in VR, with plans to invest millions in the space.
See the full story here: http://www.roadtovr.com/china-virtual-reality-worlds-largest-market-has-seen-vr-and-its-in-love/
California Assembly Bill AB-37 Aims for Posting 3D Printing Rules & Warnings in Libraries
While 3D printing has been transforming and ‘disrupting’ so many traditional methods for designing, prototyping, and manufacturing, it may also prove itself to be disruptive in an area many designers and makers don’t consider–or want to consider–while they are engaged in the creative process: the legal arena.
With that in mind, most makers will cringe slightly to hear about a bill in the California Assembly called AB-37. Not all that surprising with so many libraries beginning to evolve into offering 3D printing, this bill calls for signs to be posted warning against misuse should 3D printing crimes ensue. Signs would also issue warnings of consequences for illegal behavior.
“Provide citations to the applicable state and federal laws that may impose civil liability or criminal penalties for misuse of a 3D printer, including laws regarding copyright infringement and trademark and patent protection,” states Section 1(A) of the AB-37 bill, proposed by Assembly member Nora Campos, representing San Jose.
See the full story here: http://3dprint.com/58895/bill-ab-37-california-library/
Coin, The One Credit Card To Rule Them All, Is Finally Shipping
The Coin (promising to let you combine all your credit/debit/loyalty cards into a single piece of tech) has delayed for so long that you might have forgotten that you ordered one. In November of 2013, the YC-backed company blew past its $50,000 pre-order goal in forty minutes, but despite a promise of summer 2014 shipping, the company has yet to ship a product that wasn’t in beta. Until today.
“Coin has built a custom 128-bit encryption layer for bluetooth that secures sensitive information and prevents man-in-the-middle attacks,” said Parashar. “We use secure Bluetooth to implement the Lock-and-Find feature, which provides a real-time validation that you, the owner of Coin, are present at the time of the transaction. If you aren’t there, Coin will lock itself. And you, the owner, can find Coin’s last known location in the mobile app.”
The Coin remains locked when not in use. As soon as you’re ready to make a transaction, a single tap on the Coin’s solitary button will wake the device, do a quick search for your specific smartphone, and after a couple of seconds it will unlock. If your phone is turned off, on Airplane mode, or otherwise unavailable, you can unlock the Coin by entering the same six-digit Morse-style pin code that you will use each time you access the Coin app.
See the full story here: http://techcrunch.com/2015/04/17/coin-the-one-credit-card-to-rule-them-all-is-finally-shipping/?ncid=tcdaily#.ftpt7m:jAr3