Hawang Mouse: Is it an asset for Chinese only?

It’s tough when we have 26 characters to play around for writing a mail or otherwise. But the complexity of characters is beyond imagination when we think of constructing something meaningful with Chinese alphabets.

For penning down the mail, Hanwang’s latest mouse offers an ordinary way to keying in text with the help of built-in top-mounted screen that accepts handwritten input via the integrated stylus. Hanwang Technology have made use of a mouse together with a handwriting input to solve the limited special-character keys problem on keyboards. Now its possible to write chinese alphabets by drawing out the character into the middle of the mouse with the provided stylus, and it will translate into a text.

This allows the user to simply write a alphabet, which the recognition system of the mouse picks up. Realising the difficulty to type chinese characters on an English keyboard, It seems Hanwang mouse is a nice idea.

No word on pricing or availability as yet, but we’re still not entirely convinced about is convenience for penning a dissertation. The question remains can we expect these conceptual mouse in other dialects as well?

Microsoft’s Sidewinder Gaming Mouse, designed by Darth Vader

Msft Sidewinder is the best joystick I have ever seen. The feel of the mouse will make you realize it’s magic. To stand against the sacking done over your shoulder, a button is allocated that gives access to spin alphabets at 180-degrees. Its transposable weights can affix up to 30 grams of heft under its center of severity and over-lapping pads offer 3 levels of slide. The mouse has in-all 6 buttons. Priced at $80, the mouse will hit the market in October.

Superman’s Mouse and Keyboard

These peripherals featuring the Superman logo is a great sign to turn your computer into a super-computer.

The usage and impact of this mouse is expected to be two-fold in sharp juxtaposition to the movie Superman Returns (2006)

Product page for Superman Keyboard
Product page for Superman Mouse
Bonus: Superman Returns USB2.0 4port hub and Superman Returns memory card reader

Samsung new model SGH-L310 and SGH-L320 mobile

Samsung is showing dream to all over the world by introducing the new type of fashionable phones. This time Samsung has launched two new mobile phone which is first fashionable, good looking shinny design. The SGH-L310 and SGH-L320 have launched. The qualities of this two mobile phones are 2.0 Mega pixel cameras and MP3 player and not only external memory but also Bluetooth® connectivity. These mobile phones can get in Russia and Hungary in February at€240 for the L310 and €220 for the L320. You may get more information after coming of mobile phones in market.

Picture: Samsung SGH-L310

Picture: Samsung SGH-L320

Latest Samsung X830 slide mobile phone

The Samsung has launched her new mobile phone Samsung X830. This Samsung X830 is the slide phone and swivel; this is very good for who is loving music. Its LCD widescreen is sizzling and it has stereo sound which is surely liked by all of us, its sound quality is nice and clear.

The Samsung X830 mobile phone has some tremendous feature like amazing multimedia capabilities, brilliant connectivity and unique new look keypad. It has some other key features like TFT color display, Polyphonic & MP3 Ringtones, 1.3 MegaPixel Camera, Bluetooth, GPRS and Video Recording.

Source: Latest mobile

The Sonim JCB latest mobile phone

The Sonim JCB has launching a new mobile Phone. This latest mobile phone has work in XP1. The Sonim XP1 mobile phone has various features like 1 inch display screen with 240 x 320 pixels, it is shock resistant, it has bright 262,144 colour TFT display screen which remain clear text in outdoor, large buttons, Ruggedized frame, Durable buttons which tested to 500,000 pushes, PTT buttons which is tested to 200,000 pushes, High-output speakers, Omni-directional microphone, Bluetooth Connectivity and Tri Band GSM.

LG Introduces R200 Laptop in India

New R200 laptop is launched by the LG electronic. It has 2.5 inch secondary LCD display screen on the peak.

This LG R200 has made sporty functions which has Slide show, with the help of slide show you get better pictures in slide show and you also gets better music and mails, they are using its secondary display screen on top without booting system. It is like a piano black design.

Eleven Button Multimedia Mouse

Normally the mouse is in use have three buttons. Even you can use the mouse of eleven buttons. These extra buttons are different purpose like gaming and multimedia tasks. It would be interesting to use it with keyboard since both have many buttons. The main features of Eleven Button Multimedia Mouse are well-matched to window 2000/ XP and Vista, It has optical mouse, compatible to USB 2.0/1.1, Ergonomics, multiple media functions and you can adjust your speed only in 1 stick.

It has buttons for play and pauses, double click, volume up and down, page forward, page backward, internet, speed switch, left buttons, right buttons and LED indication. It is well designed and its look is very attractive. 11 Buttons Multimedia Mouse is available at $14.99. You can use it for multiple tasks.

Belkin Gaming Mouse

Game pads are matter of excitement among children. Therefore companies’ first goal is attract children for their products. At present there is very large market for gaming controllers. Belkin is famous for tech accessories. It created n52te that is a hybrid gamepad. Belkin’s tagline for this hybrid gamepad is “Built for speed, Built to Dominate and Built to Destroy”. n52te Gaming Mouse is designed for RTS or FPS games.

It has fifteen programmable keys which help to a gamer for doing all things. It can be operate very quickly only touch of a button. Other features of n52te are adjustable soft-touch wrist pad and nonslip rubber pads. It lighting in blue light so it can be play in light off area. Its price is around $69.99.

World’s lightest phone

You would have seen lots of stylist and well designed phone still now. Day by day number of phone gadgets are increasing and these all attract customers very much. The new name in the phone history is adding that is Modu Mini Phone. It is becoming more popular for its special features. The Modu Mini phone is the world’s lightest mobile phone. Its weight is a puny 1.4 ounces and it is only .3 inches thick.

Modu Mini Phone is a mobile phone gadget that can be used as core of a mobile phone. It acts as standalone device. The main feature of it is use as a core of jackets. It increase s its uses like gaming phone, music phone, and smartphone. The Modu Mini Phone can come in market end of this year or starting of the next year.

COM-BAT Experimental Surveillance Flyer

I suppose that the military has been looking for more remotely piloted aircrafts since the MQ-1 Predator, and it appears they have been going to colleges for their next one. They have given the University of Michigan a $10 million dollar grant to come up with a “six-inch robotic spy plane modeled after a bat”.

I don’t know if the picture to the left here is their prototype, but you have to admit that it certainly looks neat. Not only is the COM-BAT (it’s official name?) designed for reconnaissance, but the military wants it to “gathers data from sights, sounds and smells in urban combat zones and transmit information back to a soldier in real time”.

Rickshaw GPS Sunglasses

According to a certain source which I cannot verify, many accidents are caused by a driver being distracted by their GPS device. I guess that makes sense, considering where we usually put them. I guess drivers are looking so hard at where they are supposed to be going that they aren’t looking at where they are going.

So why not put what you need on your sunglasses? This is the premise of the Rickshaw GPS sunglasses, which have a tiny video LCD with pure audio feeds. All maps are supplied on MicroSD cards, so you have complete navigation without every having to look at a separate screen.

Bluetooth Microphone fits inside your tooth

Since Bluetooth became a standard feature on most phones, people have been coming up with all sorts of new headsets. The ones that fascinate me the most are the ones that use the vibrations from the bone in your jaw to detect what you are saying. To me it’s cool and creepy at the same time. Less creepy though, than this new Bluetooth Dental Insert Microphone.

Google, Virgin Heading for Mars

Google's looking beyond all worldly affairs... it's got bigger, brighter plans for itself and what's even better they've got Sir Richard Branson backing them.

Even as we write this Google and Virgin Group are planning to establish a human settlement on Mars. They've already gone ahead and announced Virgle Inc., a jointly owned and operated venture.

"Some people are calling Virgle an 'interplanetary Noah's Ark,'" said Virgin Group President and Founder Sir Richard Branson, who conceived the new venture. "I'm one of them. It's a potentially remarkable business, but more than that, it's a glorious adventure. For me, Virgle evokes the spirit of explorers such as Christopher Columbus and Marco Polo, who set sail looking for the New World. I do hope we'll be a bit more efficient about actually finding it, though."

The Virgle 100 Year Plan's milestones will include Virgle Pioneer selection (2008-2010), the first manned journey to Mars (2016), a Virgle Inc. initial public offering to capitalize on the first manned journey to Mars (2016), the founding of the first permanent Martian municipality, Virgle City (2050), and the achievement of a truly self-sustaining Martian civilization with a population exceeding 100,000 (2108).

"Virgle is the ultimate application of a principle we've always believed at Google: that you can do well by doing good," said Google co-founder Larry Page, who plans to share leadership of the new Martian civilization with Branson and Google co-founder Sergey Brin.

"We feel that ensuring the survival of the human race by helping it colonize a new planet is both a moral good in and of itself and also the most likely method of ensuring the survival of our best – okay, fine, only - base of web search volume and advertising inventory," Page added. “So, you know, it's, like, win-win."

The original contingent of Virgle Pioneers will be selected by numerous criteria, including an online questionnaire, video submission, personal accomplishments, expertise in scientific, artistic, sociological and/or political fields of endeavor, and inadequate Google and Virgin personal performance reviews.

Carmageddon: Death Incarnate Announced

Stop the presses people. Stop the f****g presses! Carmageddon, the world’s most violent racer, is all set to return to next-gen consoles and the PC in a sequel dubbed Death Incarnate, courtesy of relative newcomer Gregorian Works. How do we know this, you ask? Well, that’s cos we got the dope straight from the horse’s mouth.

And by horse, I mean company CEO Julian Lirpa, who gave us the lowdown in an exclusive interview that you can read right here. For all those who are too lazy to read through the entire interview, here’s a quick recap of the game’s features:

• Will use the Unreal 3 engine
• Will Feature TWELVE online MP modes
• Will make Paradise City seem like a park
• Pedestrian skin will now peel off in real time

Carmageddon: Death Incarnate will release on the PS3, PC, and Xbox360 sometime in April 2010.

Mitashi Smart Pro

One of the fastest emerging categories in laptops today are the small-and-light machines made famous by the Asus EEE PC. This section has been rapidly filling up with releases from companies like ECS, HCL and ACi. And now we have an entrant from... Mitashi.

Mitashi, as all of us know by now, has developed a reputation for its low-cost no-nonsense products. How does its version of the compact laptop fare? Let’s find out.

One thing that has to be said about Mitashi is its trademark green-and-white color scheme. The Smart Pro maintains this look across the body of the laptop, including the lid and the keyboard area. While it’s not at smooth as the Asus EeePC's ivory white finish, it still manages to convey class and panache.

The physical construction of the laptop is definitely sturdy. It’s a great deal thicker that it needs to be and sports reinforced hinges. The material used for construction is an odd plastic that flexes at the slightest touch, so the device can be shoved into the tightest of spaces, including the glovebox of your car.

In a bid to save the world, Mitashi has chosen to equip the Smart Pro with a low-power LCD screen with a native resolution of 64x8. This grid display offers three different settings of contrast along with static values of color and brightness. By sheer dint of trial and error, we found that level 2 offered the best tradeoff vis-a-vis power consumption and display clarity.

The keyboard of the Smart Pro is quite well designed. The keys are well spaced out and offer good feedback. But one thing we found annoying was that the key presses often failed to register. Around the keyboard area is a bunch of specific direction keys – direct short links to the specialized features of the laptop.

The mouse of the Smart Pro deserves a special mention. For probably the first time in the history of laptops, a manufacturer has provided an embedded pointer solution. Though the mouse is a bit small, in size it offers a nice deep-seated clicking experience and a scroll experience on par with offerings from companies like Logitech.

Connectivity-wise, however, the Smart Pro is only sparingly equipped. It offers just the embedded mouse and a battery slot.

In keeping with its low-cost theme, the Smart Pro offers a very basic Intel 4004 processor, which uses a 10μm silicon-gate enhancement load PMOS chip. This processor is capable of executing 92K instructions and offers adequate processing power for our needs. The OS has been specially developed for the Smart Pro and is written in Assembly.

Keeping in mind the highly customized CPU, we decided to forego any heavy-duty benchmarking. We instead chose to focus on the UI experience, were the Smart Pro excelled. The menus were well-designed and allowed easy navigation, while the pre-defined program list was extensive and offered something for everyone.

The battery life of the Smart Pro was top notch. Even with maxed-out contrast, we were able to derive a phenomenal nine hours of battery life. This is simply unrivalled in the annals of budget laptops and Mitashi has to be commended.

Yes, the Smart Pro breaks new ground in battery life and usability. It’s an excellent product in its class and a valiant competitor to Intel’s classmate PC and the EeePC. The price? An absolute steal at Rs 1,690. Now, don't you think it's worth it?

India May Ban Facebook, Orkut and Foreign Social Networking Sites

Close on the heels of the recent directive to telecom operators to provide for lawful interception of Blackberry and other encrypted messaging services, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has now asked Social Networking sites based outside India to fall in line.

"Sites such as Orkut and Facebook allow for heavily encrypted exchanges of information", a highly placed source at the MHA told Tech2.com. MHA officials are believed to be especially worried about the phenomenon of "scraps" and "pokes" respectively on these two sites.

"Imagine if applications such as SuperPoke fell into the hands of anti-national and anti-social (no pun intended) elements", remarked a senior MHA official who did not wish to be named. "The consequences could be disastrous, especially considering the lack of sufficient monitoring of Indian users' walls," he warned.

Intelligence operatives are of the belief that Jehadi terror cells could work out a sophisticated system of communication by "throwing sheep" at each other using a site such as Facebook.com whose servers the Indian government cannot access. The government has asked all Indian social networking sites such as BigAdda.com, Yaari.com and Minglebox.com to maintain records of all user activity including "change of status, profile picture, favorite sitcoms etc." in keeping with the law of the land.

It seems that unless their overseas counterparts such as the big two as well as other popular sites such as Hi5, Bebo, LinkedIn and MySpace reach an agreement with Indian authorities on making user data originating and terminating in the country available on demand, they could soon be blocked by local Internet Service Providers (ISPs).

A spokesperson for ISPAI (ISP Assoc of India) clarified that preliminary talks had been held in this regard and ISPs had begun making preparations to block networking sites in the event of an official directive being issued. The ISPAI executive also sheepishly (no pun intended there either) admitted to tech2.com that he was in the process of figuring out a way to export his Facebook friend list to ibibo.com.

Spokespersons for both Google, which owns Orkut.com and Facebook declined to comment till they received any directives in writing. However along with Yahoo, AOL and MSN, both companies were adamant that "the privacy of our users is of the greatest importance to us" though special considerations were being made for "countries in which the growth potential of the market outweighed the prospect of challenging draconian security laws".

A senior NASSCOM official welcomed the move though she admitted that the industry was worried less about the security implications and more about the alarming decline in productivity. "Young engineers 'on the bench' at IT companies seem to be spending more time on Web 2.0 sites like Twitter, Digg & Last.fm instead of improving, for instance their SAP implementation skills," said the official.

"God forbid if all this online socializing actually translates into a real social life for young techies", sighed the worried official.

UPDATE 1: (no, really!)

NASSCOM has been receiving numerous media enquiries all through the day. When asked to comment, Ganesh Natarajan (who takes over as NASSCOM Chairman on the 8th of this month) said that he wishes the readers of tech2.com a very happy April Fool's Day!