Music Industry: Small

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Saturday, February 11, 2012

View Small Things on Your iPhone with This $30 Microscope Mod [IPhone]

By Kelly Hodgkins Oct 10, 2011 8:45 PM 13,494

View Small Things on Your iPhone with This $30 Microscope Mod UC-Davis researchers developed a lens that'll turn your iPhone or any camera-enabled smartphone into a 350X microscope. The mod is a simple 1-mm ball lens mounted in rubber that's taped to your phone's camera. It costs about $30.

Besides its obvious uses in the classroom and research field, this basic lens could be a useful tool for doctors in impoverished areas. It's resolution of 1.5 microns is sensitive enough that doctors can use it to view red blood cells and diagnose blood diseases like iron deficiency sickle-cell anemia. And it's cheap. Even when you add in the cost of an iPhone, the $30 lens system is significantly less expensive than a full-size microscope. [PloS One via Tested, Petapixel and Wired]

Sunday, September 11, 2011

The ContourROAM Action Camera: Small, Cheap, and Mighty Fine [Video]

The ContourROAM Action Camera: Small, Cheap, and Mighty Fine We just got some playtime with the ROAM, a new action-minded video camera from Contour. It's strong, no-frills design and 1080p video makes it very competitive with similarly-priced GoPros.

The build quality is terrific. It's just an aluminum bullet, and it's light, compact, and streamline. The 170 degree, rotatable lens pack a serious wide-angle and makes it tempting to point it at yourself while you're doing something stupid (see video). It's incredibly simple: push the switch forward, then it's on and recording. Smart, fast, and saves power. You can get a ton of different mounts for everything from your head to your handlebars to your surfboard. The battery meter lets you know exactly how much juice you have left, and it's got a laser site so you can tell you're shooting straight. It can shoot up to 1080p at 30fps, and it's waterproof (like all gadgets should be), rated to withstand 1 meter (roughly 3 feet) for 30 minutes.

Well, it's only waterproof to one meter. While there will be a waterproof housing for it in the near future, GoPro's $180 camera comes with a waterproof case rated up to 60 meters/180 feet. At the same time, that GoPro (the HD Hero 960) only goes up to 960p, so it depends which is more important for your applications: waterproofiness or resolution. The battery is built-in, which makes it solid, but you can't quickly swap in a new one when you're out in the field. Audio was also pretty quiet and muffled. The free Contour Storyteller application is not really an editor, as you can't even combine clips. The software might be handy for someone who just wants a quick and easy way of putting a few highlights online, but you'd be better off with even a very basic video editor.

At just $200 this is very much a viable competitor. The footage it takes looks very good. It doesn't have Bluetooth and GPS like Contour's higher end models, but if all you really need is an action camera that takes very nice video and is super easy to operate even in hairy conditions, you should definitely check this one out. Personally, I'm itching to do a Battlemodo with this, a GoPro, and a couple other tough customers. In the meantime, take a look at this hastily gathered test-footage.[$200 at Contour]

The ContourROAM Action Camera: Small, Cheap, and Mighty Fine PSA: Do not strap this to your bike and go riding into oncoming traffic on a rainy night in Brooklyn. That is not what this product is intended for. Let reckless bloggers do stupid shit like that for you, and do not try it yourself. Capice? Good.

You can keep up with Brent Rose, the author of this post, on Google+ or Twitter. Related Stories

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This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

The Bose Chihuahua Is Supposed to Be a Super Small Speaker [Rumors]

The Bose Chihuahua Is Supposed to Be a Super Small Speaker This is my next is reporting that Bose will launch an oddly named speaker docking station called the Bose Chihuahua. It's supposed to be ultra small, compatible with your phone and will work with Bose's SoundLink tech.

The super small speaker will be unveiled next week and we'll be there to check it out. TIMN suggested it could be something like the Jawbone Jambox. [TIMN]

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Sony, Toshiba, and Hitachi Merge Just Merged Their Small Screens, and Why That's Great [LCD]

Sony, Toshiba, and Hitachi Merge Just Merged Their Small Screens, and Why That's Great Early this morning, Sony, Toshiba, and Hitachi came out hand in hand to declare that they were merging their small screen divisions into one liquid crystal behemoth. The new entity will be known as Japan Display. And it's a good thing for you.

By Voltron-ing their LCD businesses, the three companies have created the largest manufacturer of LCD screens for phones, cameras, and tablet displays. Which is a good thing for their collective business, as all three companies have lost money in previous years. The merger allows them to focus their energies on combating the might of Samsung, as well as aggressive companies like Sharp, who's expected to get a billion dollar investment from Apple soon.

All this kind of screams anti-competition, but it's the exact opposite. Samsung, for one, is larger and more connected than any other Japanese company in the market. By joining forces, they're able to pool their resources and create better, more competitive products. More competitive also means cheaper, all great for the average consumer who wants a good phone or camera for a good price. And don't forget that all three companies will remain distinct save for this one sector.

Now let's see where this goes. [Reuters, NYT]

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Katsumi Kasahara

Music Industry