There's nothing like a pleasant smile on the face of a stand assistant and a good demonstration CD to convince a critic or a buyer of the merits of a new product.
Sagatek Co Ltd, a Taipei-based company, had both.
In a world losing its head with the e-phenomenon and tighter security imperative in transactions over the Internet, a device such as the company's Fingerprint Identification System is a reassuring step in the right direction.
Unlike existing methods that can be hacked or stolen, this diminutive standalone device working on the Windows 95/98 platform and a USB connection uses biometric technology that relies on a unique fingerprint to determine positive identification when accessing and using PCs, smart cards, corporate networks, ATMs, POS systems and cars.
SagaCheck furthermore integrates advanced recognition technology such as the 1:N matching method of reading fingerprints.
Not much imagination necessary to see that the SagaCheck has quite obvious applications across a broad spectrum of security applications -- from e-commerce to online security for financial transactions, time and attendance records and so on.
The SagaBaby is another "full package" of fun and video frolics -- full motion video of up to 320x240 resolution at 30 real-time frames per second. It includes a camera and software for sending e-mails with video and audio.
And again there's USB connectivity. There's also MPEG for smaller files and faster delivery, while background music and a clip-art function make it possible to attach any prerecorded audio photo or video clip into e-mail.
Also in the USB class is Pacific Image, which has come to CeBIT with a scanner, called the Prime Film 1800u, for digitizing all those old color slides that have been hanging around in the basement.
* Sagatek Co unveiled a Windows-based device designed to promote Internet security
* Pacific Image's new scanner uses a USB connection to capture images of old photo slides
* Netronics has developed a new phone for audio Internet connections
The results, demonstrated on the stand, speak for themselves. The true 36-bit scanning is able to distinguish 68.7 billion distinctive colors. With each single scan, Prime Film 1800u captures up to 4.2 mega pixels, resulting in a big improvement in both shadow and highlight details that even a high quality and vastly more expensive digital camera is unable to reach.
Simplicity of use is another plus here because its just a matter of popping in a filmstrip of a mounted slide into the film frame, which you're able to see being scanned in the proprietary lighting viewing window. Only 35 seconds are needed to get a true 1800 dpi resolutions scan.
Netronics, a division of ADI, long known for its monitors and externals modems, is giving the more conventional world of audio connectivity a glamor all of its own with its light weight Cyclone Conference Phone.
Using the latest Digital Signal Processing technology and 360 degree audio surround, the Cyclone comes with an 8-character LCD for time of day, call status and menu functions.
The next best step one assumes can only be video conferencing.
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