Print

Mail

wiki links

Technology

VIEW THIS PAGE

AN EASIER-TO-UNDERSTAND PHOTOSHOP FOR AMATEURS

Adobe recently announced a new version of its popular Photoshop Elements 8 picture-editing software. As you might expect, Photoshop Elements uses the same algorithms as Adobe’s professional-level Photoshop software, but the features are much more accessible to users. Think of it as Photoshop for very smart dummies.

The Organizer in Elements can now check for problems like blurry focus or poorly lighted photos. The Smart Tags tool can flag and suggest fixes to these images.

Adobe has also improved its face-recognition technology to make it a bit faster to verify the correct association of names with faces.

Adobe has enhanced its Quick Fix feature by making it easier to understand photo-editing terms. The company says many users have not taken advantage of certain adjustments, like temperature, because they simply didn’t understand the language. To help, the Quick Fix tool displays changes to the main image as you edit, a useful addition for more casual users.

The Windows versions of Photoshop Elements 8 is available now for US$100. The Mac version will be available in October for the same price.

—NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE

3D PHOTOS FROM A POINT-AND-SHOOT, NO GLASSES NEEDED

We are entering the third dimension. And we’re doing so without the cheesy glasses.

Fujifilm just took the wraps off its long-awaited 3D camera and photo frame, which can also capture and display regular 2D images. The technology seems likely to appeal primarily to a small group of stereoscopic photo enthusiasts.

The US$600 FinePix Real 3D camera employs dual lenses and CCD sensors to capture and process two 10-megapixel images and overlay them to create the 3D effect. It’s a solid chunk of camera, housed in a sturdy aluminum die-cast frame, but it’s also much bulkier than your average point-and-shoot. The US$500 FinePix Real 3D V1 viewer is an 8-inch photo frame with an SD card slot for loading images and video. (It also has 512 megabytes of built-in memory). You have to find the sweet spot to match the images properly, and when you don’t, you’ll see plenty of ghosting. Next month, users of the 3D camera can order 3D “lenticular prints” online from Fujifilm. The photos take two weeks to process, at a special lab in Tokyo.

—NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE

HIGH-END PRODUCTS FOR PUTTING DIGITAL MUSIC IN THE AIR

The Bowers & Wilkins Mini Zeppelin and the Bose SoundDock 10 are fairly expensive systems for playing music from an iPod, iPhone or computer (US$400 for the Mini Zeppelin, coming next month; US$600 for the Bose, available now). Both companies say the technology inside makes it worth it. The Mini Zeppelin streams digital data directly from a music device using what the British company says is an audiophile-grade digital-to-analog (DAC) converter, bypassing the DACs in the music players.

The Bose SoundDock 10 has a few tricks of its own, including a pair of proprietary Twiddler transducers (a combination of a high-frequency transducer and midrange driver; in other words, a speaker).

There’s an auxiliary input and video output (to use the iPod to send content to a TV) but no USB connector. Bose says it will offer an optional US$150 Bluetooth dock to stream music from a phone. — ny times news service

A COCOON OF WARMTH FOR YOU, POWER FOR YOUR TOYS

Mountain Hardwear’s jacket has heating elements to keep you warm and a power adapter in the pocket, right, to charge your devices.

Mountain Hardwear has developed a winter jacket with a heating element that will keep you toasty while it charges your gadgets.

Reach into the front left pocket and you’ll find a power adapter that enables you to charge your iPod, digital camera, GPS device or cellphone.

The US$240 jackets, branded Refugium for men and Radiance for women, are sold separately from the rechargeable lithium-ion battery and heating system developed by Ardica Technology. Ardica’s Moshi heating system costs another US$145; the tech connector kit will set you back US$50.

The three heating elements — one in the midback and two in the front midsection — together weigh less than a 454g. Users can adjust the temperature up to 37oC with a toggle switch on the left front of the jacket. The heating elements can be fully charged in less than three hours, and a charge should last up to eight hours on the lowest heat setting, according to a Mountain Hardware spokeswoman, Paige Boucher.

The jacket, designed as a midlayer coat to be worn under a ski jacket or alone in warmer climes, will be available on Thursday.

— NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE

RUBIK’S CUBE RETURNS WITH A TOUCH SCREEN AND A HIGHER PRICE TAG

While the amount of technology packed into Rubik’s TouchCube is impressive, the big question remains: Would you want to spend more than a few minutes with it before tossing the US$150 puzzle through a window?

In stores Oct. 18 from Techno Source USA, this is the second electronic edition of the famous puzzle from Techno Source, following last year’s Rubik’s Revolution. Rather than physically twisting the interlocked mechanical cubes patented by Erno Rubik in 1977, you swipe your finger against one of the cube’s capacitive sides to “flip” the colors. There are no moving parts; instead, the multicolor LEDs change color with a flipping sound emitted from an internal speaker, while an accelerometer keeps track of which side is up.

The onboard computer provides hints, or can solve itself. When it is not being used, the cube sits in a charging cradle and lights up, making an ideal night light for a puzzle fanatic.

— NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE

VIEW THIS PAGE

This story has been viewed 523 times.