Consumer Electronics Daily News

Smartphone You Wear Like a Bracelet

The Smile is the world's first smart phone you can wear like a bracelet! Not only that, but it can also read your mood. It will know if you're stressed out or relaxing. It can monitor your diet and your health. It will inform you when you should get up and move or take a rest. It can suggest where you should spend a night out on the town. It can control how awake you are as well as your sleep stages and your dream time. And if you're in trouble, the Smile will call for help.

You can use your Smile as an independent cell phone as well as answer calls from your smart phone via the Smile. It's quite easy to answer a call this way, just reply "Yes" or use any other affirmative word. You do not have to memorize command words, since the Smile understands your natural language. Or you can just press a button, as usual.

Sending a text, email messages or video, listen to or read the messages on Facebook, blogs or Twitter tweets. All these things are quite simple to do.

A universal key and wallet

Paying for the purchases has never been so convenient! B With the wireless NFC payment system which is built-in into the Smile just wave your hand above the sensor of a wireless payment system at the check-out and you're done! (You choose a bank card or e-account number beforehand.) Now The Smile, which is always with you, is your handiest tool for paying for your purchases.

Key storage

As a nice add-on feature, the Smile's memory can store all of your personal key information including permanent keys for your house, garage, office and car and temporary ones for your hotel or season tickets.The Smile's memory will also hold a large amount of discount card information.

Display dimensions

The Smile's screen size will be the same as three icon rows on the iPhone screen.

Megapop and Trolls vs Vikings Win Nordic Game Live Pitch Battle

Megapop games is proud to announce that it has won the Investor Live Pitch Battle at the annual Nordic Game conference. In a fierce battle between 20+ Nordic companies, four ended up in the final round. Once there, Megapop pitched to a panel of noted, professional game investors, as well as a large live audience, and emerged the winner!

As most industry watchers note, the Nordic region has grown to become one of the world hotspots for gaming, with an impressive amount of successful companies. Celebrating its tenth edition, the annual Nordic Game Conference drew a record amount of visitors from both near and far to honor the Nordic gaming industry. That Megapop left victorious in such a competitive climate bodes well for the future of the company.  

Megapop is a startup studio founded by former Funcom (Age of Conan, The Longest Journey) and Artplant (Battlestar Galactica Online) developers. Its first game, Trolls vs Vikings, was unveiled at GDC 2013, and the game has since started to gain a growing interest. 

About Trolls vs Vikings:

•  Play as nature-loving trolls, who must defend their magical homeland from fierce Viking invaders and their gods.
• Span the seasons, each one providing new environments, challenges, tactics, bosses and hilarious new enemies to fight.
• Social features that mark a first for the genre: experience both real-time and turn-based multiplayer matches. Loop in friends with the seamless social sharing and comparing system.
• Awesome characters, deep strategy, collectable monsters, tons of achievements and fun gameplay, both solo and online. Join the wacky and wonderful world of the Trolls, and help them fend off the vicious Viking horde!
•  Movable towers, set-pieces, strategic resource gathering, dynamic in-game tile system, and many other small and large tweaks to the gameplay formula.

Polar Launches First Running Stride Sensor with Bluetooth Smart

Polar USA today introduced the new Polar Stride Sensor Bluetooth® Smart, the first ever BluetoothSmart sensor that will allow runners to track speed and distance and capture intelligent training data while using a compatible device.

"Bluetooth Smart is connecting technologies and people in ways that were never before possible," said Herb Baer, Polar USA President. "We worked to pioneer the heart rate profile for Bluetooth Smart, and we're excited that we're staying at the forefront of product development as we launch the Stride Sensor."

The Stride Sensor Bluetooth Smart is a small, lightweight device that clips onto the user's shoe, capturing a wide range of useful data including stride length, cadence, running speed and distance. Bluetooth Smart technology makes the Stride Sensor ideal for activities indoors and in less visible and dense urban areas because it can record data without a GPS device. Data recorded by the Stride Sensor during exercise can be analyzed and shared wirelessly via mobile training applications in smartphones, tablets or any Bluetooth Smart ready devices.

The Stride Sensor is compatible with the latest version of Polar Beat, the popular Polar training app currently compatible with the iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S. Polar Beat was recently updated to include Running Index, a unique Polar Smart Coaching feature that allows the user to monitor his or her running efficiency from training session to training session, improve running technique and maximize speed with less effort.

Polar Beat users will receive real-time running data from the Stride Sensor Bluetooth Smart during each training session, and the Running Index feature will provide a detailed breakdown of the user's performance figures, allowing him or her to track his or her progress and even calculate projected finish times for long distance events such as marathons.

"More and more people are taking an interest in analyzing their workouts and learning how to use data to reach their fitness goals," said Baer. "Bluetooth Smart products like the Stride Sensor and the H7 heart rate sensor, that Polar launched last year, are giving people more opportunities to see tangible information in front of them and act on it accordingly."

In addition to analyzing data using Polar Beat, Stride Sensor users can go even deeper into their training results by registering for the free Polar personal training website www.polarpersonaltrainer.com. Polarpersonaltrainer.com is designed to motivate and support Polar users, helping them to create training programs and targets that are easily shareable with friends. Polarpersonaltrainer.com was recently updated to include the following: an option to add "feeling" to exercise results so users can track long term changes in mood, categorized fitness test results, enhanced Polar Beat compatibility, improved homepage results filters and altitude details for workouts logged with the RC3 GPS wrist unit.

Key Features

• Monitors speed and distance without GPS
• Compatible with any Bluetooth Smart ready devices
• Helps improve running technique by determining running cadence and stride length
• Determines user's Running Index, which provides his or her running efficiency
• Small, lightweight design clips easily onto shoelaces
• Shock and water resistant

Availability

The Stride Sensor Bluetooth Smart ($79.95) is now available as an accessory set with user manual through authorized PolarUSA retail and specialty shops, online (shoppolar.com), and in select fitness facilities.

Crayola Embraces Technology

The Grand Re-Opening of the Crayola Experience this Memorial weekend in Easton, Penn. animates the blending of art and technology. Eager participants are introduced to a fusion of color and digital media through various attractions spread over four floors of Crayola's newly renovated facility. Eighteen captivating exhibits inspire creativity, hands-on computer exploration and interactive learning.

Jumping out at visitors is the new Art Alive! exhibit where you can create digital works of art. Simply walk up to one of the many Tryten iPad kiosk stations set up with the Crayola DigiTools app. Then watch as your creations are broadcast onto huge background walls and come to life with the touch of a hand. The larger than life screen senses motion and reacts to your movement with a variety of responses. For example, children standing at the kiosk can design and color a fish character that joins a huge ocean scene wall display. The fish will interactively move through the ocean based on the motions of the artist.

Another Crayola Experience exhibit that inspires budding digital creativity is the "Be A Star" coloring page photobooth. Simply push a button, pose with your favorite Crayola character, and watch as your image appears as a coloring page on a display screen. This image can then be printed onto a t-shirt, puzzle or canvas of your choice.

Although Crayola has been making crayons for 110 years now, the vision of this company is to embrace new trends in design and technology that further spark artistic experience. No detail has been overlooked in this multimillion dollar renovation that encourages the use of interactive tools for self-expression. Mike Perry , CEO of Crayola emphasizes that "this brand and this business is fundamentally about sparking the creative spirit that we believe exists in the heart of every child... creativity has to be experienced. And that's what this place is all about."

4K Ultra-HD Media Player And Distribution Service Available in July

NanoTech Entertainment is announcing price and availability for its 4K media player, the Nuvola NP-1, and 4K streaming video service, NanoFlix UHD – both industry firsts.  The new NP-1 player will cost $299, the lowest-price 4K player in the market, and will be available for order online and at retail beginning July 15, 2013.

"4K ultra HD televisions are just now starting to arrive in homes and are sure to bring an enhanced viewing experience of 4K to a whole new audience," said LX Rudis, NanoTech's Media Group, Senior VP of Development. "With 4K TVs able to deliver a vibrant and natural picture that is four times clearer than high definition, users need a low-cost solution for content delivery. Unlike other 4K players, our unit will work with any brand of Television and a variety of content delivery services. The availability of the Nuvola NP-1 will be followed in fall by our streaming 4K video distribution service that will demonstrate how NanoTech continues to lead the market in bringing the 4K entertainment experience to consumers."

This summer, consumers of 4K UHD TVs can purchase the Nuvola 4K Media Player bundled with 10 videos in true 4K resolution, 10 video games and 5 multimedia applications, for $299. In the fall of 2013, users of the same 4K media player will be given access to a fee-based streaming video distribution service, NanoFlix UHD, offering a library of 4K titles.

The Nuvola NP-1 4K ultra HD media player features an ARM Cortex-A7 quad core processor and a custom 3D GPU optimized for 4K video playback. The player uses the Android operating system, allowing for a complete entertainment experience. In addition to the ability to steam 4K content, users can play a variety of games and select from thousands of compatible Android apps that will be available at launch.  Cinematic experiences are further enhanced as the player also supports UHD 3D movies at a stunning resolution of 3840x1080 at 30 frames per second. The NP-1 ships with a standard IR remote. Also available is the optional Nuvola RP-10 RF remote that features a 3-axis motion sensor for game play, handheld mouse control, and a full QWERTY keyboard for fast and convenient on screen text entry.

NanoTech CEO Jeffrey A. Foley closed by saying, "We are extremely excited to be on the forefront of the 4K movement. We feel the Nuvola NP-1 will be a great success as it provides a complete entertainment solution at an affordable price. The NP-1 is the first in a line of affordable consumer devices that we are bringing to the market. Unlike the other 4K offerings, our products are two to four times less expensive while offering a much greater set of features and are compatible with any television set. Our product is also upgradeable and expandable, featuring a variety of industry-standard ports including SD, SATA, and USB connections that allow for the installation of an assortment of accessories, options and storage attachments."

OneBeat Debuts Electronic Dance Music App for Xbox 360

OneBeat today released its electronic dance music entertainment app exclusively on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. The app is a one-stop portal for EDM lovers and launches with an array of never-before-seen content and programming that deeply immerses viewers in EDM lifestyle through the eyes of the DJs, festivals, fashion, dancers, travel and fans that make up this global phenomenon. In June, the app will add live streaming performances, event calendars and ticket sales to the mix.

"The EDM movement has revolutionized in the past couple of years, making it one of the largest communities of millennial influencers in the market today," said Mikhail Lapushner, CEO of OneBeat.  "The OneBeat Xbox 360 app brings exclusive, premier EDM content to one of the largest-scale entertainment channels with millions of highly engaged users, providing more accessibility to this demographic and culture than ever before. We are thrilled about what this means for fans, talent and advertisers around the world."

OneBeat's broadcast-quality video content showcases a behind-the-scenes look at the state of the art technology, pioneering artists, cultural icons and global events that shape EDM culture. The app will launch with eleven original shows for the Xbox audiences including:

DJ Answers: Exclusive Q&A's with elite EDM artists as they answer burning questions designed to reveal the personality behind the public personae.

You Should Know Me By Now: A profile series on DJs who have earned years of industry respect—now on the verge of breakthrough to the next level of success

On Tour:  Documentaries on the frenzied torrent of an elite DJ's touring schedule. Gives an all-access pass into clubs around the world from the eyes of the DJ.

Them-antics: A look inside some of the world's most interesting EDM parties—from the location to the costumes to the themes—OneBeat reveals these unique experiences.

On the Record:  A biography series that explores the backgrounds, influences and lifestyles of the world's most famous and influential DJs/producers by revealing the successes and struggles that paved their way to fame. 

This is my Life:  An artful montage revealing a day in the life of EDM scene regulars, giving respect to the party people that make the scene go round from door girls to sound guys.

Road Trippin':  A premium reality show chronicling the best music festivals around the world, featuring millennial host Kirsten Brophy .  Revealing the authentic EDM experience, Kirsten discovers the music, art and party people of each episodes featured event.

EXPOSED: A travel show featuring diverse EDM destinations through the lens of a jet-setting party-goer—from the stunning villas, VIP access and the ultimate experience in travel, leisure, adventure and luxury.

Keep it Movin': A docu-reality series featuring four talented young music producers and underground party promoters fromStaten Island who struggle to make it beyond their blue-collar backgrounds and realize their ultimate dream.

GoGo Tales:  An inside look into the life of a GoGo dancer who rediscovers her role in the seductively seedy New York scene of underground house music, running the roost at Club System in Long Island—all while maintaining a semi-normal home life.

Club King: A premium docu-reality series following legendary nightlife promoter Mark Baker as he produces the most fabulous parties and events in NYC—from the drama and headaches behind the events,, to the house rocking DJs and sparkling shows of champagne.

"The EDM culture is a rich environment for interesting people, places and events," said Joseph Kanellitsas, Chief Creative Officer OneBeat.  "Our exclusive content captures a behind-the-scenes look at the colorful stories that make this industry what it is. We are excited to bring this content to life—showcasing the DJs, the fans, the promoters, the dancers and more--through the Xbox 360 app."

All episodes are available in short-form programming (less than 10 minutes) profiling the talent and amazing visionaries that make up this incredible music movement.

The ad-supported app is now available for download to Xbox LIVE Gold members in the U.S., U.K., and Canada at no additional cost. 

Turtle Beach Bringing Next Generation Audio To Xbox One

 Turtle Beach is working with Microsoft to develop market-leading audio solutions for Xbox One. The two companies will leverage their proprietary technology and experience in gaming to bring advanced audio solutions to consumers. Under the agreement Turtle Beach will be among the first to market with Microsoft-licensed gaming headsets for the Xbox One.

Turtle Beach designs and markets wireless and wired headsets for video game, personal computer and mobile platforms. The company's wide range of headsets, which combine quality with audio innovations, are popular with consumers because they make gaming more immersive and provide a competitive advantage.  Turtle Beach manufactured nine of the top 10 best-selling gaming headsets in 2012 when ranked in dollar sales, and four of the top five best-selling gaming headsets ever, according to the NPD Group. The Ear Force X12 wired headset for the Xbox is the No. 1 best-selling third-party gaming headset ever made.

"In Turtle Beach we have a partner that can help Microsoft deliver world class gaming audio experiences to our customers," said Branden Powell Director of Strategic Alliances Xbox Hardware Group. "Turtle Beach has consistently innovated in wireless, surround sound, and other features and we are looking forward to working with them."

Turtle Beach is largely responsible for the growth of the gaming headset category. The company quickly grew sales through a combination of product innovation, distribution, and marketing prowess and now owns more than 50 percent market share in the U.S. As a result, in less than five years gaming headsets have grown from only three percent to 21 percent of all U.S. gaming accessory sales, and now rank second only to gamepads based on NPD sales data.

"Turtle Beach is dedicated to creating audio products that improve players overall game experience," said Bob Picunko, Chief Marketing Officer at Turtle Beach. "We are very excited about the opportunity to work with the Xbox team to develop new products that support the advanced Xbox platform.

Official products, pricing and release information to be revealed in the coming weeks.

Vuzix Augmented Reality Smart Glasses to be Exhibited

On May 29 from 7pm to 9pm, Vuzix executives including President and CEO Paul J. Travers, will display the company's collection of video eyewear and smart glasses with augmented reality capabilities at the Eyebeam Arts & Technology Center inManhattan. The exhibition and showcase titled, "Over Twenty Years of Head-Worn Displays: A Special Retrospective," will feature the largest collection of personal display devices ever assembled in one location with more than 40 unique head-mounted personal displays spanning more than 20 years. The showcase event poses the question, "Is Google really the first company to introduce personal displays you wear on your head?"

The collection will include Vuzix' legacy products which were developed for the consumer market, as well as its award-winning M100 Smart Glasses slated for release this summer. At the exhibition, the devices can be viewed and examined from a design, function and engineering viewpoint. The event is open to the public and members of the media. For more information,  visit: http://www.perey.com/ARStandards/hands-free-display-showcase/.

Christine Perey, chair of the AR Standards Community and co-organizer of the showcase commented, "We are approaching the era in human history when technology will change how we perceive and experience the physical world. Through the collections of head–worn displays combined for this showcase, we will witness how the functionality, industrial design and usability of electronically-assisted vision have evolved to their current states. Vuzix is an early innovator and leader in the category and their collection of smart glasses is inspirational to designers and innovators in all segments of the AR community."

Vuzix President and CEO Paul J. Travers added, "Smart glasses and wearable devices have reached an important milestone with industry analysts now projecting the market for these devices to exceed 450 million units annually by 2018. At this junction, society and the designers of these systems are examining the many generations of precursors to today's AR technologies in order to prepare for and participate in the burgeoning and expansion of this market. Vuzix is very pleased to have the opportunity to participate in these events and to support the AR community."

Augmented Reality New York (ARNY) 
Vuzix will also sponsor Augmented Reality New York (ARNY) on May 28. ARNY includes over 1,300 designers, investors, entrepreneurs, journalists and people with a passion for AR across New York who share programming and application development. During the event Vuzix will share details of its M100 Smart Glasses, the developer program and its software developer kits (SDKs). Driven by stronger than expected demand from software developers, Vuzix has already sold out of its initial allotment of Gold SDK packages for the M100.

Related articles

Developer Camp for Google Glass

Vuzix' Best Selling Augmented Reality Glasses Now Available in an All Digital Version

SDKs for Smart Glasses Software Sell Out

CalypsoCrystal and Karim Rashid Release Accessory Line for iPhone and Galaxy Phones

CalypsoCrystal has joined forces with Karim Rashid to bring new limited edition handmade iPhone 4/5 and Galaxy S4 accessories to the market. Designed by Karim Rashid. Handcrafted by CalypsoCrystal. The six CalypsoCases designed by Karim Rashid feature a unique three-dimensional design of patterns and craziness crafted from the best premium Italian leather.

Loud, exceptional and beautiful phone accessories for the fashion aware clientele.

This CalypsoCrystal designer collection was created in cooperation with the world renowned designer Karim Rashid. All are based on the familiar and hugely successful CalypsoCase design.

Karim Rashid explains: "I have approached the simplistic CalypsoCase design with great respect and found a way to fuse it with my playful extravagant touch. The result is a collection never seen before. Symbiosis of the lines. Asymmetrical beauty."

Three designs. Three colors. Six styles.

Calm Unity and Global Velocity are made of premium leather with silver finishing.

High Infinity and Omni Experience are in a pink and blue color made of premium leather with a titanium backbone.

Touch Unlimited and Contrary Directions are premium cabrio versions with a distinctive pattern embossed in the leather.

Each piece is carefully handcrafted and unique. Only the best materials are used. Perfect Italian leather, a built-in titanium backbone and a real silver ring with the Calm Unity and Global Velocity designs are fused together in a piece of art produced by CalypsoCrystal's experienced craftsmen in Ljubljana, Europe.

The CalypsoCase by Karim Rashid is available from today for a limited time only for iPhone 4/5 and Galaxy S4. Only at http://www.calypsocrystal.com for €149/$169.

2013 Game Developers Conference Europe Reveals New Advisory Board Members, First Confirmed Speakers

UBM Tech Game Network, organizers of the Game Developers Conference™ Europe (GDC Europe), have revealed an initial lineup of speakers from leading development studios that will present lectures during the conference. Co-located with the gamescom trade fair, GDC Europe will again gather the world's leading game industry professionals to discuss timely and relevant topics across platforms and disciplines. Now in its fifth year, GDC Europe will run Monday through Wednesday, August 19-21 at the Cologne Congress-Centrum Ost in Cologne, Germany.

Newly confirmed speakers include Epic Games' James Brown with a talk urging developers to approach storytelling from a perspective that empowers their players, Sebastien Lagarde of Remember Me developer Dontnod on the game's art and how working under constraints can inspire more creativity, luminary Don Daglow on how best to take advantage of the treasures and avoid the traps of the transition to next-gen, and Oliver Franzke from Double Fine Productions discussing best practices for dealing with platform diversity, using the development of Broken Age for mobile platforms and PC as an example.

In addition, the GDC Europe Advisory Board has added two new members, each from European development studios. The board welcomes Crytek's General Manager for Games, Nick Button-Brown , whose projects include Warface, Ryse andHomefront via the company's multiple studios, and CD Projekt Red's Bartlomiej Gawel, lead concept artist working on the acclaimed Witcher series for the leading Polish developer.

The advisory board, filled with practitioners and influencers from Europe's top game firms, also welcomes back returning members representing countries across the continent including Sweden (The Drowning lead Ben Cousins), Denmark (Mojang's Daniel Kaplan), Finland (Remedy's Matias Myllyrinne), Britain (Rocksteady's David Hego), Germany (Ubisoft Blue Byte's Christopher Schmitz, Bigpoint's Sven Liebich and EA Phenomic's Dirk Ringe). Using GDC's custom-created submission system, each talk was rated multiple times by the advisory board and ranked. The full list of active board members can be found on the official GDC Europe website http://www.gdceurope.com/.

"There was a tremendous boost in both the quality and number of submissions this year for GDC Europe. I can speak for the advisory board when saying that we think attendees will be extremely pleased with the speaker roster and find great value in the content that we're programming," said Meggan Scavio, general manager of all Game Developers Conference events. "We're excited to confirm additional speakers in the coming weeks to offer a well rounded experience where developers can learn from and inspire each other."

The first confirmed sessions at GDC 2013 include:

• The Art and Rendering of Remember Me
  Sebastien Lagarde , Senior 3D/engine programmer, Dontnod entertainment
• C++ in the Browser: A Tale from the Trenches
  Nico Bouguerra, Corporate Communications Manager, Bigpoint GmbH 
• Broken Age's Approach to Scalability
  Oliver Franzke , Senior Programmer, Double Fine Productions 
• Designing Assassins Creed III
  Steven Masters , Lead Game Designer, Ubisoft Montreal
• The Making of Halo 4's Episodic Co-op Adventure: Spartan Ops
  Chris Haluke , Lead Designer, 343 Industries (Microsoft Game Studios)
• Once Upon a Time: Giving Players the Freedom to Create Their Own Story
  James Brown , Lead Level Designer, Epic Games
• The Revolution will be Streamed: How Video is Transforming Video Games 
  Matthew DiPietro , VP Marketing , Twitch 
• This Time It's Different: Treasures and Traps in the Next Gen Transition
  Don Daglow , President & Creative Director, Daglow Entertainment LLC 
• Top Eleven: Achieving Global Success via Emerging Markets
  Nikola Cavic , Head of Business Development, Nordeus

For registration information, the complete list of advisory board members and newly confirmed sessions at GDC Europe, visit http://www.gdceurope.com/.