Zero Click Thoughts

courtesy of www.intel.com

Sprint’s WiMax network has now begun offering its blazing fast WiMax network in Baltimore. Sprint’s 4g technology is supposed to be up to twice as fast as any other mobile internet offered by Verizon or AT&T.

They named the new network, Xohm (”zoam”), and it currently requires a network card in order to access it which costs you about $60. Many laptops will soon be shipped with integrated technology to handle WiMax, and user access would be similar to WiFi.

Does this mark a transition to a completely wireless age? With speeds of 2-4 megabits/second, it very well could. Just like how land line phones are slowly fading away, we could see the same trend in a few years with personal cable/DSL.

If you thought the iPhone was cool, prepare to be utterly and completely amazed by Microsoft Surface, the first “commercially-available surface computing platform”.

The Microsoft Surface looks like a coffee table, but has a touch screen computer on the top.  It works by using “a rear projection system which displays an image onto the underside of a thin diffuser which is the table’s surface. Infrared light is also projected onto the underside of the diffuser.”

Check out this website for an incredible demo video!

The Surface recognizes objects, such as cameras and cell phones, and automatically inputs data, such as pictures or video into the computer.  It then lets you play, stretch and edit your images just by using your hands.

This amazing device also lets you work with non-digital objects - for example, you can “draw” with your hands, or “paint” with an actual paintbrush.  There are an infinite number of additional cool features, and more are currently in development.

Unfortunately, at the present time, Microsoft Surface is not available to individual customers – Microsoft is currently only marketing and distributing to large retail and entertainment businesses.  You’ll have to wait at least three to five years for consumer purchase.

However, in the meantime, you can check out this amazing innovation at select AT&T retail stores, or at the iBar Ultra-Lounge at the Rio All Hotels & Suites in Las Vegas.