February 10, 2006 | Back

Tychi Systems Ships Biometric Doorknob

Have a tendency for losing your house keys? Tired of waiting for the neighbors to come home to let you in with that precious "spare" key? Stress no more! Tychi Systems, Inc., is now shipping their long anticipated BioKnob, the first doorknob with fingerprint recognition. Users brush their finger across the knob to unlock the door. 100 sets of fingerprints can be stored. Entry is also possible by an individually assigned passcode.

With the BioKnob, families do not need to carry keys or hide one in the yard. Managers at businesses need not worry about loose keys or having to re-key locks with every lost key or management change. Guests or short term visitors can be programmed; then after their stay, their fingerprints are deleted. An audit feature records entries by Individual, Date and Time, and records the last 1000 entries. Teens beware - your parents will now know exactly how late past curfew you came home!

> Source: Tychi Systems
> Estimated price: N/A
> Date released/expected: N/A

Posted at 11:21 AM | Permalink | Email to a friend | Comments

August 05, 2005 | Back

Business Photography Made Simple with Photosimile

Say cheese! Ortery Technologies, Inc. has just launched Photosimile 100 and Photosimile 200, two new tabletop digital photo studios, which the company says will create professional, color accurate and shadow-free photographs for websites, product catalogs, online auctions, quality control, enhanced business communication and more.

Photosimile works with any digital camera as a photography light box, however when used with a compatible digital camera, Photosimile becomes a PC-controlled photography studio using software that automates image capture and processing. Compatible digital cameras include: the Canon PowerShot A and G series and the Olympus C series. Users click 'Preview' in the software to generate a real-time view of items inside the studio on their monitor screen then compose pictures using 'Zoom-In', 'Zoom-Out', 'Rotate' and 'Crop' commands. Pressing 'Snap' takes and automatically sends the picture to the PC monitor screen in seconds. Captured images can be annotated, emailed, exported to other programs, batch saved/re-sized, deleted and more. And, come on, couldn't every small business use a photo studio?

> Source: Ortery
> Estimated price: Photosimile 100 $1,200 - Photosimile 200 $1,700
> Date released/expected: N/A

Posted at 07:21 PM | Permalink | Email to a friend | Comments

July 21, 2005 | Back

Samsung Adds New Printers to Its Digital Multifunctional Product Line-up

Printers, printers, printers. The choices continue to grow - which is great if you don't already own a dozen of them. If you are shopping, Samsung's printer division just introduced new Multifunction Products (MFP) SCX-4321 and SCX-4521F with upgraded functionalities for small to mid-sized offices.

The 3-in-1 SCX-4321 can print, copy and scan, and the 4-in-1 SCX-4521F can also send fax messages. Despite their utility, both models are compact, making them ideal for professional small and mid-sized workgroups. To increase work efficiency, Samsung adds the "Favorite Copy" button, which lets you to select the preset copying mode most often used. The SCX-4521F series also boasts enhanced copy functions such as "ID Copy" (double sides), Clone Copy, and Auto Fit. Not so sure these features are so new and exciting, but it does sound like Samsung covered the bases.

> Source: Samsung Electronics
> Estimated price: N/A
> Date released/expected: N/A

Posted at 11:53 AM | Permalink | Email to a friend | Comments

July 13, 2005 | Back

Intel Adds Dual-Core Capability to Entry-Level Server Platforms

Here's a two-fer for you... Intel Corporation has introduced the dual-core Intel Pentium D processor-based platform for entry-level servers that includes two processor cores in one processor and the corresponding Intel E7230 chipset. This platform is a great value for smaller businesses wishing to buy powerful entry-level servers. Intel's new platform includes many unique and innovate enterprise-class features such as PCI Express I/O, 64-bit addressability, DDR2 memory and software RAID. Too bad the price isn't a two-fer, but competitively priced nonetheless.

> Source: Intel
> Estimated price: $36
> Date released/expected: N/A

Posted at 10:20 AM | Permalink | Email to a friend | Comments

July 11, 2005 | Back

HP's New Ink-Based Printing Platform Great for Home or Office

Breakthrough, not bleed through! That's what HP says about its new ink-based printing platform, the result of a five-year, $1.4 billion strategic investment that the company believes will catapult its leadership in the printer market years ahead of its competitors. At a press conference, HP unveiled its first products built on the new scalable printing technology, which is designed specifically to deliver high-performance printing for high-volume users. These include home photo printing devices -- 4 x 6-inch photos in as fast as 14 seconds -- as well as a desktop color business printer, which enables small and medium-size businesses to print up to twice the speed and 30 percent lower cost-per-page than color laser printers.

The printhead components are fabricated as one unit via a photolithographic process, rather than welded together in post-production. This results in the precise alignment of the chamber, nozzles and heating element, which then improves the accuracy of ink drop placement. Additionally, the new printing system ensures that users will never run out of ink mid-page -- eliminating a source of wasted ink and paper. The new platform is scalable, accommodating high-volume consumer users and small to medium-size businesses all the way up to the commercial market.

> Source: HP
> Estimated price: $199 - $399
> Date released/expected: N/A

Posted at 04:17 PM | Permalink | Email to a friend | Comments

June 14, 2005 | Back

Herman Miller's Cella Chair Wins "Best of NeoCon 2005" Awards

Ahhh. Good looking, good for you, and it shows. Cella, designed by Jerome Caruso for Herman Miller, won the Innovation Award in the Seating: Ergonomic Desk/Task category. The chair features Cellular Suspension that uses pliable molder polymer "cells" and loops to responsively flex in concert with the body's movements throughout the workday.

Following the rigors of Herman Miller's Design for Environment (DfE) methodology, the chair has 33 percent recycled content, is 99 percent recyclable, and can be disassembled in less than 5 minutes with simple hand tools. Cella brings a new level of ergonomic performance and a unique, progressive aesthetic to mid/low priced contract seating.

> Source: Herman Miller
> Estimated price: From $450 to $650 depending on options
> Date released/expected: N/A

Posted at 09:51 PM | Permalink | Email to a friend | Comments