Hi-tech Frontier

Handmade Wooden iPhone 3G Cases The term ‘wooden iPhone case’ doesn’t conjure up an image of the sleekest, sveltest way to protect my device, but somehow Etsy seller Substrata has managed to create just that. Their series of handmade wooden cases for the 3G are shaped and sanded to compliment the iPhone’s curves, and the inside is contoured to hold the phone snugly. Just keep in mind that while your phone is being protected, you won’t have access to any of the buttons. It looks like there are three versions of the case to choose from, depending on your wood grain preference, and given they’re handmade, the $84.99 price tag is not that surprising.

Heavy lift robotic helicopter concept Use of Helicopters for lifting heavy items are not that trendy in the recent world but still there is always a need of a helicopter that can lift gigantic items for easy and quick transportation. This heavy lift robotic helicopter concept was designed during last 2008 with keeping giant lifting capabilities in mind. The innovative design will let the helicopter to pull a remarkably high object and the placing of the propellers have made them easy movable to offer better control. Both of the landing beams are supported with three hydraulic legs that can increase or reduce the height of the giant lifter.

OLPC graduate Pixel Qi announces 3Qi three-in-one screen will debut next month After spinning off from the OLPC project last year with that fancy dual-mode display technology in its pocket, Pixel Qi has been pretty much talk. Now there's more talk, but at least it comes with a timeline: next month. That's when Pixel Qi founder Mary Lou Jepsen believes the much-anticipated 10-inch 3Qi display should hit the scene, combining a low-power black and white mode, e-paper mode and high-resolution color LCD mode into one glorious, sunlight-readable (and hopefully outlandishly cheap) screen. They'll just be shipping samples initially, but should have the screen producing in volume sometime this summer. Mary Lou also has some big words on the future of displays, claiming that they're working on screens that act like a chip on the motherboard, saving power and improving visuals -- we're not sure what that entails, but it sounds pretty neat. She also says that "screens shou...

Eizo's FlexScan EV2023W / EV2303W LCD monitors turn off when humans are away Not that we haven't seen LCD monitors get less demanding when it comes to energy, but we've yet to see a company take eco-friendliness this far. Professional LCD maker Eizo has just announced a new pair of panels (the 20-inch FlexScan EV2023W-H and the 23-inch EV2303W-T) that boast a "human presence sensor." As the phrase implies, these displays are designed to shift to power saving mode when it realizes that its master has vacated the area, and when they return, it automatically flips back on in order to keep from being bashed by one of many USB-connected peripherals. Unfortunately, it seems the human detection timer can't be changed from 40 seconds, and no, there are no current plans to implement a robot presence sensor once the Apocalypse is realized.

Philips shows off Lumiblade OLED lighting concepts As promised, Philips has now taken the wraps off its first few Lumiblade OLED lighting concepts which, judging from Philips' boasting, could well change your life and ours. Now on display at the Euroluce International Lighting Fair in Milan, the concepts are divided into consumer and professional groups, the former of which includes ceiling-mounted products like the one pictured above, as well as some slightly more straightforward desk lamps like the one pictured after the break. What's more, each lighting device also boasts at least some degree of interactivity, including the ability to recognize hand gestures or, in the case of the professional lighting fixtures, react to passers-by. Interestingly, however, none of the products are actually full-on OLED lamps, with each also supplemented by some LUXEON Power LEDs to provide some more usable lighting.

AMD Phenom II X4 955 and 945 benchmarked to high heaven Just when you though you'd had your fill of insanely detailed benchmarks of processors you may or may not have ever heard of, AMD's new Phenom II X4 955 and 945 hit the scene to get those overclockers all in a tizzy. The top of the line is the 955 "Black Edition" at 3.2GHz, while the 945 plays with a petty 3GHz. And the verdict? They're clearly AMD's fastest so far, but that might not be fast enough. AMD offers great value, but only really matches Intel's Core 2 offerings on performance -- Core i7 is still out in front. There is the fact that Phenom II offers a nice upgrade path for certain people who already do the AMD thing and are looking to upgrade, along with "enthusiasts" who are "enthused" by easy-access overclocking, but overall it looks like AMD is still playing catch-up with Intel.

Giant keyboard art in Shenzhen metro station offers tech-friendly seating If you're at the Shenzhen Metro station any time soon, you'll unlikely happen across the beautiful, beautiful sight above. The station -- which is in Shenzhen just north of Hong Kong -- has installed some keyboard art that really speaks to the typist in our souls -- we even type in our dreams occasionally. The keys function as seats to relax in while you wait for your train, though why they chose the keys they chose (Enter, M,

Creative TravelSound i85 adds external speaker, FM tuner to iPod nano There's really no easy way to say it -- Creative's TravelSound i85 is bordering on unsightly, so devout fashionistas should probably look elsewhere. For those who always put design second and utility first, this here device adds a portable speaker and FM tuning abilities to Apple's fourth-generation iPod nano (the tall, thin one, for those unaware) and even includes a built-in rechargeable battery for pumping out up to 15 hours of house jams. Aside from operating as a gaudy wrist adornment, it can also double as a stand (horizontally or vertically), though there's no Dock Connector pass-through (just a miniUSB plug). Worth $99.99? That's between you and the monster underneath your bed.

Sharp Mebius NJ70A with LCD multitouch trackpad If the recent footage of Sharp's Mebius NJ70A and its LCD multitouch trackpad has gotten you hot, bothered, and reaching for your wallet, Dynamism is now taking pre-orders for the Japanese import netbook. The 4-inch touchscreen notwithstanding, you're looking at a 1.6GHz Intel Atom machine and the usual, ho-hum specs that go along with it -- not an easy pill to swallow when you're staring down a $999 price tag. Ship date is June 5th, and you might want to take that time to brush up on your skills with a Japanese International Layout keyboard if you're seriously considering the purchase.

MSI's X-Slim X340 CULV thin and light bait and switch? Uh, MSI. The $1,100 price tag you're showing for the X-Slim X340 CULV-based thin-and-light laptop on your retail site is not "under $1,000" as you promised three weeks ago. Then again, maybe you'll slip in a lesser spec'd model by the time the "Out of stock" badge changes to "Shipping?" Know this MSI, we're watching you.

BlackBerry Pearl 8230 for $79.99 in early May Here we thought that Verizon was going to ace out the US CDMA market by announcing the 8230 first, but alas, it ends up being Alltel -- the divested chunks of it post-acquisition -- that becomes the first American carrier to trumpet the device. Unlike its GSM sibling over on T-Mobile, the 8230 is a 3G handset equipped with EV-DO, but otherwise, it looks pretty much the same with a QVGA primary display, love-it-or-hate-it SureType keypad, and 2 megapixel cam. It'll hit the "new" Alltel's 2.2 million subscribers in 91 markets come early May for a seemingly reasonable $79.99.

VeryKool's i280 reminds us of Helio's days gone by Remember VK Mobile? No? We can't say we blame you, so allow us to jog your memory: these were the guys that made Helio's curious Kickflip back in the day, and for a while, the company was seen as The Next Big Thing to come out of the South Korean cellphone industry before its financial collapse a couple years ago. VK stood for "VeryKool," so imagine our surprise to see a "VeryKool USA" get a new touchscreen set approved by the FCC this week. It's a relatively simple GSM / EDGE device, though it's got analog TV reception on board -- not very useful around here, seeing how that's about to disappear from the airwaves -- and the UI appears to be a direct rip of LG's pre-S-Class touchscreen design. In other words, we can't imagine a North American carrier even dreaming of picking this thing up, so we suppose VeryKool USA exists solely for the purpose of garnering FCC approval on device...

HTC Touch Pro2 gets hands-on While we still don't have an official release date for HTC's Touch Pro2 here in the states, the folks at Russian site Mobile-Review have managed to get some extensive hands-on time with the unit. Props go to the quality of the voice calls and especially the QWERTY keyboard, noted via the machine translation as one of the most user-friendly in modern mobile devices. The same is not said here, however, for the plastic casing and steep pricing.

Philips Prestigo SRT9320 color touchscreen remote ready for preorders Just a bit closer to filling the hole in our lives where a $199 remote should be, the Philips Prestigo SRT9320 universal remote popped up for preorders on Amazon this month, regrettably the ship date is no more specific than "1 or 2 months," but unlike some things, we'll at least have the choice to buy this one. In case you've forgotten, it packs a 2.8-inch color touchscreen and can handle up to 20 devices, programmed directly on the remote itself or learned via IR.