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Cell Phone Accessories Connected Objects Displays

The popSLATE 2’s E-Ink screen displays iPhone notifications and content with less power

The original popSLATE promised to ween smartphone users off the compulsion of checking their home screen for updates. To do so, the popSLATE’s E-Ink screen was built into an iPhone case, connecting via Bluetooth to act as a lower power second screen. In the end, the case proved to be less than useful and its 115 dpi screen managed to be an eyesore that got in the way of it truly being practical.

This year, the popSLATE team is back with the popSLATE 2, the sequel to the original second screen E-Ink case. This time, the case uses a Lightning connector to interface with an iPhone 6, 6S, 6+, and 6S+. This not only allows the popSLATE 2 to charge more easily (the last one used a micro-USB cable) but talk directly with the apps on the phone for greater functionality. Through its upgraded 200 dpi E-Ink screen, the popSLATE 2 facilitates everything from news updates and weather notifications to social feeds and loyalty cards, all of which are easily visible on customizable dashboards no matter how bright it is outside due to E-Ink’s naturally anti-glare properties.

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Connected Objects Displays

Z4 Aurora punches above its weight for portable projectors

The typical portable LED projector offers consumers a pretty good way to display video and other content on any flat surface wherever they are. But most aren’t designed to offer a complete entertainment experience including good-quality sound.

Z4 Aurora, however, is a smart, portable LED projector that features integrated Android functionality and stereo sound from audio company Harmon/Kardon. The projector can turn any surface into a 300-inch screen. Apps and games can be wirelessly streamed onto the projector, which also supports active-shutter, stereoscopic 3D video, as well as MP4, 4K and Blu-ray video. It uses an energy-conserving bulb and has a projected lifetime of 30,000 hours, more than the average expected lifetime of several rival projectors.

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Connected Objects Displays Maker/Development

Looking for a sign? Starling lets you connect one to the Internet

While some consumers are aware of advancements in LED TV technology, the same thing can’t necessarily be said for the use of LED lighting in signs. Signage just doesn’t usually tend to excite people in the same way that TVs do.

But that hasn’t stopped the makers of Starling from putting a creative spin on LED signs. Starling is an open source LED display that features a modular design and is Wi-Fi-enabled for easy connection to the Internet. The accompanying mobile-friendly Web application enables simple configuration and usage, allowing users to select the font appearing on the signs, as well as the scroll speed and other features. There’s also a mobile app for Android and iOS devices.

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Displays

360Mini projector shows your vistas wherever you look

An increasing number of cameras, including PanoCam3D, enable 360-degree shooting. But there are only a limited number of display devices that allow such still photos and videos to be seen the way they were shot.

360Mini is a media projector that can display 360-degree images and videos the same way they were shot: as a seamless 360-degree panorama. The three-foot-tall projector can be accessed via Wi-Fi to edit and upload data, and mobile devices can be used to navigate through the uploaded content or to control the projector, according to its Kickstarter campaign.

The projector ships in July. Future pricing isn’t provided by the campaign, but early bird backers can get one at pricing that starts at about $978. Its makers are hoping to raise $92,356 by Jan. 24.

360Mini is a clever concept and it’s likely going to be appealing to many people who have shot 360-degree photos or video. But it remains to be seen how popular 360-degree imaging is going to be and how often even fans of the technology are going to want to view such images.

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Displays Imaging Music Smart Home

The Selfiemirror lets you capture who’s the fairest of them all

From the looks of it, the selfie trend is here to stay. Everything from pop culture to technological trends have responded to the rapidly increasing demand for photos that are way too close to the face. A perpetual kissie face to humanity, the humble selfie will continue on.

The Selfiemirror is a next step in the natural evolution of the selfie, combining a mirrored display and HD camera to facilitate selfies with armless ease. The Selfiemirror photo app lets users select a number of frames and time delay and then snaps a picture, with the option of using the included physical Bluetooth Button instead. But that’s just the beginning.

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Augmented Reality Displays Music

ORA-X raises the Glass bar for a twist on augmented reality

Augmented reality is one of the hottest emerging technologies right now. But it remains to be seen if the category will attract mass consumer appeal because AR devices tend to be bulky headsets that are specifically designed to exploit the technology.

patent-claimedORA-X, on the other hand, are over-the-ear audio headphones equipped with a Google Glass-like retractable, see-through projection display. Virtual video content is overlaid on the display, but doesn’t block out the outside world like AR devices such as the Oculus Rift or SEER.

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Displays

Cinq makes it a cinch to add second computer screen

Adding a second screen to one’s laptop computer can come in extremely handy, whether working at home, an office or on the road. After all, it cuts down significantly on the need to toggle back and forth between multiple windows on a PC to find necessary information.

patent-claimedCinq is a portable, 13.3-inch HD (1600 x 900) monitor that connects via USB to a laptop or Intel-based tablet such as Microsoft’s Surface Pro. It mounts to the laptop in two steps: the user applies a clear vinyl Lid Rail Skin to the laptop lid, and then attaches the Lid Rail using a clamp.

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Automotive Cell Phone Accessories Displays

Hudway offers a simple cheap way to look into the future of driving displays

editors-choiceA head-up display (HUD) can be a handy device in a car, especially when facing low visibility conditions. Such devices provide valuable data for drivers and, because they display information on a transparent screen in front of the windshield, drivers don’t have to look away from the road to see that data. However, most HUDs are expensive, whether they’re purchased built into a luxury car or bought separately as an aftermarket product.

patent-claimedHudway Glass is an affordable alternative –- a car accessory that gets placed on a car dashboard and transforms smartphones into HUDs in conjunction with several mobile applications. Users place their smartphone on the accessory’s cradle with the display facing up. Its attached, transparent optical glass reflects the data received from the accompanying Android and iOS smartphone apps, allowing a driver to see road maps and other needed information just by looking straight ahead where the windshield is.

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Displays Tech Accessories

NoonWear One lets you see your screens in the bright sun

The screens on today’s smartphones, tablets and laptops produce vibrant, saturated colors — that is, as long as they’re not directly in the path of the sun. Trying to fight the greatest light source for millions of miles is a tough battle to win and so screens become washed out and hard to read.

While most sunglasses only make the problem worse by blocking half of a laptop’s emitted light, Noonwear One provides a new approach to this problem with a line of sunglasses that create a dramatic improvement in screen visibility. The specs use diagonal polarization to allow light from electronic screens to come through better while still blocking sunlight.

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Displays Input

Touchjet Wave transforms your TV into a touch screen device

Tablets may never have a large enough screen to please some users. That’s especially the case when using a tablet to view a widescreen movie that begs to be seen on the largest screen possible.

Touchjet Wave is a new device that adds touch screen control and Android apps to any TV that has a screen from 20 to 80 inches large. The device clips onto the TV and gets connected via the TV’s HDMI port. An HDMI cable is included, along with a stylus. Touchjet Wave uses infrared technology to track finger movements and taps across the TV screen.