December 20, 2012

We compile it for general reference and (hopefully) amusement purposes only, and it should not be relied upon as a definitive source of information or of any legal or other advice, nor should it be seen as necessarily reflecting the views of this firm. A link to a website or source material does not imply any endorsement by us of the source or the material provided through the link. We do our best to ensure that all images are used either under a Creative Commons licence, or with the permission of the copyright owner, or under the statutory fair dealing provisions. If you have an objection to our use of any image please contact us at law@wiggin.co.uk. For further information about Wiggin’s entertainment and technology practice please visit our website: www.wiggin.co.uk 

The Gnome’s Techie Christmas Stocking Fillers

As it is the season of goodwill the Gnome is starting off this month’s Newsletter with a special selection of technology treats to help spread the Christmas cheer. Here are seven of the best for Christmas (if we’re all still here despite the Mayan predictions):

Wii Love It

Being small in stature, naturally, the Gnome is a fan of all things “wee”, so expectations are high for Nintendo’s new “Wii U” console, released on 30 November. This is Nintendo’s first home console since 2006, and after posting an annual loss for the first time in its history last year Nintendo will be hoping the new Wii will make a big impression on gamers. The Wii U will be available in three different bundle packages with prices ranging from £250 to £300, making it a rather generous Christmas stocking filler. What distinguishes the Wii U from other consoles is its new GamePad function, which is a hybrid of a traditional controller and a tablet, with a 6.2 inch touchscreen display which works in tandem with what’s on your TV. The GamePad includes a front-facing camera and NFC (Near Field Communication) technology and can even work as a controller for your TV.

New Xbox by Christmas?

OK when he said Christmas the Gnome didn’t promise Christmas 2012.  As regular readers will know Tech-Know is usually well ahead of the curve and the Gnome is doing his Christmas shopping for 2013 already.  If the rumours that he’s been hearing are correct then Microsoft is preparing the launch of a new Xbox. The new console was previously dubbed “Xbox 720”, but it is expected to shed the buzz created by the 720 tag and arrive as the plain old “Xbox” again. This more modestly named console is expected to be launched before Christmas 2013. Is it too early to start counting down to next Christmas?

Raise Your Glasses

Video eyewear specialist Vuzix has released details of their most futuristic product yet, the M100 Smart Glasses. These “glasses” have no glass but give you a HMD (head mounted display) of your phone screen out in space in front of your eyes. They connect wirelessly via Bluetooth to your phone but have their own OS and head tracking, gyro, accelerometer, and compass. This new technological piece of wizardry is expected to be released early in 2013, and that means arrival on the market (in the States at least) before Google Glass, Google’s rival augmented reality HMD system.

Notching Things up a Gear

When you’re pedalling hard you don’t want the tiresome business of having to change your own gears, that’s why Cambridge Consultants Limited has designed an app that’ll do it for you. Brilliant. The technology fuses a Shimano automatic gear shifting system with a low-power version of Bluetooth so that your bike can talk to your smartphone. The technology uses your smartphone to calculate the best gear to be in based on your pedalling speed (or cadence as it’s known) then wirelessly shifts your gear. It also uses the phone’s accelerometer to change down if you need to suddenly stop – so you can pull away with ease afterwards. Improvements are also being made to allow the gears to know whether you’re approaching a hill so the gears will change in advance, leaving you to concentrate on making it to the top. Try getting that bike in your stocking!

Defender of The Old Meets The New

Fender may be a classic guitar brand used by Jimi Hendrix and John Lennon but the new Squier Strat model by Fender is fully updated for the modern day. Hendrix wannabes can use the guitar’s USB port to connect with any Apple device or PC to access PC music making software or alternatively record music directly into programs such as Garage Band. Or you could just treat it like the good old Stratocaster it is and just make lots of noise….

Modern Retro

Waiting for tapes to come back into fashion? Thought not, but now there’s no reason why you should let that precious tape collection go to waste. With the Ion Tape Dock you can convert your tapes to MP3 over the boring holiday season directly on to your iPhone or iPod Touch. You just need to download an iOS app for the process to work and you’ll be dancing round your living room to Lionel Richie and Cher in no time at all. And this one will fit into the stocking.

Blackberry Picking Season is just around the Corner

BlackBerry’s back with a bang as RIM has announced a worldwide launch of its new BlackBerry 10 operating system and two new handsets set for release on 30 January 2013. The new system will boast more updates (and jargon) than you could shake a stick at, such as BlackBerry Flow which allows “seamless navigation” between running apps, Blackberry Hub which is a central bank containing all your messages, notifications and events, and BlackBerry Balance which promises to help keep that tricky work/life balance in check by separating work-related apps and data on the handset from personal ones. The BlackBerry 10 handsets are expected to include the traditional Blackberry keyboard models and new touchscreen models.

 iTunes Gets an Interface Lift

Following a series of delays Apple has launched iTunes 11 with a range of changes that significantly alter the program’s interface.  Apple’s delays in releasing iTunes 11 were due to it needing “a little more time to get it right” and “getting it right” has centred on a distinct visual redesign, with a focus on album covers that expand to show your own songs combined with other tracks from Apple’s iTunes music store. Apple has moved to streamline their service with much closer integration with Apple’s iCloud and the final removal of “Ping”, Apple’s social recommendation tool which received criticism for failing to integrate with other social networking sites. iTunes 11 is notably still lacking any music streaming capability, which could lead to further pressure from streaming specialists such as Spotify. The boat may have already set sail down this stream for Apple.

Ubiquitv

In a triumph for “does what it says on the tin” product labelling Virgin has launched its TV Anywhere service which fittingly allows Virgin customers to watch TV anywhere. If you’re a subscriber you’ll now be able to watch your favourite programmes on almost any device.  The service will be available through apps that act as a touch-based remote control when you’re at home, and it includes features such as suggested programming and built-in social media functionality. The apps will initially be available only for iOS, so other users will have to access the service via their mobile web browser. TV Anywhere is available to all customers with a TiVo box and will allow customers to control their box remotely to record programmes on the move.

Find the Hotspots

While not exactly an app, this neat little package is a thermal imaging device that fits on to your iPhone and it means you can look at all sorts of things (consider the possibilities) in a new way. Not in production yet, the IR-Blue is another Kickstarter project that will hopefully go commercial next year.

TV Remote Missing? Give It a Ring

Frantically searching for your remote down the back of the sofa as you miss the start of your favourite programme could now be a thing of the past – Sky has updated its Sky+ app to allow iPhones to be used as a remote control (as long as it’s the iPhone 3GS or newer). The app allows you to tap to pause and play, swipe across to rewind and fast forward and swipe up and down to change channel. A new TV guide allows you to sort by genre, set reminders and record shows via the app. You will need to Sky+HD box  as well.

Get There For Christmas

After the embarrassment of having its own mapping service either laughed at or, in the case of those who found themselves up a cul de sac 45 miles from where they should have been, cursed loudly, Apple have finally allowed Google Maps back onto the App Store. Google’s version has turn-by-turn navigation, as well as Street View and transit directions. No excuse for not dropping in on weird cousin Bertie on Boxing Day then.

ps if you’re still paying attention to this one, Marit Hansen, the Deputy Privacy and Information Commissioner at the Independent Centre for Privacy Protection in Schleswig-Holstein, says Google Maps breaches European data protection law on a number of counts, starting with the fact that the option to share location data with Google is switched on by default.

Keys for the Future

The latest in portable keyboard technology in development stage is the Qii (pronounced key) which can be hit with a hammer, doused in coffee, washed, and then rolled up into your briefcase. The Qii is made by printing touch sensors onto a new carbon-based nanomaterial that conducts electricity. It connects via Bluetooth to your tablet (those pesky things that don’t have proper keyboards like good old laptops). It’s another ingenious piece of technology that is looking for sufficient funding to get to market, so good luck for 2013, Qii.

Plastic Fantastic

Great news for clumsy people of the world as scientific research may (yes may) have created a self-healing plastic which can be used in smartphones, tablets and any other piece of gadgetry which could slip through your buttery little fingers. The clever folks at Stanford University have created a self-healing plastic that is compatible with touchscreens, and if the technology your gadget to dig you out of a hole and repair your scrapes and dents in mere minutes without needing any repairs. But before you get excited about having the option to toss your phone off the wall after your next frustrating phone call, this technology is not expected any time soon and could be ready by iPhone 8 at the earliest if it is commercially viable at all!

MSN Messenger Signs Out For Good

Microsoft has announced that they will be retiring Windows Live Messenger everywhere by 2013, except for mainland China. The Gnome remembers fondly – before the proliferation of social media – the days when MSN Messenger was the web’s communal meeting ground and the first real social medium.. MSN Messenger became Windows Live Messenger in 2009, by which point active users had hit 330 million worldwide.  But how fickle were we?  Active users have dropped drastically since 2009 and the number now at around 8.3 million – where can they have all gone?  Microsoft say they will be offering a migration tool to encourage users to transfer their accounts to the much more exciting Microsoft-owned Skype.

Fast Food

The chap on the Vespa could be out of a job if the techies at Darwin Aerospace get their way. Their gift to 2013 is the “Burrito Bomber” – an adapted drone that can deliver your takeway to you over the rooftops.  Its GPS navigation system takes it to the right location (you hope) and drops its payload into your hungry hands. The Gnome reckons it might be best to avoid curry via this service.

The Rumour Mill….

There have been several rumours this year about the possible arrival of an Amazon smartphone in 2013, and all indicators are that it’s the obvious move for Amazon, so watch this space…

Eh? What’s That Then?

Smishing: Smishing is a combination of the terms “SMS” and “phishing.” It means the act of sending fraudulent messages by SMS (text messaging) rather than email.

And Finally…

The latest directive to appear from Brussels is in the form of an 82-foot non-partisan, politically correct and religiously neutral festive decoration that might possibly look like something connected with an ancient pago-Christian celebration but hopefully not enough to cause any offence.   It has caused offence, however, to 25,000 possibly but not necessarily Christian Brussels dwellers who according to the BBC have signed a petition against the installation and “accuse officials of opting for the installation for fear of offending non-Christians, especially Muslims”. 

So happy…er…seasonal greetings to you this Christmastide, and if the Gnome has offended anyone by this item or any part of it, which he almost certainly has done, please send him full details in a seasonal missive and the Gnome happily get round a beer/non-alcoholic beverage with you early in the New Year to discuss your concerns.