Stampy Camera Magically Turns Photos into Rubber-Stamps

The Stampy Digital Camera reminds me of those old “How To Draw Comic-Books” guides. You’d get a step one (stick men), step two (circles and rectangles) and a step three (the amazing, finished artwork). Somewhere there was a missing step 2.5, which was where the actual magic happened.

The Stampy also has this missing step. The camera takes a picture (step 1). You then pull it apart to reveal a rubber-stamp and ink-pad within (step 2) and then you simply slap it down onto a piece of paper to get a monochrome rendition of the photo you took (step 3). The missing step: How on earth does your picture get turned from photons of light into nodules of rubber?

Strange Vertical Bed

Technology is about making life convenient; it lives up to that reputation especially with Strange Vertical bed. Rest while on the go!

Have you ever questioned if resting while standing was an option? Then techngology has the answer to the mystery. Strange Vertical bed totally fits the puzzle. It makes resting possible in places we only wished resting possible.

Resting is a requirement with every living human being; it goes without saying that most naturally human nature leans towards resting. Safely resting can be considered a necessity. No machinery can go on working no matter how advanced the technology without resting. Human body is no different!

Standing and waiting on the bus stand or standing in the playing field babysitting your toddlers or just sight seeing now got way easier thanks to Strange Vertical bed. Resting can be supplementary activity to anything else you are doing. Technology used in Strange Vertical bed is consumer friendly to the extent that it comes with sound killing head phones, opaque sunglasses, complimentary standing umbrella and even a built-in suitcase.

Sega's Toirettsu console allows gaming in bathrooms

The game system itself is called Toirettsu, a play on the words “toy”, “let’s”, and “toilets”, and leaving aside the obvious jokes for a minute about how most Sega games are well suited for this sort of activity, it basically allows for gaming in bathrooms.

Sega’s taking the old men’s room thought exercise to the next level by installing a series of sensors in urinals, which in turn translate to control over on-screen events on a screen located at proper eye-height behind the urinal itself. You’ll be able to do such things as put out fires, erase graffiti with a hose, and even engage in a battle in which two men spray milk from their noses and into each other (strongest stream wins), among other and reportedly even stranger things.

It hasn’t actually been released yet, but word is that restaurants will be happy to get these in as they’ll allow owners to sell advertising space on the screens on a repeating loop when gameplay isn’t in progress, allowing them to get in a little extra revenue.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas tells us that life is not just an existence, but a wonderful miracle. Live every moment with joy and gratitude. May you carry this thought with you all through the year. Spread the warmth of the Christmas season to all those around you and make this world a beautiful place to live in. Wishing you and your loved ones a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Man Ditches Keys for RFID Implant

Joe Wooller hates clutter. He's also apparently, incredibly lazy. The 28-year-old Australian father of two decided he was done with hauling his keys around, and underwent a minor surgery in June to implant an RFID chip in his hand. The chip is used to open doors to his home, unlock his car and fire up his motorcycle. Wooller still needs his keys to open the gas tank on the motorcycle and has to punch in a code to disable his home security system, but he says that the RFID chip has made things simpler and more convenient in some respects. He told the Sydney Morning Herald, "You can't lock yourself out now... It's saved me from locking myself outside a couple of times. So that's been good."

Swiss Mini-Gun

The Swiss Mini-Gun is a working miniature gun. Not that it has much in the way of stopping power. The 2.34mm rimfire ammunition puts out a measly 0.97 joule of energy. That is significantly less than most BB guns or air rifles. But a tiny gun that actually shoots real tiny bullets is interesting, don’t you think? If nothing else this can be appreciated for the level of craftsmanship and precision that the Swiss usually reserve for their watches. It is interesting to look at, but I fail to see why anyone would want to own.

There are two models offered by the company, a stainless steel version and a solid gold version. The stainless steel version will ship with a leather holster, 24 live and 24 blank cartridges and a cleaning set. The solid gold version can be customized according to your wishes. You can bling it up with diamonds or whatever you want. Like the stainless steel version, it ships with 24 live and 24 blank cartridges, but it also has a rocket launcher tube and 36 luminous rockets. It is all packed into a green tinted maple presentation box.

Youtube Viral Ad Campaign

A hunter ______ a bear

After a short video introduction, a hunter invites the user to suggest things he can do with a bear besides shooting it, a text field at the top of the screen offering a seemingly infinite amount of options. Type a verb into the sentence “A hunter ______ a bear” more video ensues — leading to a charming, occasionally crude branded experience.

To the campaign’s credit (perhaps because it’s European), the options for what you can suggest the bear and hunter do together include some decidedly un-Puritan suggestions befitting YouTube’s more adolescent users. Because yes, if you’re a dirty-minded human being and you plug the obvious four-letter word into the box, the expected result occurs. (I’m not dirty-minded, okay? It was a journalistic imperative.)

While it’s more fun to discover potential suggestions yourself, the page is full of comments from happy users, and while it is possible to discover the limits of what the designers of the experience have created (“sambas with,” “parties with,” and “dances with” return the same result, for example) there’s a surprising amount of variety at play.

The Tipp-Experience launched officially at the beginning of September, but it’s a testament to its evergreen quality that it feels fresh and fun even a month later. The technology is flawless, the design deceptively simple; it’s almost easy to take this sort of thing for granted.

                                                                                                                                                                    

Ninja's Unboxing 2

Remember quite some time ago a YouTube user pushed out an unboxing of the Google Nexus One done by small ninja’s? Well the same guy has done it again this time with the Google Nexus S Android 2.3 Gingerbread handset.

The Ninja’s Unboxing 2 comes out way courtesy of the guys over at Daily Mobile but the only problem is the sneaky guys has taken over the entire page for his little spout of ninjas and thus made the video un-embeddable so we don’t actually have the view for you to view onsite.

However if you want to check out those three battling ninja’s fighting over the Google Nexus S handset you can do so by visiting the PatrickBoivin YouTube page, and if you do, don’t go thinking there’s something wrong when the YouTube page starts shrinking as its all part of the effect.

You don’t get to see a great deal of the Google Nexus S in action as the action centres on the three pesky ninja’s that swing and jump all over the page, but I have to say it is cleverly done, so head on over and check out the ninja’s going after the Nexus S video…enjoy.

I can't embed it, for obvious reasons, so go check it out for yourself.

Huey the Color Copying Chameleon Lamp

Huey is an electronic glowing chameleon lamp that dynamically matches the color of whatever he sits on. Have a favorite green notebook? Plop Huey down on top and he matches the color with his glowing skin. Just painted your room Cerulean Blue? Hold Huey against the wall, then squeeze him gently and he'll hold the color, even if you put him down on your brown nightstand. Huey even has a color cycle mode if you're indecisive. Watch him pop from color to color and give him a little reassuring squeeze when he gets to the one you like. Huey the Color Copying Chameleon Lamp makes an adorable addition to your wee geeks room, but he's a great friend to anyone who loves color.


How does Huey do it? Well, he lights the surface underneath him with two hidden white LEDs then uses a sophisticated optical sensor to determine the correct color. He then matches this color by adjusting the shade of numerous multi-color LED's imbedded in his body. Huey is truly a toy of the future. Five years ago the color sensing technology he uses was too expensive for consumer products and was featured mainly in scientific measuring devices. Now you can leverage this cool tech for your own frivolous pleasure for as low as 29.99$.

Product Features

• WARNING: This product is not suitable for ages 6 and under.
• WARNING: Keep away from children under 3 due to power adapter.
• Electronic glowing chameleon lamp dynamically matches the color of whatever surface he sits on
• Color cycle mode moves through various colors automatically
• Squeeze Huey and he'll pause on the current color
• Soft vinyl construction
• Comes with color experimentation sheet
• Makes a great desk accessory or nightlight
• Powered by included AC adapter (with long cord!) or 3 AAA batteries

Word Lens Translates Words Inside of Images. Yes Really.

Ever been confused at a restaurant in a foreign country and wish you could just scan your menu with your iPhone and get an instant translation? Well as of today you are one step closer thanks to Word Lens from QuestVisual.

The iPhone app, which hit iTunes last night, is the culmination of 2 1/2 years of work from founders Otavio Good and John DeWeese. The paid app, which currently offers only English to Spanish and Spanish to English translation for $4.99, uses Optical Character Recognition technology to execute something which might as well be magic. This is what the future, literally, looks like.

Founder Good explains the app’s process simply, “It tries to find out what the letters are and then looks in the dictionary. Then it draws the words back on the screen in translation.” Right now the app is mostly word for word translation, useful if you’re looking to get the gist of something like a dish on a menu or what a road sign says.

At the moment the only existing services even remotely like this are Pleco, a Chinese learning app and a feature on Google Goggles where you can snap a stillshot and send that in for translation. Word Lens is currently self-funded.

Good says that the obvious steps for Word Lens’ future is to get more languages in. He’s planning on incorporating major European languages and is also thinking about other potential uses including a reader for the blind, “I wouldn’t be surprised if we did French next, Italian and since my mom is Brazilian, Portuguese.”

Says Good, modestly, “The translation isn’t perfect, but it gets the point across.” You can try it out for yourself here.

Misa digital guitar

Yea, It's Real

The Future of

the Guitar?

Some of you may remember earlier this year when a short youtube video of the incredible looking Misa digital guitar had people all hot and bothered about the future of music. People were either ranting against it, or raving for it. But people were talking, and talking is a good thing.

                                                                                                                                                                      

The Original
Demo

Is this for real? Who would use it? Where can I get one? How much does it cost?

These were the questions circling around the guitar, and for the most

part people were in the dark. Personally, I had forgotten all about

it, assuming someone's idea had fizzled out, and the whole project had

been shelved.

Apparently I was wrong. On December 15th Misa announced the release of

the Kitara and the Kitara Limited Edition. Now, for the very first

time, you can own your own stringless guitar.

That is a Sexy
Instrument

I don't know if you love it or hate it, but as of right now, the
guitar has gone digital.

This is a serious investment, however, with the standard Kitara going
for $849 and the Limited Edition for $2899.  Put in your order
for it now, before the backlog gets too heavy.

Click here to see more

What do you think? Do you love the musical revolution? Or are you a
traditionalist that scoffs at this newfangled rubbish? Let me know in
the comments.

Special thanks to Toliver Edge who wrote this article!

The 10 most ridiculous gadget TV commercials from the 1980s

The 1980s were a crazy time. We elected a former B-movie actor to defend the free world, replaced Coke with a new version only to change our minds shortly thereafter, and found entertainment in the hijinks of a fuzzy brown puppet alien.

It was also a time when computers and other formerly high-end electronics started to gain a foothold as standard household products. Of course, the promise of a Buck Rogers future world didn't quite live up to the hype — but don't tell that to the electronics marketing teams of the day. I've assembled the top gadget commercials from the 1980s* complete with all the adorable naiveté, synthesizer music, and graphic effects that decade of cheesy excess could muster. Enjoy!

*For the point of this post, I'm defining "the 80s," as the era between 1977 and 1990. Note: you won't be seeing that groundbreaking Ridley Scott-directed Apple commercial from 1984 as I'm scoring on the basis of unintended irony, timeliness and overall 1980s awesomeness.

                                                                                                                                                                      

10. Casio Keyboard CZ-101 (1986)

While this commercial may seem somewhat over the top by today's standards, it's emblematic of the confidence of an era where people truly believed anything was achievable. Back then, it just wasn't completely outside the realm of possibility that a musical instrument could literally launch you into space or that a "cool" dude like this might conceivably make a living as a rock star — if only he had the right keyboard.

                                                                                                                                                                      

9. The IBM 5100 Portable Computer (1977)

Looking for a mobile magical box to tell you how to run your small business' finances? Well, the IBM 5100 portable computer may be the solution for you! The 5100 boasts all the power of an early graphing calculator crammed into the size of a doublewide suitcase and weighs in at only slightly more than the average six-year-old. But don't take my word for it; check out around 1:29 when the manager of a printing press raves about how digital technology is going to completely revolutionize his industry. (Oh, poor soul!)

                                                                                                                                                                      

8. SelectaVision VHS Player (1979)

Greetings, people of 30 years ago. Did any of you miss the "Who Shot J.R.?" episode of Dallas? Too bad you didn't have a VCR. Now you'll never find out who did it. (It was the shark from Jaws. Think I'm lying? Well, you weren't able to tape it, so you'll never know.)

The time to jump on the SelectaVision train is now! For a limited time, when you buy a quality SelectaVision VHS player, you'll get four blank cassette tapes, which apparently cost $100 back in your day. You'd be nuts to turn down a financial incentive like that. But on that note and while I have your attention, I'd strongly recommend that you acquire the trademarks for the words "twitter," "flickr," and "google." I know they must sound like a random assortment of made-up and/or misspelled nonsense words, but you're just going to have to trust me this.

                                                                                                                                                                      
7. RCA Video Disc Player (1981)

Video on demand, schmideo on schmemand. While the rest of the world is gearing up for web-enabled TV, I think we should reserve a place for these massive, unwieldy discs and their players. Why store your movie collection in the cloud when you could fill your den with your library of large LP-sized discs. Most full-length movies only require you to turn them over two or three times — four times, max. Well, unless it's a really long movie or a director's cut or something, then, I won't lie to you, it may be more.

                                                                                                                                                                      

6. Sony Cassette Walkman (1985)

I really like the idea of rocking out to the newest Bryan Adams album during calisthenics class, but it can be such a hassle to carry around a turntable and portable generator. There has got to be a better way! Thankfully, the good people at Sony have created a mobile cassette player that is diminutive enough that it will only impede your movement about a quarter of the time.

                                                                                                                                                                      

5. The Apple IIc (1984)

Nearly 20 years ago, the "Apple wizards" introduced the world to the Apple IIc. Revel in remarkable 1 MHz computational power showcased via a breathtaking green and black interface, which you can access with a mouse that's only 150% the size of the average adult's closed fist. The whole package comes available for a mere $1,300 ($2,800 in 2010 money). An unbelievable bargain for a device that has the capacity to run the full suite of first generation Beagle Bros software and all the pure gaming muscle of Zork.

                                                                                                                                                                      

4. Intellivision Home Gaming System (1982)

Once upon a time, George "founder of The Paris Review" Plimpton was the spokesman for Mattel's Intellivision video game system. The whole "thinking man's crude home video gaming system" would eventually prove a fruitless pursuit as the system was discontinued in 1991, never to return. Most of the commercials compared the superiority of Intellivision's games to rival Atari. But here's an odd variation featuring an encounter between George and a young boy that seems dangerously close into transforming into a PSA about "stranger danger."

                                                                                                                                                                      

3. Sony Betamax (1979)

Remember Betamax? What strange branding. It even has the word "beta" in it. That means second to the alpha — to the max. It was just begging to fall short to the VHS. Here, Betamax sells itself as a home movie studio to entertain grandma with. It promises you a world where you don't have to visit her in person anymore because she has a kooky family TV tape to watch. And that's how the disintegration of the American family began. Thanks for that, Sony. I, for one, am glad your home-wrecking, second-rate videocassette recorder failed to take off.

                                                                                                                                                                      

2. The Legend of Zelda (1986)

The Legend of Zelda didn't just offer a magical world of birds-eye-view adventure; it had the power to bring teenage archetypes from opposite ends of the suburban social spectrum together. There's even a rap song to celebrate the bonding of nerd and skateboarder. How kumbaya. (Side note: my favorite YouTube comment for this clip comes from user ZanderShocker: "they need to get laid................BIG TIME!" Indeed.)

                                                                                                                                                                      

1. Radio Shack Cell Phone (1990)

 

RadioShack isn't just your go-to source for watch batteries and RCA cords, it's are also a leading dealer in the groundbreaking world of cellular technology. Have you heard about "cell phones" yet? They work just like an actual phone booth, but are available at half of the size. They're mobile enough to bring in a car or on a boat, but still large enough that it can sit next to you at a table at a fancy restaurant so you don't have to feel so very alone. I see big things in the future for RadioShack-branded cell phones.

Bank Robber caught with SPFXMask

Take a look at this person here. If you notice a certain fake quality about him, then you are not alone.

There is a person here, but it is underneath a mask. That’s right, what you are seeing here with this Stone Cold Steve Austin lookalike here is nothing more than a mask.

I have a video of this after the jump so you can see the masked person for yourself. You will notice the realistic movements of the face that include twitching, moving the forehead, and other things that you wouldn’t think a person in a mask could do. Man, that guy’s real face (assuming it is a guy) must be dipped in glue.

It makes we wonder if we can actually have that Mission Impossible technology that allows for someone covering their face with a mask in order to impersonate someone else. I think we all know that effect was just switching with another actor, with some trick photography to make it look like the MIF team was putting on masks.

I’m not certain that this mask would fool me, but that is because I know it is a mask, and I’m looking to see what makes it fake. The real trick is whether or not this would fool me if someone came up to me on the street with these. Especially if they were trying to impersonate someone that I know very well, like they did in Mission Impossible.

Some of you might remember when we discussed how SPFX masks can create a very realistic Mission Impossible effect of disguising the user. A recent event last spring has proven their effectiveness.

The man on the immediate left is Conrad Zdzierak, and he is a Polish immigrant who held up several Ohio banks wearing the mask to his left.

I’m sure he thought he was committing the perfect crime as the cops were looking for a suspect with an African-American face. The police even arrested an African-American man that they believed to be the culprit, and the scapegoat’s mother thought it was her own son when the Police showed her a surveillance photo of the robbery.

Of course, Zdzierak couldn’t keep up his charade forever, and his girlfriend found the “smoking gun” of the mask and stolen money and called the police on him.

You might be wondering how Zdzierak obtained the mask in the first place. Apparently, he ordered the mask from SPFXMasks, and told them it was for a movie. He even had a set of African-American hands to match with it.

Okay, we are clearly moving closer to an era where we can’t trust the face of the persons that we see. Authorities are beginning to suspect that a man known the “Geezer Bandit”, who has pulled off a string of robberies in Southern California, might not be as old as they suspected.

S3 Spyder III Arctic

I'm honestly a little scared that the Wicked Lasers Spyder III exists. Normally, the lasers the general public can get its hands on are more or less, you know, for pointing at movie screens and pissing people off. The Spyder III? For $300, you've got yourself a damn lightsaber.

Just check out this warning:

Extremely dangerous is an understatement to the power of 1W of laser power. It will blind permanently and instantly and set fire quickly to skin and other body parts, use with extreme caution and only when using the included eye protection. Customers will be required to completely read and agree to our Class IV Laser Hazard Acknowledgment Form.

Blind instantly? Set skin on fire? You could really do some damage with this thing. Somehow that Class IV Laser Hazard Acknowledgment Form doesn't make me feel any better. It should be as hard to get something like this as it is to get a handgun. (Well, or like something dangerous that's actually hard to get. Like a, um, tank?)

Wicked Lasers, long known for their ultra-powerful, compact and expensive lasers made mainstream news a few weeks ago by advertising the world's most powerful hand held laser. As if making a 1 watt laser wasn't enough to grab headlines, the media coverage soon turned into a frenzy when George Lucas thought the new Wicked Lasers S3 Arctic looked a little too much like the famous Light Sabers from Star Wars.

The S3 Series is the world's first 1 watt consumer laser. The beam emitted is a deep shade of cobalt blue and as you will see later in this article, it can be seen a long way from the source. Wicked is claiming a battery life of 120 minutes before charging is needed and luckily for us the S3 comes with a handy charger, so you will have not be cycling through double A batteries every 15 minutes.

Just as impressive as the laser beam is the housing it comes from. Wicked Lasers came up with an aluminum case that not only looks military grade, but it is truly military grade. Built into the lasers housing is a new feature that Wicked is calling a Smart Switch. This will keep your laser safe from accidental discharge if it were to fall into the wrong hands.

If you are a male aged 5 to 45, you think lasers are uber cool. The question is whether or not you think they are cool enough to shell out 300 Dollars for one. This is the question I have been mulling over for the last couple of days. On the surface the Wicked Lasers S3 Arctic is a really neat toy that you will get some enjoyment out of, but like many toys, you will eventually outgrow it. When it comes to long term usefulness, you may want to ask yourself how often you will need the ability to shine a blue light on an object…even if it is a mile away. This really isn't a question for me to answer for you, but something you will need to decide for yourself.

Taking the cost and your financial situation out of the equation, I can attest to the Arctic 1 watt laser being by far the brightest, most powerful and coolest laser I have seen. I won't be using the laser every day or carrying it with me, but it is going to be fun to have around and use from time to time. I know all of my friends like coming over and playing with it before we get down to some serious first person shooter action. My boys are now convinced that their dad is a real jedi in training too, which allows me to use my jedi mind trick to get them to clean their rooms. Who wouldn't spend 300 Dollars to make that last for a month or more?

The Wicked Lasers S3 Arctic 1 watt blue laser is available at wickedlasers.com for 299.99 with three lenses. For an additional 29.99 you can get the full lens pack that adds additional beam types (like flashlight, crosshairs, lines and more). The quality of the construction is better than you could imagine and the beam is brighter than you would think possible.


   After seeing a request about the laser burning stuff; I realized I forgot to add the video!

6 awesome gadget gifts for the bathroom

Oh, the bathroom. What a delightful little room. And whether it's your sanctuary or just a place to do your business, I think this is cause for celebration. So go on, get your bathroom gadget fix this holiday season…maybe with a high-tech whirlpool tub or a robot toilet paper dispenser.

That's right, the MrBouchard Gift Guide is here to inspire your gift-giving with the very best ideas for that geeky someone in your life. And today, it's all about bathrooms.

                                                                                                                                                                      

1. Planetarium Bath Light

What better way to relax after a long day at work than with a planetarium for your bath? This waterproof design floats in the tub while projecting images of stars all over your wall. You can also switch between Rose Bath and Deep Ocean water graphics to change up the mood.

Price: $129

                                                                                                                                                                      

2. Whirlpool Tub

When no other bath will do, this one has it all: massage jets, hydrojets and a chromotherapy system. This means 512 different colors choices to create the most calming, custom bath experience ever. The ultimate luxury purchase for your bathroom, one soak in this tub and you'll never go back to showers.

Price: $1,500

                                                                                                                                                                      

3. Wall-Mounted Toothpaste Squeezer

For those of us who have fought and lost against those stubborn toothpaste tubes, the struggle is over! This simple little gadget makes sure every last bit of toothpaste gets out of the tube and onto your toothbrush where it belongs. And at this price, we think it makes the perfect stocking stuffer.

Price: $6

                                                                                                                                                                      

4. Robot Toilet Paper Holder

Surprise your houseguests (and family) with this robot toilet paper holder. Just turn the knob on the side and, voila! Toilet paper. Available in a variety of colors, this little guy can fit in with any décor. He may be sticking his tongue out now, but we're guessing you will have the last laugh.

Price: $20

                                                                                                                                                                      

5. AquaNotes

Have you ever had a great idea in the shower or thought of another item to add to that ever-expanding to-do list? Did you forget it because you had absolutely nowhere to write it down? I'll take that as a yes. Well, AquaNotes has what you need: waterproof notepads for a more productive bath time.

Price: $6.99

                                                                                                                                                                      

6. Alsons showerhead

Alsons knows showers. In fact, they know showers so well that they added a couple things you probably don't have at home. First, they look cool. Second, they have waaaaay more spray holes, allowing for a much, much better shower experience. This one has a whopping 158 spray holes, and mine? About 40.

Price: $258.50

XM25 Individual Airburst Weapon System

Remember the old Bugs Bunny cartoons? Where Elmer Fudd would shoot his double barrel shotgun and the buckshot would zip over and around things and then tap you on the shoulder and wave, right before they exploded. Funny right? Not, so much anymore.

Individual Airburst Weapon System is currently under development and intended to address the capability gap of defeating defilade targets. The weapon has the capability to hit point targets at a distance of 500 meters and area targets at 700 meters. 25mm munitions currently in development include High Explosive Air-Burst (HEAB), armor piercing, door breaching, anti-personnel, and two types of non-lethal munitions – blunt and agent dispersing airburst.

XM25 will be able to set the fuse of each round to explode over the target, to create maximum effect. After placing the aimpoint on the target and activating the laser rangefinder, the system calculates the range to the target, and converts it to time of flight for fuse setting. XM25 will utilize the XM116 integral fire control system, which will include day and night channels, laser rangefinder, fuse setter, compass, ballistic computer and an internal display. At AUSA 2006 the XM116 sight was displayed by L3 (Formerly Brashear).

The XM25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement System, allows soldiers to program the ammunition to explode at precise distances by measuring how far it is to a target using the laser site and then dialing in where the ammunition should explode, such as at the corner of a building. The “bullet” has a magnet inside that generates AC current as it spins, and a microprocessor that measures the spin to determine how far it has travelled, and when it will need to.. well, let’s just say….tap the enemy on the shoulder.

The weapon has an array of ammunition to choose from, including non lethal rounds meant to stun, rather than kill the enemy. Individual rounds start at about $24.

How do you guard against something like this? My suggestion? RUN

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/

Sneakey allows you to duplicate a key from a mere photograph

The Sneakey sounds like some spy technology plucked out of a James Bond movie, but it is close to becoming real.

The Sneakey uses teleduplication, which is a way of extracting a normal key’s complete and precise “tooth pattern” at a distance using optical decoding and then cutting precise duplicates. In other words, a camera can take a picture of key from a distance, and from the high resolution photo, the photographer will have the information necessary to make a perfect copy of the photographed key.

This technology is under development by computer scientists at the University of California at San Diego. They were able to demonstrate this teleduplicaiton tech by photographing a whole ring of keys that were on a table from 195 feet away using a telephoto lens.

Believe it or not, they were able to duplicate all the keys on the ring. They have even claimed to get duplicates from pictures of keys taken with an ordinary cell phonecamera.

So, what does this mean? It means you should probably be wary of displaying your keys in public. I’ve heard of scams where ordinary cashiers take pictures of their customer’s credit cards using cell phone cameras, then use the numbers to purchase goods illegally. This teleduplication technology takes this identity theft scam to a Sneakey level as scammers can get the information to break into someone’s home.