The editors at Popular Science Magazine have finished compiling their annual lists of the Best of What's New for the year 2011. Every year the magazine lists the best new products in the fields of computing, automotive, aviation & space, engineering, security, green tech, home tech, home entertainment, personal health, recreation and the last, but not the least category, gadgets. Here at new.com we are obviously interested in all things new, but the new gadget category is probably our favorite of the bunch. Here are what might just be the best ten new gadgets for 2011:
1. Lytro Light-Field Camera
The number one gadget for 2011 may be Lytro’s light-field camera that moves focusing from pre-shutter-click to an afterthought with the ability to move the focal point, from as close as 3.5 inches all the way out to infinity. Photographers can also create moving images that shift the point of focus or select a parallax option that assembles two separate visual paths and converts the images into 3-D. Lytro says it will adopt higher-mega pixel sensors and improved processing to produce larger photos and even video within the next few years, but you will be able to purchase the current state of the art camera for around $400 to $500 in early 2012.
2. Eye-Fi Direct Mode
The new X2-series cards allow Eye-Fi Direct Mode users to share photos and video from a camera on the Web without a Wi-Fi network thanks to a secure, wireless device-to-device connection between any digital camera and a supported Android or iOS handset. This allows photographers to use a dedicated app to access the photos on the card and then download them to their phone to upload to Facebook or share through e-mail. The new X2-series cards will retail for about $80 each.
3. Verizon Wireless 4G LTE
Verizon’s Long-Term Evolution (LTE) network allows consumers start a video stream on any LTE-ready phone or modem in half the time it take most other 3G networks. Thanks to towers that transmit data 10 times faster than other cellular systems, the network has sufficient bandwidth to transmit large packets of data dedicated to specific types of information making it the fastest network yet.
4. Kyocera Echo
You get double the screens with the Echo, an Android phone that has a second 3.5-inch touch screen alongside the primary screen and when viewed together the screens have a total resolution that is only slightly less than a seven-inch tablet boasts. The screens usually share one image, but the developers are working on games that play on both screens simultaneously.
5. Looxcie Live
Looxcie Live is a new video application that makes sharing video hands-free by using continuous video streams from ear-mounted Bluetooth camcorders. The app adjusts the video resolution to make sure it plays back smoothly regardless of the strength of the network connection. Real-time transmission means friends can view the video feed through a browser or Looxcie’s app and send audio comments back to the videographer. Looxcie Live camcorders start at around $150.
6. Nvidia Tegra 2
The dual-core Tegra 2 chip from Nvidia gives tablets and smart phones longer battery life up to 24h continuous hours without sacrificing operation speeds. The new processor consumes only a tenth of the power used by its other processors and still delivers smooth high-definition video. The Tegra 2chip saves power by dividing the different video and audio tasks onto groups of different transistors, and only activates specific areas when needed. The Tegra 2 tablets start around $300.
7. Sony Alpha SLT-A77
Sony’s new A77 could be the fastest camera out there thanks to a 2.3-million-dot OLED that responds to changes millions of times a second, fast enough to capture a race car in action. If speed is your game, the A77 will satisfy your desires but it will set you back about $2,000.
8. Google Wallet
Google’s clever new payment app was designed to replace your wallet as well as the credit cards and cash it contains. A chip in the handset creates a four-inch-wide magnetic field that can be recognized by any of MasterCard’s existing 300,000-plus PayPass terminals and allows users to use a PIN to view their payment data. The Wallet currently works only in conjunction with MasterCard, but it will eventually be compatible with all major credit cards.
9. Wacom Inkling
Now you can doodle and save your artwork with Wacom’s Inkling system that clips to the top of any writing surface and a pen. When the pen moves, the clip’s internal processor continuously triangulates and stores the pen’s location along with pressure data that allows the system to adjust the thickness of the drawn lines. The best part is that the Inkling allows users to export their drawings as JPEGs or PDFs, as well as send edit-able files directly to Adobe Illustrator. The Wacom electronic doodler will set you back about $200.
10. Orbotix Sphero
In a new twist on the radio-controlled toy car, the Sphero uses your smart phone to control a three-inch ball that rolls with in any direction as a pair of motorized wheels inside the ball push it forward or backward. The internal wheels rotate around an axis to change directions. The Orbotix Sphero can communicate with several iOS and Android apps via Bluetooth, and many new games are already in development for the entertaining and affordable $15 “toy”.
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