2013

LAS VEGAS--For kids who aren't into fairy tales printed on paper, Texas Instruments is showing off a gorgeously designed pico projector for videos at bedtime.

At CES 2013, TI demonstrated the Rubik's Cube-style pico projector that works with DLP Pico technology.

Made by Innoio for Korea's SK Telecom, the colorful cube can project kids' shows or movies on a nearby wall or on the ceiling.

It apparently has a small speaker system, but TI staff on the floor of CES could not confirm that.

It's available in South Korea but could come to the U.S. … Read more

LAS VEGAS--If there's one organization that could make the most people's lives easier by accepting digital signatures, it would be the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

Sadly, the IRS is still a long way from letting all tax filers submit their annual returns via electronic signature. But today, it got one step closer to that when it began accepting signatures on income verification forms via companies like DocuSign, Adobe, eSignSystems, and others.

The IRS' adoption of e-signatures for form 4506-T, formally a "request for transcript of tax return," is the result of the government tax agency … Read more

LAS VEGAS--As reported by Kotaku earlier this evening, modular PC vendor Xi3 announced an new project funded by PC game maker and digital distribution service provider Valve Software. The company says it isn't discussing many details about the project, other than the fact that it's "designed specifically to support both Steam and its Big Picture mode for residential and LAN party computer gaming on larger high-def screens."

Steam, if you're unfamiliar, is Valve Software's dominant PC gaming digital distribution service. Big Picture Mode is Valve's new feature that provides a TV-friendly overlay to … Read more

LAS VEGAS--In the last few years, Stern has been making geek friendly pinball machines based on popular franchises like Transformers, Iron Man and The Avengers. But priced at $5,000 to $8,000, they've been out of the reach of people to own at home.

The company's newer models buck that trend, and come in at a smaller size, weight, and price tag at around $2,500.

Two of those were out for play here at the Digital Experience event, a smaller showing by the company that is also debuting its latest creations in the Las Vegas Convention … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Plantronics has long had Bluetooth-compatible headsets and speakers, but people with PCs have largely been left out of the party.

Until now. At CES this week, Plantronics is showing a wide array of its headphones and speakers, many of which focus exclusively on Bluetooth compatibility. But with the Voyager Legend UC and the Calisto 620, PC users wanting to listen to their favorite music on their mobile devices or wanting to make VoIP calls from their PCs can play along.

With its Voyager Legend UC headphones, Plantronics is now offering the ability to listen in on audio from mobile … Read more

Sprint announced today that it will unveil two Windows Phone 8 devices by this summer -- one from Samsung and another from HTC.

The mobile carrier made the announcement with Microsoft at the Consumer Electronics Show today.

"Sprint has had a strong relationship with Microsoft for many years so we are excited to reinforce our commitment to the Windows 8 platform by sharing the details and timing for our first Windows Phone 8 smartphones," Sprint senior vice president of product development and operations Fared Adib said in a statement. "These smartphones combine a robust new operating platform … Read more

LAS VEGAS--As Firefox OS develops partially in the public eye, Mozilla shows off two interesting changes to how the operating system handles apps at the CES 2013.

The first change could have wide-reaching consequences for anybody who's built a Web site and wants to get in on the mobile app revolution. Part of the Everything.me investment, Mozilla has come up with a way for people to turn their Web sites into mobile apps using manifest files. It could revolutionize app marketplaces, said Christian Heilmann, Mozilla's lead developer on Firefox OS.

"App markets right now are like … Read more

CES hasn't yet (officially) begun, but hardware companies have already revealed the buzz-worthy (and not-so-buzz-worthy) tech they'll be displaying and demoing at their booths this year. From unbelievably sharp 4K TVs to smartphone-controlled appliances, companies like Samsung and LG are going all-out.

But not all that glitters is gold, so if you're attending CES, we've gone ahead and made navigating the show floor a little easier on you. This self-guided tour will walk you through the most innovative, important tech that was announced thus far, including some cool demos from guys like Corning and Lexus.

If … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Guardian on the Go, a mobile application launched today on iPhone, gives people immediate access to a network of trusted contacts and professional services when they're confronted with an emergency situation.

The iPhone application, made by Proteg-Go, is designed to work in all crisis situations, natural disasters and medical emergencies included, and offers people a one-click way to get help faster than if they were to dial 9-1-1.

After first configuring their contact network, users simply click the red "Crisis" button to message friends via SMS. They can also opt to push an update out to … Read more