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First CES Products Emerge

A robo-telescope, quick-starting laptops, and 3-D glasses everywhere

Posted 1.7.09 at 1:10 pm 2 Comments

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Astronomy for Dummies
Sean Captain
That's how Meade describes its ETX-LS automated telescope ($1,300). For a while, stargazers have been tapping GPS tech to help direct their scope to the right part of the sky. But they still had to make key adjustments by hand. Using star charts, they point automated telescopes to three reference stars so the onboard computer knows exactly where it is. Mead's ETX-LS eliminates that tedious step. A camera mounted under the scope identifies stars by measuring the minute differences in their brightness. It uses that info to direct the scope with pinpoint accuracy. Just enter the name of a celestial body on a control pad, and the scope takes you there. It also provides an audio guide about what you are viewing and -- if you plug in a laptop or a portable TV -- videos with more information.
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PCs for the Impatient
Sean Captain
The lagging boot time of Windows has spawned a mini-industry in quick-start software. This year's Best of What's New honored Splashtop--a Linux operating system that companies such as HP are installing as an option to Windows when you want to power up quickly just to send an email or check a Web page. Now Phoenix, which makes the underlying code that runs most PCs, has come out with its own alternative OS, called Hyperspace. Install the download on any Windows PC (sorry, Mac users), and the system boots up in 14 seconds with the Mozilla Firefox Web browser and links to popular sites such as Facebook, Gmail and YouTube. While you surf, the PC loads up Windows in the background. In addition to saving a minute or so at startup, Hyperspace also saves your battery. Phoenix estimates that it uses 25 percent less power than Windows. But the convenience doesn't come cheap. Hyperspace requires a $60/year subscription. So I wonder: How soon until an enterprising Linux hacker offers similar software for free?
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2 Comments

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bkdude

01/10/09 at 7:11 pm

Hahahahahha! 60 dollars a month for a quick OS? I'd rather just dual-boot DSL and Vista and use DSL when i need to do whatever thats so important that i need it done 40 seconds quicker.

Then again, some people just might be dumb enough to fall for that.

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Monolung

01/28/09 at 8:30 pm

I think it is 60 bucks a year... or 5 bucks a month.. I might be that dumb.

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