If you thought that the nail biting clock and calendar was weird, check out this different take on the calendar altogether. Oscar Diaz came up with this self-printing concept when he discovered he could control ink bleeding onto paper. You could have a wallpaper calendar to write on, schedule appointments and what not, but where is the fun in writing up your own “To do” list? Rather than that, try having the ink leak all over the paper, telling you what to do that day.

This self-printing technique is unfortunately merely a prototype, so no amount of ink in the world is going to plan your weekend for you. Wouldn’t that be convenient to have your whole week scheduled my a pre-embossed page with ink leaking over it? Mine is telling me to never leave the house, ever, so I won’t.

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Check out this stove. It’s called the Arcus and it has the ability to change the temperature of a pot or pan simply with a twist of your wrist. With a concept design like this one, I had hoped the designer, Manuel Perez Prada, would’ve included the ability to literally raise the heat to a higher elevation. This way, when I buy a stove that looks like this I can promptly stand over it, turn it on to extreme temperatures and burn my face off.

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The AFP is reporting that a Chinese company has built a real flying saucer. Right out of Mars Attacks!, the UFO looks like an egg but is so much more. It can be driven remotely without the need for a pilot or anyone on board and can go about 50 MPH. To boot, it can hover an an altitude of 1000 meters, which is pretty high. Sounds Hollywood-ish but I’m not about to start screwing around with aliens.

Developed by Harbin Smart Special Aerocraft Co Ltd, the UFO took 12 years and $4.1 million before a working prototype came out. The company says the aircraft will be used for aerial photography, geological surveys and scaring the shit out of families everywhere.

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Perhaps one day, our world will be ravaged by gigantic robots, nuclear war and stray cats. If this occured, would you really want to spend your days looking at dilapidated buildings and the sort? Of course not. Then, in comes the Augmented Reality Mask to save the day. Trust me when I say it’d go perfectly with the Urban Security Suit.

Supposedly, the mask is intended to provide a “jacked in” feel just like Neo experienced in the movie The Matrix. You’ll see an entirely new landscape, breathe in fresh air and will even be able to smell the virtual environment around you. The mask was designed by Frog Design and is only a prototype at the moment. Perhaps one day we’ll all be wearing these around a post-apocalyptic New York. Hit the jump to see what it looks like with the mask on.

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NEC has developed a prototype for a wireless security camera that run off of the power generated by fluorescent light bulbs. The camera just needs to be hung on the ceiling in close proximity to a florescent light source, where it is connected with a wire with a ring-like adapter on the other end.

The flourecent light produces energy through the adapter using electromagnetic induction. The key to the power is not the actual glow, but the magnetic field generated by the AC source in the light. The camera is of VGA resolution, taking shots every 10 seconds and sending the images to a PC through a WiFi connection. — Andrew Dobrow

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SonyEricsson is preparing an announcement in May; supposedly at least 2 handsets would be introduced, the Shinobu (above, left) and Nicole (above, right). These devices (and the W580i) would use a modified UI with a reorganization of keys, namely the addition of dial-hang up buttons. We enlarged the original pictures so that you can see the SonyEricsson watermark too, please excuse the pixelation. The 5 megapixels prototype we showed you might not be introduced just yet The messaging device(s) that we also reported might be released in the form of their variants, or at a later date.

Shinobu should be a 12.5mm thick HSDPA slider with a large 2.4″ QVGA screen and a 2megaixels fixed focus camera, it should be retailed at about €430 ($550).

Nicole should be a 13mm thick WCDMA candybar with a 2.1″ 176×220 screen and a 2megapixels fixed focus camera, it should be retailed at about €190 ($240). This could be the first phone released with the Sagem ODM deal. –Sam Chan

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Okay, so it might be way to luxurious for just any old lumberjack, so lets say the Wooden Concept Phone for very well-off lumberjacks. Carpenters even. This very sexy design concept makes us feel funny in the stomach. It might be love.

For now the design, which is still very much only a prototype, is called the S-Series, and holds a very sleek and sophisticated appeal. The phone focuses on those who want to make a fashion statement, yet still want good features. The S-Series is also designed to be easily controlled without having to always resort to the keypad. (more…)

Uh oh, we all know how Microsoft loves to be in control of everything. And in VoIP and Internet telephony, Microsoft has lagged behind the likes of Skype. When it was rumored that Microsoft was working on a VoIP phone, it wasn’t a surprise, and seemed rather uneventful. Now that details are starting to appear of the Microsoft Roundtable phone, we can see that they are not playing around.

The Ringcam was originally showcased last year as a slightly ugly prototype, but things are looking sleeker these days for the newly-titled Roundtable. The Roundtable features a 360 degree camera capable of video conferencing in a panorama type view. The Roundtable would probably sync seamlessly with Outlook contacts for easy dialing control. Much work is still needed for sure, since this is Microsoft’s first serious journey into the VoIP zone, but it seems to be coming along nicely. The Roundtable is expected to go into public testing this week, starting as early as today. — Andrew Dobrow

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A research project by MIT Media Lab’s Affective Computing Group has sprung up RoCo, an interesting robotic computer monitor prototype. RoCo is not your everyday monitor. This monitor will be able to cater to human emotions and needs. How can a monitor cater to human needs?

…capable of recognizing and physically responding to human socio-emotive cues such as postural shifts in principled ways. These cues are inspired by those found in human-human interaction, to foster a more natural, healthy, and productive human-computer interaction.

Ergonomically speaking, RoCo is sure to work wonders. By strategically positioning itself, RoCo encourages the user to sit in a optimal position for their mental state and stature. The RoCo prototype has an articulated neck and head that can fluidly move in respect to its base. Researchers are currently in the works of developing algorithms to let the computer feel your pain. — Andrew Dobrow

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Three LCD screens on a laptop? Oh, don’t doubt it so quick, fellow gearheads. Check out the ACME tri-folding laptop featured at CeBIT. Don’t get your hope panties all up in a bundle just yet. This ACME product is for now, just a prototype, but this rugged piece of lap gear is sure to turn a lot of heads. Especially of those who are into killer resolution.

While the thought of a company named ACME might fill your head of falling anvils and Elmer Fudd, this laptop is no cartoon fantasy. At least, we hope not! This thing is too damn cool to be loony. While ACME says it is a “rugged” laptop, you would figure it would include dust-proof and water-proof protection. Think again. Apparently rugged no longer refers to the outdoor-men. At least it has an aluminum frame, which must be what they refer to as “rugged”. — Andrew Dobrow

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