I don’t know what Turkish designer Erdem Selek was thinking when creating this, but Big Brother must have been floating around in someone’s mind. What seems like an ordinary pillow is really a space-alien with a digital eye. It’s designed to let newborn mothers watch their children through a webcam when they’re sleeping.

Some would argue it’s lovely, others would claim invasion of privacy. I suppose it depends if your baby is a supporter of the Patriot Act. Either way, it’s just a prototype, so you’ll have to stick to the walkie talkies for now.

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We celebrated the 125th birthday of the Brooklyn Bridge last night and boy was it a party. We had some drinks, mingled a bit and eventually watched a guy named Paul St. George bring in a huge Telectroscope. The Telectroscope, in theory, is supposed to let people from London and NYC look at each other via an undersea tunnel with a complex mirror setup. Luckily, it’s all a crock of crap and it really works using two webcams and a broadband connection. One person looks in, another does the same and suddenly, two continents become one.

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Those of your who turn to the Internet for match making might want to be on the lookout, for the next “woman” you are talking to might just be a program designed to flirt. A Russian website called CyberLover.ru is advertising software that can simulate chatroom flirt exchanges.

And we aren’t talking about those bots that are all like “14/f looking for big black daddy man. Come see my webcam at…”. Yeah, you get the point. We’re talking about a piece of software that can entertain 10 woman at once with words of interest. “Not a single girl has yet realized that she was communicating with a program!” says the Russian company. They will offer their software for sale in Russia on February 15, right after Valentine’s Day. — Andrew Dobrow

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Check out this excellent useful (and dare I say, adorable?) USB Robot Webcam combo. The Robot features 11 points of articulation which allows us to contort the cam into whatever shape we want it in.

The 6″-tall cam bot features LED eyes that illuminate in the night, as well as a maximum resolution of 640×480. You can use the bot for video conferencing, as well as just having lonely conversations with an inanimate object. Get your own for $20. — Andrew Dobrow

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Something spectacular is happening on the Internet these days. People are understanding that it’s ok to laugh at the dark side of current events, no matter how discriminating it is. Iraqi artist Wafaa Bilal is someone who understands this all to well. Bilal has locked himself into a room for a month, so people can shoot paintballs at him from their own homes, and watching on a webcam set up in the room.

Weird? Perhaps. Genius? Definitely. If your shot is accurate enough, the paintball gun will even spray fake blood at Bilal to make the Iraqi slaughter more authentic. Video after the jump. (more…)

The V-Gear Talkcam Tracer Webcam is not like the other cams on the market with a grainy picture. The Talkcam uses auto-focus and zooming features to keep you looking your best…well, at least the most like yourself.

The Tracer is a 1.3 megapixel camera also capable of displaying video at 30 frames per second. The 1.3 megapixel quality of the camera might not win you any awards in photography, the webcam function of the Tracer is bound to be better then what you currently use.

The Tracer can be yours for around $81.34 (converted from the Euro) and is an especially good investment if you are reliant on creating a professional image when dealing with international companies, or if you just want to look good for that international hottie. — Andrew Dobrow

V-Gear Auto Focus Webcam [via Ubergizmo]

Have you ever wanted to talk and stare into your keyboard instead of those darn mics and webcams? Probably not, but if so, this new Solid Year Keyboard (ACK-2230UMSP, how bad can you get at product names?) is definitely for you. This keyboard combines text, audio, and video all into one simple device. With a fold out little stick type device and 10 Skype dedicated VOIP buttons, you can now video conference with your friends directly from your keyboard. While this new device does open up some new boundaries, there is still the question of whether those boundaries needed opening. While Solid Year says that there will be future higher quality audio and video add-ons for the keyboard, you are still stuck looking down at your keyboard for the video function.

Also, even though no prices have been released yet, this keyboard will have to have a hefty price tag. Of course, there are still plenty of high end keyboards on the market right now that will run you well over $100, there still remains the question of whether this peripheral to your computer is really worth that much money. Instead of this, go any buy a decent webcam that can sit on your desk or on your monitor. You will probably get higher quality video, and you won’t wind up with a crooked neck just because you wanted to video conference your friends. — Nik Gomez

Solid Year ACK-2230UMSP [via Electronista]

With the official release of Vista for public use looming ahead, so does the release of the HP Pavilion TX1000 notebook. Featuring a touch-sensitive 12.1 inch widescreen display, a built-in webcam (mmm…amateur porn), fingerprint biometric reader, and a removable DVD burner, among other equally gadgety gizmos, the TX1000 is one hot momma of a laptop. We happen to love the tablet swivel design of the monitor despite some critics viewing it as a sign of fragility. Just don’t get it if you plan on punching the display over and over again with a closed fist and you should be fine. — Andrew Dobrow

HP Pavilion TX1000 Tablet PC Coming Next Month [Laptoping]

Webcams can now join the list of gadgets that can be solar-powered. DigitalXtractions just came out with the Ultimate Outdoor Webcam, also called SCIRC t1, which comes with solar-power and internet connection capabilities. There are optional solar panels you can buy to get your energy from the sun, so you can webcam and tan at the same time; you know that’s what you are thinking about doing. The webcam connects to the internet the same way as a cell phone. The Ultimate Outdoor Webcam would be pretty cool for vloggers if only it didn’t cost an arm and a leg to buy it and use it. Here’s a breakdown of what you’d have to buy to get this thing working to full potential: $450 for the webcam itself, $150 or $250 for a 6 or 12 watt solar panel, respectively, and a $60 a month subscription to connect to the internet. For the amount of money you have to spend on DigitalXtractions’ Ultimate Outdoor Webcam, it would probably just be better to make videos of yourself in the comfort of your computer chair until they find a way to make this a lot cheaper.

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