6m Archive

  • TC Disrupt Startup Alley: Knocking Live has 1.6M users, faster growth than Foursquare, Gowalla

    TC Disrupt Startup Alley: Knocking Live has 1.6M users, faster growth than Foursquare, Gowalla

    Posted on May 25, 2010 | No Comments
    Who’s nailed peer-to-peer live streaming video on smartphones such as iPhone and Android? It’s not Qik, Ustream or Justin.tv, it’s Knocking Live, an application by bootstrapped Point Heads Software. Interestingly enough, Knocking Live reached 1 million users faster than Foursquare or Gowalla did (see graph). Pointy Heads released Knocking Live in December in collaboration with Sourcebits, [...]

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  • Videos: Super-mobile rescue robot Quince

    Videos: Super-mobile rescue robot Quince

    Posted on May 4, 2010 | No Comments
    This is one of the coolest rescue robots I've ever seen. Meet Quince, jointly developed by Japan's International Rescue System Institute, Tohoku University and the Chiba Institute Of Technology. The eight-wheeled robot may not look like much, but it's actually very impressive when you see it in action. Quince is supposed to help humans during "CBRN"-type emergencies (it can be used in the case of chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear disasters). The robot is sized at 655mmx481mmx225mm, weighs 26.4kg and can move as fast as 1.6m/s.

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  • Power Loader: Panasonic venture accepts orders for mecha robot suits (video)

    Power Loader: Panasonic venture accepts orders for mecha robot suits (video)

    Posted on January 28, 2010 | No Comments
    Walking vehicles, also known as mecha, don't play a big role in today's robotics industry, but that might soon change. (You might remember one of the protagonists in Avatar sitting in a mecha, called AMP in the movie, during the final fight.) Now Tokyo-based robot venture Activelink, a Panasonic spin-off company, says it can make one for you, too. The startup has begun accepting orders for their aptly named Power Loader, a power-amplifying robotic suit that enables humans to carry loads of up to 100kg. Users need to strap their feet to the mecha's legs and hold the grips to control the two utility arms. They are then able to lift heavy loads as high as 2m and carry them around.

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  • Zero Motorcycles Kicks It Into Gear With $5.5 Million Series A

    Zero Motorcycles Kicks It Into Gear With $5.5 Million Series A

    Posted on January 5, 2010 | No Comments
    California-based Zero Motorcycles has taken $5.56M in a Series A add-on according to an SEC Report, filed today. Investors in this round were not disclosed. The company previously raised $5M in April of 2008, bringing their total funding to just over $10.6M. Formerly Electricross, Zero Motorcycles specializes in high performance electric street and dirt bikes--the Tesla of the motorcycle industry so to speak. CEO Gene Banman tells us the purpose of the funding is to "expand the business." He declined to expand upon that statement. Given the emerging sector and the influx of competitors, it seems Zero is simply trying to stay ahead of the curve.

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  • Console Wars: The Effect Of Price Cuts On The Xbox 360, Wii, and PS3

    Console Wars: The Effect Of Price Cuts On The Xbox 360, Wii, and PS3

    Posted on November 4, 2009 | No Comments
    While the Nintendo Wii continues to have a stranglehold on console sales, both worldwide and in the United States, the Xbox 360 and PS3 are battling it out for the the second place position for year-to-date sales. Just a little over two months ago, Sony announced that they would be slashing the price of their game console, the PS3, to $299. Microsoft quickly followed suit, and in just ten days dropped the price of their most expensive console, the Xbox 360 Elite, to $299. Nintendo, who has sold nearly double the number of consoles worldwide as these two, decided to lower the price of the Wii on September 27th to $199: this was the first time since its inception that the Wii has had a price cut. All three console manufacturers hoped that the decrease in price would help them to increase sales and finish the year on a strong note. The results have been mixed: while all three consoles have seen an increase in sales, the PS3 has seen astonishing growth in the US and abroad, and has wrestled the second-place position in worldwide YTD sales from the 360. As for the Xbox, even in its upgraded Elite form it has seen only minimal gains since the price drop.

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  • Twelve 42-inch LCDs rolled into one = huge digital signage system

    Twelve 42-inch LCDs rolled into one = huge digital signage system

    Posted on July 3, 2009 | No Comments
    If you've ever come to Japan, and especially to Tokyo, you will have noticed this country's love for digital signage systems. They're practically everywhere and some of them are quite cool. Now Tokyo-based Dai Nippon Printing (DNP) has announced plans to set up a digital signage system [JP] that consists of a total of twelve 42-inch LCDs.

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