Boeing 797: the future of air travel?

According to NewTechSpy, Boeing is developing the 797 to compete directly with the massive, but more traditionally built, Airbus A380. Featuring a blended wing/body co-developed with NASA, it introduces a completely new design, looking more like a stealth bomber than a 747. Able to hold 1,000 passengers on two levels, the new design increases the efficiency of the aircraft by 33% while increasing its speed to mach 0.88, or 654 mph — a significant bump from the A380's speed of 570 mph. This speed increase is a result of the 25% weight reduction and improved aerodynamics that the new body design features. The wingspan of 265 feet is over 50 feet longer than the 747's but only 3 feet more than the A380's. There's no word on when the 797 will be hitting runways near you, if ever, but it certainly has the potential to herald in a new era of commercial air travel. If it features improvements in airplane food as drastic as its improvements in energy efficiency, it might actually get us to travel more, too.

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Everyone's happy with Sharp's two-way LCDs

Sharp has begun showing off its two-way LCD screen, which shows different images depending on what angle you view it from. The company plans to use the technology in things like car navigation systems, allowing the driver to see a map in the center console while the passenger sees the Easy Rider DVD playing from the disc in the trunk. The main problem with two-way screens is that when you look at them straight on you see a combination of both images, meaning you have to view the screens at an angle for them to really work. However, the technology could be a real lifesaver for those road trips where the kids fight over what to watch in the back seat, although you'd presumably need two DVD players hooked up to service both the right-side people and the left-side people.
— Adam Frucci

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Honda: fuel-cell vehicles on the road by 2010

Hydrogen fuel-cell cars may be hitting the streets sooner than everybody thought if Honda lives up to recent promises. Despite predictions that the prohibitively expensive nature of hydrogen fuel-cell technology meant that consumer vehicles would be over a decade away, Honda has announced that it plans to produce a consumer model "in three to four years." Hydrogen fuel-cell cars by 2010? Hot damn! It's not clear if Honda has figured out a way to make the vehicles more affordable or if they're just going to charge $100k+ for them, but in any case the cars will run on simple hydrogen and emit nothing but clean, safe water. Honda is also working on an energy station for the home that creates hydrogen out of natural gas, allowing drivers to fill up in their own garage and wave bye-bye to gas stations forever.

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Datamancer's Steampunk Laptop

This may look like a Victorian music box, but inside this intricately hand-crafted wooden case lives a Hewlett-Packard ZT1000 laptop that runs both Windows XP and Ubuntu Linux. It features an elaborate display of clockworks under glass, engraved brass accents, claw feet, an antiqued copper keyboard and mouse, leather wrist pads, and customized wireless network card. The machine turns on with an antique clock-winding key by way of a custom-built ratcheting switch made from old clock parts.

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Lynx Concept comes from in-depth analysis and statistics

The Lynx Concept comes from an amazing level of analysis and studies, which we have not seen in many concept designs. Designer Manuel Schneider teamed up with Mario Weiss, and the duo collected data on things like future visions, prognoses, statistical changes and technical possibilities to generate a timeline for a hundred years. This information was then used to create a car of the future – Lynx.

Lynx is equipped with electrical axle motors, large interiors, with no option for a gasoline engine. Gadgets in the car include an automatic distance controller, personalized entertainment system, and anti-collision and collision avoiding systems. One cursory look at the features, and we see most of them are already available, or in some stages of commercial deployment. If cars, one hundred years down the line use the same systems we have now, the future is going to be so boring.

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S.T Dupont teams up with Pantech for a blinged cell phone

You have seen exclusive cell phones from Prada, D&G, Armani, Gucci and Tag Heuer on Luxurylaunches. We have also covered S.T. Dupont’s lighters and USB flash drive. And now this company, that is renowned for its exclusive lighters, is joining hands with Pantech Korea to roll out a high-end cell phone. Inspired by the company's famous lighter design, the new handset will support the 2G CDMA network. Boasting of a18 carat gold-coated rim, it sports a 3-inch display and supports the 2G network. All set to hit the shelves with Pantech's SKY brand, the DuPont cell phone is touted to be the most expensive Pantech mobile phone model for about 1 million won ($830).

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Concept car coordinates color with driver's mood

The Beast

If it’s just an electric car with a motor, chassis and wheels, one would rather stick to the existing gas-guzzling four-wheeler. And this is where the EVE concept steps in. Apparently, the panels (almost enveloping the car) change their color, based on your mood. When the wheels roll, the friction generated triggers a reaction with the polymer material of the panel, thus leading to a change of color.

The Machine

The EVE concept is a passenger car that runs on both electric and solar power. The windshield carries a coating for solar energy storage, while the electric energy serves as the primary power option.

The Thrill

A color changing car is always cool. And with an eccentric design thrown in, the appeal is further enhanced. The EVE concept may not sound like a car you would see anytime soon, but when it does see a market launch, rest assured you aren’t going to get enough of it.

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