For those of you with tons of questions about Windows 8 and can’t wait to find out what it’s like, this year’s MWC is going to give you some of the answers. Microsoft has started sending out invitations for a February 29^th event titled “Windows 8 Consumer Preview” – which is the Wednesday of MWC 2012.  And if you’re wondering why Microsoft would choose to a mobile event to showcase the latest version of Windows it probably has to do with the changes in the operating system that make it a more suitable choice for mobile devices.

Windows 8 will run on ARM processors (in addition to X86) and will feature the Metro UI that was first introduced with Windows Phone 7. With all the similarities between Windows 8 and Windows Phone, previewing it at MWC could also signify Microsoft’s plans for the two operating systems. Either way, if you’re keen on trying out the Start button-less Windows, mark February 29^th on your calendar and be sure to free up a rig or some disk space on your computer for Windows 8 Consumer Preview. Who’s excited?

Miniature cameras and video cameras seem to be all the rage right now, with tons available from the market to choose from. Well if you’re looking for one that you can easily stow away in your pocket without arousing suspicion, Swann’s HD PenCam and PenCam 4GB might fit the bill. The HD PenCam is capable of recording 720p videos and 1600 x 1200 JPEG images while the PenCam 4GB records videos at 640 x 480 and still images at 1280 x 1024.

The HD PenCam has a slot for a microSD card (supports up to 16GB) and has a battery life of 45 minutes on a full charge. The PenCam 4GB has 4GB of built-in storage, and a battery life of up to 90 minutes on a full charge. Both cameras can be plugged into a computer’s USB port for easy recharging. Oh, and when you’re not busy recording videos – they function as regular pens as well.

The HD PenCam is available now with an MSRP of $99.99 while the PenCam 4GB has an MSRP of $69.99.

G-Form is known for its resilient cases that keep your iPhone/iPad safe from all sorts of situations users will never find themselves in but it also goes to show that you can never be too prepared. The latest addition to its iPhone case lineup is the X Protect Case. Designed for the iPhone 4/4S, this G-Form case is strong enough to withstand a direct hit from a hockey stick coming at it at 82mph.

It’s not a situation you’re likely to encounter but I guess it would be safe to say that it should protect an iPhone dropping out of your pocket when you’re on a motorbike, or one that is accidentally knocked off the edge of a really high table. Check out the video demonstration and if you’re convinced you can head over to G-Form’s website to pick up one of these cases for $39.95.

Great news for Amazon Prime customers – Amazon has just announced a licensing agreement with Viacom that will allow Amazon Prime members to instantly stream TV shows from MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, TV Land, Spike, VH1, BET, CMT and Logo. This brings the total number of Prime Instant Videos to over 15,000 – a lot of new content for folks who complain about not having enough to watch on Amazon Prime. And in case you’re wondering – Kindle Fire owners will also get to enjoy these new videos. Now with Amazon Prime Instant Video you’ll never have to miss another episode of Jersey Shore, Chappelle’s Show, Hot In Cleveland, iCarly and more.

[Amazon Prime Instant Videos | Press Release]

As if LED lights weren’t efficient enough, it looks like we might be introduced to a new generation of LED lights in the future – provided Soraa’s latest technology catches on. The company will be launching its first product – the MR 16 bulb. It is meant to replace the 50-watt halogen and uses 12.5 watts while offering better beam and light quality. Soraa’s LEDs are made with an active material layer of gallium nitride and a gallium nitride substrate (as opposed to gallium nitride crystal grown over a substrate of sapphier like with regular LEDs).

These new LEDs are said to produce more light on a package of a given size, less wasted heat and can last longer than regular LED lighting. However, these new light bulbs are said to cost more than regular lights, which will be quite a hurdle when it comes to convincing consumers and business owners about choosing these new LEDs. It wasn’t mentioned how much the MR 16 bulb will cost on the market, but it will go on sale this quarter.

Soon, all of your Nokia handsets will be created in the Far East, with news of Nokia planning to shed another 4,000 jobs from their payroll, affecting those working in Finland, Hungary and Mexico in a cost cutting exercise. The Finnish phone company will then consider shifting over their smartphone assembly work to the vast continent of Asia instead, where the profit margin is far higher as wages paid out are lower. This strategy is not new, as many multinational companies have already been doing so for decades, although some higher profile ones like Apple has certainly received some flak for it. Guess CEO Stephen Elop is rather liberal with the axe in his plans to help Nokia regain its former glory, as this move will see him cutting over 30,000 jobs since he took over the reins in September 2010. According to Nokia, the job cuts will happen in phases throughout 2012. Hopefully Nokia will be able to pull itself out of the doldrums with such austerity measures.

Looking for a coffee table that’s more interesting than your plain ol’ regular one sitting in your living room? The 3G Zen coffee table might be right up your alley. Made from environment friendly bamboo this special table features electronics and robotics that sculpt geometric patterns and images into a field of microscopic silicone beads beneath a glass top. Patterns and drawings are preloaded onto an SD card for the table to read and sculpt onto the beads that are protected by an extremely strong tempered glass, and a dimmer switch lets you control the brightness of the built-in lighting.

Read full post →Zen Table features mesmerizing artwork

Want to tell the time in style? Forget about those future forward timepieces from Tokyoflash that sometimes makes it extremely annoying since there is a steep learning curve in knowing how to tell the exact time at a glance, as you revert to an era which never was – steampunk. This solar powered steampunk watch will rely on the power of the sun to power its mechanical turbine, which subsequently will be used to turn the dial and let you know of the current time. At least there is no sundial to worry about here. The full name of this timepiece? Brace yourselves, it is known as the “Ezekiel Empire Rosenstein Patent Solar Powered Turbine Steampunk Fob Watch”.
Read full post →Solar powered steampunk watch

There are some of us who are colorblind, and in this case, we might not be able to tell whether a traffic light is red, amber or green – but after a while, we get used to the sequence of the traffic lights, and follow them accordingly. Professor Taro Ochiai of Japan’s Kyushu Sangyo University might be on to something here, where his imagination resulted in a redesigned LED traffic light that can be seen by everyone – colorblind or not. After all, Red-green colorblindness is the most common type of colorblindness, which affects up to 10% of the worldwide population, and LED signals might be the solution to solving the equation.
Read full post →LED traffic light helps colorblind drivers on the road

We all know that sports outfit Nike has just about any and every form of merchandise that you can think of under the sun to do with sports – be it shirts, shoes, and the like. Well, it seems that Nike is working on the Nike Sole which was specially designed to work in tandem with Össur’s Flex-Run prosthetic running blade, where it sees action under the domain of competitive amputee athletes. Developed alongside world-record holding amputee triathlete Sarah Reinertsen and Össur, the sole boasts of a stacked design, and comes with a stretch rubber leash over a rubber waffle outsole. Nike has a heart for the environment, where they used ‘regrind‘ materials that were salvaged from reused shoes, a polyurethane foam midsole which has been topped by a thermal plastic that was created from recycled air bags. Plastic tabs do the job of locking the sole in place well enough, and something tells me with even greater advancement in this area, the Nike Sole might eventually see a disabled athlete outrun their able-bodied counterparts – and perhaps break a world record or two in the process.