[CEATEC 2009] As OLED becomes cheaper to produce, it will be used not only for displays, but also for lighting. The main advantage of OLED is that designers are given much more freeedom when compared to traditional or fluorescent bulbs. This chandelier was exposed in the “Green IT” section, although I’m not sure how low the power consumption is.

[CEATEC 2009] The 3M Pico projector is not only cute, but it can also display a 640 x 480 image ranging in size from 8” to 50”, depending on the distance to the screen. It’s not very much, but it can scale an incoming video signal down, if you connect a higher resolution device. Now, I’ll admit that this is clearly not the best setup to demonstrate a projector, but it is a real-world test and to be honest I wasn’t very impressed, even if I’m forgiving because the thing is so small. It might be good enough for PowerPoints or photos if you can’t stand lugging a bigger projector around.

[CEATEC 2009] You’ve all seen acrylic PC cases. Sometimes they look cool, but would you have acrylic AV furniture instead? I find the LED lighting to be disturbing when watching a movie in the dark. What about all the mess that I usually try to hide in there? Would you want one?

[CEATEC 2009] Sony is showing a few cool OLED prototypes: a reader, a bracelet and a laptop. The most eye-catching one is the all-display laptop that ditches the physical keyoard in favor of a virtual one. It looks amazingly light, but you can bet that no one was allowed to touch the concept displayed behind thick plexiglass. The display is flexible and Sony was demonstrating other panels playing video while being flexed. So… hot or not?

[CEATEC 2009] Sharing data among gadgets has been on KDDI’s plate for a while. While last year’s demo comprised of a prototype handset, this time around KDDI is using real handsets, even if that one is still a little thick (most cellphones are around here). At 1Gbps, the data connection should be fast enough to allow quick data transfers to and from the phone. Note that this is a theoretical speed and that measured data transfer should be much lower. IR has really gone a long way with KDDI. If you are interested in short-range communications, you might want to check our Transfer Jet post as well.

[CEATEC 2009] This Vocaloid Robot was presented at the Sekai Camera booth. I saw it yesterday, but I wanted to get a closer look before I share it with you all. Its creators have worked on making the skin, facial expressions and the lip to synchronize in tandem with whatever it verbalizes. Right now, the head is the only body part that moves and she still looks very “plastic” (Terminator model T100), but it’s always a cool thing to watch. They should work with Honda to put her head on Asimo – now that would be weird. All the lipsync smartness is done on a remote server and sent back to the robot for execution. Apparently, the nearby piano was driven by the same application. This is part of Yamaha’s “Play iT” tech demo.

[CEATEC 2009] Over the past couple of years, Nissan has used cute robots as a mean to communicate their R&D efforts and it’s hard not to pay attenton. This year,a group of EPORO robots (six) were shown rolling around in a tight group, without ever colliding. Nissan says that it was insipired by how a school of fish moves. Of course, the robot is small but Nissan hopes to incorporate the same algorithms in cars one day. Imagine what a flock of Nissan GTRs would look like… err wait… For the little story, EPORO means Episode 0 (of a C02-free and collision-free world).

Not surprisingly, “green” is big deal in Japan as well and Toshiba was eager to show how eco-friendly their handsets are. Besides being more eco-sensitive, another consequence of the green boom is that companies are very low-power oriented. Toshiba has gone through the effort of shutting down whole blocks of circuits that are not in use (it is harder than it sounds). Reducing the size of the boards and using eco-friendly materials also helps reduce pollution. What does it mean for you and I? Less eco-guilt, better battery life, thinner and smarter gadgets.

[CEATEC 2009] Yesterday, I checked out a gigantic 4k2K ($ x the 1080p resolution), but Toshiba wants to see that in our homes, so they presented a prototype at Ceatec. So, how does it fare? Well, on a 50" display, it looked a little sharper, but it is perceptually far from being 4x sharper. I'd toss in a 15% improvement in sharpness just to give you an idea. Why? The display is simply too small. It is like comparing 720p and 1080p on a 36" display from 2 yards away. On 70" TVs, it should start really making a difference as even 1080p becomes a bit fuzzy. Toshiba is eager to ignite a resolution arms race because they can outgun competitors when performing image processing, thanks to the CELL processor embedded in the TV. A similar processor powers the Playstation 3.

In an hour, I (Eliane) will be a judge for the Annual Silicon Valley Summit organized by ANZA Technology Network held at the Plug and Play Center in Sunnyvale, California (Oct 6-7) . The two other judges are John Dyson from Starfish Ventures and Simon Anderson, CMO of Pictage.com. The innovative Australian tech companies presenting at the conference are part of a 2-month program (Gateway to the US) devoted to exploring US market expansion opportunities, starting in Silicon Valley.

Tickets are $55 and can be purchased at this link: http://www.anzatechnet.com/conference2009/reg/reg1_summit.jsp

The Australian-based companies include:

• Earth Utility, a sustainable utility company that makes sustainability simple and affordable.
• iPOWOW!, an integrated platform and tools for online video, which collects attitude and opinion from any video in real-time, and allows for sophisticated reporting on responses.
• myCaRMS, enterprise software that addresses the dual requirements of regulatory compliance and risk assessment for financial institutions.
• Myownpad, social networking and social gaming integration into a unique virtual world platform that provides an immersive, interactive and social 3D experience.
• Software Shortlist, a proprietary method to help businesses identify software that is most appropriate for their business.
• Spinergy, renewable "clean" energy generation technologies that provide in situ power to drive instrumentation and telemetry equipment. These technologies are cheaper, safer, easier to install, and more reliable and robust once in operation.
• Tradeslot, combination optimization technology and auction technology that creates transparent and efficient primary markets for scarce resources such as carbon, timber, grain, iron ore, water and more.

[CEATEC 09] As I walked around, I noticed that many booths' companies were working with Android. Most of them were software companies that build Android software. Others were making photo frames or other usually "dumb" devices, hoping that Android would give those devices a "brain transplant". As we move forward, I totally expect all kinds of devices to run on Android, it is the poster-child of embedded Linux that everybody wanted: backed by a major player, tons of apps, tons of developers, economical perspectives, and a market… (yes, the photo is really a working Android robot)

[CEATEC 09] Zenrin was demonstrating a cool looking GPS app for the Sony PSP. In the 2D map mode, the application doesn't look much different from any other PND. However, when arriving to a complex intersection (like some in Tokyo), the GPS will switch to a 3D mode where detailed models of the surrounding and a clear path are shown. I can't tell you if it's good or not, without taking it for a spin, but I sure could have been using something like that many times in my life. That said, augmented reality is probably better and cheaper - when it will become more common.

[CEATEC 09] Fujitsu was showing many eye-catching concept phones and I shot photos from the best ones for the (upcoming!) photo gallery. I personally like the Kwak Yeon concept that looks like a pebble (above), and the Camelephone that would fit in any interior. Both have a pure design and seem to cut things to the bare minimum - which is definitely not how I use my phone, but I got caught in a "design moment", right there. Let's hope that some of them will become real products as they would look great on a desk! Last minute addition: the Fold-a-phone concept is great, as the design is based on what folded paper looks like.

[CEATEC 09] Visiting a busy department store on a Saturday afternoon might be entertaining to some, but if you don't enjoy being squeezed to death, KDDI has mobile virtual shopping application. KDDI lets users shop for fashion items from their phones by setting up an avatar that will try on clothes and accessories. The avatar can be precisely tuned to resemble its owner: body shape, height, size and even haircut can be changed. From there, virtual clothes can be put on, it's a quick way to see how several items fit together. Shopping is just a click away and the integration to the online store seems very well done. At the moment, we've only seen an application for women.