54.2% of Xboxes Said to Fail – We don’t normally get into gaming news, but this one jumped out at us: Games Informer magazine did a survey of 5000 owners of the Xbox 350 from Microsoft and found that 54.2% had failed. The survey also claimed that Microsoft had the least helpful customer service.
Bose Launches New Noise-Cancelling Headphone – Bose claims their new QC 15 headphones are an improvement over their previous models due to the use of a variety of active and passive techniques to attenuate background noise across a wide range of frequencies. There are both outside and inside mikes on each ear cup, using a feed-forward technology to improve low-frequency background-noise cancellation. Mechanical improvements have been made to the ear cushions to improve the attenuation of higher frequency background noise. They also considered head-to-head variations, such as the shape of a person’s head, the amount of hair, the effect of moving the head, and other factors that change the seal with the ears.
Crestron Sued Over Lighting System – Lighting control manufacturer Lutron Electronics and high-end home theater controller maker Crestron are at odds. Lutron has accused Creston of “unlawful and unabashed copying” of their intellectual property for radio frequency transmitting and receiving antenna, and for a device controlling and determining the status of electrical devices from remote locations. The technology revolves around two-way RF lighting.
Conductor Erich Kunzel Dies at 74 – Longtime conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra Erich Kunzel died September 1 at the age of 74 at his home in Maine. Kunzel recorded over 85 albums for Telarc Records, including his latest: From the Top at the Pops. More than 55 of the albums appeared on the Billboard Charts and more than ten million total were sold. Kunzel did PBS-TV specials, toured the orchestra, and under his direction they became the best-selling classical crossover artists in history, pulling ahead of the Boston Pops.
Nikon Has World’s First Projector/Camera – The Nikon Coolpix S1000pj is the first compact digital camera featuring a built-in projector. It can project photos or movie clips on any flat surface up to 40 inches size, and comes with a projector stand and remote control. The 12-megapixel camera has a 5x zoom and macro shooting ability, and the projector will operate for an hour on one charge.
Apple Newspaper and Book Software – The word is that Apple is working on a new patented touch screen technology making newspapers and books easily read on the screen, with pages turned at the flick of a wrist. The Apple reader will compete with Amazon’s Kindle and other similar devices, and will also operate as a full blown Notebook. Sony is also involved in exploring a reader-type device for newspapers. Both companies have been talking to some U.S. newspaper corporations, including several who have already stopped printing morning newspapers and are now operating as online publishers only.
