Microchips and photonchips

Earlier this week, Google celebrated the co-creator of the first microchip with one of their Google Doodles. A microchip is defined by Wikipedia as "an electronic circuit manufactured by the patterned diffusion of trace elements into the surface of a thin substrate of semiconductor material."




I'll be honest, I read that a few times, and all I got was tiny thingamajig with some tiny conductor thingies that makes computers and the like work. Computers, cell phones, and other digital products couldn't work without them. Various microchip-esque ideas came and went between 1945 and 1958, when the first working microchip was created by Jack Kilby. They have come quite a ways since then. Moore's Law states that (in the long term) the number of circuits that can be inexpensively fit on a microchip of equal size doubles every two years.



Now, a new advance may put Moore's Law in the past. A new chip is in development which manipulates individual photons of light, guiding them and also containing and initiating their interactions. These tiny pathways on a silicon chip represent a huge step towards a quantum computer. Is anyone else thinking about the wonders of tomorrow-land?

The Outlook on Mobile Payment Systems

A digital wallet is a service that allows one to use one's mobile device as a payment medium, much like a credit card.  Google Wallet is one of the major front runners, along with their competitor Isis.  While Google seems to have a lead due to their presence in the smartphone market via the Android operating system, there are several other players who have various associations with credit card and phone provider companies.  Paypal is also in competition with Google on this front, through they say that adoption of mobile payment systems is further away than some think.

The mobile payment system still faces some issues - particularly the security concerns of users.    Some individuals worry that phones could be lost or stolen.  Personally, I think this is the same issue people face with credit cards.  Even if the phone is lost, users will need to enter a 4 digit code.  Additionally, the app will not store identification, so users will still need to carry their IDs with them for use.  Further, while the phone is asleep, you won't be able to make transactions.  This means that no sleeping phone (in your pocket for instance) can unknowingly be charged.

The wallet system has been unveiled for American Eagle Outfitters, The Container Store, Foot Locker, Guess, Jamba Juice, Macy’s, OfficeMax, and Toys R Us as of last week.

Touchable holographic images - Up and coming tech

I recently found and read this article about a touchable 3D technology.  Researchers in Japan have been working to improve upon the current 3D technology available.  Their work has been with glasses-free 3D, for one thing. They use retro reflective surfaces to projected  images that actually appear somewhere other than the light source. I am personally very excited for glasses-free 3D, as I wear glasses or corrective lenses on a day-to-day basis, and they generally do not play nicely with the 3D glasses necessary for viewing some films and games in the 3D format they were intended for.  Where these scientists have jumped ahead of their peers and competitors is the leap into touchable 3D technology.  They use an input interface with infrared sensors that can sense where the user is and work with the 3D output to allow the 3D objects and characters to respond instantly in real time to the actions of the user. Moving forward, they are looking to bolstering the interface with a sensor that will allow the user to experience tactile feedback, possibly in the form of a glove.

While I was a little disappointed after reading the article and then watching the video, this is still exciting technology to watch in the future.

E-Wallets

Credit cards may soon be a thing of the past.

A not-so-new technology called, “near-field technology” allows devices to communicate wirelessly at close range.  The application of this technology currently making headlines is as a way to store and use credit card information.  Rather than swiping a card or waving it at the machine, if you have one of those new-fangled cards with the little squiggly lines, you would simply hold your phone near the terminal to pay.

Currently, there are two major frontrunners.  The ubiquitous Google has made a bid with Google Wallet, supported by Master Card and Sprint. The other frontrunner, Isis, has the support of AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, as well as Visa.  Though it seems like Isis has the lead with the three largest phone networks and the largest credit card company in the US, Google seems to be the first out of the gates, and that head start could mean big profits.

In any case, at this point, both systems claim that their eventual goal is to be open - that is, to support all credit card companies.  Being carried on multiple phone networks wouldn't be a bad thing either.

This is actually a pretty exciting development to me.  I hate having to dig in a wallet for a card.  Now, I'm not one of those up-to-your-eyeballs-in-plastic-debt types, but I do carry something like a half dozen credit and debit cards on a daily basis a number that isn't terribly strange.  It would be very nice to pare down to a phone that I carry anyways.

The sticking point here is saturation and adoption.  Few point-of-sale terminals support the little wavy thing, which has been around for what seems like ages. (Just checked, this was originally called, "blink" technology.)  Neither Isis nor Google Wallet will be able to pull ahead or succeed until they are able to convince a large number of consumers and businesses to use their technology.

What would you use an electronic wallet for?

News from Computex

Computex is underway. Meg, Natasha, and Jim are there! Here are some of the big releases we've heard about so far.

• New chips for tablets.  Tablets are still growing in popularity, and the hardware that powers them is coming along for the ride.
• Ultra slim laptops.  Thin is in!  Ultra portable computers increase their usability and efficiency.  Read as: everyone wants them.
• Tablets, tablets, everywhere.  Growing popularity means everyone is hopping on the tablet boat, and Apple has ever-stiffer competition.
• And my favorite, the new Windows 8 has been previewed.  This is a newer, more aerodynamic OS, if you.  With great tiles showing up to date info and hints that Microsoft is moving towards the cloud, I am incredibly excited for this.  Plus, this OS will still run legacy programs!  And it will run on just about everything - laptops, tablets, phones, desktops.  Check out the video preview!