TechBytes: Phone Calls on Facebook
In today's TechBytes: Photo Album Off the Web, Life Camera, Robot Washes Dishes
Oct. 19, 2009— -- A new Facebook application lets users make calls from the social networking site. "Tring Me" is similar to Skype, and also lets users set up caller I.D., receive voice mail and send text messages.
From the Web to Your Hands
Facebook has become one of the most popular ways to share photos on the Web, but some people still like their pictures the old-fashioned way -- on paper. A new start-up called "Pixable" is hoping to make it easier to get photos from the Web into albums.
Users can select photos from Facebook, Flickr and Picasa accounts, or from a P.C., and have them made into a photo album. Prices start at about $7 for 22 pages bound in a soft-cover album and delivery takes fewer than three days.
Capture Your Whole Life
Don't remember what you had for lunch yesterday? How about what you did last Wednesday? A new camera may help you answer those simple but forgettable questions. The Vicon Revue is a camera that's worn as a pendant and is designed to record every moment of your life. It snaps pictures as often as once every 30 seconds, as well as when a person enters a new environment or has someone standing in front of them.
The camera was originally designed by Microsoft to help Alzheimer's patients but could be used to archive entire lives. A consumer version goes on sale next year.
Dishwasher Robot
Panasonic has developed a robot many people would welcome into their homes. The robot helps around the kitchen by dishing out food and then cleaning up the mess. The four-fingered hand has sensors that allow it to grip dishes and glasses without shattering them.
It picks up your dirty dishes, empties them in the sink and then puts them in the dishwasher. Watch Panasonic's latest prototype in action on YouTube.
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