el

81: Honda prepares to smash the Prius.

A whole new way of life for tire shops...Chrysler plays catch up in the hybrid hype game...Honda goes head on against the Prius...and we take you for a ride in the quintessential mainstream status car. Listen now: Download today's podcast SHOWNOTES

No more lead wheel weights in CA

Aston Martin DBS gets its own Jaeger watch!

Screwy Audi "iPhone App"

New Chrysler hybrid SUV's on the way

All cars hybrids by 2020?

ClarionMind

JVC El Kameleon

Report: Toshiba, Matsushita will jointly make small EL displays

Toshiba and Matsushita Electric Industrial will jointly manufacture small electroluminescent displays in an effort match the output from Korea-based makers, according to a Japanese report.

The two companies will set up manufacturing lines in Ishikawa Prefecture in the fall of 2009, aiming to produce 1 million "high-quality" 2.5-inch organic EL displays, according to a report in Monday's Nihon Keizai Shimbun.

This is a first for domestic Japanese production of EL displays on this scale, the report said. The displays are targeted at cell phones and other small devices.

EL displays are based on organic light-emitting diode (… Read more

Dupont targets OLED display mass production

Dupont and Dainippon Screen Manufacturing will form a strategic alliance to develop mass production techniques for organic light emitting diode (OLED) displays, according to an announcement made in Japan.

The focus is on developing better processes and printing equipment for the fabrication of OLED displays.

OLEDs are attracting interest because the panels are paper thin but offer extremely high-quality images, superb color saturation, and fast response times. And they draw little power because they don't require a backlight.

At the same time, they face durability challenges. The organic matter used to illuminate the image can by ruined by the … Read more

Sony EL display is paper thin

There's thin. Then there's paper thin. Sony showed an electroluminescent (EL) display that's print-paper thin at the Display2008 conference in Tokyo.

The Sony EL display is based on organic light-emitting diode (OLED) technology that uses electroluminescent organic materials. OLED panels are extremely thin because they don't need backlights. The electroluminescent layer contains a polymer substance that directly converts electricity to light.

The panel shown this week at Diplay2008 is about 0.3mm thick, besting Sony's current 1.4mm-thick EL TV (photo). Epson lists its Premium Glossy Photo Paper as 0.3mm thick. So by this … Read more

More details on the tech-heavy 2009 Acura TSX

Acura has lifted the veil a bit higher on its forthcoming redesigned TSX sedan, which is set to debut at next month's New York auto show. The updated model will get a host of Acura's most advanced technology features, including the availability of a navigation system with real-time traffic, and the AcuraLink weather system, both of which will also come to the 2009 RL. Also migrating down the Acura model lineup is the ELS/Panasonic surround sound audio system, which we saw in the Acura RDX and MDX SUVs. In the TSX, the ELS system will be available … Read more

What passes for bling in China

The tech industry's unfortunate bling factor has not escaped the overseas wholesale market. Case in point: Chinavasion, maker of so many multimedia watches, has come out with a "gold edition" of its own.

This timepiece, which can play music and videos on a 1.8-inch LCD, also has built-in Bluetooth so it can work with phones and other devices wirelessly, according to GeekAlerts. Yet this is China we're talking about, so don't expect Western luxury prices. The top-of-the-line 4GB model of this edition comes in at $103.87. Then again, it probably isn't real … Read more

JVC's El Kameleon KD-AVX44 shows its true colors at CES

Gesture recognition and proximity sensors are promising to become major technologies for in-car interfaces, and JVC has stolen a march on the competition with the unveiling of its El Kameleon KD-AVX44. The buttonless single-DIN size stereo marks the return of the Kameleon nameplate, which first appeared in 1999 as a line of products that disguised themselves when not in use by blacking out to prevent theft. The modern iteration of the Kameleon also remains in darkness until a driver or front passenger reaches out to make a control selection whereupon the system's built-in proximity sensor detects the presence of … Read more

Scientists tackle midrange weather forecasts

SAN FRANCISCO--Scientists are trying to peer a bit further into the future than the typical five-day weather forecasts available today.

Forecasting weather is a notoriously tough challenge that combines physics modeling, data collection, and computer processing--and unlike many scientific problems, pretty much everyone on the planet cares how well it's done. But forecasts today peter out after a few days, leaving a cloud of uncertainty (forgive me) that only lifts when it comes to predicting seasonal weather phenomena such as El Nino.

Scientists are now getting a handle on intermediate-term forecasts by computer models of a particular type of … Read more

China's latest media player, for $50

In these inflationary times, it's hard to argue against a media player that costs about $50. That's cheap even by Chinese standards.

So even if Yoto's "V200" isn't of premium quality, the price makes up for a lot. The player isn't completely stripped-down either: As Electronista says, "The V200 is capable of playing DivX and H.264 content at a full 30 frames per second and will also read eBooks as well as JPEG photos."

It actually looks pretty good too, with a slim design that maximizes space for a 2.… Read more