tech

No matter how much you keep up with technology, it's challenging to predict its impact past a few years down the road. There are so many possibilities on the horizon -- especially considering the non-stop advancements in connectivity, nanotechnology, and other expanding fields of next-gen science -- that future generations may think of the early 2000s in the same way we think of the early 1900s: as a time when society stood on the cusp of incredible change.

A new BBC Future infographic takes a shot at what could happen in the realm of science, technology, and society as a whole from now to 2150. The predictions, which come from a cavalcade of sources (IBM, MIT, NASA, news outlets, and many others), indicate that the world we know today could be largely different in just a decade. … Read more

I propose a new test for GPS reviews. Can you actually update your device easily with new maps? When it comes to TomTom, that's a test it has failed for me with three different units, making me want to navigate elsewhere for my GPS needs. Worse, the company seems not to care about known problems.

For all of you TomTom owners feeling lost out there, come along. I'll share some of my pain, and you can nod in agreement. Maybe, just maybe, TomTom might even fix things.

The disposable GPS? Back in 2010, I tried to update my … Read more

Even a stoic sci-fi bad guy like Darth Vader, with his menacing helmet, can be reborn into a fancy, smile-inducing art piece.

Indiana-based artist Gabriel Dishaw created an unusual twist on Darth Vader with an upcycled mask, which features a smorgasbord of old junk attached and integrated into the Sith Lord's helmet. The parts include various keys, circuit boards, and other appendages sourced from ancient adding machines, typewriters, and computers. Any of you out there with some extra holiday cash can pick up the one-of-a-kind Darth Vader junk art mask on Etsy for a crisp $800. … Read more

If you've been hit by a natural disaster recently, you know you can't put too high a price on mobile power supplies.

If your phone is dead and the grid is unreliable, JuiceCans are one way to keep communicating with loved ones.

This Indiegogo fundraising project centers on a stackable USB power pack called a JuiceCan. Add more packs to form a JuiceCane and you get more power. … Read more

Fancy yourself as James Bond and want to do some high-tech spying? Now you can with this palm-size flying robot.

TechJect's Robot Dragonfly may not be ready just yet, but you can back this project at Indiegogo for just $99 to get your very own micro UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle). If you're willing to chuck in another $20, you'll be able to get a noiseless version.

The basic model weighs in at just less than an ounce and can hover or flit around like a bird with its two pairs of wings. TechJect also intends to sell different types of wings that will change how the unit performs. … Read more

CNET Tech Car of the Year for 2012

2012 Tesla Model S Our choice for CNET Tech Car of the Year goes to the 2012 Tesla Model S, a car that shows superb technology throughout while also challenging our conceptions of how a car should work. Most people know the Model S for its electric drivetrain, which not only gives it tremendous acceleration, but also the best range among current production electric cars. Compared with an internal combustion engine, the Tesla's electric motor delivers magnitudes of better energy efficiency. The EPA estimates the cost of electricity for a year of driving at $700, about 25 percent of the cost for gasoline in an equivalent luxury sedan.

Beyond its efficiency, the Model S modernizes the whole idea of a car's cabin. Tesla streamlined the entire process of getting into the car and setting off, taking out steps that have become anachronistic. A big touch screen handles all in-cabin functions, eliminating the need for an array of buttons across the dashboard. A 3G data connection feeds the infotainment functions, providing maps, destination search, and music, similar to what we have become used to with our personal electronics.

The Model S went up against the Audi S5, BMW 640i Gran Coupe, Ford Focus Electric, and Toyota Prius C, a formidable field nominated for technical excellence in drivetrain and cabin. The BMW proved popular with our jury, and we liked how the Focus Electric drove, but the Model S trumped the others with its innovative approach and capabilities.

… Read more

I know that many wise organizations, including NASA, have declared that the world will not end -- as some Mayans had predicted -- next Friday.

NASA has even released an advance, advanced video (embedded here), explaining why this will not happen.

We at Technically Incorrect tend to be a little more sanguine. There is a 50 percent chance that the world will end. Because, well, there are only two options: either it will or it won't.

I'd hate you to be blind-sided by apocalyptic inconvenience. So I have searched high, low and lower in search of useful steps … Read more