It’s been a long time since Mercedes carried out a major update to the popular A Class series of models. Set to be unveiled at the Shanghai Auto Show in April is their next version, the Mercedes A Class Concept, which from the released teaser image is nothing short of stunning, and a complete change to the current model. Showing the sleek lines now common place throughout the Mercedes range, this new concept, and from what we gather the basis for the next generation, looks great.

The changes made, at least those changes we can see from the released drawing, are impressive. Indeed the changes look so incredible as to completely put off their current A Class driver base and not something you would expect from one of Mercedes concept cars. It’s hard to imagine the current A Class buyer ever wishing to put this new version on their shopping list, it just looks like an entirely different car, and thus will attract a totally different type of buyer.

This change is perhaps not a bad thing, it’s highly probable that Mercedes will sell more of a model with the looks of this concept then if they had simply played it safe and gone with the more conservative looks of the current A Class model.

The looks of this new version are pretty special and will serve the model well for at least five to ten years. It’s modern, sleek and has a hint of the future about it. Not a bad thing considering it now takes something pretty special to stand out from the crowd of cars that most modern manufactures are producing, and from what we understand Mercedes are having a good go and making sure the A Class is set apart at least as far as looks from its current competitors in the same class.

Whether the final car Mercedes puts out bears much resemblance to the car we have been shown with the concept sketch waits to be seen, it’s incredibly common that the final production model looks far more typical and conservative than the concept that spawned it. However you would normally imagine at least some the elements to roll over and make into the model you will buy in the showroom.

Certainly it has to be hoped that the model can get to production whilst maintaining the looks of the concept, it would certainly be a good looking car and no doubt prove incredibly popular among Mercedes fans and would probably draw a lot of new customers to the brand as it will be one of the lowest cost ways to own a new Mercedes without having to drive around in the boring current A Class model.

The new model is set to go into production sometime in late 2011 or 2012, and we imagine, in keeping with a drive by most manufacturers to turn their models ever greener, there to be a hybrid version to attract the buyers for whom that aspect is important, as well as a probable sports version that should keep the young and restless satisfied.

A great concept from Mercedes and we really hope the promise is fulfilled in the production model, if it is they will have a definite winner on their hands once again.

By Evan Ackerman

There are already a bunch of options for getting yourself rescued from the wilderness (where there are bears that want to eat you). Most of these options are fairly situational… A cell phone is great, but you need reception and batteries. A flare gun is great (and fun!), but it only works once. A signal mirror is great, but you need to have sun. What you really want is something simple, reliable, portable, and effective, which (it turns out) means big inflatable rescue balloon.

The Rescue Balloon not only has a creative name, but comes rolled up around its own little cylinder of helium. If you find yourself not being able to find yourself, simply panic, stop panicking, inflate the balloon, send it up, and wait for rescue. The balloon doesn’t really work at night (maybe a future version might include a little LED or something?), but I imagine it holds onto the helium long enough to function for at least a day or two. Now, if they’d just make the balloon a little bit bigger, maybe it could actually, you know, rescue you.

Oh, and for the record, they’ve had these things for scuba divers for ages… If you surface and can’t see the boat, you inflate a tall skinny balloon to make yourself more visible in the water. Genius!

[ Yanko Design ] VIA [ DVICE ]

Japan gave us one creepy robot over the weekend, but the country of kawaii hasn’t forgotten about its roots. Case in point: A new robo bear, designed by Fujitsu and especially geared towards the elderly. The yet-to-be-named robot, which follows a line of other advanced robot bears from Japan, can even snore. Isn’t that adorable?

The robo teddy boasts a total of 300 different patterns of behavior, from waving its paws, sleeping to giggling (yes, it’s a giggling bear). It reacts to human presence through motion sensors in its head and limbs and a mini camera in its nose.

Fujitsu aims at marketing the robo bear to nursing homes and schools. The robot competes with a number of other cuddly animals made by Japanese companies, for example robo seal Paro.

Via AFP BB NEWS [JP] / Picture Credit: AFP/Yoshikazu TSUNO

One of the universal complaints about the Surface is its size — and competitors like the iTable, Displax, and FlatFrog are attempting to strike at that weak point before Microsoft comes out with the inevitable flat version. But if this nascent project being pursued by Microsoft Research bears fruit, the next version of the Surface might not have a screen at all.

The idea is that the interactive surface would be projected from above, while a stereo-sensitive camera or pair of cameras captures the position of hands, objects, and so on, allowing you to interact with the image. Sounds good to me, though of course top-down projection has its own share of drawbacks. As for the feasibility of the hardware, well, at the moment we are seeing a huge improvement generation-over-generation in pico projectors, but brightness is still an issue. And it’s worth noting that while it would have some similarities with the Surface, it really is a whole different animal, based on different principles of touch and interaction. The little visual tags Surface relies on, for instance, wouldn’t work the same; there’d be more in common (obviously) with the Playstation Eye.

Whatever actually comes of this, it’s good to know it’s being looked into. Between this, Surface, and Natal, Microsoft seems to be taking next-generation interfaces pretty seriously.

[via Gizmodo]

The P-Flip folding power dock doubles as a desktop stand.

(Credit: Dexim)

The Dexim P-Flip is two, two, two products in one. It’s a long-lasting external battery for your iPhone and a desktop stand that keeps it propped up nicely.

This folding, three-position dock bears more than a passing …

Originally posted at iPhone Atlas

iNQ's new U.S-bound handset?

(Credit: FCC)

It’s time once again for us to reveal our FCC findings to you this week, and this week’s standouts are the Sony Ericsson U100a and the Huawei Q1-200H, which bears the iNQ Mobile logo on it. To jog your …

Originally posted at Dialed In Podcast