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The Nissan Land Glider concept solves it's narrow track problem by leaning into the turns to gain traction.

(Credit:
Nissan

If you like what you’ve been hearing about Nissan’s Leaf electric car, but think it looks too much like a futuristic Versa 1.6 for your tastes, then maybe Nissan’s other Zero Emissions concept will pique your interest.

The Nissan Land Glider concept is a tiny electric vehicle that features a computer controlled steering system that leans the car into the turns. The pilot driver is seated centrally in the cabin with space for a single passenger directly behind in the narrow cabin. At least, it looks like that’s where the passenger would sit. Although the photos clearly show a driver’s four-point harness, none of the pictures show a rear seat belt.

The steering wheel has been replaced with what looks like a flight yoke. The rear view mirrors have been replaced by cameras and monitors. The dashboard definitely looks like it belongs on a vehicle of the future.

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Now THAT is a cockpit!

(Credit:
Nissan

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Ultimate speed is not this vehicle's goal.

(Credit:
Nissan

Details about the drivetrain are scarce, but we do know that it will be motivated by all-electric power. Expect the battery technology to be similar to that of the Leaf, albeit on a smaller scale. With it’s narrow profile and potentially lighter weight, we presume that the Land Glider will get by with less horsepower than the Leaf requires.

The Land Glider will be displayed at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show, alongside the Leaf production concept. Stay tuned for more details as they emerge. In the meantime, check out the embedded video of the Land Glider in action after the jump.

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Originally posted at The Car Tech blog

According to VholdR, a waterproof case should be available for the ContourHD before the holidays.

(Credit: VholdR)

It figures that the day after we decide to give the VholdR ContourHD wearable camcorder our coveted Editors’ Choice award, that VholdR would go and announce something better. This, dear readers, is what we like to call a “good problem.”

The cleverly named ContourHD1080p takes the standard ContourHD’s 720p HD resolution and bumps it up to–you guessed it–1080p. All of the features that we loved in the original will still be there in the new unit, including the rotating wide-angle lens assembly, the rechargeable lithium ion battery, and the dual frickin’ laser beams.

What’s new is a plethora of additional recording modes. In addition to the original 720p/30 frames per second HD and 480p/60fps SD modes, the ContourHD1080p adds:

• Full HD – 1080p (1,920×1,080 pixels) at 30fps
• Tall HD – 960p (1,280×960 pixels) at 30fps
• Action HD – 720p (1,280×720 pixels) at 60fps

Additionally, with the use of the included Easy Edit software, you can set the contrast (high, medium, or low), metering (center, average, or spot), and exposure (-4 to +4). Its microphone sensitivity can be adjusted as well, which should help to reduce some of the wind noise that we found when testing the standard ContourHD.

So, should you wait for this new model instead of picking up the current ContourHD?

Well, that depends. According to VholdR, the ContourHD1080p is aimed professional videographers, while the standard HD is for enthusiasts. Yet, the ContourHD1080p weighs in at an MSRP of $329.99, only $40 more than the 720p model. However, introducing more options for exposure and metering could confuse casual users and take away from the simple point and shoot nature that so endeared us to the standard ContourHD. We’ll wait and see how the controls pan out before making final judgment.

In the meantime, check out a video of the ContourHD1080p in action after the jump.

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Originally posted at The Car Tech blog

Runte’s take on real-world Pac-Man. The photographer designed and made the costumes for the series.

(Credit: Patrick Runte)

While we wait for the big-screen adaptation of Halo to hopefully come out in the next couple of years, we must wonder about the real-life looks video games of yore may have taken. Modern games already look like awesome high-definition movies, but what about their heavily pixelated predecessors?

German photographer Patrick Runte has taken on the idea and has come up with some fairly funny recreations of old 4-bit video games as they would have looked in real life. The games adapted include Tetris, Pac-Man, and of course Pong. He even goes off the grid just a tad to bring us a pinball recreation. Rad.

Runte’s a good photographer and there are many more (not so geeky) images on his site. In the meantime, check out a couple more of his game shots after the jump.

Runte’s friends dress in costume to represent Pong in the real world.

(Credit: Patrick Runte)

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Let’s start with Toshiba’s ad that looks like it came straight out of the early 90s. Pretty boring if you ask me. Aside from that the SV670 is quite stunning. For one thing, the 55-inch model would take up my entire living room and I’d be happy to watch from the next room. I can’t say too much about the local dimming and simulated 240Hz because all the Toshiba sets were looping the same video of the Rose Gardens in Portland, OR. The Deep Lagoon design might seem gimmicky, but when you’re in the store staring at hundreds of black trimmed TVs on the wall, the Regza is going to catch your eye. I can’t give it a proper “hands-on” because it didn’t seem to be calibrated correctly because the ZV650 seemed to be properly calibrated and the color on that particular set blew away the SV670. I was thoroughly impressed with Toshiba’s lineup that was re-announced today, but I’ll reserve final judgment until I’ve had proper time with each. In the meantime, check out the photos.

Toshiba Televisions