I'm still fascinated by Motorola's INSTANTMOTO concept of selling cell phones and accessories through vending machines. It's a funhouse-mirror version of what Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Samsung are all starting to do in selling high-end phones directly to consumers. But where Nokia is using expensive retail spaces to communicate their cool European brand, Motorola is using robotic vending machines to make their products into ubiquitous impulse buys.

I got in touch with Moto today and found out that the InstantMoto machines will be selling six phones: The RAZR V3 (in various colors), the RAZR V3c, the SLVR L7, the PEBL U6, the Q smartphone, and the prepaid V190. (No word on prices or whether these are the 'generic' or carrier-locked versions.) They'll also sell a slew of accessories, which is where I think the real impulse buys will happen: the H3, H300, H500, H605, and H700 Bluetooth headsets, the HT820 Bluetooth stereo headset, the HF820 speaker phone. The product lines round out with various AC adapters, car adapters, cases and the Motorola Mobile Phone Tools PC software.

The three machines currently out there are in Terminal G of the San Francisco airport; the Lear Terminal of the Reno airport; and the basement of the Macy's on State Street in downtown Chicago. They'll soon be joined by at least twelve others. There will be one in the Macy's at the Dadeland Mall in Miami; terminals C and D of the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport; Concourse F of the Minneapolis airport; the Metreon in San Francisco; the Greenwood Park Mall in Greenwood, IN; the Crystal Mall in Waterford, CT; the Arburn Mall in Arburn, MA; the Emerald Square mall in North Attleboro, MA; the Oxford Valley mall in Langhorne, PA; and the Ross Park Mall and South Hills Village in Pittsburgh.

Yes, you'll be able to get at least somewhat in-depth technical information from the INSTANTMOTO's touch screen before buying. But notice the difference between these machines, in nondescript suburban malls, and Nokia's prestige stores in prime urban real estate, which sell Nokia's highest-end devices. INSTANTMOTO, I think, is more about those workaday moments when you suddenly realize you left the car charger at home and you're running out of battery power. I suspect they're going to sell a heck of a lot more chargers than Qs, considering impulse buyers probably won't be into the whole $50-a-month-data-plan-with-two-year-contract thing. I wonder if Motorola also plans to bring back stores like their Destination Q, which sold Motorola Qs for a few months in Chicago this summer.

Remember the movie The Fly? No not the original, but the cool, 1986 remake starring Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis. Goldblum's scientist character, Seth Brundle, is trying to figure out how to teleport humans from one place to another, but keeps failing (at one point his machines turn a Baboon inside out). Then Brundle realizes—after a bedroom romp with Davis's character—that his machine is failing because he hasn't told it enough about the nature of human flesh to get it right on the other side.

Now, it seems real-world researchers are figuring out human flesh and while they won't be helping us teleport any time soon, the Chinese news service Xinhua is reporting that Keio University Researchers have developed robot skin material that feels just like the real thing.

Like real skin, this material, developed by Robotics professor Takashi Maeno and his research team at Keio University, has multiple layers. So there's a centimeter-thick-dermis covered by an ultra-thin layer of "epidermis"—really urethane. Researchers even said that most people who touch the material think it feels like human skin.

This sounds cool. But Xinhua News's proposed application (or perhaps they got this from Professor Maeno) is to cover a robotic hand with the robo-flesh so it can do "remote-teleoperated breast exams." Pardon me? I can hear the sound of a woman slapping away a robotic hand right now.

[via Xinhuanet Online]

Thanks to Robotics expert Lance Ulanoff for this post!

Note: The picture posted here is just a humanoid robot--not robot skin material.

So with 70 new companies and all kinds of technology, what was the biggest buzz at DEMOfall this week? The apparent appearance of rock-star / investor Bono of U2 fame. Our own reporter Natali Del Conte was blinded by the starlight, as you can see from the last photo in her Demo photo blog.

But with a little bit of digging, I managed to confirm that the prince of rock was not in San Diego Tuesday: He was, in fact, signing books in New York, and then had dinner with friends in the big Apple.

A closer look at a more recent photo of Bono shows that there's a big disconnect between fake Demo Bono and the real guitar-playing variant.

Natali wasn't the only one fooled. Apparently most attendees were convinced that he was the real deal as well. 

What does it say about the technology there, if everyone was talking about Bono? I'll take a new satellite radio any day over a famous rock star, but I guess I'm in the minority.

-- Jim Louderback

BONO-GATE UPDATE - PCMag.com Reporter Natali Del Conti weighs in with her thoughts

I Am Not A Trained Identity Expert

Yesterday in the DEMOfall exposition in San Diego, attendees got a little surprise when U2 front man Bono casually roamed the show floor. I became aware of his presence while receiving a demo from Presto Services about their computerless picture printer. They showed me a recent picture of Bono and said that he was here roaming the floor.

“Now why,” I said to myself “would Bono be interested in the DEMO technology announcements, especially when this is Fashion Week in Milan?”

I moved on, scratching my head. A few minutes later, a representative from Presto found me and said that she had found Bono again. I followed her back to her booth, where she took a photo of me with the alleged Bono, after which he and his companions left the pavilion.

Since sending the picture to my coworkers and posting it to my DEMO photo blog, there has been much speculation about the authenticity of the so-called Bono. Was I duped by an impersonator?

The band’s Web site says that they were signing autographs in a New York City Barnes and Noble at 9 a.m. on Tuesday. So how could the front man be at DEMO in San Diego at 1 p.m. if he was to be signing autographs in New York City that same morning?

Also, PC Magazine's editor-in-chief Jim Louderback has pointed out that the rock star does not wear his hair long like my photo buddy does, and that the real Bono was having drinks with his friend in New York City last night. Puzzling.

Most of us at DEMO seem to believe that we actually saw Bono. The Stiletto 100 booth even played “Beautiful Day” repeatedly to attract him to their booth on their new portable satellite radio player.

I see three possibilities here. One, I have a picture of myself looking dorky next to a fake Bono, and most of us here at DEMO were duped. If this is the case, I must say, I have never seen such a convincing impersonator. I saw U2 from the front row of the Elevation Tour in 2002, and this guy looked quite a lot like the guy I saw back then; but it has been four years since that concert, and I am certainly no expert. I’m not even a huge U2 fan. On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d call myself a 5. I could certainly live the rest of my life not hearing “Beautiful Day” ever again and be a happy woman.

The second possibility is that Bono was not present at the U2 band signing, and Louderback’s friend is mistaken. 

The third possibility is that Bono did sign autographs in New York City Tuesday morning, then took his private jet (which he certainly must have) to San Diego to check out DEMO, and then flew back east to have drinks with Louderback’s friend.

I don’t know. My instinct is to refer back to my original thought: Why would Bono be at DEMO? I honestly don’t know, and I honestly only marginally care. At the very least, I got a fun picture to send to my mom and my coworkers. You make the call.

-- Natali Del Conte
 

Cyndi Lauper sang back in 1984 that "Girls Just Want to Have Fun". Well fellas, we're still having fun, and so are the makers of chicBuds earphones!

chicBuds aren't your ordinary pair of earphones. They're for chicks, so they have to be unique! Adorning the outside of the earphones are tiny swarovski crystals. You'll also find a handy retractable cord when not in use and a belt clip to keep the cord in place.

Nikki Gutshall & Kailynn Bowling, chicBuds founders, were tired of going to the gym and watching women fuss with their earphone's cords while working out. Gee, I'm usually fussing with my underwear at the gym, but that's another story.

chicBuds work with any iPod and come with a pouch and extra crystals. Good, because I don't want to have to use a BeDazzler with those fake gems! Choose from pink, blue, green, purple, or clear.

Buy a pair for $46.

The announcement of Battery Geek's newest portable battery made me feel all warm and fuzzy, and I just had to tell you about it. How many of you out there own Macbooks or Macbook Pros? And judging by the opinions I've heard from those who do own one (I'll keep writing to Santa... maybe one day), battery life is a real downer. Sure, 2 or 3 hours is fine for most notebooks, but some machines are almost doubling that. And we all want more time without wires. Well, the 140Wh Portable Power Station will give you 6-plus hours of extra juice.

But even though Battery Geek is pimping the Portable Power Station's compatibility with the new Apple notebooks, that doesn't mean the rest of us with portable devices are left out in the cold. The Power Station is packaged with well over thirty connectors that you can attach to its cord and plug into the device. On top of the Apple Notebooks, the new Power Station will support most Motorola, Nokia, and Samsung cell phones, as well as most notebook brands, ranging from Acer to HP to Lenovo. Literally hundreds of laptops are supported by the Portable Power Station, and a full list can be found at the company's site.

The Portable Power Station has an on/off switch to conserve power when you are not using it, and can easily be charged by plugging it into an outlet before you head out. The casing is made of shock-resistant aluminum, but Battery Geek throws in a travel pack to protect your Power Station.

Before you run out and buy one, be aware that Battery Geek is selling the MacBook and Macbook Pro connectors separately. But if the Apple notebooks aren't the reason you're buying an external battery pack, or if you don't mind those slightly questionable tactics, the 140Wh Portable Power Station is available today for $349.99. I think I'll wait until they include the Apple connectors. Actually, maybe I'll wait until I actually get a Macbook.

Post by Don Reisinger

Now this is WEIRD!!

A stranded motorist in Addlestone, Surrey used her dog George to start her car.

Apparently, Juliette Piesley, 39, changed the battery in her electronic key fob but couldn't get her engine started. She called the AA, and when patrolman Kevin Gorman came to her rescue, he realized that the key's security system immobilizer chip, which must be near a car's dashboard to start, was no where to be seen.

Piesley said that her dog must have eaten it. The patrolman picked up the dog and placed him in the front seat. Only then was he able to get the car started.

Now everytime Piesley goes out for a drive, she'll have to bring her dog with her. "It is the first time that I have had to get a dog to help me to start a car," Gorman said. I think that would be anyone's first time!!

I wonder how long it will take the chip to "run its course" through the dog's digestive system?

In related news, a drunk driver by the name of Shaun Cliff was ordered to wear an electronic tag as community service so that police could make sure that he wouldn't travel to any bars. Cliff thought he'd fool authorities by removing the tag and putting it on his dog at home, and then drove down to a local pub. He was found guilty of "breaching a community service order, and sentenced to (wait for it…) wear an electronic tag for three months." Oh the irony!

[via BBC News & Metro.co.uk]

Pictured here is my brother's Whippet, named Gigi.

Back in June, Tiger Electronics (a division of Hasbro) showed us a bunch of hot electronics for this coming holiday season. On September 15, I attended the Totally Tech Tour (T3) in NYC (in the pouring rain no less) to witness even more tech goodies for the holidays.

You've heard of the I-Dog and the I-Cat. Now welcome the I-Fish ($40): Recommended for ages 8 & up, the I-Fish reacts to the music it hears with multicolored flashing lights and funky sound effects. It even moves its head and tail and expresses different personalities. For example, rub the top of the I-Fish's head to put it in a cheerful mood and get it to sing. Just plug in your portable music player to the I-Fish and music will sound through the built-in speaker.

America's sweetheart Catherine Zeta-Jones has been booted as the spokesperson for T-Mobile. The company is in favor of a more "man-on-the-street approach". Hmmmm...I wonder what that means? Are they literally going to pluck an average-looking guy from the streets, or choose a more "boy next door" celebrity? Man, this is just plain intolerable cruelty!

Her contract with T-Mobile, which began in 2003 and expires next year, is said to be worth several million dollars.

Why the sudden change to get rid of this The Legend of Zorro star? T-Mobile will be undergoing a major rebranding effort and launching new services and cell phones as early as October. It is rumored that the company may also become the first U.S. carrier to offer a Vonage-like Internet calling service, too. I wonder what T-Mobile's 23 million customers think about this?

[via Wall Street Journal]

Product: Jabra BT160 Customizable Bluetooth Headset

Description: This Bluetooth headset is made for the fashion-conscious crowd. And who doesn't love to customize their stuff?

How It Works: The Jabra BT160 is easy to use. It pairs easily with Bluetooth-enabled phones, and hooks on either ear comfortably. The headset uses Bluetooth 1.2 with a range of up to 30 feet. Claimed talk time is 8 hours, but also depends on your phone, of course. There is a button on the headset for answering and ending your call, and if your phone supports it, you can redial the last number you called, reject a call and more. 

But enough with the tech specs. To change designs, you just snap out the plastic cover (there's a little space at the top to grab it with your fingernail). Then you take the design plate out and replace it with any of 33 design covers.