VIA wins a Computex 2012 Best Choice award for the USB 3.0 Active Optical Cable (AOC)-- a means of extending USB 3.0 cable reach from 3m to up to 100m.

It features the VIA VO510 5-Gigagit optical transceiver (using light rather than electric signals), and is compliant with SuperSpeed USB electrical specifications. With an ultra-thin profile and long reach, the USB 3.0 AOC is ideal for of applications demanding rapid data transfer and HD multimedia capabilities.

It is also highly resistant to EMI, Continue reading...

Ebode Electronics launches the Bluetooth Sound product group with a small wireless Bluetooth speaker ideal for use with mobile devices and laptops.

Weighing just 120g, the Bluetooth speaker has 10m RF range, frequency response of 100Hz-20KHz and loudspeaker output of 3W. It pairs with devices using Bluetooth V2.1.

Ebode says the battery provides up to 8 hours of music, with 1 month of standby time.

Go Ebode Electronics

Leap Motion reveals what it says is "the world's most accurate 3D motion device"-- the Leap, a small PC peripheral the company claims is 200 times more accurate than existing technologies.

Connecting to PCs via USB, the Leap simultaneously tracks 10 fingers (or objects like a pen) within a 0.1 cubic-metre virtual workspace through the combination of industry-standard cameras and sensors and Leap Motion software.

The company says tracking is accurate to within 0.01mm-- enough for gestures such as pinch-to-zoom or more complex tasks like manipulating on-screen 3D objects.

Wearable displays have often been referred to as "Head Mounted Displays" because of their bulky size and clunky appearance. Now Vuzix launches SMART Glasses Technology after years of internal development and a recent licensing deal with Nokia.

SMART Glasses Technology starts with a compact display engine capable of high contrast and brightness for outdoor use. The output is then relayed into a 1.4 mm thick polymer waveguide lens with input and output hologram structures on the surface which squeezes the light down the waveguide and then 2-dimensionally expands the image back into the user’s eye. Continue reading...

Thermaltake reveals the Level 10 M Mouse at CeBIT 2012-- a gaming-centric mouse with a design from BMW subsidiary Designworks USA, creators of the 2009 Thermaltake Level 10 PC chassis.

It features a skeletal design and an alumium base, with an LED-illuminated perforated midsection (supposedly to allow for airflow). The design is also customisable-- the rear is height-adjustable by 5mm and tiltable to either side by 5 degrees.

Included software allows customers to program buttons (all 11 of those), Continue reading...

Roccat Studios wants to turn mouse-using into a competition with the Savu-- an optical mid-size gaming mouse tracking button clicks and mouse drags with an online achievements system.

It has a sensor with either 400, 800, 1600 or 4000dpi power, and Roccat's "Easy-Shift" system allows user to assign multiple functions to the mouse buttons and scroll wheel. The rear lighting bar is also customisable, using 16.8M different colours.

An ergonomic right-hand thumb rest keeps hands comfortable, as does Continue reading...

As seen in films like Robocop and The Terminator, science fiction predicts an era of augmented reality (AR) lenses streaming data directly into our eyeballs. Now Google is working to turn such fiction into reality, at least according to the New York Times.

The report quotes unnamed Google sources saying the company will start selling high tech glasses with a form of heads-up display by the end of this year. Expected to cost "around the price of current smartphones" (anywhere from $250 to $600) the glasses will supposedly be Android-powered, with a separate mini-display sitting "a few inches" from the wearer's eye.

The glasses should also have 3G or 4G internet connections, motion sensors and GPS, while a low-resolution built-in camera monitors the world and overlays the display with information on the area in real-time.

Interestingly, the NY Times says some top people are working on the project, deep inside the secretive Google X offices-- including co-founder Sergei Brin as "key leader" and Latitude creator Steve Lee. One NY Times source says the glasses will use modified versions of current Google products, such as Google Maps.

As the much anticipated 3rd chapter in Mass Effect saga nears launch, your customers will want Razer's Mass Effect 3-branded peripherals and accessories-- all coming with a code unlocking downloadable content for the game.

The peripheral series mostly consists of re-skinned Razer products, including the Imperator mouse, Vespula mouse mat, BlackWidow Ultimate keyboard (for the PC gamers), Onza controller and Chimaera headset (for the 360 owners). All come dressed up in red, black and the vital " Continue reading...