Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

This new concept car is, to say the least, odd. In fact unless you were briefed beforehand it might take you a while to work out what it is; a concept car from Peugot cleverly disguised as a squashed drinks can. Nevertheless this façade is complimented by some very savvy specifications, some of which are given away by its name, the ‘Ozone’.

It’s name derives from the fact that its powered by ‘environmentally friendly’ hydrogen fuel cells which power the two electric motors, and in turn the large wheels which sit either side of the cabin. This two person cabin is both spacious and luxurious, and it goes some way to epitomizing the contemporary world in which we live today, which is only emphasized by the fact that this is controlled by a joystick!

However it is probably a good job that very few concept cars ever make it to mass production because this has many flaws that would make this very impractical. First, although the cabin doesn’t move when the car is moving when you brake hard, surely you would get at least a weird sensation? Also it would be somewhat disconcerting going at 70mph with two massive wheels 20cm away from your head, and these wheels surely also cause a safety issue if you were to hit someone? And also there are very few roads that would be wide enough to accommodate this car.

In conclusion: its a good concept, but little more than that due to its great practical shortfalls.

Via [GearFuse]

With the absurd increase in gasoline prices almost every week, more and more people will be forced to use buses and other modes of public transportation. Now, here is a very interesting futuristic concept – the Slimbus.

Intended for short distance travel in very crowded urban areas like Tokyo and Nagoya in Japan, Slimbus is only 1.2 meters wide and divided into different compartments. It can easily maneuver and doesn’t take up much space, unlike the regular big buses available now. It’s also quite flexible, and similar to a trains because you can add or remove compartments depending on the situation.

The bummer - all passengers must stand to save space. Then again who needs a seat for a short trip, right? It has a standing capacity of 50 people. Seats are optional in case there are some disabled passengers on board but will reduce capacity to less than 30 people.

Slimbus is a mere concept to date but its potential to minimize traffic in crowed cities is very promising. It’s up to the transportation committees to decide whether this will come into fruition.

Via Tuvie

The Eclipse Intuit Phone may very well be just a concept, but its one that is hard to deny has some good looks. In the past, as nice an idea as a solar powered gadget would be, the overall look has not really been visually pleasing, however these images hardly reflect that feeling.

In addition to the “chemically based thin solar skin” that will be able to power your phone, the Eclipse Intuit also a 5-megapixel camera with built-in photo editing software, a large touchscreen display, slide-out QWERTY keyboard with tactile feedback.

The Eclipse Intuit also appears to offer up a variety of ‘buttons’ on the top depending on which mode the handset is in. Everything ranging from left/right buttons with a navigation pad to dedicated camera buttons when in camera mode.

Sadly this is nothing more than a concept, but this is one that would be really nice to see come to life. Keep reading to see a few more images…

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If Samsung is testing geek reaction to it’s sleek and extremely thin laptop slated to appear possibly in 2009 (or hopefully sooner) this picture does the trick. Wow!

At first glance this shiny black (accented with racy red) laptop elicits increased heart rates and drool. When composure returns however there are important questions that have to be asked. What is that 3rd piece leaning against that 12.1-inch gorgeous razor thin OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display? My guess – it is a protective cover that doubles as a support. How to you control the cursor? Is there room for a battery? This is a laptop – right?

The touch-sensitive keyboard continues the sleek appearance but some worry that the non-tactile feel will be a real let down. Let down maybe but probably not a deal breaker.

Numerous unanswered questions have not squelched anticipation. Samsung has turned up the heat a bit by mentioning a 15.4-inch model in 2009 as well. Does that mean we will see one of these beauties in the near(er) future?

Via [DVICE]

Candybar phones are so last century. Flip-phones are in and so are slider phones. But when an egg-shaped phone enters the scene...well, I don’t know what to say except it looks cool. 

Freelance designer Roman Tubl certainly has an eye for all things creative. Still just a concept, the EGG mobile phone is one flashy mobile phone ideal for those who loves to flash their phones more than they actually use them.

The phone is functional with its soft rounded body. Since the touchscreen future is now, Tubl incorporated a touchscreen display on the phone’s surface. Standard phone features include USB, Bluetooth connectivity, a 3.2-megapixel camera and up to 4GB of storage.

I’m not sure with you but the EGG phone could very well be the Google phone. Maybe it’s just the colors that remind me of the search giant…

Via [YankoDesign]

If you think Cybershots are currently lacking in style, consider this concept Cybershot camera design by Young Hwan Kim. If features the standard slimness and sexiness found in most of Sony’s little snapping wonders, plus an extra feature - a wide, swiveling camera lens protector at the front.

And it’s unlike any other camera lens protector you’ve ever seen, because when closed it covers the whole face of the camera, and only swivels downward to activate the thing.

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All the major players in the tech industry are starting to get really serious about touch screens, if they haven’t been already in the past year. One such company is Sony Ericsson, one of the leading mobile phone manufacturers in the world. A newly discovered patent application it’s filed back in 2006 reveals that it has plans of making a similar device to the Apple iPhone, blending the features of a cellphone, music player, mobile computer, and even that of a Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) into one awesome handheld multimedia device.

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A new concept phone, dubbed the “Mooon” (yes that is with three o’s and not just a typo) by Sunman Kwon. Overall the Mooon has a similar style as the PSP, but it seems to be a concept that you could actually see hitting the market in the future.

The Mooon features a large touchscreen display, a digital camera, and the catch is the built-in detachable Bluetooth headset.

Keep reading for a few more images of the Mooon concept…

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Art Lebedev’s concept design of an OLED screened keyboard can be simply described as jaw-dropping. There are no keys, instead a completely customizable, touchscreen surface. You can choose links to programs for quick-access, and judging by the pictures you can run video on it as well.

What makes this a great design is it’s multi-lingual compatibility. Different languages could simply be reprogrammed into the keyboard, meaning this Optimus Tactus could make it all round the world. Its a refreshing change to the keyboard design and the greatest upside I can see is that no food crumbs will ever get stuck in between the keys. It is still a concept, but we eagerly await the release date.

Keep reading for a few more pictures of the keyboard…

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Here at Gadgetell, we don’t typically blog about gadget concepts, but this one was just so cool, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to show you all.  So that one doesn’t have to use multiple USB flash drives when one fills up, this colourful flash drive has a female connector on one end and male on the other. When more storage is needed, you simply attach another Memory Infinite flash drive.

This is a product which probably will not evolve into anything, but something that if released, would create a lot of buzz due to its unique nature.

Via [Yanko Design]