Mike's List
The End of Comdex

COMDEX ENDS TODAY, maybe for good. Key3Media Group Inc., the company that runs the show, may announce bankruptcy any day now. Or the cancellation of future Comdexes. Or both. I also heard rumors that they may move the show to another city (Houston?), which would kill Comdex as we know it. 

As you may have heard (and as I predicted last week) Key3Media forecasted 125,000 attendees. But I asked an expert (my cab driver on the way to the airport), who estimated the real number at about 60,000.  Nevertheless, I had some fun and learned a few things. 

First, the fun: I got to ride a Segway on the Comdex show floor! (I hope the lady I ran over gets better soon -- and I feel really bad about the dog...) I first told you about the Segway in this newsletter almost two years ago. The most amazing thing was how easy it was to master. Here's what I learned about the Segway that I didn't already know: 1) They'll ship in March; 2) you can pre-order them now on Amazon.com; 3) it'll set you back about $5,000; 4) they go 12 miles per hour because they've been neutered for safety reasons (they can really go 20 miles per hour -- hackers: get out your screwdrivers!); 5) Segways go about 15 miles on a charge, and take 6 hours of charging; 6) the scooter uses a standard PC AC adaptor, so you can theoretically unplug your PC and plug it into your Segway to charge it. 

Mitsumi Electronics recently shipped a parrot robot called PC Mascot, also called Poll-E, that moves when you have e-mail, then reads your e-mail out loud to you. It also reminds you of appointments. The company offers e-mail accounts for customers with an @pc-mascot.com domain. Why anyone would want a plastic parrot on their desk squawking out spam is anybody's guess. 

A company called Genovation showed me a prototype keyboard for a wide range of cell phone brands. The pocketsize keyboards would enable faster web surfing and SMS messaging. 

I found Nick Bolton, co-creator of MailWasher, at a Comdex press reception. He was there to pitch the new HotMail version of MailWasher. I asked Nick how they get into the guts of Hotmail to provide anti-spam protection. He said they have reverse-engineered Microsoft Outlook Express, and emulate that program's HotMail support to gain access to Microsoft's Hotmail servers. Also: I told Nick that I thought the ultimate spam-fighting application would combine MailWasher's configurability with SpamNet's awesome real-time, user-generated database of spam addresses. He told me the company is feverishly working on it. When the next version ships (some time in 2003), MailWasher's list of spam addresses will be updated constantly. When a spammer spams, the message will likely be blocked before it reaches you. I'll keep you posted on that. The company is also working on multi-lingual versions and an AOL-specific version. 

TopHead Global Networks, Inc., showed off what I thought was a pretty cool idea: a big flat-screen PC monitor (15-inch) with a little one built into the top (6.4-inch). Called the Dual-Head Monitor TM-150, it enables you to have your work on the main screen (spreadsheets, Word Processing, etc.), with your play on the top one (TV, web cam video window, chat, sports scores, etc.). Like every other Chinese, Taiwanese and Korean company at Comdex, TopHead is "looking for a U.S. distributor." 

I told you last week about AlphaOmega Soft, Inc.'s iSeePet system, a combination remote-feeder and video web cam that enables you to see and feed your pet via cell phone (iSeePet is not to be confused with the online litter box, iSeePetPee). I ran into AlphaOmega Vice President of Marketing, Noriko Harada (fortunately she sustained only minor Segway injuries). Noriko told me that the company is looking for a U.S. distributor, and expects to sell it here some time in the first half of next year for a suggested retail price of $618 (plus a monthly service fee). The company has already established an office in the U.S. (in Bellevue, Washington, near Seattle). Tell your dog that help is on the way. 

Watchmaker Fossil showed off it's new Palm OS wristwatch. I went by their booth, and it was completely deserted. Perhaps the watch malfunctioned, and they weren't reminded to come to Vegas and man the booth. 

One under-reported Comdex story was the appearance of the NEC PowerMate  Eco, a 900 megahertz, 31-watt fanless Crusoe-based PC. The $1,599 system uses less electricity than a regular PC and is virtually silent when running. Best of all, the Eco sports a lead-free motherboard, a boron-free monitor and a recyclable plastic case, so you won't pollute China when you "recycle" it in three years. 

I ran into my old friend, Dave Methvin, who I worked with at Windows Magazine back in the 90s. Dave was our executive editor, and in charge of the WinMag labs. After helping Dave back to his feet, I learned that his PC optimization web site, PC Pitstop, is actually profitable! No, that's not a typo. (Another co-founder of the company, Martin Heller, also wrote for WinMag). PC Pitstop is a free web service that scans your PC (while respecting your privacy), and tells you how to tweak and optimize it to perfection. 

Did YOU go to Comdex? If so, I'd love to hear about your trip!

Mike

Anti-Radiation Hat Saves Brain, Wrecks Game

Handy-fashions.com sells caps designed to shield your head from dangerous cell phone radiation. The hats feature fold-down flaps with silver woven into the fabric, which cover your ears while you're yakking on the phone. The sound gets through, but microwaves from phones antennas do not. Unfortunately, the flaps make you look like a goofy dork. 

Junk Food Fat Index

Fast food is packed with life-threatening quantities of fat and cholesterol. But exactly how much? The Food Finder database tells you, with searchable nutritional information about greasy junk from Burger King, McDonalds, Wendy's, Taco Bell and others. For example, I learned that a Burger King Bacon Double-Cheese Burger, fries and a shake contain 1,450 calories and probably enough fat to kill a water buffalo. 

Find Your Own Titanic

Entrepreneur Nigel Jagger is working on a remote-controlled mini submarine called the Spyfish. It can withstand the pressure as deep as 500 feet, which is five times the standard recreational scuba diving limit. The tethered sub contains a video camera in the front, which broadcasts to a monitoring gadget that comes with the sub. Jagger plans to build 1,550 Spyfishes and sell them in about a year for $15,000 each.

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Last Week's Mystery Pic

No, it's not a scene from the upcoming "Star Wars: Attack of the Glowing Doughnuts," "radioactive Cheerios floating in space," or even "Olympic synchronized smoke ring blowing" as suggested by some readers. It's a microscopic version of the arcade game Tetris using computer controlled microspheres. Check out the web site for details, pictures and even video! Congratulations to Rodney Holloman of Ahoskie, North Carolina, for being first with the right answer!

Mystery Pic o' the Week

What is it? Send YOUR guess to [email protected] (be sure to say where you live). If you're first with the right answer, I'll print your name in the next issue of Mike's List!

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