The Nanfang Home

The Nanfang / Blog

computers

China’s Google Glass Killer? Introducing The BaiduEye

Posted: 09/3/2014 2:43 pm

baidueyeHere’s the newly announced BaiduEye, a computer peripheral that can be worn like a pair of glasses.

Baidu took the wraps off the high-tech device at BaiduWorld 2014, reports Sina Tech. As you can see from photographs of the device, it has a camera and an earphone, and can even can go online and identify objects, such as human faces, via the camera.

Wearable, camera-equipped, internet-surfing glasses will no doubt draw comparisons to Google Glass, but Baidu says its product is totally different. For starters, there’s new screen, or heads-up display, on BaiduEye.

baidueye

A Baidu engineer explained that BaiduEye is lighter without a screen, and won’t distract users with constant on-screen messages.

A major feature of BaiduEye is that it can be controlled through the use of hand gestures. By pointing at an object and making specific gestures with your hands, a user will be able to activate and control BaiduEye.

baidueye

Baidu CEO Li Yanhong explains:

If a person is strolling in Wanda Plaza and discovers a girl wearing a pretty dress, they can discover at which store this dress was purchased by taking a picture. By looking at a poster, they can figure out at what time a movie is playing, and book a seat and pay for it. The combination of online and offline make this the era of personal (wearable) computers.

BaiduEye does not yet have a specific release date, a retail price, or even a Chinese name. No detailed specification sheet was released either.

Related:

Photos: Sina Tech, Caixin

Haohao
Tagged:

Taiwan TV: “Chinese Blue Collar Workers Can’t Afford Home Computers”

Posted: 08/13/2014 9:15 am

taiwan computer show 03

Who knew tech talk could be so sassy? A Taiwanese news report insinuating Chinese blue collar workers are too poor to afford home computers has, predictably, ruffled a few feathers.

The story, posted by Sina News Video, involves an August 6th discussion between the television host and a computer expert about smart phone trends in mainland China. The interview appears relatively harmless, until the computer expert is asked to explain the mainland popularity of smartphones, particularly as a device used to access the Internet. That’s when this little gem of an exchange occurred:

Computer expert:
The poverty gap is especially wide on the mainland, and some people at the blue collar level aren’t able to purchase personal computers.

Host:
Using a phone to surf the internet is cheaper, and so has become popularized with the mainland public.

If you read that comment as an insinuation that “Chinese mainlanders can’t afford computers because they are poor”, you’re not the only one.

The reaction to this story has been swift as many mainland Chinese were apparently very hurt by the comments.

taiwan computer show

Here is a taste of the uproar:

山海外传：
Not worthy of being called the same people. Both mainland and Taiwan experts are good at farting!

少华-CH7：
Haha, nowadays every household in every village has a computer.

P木佬简直了：
A (laptop) computer only costs three to four thousand yuan, while a smart phone requires five to six thousand yuan.

小强James：
Citizens of Taipei like to show off the limits of their IQ.

周文杰GOOD：
As yours truly, esq, can’t even afford to buy a tea egg, what’s the point of bringing up computers and phones?

天马洋一：
That man is an alien.

静默之痕：
I’m guessing that many of these comments have been misled. Please take another look at the video! [sweat.emo]

We last saw a number of overly sarcastic comments in China after one person in Taiwan suggested that many mainlanders are too poor to purchase a tea egg.

 

Haohao
Tagged:

Canadian Living in Shenzhen Jailed, Accused of Espionage

Posted: 06/11/2014 1:21 pm

ryan collins canadian espionage charges shenzhenA Canadian man living in Shenzhen claims that he was wrongfully jailed for refusing to spy on the Canadian government in what CityNews, a Canadian broadcaster, describes as a ”disturbing government secret”.

Ryan Collins moved to Shenzhen in 2010 and began working as a freelance computer repairman. Recently, the owner of a software company offered him a proposal.

“He had asked me to get into the Canadian government via a software program, paired with hardware which would be used by the Chinese government through this individual and his company to commit espionage in Canada,” said Collins.

When Collins realized the magnitude of what was being asked of him, he rejected the offer and tried to end his relationship with this individual. However, Collins said he was arrested for espionage and taken to prison where he was allegedly beaten.

ryan collins canadian espionage charges shenzhen

“What I uncovered is something I never asked to see,” Collins said, “I was framed for crimes that I did not commit because of what I had seen and what I was asked to do.”

After spending eight days in prison, Collins was finally released after his family paid a fine worth approximately CAD$1,000.

Collins is currently at a safehouse in Hong Kong and says that his bank account has been frozen. His family is currently trying to get the proper funds to buy Collins an airplane ticket home.

“The last few weeks of my life have been like a movie. It’s like something you’d see in Hollywood,” he said.

Collins said threats upon his life continue to be made. “I was told very early that [the owner] could come to my house and put a bullet in my brain and nobody would care and nobody would know.”

According to CityNews, the Department of Foreign Affairs confirms it has been in contact with the Canadian consulate regarding a Canadian citizen over a recent matter, but it did not identify the individual.

ryan collins canadian espionage charges shenzhen

Related:

Photo: CityTV News screencaps

Haohao
Tagged:

Shenzhen Firm Continues Trend of Replacing Human Labor With Robots

Posted: 05/28/2014 12:19 pm

robot revolution The hammer and sickle may soon be held aloft by a robotic arm: China Shenzhen Rapoo Technology seeks to cut its work staff by continuing to replace human workers with the purchase of additional robots, reports 21st Century Business Herald.

Rapoo Technology, a wireless mouse and keyboard manufacturer, purchased 75 industrial robots from robotics leader ABB in 2011, a pioneering move for the sector at the time.

Deng Qiuwei, deputy general manager of Rapoo Technology, explained the company has increased wages by 10% four times over the past three years, saying the cost for each worker is currently between RMB 5,000 and RMB 6,000 (US$800-960). Therefore he argues the company needs to invest in robots.

Deng said spoke with maximum efficiency when he said with the utmost logic:

“We had 3,200 workers in 2011, and have around 1,000 now.”

This is the latest in robot labor news.

  • Foxconn announced the introduction of robots to its assembly line in 2011, with plans to have a million robots in place this year.
  • Guangzhou plans to have 80% of all its manufacturing production performed by robots instead of humans by 2020.
  • The Guangzhou government is proposing to construct two or three robot industrial development zones that will make 100,000 robots a year by 2020; however, it is not known if the job of making robots could also be given to robots.

But lest we forget, regulations on hukou requirements have recently been relaxed to attract more migrants to settle in Guangdong’s smaller cities as a way to keep up the province’s demand for labor.

Related:

Photo: Destructoid

Haohao
Tagged:
Popular Stories
AROUND THE WEB
Keep in Touch

What's happening this week in Shenzhen, Dongguan and Guangzhou? Sign up to be notified when we launch the This Week @ Nanfang newsletter.

sign up for our newsletter

Nanfang TV