I don’t think I’ve seen anything geekier than this…..I absolutely love it. A Star Trek fan who’s — obviously — very good with wiring, electronics and programming has created this LCARS type controller to control just about everything in his house. Have a peek at the video below to get a better idea at what this guy has accomplished. Absolutely wonderful :-).

His webpage is in German, but has a very good collage of pics about the project. Well worth the trip.

I love the Samson guys, they introduce a product, listen to the customers, improve the product and release it at a more affordable price. Q3 is their latest creation and it goes straight after all you pod/vod casters out there. Need to do a interview, gotta have good video….and need to have the best sound, well if you’ve got $250 bucks then Q3 is your friend. The Q3 Handy Video Recorder brings Samsons renowned audio technology to the camcorder, making it the best sounding video camcorder you’ve ever heard. So throw away your Creative Vado/Flip HD gadget and step up to video with “Real” sound. After all “Apocalypse Now” still looks good on VHS ’cause it had kick ass audio.

The Q3 uses the same microphone capsules as our industry-leading H4n Handy Recorder and is perfect for recording anything where great audio and video are a must. From live musical performances and rehearsals, interviews, conferences to video podcasts, journalism, education, recitals, weddings or sports, the Q3′s pristine audio quality takes your videos to another level.

The Q3 puts a little bit of video and a whole lot of audio together in one quick and easy to use camcorder that lets you produce great movies on the go.

Features:

• Built-in stereo condenser microphones with X/Y configuration for true stereo imaging
• Get up to 1 hour of video with bundled 2GB SD card
• Accepts up to a 32GB SDHC card for 16 hours of recording time
• Large 2.4″ LCD display with a resolution of 320 x 240
• Video resolution of 640 x 480 at 30 frames/sec
• Video Format: MPEG-4 SP
• NTSC / PAL TV output
• Optics Lens Type: Fixed Focus (0.8m to infinity)
• Audio formats with video include 44.1/48kHz 16/24-bit Linear PCM WAV or MP3 up to 320kbps
• Audio only formats include 96kHz 16/24-bit Linear PCM WAV
• Auto Record Level automatically adjusts audio levels during recordings
• Uses two standard AA batteries or NiMH rechargeable batteries
• USB 2.0 with built-in cable
• Windows and Mac OS compatible
• Built-in speaker and tripod mount
• Includes on-board editing software, YouTube uploader software, Apple Quicktime, TV cable, softcase, windscreen, 2GB SD card, two AA Batteries

Recently the Far North Living Lab started by the Nothern Research Institute in Norway did a successful transmission test of 2K Digital Cinema material to a Theater using BitTorrent technology. They used the (EU Funded) Tribler BitTorrent client to stream a full blown film at full 2K resolution.

The lab’s launch was held at a local movie theater where the film “Carved” by Jonas Rejman was projected, with consent from the copyright holder of course. This is a digital streaming world premiere for BitTorrent, and one that shows how the technology can actually help digital cinema and independent filmmakers.

At the moment most digital movies are distributed on hard disks costing up to $2000 for each copy. BitTorrent has the power to change this outdated distribution method and get smaller budget films onto the big screen.

The Far North Living Lab’s experiment shows that it’s even possible to stream movies if the connection is good enough, but Dr. Njål Borch, a senior researcher involved in the project added that downloading the film beforehand is probably a better option.

The lab’s next stunt will be to stream a live concert to the city of Beijing as well as a few selected rural areas.

We want to participate in the world even though we are physically placed way beyond what most people find inhabitable, Dr. Borch said. We’re not afraid of the future, the Internet will not kill creativity. Quite on the contrary – we are very excited!