TechWire

Anti-riot tech: how to put 'em down

Looking for something to control pesky rioters in your area? Fed up with cars being torched and shoe shops being looted? Whether you’re a a beleaguered justice minister or just a Travis Bickle vigilante-wannabe, there’s a range of stuff available on the web.

“This 650,000 Volt stun gun is an electrical self-defence device that delivers high voltage shock to a potential attacker, immobilising and neutralizing a possible threat to an intended victim. Creates a bright, audible crackle. Ensures no permanent damage. Standard 9V battery lasts up to 2 years with proper use.” €40 plus delivery.

Anti-riot tech: M2100 disturbance control kit

“Includes 20 pairs of EZ-Cuff 200-D heavy-duty nylon restraints, padded chest protector with shoulder pads, forearm guards, leg and arm protectors, one Centurion XGP100 groin protector, one pair of Centurion FP100 forearm guards, one Centurion CPX1000 upper body and shoulder protector with label (L or XL), one pair of Centurion TS65 hard shell shin guards (L or XL), one pair of Street Guard gloves with Kevlar (L or XL) and a Mission Specific gear bag with padded helmet compartment.” €260 plus delivery.

Anti-riot tech: Stinger projectile stun gun

"The Stinger stun gun is an electro-stun device that utilises self-contained, charged cartridges to shoot either two or four darts at targets up to 31 feet away. The user simply loads one or two cartridges into the gun, aims the laser guide at the intended target and pulls the trigger. The charge accurately propels darts connected to the gun by thin, insulated wires, and upon contact a pulsed electrical current is passed through the subject. The electrical charge temporarily impairs the subject’s ability to control muscles dropping the subject to the ground and rendering him/her harmless to the user, surrounding people, and themselves." €720 plus delivery.

Anti-riot tech: FXR2000LT helmet

"The newly designed FXR2000LT offers complete head protection. The TacElite EPR full coverage helmet shell provides increased protection of the ears and neck compared to traditional helmets, which use ABS plastic for ear and neck protection." €130 plus delivery.

Anti-riot tech: ATG chest protector

“Its cellular pad design provides substantial protection and allows for mobility during a domestic disturbance, cell extraction, or tactical situation. Made of durable EVA foam with an outer fire retardant nylon, its shoulder pads feature plastic plates covered in protective foam.” €50 plus delivery.

Anti-riot tech: pepperball launchers

“PepperBall SA10 and SA200 launchers are non-lethal weapons options that use the three affects of the psychological shock of being "hit", powerful kinetic impact, and potent pepper irritant to effectively achieve individual suspect compliance and/or control crowds. Frangible ball breaks upon impact and releases PAVA (capsaicin II) pepper super irritant. Target accurate up to 60’. Area saturation up to 200’.” €220 plus delivery.

Irish Broadband CEO: "we have customer service issues"

It seems that customer grumbling has gotten through to Irish Broadband. The wireless internet operator has just appointed a new 'head of customer service', Christina Byrne (pictured left). Byrne, who will be responsible for "all areas of customer relationship management", used to work for Esat BT (now BT Ireland) as customer services director. The company's recently appointed chief executive, Neil Parkinson, conceded that the company had "issues" with customer satisfaction. "Due to a huge surge in demand for Irish Broadband’s services, there have been some customer service issues, which we recognise," he said. "We have already addressed most of these issues and are now looking at enhancing the level of service for all our customers."

Sony resuscitates old CRTs with new 34-inch HD model

Guest blog: Reports of the death of the lowly CRT have been greatly exaggerated. Sony has recently unveiled its 34-inch 16x9 KD-34XBR970, a full-blown HDTV with lots of enhancement circuitry built in (such as Sony’s Dynamic Picture Processor and Clear Edge). Keeping the colours true is “Trinitone” color temperature technology. And there’s one more important detail: it's cheaper than plasma or LCD, although we do have a consumer market now that's waaay too cool for TVs that are as bulky and as heavy as a small refrigerator packed full of 12oz steak fillets. But people, if it's quality you want...
Note that even though LCD and plasma displays continue to improve, lots of golden-eyed video engineers in the best production houses/TV facilities in the world will tell you that the good old cathode ray tube still gives you the best video quality. All broadcast video is still viewed by engineers on cathode ray tube monitors to determine true image quality. Perhaps it's a bit like the fact that a perfectly pressed vinyl disk today played on a perfectly engineered turntable through a tube amplifier and will have that analogue 'warmth' advantage over a CD, Minidisc, or MP3 methinks...
-- Damien M
Ed's note: no word yet on an Irish price or launch.

Three reasons why Starbucks’ Irish cafes suck for wifi

1. They’re crammed and over-congested. Whoever designed the layout of Starbucks Ireland's outlets has strayed hugely from its relaxed US design. Whereas American Starbucks stores are all about space, sofas and a feeling of comfort, its Irish venues are overpacked with small wooden tables and thin window counters (I have a call in to its Irish operation to ask about this). People have to excuse themselves to fellow patrons as they make their way through because of the general seating logjam. It’s disruptive and claustrophobic. The message seems less one of ‘hey, stick around for a while’ (appropriate to wifi-users) and more one of ‘just drink your coffee up and get out’.
2. They’re loud. In the US, the chain’s outlets have calming music and hushed tones, thanks to the design and atmosphere. In Dublin, it’s a tinny chattering cacophony, punctuated by the scraping of chairs on hard floors. And in the Harcourt Street outlet, the whole café shudders and reverberates every time a Luas passes by. Which is about once every six or seven minutes.
3. The whole thing is very expensive. First, there’s the coffee. Granted, it’s at least as good as Insomnia, Coffee Society or Café Sol. But €3.75 for a large coffee? You’d pay it if it was a passport to an hour’s happy laptop browsing. But, thanks to points 1 and 2 (above), that’s unlikely. Bear in mind that you also need either a €5-per-hour scratchcard to access the wifi or a subscription to Eircom’s wifi service (an incredible €80 per month if one isn't already an Eircom subscriber). 

Irish punters continuing to abandon landlines: Comreg

Landline use in Ireland is collapsing as punters switch to mobiles, according to a new survey released by the telecoms regulator, Comreg. The 'Trends Survey', carried out by Amarach Consulting, reports that only two thirds (67 per cent) of households now have landlines. That's compared to 80 per cent a year ago. Predictably, the fall-off is especially big among the under 45s, where almost half don't bother with a landline. Meanwhile, 84 per cent of people say they own a mobile.

Cash prize offered for translating tech jargon

Want an insight into the kind of gobbledygook that tech journalists deal with every day? Here you go. A cash prize goes to anyone who can accurately decipher this spectacular effort from BMC Software.

BMC Software Introduces End-to-End Transaction Management Solutions for Comprehensive Insight into End-User Experience

BMC Software, Inc. [NYSE: BMC], a leading provider of enterprise management solutions, today announced that it is delivering comprehensive insight into the end-user experience with the introduction of BMC^® Transaction Management solutions. These solutions unite end user experience with BMC Software’s deep platform expertise and strength in enterprise systems and service management. They allow customers to automate and streamline IT processes and reduce costs by resolving problems that affect transactions before critical business services are impacted. According to a December 2005 Ziff Davis Survey, few companies (37%) currently measure end-to-end service availability from the user’s perspective, even though most companies (68%) feel they have the need. Businesses need to provide consistent IT service levels but often lack accurate, integrated, and comprehensive tools to measure and manage the performance of business transactions from the end-user perspective across complex, heterogeneous computing environments. BMC Transaction Management is a family of solutions that empowers IT to deliver improved business services by profiling the performance of business transactions across the enterprise. These products provide a multi-dimensional view of business transactions, both synthetic and real, across the enterprise that integrates and automates problem isolation and resolution. IT staff can simultaneously understand the true end-user experience and see the components involved in end-to-end transaction service delivery - so they can identify, analyze, and resolve problems that affect transactions before they impact critical business services."The German healthcare industry is going through rapid changes… said Andreas Strausfeld, CIO of DAK. DAK IT services organization is focused on providing high quality and innovative IT solutions that are critical success factor in helping our customers gain a leading market position. BMC is helping us meeting these challenges by providing us with both innovative and reliable technologies", added Strausfeld.... -

(It goes on like this for another nine paragraphs. I'm serious about the cash prize.)

New weapon in war against creepy crawlies unveiled

Got a girlfriend? Bit of a jess yourself when it comes to dealing with creepy crawlies? The Red Ferret Journal reports that a new insect-zapping vacuum device is being sold by The Sharper Image for €20 (plus delivery from the US). Helpfully, it “adapts for different sizes of bugs and offers three levels of suction power”. What’s more, it does this “without harm” to the insect. It even has a “built-in magnifier that provides a close-up look for anyone who wants one -- great for budding naturalists!” It runs on four AA batteries, which are included.

The incredible shrinking iPods

Apple has launched a new 1GB (250 songs) version of its iPod Nano for €160, bringing yet another "impossibly small" model into the world. Where will it all end? Fluxiontech believes it has the answer, while another view is offered by Steve Jobs's comedy alter-ego.

Slightly faster MacBook Pro now available

Apple is now shipping its new Intel-powered MacBook Pro, with more chip speed than previously announced. Instead of 1.67Ghz and 1.83Ghz processors, the models will come in a choice of 1.83Ghz and 2Ghz chips. Apple claims that the MacBook Pro is four times faster than its last top laptop, the Powerbook G4. But independent sources say it's not really. And, as reported last week, even Apple staff are striking a cautionary note about the new machine. It retails for €2,180 and €2,730 on applestore.ie.

Price of an ordinary computer falls below €400 in Ireland

Dell’s standard Dimension 1100 PC has fallen in price to €380 (including Vat and delivery), setting a new industry benchmark for the price of an entry-level computer. The machine comes with an 80GB hard drive, a 2.5Ghz Intel Celeron processor and 512MB of Ram, specifications which would have been considered medium to high end two or three years ago. Where it skimps is not having a DVD burning drive (though it plays them fine) and an old-fashioned boxy CRT monitor instead of a flat panel one. Available on dell.ie/deals.