Not Your Typical WiFi Anymore
I have been recently noticing the use of WiFi in some cool implementations. It is nice to watch companies innovate and evolve a technology beyond a pure data pipe. Sure, the following references are sending data over WiFi but the use in each case is somewhat unique. The underlying technology is no longer the "selling point" for the solution, it is now more a more subtle technology enabler. Here are just a few that caught my eye.
Parrot AR.Drone - This has to be one of my favorites. Parrot, an established manufacturer in the Bluetooth space, has developed an augmented reality (AR) quadracopter. Their big push is for game developers. They have a full game development API available and a great use of 3D tags for animation. Take a peek at their product ad and their AR gaming platform. My neighbors are going to hate me in the near future.
WiFi Scale - Nice concept and integration. This provides great utility for a task that is typically not automated. I foresee many integrations across a number of applications for this type of consumer product.
Tivit - Interesting device based on the new mobile television standard. The device streams content to many WiFi-enabled device like Blackberries, iPhones, Netbooks and even Notebook platforms.
WiFi Energy Harvesting - RCA (wow, they still developing new technology?) demonstrated a very interesting concept. They were at CES showing an energy cell solution that converts WiFi signals and charges a power cell. I see huge benefits here. If this really works, is efficient, and can be manufactured cost effectively, this could be a game changer. I will be watching this one.
