Penguin will make new ebooks available to libraries once again, after ending the practice in 2011. Prices will be comparable to retail, and the library will have to buy a new copy of the ebook after a year. Read more at paidContent »
Everyone can brag about big screens at CES, but 3M went one step further: It showed off a 84″ multitouch display. Much smaller, but just as neat is Spehro, the Bluetooth-connected ball that can be used in more ways than you may think. Read more »
With the growth of sensors and microelectronics, the potential uses of wearable-computing technologies now reach to health and fitness, gaming, fashion, disabilities and augmented reality. Most importantly, the widespread adoption of wearables will drive the form function and market for mobiles in vital ways. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Penguin, which removed ebooks from libraries and ended its relationship with distributor OverDrive in February, is tiptoeing back into the digital lending waters again. In a 1-year pilot program with OverDrive competitor 3M, Penguin will make ebooks available to the New York and Brooklyn Public Libraries. Read more at paidContent »
Hachette, which has not made e-books available to libraries since 2010, is reconsidering the idea. In a pilot program starting this spring, the publisher is working with two e-book distributors to bring a “selection of HBG’s recent bestselling e-books to 7 million library patrons.” Read more at paidContent »
Materials giant 3M has a new battery innovation that could deliver gadgets that could run for 40 percent longer without being charged, or could be significantly smaller with standard battery life. Read more »
Internet giants Google and Microsoft have officially given their web-based energy management tools the Donald Trump (as in You’re Fired!), and lannounced that they would be closing them down. But there are still over a dozen options trying to tackle this difficult market. Read more »
TenKsolar, whose wave-like solar electric system design is a radical departure from conventional solar panels, is looking to close a round of funding in about two months, the startup’s founder and president, Dallas Meyer, told us. Read more »
Energy Secretary Steve Chu on Friday said his agency has offered $27.3 million to nine companies through a new initiative — called SunShot — that he said will help cut down solar electricity pricing dramatically, down to $1 per watt, by the end of the decade. Read more »
The mobile computing space has become the new center of innovation and new products after years of shifting away from desktop computing. Mobile technology has been domain of 2-D content and viewing, but we see prospects for a sharp increase in 3-D in coming months and ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
