3 Sci-Fi Worthy Technologies You Can Buy: Gift Guide

In our minds, the future is a place of technological wonder: a land free from cords, where all-in-one portable gadgets can stream HD and play 3D anywhere there's a wall to project to. The thing is, when you really look at what's out there today, we're pretty close to there -- with gadgets that would have been the subject of action and sci-fi movies just 10 years back. Here's our look at three new types of sci-fi-worthy tech that you can buy today.

Wireless High-Definition

Transmitting low-bandwidth music around the house is easy. But the massive amount of data needed to send high-definition digital video through the air makes it a challenge. New technology now makes it possible to cut the HDMI cord and beam hi-def video directly to your TV from a cable box or Blu-ray player. The end game: a completely cable-free house. Wireless high-definition technology is being built directly into some new TVs, and it can be found today in the
Dell Latitude Z Laptop (starts at $2000), which uses an add-on receiver to give monitors the ability to pick up the PC's high-definition transmission.

3D At Home

3D shutter glasses rapidly black out alternating lenses, allowing each eye to see a different image.

The 3D home theater is catching up to the multiplex. Shutter glasses such as the Nvidia 3D Vision Kit ($200) work by blacking out one eye at a time, 60 times per second--so fast you don't notice it. An infrared emitter syncs these flashes with a quickly switching screen, allowing each eye to effectively see a different image. The 3D effect comes from showing the same scene to each eye from a different perspective. Lots of current games can be played in 3D, and software from companies like DDD can convert any off-the-shelf DVD into 3D live, as it plays. Just make sure you have a 3D- compatible display.


In the past two years, projectors have shrunken to palm-size portables. They're called "pico" projectors, and Texas Instruments, Microvision and 3M each have takes on the tech, which can be found in gadgets such as the iPod-attachable WowWee Cinemin Swivel ($350). For now, these battery-powered projectors may be most useful for party tricks, but the tech's tipping point will likely come from its convergence with existing devices. Nikon already has a camera out with a built-in projector, and cellphones aren't far behind.

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