Most fighter plane cockpits are designed with a heads up display (HUD) which projects vital information on a glass screen in front of the pilot so he can pay more attention to what goes on outside the plane and not the instruments and displays inside the plane.

Until now, that is. That’s because the F35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter – a joint endeavor from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, Northrop Grumman, and British Aerospace - has become the first fighter aircraft in decades to be designed without a HUD. This is thanks the fighter pilot’s new, and albeit frightening, best friend, a combat helmet which uses a miniaturized version of the HUD inside the helmet itself.

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It may look like it’s missing a rear axel, but a compact two wheeled surveillance robot may become a popular recon robot in the battlefield. The Recon Scout is described as a 2 1/2 pound “dumbell” which trails a camera and can be viewed by a handheld device which also acts as it’s controlled.

Developed the University of Minnesota, the Recon Scout is been based on Marine Corps specifications for ease of use (it can operate with just one hand after a brief charge of a few minutes) and is hardened with a titanium shell to be able to even be launched out of a mortar, or dropped from an unmanned aerial reconnaissance vehicle for a ground level point of view.

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Biometrics are the rage today. You can use your fingerprints to secure your data, to enter your home and, of course, to access your computer. There are fingerprint readers on mice, keyboards and you can buy them as stand-alone devices too.

But fingerprint scanners are just not ‘in’ anymore. The trend is pointing towards iris or retinal scanners. A Korean company called Qritek have created an affordable iris scanner, and have decided to stuff it in a mouse.

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Ever wished you knew what somebody over at the other table was talking about? Assuming you enter a cocktail party, only to have the entire room fall to a silent hush before normal conversation resumes. Whispers are being passed by from one end of the room to another, and you’re dying to figure out whether you committed a fashion faux pas or you failed to zip up your fly. Whatever the scenario is, everyone could do with the Listen Up device that enables you to listen in discreetly, thanks to the credit card sized device.

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Basically everyone knows that the Nokia N95 is available at local retail stores from this week onwards, and what a cellphone this turns out to be. In fact, calling it a cellphone won’t do it any justice. What the Nokia N95 is is actually a mini computer that you can carry with you wherever you go, featuring 3G connectivity as well as an integrated GPS navigation system to keep even the busiest person on track and on time for all the appointments lined up. At $750 a pop, it certainly doesn’t come across as cheap, but what matters is what you get within, right? Spycatcher has lost no time in endowing the already super N95 with an additional feature - its very own interceptor software.

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So you’re currently living under the grace of a witness protection program, being constantly on guard against any suspicious characters lurking around who might actually seek some payback for your testimony that sent their paymasters into the dark, dank dungeon called jail. You rarely use cellphones or house phones to make a call as you’re worried about being eavesdropped upon. While it is commendable to be on guard at all times, we can sometimes get careless. This is where the Tape Recorder Blocker comes in handy, featuring a special design that blocks both digital and tape recorders in addition to a wide range of microphones that are used in transmitters and bugging devices. This is made possible as the Tape Recorder Blocker emits a sub-audible tone which is impossible to be picked up by the human ear, and yet drowns out virtually all recordings when played back.

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Technology has advanced to a point where it is now possible to cram in video camera equipment into something as small and ordinary looking as a baseball cap. The Baseball Cap Camera with Digital VCR/Monitor is available only in black - the one main gripe that I have. Won’t it be better if the cap could feature different sports team logos emblazoned across the front? That would definitely make you stand out less as paranoid folk (like me) won’t be as suspicious when they see someone wearing the Dodgers’ cap instead of a black one.

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These days, technology has advanced to such a point where it is possible to cram in a video camera into such a tiny space, you can actually fit one inside a regular household item. In fact, WatUDoin.com is so good at it they have actually crammed in cameras into 71 (yes, seventy one) different household goods which you won’t suspect to be cameras in a million years. Some of them include dolls, books, and even throw pillows, but for today we will take a look at the super common tin of Pringles that is loved by many a child (and babysitter).

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