The etch-a-sketch from beyond

Ever heard of Liquid Crystal Paper? No? Well, neither had I but the perks of this job include learning about new things. If e-ink was a display’s best attempt at resembling print on paper, LCP (Liquid Crystal Paper) is the closest thing to the digital world recreating the sketching-on-paper experience. Blackboard, the only product to use LCP technology is much like those magnetic sketchpads, but redesigned for real-world applications. Built with a stylus, a good contrast ratio, and a translucent design, the Blackboard can be used for taking notes, tracing, or sketching diagrams. The translucent pad comes with template grids you can place behind it to turn it into a ruled notebook, a dotted graph paper, or a plain sketcbook. You can even place the Blackboard directly on screens and sketch away. Its tinted translucent surface dims the screen behind it, but keeps everything visible, allowing it to act like a big electronic tracing paper.

The Blackboard comes with a stylus that allows you to draw and erase your work. You can even use a clear-all button on the blackboard to erase the canvas. All this happens without a battery, letting your Blackboard be as handy and readily available as a piece of paper. Plus, Blackboard even ships with a mobile app that allows you to scan, document, edit, and share your work!

Designer: Boogie Board

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Improv Electronics Boogie Board Sync hands-on (video)

Improv Electronics Boogie Board Sync handson video

Either Improv Electronics loves trees, or note taking. Perhaps both? What we do know for sure is that its latest offering to the list maker is here at CES, and we just got some hands (and pen) on time with it. The Sync is a 9.7-inch slate containing the company's own eWriting technology. More than that, it also has a microSD card slot, USB and Bluetooth. That last addition is where the money is with this particular model, allowing you to wirelessly... sync with other enabled devices (i.e. second screens, desktops and iOS / Android devices). This means you can scribble away on the Sync, and have your scrawls appear at presentations and beyond. Of course, any note taking device wouldn't be complete without some Evernote integration, and luckily enough, it's present here. So, once you're done transferring inspiration from brain to slate you can grab it as a an image, and store it in the cloud for later.

The models themselves were still prototypes, but they looked and felt solid and comfortable to use. As with the other models in the line, there are little ergonomic touches that please the eye and hand alike. There's a mount on the side for the all important stylus, and the screen itself -- wile utilitarian in nature -- is easy to look at, and text, words and drawings appear clear. The SD card functionality means you can save your notes for later upload, and the mobile app functionality is also set to continually improve, with real-time second screen coming to mobile and tablets, as well as on desktop. The Sync will be up for grabs sometime around the holiday season this year. For now, sync with the gallery and video past the break.

Steve Dent contributed to this report.

Continue reading Improv Electronics Boogie Board Sync hands-on (video)

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Boogie Board Jot eWriting pad hands-on (video)

BoogieBoard Jot eWriting pad hands-on (video)

It's been quite some time since we've heard from Improv Electronics, maker of writing tablets such as the Boogie Board Rip. The company was on hand at CEA today to tease its latest device, the Boogie Board Jot, which like the Rip sports a reflex LCD display that doesn't require power to record your scribbles. In fact, the device only uses energy when you hit the eraser button, which means the battery should get you through some 50,000 erases.

Unlike the Rip, this model has no on-board storage, which explains the cheaper $40 price. Another new feature is the redesigned stylus, which acts as a stand for the device when docked in the onboard slot. Improv Electronics will launch the Jot in September, but you can catch some of those back-to-school vibes in our hands-on video below the break.

Continue reading Boogie Board Jot eWriting pad hands-on (video)

Boogie Board Jot eWriting pad hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 18:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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