On CE - For Dealers, Distributors and OEMs of Consumer Electronics throughout EMEA

Roku and 3M have a solution for customers demanding a streaming entertainment in a portable, palm-sized package-- the 3M Streaming Projector, a "Roku Ready" pico projector.

The streaming part of the package comes from the included Roku Streaming Stick, a thumb drive-sized device acting like the regular Roku STB. It plugs into the projector (or HDTVs) via MHL-compatible HDMI port and provides access to a variety of channels (around 100 in the UK) via built-in dual-band wifi connectivity.

The projector itself is based on a Texas Instruments Pico-class Micro Mirror Device display chip, providing a 120-inch WVGA-quality image with 60 lumens brightness. Battery life is up to 2 hours 45 minutes and sound comes through either built-in speaker or 3.5mm headphone jack.

The 3M Streaming Projector ships from November 2012 with a standard remote.

Go Introducing the 3M Streaming Projector

While Microsoft already covers full-body motion control with the Kinect, its Cambridge-based R&D lab reveals a portable means for tracking the 3D pose of an entire hand-- without the need for Minority Report-style "data gloves."

Dubbed the "Digits Project," the wrist-mounted device takes some inspiration from the Kinect. Using diffuse infrared light, IR laser, camera and inertial measurements the system software builds a 3D model of the moving hand the researchers claim is accurate to within one hundredth of a centimetre.

We had to use technologies that are small and use less power," project leader David Kim says. "It shouldn't interfere with daily activity, and we wanted to enable continuous interaction."

The prototype unit might appear a bit bulky, being the size of 2 ping pong balls-- but then again it consists of off-the-shelf hardware tethered to a laptop. The team has ambitions of shrinking it into a wireless unit the size of a wristwatch.

How can one use the Digits device of the future? The team says the system is a "general-purpose interaction platform," suggesting uses such as eyes-free mobile device control and game control applications. With other companies (such as Leap) getting into gesture-based control, expect much more hand waving to feature in the near future...

Watch Digits Hand Tracking

Go Intuitive UIs Featured During UIST 2012

PPR is getting rid of the loss-making Fnac unit-- the board decides on a "a project of demerger and flotation" for the book, music and electronics chain.

Also on the chopping block is the Redcats online retailing unit.

"Being independent and granted with autonomous resources, Fnac will be better positioned to fully achieve its growth potential, led by its current, committed and talented management," PPR CEO François-Henri Pinault says.

PPR originally wanted to sell Fnac after marking it down as a "non-strategic asset" three and a half years ago. Analyst estimates Fnac is worth around €500-800 million, with 154 (up from 140 in 2010), spread across France, Belgium, Brazil, Morocco, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland.

However Fnac H1 2012 EBIT losses total €7.5m (despite the setting of cost-cutting measures in January 2012), reflecting the worsening retail situation in France and beyond, not to mention the "showrooming" trend plaguing the business.

The Fnac separation from PPR will kick off from 2013.

Once it manages to completely drop Fnac off, PPR will concentrate into selling luxury, sports and lifestyle products, with "premium brands" such as Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Puma.

Go PPR Launching a Project of Demerger and Flotation of Fnac

Go Gucci Owner PPR to List Fnac Retail Division in 2013 (Reuters)

It's no secret that retail at the moment is excruciatingly hard, but why has Metro Group switched from up-beat to gloom after Q1/Q2? It's not all about Media-Saturn, that's for sure...

This text below is direct from Metro's own 2012 H1 business report and it suggests the Media-Saturn business was never easy this year. Media-Saturn were more than 100 million euro off EBIT from last year (and deep in the red) even as the global HQ was reporting a rosier outlook (presumably based on their other assets).

One significant point is that only 3.8% of total sales were generated online which does not compare well with other CE retailers today (In January 2012, Dixon's Group published its online sales as 19% of business; sure, the online sales can be affected by markets-served as some cultures are more pre-disposed to web buying but the trend line is clear.)

Follow the Metro Group 2012 H1 report on Media-Saturn (immediately below) and decide for yourself...