Smartwatch lets you control it using simple gestures

We've seen the clever combination of Google Glass and the Tesla. And we've witnessed the amazing combination of the Occulus Rift with a flying drone. But in terms of practicality, not all mashups offer the best mileage per astounding feature. However, a new combination of gesture control and the emerging space of smartwatches just might deliver a truly practical innovation combination.

The Hot Watch smartwatch is a device that allows you to control some of its functions via simple gesture controls. With just a wave of the hand, the smartwatch allows the user to answer a call, reject a call, or dial a favorite number. There's also a function that automatically dials an emergency number if the wearer suddenly falls down. In addition to calling functions, the Hot Watch also supports apps for SMS messaging, as well as weather, stock, pedometer, and social networking.

Another ingenious feature is the private call feature, which uses a directional speaker to reflect a call's sound from the palm of your hand. With the ability to connect via Bluetooth to an iPhone or Android phone, the water resistant device also comes with an e-ink display that accepts swipe and tap inputs.

The final retail version of the device will cost $169 for those not pledging early support on the company's Kickstarter campaign, and estimated delivery time will be this December. As of this writing, the Kickstarter already has over $58,000 in funding towards its $150,000 goal. And the campaign still has 37 days to go. Only time will tell if this idea will pan out or end up like the Pebble.

Life-sized, human holograms could soon grace your living room

Update: It looks like the Kickstarter project has hit a snag. According to the project's page:
"HOLOVISION: A Life Size Hologram is the subject of an intellectual property dispute and is currently unavailable."

Yikes! Full copyright complaint right here. The original video has been removed from the original story below as well.

Whether it was Princess Leia or the shark from Back to the Future 2, there was likely a movie moment that made you wish holograms were not only real, but that you could have one. And while hologram projectors exist in today's world, they're far from a universally accepted bit of tech. But now, one of the leading names in hologram projection is hoping to create something that we'll all want to own: a human-sized hologram.

This is not some projected-on-glass quasi-hologram, either. HoloVision, as the product is being called, promises to be a free-floating, life-sized image which will hover an impressive eight feet from its projector. That's better than R2D2 can muster. It'll also be full color, leaving the astromechs of science fiction squarely in the dust.

There will be limitations, however. It's easy to think that a life-sized human being, standing in your living room, would be capable of giving you a hug, for instance. But if that breakthrough is coming, it hasn't arrived yet. Holodeck creations these are not. And images projected through the magic of HoloVision won't be able to follow you into the kitchen for a snack either — not unless you've got a whole network of HoloVision cameras, anyway.

But with those limitations aside, HoloVision really seems like it could become a part of our lives — if it comes to fruition. The company behind HoloVision, Provision 3D Media, is currently running a Kickstarter in the hope of raising $950,000 to bring the tech to life. And while a human-sized hologram is their current goal, Provision sees the future of their products as being as large or small as we need them to be, entirely interactive, and fully integrated into our daily lives. Basically, they want to give us all Tony Stark's workshop. (But that's down the line.)

As for now, a life-sized full-color Princess Leia will have to do. Catch the video below to check out the HoloVision concept and how it might look if it becomes a reality.