Wireless Home Networking - Index of

Chapter 14: Other Cool Things You Can Network
Not to leave motorcyclists out!
The wireless bug is hitting motorcyclists too.
Leading motorcycle helmet designers are adding
Bluetooth to their products so that motorcyclists
can talk on the phone while they ride. If you’re a
cyclist and love your helmet now, you can get a
Bluetooth kit and just add it — it’s not that hard of
a project. The InterPhone hands-free and intercom
Bluetooth helmet kit (from many online
shops such as www.cellularaccessory.com,
$135) can be used to provide Bluetooth in your
helmet (in fewer than five minutes, says the manufacturer).
Parrot (www.driveblue.com) sells a
hands-free kit (SK4000, $150) that allows the
motorcyclist to place phone calls, listen to FM
radio, stream music wirelessly via a Bluetooth
stereo-enabled device, or transfer music via a
mini-USB cable. The SK4000 uses Parrot’s multiuser
voice recognition software, which will recognize
a contact’s name when you speak it and
dial the number automatically. Also, the Text-To-
Speech (TTS) voice synthesis feature on the
Parrot SK4000 reads contact names from the
user’s phonebook through the earpiece and will
also audibly identify radio stations to help the
driver select a station.
The other end of the pricing spectrum for D-Link is the DCS-G900 ($120),
which is an 802.11g-based camera offering simple, basic streaming video to
the Web. The image is static, depending on where you point and focus the
camera when you install it.
D-link has the best selection of wireless cameras — you can probably find the
perfect camera for your needs there.
Go to www.dlink.com/products/liveDemo/?model=DCS-5300W for a live demo
of the D-Link DCS-5300 camera. See what it’s like to pan, tilt, and zoom!
Panasonic also has a large lineup of cameras. Its BL-C30A wireless network
camera (www.panasonic.com, $299) allows as many as 20 simultaneous viewers
to see as many as 15 frames per second (fps) of live-motion video at 320 x
240. Resolution goes up to 640 x 480 at 15 fps. Through a Web-based interface,
you can perform remote pan and tilt functions and click to eight preset
angles. Panasonic offers a stand-alone unit, the BL-WV10A TV Adapter ($499),
that will stream your Panasonic images to your TV set.
Love pets? Panasonic has been specializing in the remote pet experience
with a series of products marketed as petcams. For instance, its high-end
KX-HCM110A PetCam Network Camera with 2-Way Audio ($329) allows you to
see and talk to your pets from far away and see their reactions. (In truth, an
IP camera with two-way audio can do the same.) Panasonic also sponsors a
YouTube for pet lovers at www.seemypetcam.com. You can upload your pet’s
IP wireless camera videos for others to see!
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