Electronic Gadgets

Gadgets are all the rage in our digital age, so much so that you probably consider some of them essential to your daily life. Which devices have made their mark?

By Nathan Chandler

Before the iPhone and other smartphones, there were PDAs such as the Palm Pilot. Learn about the PDA technology that paved the way to big-time computing power on the go.

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D. & Carmen Carmack

How unique is your face? Learn how facial recognition systems can pick a face out of a crowd, extract it from the rest of the scene and compare it to a database of stored images.

By Kevin Bonsor , Ryan Johnson & Zach Taras

Like the usual setting on the phasers used by Kirk and Spock, stun guns fall into the category of non-lethal weaponry. See how they incapacitate without causing permanent damage.

By Tom Harris

A digital picture frame is the perfect gadget for sharing digital photos with the computerless. Learn how these Internet appliances keep the technophobe in the loop.

By Karim Nice

Metal detectors can do more than just detect metal -- they can tell you the kind of metal it is and even how deep it's buried. Learn how these units pinpoint and identify their target.

By Jeff Tyson

Most of us instinctively think of darkness as a cloak, a way to hide. So, how can you see someone standing more than 200 yards away on a pitch-black night?

By Jeff Tyson

In the next wave of mobile computing devices, our jewelry might double as our cell phones, PDAs and GPS receivers. Get a look at these new microdevices.

By Kevin Bonsor

A wearable device that will translate English into a dozen languages will be introduced later this year. See how it will work!

By Kevin Bonsor

One piece of equipment you need at home is a surge protector. They safeguard your high-tech electronic devices from power surges. But how do you know which ones are best?

By Tom Harris & Talon Homer

Holographic environments make the virtual world truly tangible. Find out about the development of real-life, interactive "holodecks"!

By Kevin Bonsor

A roadside sobriety test of touching one's nose or walking a straight line cannot rule out a high blood alcohol concentration. That's why the Breathalyzer is such a game-changer. But how does a Breathalyzer work? Read on to find out!

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D.

Electronic ink promises to be an amazing, breakthrough technology that we will all be using in five years -- it will completely change books and newspapers. Learn all about it.

By Kevin Bonsor

Many radio-controlled clocks automatically sync their time with the atomic clock in Boulder, Colorado. How do they do it?

We all know it, and it always makes us cringe -- it's that terrible howling of a PA system. Everyone calls it feedback -- what's "feedback"?

Curious about how a self-winding watch works? Take a look at the mechanics inside a self-winding watch.

Indiglo watches convert electricity directly into light through the very efficient process of electroluminescence. Find out how it works!

Microphones have been around in some form for more than 150 years. Modern mics incorporate fiber optics, microchips, and even lasers to suit a variety of audio needs.

By Mark Boyer & Talon Homer

Magnetic recording is the backbone of the electronics revolution. Learn how this analog technology lets you store and erase data!

By Marshall Brain

Have you ever looked inside a grandfather clock or a small mechanical alarm clock? Pendulum clocks are fairly complicated, but they rely on simple forces. Find out how pendulum clocks keep accurate time.

By Marshall Brain

When you need to know the time, there's about a 50-50 chance you'll turn to some LEDs to find out. Have you ever wondered what goes on inside a digital clock or watch?

By Marshall Brain

Wind-up alarm clocks have been around a long time, but they are still fun to explore. See what's inside this classic ticker!

By Marshall Brain

Quartz watches actually use quartz crystals to keep time. How can they be so accurate? Find out why quartz makes such a great time keeper.

By Douglas Dwyer

Nearly every item that you purchase from a grocery store, department store, or mass merchandiser has a UPC code on it somewhere. Ever wondered why? Let's find out how the average UPC code works!

By Cherise Threewitt