A device that measures or detects a real-world condition, such as motion, heat or light and converts the condition into an analog or digital representation. An optical sensor detects the intensity or brightness of light, or the intensity of red, green and blue for color systems. See sensor network and mote.
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2008 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- Trick out your fleet with fuel consumption monitors from Networkcar
- OK, I admit it. When I bought my car a year-and-a-half ago, comparing the fuel consumption metrics among the different models WAS part of the equation, but not the most important part. Now, with gas lines forming in my own little town and people putting summer trips...
- Blog posts 2008-07-03
- BlueAnt Z9i (black)
- One of BlueAnt's most popular Bluetooth headsets last year was the BlueAnt Z9, which we rated highly as having excellent sound quality, and many of you agreed. But BlueAnt wasn't happy just resting on its laurels; indeed, it has come up with an upgrade to the Z9, and the headset...
- Product reviews 2008-07-02
- BlueAnt Supertooth 3
- As hands-free driving laws go into effect around the nation, many people are looking to Bluetooth solutions for use in the car. Headsets are a good choice, of course, but not everyone wants to fiddle with a tiny headset, especially when on the road. The other choice would be a...
- Product reviews 2008-06-27
- HTC Touch Diamond
- We don't envy the HTC Touch Diamond. There's a lot of pressure on this little smartphone; HTC executive Cheng Hui-ming has called it "the most important product for HTC this year," and of course, the Touch Diamond has been compared to the Apple iPhone. Now, we're still a few months...
- Product reviews 2008-06-27
- Playing a video game? No, it's health therapy
- Video games are known to improve hand-eye coordination but now they're being used to help someone quit smoking or lose weight. Raleigh, North Carolina--Video games are known to improve hand-eye coordination but can they help someone quit smoking or lose weight? Hot on the heels...
- News items 2008-06-26
- New reports try to demystify the "low carbon IT" equation
- As we all know, information technology is both a culprit and a hero when it comes to carbon emissions. Various research companies estimate that information and communications technologies contribute about 2 percent of the global carbon footprint, and the larger IT companies have been falling all over each other to...
- Blog posts 2008-06-25
- Homewatch DSLCam (exe)
- Looking for an inexpensive alternative to DVR, Homewatch digital surveillance lets you record any video motion from your webcam to remote viewer computer. HomeWatch is a newly developed intelligent software to perform security in your home, office or any location of the property. By using the video capture function of...
- Software downloads 2008-06-24
- Motorola unveils MOTOZINE ZN5 camera phone
- Fresh from the wire this morning is news that Motorola has introduced the MOTOZINE ZN5, a camera phone intended to lean more toward camera than phone. The first model, the ZN5, stakes its claim to fame by way of a 5-megapixel sensor (courtesy of a partnership with...
- Blog posts 2008-06-23
- EdgeWay PocketPC Utils (zip)
- Shut down or reboot your Windows Mobile Pocket PC XP style, power down your screen saving battery power while allowing applications to continue running. Battery button calculates how much battery time you have left based on current power consumption, for example one can see how much time is left with...
- Software downloads 2008-06-20
- 3M EM500GPS Ergonomic Mouse (small/medium)
- The 3M EM500 Ergonomic Mouse looks so much like a joystick that we initially thought we'd be moving the mouse around by tilting the mouse's vertical grip. But looks can be deceiving: the EM500 Ergonomic Mouse functions by dragging across the desk surface, just like a traditional mouse. The unique...
- Product reviews 2008-06-18
- 'Sensing' more about what's coming in Windows 7
- 'Sensing' more about what's coming in Windows 7Windows sensors will bring a new management interfaceto set them up, and then they'll crash unexpectedly, and make things stop responding.There'll be a "grandfather" sensor which automatically reboot the machine, and does some protocol sniffing on your box, to make sure that Microsoft...
- Discussion threads 2008-06-18
- Western Digital releases 7200RPM 320GB notebook drive
- Western Digital has raised the bar on the notebook hard drives with their new "Black" line of Scorpio drives. The new 2.5-inch SATA WD3200BEKT hard drives spin at 7200RPM which is faster than their 5400RPM (WD3200BEVT) Scorpio drives that I reviewed on 16 November 2007. The new...
- Blog posts 2008-06-17
- Literate programming
- Literate programming*blink*Full time programers don't do this? I learned FORTRAN around 1980 and the text required "a structured and disciplined style." That may not be the same thing as "literate programming" but it seems close. I know I have a hard time getting statisticians to document their project specific analysis...
- Discussion threads 2008-06-17
- A 30-picowatt processor for sensors
- A 30-picowatt processor for sensorsunfair comparisoncomparing sensor chips to laptop computers is pretty unfair since the software running on a notebook computer isn't optimized to run together and, really, I think it's impressive that notebook computers deal with different disk, CPU, network, video, etc.... loads pretty well.the sensor chips, which...
- Discussion threads 2008-06-15
- A 30-picowatt processor for sensors
- University of Michigan (U-M) researchers have developed an ultra low power microchip which 'uses 30,000 times less power in sleep mode and 10 times less in active mode than comparable chips now on the market.' It only consumes 30 picowatts in sleep mode, which means that a simple watch battery...
- Blog posts 2008-06-15
- One week with the HTC Touch Diamond; panoramic photos, VGA, and more experiences
- I let you all know that HTC sent me an HTC Touch Diamond last Saturday and posted some ">unboxing and first thoughts on it later that day. I also showed you the Teeter game and sensor/vibration technolgy, followed by more thoughts, photos, and video on the FM radio, YouTube, and...
- Blog posts 2008-06-14
- Evoluent VerticalMouse 2 (left-handed)
- As left-handed mousers who spend a lot of time at the computer, we really wanted to love the Evoluent Left-Handed Vertical Mouse. And there's a lot we do like: the mouse's orientation does seem to hold our arm in a more neutral position; the mouse includes a PS/2 adapter so...
- Product reviews 2008-06-13
- Liquidmac (zip)
- Liquid mac requires a Macintosh laptop computer with a sudden motion enabled sensor. This includes MacBook family, MacBook Pro family, and some of the latest PowerBooks. It mimics the behavior of liquid by creating a particle system that reacts to the computer's orientation.
- Software downloads 2008-06-13
- D-Link ships new IP Web cams for budget users
- D-Link is shipping two new IP cams that enable you to monitor your home or small business from any Web-connected browser. The two cams are priced right at $99.99 for the DCS-910 wired version and. $119.99 for the Wi-Fi-enabled DCS-920. I've set up this type of inexpensive IP...
- Blog posts 2008-06-10
- HTC's Teeter shows off how physical feedback can immerse you in a game
- I spent a few hours with the HTC Touch Diamond and while I work on my more detailed thoughts, I just had to post about the accelerometer and haptic physical feedback technology that just blew me away on the device. (I don't think it really can be considered haptics because...
- Blog posts 2008-06-07
Neighboring Terms
Premier Vendor Content Whitepapers, webcasts & resources from our Power Center Sponsors
- Windows Vista on PCs with Intel Centrino Pro or Intel vPro Processor Technology
-
Intel is working with Microsoft to deliver an integrated, validated solution for notebook and desktop systems that gives users the performance they need for Windows Vista.
- Download the solution brief now >>
- ZDNet News Videos
-
Tech news covering the latest in products, conferences and blog commentary, from ZDNet video.
- Watch the latest video >>
- Learn how collaboration fuels success with this FREE Economist report
-
According to a new study from the Economist, future success belongs to those who collaborate effectively. Learn how successful collaboration can improve profits, problem-solving, and competitive differentiation.
- Visit Cisco's Collaboration Resource Center today!
- BNET Industries
- Check out BNET's newest resource for managers and executives. Need to do research on your competitors? Don't have time to read every trade pub? BNET Industries is the new source for daily news, insights, and research on 11 major industries and 9,000 public companies.
-
- The technology industry from a different angle
-
- See what's hot in the auto industry
-
- Stay on top of the energy industry
