Point, Shoot and Translate into English

edstromp points out this New York Times "story on using a pocket pc to translate a street sign. It requires at least a dialup connection as it sends the photo to a server for the majority of the processing: OCR, translation, English overlay for new image, and then transmission back to the user. All said and done, it takes about 15 seconds to translate a street sign. Put this with some augumented reality, and you have a rather useful tool."

Augmented Reality Porn

[mikosullivan]

You walk down the street and the cute girls are modified so that they appear interested in you.

... oh wait, we already have beer for that.

-Miko

Combine this technology...

[TrebleJunkie]

Combine this technology with last summer's craze, hotornot.com, and I think you got something. (15 seconds to know if the chick you wanna pick up in a bar is really hot? Priceless.)

Let Them Speak English

[Anonymous Coward]

Went to one them countries abroad 'while back. Filled with foreigners, it was. Everywhere I looked was foreigners yammering in some strange foreign tongue. I can't see why they just don't learn to speak English...much easier than wasting my time with some sort of pocket translater.

that's not useful

[Anonymous Coward]

Think of all the better things they could do. They could translate it from Enligsh to hax0r! "5p33d l1m17: 55 mph" "570p!" "j00 c4n 4d0p7 4 h1ghw4y!"

How long...

[theMAGE]

How long till' people will drive using this as input? "Computer: what is that red sign over there?" ... crunch scan crunch ocr crunch exception: macromedia plugin required crunch downloading... ... 15 seconds later, from the car's wreckage: IT'S A STOP SIGN. REPEAT IT'S A STOP SIGN

Suspicious

[EvilBastard]

I was messing with the Prototype for this, and after I tried about the 40th sign, I got this back

Warning !
Wrong Way
**** HELPI'MBEINGHELDPRISONERINAWIRELESSTRANSLATINGFACI LITY ****
Go Back

yeah, but...

[KingPrad]

...can you get through the airport with it? Carry any more technology and those security guards will tear you apart.

Chicken and egg situation

[suso]

What do you do if you're trying to read signs that would lead you to a cybercafe?

I can see it now...

[Eric Damron]

I'm on a business trip in Paris. My wife flys in to be with me. Fourteen hours later I show up at the airport.

Wife: "Where the hell have you been!!!"

Me: "server was slow..."

Neat idea, but the latency...

[Sivar]

"Dear, what does that sign over there say?"

[15 seconds later]

"It says: 'Road ends: Bridge constru...'"