New Technology of the Week | A Laser in your Mobile Phone

Setting aside the Austin Powers "laser" jokes that come to mind, Measurement Devices, Ltd of England may have some pretty monumental technology on their hands. Even though it only weighs 43 grams (just over 1.5 oz). 

"Powered by a standard USB connector, the tiny Micro Laser Module (MLM), believed to be the smallest in the world, requires less than 70 mA to make hundreds of measurements a second of objects within a 120-metre radius and is now being marketed to original equipment manufacturers some of which MDL hopes will develop the software and interface so the micro technology can be applied to different products."

Such a laser could be incorporated into devices like smartphones to revolutionize smartphone camera imagery and measurement capabilities. 

Click here to read more about smartphone laser technology

The Must-Have Technology Tools for Construction Professionals

AGC TechBrief, April 2012
By James Benham, President of JB Knowledge Technologies, Inc., Makers of SmartBidNet

Depending on your age, the technology on your desk has probably evolved quite a bit since your first day there. Whether your beeper was going off at your hip or you were punching away at an encyclopedia-sized laptop, technology today makes those days seem archaic in retrospect. But the best part is there’s a good chance you haven’t even seen the best of today.

Every day, an innovation emerges with the potential to propel your work day into the Jetsons’ era faster than you could have predicted. Many of these developments will be bought by the likes of Google or Facebook, who will then find a way to incorporate them into something you already use or an unreachable luxury for high-class nerds. But some will find their way into what I will call your "Tech Toolbox." These are the technologies that can and will impact personal and corporate bottom lines and whose value far outweighs the minimal capital investment required to employ them. Most are cloud-based, some are free, some are $1.99 in the app store and some are business suites with annual subscriptions well worth the price tag, but all of them can transform your work day.

Click here to read the full article from AGC TechBrief

18 handy tablet apps for AEC professionals | Building Design + Construction

The SmartBidNet Construction Bid iOS App, a product of JBKnowledge, made a recent Building Design + Construction list of helpful AEC industry tablet apps for everyday design, construction, BIM/IT and LEED processes. 

Click here to read the full list

SmartBidNet App Listed in ENR's Top Paid and Free Construction Apps

ENR asked Apple to query its developer community in a quest to help idenfity the most popular construction apps in the App Store. It was a tricky call...

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