Mercedes-Benz SLK gets Magic Sky Control roof, turns transparent at the touch of a button

Put down those iPads, Mercedes owners, and look to the sky. There's a word of wonder up there and, if you had yourself an SLK with the Magic Sky Control vario-roof, you could be looking at it. Well, of course, you could already be looking at the sky if you had an SLK because, you know, it's a convertible. But, let's say you want to do it without actually having to experience nature. Now we're talking. The vario-roof is a glass panel in the center of the SLK's retractable hardtop and now, if you tick the 2000 euro ($2,800) Magic Sky Control option, you can control that sky, tinting the glass panel at will by re-aligning the light-blocking crystals embedded within. It's like a big pixel on an LCD with the whole sun as your backlight.

Parrot Minikit Smart windshield mount cradles your phone, caresses its Bluetooth, charges its battery

Technology has made life so much easier for us. Here is another device that will solve all of your smartphone car problems in one go. Smartphones make great navigation devices (where still allowed by law), but trying to read the things while they slide about on the dash or peek out of a cupholder is hardly ideal. Universal windshield holders help, but none are as smart as the Parrot's latest. How smart is it? Why, it's right there in the title. The Minikit Smart will hold smartphones "whatever their size" -- so long as that size is between 56 and 70mm in width. It has an integrated speaker and telescoping microphone that connects to your phone over Bluetooth, boosting your celly's paltry internal speaker so that you can better hear directions and, of course, make hands-free calls. There's also a USB pass-through, so that you can not only charge this unit while driving but charge your phone.

Blekko enters the search business - Is Google untouchable?

Google is no doubt a giant in the internet business. So much so that it is slowly spreading into each and everything that we do online. Yet Google's core business still remains its search engine. In years that have gone by, many people have come up dethrone the giant and have failed. Here is an interesting article I would like you to read about another company that is challenging Google's search business by offering a somewhat competitive product and a nice new way to search. So will Google budge? Read on.

So long, stethoscope: the future of medicine is wireless

The future of medicine is wireless. That’s what cardiologist and geneticist Eric Topol says in a new video, where he explains how we’ll soon use our smartphones to monitor our vital signs and chronic conditions.

Speaking at TEDMED 2009 in San Diego, Calif., Topol highlights several smart, connected wireless devices that can be used in medicine today. The goal? Keep more of us out of hospital beds and on our feet. Hit read more for details.