At the heart of the system is their special software that can automatically compensate for geometric distortion and track the movement of the pointer even when the USB camera is placed away from the projector. Getting set up appears to be as simple as plugging in the camera, and since the pointer can be used as a mouse, you won't need to use the laptop or a separate remote to control the presentation.

At $1,980, the Afterglow system certainly isn't cheap, but if giving dynamic presentations is core to your business I would figure that would be a small price to pay. [Afterglow via Gadgeteer via OhGizmo]

From the video demos, it actually looks like this thing works. – Jason Chen

Product Page

True fans will recognize the above action figures immediately. They are based on the Fritz Lang-inspired original Star Wars concept art by Ralph McQuarrie. You can read more in the text above, but suffice it to say, I'm glad that guy is finally getting some recognition: nearly every one of his original drawings was revamped by someone else before shooting began.

Next up are the exclusive gadgets; which are a little underwhelming. I like the idea of a mechanical pen with both blue and red beams, but what would be really cool is if they were both lasers. Optics geeks, let me ask you: How far off are we from having true blue lasers in laser pointers? Or are we stuck with blue LEDs for reasons of health, energy or Sony-hoarding? And is that collectible frame superlame? Or am I missing something?

In case you want to see what else will be popping up on eBay in the days to come, you can download a very large (nearly 30MB) PDF at the page made for the open-24-hours-but-not-for-you Celebration Store. If you don't want to blow your inheritance on a collectible hoodie, there are always commemorative stamps. The US Postal Service's Star Wars 30th Anniversary stamps winner will be announced tomorrow. Yoda or Darth Vader? I vote Darth, to remind recipients of my snailmail correspondence that they should never, under any circumstances, underestimate the power of the Dark Side. – Wilson Rothman

The Official Star Wars Blog [Star Wars]

Running on a couple of button cell batteries, we're not exactly sure how practical this is or even if it can actually project the time a half mile, but it still looks like fun, and it's a hell of a lot better than that "laser" clock that can only project an image about 18 inches away. – Charlie White

Product Page [Think Geek] Thanks, James!

PCPAL 3-in-1 Mouse/Remote/Laser Pointer [Vavolo via Crave]

We can see how you might want a laser pointer in the mouse you use with your laptop (less peripherals to lose between meetings), and vaguely understand why you might want a long retractable USB cord (too cheap to spring for Bluetooth), but a built-in thermometer? What? We can't stand behind that.

USB Mouse with Laser Pointer and Thermometer [Brando]

Oh yes, you read correctly. Now, you can get yourself a yellow, green or even blue laser pointer instead of that red one. I know, it's been a dream of yours for a long time, so feel free to cry or do a little dance. Whatever makes it real for you. Made by Laserglow, the Aries Series Professional Portable Laser starts at just $389, so really, what's stopping you from picking one up right now?

Aries [laserglow.com]