The device works by placing the sample in close proximity to the sensor and beaming a strong light through it. The sensor doesn't take a scientifically useful photo, but rather looks for each cell's unique light diffraction signature to spot and count it. It compares each signature to its onboard cell database to distinguish healthy and infected cells of many different types almost instantly.

Not only does the system not require a lens or any particularly expensive components at all—the computer processing required is minimal and can be handled by a smartphone, making this incredibly ideal for bringing advanced medical diagnostics to places that currently don't have them. [Technology Review via Medgadget]

It's no badass like the 7200dpi Plustek OpticFilm 7300, but it costs $100 less and goes beyond most standard scanners, including a 5-megapixel CMOS sensor, 1800dpi resolution and 10-bit color. It doesn't look like it's got a sheet feeder; instead it has a tray specifically suited to 3x5, 4x6 and 5x7s. Drop 'em in, press a button, and presto, it magically becomes a picture on your computer screen—if you have Windows, that is. [Hammacher]

But here's the problem. Printers don't get outdated nearly as fast as computers, and as long as it's still working, you expect it to still be supported within a reasonable time frame. Four years is reasonable. HP's updated this particular model number for Vista, which is actually also a problem since many users have cited printer driver compatibility as a reason why they don't want to update to Vista.

In Matt's case, there are some open source drivers and scanning suites available so he can get scanning to work under Leopard. It may require a bit of trial and error, since open source drivers/suites aren't exactly as install-and-forget as the official ones, but it beats having to buy a new printer. [Consumierst]

You can blow pictures up to 17 x 22 inches from both film or print format, and the scanner comes with both Digital ICE and Epson Easy Photo Fix programs. Cost is $250 and the V500 is available right now. [Akihabara]

Well, the device may one day be used to operate other electronic devices with your mind (like your cellphone or MP3 player) or it can be used to play "mind games" with other people. Now if they could design it so you don't look like a retarded ninja from the '80s while wearing it. – Louis Ramirez

Walkman-style Brain Scanner [Pink Tentacle via TechDigest]

New Software Restores Shredded Documents [The Raw Feed]

And people complained that all they wanted was a cellphone that works. Indeed. – Nicholas Deleon

Possio GRETA [Possio via Newlaunches.com]

Well, the few of you out there who scan books on a regular basis and everyone at Google Books are gonna love this scanner. It has a wedge built into it that fits into the spine of your book, allowing you to scan the entire page right up to the edge. Adding the wedge really jacks up the price of a scanner that's really only going to be scanning in B&W anyways, with the price at a pretty ludicrous $318. –Adam Frucci

Product Page [via Oh Gizmo!]

Vidoblog [via Gizmologia - Thanks Manu!]

Planon's RC800 DocuPen works just like the old hand-held scanners from the 1980s: just slide it over the page. Now, of course, you can just whip it out of your handbag, do the deed, and plug it in later to a PC or Mac's USB port to view the secret plans. It is available now through the manufacturer's website at www.planon.com, priced $350.

Be warned that the "pen" is in fact 9 1/2 inches long, so DocuPaintbrush or DocuSausage might have been more apt, albeit harder to market, names for the device.

Color ScanPen [NYTimes.com]

Check out the link for some video of the beast in action.

Information Page [Via Red Ferret]

Product Page [Via I4U]

UPDATE - Looks like this was a dupe. But it sure is slim!

Plustek OpticSlim M12 Sheetfed Scanner [Bios]

Purchase info for Plustek M12 scanner [Shopping.com]

It might look crude, but it works very nicely. I've attached a modified lens board directly onto the scanner, so it can easily be connected to the Horseman. The lens board attachment holds the scanner optics at the same level as a ground glass plate. This allows me to compose and focus shots on the ground glass, instead of with preview scans—it's much faster. I have two lenses that I use with this model—a Kompur lens from 1915, and a found 8x10 enlarger lens.

More after the jump.

Take a look at some of these photos this guy has captured using this odd and wonderful rig. The scanner has an eerie way of turning rectangular shapes into almost architectural forms. It turns everyday occurances and movement into compositions that seem like they're from another dimension. The result is pure serendipity, and an entirely new way to look at our world.

Turning scanners into homebrew digital cameras [Boing Boing]

ShackWatch Cometh

Admit it: you've got a love-hate relationship with your local Radio Shack. The geek in you loves the fact that, whenever you need a pack of rectifier diodes or a D-Sub pin crimper, you know the local Shack's gonna have 'em. But the human being in you hates the pushy sales reps, the shelves of Z-grade junk, and the bank of TVs constantly tuned into the sinister Dr. Phil.

Low End Theory feels the same way, though I tilt more toward the lovey end of the spectrum. In fact, when I first began brainstorming on a Gizmodo column, I toyed with the idea of running a weekly ShackWatch feature. I mean, hey, the Shack's never gonna run out of new, cheap products to either praise or lampoon, right?

Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, and ShackWatch will be a trimonthly treat instead. Let's kick off the inaugural episode with a look at what's cooking up on my beloved 125th Street, where there's a Shack featuring plenty of push-to-talk phones, synthesizers bigger than a Cooper Mini, and a curvaceous, blue-eyed salesgirl who can push me around whenever she likes. PLUS: Poland responds to last week's challenge!

There are, in my experience, two types of Radio Shacks in this world. There's the sedate mini-mall version, staffed by geeks who were too smart to end up working for the municipal roadkill pickup crew, but too lazy and socially inept to move out of mom's house. This is where a friendly guy named Louie will meet you at the door and try to push you on a 20-inch TV; when you note that you're only there for a few gold-plated Y-cables, he'll back off and return to debating Captain Janeway versus Captain Picard with the other employees.

My local Shack is of the second type: the chaotic retail-strip store, where the employees are too busy playing games or hounding customers about Sprint PCS contracts to notice that gadgets are strewn all over the floor. There's plenty of hardware to ogle here, but it's terribly organized; good luck tracking down that much-needed battery for your Panasonic cordless phone.

Low End Theory's mission was clear: slip in, jot down notes on a few worthy products, and slip out before being accosted by a bitchy-as-hell clerk yelling, "Yo, you looking for a phone? Looking for a phone?!?!"

The first stop was right inside the door, where my Shack's sizeable walkie-talkie stock is displayed. I'm not talking the Nextel variety, I'm talking real-deal walkie-talkies sans service plan. And there seemed to be no better deal than the Maxus Family 4-pak. Multicolored so you know they're good, the Maxuses (Maxi?) promise a range of two miles—perfect for my country estate, natch. (Note to analysts who might interpret previous statement as sign of Gawker Media munificence: I'm totally kidding.) The range spec sounds dubious, but at $29.99 for the whole kit and kaboodle, it seems worth the risk.

I tried to take the walkie-talkies off the rack for further inspection, but the 125th Street Shack has these weird security racks that don't let you slide products on and off without assistance. I noticed a salesgirl eyeing me as I fidgeted, so I decided to avoid tempting fate and moved on to the Wireless BBQ Thermometer. On post-summer sale for a measly $15, this actually seems like a nifty idea: perfectionist that I am, I've always wanted a less spattery means of finding out when my burger has an FDA-approved internal temperature. Best of all, the digital readout actually says "BEEF," at least on the display sticker. My question is, how do they turn a bunch of digital 8s into "CHICKEN"? And what if I want to roast up a guinea pig, Peruvian-style? (They're called cuy and they're quite tasty, thank you very much.)

The masterpiece of this particular Shack, though, was the Race Scanner Intercom, a getup that lets you and a pal eavesdrop on the pit-to-car communications at the track. It comes complete with headphones fit for sealing out the roar of a 767. It's not quite in the low-end range, with a list of $269.99, but the unit in my local Shack was going for 50 percent off. Hmmmmm, maybe it's because New York is perhaps the worst place in the U.S. to sell an accessory designed for the NASCAR market? Radio Shack may offer plenty of cheap gadgetry to peruse, but their distribution folks sure could use a little refresher course.

POLAND DIDN'T FORGET ABOUT US: Last week, I appealed to in-the-know readers to clue Low End Theory in to some cheap gadgetry from east of the former Berlin Wall. To my tremendous delight, a Polish Giz-fan responded with the scoop:

You should know that making gadgets in Poland (and probably anywhere in any of the post-Soviet countries) is more expensive than making gadgets in China. We're underpaid, but not that underpaid. So factories are only an exception, not the norm here. These exceptions are LG-Philips, which builds LCDs in Kobierzyce and Thompson, which makes TVs in Warsaw

That said, our new favorite Pole did turn us onto some budget Polish brands that, like the jWins and Cobys of the world, take advantage of cheap Asian contractors. So next time you're in Gdansk, by all means buy a DVD/Divx player from Manta. Our man in Poland gives them a nice thumbs up, in terms of value for the zloty.

Brendan I. Koerner is a contributing editor at Wired and a columnist for both The New York Times and Slate. His Low End Theory column appear every Thursday on Gizmodo.

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