Artists and engineers have come together to demonstrate that digital technology can be romantic as well as practical. Few people mull over a text message, however heartfelt, in the same way as a handwritten declaration of love, but a Newcastle University team is looking to prove that using digital communication doesn't necessarily mean that romance is dead. They have created digital 'Lovers' Boxes' that draw on the aesthetics of traditional wooden jewellery boxes, but actually contain the latest technology to enable couples to record romantic messages for each other. Each box consists of two halves connected by brass hinges, decorated with ornate carvings, with an antique keyhole at the front. A computer with an integrated RFID reader is hidden inside the box.
Other than the screen itself, all visible trappings of digital technology are hidden from view. Once unlocked, the box opens in a book-like manner, and a screen becomes visible. A wooden passé-partout with rounded edges frames the screen to counter the usual connotations of a digital display. When placed within the box, the RFID tag in the key fob triggers a video message stored within. To avoid evoking the sense of a wooden laptop-like device, the videos created by participants are not played in a typical 16:9 landscape format on the screen, but in a portrait orientation. The Lovers' Box has been described as akin to 'an interactive storybook or jewellery box', which the participants chose to treat carefully and stow away like a precious family heirloom.
More information:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110426071147.htm
More information:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110426071147.htm