Futuristic sci-fi interface Dizmo launches – but it needs developers
Aiming for Iron Man meets Minority Report, Dizmo wants to be your interface of things
The dream of Minority Report-style digital interaction is now one step closer thanks to the launch of Dizmo.
Having been successfully funded on Kickstarter, the self-proclaimed “ground-breaking software platform” has now officially opened up to the public. Its aim is to enable you to intuitively interact with objects on any digital surface, via gestures, and to easily collaborate with other users.
“Dizmo breaks down traditional boundaries between device, operating systems, apps and software, transforming the way users work, play and live,” said the company in a statement. “It supports orchestration and collaboration in an unparalleled way enabling any data to instantaneously be accessed on any surface, anywhere and made interactive.”
The system is relatively OS-agnostic, requiring Windows 7, Linux Debian or OS X 10.7+ (but, oddly, not iOS), and can be controlled by gesture, voice, trackpad, mice and infrared pens. Using the last of those with a projector on a huge wall isn’t quite Iron Man in his techno-basement, but nonetheless presents clear opportunities for collaboration and presentations in business environments, not least given that the potentially infinite canvas can be seamlessly shared with multiple devices.
Intrigued? The video below will give you an idea of the kind of things which could eventually be possible on the platform.
The possible snag might come in terms of software. The Dizmo platform is reliant on digital gizmos or ‘Dizmos’ – you can’t just grab anything from your laptop and fling it into DizmoSpace. Once created, Dizmos can be rotated, resized, scaled, grouped, customised and linked together via ‘docking’ to exchange data and unlock new functionality. For example, the company suggests you could have a temperature Dizmo connected to a Phillips Hue lamp. However, unless developers leap on board, you’ll likely end up with a rather empty DizmoSpace and a Dizmo sadface.
It comes as a surprise, then, that even the most basic developer licence will cost US$69 and only enable you to create for up to three devices. The ‘premium’ option expands this to ten devices and will initially cost US$99. The service also appears to be prepping monthly subscriptions for the all-important live collaboration and set-up synchronisation aspects, which could be a spanner in the works for anyone beyond wealthy corporates.
If you’re nonetheless intrigued, the first 100 sign-ups from today at 9am PST (5pm UK time) will be free. We hope at least one of them somehow makes a Dizmo that talks like J.A.R.V.I.S.
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Craig Grannell
Contributor 
