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Spy tech: James Bond's gadgets can now be yoursMar 27, 2009 (The Dallas Morning News - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- James Bond used to require the services of tech wizard Q and his crash-test-dummy flunkies to craft ingenious gadgets for saving the world. But nowadays, many of those technologies are available to just about anyone with a credit card and an Internet connection. From cellphones with built-in video cameras to inexpensive night vision goggles to satellite photographs, it's never been easier to be a backyard Bond. Familiarity breeds contempt, though, and it's easy to overlook some of the amazing capabilities we now carry in our pockets, cars and laptops. So here are some of the coolest devices and software that once seemed reserved for Navy SEALs and sardonic spies but have become ubiquitous parts of everyday life. Miniature cameras Almost every cellphone has a digital camera built in, and more of them can shoot videos. Soon mobile phones will include built-in projectors for displaying your videos. The cameras are slowly getting better -- Samsung's new 8-megapixel Memoir is getting a lot of buzz -- but are still not as good as a regular point-and-shoot, much less a high-end DSLR. Still, if you just need some quick snapshots of the family barbecue to post on your blog, phone cameras are now more than adequate. GPS tracking While you might not spend much time tailing terrorist suspects, keeping tabs on, say, your teenagers as they head off on a class trip is now pretty easy. Many of the growing number of smart phones with GPS chips built in can support Google's free Latitude software (www.google.com/latitude) which lets you track the phone's location on Google Maps. You can track the phone either on another phone or from any computer with an Internet connection. Jack Bauer would be proud. Satellite images Free tools such as Google's Maps and Earth and Microsoft's Virtual Earth have taken high-resolution satellite photos from the realm of Tom Clancy to every Tom, Dick and Harry planning a family road trip to Disney World. Who hasn't checked out photos of their own house from space? In fact, the free satellite mapping programs are so good that they've been accused of leaking U.S. military Predator drones operating out of a Pakistan air base, divulging the location of a British nuclear submarine base and helping the Mumbai terrorists plan their attacks last year. Implantable computer chips Radio frequency identification may be best known as the technology being used by Wal-Mart to track shipments coming into its warehouses, but RFID chips are also frequently implanted in livestock and pets. More recently, companies such as VeriChip let you store your medical data on RFID tags and implant them beneath your skin. The idea is that if, like Jason Bourne, you're brought unconscious into a hospital, the docs can wirelessly scan the chip in your arm and detect that, unlike Bourne, you suffer from high cholesterol due to a pork rind-heavy diet. Self-parking cars It's not quite a fully self-driving car -- although that's coming along, too, as seen by the DARPA Grand Challenge robot car competition -- but Lexus (LS460) and, soon, Ford (Lincoln MKS and MKT) can at least help you parallel park. While the computer-controlled systems are still a bit clunky, the basic technology is there. In 10 years, your car may be more George Jetson than James Bond. Night vision goggles Consumer-grade night vision goggles have been around for years, but you needed Bond's fabulous expense account to buy them. No more. For less than $70 on Amazon, you can pick up the well-reviewed EyeClops Night Vision Infrared Stealth Goggles and execute all manner of covert missions under cover of darkness. Watch phone Forget about Dick Tracy's scratchy, low-tech watch phone. The GD910 from LG, going on sale this year, is basically a computer on your wrist. The device offers 7.2 megabit-per-second 3G data speeds, a 1.43-inch touchscreen, a camera, videophone capabilities, an MP3 player and Bluetooth connectivity. This device isn't cheap (the rumored price in Europe is about $725), but, as with all new technology, next year's model will probably be half the price. Remote control robot This one veers more into the realm of warcraft than spycraft, but a company called WowWee is making an increasingly sophisticated line of consumer robots that are almost as versatile as their armored brethren hunting for bombs in the caves of Afghanistan. The Rovio 'bot is basically, as the company describes it, a "WiFi-enabled mobile webcam." From any Internet-connected PC, you can steer the three-wheeled Rovio anywhere you want to explore. A video camera on the robot transmits a live image of the terrain in front of your droid, and a microphone and speaker let you listen to the sounds around your robot and speak to any unsuspecting humans or pets lurking nearby. GPS navigation GPS navigators in cars and phones are almost old hat now, but that doesn't mean the technology is any less extraordinary. From anywhere in the world, you can orient yourself in seconds and get directions to anywhere else in the world. The companies that make the systems are expanding the machines, though, with features such as real-time traffic data, local landmarks (including "Where's the closest fast food restaurant?"), alerts about nearby red-light and speeding cameras and more. To see more of The Dallas Morning News, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.dallasnews.com. Copyright (c) 2009, The Dallas Morning News Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. 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