Reflect on this

James Laws Cybertecture Mirror is a personal secretary and health assistant....

Remember a time when phones used to be just that,little boxes with numbers on them? That was before Nokia became one of the first companies to launch a high-end line of multimedia phones,with the tagline,Is this what computers have become?.

Now,architect James Law claims mirrors will no longer be mere reflecting surfaces. His company,James Law Cybertecturebased in Hong Kong and with branches in Mumbai and Dubaihas integrated into a mirror a touch screen user interface capable of displaying different applications on its surface.

The mirror-cum-screen can display the date and time,information about the weather,traffic in the city and news about the stock market. Standing in front of the mirror,the user will have access to data not only about himself and his appearance,but also about the surroundings, says Law,who envisions futuristic buildings with useful gadgets and modern design.

Law says one of the most useful applications built into the mirror is the health monitor,which senses body parameters like weight,height,body mass index,water mass,and bone mass,and compares this information against WHO standards. While Law does not explain how the applications work,he says the mirror features wireless standalone technology to keep track of various applications.

Law,who is designing The Egg,a commercial-cum-residential project in Mumbai,says the mirror will be installed in all the houses and offices in the building premises. The product is tailor-made to individual specifications and is not available in stores. It can be directly ordered from the company for anywhere between $1,500 and $3,000,depending upon the configurations and the specifications, says Law.

In the future one can integrate a GPS navigation system into the device,or even a video or a music player. This is just the beginning, he says.