Here is something of interest for lovers of music and technology. Intel®, in partnership with Fender, has designed and produced an amazing one-off instrument, known as the Intel®/Fender Telecaster Concept Guitar.
This internet-enabled super guitar lets any musician scour the web for inspiration, send a quick e-mail in-between songs onstage, practice guitar solo grimaces via a built-in webcam or even check royalties online! The guitar incorporates the latest Intel® Centrino® mobile technology and was developed to provide the ultimate in music-on-the-move technology. It can be played anytime, anywhere, and its many innovative features let you:
• Use headphones and listen to your tunes through the built-in amp. • Record demo songs and e-mail them to friends. • Go online to find the chords to that song someone just requested. • Stay in touch through e-mail or instant messaging, onstage or on the tour bus. • Conduct webcam interviews with friends or fans. • Download your favourite tunes and listen or play along.
This unique Telecaster contains a Hewlett Packard® TC1100 tablet laptop with 1.25 ghz RAM and an Echo Indigo I/O soundcard for maximum fidelity. It uses the Intel® Centrino® mobile technology to access a wireless network (where one is available; visit http://intel.jiwire.com to find your nearest hotspot).
The guitar’s pickups are routed straight into the tablet PC for direct recording. Two ¼-inch jacks let you play the guitar like a normal Telecaster or listen to songs you’ve downloaded directly from the guitar. If you prefer to travel light, simply run a lead from the guitar to the PA system and play live through the computer.
“Forty years after the first surf guitar sounds came out of California, a new generation of ‘surfing' guitars has been born,” said Chris Hogg, Intel® U.K. marketing manager. “With this guitar, it doesn’t matter if you’re Joe Walsh or Joe Bloggs—you’ll sound just as good once you get this guitar online, download a few of your favourite tracks and strike a pose in front of the mirror. And if you’re already halfway to becoming a rock legend, this guitar will help you to record, play back and e-mail your music to your agent, your band or just your mates with the minimum hassle."
Click on the images in the gallery below for a closer look ...
