In an age dominated by over-the-top product releases and pressjunkets dedicated solely to PDAs, it’s hard to imagine there aremany technological advances or introductions that go unnoticed.Quite the contrary, researchers and Internet companies workdiligently behind the scenes on amazing products and services thatnever receive flashy news coverage. From websites to energysources, here are a few of the best recent tech advances that haveslipped under the radar.

Solar powered everything:

Gone are the days when solar energy could only be harnessedthrough giant ray-seeking panels. Today’s solar landscape isabundant with products designed to supply solar power without thehassle or inconvenience. Wallets, cell phone cases and even cargopants now come equipped with flexible solar panels, designed tocharge user’s personal devices such as laptops and tablets.Companies like Earthtech and Powermonkey have quietly made hugeadvances in personal solar technology in the last few years, andconsumers can now find many of these items online.

.co domains

A relative newcomer to the domain name scene, .co domain names slipped onto the market in mid-2010 withlittle fanfare. For consumers, however, this relative lack of newscoverage could be a benefit as many desirable .co domains are stillavailable for purchase. Operating just like .com domains, .co sitesare easily recognizable in a global economy and help businesses andorganizations distinguish their site in an often cluttered field.Consumers should purchase new .co domains through reputableregisters such as Network Solutions, many ofwhich offer hosting packages suited for businesses as well.

Holographic transportation

Once regarded as a futuristic pipe dream, holographic technologyis quickly becoming a fascinating field of innovation. In late2010, researchers announced that they were successfully able totake an object from one location and transmit it in 3-D motion toanother location – an idea straight from science fiction. Engineershope to eventually improve the speed of which the transmitted imageis refreshed by about 100 times which would, in effect, allow fortrue holographic “transportation.”

Cloud computing

The most talked about “under the radar” idea on this list, cloudcomputing is the notion that data such as images and music can bestored in virtual space and be accessed from anywhere. While cloudcomputing technology is currently being utilized and improved bylarge tech companies such as HP and GoGrid, huge strides have beenmade recently in bringing open cloud computing to the masses.Issues like security and legality are now being addressed and evenApple is slated to get in the game, hinting that cloud storage foriTunes is due in the near future.

In a time of 24-hour news channels and up-to-the-minute liveblogging, it’s difficult to imagine many technological innovationshave escaped the glare of the Internet spotlight. Researchers anddevelopers are constantly working to develop useful technologiesfor the masses, such as the four outlined above. Though they’vemanaged to stay relatively low-key for now, these new techsolutions surely won’t be under the radar for long.