Author Archive

Sonic Walk Wearable Speakers

Thursday, June 07th, 2012

If you enjoy listening to music while walking or running but you can’t seem to find comfortable ear buds,  you might be interested in the Sonic Walk Lightning, a spandex and neoprene shoulder harness that has built-in speakers. This light-weight harness has room for a smartphone, MP3 player or iPod and includes a rear-facing flashing red light to make you more visible at night. The battery is USB rechargeable and holds a charge for 8 to 10 hours.

Sonic Walk maker Creanovative also makes harnesses for backpackers and bikers. Find out more on the Sonic Walk website.

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Wordament for Windows Phone

Tuesday, May 29th, 2012

Wordament is a tournament-style word game that was recently release on Xbox Live on the Windows Phone mobile platform. This free ad-supported word game is truly addicting. Players have two minutes to form words from a grid of letters using touch. Several hundred other people are playing against the same board at the same time, and a ranking appears a few seconds after the game is over. The whole process for a game takes about three minutes, and games are available consecutively at any hour of the day or night. It’s easy to get caught up in game after game as you try to better your previous ranking.

You can get Wordament for Windows Phone in the Windows Phone Marketplace. You can also play an online version on the official Wordament website.

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Windows Phone from Microsoft

Tuesday, May 15th, 2012

I’ve finally switched over the a smart phone, and my choice was the NOKIA Lumia 710 running Windows Phone. This mobile operating system was introduced last year and features the Metro interface that will be rolled out for PC with Windows 8 later this year. The home screen includes “Live Tiles” that are activated by touch. Each tile represents an application such as phone, texting or email. Web browsing is supported via Internet Explorer Mobile; videos can be streamed via YouTube.

Xbox Live on Windows Phone allows phone owners to download games as well as log into the online Xbox console Xbox games to view leaderboards. Phone owners can also create an Xbox 3D avatar.

One-touch searching is available via Bing, or phone owners can add a Google Live Tile for searching. A voice recognition system lets users initiate phone calls, text message and searches via speech. Windows Phone also provides a mobile version of Office that includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.

Find out more about Windows Phone on the official website.

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Raspberry Pi Educational Computer

Tuesday, March 20th, 2012

The Raspberry Pi is a single-board computer that was developed as an inexpensive computer science teaching aid. The Raspberry Pi Foundation calls its computer “an ARM GNU/Linux box for $25.” It was developed by a group of researcher from Cambridge University’s Computer Lab who became concerned about the decline in students who has tinkered with computers and programming as hobbyists.

This month, the Foundation two computers: the $25 Model A and the $35 Model B. Both can be plugged into a keyboard and TV to create a bare-bones programmable desktop computer.

You can see find out more about this pocket-size computer on the Raspberry Pi Foundation website and check out a video of the Raspberry Pi playing Quake 3 on YouTube.

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Hide Cables & Components with a Wireless Home Theater

Saturday, March 10th, 2012

If you love the idea of a home theater with all the bells and whistles but hate all the wires needed to connect your TV with a cable box, Blu-ray player and game console, then a wireless HDMI kit could be the answer. These kits, which consist of a box that your attach to the back of your TV and a box that you plug into your components, allow you to hide your components and wirelessly transmit video and audio to your TV. Most of these kits have a range of about 30 feet.

Read more about wireless HDMI boxes on Techlicious.

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Clear: A Color-Coded To-Do App

Wednesday, February 29th, 2012

Clear is a new to-do list app that has quickly become one of the most downloaded paid apps at the Apple App Store.  The thing that sets this app apart from others of its kind gesture-base interface.  Mark an item completed with a simple swipe, pull down to create new list items and tap and hold to change the order of list items.  Also unique is the way to-do lists are presented.  Tasks are colored different hues from red to gold to indicate their priority.   

Clear isn’t the fanciest to-do list app, but it’s definitely the best looking.  Find out more about Clear at RealMacSoftware.com.

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Is New Windows 8 Logo a Window or a Flag?

Saturday, February 18th, 2012

Microsoft has announced the new logo for Windows 8, which is composed of a white cross on a blue background.  Microsoft’s goal was to return to the window concept. Many thought the current four color logo resembled a flag, not to mention that its use of primary colors made it similar to the Chrome logo.  However, there are already comments on the Web about the new logo resembling the Nordic cross flag or a Scottish flag (which used the same colors with an X shape rather than a cross). 

Read more about the new Windows 8 logo design on ReadWriteWeb.

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SpareOne Phone: The Perfect Travel Companion

Sunday, February 12th, 2012

The SpareOne is a power-efficient mobile phone that’s the perfect travel companion. Powered by a single AA battery, the SmartOne offers up to 10 hours of talk time and has a 15-year shelf life when stored unused. You can stash it in your car or vacation home for emergency calls. The SpareOne is also compatible with phone networks all over the world, so it’s ideal for travel (you can leave your phone charger at home).  Rather than dealing the roaming charges on your regular phone, just load the SmartOne with minutes when you arrive in a new country.

The SpareOne is also a good phone for kids or seniors who may not need a full-feature cell phone. Find out more about the SpareOne travel phone on the official SpareOne Phone website. You can also read reviews of other travel-friendly gadgets on Fodors.

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Robotic Team Creates Nano Quadrotor Swarm

Saturday, February 04th, 2012

The team at GRASP (General Robotic, Automation, Sensing  & Perception) at the University of Pennsylvania have created an array of nano quadrotors (like a helicopter but with 4 rotors) that can autonomously move in groups, pass through doors, avoid obstacles and form complex formations in 3D space.  Each robot copter is equipped with sensors that allow it to maintain balance and accurately position itself while executing even the most complex maneuvers.

The YouTube video showing the swarm in action has gone viral, garnering more than 3 million views in less than a week.  After you watch the video, you can find out more about the GRASP team’s work on the GRASP Laboratory website.

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More TV Makers Get On Board with Google TV

Saturday, January 28th, 2012

USA Today’s Technology Live blog reports that TV makers LG and Vizio will announce their versions of Google TV at this month’s CES 2012 in Las Vegas.  Up until now, Sony has been the only manufacturer to adopt Google TV.  Samsung will unveil its own model later this year.

With Google TV, viewers can surf the Internet using Google’s Chrome browser, access content from Netflix, Pandora and other websites, browse photos, play games and more.  Learn more on the official Google TV website.  You can also see Google TV in action in this YouTube video.

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Penfield Project