Gear Bits

Epson Moverio BT-200 Smart Glasses powered by Wikitude SDK at CES 2014

Events, Gear Bits

Epson Moverio BT-200 Smart Glasses powered by Wikitude SDK at CES 2014

There has been some truly incredible technology at this year’s CES so far, and another example is the launch of the Epson Moverio BT-200 Smart Glasses powered by Wikitude SDK. The BT-200 is a set of binocular wearable display technology projecting transparent items over real-life objects. The augmented reality technology is also capable of advanced image recognition and geo-aware services. Here is what they are saying: “The Epson Moverio BT-200 smart glasses offer consumers crystal clear video as well as access to incredible new augmented reality experiences and relevant information according to their personal interests and needs. Leveraging Epson’s leadership…

ClockOne E-Ink Wall Clock Puts Time on a Diet

Events, Gear Bits

ClockOne E-Ink Wall Clock Puts Time on a Diet

With apologies to Jim Croce, “If I could put time on a diet…” I would end up with ClockOne… an E-Ink wall clock that weighs less than 3.5 pounds and is just 4mm thick. Seriously thin, ClockOne is big on time and makes quite the statement. Its expected MSRP of $499 does too. Here are the facts: What are the dimensions of ClockONE? 1000mm wide x 350mm tall x 4mm thin What is the weight of ClockONE? 1.5 Kilograms (3.3 pounds) What type of battery does ClockONE use? One CR2450 button battery What is the battery life of ClockONE? One…

GoG.com Celebrates 5 Successful Years with Retrospective Video

Game Diary, Gear Bits

GoG.com Celebrates 5 Successful Years with Retrospective Video

Has it REALLY been FIVE years since GoG.com opened up to the public? Actually it’s been longer – it was mid-November 2008 when I bought Fallout 1 & 2 and fully embraced the site and its model and began amassing what has become a 200+ game collection on the site. Because they have great games, fair prices, and no DRM. Here is what I said back then: (they) wanted to make a site that would charge a reasonable amount and give gamers older games that were out of circulation in a convenient, DRM-free package that you can download forever. I…

TP-Link Debuts its 300Mbps Wireless Range Extender Powerline Edition at CES 2014

Events, Gear Bits

TP-Link Debuts its 300Mbps Wireless Range Extender Powerline Edition at CES 2014

TP-Link has debuted its new 300Mbps Wireless Range Extender Powerline Edition, which improves upon traditional wireless signals by creating a stable connection through your home’s existing electrical wiring.  With the TL-WPA4220KIT, you’re able to access your network via WiFi as well as wired Ethernet without wiring your house with Ethernet cable.  Read more about it at TP-Link’s website.

Lynx Brings Gas Grills into the Modern Age with its Smart Grill Concept

Events, Gear Bits

Lynx Brings Gas Grills into the Modern Age with its Smart Grill Concept

When’s the last time you heard of a truly innovative gas grill?  Lynx has just announced a concept that will bring the outdoor kitchen into the modern age.  Using smartphone integration and voice commands, Lynx’s Smart Grill can automatically cook your food using pre-programmed recipes created by master grillers.  Read more about it at Lynx’s website.

3D-Printed Instruments Hit Some Sharp Notes

Events, Gear Bits

3D-Printed Instruments Hit Some Sharp Notes

When our buddy Paul Strauss, aka TheAwesomer, told me he just heard a band playing instruments that were all created on 3D-Printers while walking the floor at CES 2014 I was a skeptic. Instruments that were printed? I thought he was pulling my leg. Then I heard them and (cue up the Monkeys…), I’m a Believer.

CES Innovations Honorees and the Gear Diary Connection

Events, Gear Bits

CES Innovations Honorees and the Gear Diary Connection

It is always cool to see which products win CES Innovation Honors. It is even cooler to see products we have covered from companies with whom we work among them. Judie and I spent time yesterday checking a few out. Here are some CES Innovations Honorees we have have previously shared with you.

JoyTunes Brings Real Music Learning With Piano Dust Buster and Piano Mania Apps

Events, Gear Bits

JoyTunes Brings Real Music Learning With Piano Dust Buster and Piano Mania Apps

For most people ‘playing the piano’ is one of their bucket list items. For many kids – and parents – it means expensive lessons and disruptive trips to teachers, and often a non-stop battle to practice! JoyTunes seeks to make piano learning more fun with their Piano Dust Buster and Piano Mania apps for iPhone and iPad! According to JoyTunes: JoyTune’s Piano Mania and Piano Dust Buster 2.0 mobile apps teach users to play the piano through exciting game-like lessons that only take a few minutes each day. The unique program is so effective that kids can transition their skills…

samsung series 7

Events, Gear Bits

Want to Love Windows 8? Try a Samsung Ultrabook!

I owe Microsoft Windows 8 an apology. See, when I first tested it, I thought it was dreadful. But I’ve become more comfortable with the Metro interface between my trusty Lumia 928 and using a Surface RT, and it is starting to grow on me. What really changed my mind, though, is the Samsung Ultrabook I have been testing for review!

Ford Announces Four New SYNC Apps at CES

Events, Gear Bits, Vehicles & Gear

Ford Announces Four New SYNC Apps at CES

At CES in Las Vegas today, Ford Motors announced four new apps for SYNC’s AppLink.  Now, you’ll be able to order Dominos, monitor on your home’s security system with ADT, play music automatically based on your mood with HABU, or find the nearest parking spot with Parkopedia and pay for it with Parkmobile.  Click each link to find out more. Ford also announced that they will be hosting a developers conference in June, 2014 to focus on bringing new apps into your car.  It sounds like Ford is making a push to drastically improve their in-car SYNC interface and bring…

JVC Announces Rugged Line of Everything-Proof Everio Camcorders

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JVC Announces Rugged Line of Everything-Proof Everio Camcorders

JVC announced a couple new Everio camcorders that combine the features of GoPro-type action cameras with full-featured camcorders.  The GZ-R70 and GZ-R10 both feature JVC’s “Quad-Proof” structure which is water resistance to a depth of 5m, has the ability to withstand a drop from 1.5m, is dust proof, and freeze proof to 14°F. These action cam’s on steroids go beyond your typical smartphone or action camera by including 40x optical zoom, 2.5 megapixel back-illuminated CMOS image sensor, audio that zooms with the image, and compatibility with third party editing software.  The GX-R70 and the GZ-R10 are differentiated by internal memory…

IUI Design is Launching the Bass Jumper Water Resistant Speaker at CES 2014

Events, Gear Bits

IUI Design is Launching the Bass Jumper Water Resistant Speaker at CES 2014

While CES is taking place in the warmth of Las Vegas, much of the nation is gripped by record-breaking cold, snow, and wind. IUI Design is launching the Bass Jumper water resistant speaker at CES to let you rock on despite the elements! It is ready for anything with IPX5 water resistance, carabineer for portability, and a 10 hour battery! Here is what they say: “With an emphasis on portability, the Bass Jumper is packaged with a carabiner clip so users can bring along and share their music on any adventure,” commented Al Fortino, Director of Business Development, iUi Design….

Toshiba Announces Exciting TV and PC Products at CES 2014

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Toshiba Announces Exciting TV and PC Products at CES 2014

Toshiba is not the highest profile maker of consumer technology, but they consistently come up with great new products that meet a wide variety of needs. At CES 2014 Toshiba announces exciting TV and PC products including a HD Chromebook, 4K laptops, Haswell updates for Kirabook, new 4K HD TV platforms, streaming and universal disc player bases, and more!

NVIDIA Tegra K1 Demo Using the Unreal Engine 4 at CES 2014!

Events, Game Diary, Gear Bits

NVIDIA Tegra K1 Demo Using the Unreal Engine 4 at CES 2014!

At CES nVidia introduced the Tegra K1, bringing high performance Kepler architecture used in PC graphics cards to mobile SOCs (system on a chip). The K1 offers up to 192 cores, with potential to offer desktop graphics on mobile devices. nVidia introduced the technology without release date and showed a NVIDIA Tegra K1 Demo Using the Unreal Engine 4.

Michael Bay Leaves Samsung Press Conference Stage Due to Teleprompter Failure

Events, Gear Bits

Michael Bay Leaves Samsung Press Conference Stage Due to Teleprompter Failure

When you do things live, stuff happens. That is just how it goes – technical problems, mixups and misunderstandings, and so on. They happen. As they say, it isn’t the problem but how you deal with it that says more about you. Well, at the Samsung Press Conference there was a teleprompter problem … and Michael Bay just walked off the stage. As Dan said when he grabbed the video: Michael Bay stepped on stage at the Samsung Press Conference at CES2014 to talk about UHD televisions. His TelePrompt went out of sync… And so did he. Check it out:…

Spree 'Revolutionary' Fitness Monitor Launched At CES 2014!

Events, Gear Bits, Health and Fitness

Spree ‘Revolutionary’ Fitness Monitor Launched At CES 2014!

Everyone is speculating that the ‘hot new thing’ at CES this year will be ‘wearable technology’. Wearables include the Pebble watch, Google Glass, Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, Magellan Echo, and fitness monitors such as Fitbit Force, etc. New to the category is Spree ‘Revolutionary’ Fitness Monitor from Hothead Technologies, bringing heart rate and temperature to help you better understand your health!