Half of Top Merchants Will Use Apple Pay By Year’s End?
Posted: June 5, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Apple Pay, Baseball caps, Carbon Fiber, Kevlar, Kickstarter, Pitchers, Safer Sports Technologies 2 CommentsApple has been working overtime reeling in merchants and financial institutions for its Apple pay system. Appleinsider.com says Cupertino expects to sign a number of large merchants before the end of 2015, pulling around half of the top 100 US merchants into the Apple fold. It’s an uphill climb, with only 4 of those pledged to support the iPhone based pay system so far. Most are hesitating citing customer demand, so that could change quickly if demand does.
Not all tech is zoomy and connected to the web. Some can save people from injuries or patch us up after the fact. Safer Sports Technologies has developed a lightweight insert that goes in a baseball cap to protect a pitcher from being beaned. It’s a combination of carbon fiber and kevlar, and runs ear to ear across the middle of the forehead. The two ounce insert apparently feels like it’s barely there. With it installed, the pitcher can survive a line drive to the head of up to 94 miles per hour! It’s a $5000 kickstarter right now, and you can get left and right kid sized ones for a $60 pledge, or for $80…the full wrap pro version for adults.
New Technology Recaptures Phone Energy and Extends Battery Life
Posted: May 5, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Android, Battery life, Bluetooth, Cellular, Dropbox, iOS, Kickstarter, Microsoft Office, Nikola Labs, Recycle RF, wi-fi Leave a commentOne of the most ingenious gadgets ever is in the pipeline. Nikola Labs has cooked up an iPhone 6 case that harvests electricity from the cellular, wi-fi, and Bluetooth transmitters in your phone. According to techcrunch.com, they will launch a Kickstarter by the end of the month for $99, and have a case out by September. Nikola claims they can recycle enough RF energy to give you 30% more battery life! The tech can be used in other devices that have little RF transmitters like smartwatches and tablets.
Dropbox is going to drop an update for iOS in the next few weeks that will let you create Microsoft Office files from scratch online…not just edit them. Engadget.com reports that it will also bring commenting functionality. No word on when an Android release is coming, but you can bet it’s in the pipeline, too.
Microsoft OneNote & PowerPoint Apple Watch Update
Posted: April 22, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2 for 1, Kickstarter, LED lamps, Marker-free writing board, Microsoft, OneNote, Philips, Powerpoint, Wicue Leave a commentWith the Apple Watch launch a couple of days out, Microsoft has updated its OneNote app to take dictation from the wearable. 9to5mac.com says Redmond has also updated the PowerPoint app to support Apple Watch.
The venerable white board is moving into the 21st Century. It’s Wicue, a Kickstarter campaign for a large, marker-free smart liquid crystal writing board you write on with your finger. It can be controlled from your iPhone or Android smartphone, too. It should ship before Christmas.
Philips has just opened the door to LED light bulbs replacing standard bulbs more quickly. Geek.com reports they just came out with a 60 watt equivalent LED bulb for $4.97! Even cheaper…you can get a 2 for 1 pack starting in May at Home Depot.
Interactive Shopping Maps From Target
Posted: November 17, 2014 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amazon, Google, Interactive, Kickstarter, Roost, Shopping, Smoke Alarm, Target Leave a commentTarget has added an enticement for holiday shoppers. Geekwire.com reports they’ve added interactive maps of all their stores to their iPhone app. They’ve also added free shipping for target.com buys to battle Amazon.
The European ‘right to be forgotten’ by Google may be extended worldwide. A French court has ruled that way, according to 9to5google.com. Google is reviewing the ruling and considering its options.
There’s a way coming to connect to your dumb smoke alarm. It’s a Kickstarter called Roost…a 5 year battery in a 9 volt size that also connects to your smartphone with an app. $55 buys you two, and it’s out late Spring.
The “Thrifty Amateur’s” GoPro
Posted: October 9, 2014 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Ampy, GoPro, HTC, iPad, Kickstarter, Macbook, ReCamera Leave a commentHTC has rolled out the ReCamera…think of it as a GoPro for those of us non-pros. Theverge.com says the 16 megapixel stand alone camera can pair with either Android or iOS phones, and is under $200.
Apple may not bring out a larger iPad until next year, but 9to5mac.com reports that production will start in December on the 12 inch Retina Macbook.
If you work out or just walk around, you might want Ampy. Gigaom.com says the $75 kickstarter project is a portable charger for your phone that gets its charge from your kinetic energy…a 30 to 60 minute workout will charge it, then it will give your phone an extra 3 hours of juice.
Selfie iPhone Planned?
Posted: August 8, 2014 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Bing, iPhone, Kickstarter, Selfie, SwivelCard, Yelp Leave a commentDon’t expect it on the iPhone 6, but bgr.com says Apple has patented a front facing camera that lurks inside the speaker port and has a flash. Your selfies will be amazing!
If you are going overseas, and want to check out places on Yelp, the updated iOS app will translate reviews on the fly. Engadget.com reports the translation is powered by Bing.
People may file business cards, or toss them in a drawer. Techcrunch.com notes that a Kickstarter called SwivelCard is perforated, and has a USB interface…users plug it in, and it loads your website. They’re $289 for 200, and ship in October.
All ‘i’s’ Watching October
Posted: June 6, 2014 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Fingerprints, iWatch, Kickstarter, Sherlybox Leave a commentThe iWatch will be here in October, and have a curved OLED touchscreen. That’s what 9to5mac.com hears from the Nikkei Asian Review, and it’s also being reported by recode.net. Apple expects to sell 3 to 5 million a month! The HealthKit health and fitness app rumored is said to be a big part of the iWatch rollout.
If you’re a bit paranoid about putting all your stuff on the cloud, how about your own? Bgr.com reports that a Kickstarter called Sherlybox lets you create a personal cloud, and control everything about it. It’ll cost $149 for the setup, and you bring your own drive! What if you run out of room, you say? No worries, it supports up to 127 external USB drives!
Cnet.com says that within a year, police forensics could tell how old a fingerprint is! The work is being done at Netherlands Forensics Institute. They are accurate from 1 to 2 days if the print is less than 15 days old.
Getting a Break From Replacing Broken USB Cords
Posted: May 5, 2014 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AMOLED, Galaxy Tab, iOS 7, Kickstarter, USB Leave a commentIf, like most people, you have USB charging cords you have to shake or wiggle to use because of a break, there’s a Kickstarter cord called Snakable coming out in August. Techcrunch.com says its articulated at the ends where wires usually break, it comes in micro USB and Thunderbolt, will have several color options, and will be $30.
Heads up if you use Apple’s iOS 7. Zdnet.com reports that a researcher has found a bug, and your email attachments are NOT encrypted at rest, as Apple has claimed. No word on when the patch will be out, but Apple has now said they’re working on it.
9to5google.com says Samsung’s next tablet will be called the Galaxy Tab S and have a hi-resolution AMOLED display and a fingerprint scanner like the Galaxy S5 smartphone. It’s expected in 10.5 and 8.4 inch versions, with two color options…Titanium Grey and Shimmer White.
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