Get Trekz Titanium to 1000% Funding & Maybe Win Big

Posted on October 15, 2015 by geelw

While the Indiegogo campaign is already funded, the fine folks behind Aftershokz: Trekz Bone Conduction Headphones want to go for the gold by reaching 1000% before the day is done. Therefore, they’ve added a nice new perk I’d call “Bribery by Chocolate”, but they call a Titanium Ticket. Here’s the deal:

Pledge $10 and get a SHOKZ Chocolate Bar (which will ship out in December) which not only gets you into a drawing to win a fantastic prize, it may make you an INSTANT winner if that bar has one of five Titanium Tickets inside. Shades of Willy Wonka with a slight delay, folks! The more bars you buy, the greater your chances, although if you’re a total chocoholic who needs that fix NOW you may want to sock away some Halloween candy while you wait for your SHOKZ to arrive.

The five Titanium Ticket winners will get one Trekz Titanium plus one of the following prizes (winner’s choice): Apple Watch, iPad Mini or Next-Gen Gaming Console (Xbox One, PS4, Wii U).

As for those headphones, the words “Bone Conduction” got my interest piqued, so here’s what that is (because it’s always good to learn something new every damn day):

Trekz Titanium™ use bone conduction technology to transmit audio waves to the inner ears through the skull, bypassing the eardrums completely. Place them on your cheekbones, just in front of your ears. This leaves your ear canals open, allowing you to remain alert and aware of ambient sounds while you enjoy your music or tune in to calls.

Get it? Got it? Good. Now, go help these guys and gals make their over-target goal and maybe you’ll be a big winner of some awesome stuff while you’re at it.

Bracketron’s SmartCord Sling Bag: A Portable Attention Hog

Posted on August 13, 2015 by geelw

A short while back I got one of Bracketron’s cool SmartCord Sling Bags ($24.99) to take for a spin and it’s been an amusing time going places with it and getting unsolicited comments and responses. The bag itself is a small messenger style tote with an adjustable shoulder strap and five storage pockets that allow for a small tablet and/or phone or other device to fit comfortably inside. While it’s well-designed and almost nondescript (form and function blend well here), it’s definitely going to be that fluorescent yellow (or white, depending on which one you order) ear bud storage bubble on the outside of the bag that gets people talking… Continue reading →

#TBT Retro Freak: Cyber Gadget’s Time Machine Console May Be Your New Best Buddy

Posted on June 25, 2015 by geelw

I’d heard of the Retro Freak console a little while back but paid it little mind thanks to all the hype over Hyperkin’s RetroN 5 as well as the fact that there are too many other hybrid consoles out there vying for your retro gaming dollars. Now that I’ve read a bit more about it thanks to an email alert from Play-Asia, my eyebrow is up in a very good way. I think I want one of these at some point because I have a ton of games here for nearly every console it can play. The RF isn’t inexpensive at all, but that’s a good thing provided it does everything it’s supposed to.

Releasing in September are two models, Standard and Premium with the latter coming with a controller adapter that allows for Famicom, Super Famicom, Sega Genesis, and TurboGrafx controllers to be used. The big draw for many will be not only the 11 consoles the RF plays games for (Famicom, Super Famicom/SNES, Mega Drive/Genesis, PC Engine, TurboGrafx-16, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Color, and Supergrafx), but the fact that the unit can rip and install all games from cartridges onto the console via SD card. In addition there’s an HDMI output, 720p upscaling, instant saving and even cheat codes for certain games.

I’d imagine those who can afford this will be snapping them up via pre-orders anywhere they’re going to be sold. Some will wait until the thing gets a few positive reviews though, but it’s all good at the end of the day for those with big collections who don’t want to keep too many consoles around their TV’s.

Japan Gets All The Cool Stuff: Remote Controlled R2-D2 Fridge

Posted on June 12, 2015 by geelw

Okay, I want one of these just so I can see if it’s keeping those cold drinks cold because it’s using Carbonite and not deadly freon gas. I’d imagine Carbonite is somewhat non-toxic given that Han Solo went into the deep freeze long sleep encased in that stuff. On the other hand, it’s probably going to be really hard to open whatever beverage you pop into R2 if it comes out encased in a solid block of cold blackness. Hmmm… maybe this is an Empire plot, folks:

(thanks, love meme!

Anyway, this cool fridge is currently only coming out in Japan at some point this year from Haier’s Japanese branch, but I’d imagine demand for R2 will be high enough that some will end up being imported by those hardcore Star Wars collectors who want EVERYTHING, damn the shipping fees (which will probably cost more than the unit itself).

And hey! Just for fun, here’s a nifty and informative Star Wars infographic that popped into my inbox as this post was being typed. Thanks, Morphsuits!

A Powerskin Pop’n For A Penny? GRAB IT!

Posted on May 14, 2015 by geelw

If you’re in need of a great little hybrid phone charger for your iPhone or Andrioid phone, Powerskin has a NICE deal ready for you. But only if you act FAST. You can grab a Powerskin PoP’n portable charger for a PENNY plus shipping ($9.99), a great deal because these babies usually go for $49.99 at retail.

All you need to do is click HERE, pick ONE and check out using the code ONECENT. That’s that. The big caveat is this deal is for Continental US residents ONLY and of course is limited to ONE per person. Hey, Powerskin doesn’t want you opening up an eBay shop to try and rake in a profit on their great deal, now. Anyway, you’re buying one of these, right? RIGHT? I thought so. You were busy ordering one and missed that question is all…

CHIP: Anyone Want a $9 Computer? Oh, You ALL Do? Fine, Then!

Posted on May 12, 2015 by geelw

Well, wow. Of course, it’s not REALLY a $9 computer if you have no idea it requires more than taking it out of its tiny box and plugging it in before you realize that you probably need a monitor, keyboard and a decent connection to use it. Also, Bluetooth controllers aren’t cheap the last time I checked. So if you get this for game playing purposes and haven’t an idea of what a decent controller costs, look that up first before you grab your own Chip.

But there’s little doubt that a LOT of those 20,000+ backers on this Kickstarter project know these facts. That and there are a few Chip models that cost a bit to a lot more than $9 that come with that screen, keyboard and monitor. I’m highly intrigued by this particular project, but as I’m always broke, I won’t be nabbing one of these until it’s ready for retail and all the bugs are flattened out. It’ll likely be used for games and maybe learning to program stuff (something I’ve always wanted to do because I have game ideas not thought of or done right yet). Anyway, these are exciting times aren’t they? Unless you’re lazy and want everything handed to you on a silver platter, of course.

Review: Amzer Stando Universal Tablet Stand

Posted on May 2, 2015 by geelw

You had ONE job to do, Stando… and you do it REALLY well. If you’ve poked around looking for one you probably know that tablet stands are a dime a dozen these days. Or more precisely, feel like they cost a dime a dozen to make. Some look great but tend to be flimsy, fall forward pieces of junk not worth sending back because the shipping probably costs more than the price paid. Amzer’s Stando laughs in the face of those cheap stands by being more than worth its $39.99 price tag. It’s stylish, stable and dirt simple to use for anyone interested in getting their 7 to 11-inch tablet to act as a handier (and hand-less) video player or other useful option.

There’s nothing fancy about the Stando other than the name, but this is a great thing. Out of the box it takes a few seconds to set up thanks to an intuitive design. A bend to get it open, a simple expanding of the arms to hold your tablet of choice by two corners, a bit of adjusting to your preferred viewing height (and maybe a spin to see it rotates that device a full 360 degrees) that’s that. The weighted base is perfect and even some heavy table banging for test purposes didn’t dislodge the tight grip the rubberized arms held on my tablet. I’d bet a dollar that nice clicking sound Stando makes when you adjust it was engineered in on purpose. It lends a “mechanical” sounding element to the holder as well as gets the attention of anyone in the immediate vicinity. That’s also not a bad thing as during my outdoor test at a nearby diner a few people came up to check out the Stando and ask where I got it.

As the unit is made for a single task, don’t expect anything like a USB power charger built into the base or a fancy carry bag. That said, the unit is designed so your device’s charger slot and other useful ports and buttons are always within reach. Stando will fit tablets that have one of Amzer’s silicone Jelly Cases protecting it with the same grippy relish it holds an uncased unit. This is one of those products that works so well there are no real complaints to make so it’s easy to recommend. It’s even sturdy enough to be somewhat kid-friendly provided your kid has been very well schooled in tablet handling and knows the difference between a gentle tap/swipe motion and cat-pawing a tablet to the floor. Some kids get this, some don’t – you’re mileage may vary.

Bottom line, for that $39.99, you’re getting a fantastic product that will last through many years of usage, is travel friendly and just may become your tablet’s best friend. Amzer’s got a winner here for tablet owners looking for quite possibly the best tablet stand to date. Grab one and make you flimsy stand owning friends quite jealous.

Score: A

“What Do People Do All Day?” DAF Edition!

Posted on April 24, 2015 by geelw

Ah, memories. Anyway, it’s been an intense and stupid week for me, but at least I got other stuff done besides grow a few new gray hairs from all that annoying tech nonsense.

In honor of one of my favorite books from my childhood (that you should buy whether or not you have kids of your own), here’s what I did of note on a few days this week:

I made a nice pizza on Monday. I also got a nicer new phone, but that’s an ongoing post in the making as far as getting some stuff sorted out before I can activate the damn thing.

I got some stuff to review including three more excellent Blu-Rays from Arrow Video (thanks, Clint!) and a nifty tablet stand that’s actually pretty cool.

Speaking of movies, the greatest book I’ve read (this month) also arrived for me to review. You should buy a copy just for the cover alone. Okay, the insides are great as well.

I found some cool original Kenner Star Wars stuff when I was looking for something else in a bin of lots of something else. Yeah, I’ve kept a few of the things I’ve bought from when I was younger. Not enough of them, sadly.

I played a bunch of new and old games I’d been needing to get to. That’s Elminage Original, a PSP and Vita RPG very much in the Wizardry vein that initially had a lousy English localization until a patch over half the size of the full game cleaned things up considerably.

Some other stuff is on the way or has arrived, but you don’t need to know about a box of packing tape, some razors and a few other mundane items. Okay, back to poring over my email and figuring out what sort of time machine I need to build in order to catch up to the workload backlog. Or I can avoid that rabbit hole fantasizing and just get back to the grind. Yeah, that’s the ticket. Off to get some sleep now. I’ll be back in a few hours after waking up and soaking my eyeballs in a cup of coffee. Or trying out the Uptime energy drinks I got in the post last week to write about. Hmmm… there’s an angle right there to work, right?

#TBT: The Perfect Storm Knocks Me For A Temporary Tech-less Loop

Status

Let’s see now:

My laptop’s power supply blew out very early Sunday morning while doing a backup to an external drive and some article writing (whee!), and in the mad scramble to recheck/restore stuff and order a new power supply I lost a ton of mostly old data (whee!), game saves and I think some pieces of digital art (whee!). Normally, I’d just shift my workload over to the desktop, but the other two PC’s here are dead. One has been for a while and the other was running when the power went out and now won’t boot up properly at all. (Whee!).

I’m also having some pesky issues with getting the new phone I got up and running, and one of the consoles I just had repaired a few weeks back un-repaired itself in a spectacular, noisy fashion. I think all of that counts as five impossible things happening before breakfast. Amusingly enough, thanks to all the password changes I’ve done so far this year, the only ones I recalled off the top of my frazzled head were my PayPal, bank and ebay accounts (all of which came in handy as some old books and games I’d posted sold and needed to be shipped out). Just so you know, Whenever I change my passwords I email a few of my email accounts with the updates just to have a few places to check should I need to. Of course, forgetting one’s email account passwords and/or log in info doesn’t help (*beet!*), but I just KNOW you’ve done this as well.

In the midst of all that nonsense… I got a LOAD of stuff to review from a few nice folks. Thank you, nice folks! In the meantime, I’ve been taking notes longhand while waiting for that replacement power supply to arrive and pretty much having as much fun as I can traveling back in time to 1995 as I could under such short notice. That power supply got here just fine about a half hour ago, so I’m now back in action. A little crazier and busier than usual and nope, not having enjoyed my unexpected “vacation” one bit. Granted, I did get kind of lazy at one point on Monday evening, crawling into bed to play catch up all that rest I missed over the long weekend of worrying about whether I was going to be needing a new laptop or not. Well, I do kind of need a new one, but I just can’t afford a replacement at the moment.

Anyway, how’s YOUR week going? Back in a bit. I just glanced at my inboxes and think I have something like 3000 emails to read and a lot less to respond to (thankfully). Eeek.

Apple Watch Gold: Go Save Some Hungry Orphans Instead.

Posted on March 9, 2015 by geelw

Hey, it’s ONLY $10,000. Not including mandatory iPhone 6 so it actually works (!), service contract and whatever other other Apple charges they hit you with. Hell, if I’m paying that much for a watch (and I’m not), that thing better make me Dick Tracy on his Two-Way Wrist Radio (and later, Two-Way Wrist TV!) AND have a battery I can change myself. AND a damn protective case. The thing the I dislike so much about Apple products is for all the ads touting innovation and creativity and how awesome they make every aspect of your Apple life seem, treating the consumer like a dope who can’t swap out their own dead batteries (or maybe download a new OS on an older phone no longer supported even if it still works PERFECTLY) is just too condescending.

Imagine a car you HAD to drive all the way (or have towed) back to the dealership when you got a flat tire, needed wiper fluid or something else anyone an learn to do if they apply themselves. Sure, some people are total tech wipe-outs when it comes to maintenance. But not all of us who want a battery we can swap out are pirates, hackers, or whatever else Apple seems to be scared of. It’s a damn good thing they don’t make flashlights or toilet paper holders, people. Although, I hear there’s some sort of vehicle in development, so perhaps that flat tire and washer fluid thing WILL happen sooner that later. Damn technology is turning us all into Weebles and we don’t give a rat’s ass about it.

Eh, whatever. This thing will sell out all over from the basic model to this exorbitant golf truffle bar supremo. Perhaps I can go scout out a space in line at an Apple Store in NYC and make a mint selling that space to someone who REALLY wants this or any other Apple Watch? Well, I’d do that if I didn’t have more interesting things to tackle. That and I’m not THAT koo-koo (even thought I’m sure I’d make a nice chunk of change)…