Does hip, techy lingo confuse you? Do you wish you were more techno-savvy without delving into the realm of motherboard circuit confusion? That’s why I’m here. This blog focuses on testing the waters. I’ll share what cool, new gadgetry I’ve come in contact with and bridge that learning gap with ideas on what’s really useful, what’s cool and what’s really not.
Wearable Music
So it’s cold and you’re walking around New York City. You want to listen to music so people stop trying to hand you pamphlets, but it’s super difficult in mittens and you really don’t want to take them off. What you really need is this winter beanie hat.
For $30 you can have a hat that comes with an mp3 with 6 hours of battery life. It docks straight to the hat which has its own set of ear phones. Hopefully the hat holds the earphones, as well as the player, well in place.
Cell Phone Tagging
Have you ever lost your cell phone? If you said no, you’re probably lying. I lost mine once and didn’t find it again until after I’d put money into a new one. Wish I’d had the Cobra tag then.
The cobra tag is a small bluetooth device (pocket sized) that you carry around with your cell phone. If you lose one they get separation anxiety and start to beep. Smart right? Better than finding out the phone’s missing when you get home. I don’t know what happens if you lose both though …
Be Your Own Batman
The Armstar looks like it got ripped off the sleeve of the Christopher Nolan Batman costume. It’s probably even handier than the prop they use in the movie though.
The Armstar was created to prevent mountain lion attacks (oddly enough). It has a 300,000-volt stunner and a video camera, flashlight, and iphone doc. Oh yeah, and it’s made out of Kevlar. If you’re not wrestling mountain lions, I’m sure the Armstar has other uses too.
Crypteks
There are all sorts of USB flash drives today. There are tiny ones, star wars ones, water resistant ones, secure ones. Well this may be the most secure flash drive yet.
The Crypteks USB comes with encryption and, wait for it, a combination lock. That’s right, to get at your data someone will first need to get through the solid aluminum alloy cylinder by twisting five tumblers on the case to line up your correct pass code. Good luck finding that out. Let just hope people use more creative passwords than they usually do on computers. The Crypteks comes in 4, 8, and 16 GB.
Time in Your Pocket
Pocket watches are classy and old school. They were the ultimate gadget a long long time ago. Still, today they can be pretty cool. I like the ones with buttons so they flip open to reveal the analog display within.
For those of you not as easily impressed with analog there’s a new pocket watch by Tokyoflash. It’s got the same chain and pocket design with an updates face for our tech infused world. With an LCD display that can show different time zones, dates, alarms, and an animation for regular time this is a step forward in classy pocket time pieces. The colors are awesome.
Recell
Skin grafts have been around, but they take time and don’t always heal without scarring. Now, at least in Europe, Australia, and Canada, you can try spray on skin instead.
Recell grows replacement skin from a patients skin cells (so there’s no chance or rejecting the new skin) and then uses a nozzle to spray the cells on the new area. Cells can be grown in under an hour. Recell is still facing clinical investigation in the United States, but here’s hoping it gets approved and works as well as it sounds.
Where’s it Going?
So you’re sitting outside in the sun with your head back and suddenly you catch site of a plane. You wonder, wow, is that plane going to Europe? Hawaii? Or just a stop over in Detroit? Now you can find out, if you really want to know. Wolfram Alpha (a computational knowledge engine, like a search engine) can tell you.
It will look at your geoIP (geolocation) and tell you what planes are actually overhead. It’s a bit like stalking and a bit creepy, but at least it’s informative. Now you can fell bad or envious of those travelers who can still afford to go places.
Solar Keys
So I have a laptop, but my Dad has a desktop. With this desktop he has a wireless keyboard. Great, right? Problem is, the thing can, and does, run out of batteries. That’s super unhelpful when you’re in the middle of something. Logitech thinks they’ve found a solution.
For $80 you can get the Logitech solar keyboard. The keyboard can get power from both indoor and outdoor light, so it works even in dark office spaces and tech caves. It also comes with an app so you can monitor the power your keyboard has or may need. Good idea? I think so.
iAccessorize
The iPad is great for kids, but sometimes it’s no fun to share with them. They get fingerprints all over the place and all they want to play is angry birds. Well, now there’s hope for new games.
The iPawn is a game piece (there are many varieties, including pawns, ladders, and air hockey paddles) that interacts with the iPad screen. Basically, instead of dragging your finger over the screen to move you can play old school style with actual pieces, that still activate the iPad game animations. These pieces are not just tokens sitting on top of the screen, but actually activate the games the same way your finger would. It’d extra pieces to lose, but it’s also a different way to play and a new way to keep kids, and adults, interested. Each iPawn will set you back about $16.
iGame
The iPad does everything these days (except make phone calls, that’s still the iPhone). It has all sorts of accessories and now is an accessory itself.
GameChanger is a board game that needs an iPad add on to play. You can play either on either an animal board or a magic school bus board. You can download new rules and questions to keep games fresh. Dock the iPad to the game board and play through digital dice rolls and animations. Don’t just play games on the iPad, play games with the iPad. It’s a great start to what could be a growing trend. It’s still more expensive than a regular board game at $80, and that doesn’t include the iPad you also have to own.
