Category Archives: Accessories

Audio Technica shows off new headset lineup

Accessories, CES 2014, Home, Wireless

audio-technicaAudio Technica, as the name implies, is in the business of, well, audio products. Now the company is showing off its latest range of headphones, beginning with the standard ear-buds that most of us use daily. The new model is designed to conform to the user, and also includes an in-line microphone to handle those pesky telephone calls as well. It even utilizes a unique volume control that makes it cross-platform compatible — a concession to Apple’s proprietary controls.

The company also trots out its new gaming headset. This is an over-ear style, with a microphone built into it. That new model, the first gaming headset from Audio Technica, is based on the AudioPhile line, and that name alone should explain the quality here. You can find out more by visiting the site, and also watching the video below.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network

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YellowJacket unveils a shocking new phone case

Accessories, Auto, CES 2014, Mobile

yellowjacketIt’s the sad nature of today’s world that brings many people to feel a need to carry protection, such as mace and tasers. Now YellowJacket is aiming to make protection a bit easier to carry along when you are out and about.

This one comes in the form of a rather average looking smartphone case. The difference is two tiny metal prongs protruding from the top which emit an electrical charge when the button is pushed. It’s a two-part case, with an inner one for normal use and protection of your phone, but the outer case can be added when heading out the door.

It is current available for iPhone 4 and 5 only, but a version for the Samsung Galaxy S5 will available soon. The case retails for $149.99. It is officially called the StunGun Case, and you can find more by visiting YellowJacket.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network

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Flir FX Portable Interchangeable Wi-Fi Camera

Accessories, Cameras, CES 2014, Video, Wireless

Flir FX CameraFlir made the news at CES with its personal thermal imaging device for the iPhone but the company does a whole range of imaging devices, including the Flir FX, a portable interchangeable wi-fi video camera. Todd gets further illumination from John Distelzweig of Flir.

The Flir FX is a fundamentally a webcam running 1080p over wi-fi, but that’s largely where the similarity with other products end. The Flir FX unusually has an internal battery, giving it greater portability than most similar products and the main camera unit can be slotted into different mounts, converting from a home webcam into sports video camera or an outdoor security camera, depending on the exterior case used. It’s really very cool.

The Flir FX will be available in late spring with an MSRP $249 and you can put your name down to be notified .

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network.

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ThingCharger Eliminates Cable Clutter

Accessories, CES 2014, Gadgets, Home

ThingChargerDevice chargers are the bane of modern life with a complete rat’s nest of cables and connectors behind the average desk. Todd chats to Seymour Segnit from ThingCharger about their Indiegogo campaign for a cord-free charger.

The ThingCharger plugs directly into a power socket, with the device’s charging connector on the top of the unit, and pass-thru power outlets meaning that you don’t lose the socket but even more cunningly, you can stack the ThingCharger to charge multiple devices at the same time.

A range of interchangeable charging connectors – Apple 30-pin, Micro-USB, Mini-USB, Apple Lightning – will be available so that different devices can be charged from the same charger and cleverly, the connectors can be stored in the ThingCharger so they’re much harder to lose. It’s brilliant all round, so much so that ThingCharger raised nearly $650,000 against a £25,000 target.

ThingCharger is expected to be available in Q3 of 2014 and you can now for $29.95.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network.

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Livescribe 3 Smart Pen

Accessories, CES 2014, Gadgets, Home, Wireless

Livescribe 3

Writing is one of humankind’s greatest inventions and it’s no surprise that despite the arrival of typewriters, keyboards, mice and voice recognition, most people just write stuff down in notebooks or on bits of paper. That doesn’t easily transfer into a digital record but Livescribe reckon that they have a solution to this problem with their digital pens. Todd takes notes with Brian Kemp.

Livescribe have a long history in this space, and their latest digital pen, the Livescribe 3, continues the tradition. Using specially printed notebooks, a tiny camera installed in the pen tracks the path of the pen across the page, converting the motion into handwriting that is then transferred to a nearby Apple iPad or iPhone using Bluetooth.

Once the writing is in the iPad app, you can then starting doing clever things, such as adding contacts to your address book or dialling phone numbers. An Android version is expected later in the year.

The Livescribe 3 is available now for $150 with notebooks retailing at around $25 for a pack of 4. The price of paper products varies depending on size and style.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network.

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Switch Lighting

Accessories, CES 2014, Gadgets, Home

Switchlighting Switch Lighting was the winner of CES Innovation Award for Design and Engineering Award a CES 2013 for their latest LED three-way bulb,

What makes the Switch bulbs special is that they are filled with liquid silicon. This helps to keep them cooler than most LED bulbs. Because they are cooler the Switch lighting bulbs can be used in places that other LED bulbs can not like enclosed areas. Switch bulbs work like an incandescent light bulb, they are dimmable and spread the light out broadly. The newest bulb that won the award is the first three-way LED bulb.

Switch is based in California.

Their bulbs range from $40.00-$60.00 and are available through speciality retail store. Their bulbs should last up to twenty-five years and are recyclable. At this time Switch Lighting mainly sells to businesses and government organizations.

Interview by Jeffrey Powers of Geekazine and by Scott Ertz of F5 Live.

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Omnimount Ergonomic TV Mounts

Accessories, CES 2014, Home, Video

Omnimount Omnimount the maker of ergonomic furniture is now making ergonomic TV mounts. The Omnimount mount for TVs allows a television to be moved easily up, down, forward and backward. If you are sitting on the floor you can lower the TV so that you are not craning your neck to watch it. The mount is also extendable so you can bring the TV closer to you. The mount can be extended out up to 28 inches. These mounts would be perfect for people who want to mount their television sets over their fireplace. The problem with this idea is that it leads to the viewer having to look up to watch it which is uncomfortable and unhealthy. With the Omnimount mount you can still place the TV over the fire-place and then bring it down when you want to watch it.

The mounts can handle monitors up to seventy pounds and come in various sizes. Mounts that handle smaller TV monitors are available now and those that can handle bigger monitors should be available soon at an MSRP of $449.00.

Interview by Jeffrey Powers of Geekazine.

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Griffin Technology Introduces the PowerMate Bluetooth and the Merchant Square Case

Accessories, CES 2014, Video

Griffin Technology showed off two items at CES 2014. The PowerMate Bluetooth and the Merchant Square Case .

The PowerMate Bluetooth is a programmable device which connects to your Mac through Bluetooth. It can be programmed to control various applications. You can use it to control volume, scrub through video, play and stop music and much more. You can program up to six different functions or key commands. It will be available sometime this summer for $59.99.

Merchant Square Case

The Merchant Square Case is a joint effort with Square. It is a case made specifically to work with the Square Card Reader. When in use the Square Card Reader fits snugly into the case. This prevents Square Card reader from moving when you go to swipe a card. It also has a grove to guide the card into the reader. Once you are done using the reader, you can store it in the back of the case, so you never lose it. The Merchant Square Case is available now for $19.99.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network.

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Luiqipel discusses its latest smartphone protection

Accessories, CES 2014, Gadgets

luiqipelLuiqipel, as the name implies, is the company who waterproofs your phone. But now it has taken things a bit further, attempting to prevent other damage as well.

Impacts? Screen scratches? Those are two areas the company is focusing upon. The latest technology is a think film that may look like it’s close to nothing, but actually provides the damage control that customers are looking for, both from drops and encounters with keys in pocket or purse. The company claims that a screen can survive a four foot drop of a steel ball upon it. There’s a demo of the latest product, and you’ll need to watch the video below to get a look. You can visit Liquipel to learn more.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network

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Kiwi Wearable Technology

Accessories, Cameras, CES 2014, Mobile, Video

kiwiwearableKiwi Wearables is wearable technology that can be clipped on or worn on the wrist. It works with both bluetooth and wi-fi. The device can interact with both your phone and connected devices within your home network. It has motion, temperature, magnetic and barometer sensors. The Kiwi Wearable also includes a microphone which listens to the environment around the users. The users can also use the microphone to issue commands. You can also issue commands using custom designed gestures. In the video on the website, the user writes an S in mid-air and brings up her Shazam app to identify the song playing over the loud-speaker. The device is not waterproof, but it is something that they are working on. The API is open to developers. The Kiwi Wearable will come in white, silver and black and should be shipping in July. It will be $125 plus shipping. I have to say I am really curious about this device and I am thinking about preordering one. I only hope that it works as advertise

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network.

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