Category Archives: Accessories

Ninu Perfume creates unique scents for different occasions @ CES 2021

February 6, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Homeces2021, connected device, gadgets, personalPLUGHITZ Live

Ninu Perfume smart perfume system Modern technology has led to a new concept of individualized experiences. The concept can range from small, home breweries or distilleries, to automated drink mixers. These experiences have begun to branch out, with the latest one coming to us, care of Ninu Perfume, a connected device that allows you to create your own custom scents.

Ninu Perfume is taking the standard concept of perfume or cologne and making it personal. And, it’s not just personal to you, the wearer – it is personal to your current state. Consider the experience of going on a date. For that, you might want something bold. If the date is with someone you know well, perhaps you want to integrate something you know they like. However, if you are going for a job interview, you might want something subtle.

Within the app, you can choose between environments, such as move, work, and love. Rather than category, you can also choose between moods, like fresh, sexy, or elegant. Based on your choices, the system’s AI can build a scent based on your preferences. Then, the app connects to the device, which mixes the scent.

The device itself uses a sustainable refill system, which allows you to maintain the different components that are used to produce the final scents. The components have been tested to be safe to the skin and are 100% vegan. Using those components, the device mixes the scent that was designed for your mood and environment. If something is created that does not match your style or preferences, you can alert the system so that it learns what is and is not something you like.

The Ninu Perfume has been developed, and will be entering crowdfunding through Kickstarter soon. To learn more or sign up for notifications, you can head to the company’s website.

Interview by Christopher Jordan of The Talking Sound.

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Acconeer’s small radar sensors can create new experiences @ CES 2021

February 6, 2021Accessories, Auto, CES 2021, Gadgets, Homeces2021, gadgets, radar, sensorsPLUGHITZ Live

Acconeer radar sensor Radar-based technology has been around for decades but has seen massive changes. In particular, the size of the sensor arrays has shrunk in ways that are nearly impossible to imagine. Originally, radar sensors required huge dishes mounted on towers or domes around military installations. Today, thanks to Acconeer, these sensors are so small you can barely see one in the video.

This accomplishment by Acconeer is significant for a number of reasons. Of course, the accomplishment of making it small is, in itself, impressive. However, the really cool aspect is what is possible because of the size of the sensors. With large arrays, we were able to detect planes during World War 2. With the small arrays, we can accomplish equally impressive tasks for everyday life.

On the company’s website, they have a number of impressive demos for the technology. One of these demos is passenger detection in vehicles, which is a problem we’ve seen a lot in the past few years. Being able to detect if someone is in a vehicle, particularly children with no adult, could potentially save lives. The presence detection capability could be applied outside of a car, howe3ver, and make home security sensors more accurate, smaller, and more power-efficient.

Another interesting demo scenario surrounds liquids. These small sensors could be used to detect tank levels, in your water heater or even your gas tank. In the latter instance, the idea of a contactless sensor could end the common scenario of not trusting the gas gauge because it varies based on the angle of the car. Not having to rely on floating sensors means that the readings could be more accurate.

There are more examples of where these tiny sensors could be used. If you have an idea and would like to learn more or engage with Acconeer, check out their website.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central.

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Package Clipper wants to protect your deliveries from theft @ CES 2021

February 6, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Homeces2021, delivery, gadgets, theftPLUGHITZ Live

Package Clipper protector These days, package theft is a huge issue. Chances are, you or someone you know has had at least one item stolen off of the front porch. We have even had a review product stolen from our office after being delivered. The problem gets worse year over year, and it has been incredibly difficult to solve. Fortunately, Package Protector is here with a simple and effective solution – Package Clipper.

We’ve seen companies with products to help with this problem before. But, in general, the solutions involve either laying down concrete or mounting something to the ground or wall. While this may work for some people, there are large collections of people who don’t have this option. For example, if you live in an apartment, condo, or an HOA with strong regulations, the chances of mounting a large box to place packages into are unlikely. Even if you can install something large, you may not want to because it can be unattractive.

Package Clipper has a very small base that can be mounted unobtrusively by your front door. Rather than being a box, it has clips at the end of leads that clip onto boxes or envelopes once delivered. Once clipped, the system is armed, and removing the clip sets off an alarm. Being a connected device, you can also get an alarm while away from home, via your phone.

Of course, the biggest challenge is getting the delivery drivers to actually use the Package Clipper. The company’s solution to this issue is Package Tipper, which gives the recipient the ability to tip their driver for using the system. The driver simply scans the QR code on the base unit with the driver’s app, which lets you know it’s been delivered, and gives you the ability to send a tip to the driver.

The Package Clipper is expected to enter crowdfunding in quarter 2 of 2021 with an expected retail cost of $69.99. For more information, check out the company’s website.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central.

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Alango’s Wear and Hear products improve hearing and health @ CES 2021

February 3, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Entertainment, Mobileaging, audio, ces2021, gadgets, hearingPLUGHITZ Live

Alango Wear and Hear Dr. Alexander Goldin is the founder and CEO of Alango Technologies, a 20-year-old Israeli company that specializes in personalized digital hearing amplification systems. If you use hands-free technology in your vehicle, wireless earbuds, or a speakerphone for business meetings, there’s a good chance, says Dr. Goldin, that you are using Alango technology. At CES 2021, Dr. Goldin joined us to talk about Alango’s own line of products called Wear & Hear.

Millions of communication products worldwide utilize Alango’s digital signal processing software, which aim to improve the quality of voice communication and audio experience in a variety of environments by providing high-quality noise cancellation, enhancing speech, and dynamically equalizing signal volume and spectrum in real-time response to dynamic acoustic conditions. Their devices can also improve health, by improving hearing, says Dr. Goldin.

Recent studies show that untreated hearing loss is the surprising leading cause of dementia in adults, increasing the chances of dementia by 8%, well above other risk factors. With 15% of the population suffering some degree of hearing loss, which also contributes to a number of other health and social problems, Alango’s Wear and Hear line of personalized hearing amplifiers hopes to improve health and well-being while bringing clarity of sound to the user.

Wear and Hear devices are disguised as Bluetooth communications headsets, stereo headsets, and other similar consumer electronics products. The first product they introduced at CES this year is an upgraded version of their CES 2020 Innovation Technology winner, the BeHear Access . The latest iteration of this device has several new features including Improved directivity and own-voice reduction that reduces the volume of the user’s voice in the headset.

Alango also has a new multifunctional Neck Speaker that can be used to perform personal hearing evaluations, includes attached earbuds to function as a personal sound amplification device, and can work as a speaker phone in conferencing situations.

The BeHear Access retails for $349 – 10x less than the cost of traditional hearing aids – and the neck speaker $189.

To learn more, visit the company’s website.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central.

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Lasso Loop closes the recycling loop for homeowners @ CES 2021

February 1, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Homeces2021, gadgets, home, recyclePLUGHITZ Live

Lasso Loop home recycling Stuart Chater, communications manager for Lasso Loop Recycling, joined us from Sydney, Australia for CES 2020.

Lasso Loop is a two-year-old company that aims to make the recycling process more elegant and efficient for homeowners, right at the source. Traditional recycling involves transporting recyclables from residences to a sorting facility, where a small percentage of material is closed-loop recycled. Lasso Loop aims for 100% of residential recyclables to enter into the closed-loop cycle, where they can be transformed into products of the same quality as the original.

The biggest issue with the current system, says Chater, is contamination, which renders material unusable in a high-quality product. Lasso Loop overcomes that problem by sensing at the source, whether in a home or office, to detect the type of material an item is composed of so it can be kept in the right stream. For example, if an item is made of PET plastic it stays in the PET plastic stream, if it’s clear glass, it stays in the glass stream, and so forth.

After material detection, the item is washed and cleaned, a critical step many people skip. After that, the material is ground – plastic is flaked, metal is shredded, and glass is crushed – and then the ground material is stored inside the Lasso Loop container as a pure industry-standard product, ready for high-quality reuse.

The company aims to have its first full prototype completed this year, and the first retail model available in 2022. The appliance will be about the size of a dishwasher, weigh around 260 lbs, use no more than 2 liters of water daily, and will process materials in about 15 minutes.

Visit the company website for more information, and to reserve your own Lasso Loop appliance when the final version is released.

Interview by Christopher Jordan of The Talking Sound.

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iWONDERCOOK takes the hassle out of preparing a fresh meal @ CES 2021

January 30, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Gadgets, Homeces2021, connected home, gadgets, kitchen, robot, roboticsPLUGHITZ Live

After a long day at work, whether you’re working from the office or working from home, sometimes the energy or interest to cook dinner can be limited. For some, it means going and getting fast food. For others, it means jumping on an app and ordering delivery. But, if you are lucky enough to have an iWONDERCOOK, you don’t have to have fast food or order out, and you don’t have to expend the energy to cook.

iWONDERCOOK is a small robotic chef that is designed for your personal kitchen. It is about the size of a consumer 3D printer and even follows similar principles. The design of the meal is done beforehand, and the required materials are prepared and shipped to your house. To cook the pre-packed but not prepared meal, you scan the barcode on the package and place the ingredients in the machine. Then, in about 15 minutes, return to the machine and plate your food. That’s all there is to it. In fact, during the conversation, Michael Lemberg cooked and plated a meal on camera.

The way it works behind the scenes is similar to some of the meal kits, but with an easy and robotic twist. The company sources the ingredients to support the recipes in its system. They then clean, cut, and pack those ingredients into containers, split by meal. They ship those packets to you, which contains the general ingredients, sauces, and spices. So far, a tried and true model. The difference, of course, is that you don’t need a printed recipe with preparation and cooking processes. Instead, just scan, cook, and walk away. You don’t even have to deal with cleanup, as the machine takes care of that (except for your plate and silverware).

Because of delivery requirements, iWONDERCOOK is currently limited to the New York area. If you are interested in learning more about the product, check out the website.

Interview by Daniele Mendez of The New Product Launchpad.

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WooBloo SMASH puts a smart projector anywhere you need it @ CES 2021

January 29, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Entertainmentalexa, assistant, ces2021, gadgets, projectorPLUGHITZ Live

WooBloo SMASH smart projector The last 12 months has created an interesting new reliance on entertainment. Being locked in our homes has forced us to look for new ways to spend our free time. A lot of it has driven us onto services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video because there are large libraries of content to help us survive downtime. But, for many people, this has forced them to watch a lot of content on small screens, like phones, tablets, or laptop screens. WooBloo has a new product, called SMASH, which will help with that limitation.

The WooBloo SMASH is a small, portable high definition smart projector. Because of the wireless capabilities, you can take it into any room of the house and watch your content. Take it into the living room and watch a high-profile movie together, or take it into your bedroom and watch a TV show by yourself. You can even take it into the kitchen and use it to cook with your kids, using tutorial videos on the wall.

Unlike other smart projectors we’ve seen, SMASH has removed the biggest limitation on those platforms – software availability. This is because SMASH allows you to use Airplay and Chromecast to push content from your phone, tablet, or computer directly to the screen. In addition, the projector has an HDMI port to allow you to bring other devices, like gaming consoles and streaming sticks, onto the screen. But, you can also get in-built applications to reduce the strain on your other devices.

When WooBloo SMASH is not in use as a projector, it can also be used as a smart speaker, both plugged in and on battery. This is powered by Alexa, giving you access to all of the features of the Alexa digital assistant.

WooBloo SMASH is available now for pre-order on Indiegogo. For more information, check out the company’s website.

Interview by Daniele Mendez of The New Product Launchpad.

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FaceMe allows for a more personal product experience @ CES 2021

January 29, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Gadgetsai, artificial intelligence, ces2021, facial recognition, internet of things, iotPLUGHITZ Live

At CES 2020, we had the opportunity to be introduced to FaceMe by CyberLink. While most people think of CyberLink because of its video-related software, FaceMe takes that video processing knowledge and applies it to one of the most sought after aspects of connected devices – facial detection and recognition.

There has been a lot of talk over the past year about facial recognition and how it can be abused. Generally, the two ways we have seen the technology misused has been in inappropriate implementations and openly accessible data. FaceMe helps to address the concerns through its technology setup. While many systems require uploading images to a centralized server, FaceMe is an entirely closed system. This design allows for companies to create unique experiences while still valuing privacy.

The product came about almost accidentally. It was originally created as a part of another product called YouCam Makeup. This product was designed to allow for virtual makeup trials, which obviously needed the ability to recognize and distinguish a face and its features. After the success of YouCam Makeup, the company saw the value that the underlying technology could hold for themselves and others.

Because FaceMe is designed to be able to be used nearly anywhere, it means that it can help enhance lots of products and services. A developer could use it to create another virtualization product, like what we see with Snapchat filters. Or, a developer could use it to allow for individualization of products, like a pill dispenser. Imagine having a single dispenser in a home and, using embedded technology, can determine who is at the machine in order to only give them their medications.

If you are interested in learning more about FaceMe or engaging CyberLink on integrating the software into your platform, check out the product’s website.

Interview by Daniele Mendez of The New Product Launchpad.

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Monster Smart Illuminessence brings the color to your home @ CES 2021

January 27, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Gadgets, Homeces2021, gadgets, led, light, monsterPLUGHITZ Live

Monster Smart Illuminessence LED decoration One of the companies that have been a consistent guest for us at CES has been Monster. We’ve talked about headphones, earbuds, speakers, and more. Last year, we had the opportunity to speak about one of the newer additions to the Monster family – Monster Smart Illuminessence. This new line of LED products has become incredibly popular, with Jennifer Garrett’s reveal of the products being our top viewed interview of 2020. So, of course, we had to have her back to show us what’s new for 2021.

In the totally new category, Monster Smart Illuminessence has a couple of really cool products. First, we’ve got The V – a clear acrylic tent with fully controllable LEDs embedded. It is able to do all of the cool swirling animations of its bigger cousins, Prism and Digit. It will come in a pack of six with a charging base. Because it is acrylic, you can use it to write on with dry-erase markers for place settings, table decorations, and more.

Next is the Arc, another device featuring the swirling LED animation capabilities. The Arc, however, is designed to be a combination lamp and headphone stand. It also includes a 10-watt Qi-certified wireless charger. In addition to the multicolor LED capability, the Arc is able to be used in warm white and reading light modes, making it a great companion for a nightstand or desk. Following along is the Studio, a ring light with similar capabilities to the Arc. It will also add the ability to be used as a clock.

2021 will also see upgrades to some of the existing product lines. Jennifer showed us a Midnight Edition of both the Digit and Prism. These devices look and function like their original counterparts, but with a dark body. The darker body mutes the lighting to an extent, but also allows it to fit into a mare natural or darker environment than the current white body.

The biggest upgrade comes to the Neon, which is an indoor/outdoor LED strip with a diffuser. The current version of the Neon can do a single color at a time but the second edition, dubbed the Neon Flow, will implement the same kind of animation as the other products in the lineup.

The company is hoping to launch these products in the Summer of 2021. For more information on the current Monster Smart Illuminessence product line and follow the journey of future products, check out their website, and for help with setting up these products, check out our How To videos.

Interview by Scott Ertz of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology.

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Knuckles 5 puts all the drone control you need in one hand @ CES 2021

January 27, 2021Accessories, CES 2021, Gadgetsces2021, controller, dronePLUGHITZ Live

Knuckles 5 single-handed drone controller Kostiantyn Borysov is the creator of Knuckles 5, a multi-faceted, one-handed drone controller.

Drones are a big business in the U.S. Of the nearly 2 million drones registered with the FAA, about 1.3 million of them are recreational drones. There are currently over 200,000 certified remote pilots. By 2025, it is estimated that the market for commercial drones will exceed $13 billion per year (Stastica). So Knuckles 5 made a prime time entry at CES 2021, with some promising new developments in accessibility and functionality.

Designed initially around the idea of a flight stick, Knuckles 5 utilizes a single 5 button, 3 analog joystick with eight axes, and two modes. The device features two trackballs – one moved by the index finger and the other by the thumb – to control a drone along a combined four axes. Two more axes controlled by a mini-joystick, and another two axes by an IMU (inertial measurement unit) that picks up controller tilt. Using GUI (graphical user interface), it is technically possible to have 19 possible axes or 40 different buttons configured through the custom set up feature – all controllable with one hand. Borysov said the controller also provides for faster drone control than current controllers offer.

Still under development, the controller will be able to potentially control everything from pocket drones to commercial UAVs. And more intriguingly, the controller makes it possible to control two drones at the same time. Knuckles 5 opens up drone flying to people with disabilities, and Borysov is currently seeking people to test the device. While designed for flying drones the controller can also be used for video game play.

Knuckles 5 is expected to be available some time this year, and will retail at around $250 to $300. Visit the company’s website to learn more.

Interview by Scott Ertz of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology.

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