Tag Archives: ces 2015

AAMP Ensures Car Tech Stays Up to Date at CES

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Aamp of AmericaWhile most people get a new smartphone every other year, buying a new car doesn’t happen as quickly. As a result, in-car technology can get out of date fast, particularly with respect to entertainment and communication. Fortunately, AAMP of America is here to help; Todd talks with Jeff Smith to find out what’s hot in auto upgrades.

With over 4,000 dealers, AAMP provide a wide range of after-market upgrades, with rear-view cameras and parking assistance being popular options. To keep up with manufacturer offerings AAMP does its own design and development to make sure its own products match or exceed the OEM products.

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

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Eliptic Labs add Ultrasonic Gesture Controls to Devices at CES

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EllipticLabs logoThe touch interface goes back as far as the early days of mobile devices to the Apple Newton and Palm Organiser. Elliptic Labs now add non-touch to the mobile user interface with ultrasound gesture recognition. Todd gets a demo from Laila Danielson, CEO.

Elliptic Labs use an ultrasonic speaker to create a sonic field around the mobile device. Moving a hand in front of the device creates ultrasonic echoes which are picked up by microphones and the changes in echo patterns are converted into gestures. For example, waving a hand from left to right scrolls a picture gallery. Moving a hand closer to the phone brings up additional information on a film or movie.

It’s currently a prototype device being shown to OEMs so expect the technology to appear on mobile devices in the next year or two.

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

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Schneider Optics adds High-Quality Lenses to Smartphones at CES

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Schneider LogoDigital pictures and smartphone cams have changed the photography industry beyond recognition in the last twenty years and the quality of this imagery is such that innovative filmmakers are using iPhones to record footage. One restriction remains and that is the lens itself; there’s only one and it’s fixed in place. But Schneider Optics might have a solution. Todd finds out more from Don.

Schneider Optics iPro Lens systems provides a selection of high quality optical lenses for Apple iPhones and the Samsung Galaxy S4, including macro, wide-angle, super wide, tele and fisheye. The system works by fitting the smartphone itself into a case and then mounting the lens onto the case with a bayonet connector to ensure the best possible alignment.

The iPro Lens is available now for the Samsung Galaxy S4, iPhone 4/4S and iPhone 5/5S. The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus variant will be on sale shortly. Lenses cost from $39 to $99, the case is $31 and there are also kits available.

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

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Corning Brings Protective Glass and Long Cables to CES

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Corning are famous for their glass-based products, most notably Serengeti Drivers sunglasses and Gorilla Glass screens which protect the majority of mobile devices on the planet. Todd gets a hands-on demonstration of Corning’s latest products from Jon Pesansky and Gabriela Allen.

This year sees  come to market which roughly doubles the height a phone could fall without screen damage. Alternatively, the glass can be made thinner for the same level of survivability and a 0.4 mm thick piece of Gorilla Glass 4 is the same as a 0.55 mm of Gorilla Glass 3.

Partly as a result of the high data transfer rates, the maximum length of Thunderbolt and USB3 electrical cables is only a few metres. To address this, Corning have developed fibre versions of these cables which can run longer distances and put up with the abuse typically associated with plugging and unplugging cables. They don’t come cheap with a 5.5 m Thunderbolt cable costing $179 and a 10m USB3 cable costing $109. Available now.

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

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Floome Checks Your Alcohol Levels at CES

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2045 TechYou shouldn’t drink alcohol before driving as even small amounts of alcohol can impair your judgement. But, if you do need to check your blood alcohol concentration (BAC), then the Floome smartphone breathalyser from 2045 Tech can help you determine if it’s legal to drive. Fabio Penzo CEO shows Todd how it works.

Floome is a small palm-sized device that plugs into the earphone jack of a smartphone. The owner breathes into Floome and it then analyses the alcohol concentration and passes the data to the Floome smartphone app. The phone then shows the BAC on the screen along with a green or red indicator. The app has other features such as showing the location of the nearest taxi service or it can send “come and get me” messages with the alcohol level superimposed on a selfie.

The Floome will be launching in Italy for 49 euros and will come to USA in a few months.

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

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Program All The Buttons with Flic at CES

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Flic logoFlic is a bluetooth-enabled button. It’s a simple idea that has many uses from taking pictures with a smartphone to autodialling or even working as a personal distress signal. Nick and Todd met with Pranav Kosuri, co-founder of Shortcut Labs.

Flic is a coin-sized button that can be stuck or clipped onto almost anything. When pressed, it sends a bluetooth message that is received by the Flic app (available for both Android and iOS) and actions include controlling music, dialling phone numbers, sharing GPS position, taking pictures, dimming lights and more. Different things can be done depending on the number of clicks or if the button is being held down: one click could be take a picture, two clicks take a video. The possibilities are huge.

The Flic is currently on Indiegogo and $99 gets 5x Flics with delivery in April 2015.

Interview by Nick DiMeo of F5 Live and Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central for the TechPodcast Network.

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Octa Brings Innovative Tablet Accessories to CES

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Octa logoTablet computers have become such mainstays in our day-to-day lives that it’s nearly impossible to remember what life was like before them. And while tablets are often lightweight and easy to use, sometimes it’s necessary to get them into more comfortable or convenient positions. That’s where Octa and its full line of accessories come in.

Todd and Nick got a hands-on demo from Prometheus of Octa. He showed off several of the company’s products, noting that they had won an award at CES 2015. Octa has an impressive line of accessories for turning tablets into truly hands-free devices. Pricing starts at $79.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central and Nicholas DiMeo of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology for the TechPodcast Network.

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Roadie Tuner Helps You Stay In Tune at CES

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Roadie Tuner logoWhether you’re a musician or a music fan, no one appreciates an out-of-tune instrument. And while there are plenty of solutions out there to help players keep their strings properly tuned, they usually require weird workarounds or clunky devices.

Todd and Nick met with Sam Force of Band Industries. Sam showed off the Roadie Tuner, a mechanical Bluetooth-enabled guitar tuner. Just put Roadie Tuner over your instrument’s tuning pegs and the connected smartphone app takes over, analyzing the sound coming from the strings and telling Roadie Tuner to turn the pegs accordingly.

Roadie Tuner would make for a fine accessory for beginners and guitar vets alike. It is currently available for $99 direct from the Roadie Tuner website as well as a growing number of retail outlets.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central and Nicholas DiMeo of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology for the TechPodcast Network.

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ProGearX Shows Off GoPro Camera Mounts at CES

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ProgearX LogoVideos from body-cams are more popular than ever thanks to products like the GoPro camera. And with that popularity and success comes a cottage industry of vendors who are supplying accessories for GoPros.

Todd and Nick had a chat with Noah Rasheta, CEO/founder of ProGearX, a company that specializes in mounting solutions/accessories for GoPros as well as other imaging devices. Noah was wearing one of his company’s products, a shoulder/torso harness that accommodates up to two cameras. Noah also brought ProGearX’s retractable “selfie-stick” style camera arm.

Interview by Todd Cochrane of Geek News Central and Nicholas DiMeo of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology for the TechPodcast Network.

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RoadEyes Is a HUD For The Car at CES

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Road Eyes Cams LogoFrench company RoadEyesCams is bringing out an aftermarket heads-up display (HUD) with an affordable price. Todd takes to the road with Axel and the Aston.

The RoadEyesCam M6 HUD is a small dash-mounted unit that mirrors a smartphone display via wifi, projecting the image upwards and into the driver’s field of view. Whatever the smartphone shows, the M6 will reproduce on-screen. It can be anything from GPS directions to motorsport data such as acceleration or lateral G. The M6 HUD will be available in the US in 4 to 6 weeks for $299.

Todd also takes a look at some of RoadEyesCams new dash-cams.

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

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