Month: December 2015

Categories
Personal Transportation

Freedom trike gives makes you free to ride along with or without battery

To cut down the commute, or at least make it easier or more fun, people are always on the lookout for anything that will help. Segways-inspired hoverboards, foldable bikes, and motorized scooter have all vied for attention on multiple crowdfunding platforms but have yet to really make the sort of impact they want.

Add Freedom by TRIKKE to the mix, a foldable trike that can be used with or without its direct drive, brushless motor. Without the motor, TRIKKE claims Freedom to be an intense cardio and strength workout. With it, though, Freedom can reach a max speed of 11mph with a range of 11 miles.

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Categories
Imaging Smart Home

Koova security camera does everything but chase intruders away

In the United Kingdom and many points beyond, cameras are everywhere. With smartphones, security cameras and the increasing presence of the Internet of Things, they’re being crammed into everywhere else at a fraction of the cost they previously were.

Cue Amaryllo International and their Koova, the device it’s claiming to be the world’s smallest auto-tracking camera. The company sees its low-cost Koova being used in home, garage, office and small business situations. The sleek looking cylindrically shaped device is Wi-Fi connected, boasting HD quality and 8GB of onboard memory.

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Categories
Automotive Connected Objects

Light your ride up with the XKChrome connected light kit

It’s easy to spot a souped-up car enthusiast: in traffic. Just look for a car that looks like its straight out of Need for Speed or a Fast and Furious movie. Considering the kinds of under-the-hood and aesthetic upgrades these cars have, it’s no wonder their owners are always on the look out for something that can make them stick out.

The team behind the XKChrome is hoping to illuminate the undersides and interiors of cars and motorcycles everywhere with the smartphone-connected lighting kit. Users will be spoiled for choice with XKChrome’s 16 million color palette that can be customized for various occasions, even syncing to music playing for a spectacle of a light show.

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Categories
Maker/Development Technology

Alpha 2 robotic companion aims to be part of your family, doesn’t need a car seat

Previous campaigns JIBO and Buddy have shown how crowdfunding platforms are perfect vehicles to bring the dream of helpful robot companions to life. This time, company UBTech is hoping its bipedal Alpha 2 will not only catch backers’ attentions but also be an integral part of their lives too.

Boasting 20 joints that replicate human motion, Alpha 2 is an humanoid robot created by UBTech that’s all charm. Standing 17″ tall and weighing in at five pounds, Alpha 2’s programming offers the entire family a wide array of features to make daily living a little easier.

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Categories
Tech Accessories

Write2Go electronic pad lets you take digital notes the write way

Electronic writing pads have a few appealing functions, among them that they allow users to take notes and sketch designs while saving paper (and trees).

Write2Go is a small handwriting pad that uses electronic ink technology and transfers notes to Mac and Windows computers. In addition to notes and pictures, the device can be used to sign e-documents. Memos can be saved and scheduled in Google/Outlook Calendar.

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Categories
Connected Objects Fitness

Skulpt Chisel helps body sculpting by monitoring fat

Having a device that can accurately measure one’s body fat can go a long way towards achieving fitness goals.

Skulpt Chisel is a device about the size of a typical smartphone that has 12 sensors on its back that can be used to measure 24 body muscles just by pressing it up against those muscles. It sends a tiny current past the subcutaneous fat and through the muscle fibers, picking up thousands of data points per second, according to its Indiegogo campaign. The technology then evaluates the flow of that current to accurately measure the fat percentage per muscle, and rate that muscle’s fitness.

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Categories
Music Television

Seiun Players lets you listen to a tune in hi-res audio

MP3 players and smartphones ushered in a whole new era of convenience for music lovers wanting to take their tunes with them wherever they go. But sound quality has been traded in for portable convenience because of the compression that’s done to the music.

Seiun Players are sleek high-resolution audio and, in the case of two models, 4K video players that its makers say offer much superior audio quality to rival devices on the market. Three models are being fielded: Seiun (pronounced Say-yune), Seiun Pro and Seiun Pro X. All three can play uncompressed hi-res PCM audio up to at least 192 KHz/24-bit and can upscale music that’s not hi-res to that same rate, according to the Indiegogo campaign.

While the entry-level model features only a 1.04-inch display and isn’t designed for video playback, the Pro and Pro X each have a 5.5-inch touch display and are built on the Android OS, adding access to hi-fi streaming services including Tidal and Deezer via the Google Play Store. The Pro and Pro X can play uncompressed hi-res PCM audio up to 384 KHz/32-bit. While Seiun Pro features a 720p-resolution screen and 32 GB of onboard storage, the Pro X offers 1080p resolution and 64 GB storage. The Pro and Pro X also each offer video output of up to 4K resolution, according to the campaign.

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Categories
Imaging

Slopes knows the ropes for easy GoPro shooting angles

Tripods are useful camera accessories to have, but they tend to take at least a few seconds to set up and photographers risk missing an important shot while doing that.

Slopes is a posable, angled base accessory for GoPro that quickly enables users of that line of popular action cams to shoot from a choice of multiple angles without a tripod. Its polyhedron-shaped bottom and 3-in-1 slot provides 20 different ways to position a GoPro, and its body is even smaller than GoPro’s housing.

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Categories
Connected Objects Sleep Smart Home

Beddi connected smart alarm conducts restful sleep and productive mornings

The very first thing everyone reaches for in the morning is their smartphone. While possibly a symptom of a collective digital addiction, there are quite a few good reasons people do, the most important being to shut off an alarm. But most smartphones wake us up so abruptly and while there are apps out there to make the transition from sleep to wakefulness more pleasant, pushing a screen into one’s face first thing in the morning isn’t the most relaxing way to start the day.

The Beddi intelligent alarm clock is an app-enabled device that sits bedside to facilitate better sleep and a more peaceful, more productive start to the day. Before going to sleep, the Bose-like unit’s two USB ports (one rapid charging port and one normal port) makes it easy to charge devices. Before bed,, the LED mood light turns off automatically, and its Bluetooth speaker can play soothing sounds like white noise or ambient ocean sounds to help

In the morning, the device’s natural sunrise simulator slowly fills the room with a soft glow to help awaken users more naturally a few minutes before the alarm goes off. And when the dreaded moment does come, the alarm that’s heard isn’t a screeching fire truck but rather favored playlists courtesy of Spotify integration.

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Categories
Input Virtual Reality

You want to sit while you navigate virtual reality, Ergo, VRGO

editors-choiceMovement is the biggest obstacle yet to be solved for true virtual reality experiences. While there are locomotion setups on the market that attempt to address the issue, not many people have the money nor the space to install and maintain them as they’re usually larger.

Inventor Joe Ryan’s VRGO is a VR controller in the form of a self-righting, egg-shaped seat. Made of aircraft composite for strength and weighing at only four kilograms, the wireless motion controller seat connects with the touch of a button using Bluetooth to PCs, Macs and headsets like Oculus Rift to facilitate more involved VR experiences.

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