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Connected Objects

Postie connected thermal printer delivers printed messages from afar

Although mobile devices do a great job of helping people communicate with friends and family who live many miles away, there is just something special about custom, handwritten messages and drawings that people share with each other in person. That’s especially the case when there are kids involved.

Postie is a connected Bluetooth thermal printer that delivers small notes -– drawings or written messages — to family and friends who have downloaded a companion Android and iOS app. Before starting to send and receive messages, both the recipient and sender must install the app on their compatible smartphones. Next, the recipient must place the smartphone onto Postie to receive the messages.

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Connected Objects Health and Wellness

The Sprimo purifier uses clean design to clean air

Dealing with contaminants in the air can be a daily struggle for people ranging from those with asthma to to those allergic to pets. While people think they can head inside to escape hazardous air, that’s not the case at all: the EPA previously stated that indoor air has the potential to be 100 times worse than outdoor air.

That’s why it’s important to have devices like the Sprimo to help clean that air. Most air purifiers are big, bulky, and take time to properly filter out the air in question. The team behind Sprimo claims its small, sleekly design fan is able to filter air 50 times better than other purifiers due to its design. Its Personal Mode immediately creates a bubble of fresh air around a user, while its Turbo Mode — activated when the device is pointed upward so that the air generated is split by its brushed aluminum halo — filters out an entire room’s air quickly. A small Nest-like touchscreen on Sprimo’s face lets users instantly check the contents of their air, displaying the PM 2.5, volatile organic compound (VOC), and CO2 content along temperature and humidity scores.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories

Duplex Case grafts a second phone onto the back of an iPhone 6

Sometimes it would be handy to have a second smartphone on hand. That way, if one of them runs out of juice, the second device can be used to make an urgent phone call. But having two separate devices would be a hassle also because it would require a consumer to buy a second smartphone and then schlep both devices around.

Duplex is a case for the iPhone 6 that doubles as a second smartphone. Its back panel acts as a smartphone, complete with a display. Meanwhile, the case also charges the iPhone. The iPhone Duplex Case frame’s dimensions are 142.3 x 70.5 x 8.3mm, its main body thickness is 6mm, and its total weight is 74 grams.

Duplex ships in June. Future pricing isn’t available. But early bird Kickstarter backers can get one for a pledge starting at $49. Its makers have a modest goal of raising $5,000 by May 11. This is a device that many consumers may find handy. For now, the major obstacle is the fact that it is only for iPhone 6 users. But its makers are developing similar cases for other unspecified models.

 

Categories
Input

Ultra-slim Wekey Pocket folding keyboard may be thin on experience

Just because a keyboard folds up doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s easy to drag around with us while traveling. If it can’t fit in a pocket, one can make a case that a keyboard still isn’t much more portable than a traditional keyboard that doesn’t fold up.

Wekey Pocket is a wireless, foldable keyboard with a QWERTY keyboard and a thickness of just under .24 inches, allowing it to easily slip inside a pocket. Its makers claim Wekey is the world’s thinnest and lightest keyboard, pointing out that existing foldable keyboards are more than .39 inches thick when folded.

Categories
Music Smartwatches/Bands

AirJamz turns air guitar wizards into rockers with a flick of the wrist

editors-choiceTom Cruise may have brought the risky business of air guitar playing in tightey-whiteys into the limelight back in the early ’80s. But today, the usually frivolous activity has a governing body and an annual championship in the U.S.

Now, the one activity that didn’t need a device to go with it finally has one: the AirJamz wearable. The strap works by combining a gyroscope to help translate pantomime shredding from movement to sound using its companion app. Two modes offer differing experiences: Music mode is a four player sandbox that allows the entire family to join in on the fun, while Guitar mode offers a more robust range of motion and tighter controls for a somewhat (and that’s used loosely) more realistic strumming experience.

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Connected Objects Imaging

View lets you preview time-lapse photography

Intervalometers are handy camera accessories because they allow photographers to operate the shutter at precise moments over a period of time. That’s especially the case while trying to shoot time-lapse photography.

View is a connected intervalometer that is an updated version of the Timelapse+ Intervalometer, with a new set of enhanced features. For one thing, View enables users to preview time-lapse photography while it’s still running. In the process, View makes it simple for camera users to pull off advanced time-lapse photography like a pro without loads of time-wasting trial and error.

Categories
Health and Wellness

Your eyes feel alright with the Aurai massaging system

As more and more hobbies and work become digitized, more people spend an increasing number of hours in front of screens daily. As a result, eyes are strained, resulting in dry, irritated eyes and blurry vision along with back and neck pain. To help, cool compresses are generally used to alleviate inflammation while warm compresses stimulate blood circulation instead. The Aurai incorporates both ideas and combines it with its unique Wave Massage System to offer an all-in-one solution perfect at the end of the day.

The Aurai might look like a pair of googles. but instead of a virtual reality experience, users experience a very real, very relaxing experience instead. Its water bag construction envelops the eyes in a soft bag that warms, cools, and massages the eyes with water circulation.

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Connected Objects Input Video Games

Cinch Tech smart gaming controller learns your moves, makes you better

The world of professional gaming is a behemoth, with games of League of Legends and Starcraft II routinely ponying up ever increasing prize pools and attendance rates in its biggest annual tournaments. Its growth is a testament to the widespread appeal these games and the act of watching them have, and pushes more and more to try their luck in competing. As in any sport, though, any edge is a benefit to be taken advantage of and as a result, professionals are always looking for another.

While it has a small but loyal following now, Cinch Gaming has taken its flagship product — the Cinch Tech intelligent gaming controller — to Kickstarter in hopes of garnering an entire new audience. On the outside, it may look like a standard Xbox One controller, but that’s where the similarities end.

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Sponsored

Award-Winning Device Makes Health Tracking Simple

The following is a sponsored post from Kinsa and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Backerjack’s editorial staff.

IoT just got a little more personal. The Kinsa Smart Thermometer is a durable, lightweight and battery-free tool that connects directly to your smartphone. Powered by your smartphone, Kinsa is FDA-cleared for oral, underarm, or even rectal use (after a thorough cleaning!). The accompanying Kinsa app (iOS and Android) also allows you to easily track your health data, including temperature readings, symptoms, medication history and any other notes or images.

For parents of young kids, we all know memory space is valuable real estate. To help, Kinsa creates separate profiles for everyone in the family and automatically records any fever readings or symptoms, and allows you to send data directly to the doctor. Taking into account age and fever, Kinsa’s app also offers medical guidance on best next steps, like hydrating and taking acetaminophen, or heading straight to a doctor. But possibly the best part about Kinsa is that it makes the whole temperature-taking process fun for kids. There’s a bubble popping game built into the temperature-taking experience so kids will actually sit still long enough for an accurate reading.

Kinsa aims to be much more than just an innovative connected thermometer. It is one of the first technology products to leverage anonymous, crowdsourced health data to track contagious illnesses. The company’s larger mission is to stop these illnesses from spreading by creating a real-time map of human health. With this health map, Kinsa users can see what’s going around their area, local doctors can arrive at quicker, more informed diagnoses, and communities can be warned of spreading illnesses.

Initially launched via crowdfunding, the Kinsa Smart Thermometer has won numerous design, innovation and parenting awards and been featured in an Apple commercial. Now Backerjack readers can get their own Kinsa Smart Thermometer for just $19.99.

 

Categories
Music

Atmo Sfera turntable design adds positive atmosphere to your living room

Vinyl records are currently enjoying somewhat of a renaissance. But the design and appearance of most turntables is fairly standard.

Atmo Sfera, however, represents a new spin on the classic turntable. The most obvious difference between it and typical models is the lack of a platter. Drawbacks of the classic turntable design include heavy weight and a vulnerability to vibration. The unique design of Atmo allows records to spin in the air flawlessly and smoothly.