Month: November 2016

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Connected Objects Imaging

CamBuddy Pro controls your camera from smartphones, tablets

Smart controllers that allow photographers to operate their cameras via smartphone have become much in-demand, especially for interchangeable lens cameras (ILCs). That’s largely because they allow people to control the main features of those typically bulky cameras right from the palm of the user’s hand.

CamBuddy Pro is a Wi-Fi-enabled smart controller for ILCs that offers live-view, time-lapse and four built-in triggering sensors. It works in conjunction with a free Joopic app for Android and iOS smartphones and tablets, and works up to 100 feet away from the camera. CamBuddy Pro starts shipping in December. Future pricing is $149. But Kickstarter backers have been able to order one for a pledge starting at $89 for early birds. Its makers are out to raise $30,000 by Nov. 13.

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Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Imaging

The LyfieEye tosses Android users a bone in 360°

While the technology industry pivots toward more immersive experiences, the ways in which users can actually create this content are limited. And those that are available can be prohibitively expensive.

The LyfieEye is a spherically-shaped 360° camera designed with Android phones in mind. It takes HD quality photos and can record videos of up to 30fps with its pair of dual cameras, each of which takes a 180° video. The camera’s proprietary system then stitches the two videos together in real time for the final product, which can then be shared on Facebook, Youtube or to a virtual reality headset and consumed that way.

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Categories
Imaging Wearables

Blincam spectacles snap pics with just a wink

The rise and tumultuous fall of Google Glass was a case study in dealing with a product that was too progressive for its time. Outside of the privacy concerns it generated, one of the more widely appreciated features was its ability to take pictures with a single tap of the finger, leading to more natural and candid shots of friends, family and other important moments.

The Blincam takes this feature and makes it central to what the product does. Designed as a super lightweight wearable that clips onto any pair of glasses, all it takes is a single wink for the Blincam to take a photo. Then, through a Bluetooth connection, it will send those photos to a paired smartphone for storage and sharing.

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Categories
Connected Objects Cooking

The Cuciniale helps whips up whatever you want without a fuss

Much to the chagrin of the many who aren’t well-versed with the kitchen, cooking with consistently good results requires years of professional cooking experience. Unfortunately, most people don’t have that and end up serving a lot of under- and overcooked food. To help address this issue and to cut down on the time spent in the kitchen overall, the Cuciniale cooking system was born.

The Cuciniale intelligent cooking system consists of a multi-sensor wireless probe, an induction cooktop and a companion mobile app. Together, it guides users through the process of making any meal. While the induction cooktop is fairly straightforward, the key to the cooking system is the wireless probe which serves as its brain. Users simply select the food and desired preparation style from the app and stick the probe into the food itself. From here, the app will not only calculate the size and density of the food to accurately control the cooktop’s heat but also alert users when to participate themselves.

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Categories
Robots/Drones

With Mimic, see how the robots live

Most crowdfunded robots fall in one of two camps: Either it patrols the home or is serves as a tool to better teach robotics and programming concepts. The Mimic, though, is a different beast. This rotund little robot combines robotics with elements of virtual reality to create something completely new.

That said, the Mimic is pretty small. At a little under 13 inches, it doesn’t impress at first glance. But the robot itself isn’t the draw, even though it does sport patent-pending technology — but more on that later. The Mimic really shines is when a user puts on its googles, grabs its arm controller, and places their feet on the Mimic’s foot controller. Like this, users can quite literally see what the Mimic sees and change its line of sight accordingly, naturally touch, grab and grip whatever they come across, and move its wheels in any direction. Together, it makes for a brand new experience that’s not centered around security or education.

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Categories
Tech Accessories

Mooltipass Mini portable protects pesky passwords

Selecting an online password and remembering it continues to be a major hassle. That’s especially true if selecting a separate password for each and every website one uses, as security experts recommend.

Mooltipass Mini is a small USB device that protects passwords with identification done via a smart card.  It integrates seamlessly with Google Chrome and Firefox support is in the testing phase, its makers say. The device uses the same security as its makers’ larger Mooltipass device that was crowdfunded in late 2014. A smart card is used to securely store an AES-256 encryption key for the user’s protected information.

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Categories
Kids/Babies Maker/Development

The SBrick Plus hides STEM education inside toy bricks

As a child, there’s not much better than having a full set of Legos to go to town on. As adults, there isn’t much out there as fondly remembered as the classic building blocks. Now, with the explosion of IoT technology, the SBrick Plus take clicking together plastic bricks up a notch.

The sequel to the successfully funded SBrick back in 2014, the SBrick Plus is a Bluetooth-enabled brick placed into Lego models to control them remotely using a smart device like a phone, tablet, gamepad or PC. What’s more, the SBrick Plus uses sensors from the WeDo 1.0 family that can be programmed in several languages and track variables like tilt and proximity for fun uses in model planes, for example. What the SBrick really allows for are dynamic educational experiences in the home and in the classroom, something the team behind the product facilitates with a series of lessons designed to teach the fundamentals of programming and robotics.

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Categories
Technology

Ockel Sirius A shrinks a PC into your palm, adds a 6-inch touchscreen

editors-choice-300x96Some desktop computer users would carry around their desktop computer with them to get the same level of performance they’re used to while traveling … if only that desktop PC wasn’t so large and heavy, that is.

Ockel Sirius A is a tiny PC with a 6-inch touchscreen, Intel Atom x7-Z8750 processor, and battery that provides a full Windows 10 experience at any time. It’s small enough to fit in a pocket or the palm of the user’s hand, and it comes equipped with a full version of Microsoft’s Windows 10 Home or Pro operating system. The display offers full HD 1920 x 1080p resolution and also supports 4K.

Sirius A ships in May at future pricing of $699 for the standard A with 64 GB of flash storage or $799 for the A Pro with 128 GB of flash storage. But Indiegogo backers have been able to reserve them with a pledge starting at early-bird pricing of $549 for the A and $659 for the A Pro. Its makers are out to raise $100,000 by Nov. 9.

Its creator, Ockel Computers, already successfully crowdfunded the similar Sirius B that didn’t come with a display and was designed to be attached to a separate monitor. So, an even more portable version with a display seems to be a sensible option that could appeal to many potential buyers.

 

Categories
Connected Objects Home

A little birdie told us that CuCu has reinvented the wall clock

No matter most do, time is a hard thing to really get a grasp on. Getting enough sleep, making sure meetings are attended and errands are done in a timely fashion — people routinely mess these things up. The team behind the CuCu wants to make it a lot easier — and more stylish — to keep your day in check.

The CuCu clock is a smart alarm clock that attaches to the wall and tells you the time by reviving the age-old idea of a cuckoo clock for the modern age. Obviously, CuCu works in tandem with its companion mobile app owners can use to do simple things like set alarms, integrate with iCal, check battery or change up the device’s customizable LED lighting.

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Categories
Imaging

Snoppa M1 makes it easier to shoot video on smartphones

Gimbal stabilizers are among the most useful smartphone accessories for shooting video. After all, who wants to watch a video where the camera is shaking so much that it’s impossible to see what is happening?

Snoppa M1 is a connected three-axis gimbal for smartphones that eliminates camera shake with a vibration-free stabilizer system. It was created to allow any smartphone user to become a videographer without the need for luxury or professional camera equipment. Snoppa M1 features Bluetooth Low Energy and is controlled by the user’s smartphone.

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