Category: Cell Phone Accessories

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Cell Phone Accessories Technology

InstaMote instantly turns your smartphone into a remote

Consumers continue to be attracted to new solutions that reduce the need for multiple remote controls in their homes. The InstaMote from Switzerland is the latest device that allows a smartphone to be used as a remote control, eliminating the need for all other remotes cluttering the couch and coffee table.

InstaMote attaches to a smartphone and transforms it into an infrared remote. Every infrared electronic device in the home is compatible with InstaMote, including air conditioners, fans, DVD players, Blu-ray players, game consoles and TVs. InstaMote is compatible with all iOS 5 and newer smartphones, as well as all Android 2.3 and newer smartphones. InstaMote has a built-in battery that will last about six months under heavy usage, and can be easily replaced. The device also has a larger working range, at up to 15 meters, than typical remote controls and more compatibility than standard universal remotes also. The first functional prototype of the device is ready now, but its maker doesn’t say at the campaign’s Indiegogo site when the final version will ship. The early bird price is $9 and its regular price is $12. Its maker is looking to raise only $500 by mid January.

Once upon a time there were easily a half dozen such devices on the market. There is little about InstaMote that breaks new ground and users of Windows Phone and other smartphone devices that aren’t Android or iOS are out of luck. But the price is right for Android and iOS smartphone owners and should make it worth a try for many of them.

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Cell Phone Accessories Cycling

Bikelops iPhone mount for the bike shows you the way, brightens up your night ride

The bicycle is one of the best ways to travel, but without any kind of light at night it can be pretty dangerous to get home safely. Although bike lights do exist, they may stop working because of a dead battery, leaving riders stuck or in potential danger.

Luckily, most people carry around a light with them at all times in the form of their smartphones. However, the weak LED usually found is great for photos, but not so great for brightening up the road. The Bikelops iPhone mount makes it so that any an iPhone can be securely fasted to the handlebars of the ride while offering an aluminum reflector that focuses the usually wide, diffused light from the LED into a more focused beam. Riders will never be out of juice with something like this. The $20 product is expected to ship in February 2015 provided it raises the required $10,000 through its campaign.

The Bikelops is a promising mount for iPhones that allows not only lights, but all the rest of the features of the phone to be easily accessible as well. It’s doubtful many would want their iPhone subject to possible damage, though, when sleek products like the smart Augur Wolf Lights can be far more superior in the long run.

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Cell Phone Accessories Virtual Reality

Get comfy with the Viewbox neoprene virtual reality headset

If it wasn’t already apparent, virtual reality, or VR, is here to stay. Events like Facebook’s acquisition of Oculus Rift prove exactly that. As such, the future is one where both augmented and virtual reality will be as commonplace as the smartphones and tablets are in our lives now. For now, though, the industry is still in its infancy.

Currently, the most inexpensive and popular route to a full VR experience is with the use of smartphones alongside headsets designed to facilitate a user’s experience, with Google Cardboard being the most popular example. Company evomade has taken up a notch by creating the Viewbox, a product remarkably similar to Cardboard but with minor differences that end up making all the difference.

Instead of being made from cardboard, the Viewbox is made of soft neoprene which allows it to fold up and be easily transported from one location to the next. In addition, the material makes wearing the product comfortable even with glasses on, and ventilation holes prevent moisture and fog to build up within the viewing area. The kr350 (~$45) product is expected to ship in April of 2015 with a successful campaign goal of kr80,000 (~$10,197).

Although users can easily create their own VR headset, the Viewbox is a very streamlined and low-key way to enjoy a wide variety of VR apps already available now, and the fact that it works with smartphones with screens as big as 5.7″ ensures many can use it. The AirVR looks kind of wacky to wear practically, while the Samsung Gear VR offers a similar experience to the Viewbox, but with a steep premium and bulkier design.

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Cell Phone Accessories Imaging

Pico eases time lapses with or without a smartphone

Photographers have many tricks up their sleeves. One of the best is using time lapses to create beautiful images. This consists of taking lots of pictures within a short or long amount of time to capture shooting stars, thunder storms, sunsets or any other very quick or slow moving eye-catching event.

Pico makes it easy to create customized time lapses. The device plugs into your smartphone and then the free app makes it possible to schedule the number, frequency and exposure of desired shots. In addition, the app allows for bulb ramping which makes it possible to change the light for shots going from day to night. Once that’s done, plug Pico into the camera which will obey the program.

If a program is unnecessary, you can use Pico as a simple intervalometer. To do so, press down on Pico and count the number of beeps. Each beep equals one second. When that’s finished, the camera will continue shooting at the desired interval until Pico is unplugged.

Pico plugs into the camera with different cables available that are compatible with 300 different camera models. Plugging into the headphone jack means that Pico is compatible with any iOS or Android smartphones running current or recent software. In addition, this product has a battery life of eight years.

Many cameras have interval options available, but all are difficult to use. Photographers are forced to use little screens and buttons to make their programs, with few options available to them. Pico makes programming a cinch and is small enough to live in the camera bag all the time. It’s unclear if the app saves past programs. If it doesn’t, the creators may want to consider adding such a feature. Backers will need to donate $50 for this product with an estimated delivery date of July 2015. Pico is hoping to raise $100,000 on Kickstarter.

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Cell Phone Accessories Displays

InkCase Plus E Ink display heard you needed a screen for your screen

Smartphones have spoiled today’s consumers with bright, gorgeously colorful screens. With each passing year, these screens grow bigger and become better at displaying the expanding variety of mobile content. The biggest downside to this is the horrid battery life most devices are cursed with and, as a result, people have to be picky with what they consume throughout the day.

Simply leaving a screen on to read takes a fair amount of battery power. To address this huge problem, a team at Oaxis has come up with the InkCase Plus, an E Ink screen that uses Bluetooth LE to communicate with Android devices. This union allows a wide variety of information to be accessed instantly without using what precious little battery power most devices have. Compatible apps can send notifications, navigation information, display e-books, or show fitness information.

The InkCase Plus is best used in conjunction with a leather FitCase. Doing so places the screen on the front of the case so that all this information can be accessed with a tap, even in the absence of a power source. While the InkCase Plus provides about 19 hours of reading time, the FitCase is currently only available for the Samsung Galaxy S5 and Note 3, making its pretty limited in practical use. Both products are being sold together for $139.

The InkCase Plus is a novel way of approaching the problem most smartphone manufacturers choose to ignore, even if what it is is another screen for your screen. Looking past that, E Ink integration makes a lot of apps so much more useful and suddenly makes glare less of a problem. Their biggest issue is the complete lack of support for the vibrant amount of Android hardware, but when isn’t that a problem with Android?

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Cell Phone Accessories

iPin laser pointer fits into iPhone; points at presentations for you

Giving informative presentations is an important skill to have. Many offices and school environments require presentation skills in order to succeed. However, crouching over laptops in order to control the slides isn’t always ideal.

IPin fits directly into your iPhone’s headphone jack. When switched on, it emits a laser pointer to use for presentations. With an accompanying app, iPin lets you control any presentation from your own phone. Swipe left to continue to the next slide, right to go back, and up to produce a cursor to play videos or interact with the presentation. The pin is tiny and discreet as it sits in the phone.

All in all, the iPin is a nifty little product for iPhone users who give public talks a lot. It’s a bit small, meaning that there’s risk of it getting lost, but most know how to keep track of their various iPhone accoutrement. The one drawback is that the iPin is not compatible with the new iPhone 6 Plus, a pretty big oversight. Still, for those interested, their own can be had for $49 with an estimated delivery date of December 2014. IPin is looking to raise $10,000 on Indiegogo.

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Cell Phone Accessories Imaging

Shake your Polaroid picture with the SnapJet instant smartphone printer

No matter what kinds of digital advances are made in photography, instant film will always have its place in our collective hearts. Its immediate nature along with the iconic shaking necessary to dry off a fresh picture will always see people trying to incorporate it alongside new technology rather than letting technology render it obsolete. In no other product is this more true than SnapJet.

SnapJet is a high-quality, open source printer that produces Polaroid images with the help of any smartphone. It’s extremely slim and therefore portable, and above all easy to use. Simply navigate to the desired picture on the smartphone, place it screen down onto the printer, and SnapJet will do the rest — no app, wires, or connection of any kind necessary. The only thing a user will need is widely available Polaroid 300 or Fuji Instax film. When the analog nature of a Polaroid won’t cut it, send high-quality prints using LifePrint instead. In any case, the $129 SnapJet is expected to ship in November 2015 if the campaign behind it reaches $155,000.

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Cell Phone Accessories Connected Objects

HIRO connected tag swoops down and rescues your lost things

Bluetooth tags or tiles that help people find their things are a dime a dozen nowadays. They come in an extremely small portable form and usually connect via Bluetooth or GPS in order to lead distracted denizens back to their misplaced goods.

The HIRO is another one of these devices that essentially fits the mold of most Bluetooth trackers, offering iOS and Android compatibility along with the option of using a loud buzzer to help find things in piles of clothing, for example. A proximity sensor works to inform users about HIRO’s Bluetooth signal range of 200ft. While it’s not as good as having full GPS support, packing these features in its extremely diminutive size is impressive. The HIRO Bluetooth tag can be had with a $10 backing, and is expected to ship in February 2015 provided the campaign reaches it $5,200 goal.

The HIRO doesn’t offer anything out the ordinary when compare to similar tags like Tile, TrackR, or FIND 2.0. What it does offer interested parties is a break in price, something anyone can agree with.

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Cell Phone Accessories Smartwatches/Bands

Nudge filters calls and texts so only important ones come in, nudges you into being social

Smartphones run our daily lives, providing us with calls, texts, e-mails, reminders, and other conveniences. As such, it’s tempting to keep a close eye on the phone to make sure that absolutely nothing is missed. However, no one likes hanging out with someone glued to their phone all the time.

Nudge is a system made so that the phone can stay put away until something really important comes up. This rubbery bracelet features notification lights to alert the wearer to an important call, text, e-mail, calendar reminder, etc. It connects via Bluetooth to an app that allows for notification customization. For instance, it’s possible to allow calls from a boss to come through to the bracelet or texts from kids. Each type of incoming communication can be given either a green light on the bracelet or red. The bracelet features a “shut up” button that lets the phone be silenced if the call is deemed ignorable.

We’ve seen many other bracelets and jewelry and home goods of this type like the Ringly. While certainly a good idea, Nudge fails to live up to its counterparts. Other systems allow for vibrations and lights so that different patterns can be set for different types of notifications. Nudge is unisex, which male backers may appreciate as most other types are for women only, but Nudge will need to push farther to really compete. Backers can have their own for a donation of £29 (~$46) with estimated delivery set for August 2015. Nudge is hoping to raise £35,000 (~$55,000) on Kickstarter.

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Cell Phone Accessories

Piconizer storage device holds onto photos, frees up iPhone’s memory

As smartphones have replaced traditional cameras due to their high quality, most opt to take photos on their phones. However, photos and videos take up lots of storage space. IPhones in particular can get quite expensive with more storage space. This is why most opt to buy an iPhone with smaller storage capacity.

Piconizer recognizes this inherent truth and wants to keep iPhone photo-taking alive. This storage device is compatible with all iPhone 5 and 6 models. Simply insert into the lightning connector and the accompanying app will open up. This allows users to select photos from their phone that they want on the device. Once uploaded, these photos can be deleted from the phone freeing up storage space so that no photos get thrown out for the sake of extra GBs. Piconizer also features a microUSB port so that photos can easily be uploaded onto any computer or laptop.

Piconizer is just like a thumb drive for iPhones. It comes in several different storage amounts starting at 32GB. This is a great tool for those constantly on the go. However, most know that photos can easily be shared to the cloud or directly uploaded to any computer to free up phone space. Still, it’s nice to have a physical backup of photo files in case the computer crashes. For a 32GB version, backers will need to donate $49 for estimated delivery in March 2015. Piconizer is looking to raise $50,000 on Kickstarter.