Tag: HDMI

Categories
Displays Music

Portable Flicks lets you watch flicks, listen to music anywhere

It would be convenient when having a party if the same portable electronic device could be used to show movies and other videos, as well as listen to music wirelessly.

Flicks does exactly that, combining a Bluetooth-enabled audio system with a 720p HD LED projector in one box. Music can be streamed from a smartphone or tablet, while movies can be watched via an HDMI connection from media devices including Amazon Fire, Google Chromecast and Roku streaming sticks. The projector’s lens displays a 100-inch image at just over eight feet away. The full-color RGB LEDs provide solid image quality with strong color saturation and 700-lume brightness using Texas Instruments DLP technology.

The creators are fielding two SKUs: Flicks at $599, offering up to four hours of movie-viewing or up to 28 hours of Bluetooth music, and Flicks Range at $699, offering up to eight hours of movie-viewing or up to 56 hours of music. Its makers are hoping to raise $50,000 in funding. They will ship the product in May-June 2015.

Flicks holds great promise, especially among home owners who frequently throw parties. The alternate target audience of consumers making business presentations seems a bit more of a stretch because they likely won’t be looking for a projector that offers Bluetooth music streaming as well.

Categories
Technology

imp tiny PC and streamer lives in your living room, backs up data with a grin

Set-top boxes for the increasingly voracious consumption of media have grown to be near must-haves for the living room. These boxes offer simple ways to access content from Netflix and other similar video-on-demand services. One problem with these systems is their lack of traditional Internet access. They’re already taking up the biggest screen in the home, so why not use it for more? Conversely, other solutions give you the Internet, but are light on the entertainment.

Imp is looking to unify all of these components under one, tiny little roof. The open-source, Ubuntu-based box does triple duty as a fully functional desktop computer, a XBMC-powered media streamer that works with most VOD services, and a private cloud server that can back up mobile devices with the help of an external hard drive. All of these talents allow users to have access to the usual assortment of social media and email with the use of an optional wireless keyboard and mouse for $19, while streaming their content to and from any device and imp with ease. Early birds can pick one up for $129 now before the price eventually shoots up to $199. Imp is looking for $100,000 in funding.

One of imp’s biggest draws is the fact that it’s open-source, allowing compatibility with pretty much any iOS, Android, or Windows device. Adding the kind of versatility platforms like AirPlay provide without the burdensome ecosystem is something people will be interested in. Another tiny desktop PC is the slightly more powerful and customizable is the Tango, but its power comes at a steeper cost. Ultimately, the imp is much more straightforward and user-friendly, therefore that much more attractive for the average consumer.

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Cell Phone Accessories Television

Andromium OS unlocks Android’s big screen potential

It’s truly a marvel just how powerful the smartphones in our pockets are. Contained within their impossibly slim frames is the type of power that only absurd amounts of money could’ve bought just ten years ago. This type of power has penetrated the world much faster than traditional computers have because of their low cost and small size. At the end of the day, though, a smartphone will be a smartphone. Sometimes, a larger screen is needed for work or play.

The Andromium OS was created to give Android handsets the opportunity to live not only in your palm, but on a separate monitor too. A lightweight, proprietary app along with an HDMI dock for the smartphone itself work together to create an environment where real work can get done with just a few taps. What users are offered is not just a reproduction of the smartphone’s screen, but also a totally separate, full desktop experience. This way, spreadsheets and presentations can be created alongside games in progress, all in their own windows like a traditional computer.

Regular Android apps will continue to run in the back without having to worry about the phone’s battery because the dock doubles as a charging station. The standard $29 package includes the HDMI docking station and a serial number for the Andromium app from the Google Play Store. The $35 Expended Edition also includes a dock, but this one works for other popular Android phones. The product is expected to ship in February 2015 and has a campaign goal of $100,000.

As mentioned before, the Andromium OS is not solely focused on those who already have connected devices, but rather those who only have a smartphone. Another product that has tackled a similar approach is the TinyStic, but it doesn’t offer a full desktop like Andromium does. Both of these platforms, though, already need the type of income that can afford a decent screen, keyboard, and mouse, necessities that may hamper their success.

Categories
Television

SkreensTV offers pictures-in-picture, turns big TV into many little ones

There’s so much content in the world to consume, but no matter how much there is, there will always just be just one screen in front of us to do it on. Even the largest screens, those 60-inch flat-screen television present across the United States, are guilty of being able to only support one input. It may support it beautifully, but truth be told it’s a horrible waste of screen real estate.

Until SkreensTV came along, there wasn’t much that could be done besides a lousy picture-in-picture interface. What SkreensTV offers is the ability to connect up to five different sources of content, whether it be an cable box, a game console, or an Apple TV, and have them all displayed simultaneously without any degradation in picture or sound. Although there will be one primary audio stream represented, other audio sources can be streamed through Wi-Fi, into smartphones and tablets, and out through headphones.

Everyone has different needs when it comes to content and would use all that space differently. Customizable layouts can be created with the use of the SkreensTV iOS/Android companion app based on user preference, easily confugurable whenever needed. So sports fans can load up three games, their fantasy football website, and ESPN all on one screen, or a games enthusiast can play a game while having tips displayed alongside a Skype call and a Twitch stream, all at 1080P. The 4GB version of SkreensTV can be had for $399 and, provided the campaign reaches its $200,000 goal, will ship the product out by December 2015.

The SkreensTV idea is outstanding, but in practice will probably not see as much use as it claims unless a family is that heavily connected and already have a ridiculously large TV to trult take advantage of it. The sports and gaming market are definite buys, but only if their marketing works out for them. Although sports fans are more mainstream and can be catered to, gamers are usually more tech-savvy and can achieve this same effect at probably a fraction of the cost. In any case, the platform will have an app store with an SDK which will no doubt evolve it in interesting ways.

Categories
Television

AirTame lets you get your mobile device onto the big screen

Streaming content from a laptop or a computer to a TV is a great way to share presentations at work or photos and video with family. Unfortunately, for many people, setting it up is still as complicated as it was to set up a projector slideshow or hook a camcorder to the TV decades ago.

AirTame takes advantage of modern technology to remove this headache quickly and easily. By simply plugging the device into a monitor’s HDMI port and using the USB cable to power it up, any computer or smartphone with the Airtame app installed can quickly stream its display to any configured Airtames nearby. This creates a combination hardware/software solution to streaming video that takes only seconds to achieve once it has been set up.

Airtame is flexible as well, in that it does not simply mirror the display, it can also be used to extend it, creating a multiple display setup in any location without installing drivers or pulling out and connecting cables. The Airtame functions over standard Wi-Fi, and works on Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, and Windows phones, so there are no complex network or compatibility issues to resolve either. It’s going to take $160,000 to make Airtame a reality, and anyone that can use one can grab one for $134 in January 2015.

Airtame takes a process that should be as simple as plug-and-play and makes it just that. As long as there is a monitor with a free HDMI port and an Airtame available, using that display to share, present, or collaborate on content is a snap. This is certainly a handy tool to keep on hand no matter where it could be used.

 

Categories
Technology

Tablet PC builds in projector to show the big picture

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Note: Our friend Brad Linder at Lilliputing has tipped us off that this product actually launched in 2012 and so the campaign is likely a fraud. Brad further notes that if you’re interested in this product, you can obtain it for less.-Ed.

Recently, projectors have enjoyed an existence outside of the movie theater and occasional home or two. Set to keychains or guest starring as iPhone accessories, there have been more than a few attempts to make them more mainstream. Enter the Projection Tablet PC from creator Dominic Li. Billed as a revolutionary product, but with a lack of video proof or information in general, all we’re going off is an idea. The only thing that sets apart this otherwise ho-hum tablet is that it’s a projector, so it better work well. Potential backers can grab an early bird version for $499 and start talking to walls in October 2014.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Displays

TinyStic turns your smartphone experience into a PC

tinysticIt’s easy to forget just how powerful a smartphone really is sometimes. With the ability to run office programs, stream movies, and play 3D video games, who needs a computer? This line of thinking is the basis for TinyStic, a device that looks like the average thumbdrive. Instead of USB, TinyStic plugs into a TV or monitor’s HDMI port, then syncs up with the phone’s TinyStic app to allow full-screen display with drop down menus and Bluetooth keyboard support. The display looks fast and responsive, and this could be a great way to really get the most out of the latest, most powerful smartphones in hotel rooms or at the office. TinyStic costs $99 and will be out in December 2014.