Roku Improves For Cord Cutters With Roku 3

So many of us use a cord to get our television connection delivered into our living rooms, but there is a cost with that which so many complain about. While there are wide varieties of channels, there are so many channels that we will never watch, yet are part of the bills that we have to pay for the services we receive. But, it is starting to look like the idea of cord cutters impacting the cable providers is going to be realized in the next few years. This comes as connections to the Internet are improving from a growing number of companies. And the latest model for cord cutters continues to roll out.

The Roku 3 is continuing the move of devices which is pushing against the big providers of packaged TV programming. The Roku 3 builds on the strength of the previous models, adding features to benefit consumers. Providing you with faster speeds because of improvements in technology, such as processor speeds, your TV viewing experience will be more enjoyable. And, with over 750 supported channels on this Roku 3, you are getting more choices than ever before.

All of the streaming video devices come with the expected HDMI connection and an ethernet connection. The Roku 3 has a USB connection and WiFi, with the ability to stream from a USB connected device to your HD TV screen. This gives you the over 750 channels for you viewing and any other streaming videos you have collected. But the Roku 3 is still missing the YouTube channel for adding huge volumes of content for everyone to enjoy.

There are other companies involved in selling Internet devices to provide TV programming outside of the packaged TV programming. Names such as Google and Apple come to mind. But, there is still a lot of improvement for these streaming video devices to improve the services and quality of the product. The Roku 3 is another step in the right direction and we are hoping this will continuing to benefit consumers by offering choices which are not as available as they should be. The Roku 3 is selling for $99.99 at a variety of online locations.

LifeLogging Camera - Recording Your Life Twice A Minute

There are so many devices which can record what we are doing in our day to day activities. The GoPro camera is one of the very popular ones on the market. Then there are all the wrist bands which can monitor your health and activities and transmit them to a mobile device. Another example of that is the Fitbit which can track and monitor a variety of medical items along with sleep patterns. It seems that we are able to record and track so many things in life which gives one the ability to look back over time to see how you are doing. Technology continues to move forward and now we are waiting for the release of a product to record our life in pictures.

The Memoto Lifelogging camera is coming to market in the next few weeks and will move from recording medical type readings on a mobile device to recording actual pictures and pushing them to the Cloud. This is a little larger than a postage stamp and clips to your shirt where it can record pictures with the 5 megapixel camera at intervals as low as 30 seconds. As long as the camera is in an up position, it can take pictures. And it will turn itself off when placed on a table using the built in accelerator.

With battery life of about 2 days when recording at 2 pictures every minute, this becomes a great way to track your life. And the battery life and megapixels will increase over time. The question is who is going to want to record their life on the go about the day? Being on vacation, this would be a fantastic way to track what I am doing and where I am. As the pictures are uploaded to the Cloud, they are automatically tagged for your later retrieval. All without having to pull out a camera or my smart phone to take a picture. I would no longer miss those great pictures that I do and have a picture memory of my vacation.

This is not something which I would want to use while I am working or normal activities as there is no value for that. But, for say a person with Alzheimer disease having one of these attached when they accidentally wander away would become the fastest way to find them as they wander in unfamiliar areas. The pictures and GPS location would help them to be found quickly.

This may raise some questions about taking pictures of people when they are not aware that is being done, but that is for others to tackle. You can pre-order one today at Memoto today for $279.

Dark Energy Reservoir - Portable Charger Extraordinaire

KickStarter Friday - The Ultimate in a portable battery charger

The battery life of smart phones remains to be the biggest draw back in technology. And yet, we are still waiting for the day when you can get more than a single day's charge on the powerful phones of today. Until that time, we have to rely on a number of things, such as making sure to carry your charging cable. The limitations do explain the growing market for portable batteries which you can use to recharge your smart phone so you can continue using it. And the more powerful those batteries are, the more times you can recharge your smart phone before having to recharge the portable charger.

This weeks KickStarter project is the Dark Energy Reservoir which is being described as the premium portable charger for you to carry. With claims of lasting a week before you have to recharge it, it appears to be making some aggressive claims. As an example, they say the Reservoir can recharge the iPhone 5 up to 5 times before it will need to be recharged. If that claim does turn out to be true, this will look like one of the best portable chargers on the market.

The Reservoir from Dark Energy has some impressive features defined for it. The recharging of a smart phone 4 to 6 times is very impressive. Weighing in at 5.9 ounces, they say that it will only take 4 - 6 hours to recharge the Reservoir. For the amount of power that it packs, other portable chargers take longer to recharge. The Reservoir is very light and thin yet it holds an 8000 mAh battery in it. The use of a lithium polymer battery is the key to the smaller battery with the great reserve of power.

We have been seeing a lot of portable batteries for the past year and the goal is to make them smaller and more portable. But with this power, few have achieved the smaller size that the Reservoir will be delivered at. And with power to recharge your smart phone for a week, even fewer measure up to the size and power of the Reservoir.

Even though the KickStarter project has achieved 173% of their goal when it closed, you still have the ability to pre-order the Reservoir for $99.95 with an expected delivery in July this year. Take a look at this one because it does look like it will make a difference for you.

AfterShokz Headphones Plays Music Through Your Cheekbones

Many of you probably have an iPod or a like device where you listen to music. And you are using earbuds to listen to that music so that you get the best listening ability. But, is that really the best way to listen to your music. We are hearing about people being oblivious to the world around them because they are not able to hear anything other than the music in their ears and block out everything else. What if there was something you could use to have great listening enjoyment yet still be able to hear the world around you? That would make things a little safer for you.

The AfterShokz line of sport headphones is something that you should consider. They are using Bone Conduction Technology to provide you with the ability to enjoy your music. And the big item with these is that they are not stuck in your ear, but rather on your cheekbone as you see here in the picture. They are sending the music via your bones and that makes this a very unique item. And the AfterShokz headphones can directly connect to your mobile device or via Bluetooth depending on the model you are looking at.

We have all heard about people getting injured because they could not hear traffic or someone yelling at them to be careful. And with the AfterShokz line of products, your ear is not covered and you can still hear the world around you. You cheekbones are letting you hear the music which does seem strange and these are not going to be falling out of your ears as your current ones do. That is a big improvement when you are out jogging. Obviously the AfterShokz headphones are going to be a little different than what you are used to listening to music with and will take some adjustment to get used to. And while the very high quality sound of in ear speakers, this should be close enough and is a whole lot safe than that what you are using today.

AfterShokz offers multiple products with the bone conduction technology ranging in price from about $30 to $100 from Amazon and there are other locations where you can pick them up. Their latest model is the AfterShokz Bluez which was featured at CES this year and is expected to go for more than $100 though you probably will be able to find it for less. This is a great alternative to the earbuds that most are using to listen to music.

Galileo - iPhone Dock Turns Phone Into Robotic Platform

We have followed the various robots which we have reported on showing how things can be controlled through the use of a smart phone. These have been fun and entertaining. But there is so much more that robotic items can perform to help in life, whether it be family or work related. One that we have seen currently based on the iOS platform looks very much like an iPhone dock, but is really so much more and is really more like a platform to develop for and add value to via an Software Developer Kit (SDK)

The Galileo from motrr.com is drawing close to coming to market. And what this can do for video conferencing is huge. You place an iPhone in the dock and you can control the iPhone with another iOS device. This control is up to 360 degrees, so it is a great way to communicate. And this can be done remotely to control the Galileo. The video below shows just how great the Galileo is when talking to family, especially with kids who do not site still. No way could you do that with Skype on a computer. Using this in a meeting where you are attending remotely is fantastic.

Using your iOS device, you can control who you are looking at in the meeting. The potential for business is fantastic as we move further toward working from multiple locations, often which is at home. While this can be controlled via a browser, the real beauty is via your iPhone or iPad. With a browser, it lets Android mobile devices control the iPhone in the dock. And the iPhone in the dock is being charged up the whole time that it is plugged in.

This was a KickStarter project from a year ago with an estimated delivery of June 2012 for the backers. At the moment, they are still working with pre-production models showing just how tough this is to pull off. But it does look like things are growing closer for them. They have recently made available the iOS Quick Start Guide for developers to use.

Their update page is showing continuing work where they are working to add the Apple Lightning connector for the Galileo. And Bluetooth is another item they are working with to round things out. One of the really exciting things is work to integrate the GoPro cameras into the Galileo which would be a huge addition. Unfortunately, the GoPro will not be part of the initial roll out of the Galileo. This is certainly going to be a game changer when it is released and we hope to see it in the next few months.

ECOXPOWER - Power To Your Phone While You Ride

Many of us enjoy being able to go out for a bike ride or even ride your bike to work. And it is the enjoyment of being outdoors that makes it so fantastic while getting exercise at the same time. You bring your cell phone along in case you need to make a call or remember something that you have to take care of and want to put in a note about it on your task list. But there is always that nagging feeling about the charge on your smart phone. Now there is a way to take your smart phone with you and charge it at the same time.

Enter ECOXPOWER from ECOXGEAR which is providing you with the ability to charge your smart phone during your ride. This attaches to the front tire of your bike and is a generator providing power to charge your smart phone during your ride. Your own energy is providing the power through the ECOXPOWER unit to charge up that phone battery which never seems to hold a long enough charge.

And the ECOXPOWER is more than just a device to charge up your smart phone while you ride. Its primary purpose in life is to provide light to the road while you ride. The front facing light is a white LED light with the rear facing light consisting of 2 red led lights meeting your needs for safety and the law. And the ECOXPOWER has its own on board battery for about 1.5 hours of light when something goes wrong with the generation of power.

The ECOXPOWER unit comes with a case which is water resistant and still allows you to use the touchscreen on your smart phone. It easily mounts on the handlebar for you to put you phone inside of and then you are ready to go. You can purchase the ECOXPOWER unit from ECOXGEAR or Amazon for under $100.

Dockem Brackets Hold Your Smart Phone On The Wall

Taking your smart phone with you everywhere makes it part of your life. But setting it down on a desk does not really add to the usability factor. Having it propped up so that you can view it at a glance would be a great features. But the idea of using a small stand in order to do that does not fit in with your idea of being mobile. And with a stand, it can easily slide off a desk if you accidentally hit it. With the high costs of smart phones today, that is not the best idea. A great idea would be to have something simple which could mount on the wall making your smart phone visible at all times and away from being hit just laying on the desk. And we have found something which is functional for holding your smart phone.

The Dockem Universal Smart Phone mount may be just what you are looking for to hold your phone up. It is a very simple concept to hold your smart phone and protect it at the same time. You purchase the Dockem kit and it comes with a pair of brackets, a surface preparation pad and a pair of command strips. The command strips are from 3M and are the same ones you have seen advertised which hold things on the wall with great strength. And they are extremely easy to take off without damaging the wall. No screw holes or damage to the wall for you to repair.

The Dockem wall mount will fit most Smart Phones and makes it very easy to slide your phone in and out. There is a place to put your charging cable as well so that it is kept organized. And the how and where you put this is entirely up to you. You can mount the Dockem brackets in portrait or landscape orientation to hold your smart phone. The 3M command stripes included with the Dockem mounting brackets are basically picturing hanging strips that you have seen. You can also use water and heat resistant strips from most hardware stores. It all depends on where you are going to put your Dockem universal smart phone mount.

And the Dockem mount can be used just about anywhere there is a wall to mount it on. While the company promotes the idea of using this on larger tablets, I would not feel comfortable putting my iPad in the Dockem mount, though the 3M command strips are more than adequate to hold it. The Dockem brackets look like they would be more suitable to the iPad Mini. You can pick up your own Dockem univeral mounting brackets from many online stores for about $15.

Connected Cars To Help WIth Driving

The idea of having a computer control your car is coming in the future. The Google cars which drive themselves is a great example of what we may see everywhere in 10 or more years as the car of the future. These computer controlled cars will significantly reduce accidents on the roads along with getting us to our destinations in the most efficient route. While this is something of the future with connected cars, much of that future is coming to us now. And, if you have purchased a new car recently which is connected to the Internet, you are already taking advantage of the technology.

Many of the current on board computers have the ability to sync with the Cloud, storing information and getting real time information regarding traffic. With an always on connection to the Web, there are many benefits which can be used today and not in the future. That is where connected cars come in to provide benefit. We have heard for years where cars have the ability to apply the brakes before the driver when it is determined an accident is about to happen. It is that technology which has computers controlling the cars. But, connected cars is about much more than that.

The big advantage coming is the ability to reduce traffic gridlock for us. With an always on connection in your car, along with GPS coordinates being tracked, your location is always known. And when a majority of cars on the road have the same always on connection, traffic flow and patterns can be tracked and reviewed. Computers in the Cloud can warn you of traffic congestion or whether you are coming up on an accident. They can warn you to take a different route to your destination. With all those connected cars, they can talk to each other and warn if you are getting to close to each other.

But, the bigger questions is whether connected cars can make us better drivers?. Maybe not, but they can make for a better driving experience. Automatic braking will save lives and reduce damage from accidents. But what about other activities you do. Avoiding traffic congestion or accidents is a big deal. It will reduce costs, including that of fuel. There is even the potential to help you find a parking space saving you time and fuel.

When all the great features of connected cars will come to the masses is a slowly evolving process. But when it does, expect to see immediate benefit to a growing number of people in reduced accidents and costs.

Drone Can Swoop And Grab Items In Flight

Drones have been a very hot topic in the news and many see it as a privacy concern. But, given the ability for just about anyone to have their own drone, we have more concerns with private citizens having their own drones. What we have been hearing about is people exploring what they can do and somethings they get into problems by flying them where they should not. But, they have the potential for being used for criminal activities. And recent news is showing ways they could be used for such activities.

We should all have concerns about drones for private use. And now there is more information coming out as the things which drones are capable of increases. While a drone can be used for surveillance, the potential for much more is showing up all the time. The most recent is a report from the University of Pennsylvania and their Grasp program. They have added a claw to the bottom of a drone and shown how it can swoop and grab an item in flight. This has been patterned after what an eagle does when they swoop in to grab a fish. Check out the video below.

While this seems like a break through, there is so much more to it. Some are claiming that drones could swoop in a grab someone off the street which is a pretty scary thing to think about. But, what if you look at this for those who commit crimes. Since a drone is relatively quiet and they are making them quieter all the time, you may not hear one until it is too late. And the ability now for a drone to pick something up is going to create problems for the average citizen.

If you were to put your smart phone or tablet on a table outside in your own backyard and step away, a drone could come in and take your mobile device before you knew what happened. That is what we are going to have to be concerned about. Technology in the wrong hands creates problems for us and will continue to do so. The only alternative for us is to create devices which can jam the signals of a drone and block them from being navigated near us. That may be one of the few options to protect ourselves from a small drone.

StormFly - Computer On A Wrist Band

KickStarter Friday - Wrist band computer boots as USB device

In the past few years, computers have changed to allow you to boot one up using a USB stick. And it is that simple fact which creates opportunities to leverage that idea in a whole new way. We all know that the memory available on a USB stick continues to grow and today you can put a whole operating system on one. It would be great if you could get one which did that for your family and protected your computer while it was being used.

And that is exactly what StormFly can do for you and is this weeks KickStarter project. It just closed a few weeks back gathering over $120,000 and exceeding the goal which was set. The concept is a simple one and the ease of carrying one will be the key to its success. This looks to be tailored to the family and those who like to play games. When your kids come to the office with you, letting them use your computer could get you an infected computer taking hours to clean up. The StormFly runs its own operating system and does not touch the one on your computer. A great idea in the making.

The StormFly is a USB stick which is running a Linux version and takes over the computer after your plug in the USB and reboot. This USB 3.0 stick comes with 16 GB of storage and after loading the Linux OS on it, there is still plenty of room on it. The great thing about this is that after you have rebooted the computer and StormFly is running, you do not have access to the hard drive on the computer. That means that the underlying hardware is protected from something being deleted or accidentally downloading a file to it. A great idea and with the games that kids play, they can load that onto StormFly and carry it with them. And when not in use, it looks like a brightly colored wrist band.

The StormFly site is up and running which will soon be selling the consumer product for about $60 as they say in the video. These should begin shipping to those who pledged support for the project next month. You can expect to pick up your own StormFly in May or June for this great idea.

Blackberry 10 May Not Be Enough To Save The Company

If you have used a Blackberry phone from years back, you known and understand all the great features that it contained. This was the phone used by business and the government for many years for all the security and business features contained in it. And for everything that the company had going for themselves, it seems they took their eye off the ball and did not keep up with all the growing competition. For almost 2 years, the primary focus was on the Blackberry PlayBook at the expense of their extremely popular Blackberry phones. And even the name change from RIM to Blackberry for the company has not changed the direction things are heading.

If you remember back a few years, the Blackberry PlayBook was the first to gain US Government approval for a tablet. Even though consumers where not grabbing the tablet in large numbers, the US Government saw the security values which were built into the product. But that approval was then overshadowed by the loss of sales for US Immigration & Customs Enforcement to the Apple iPhone last year. That was the beginning of a trend. And now, there is a report that the US Department of Defense is moving away from Blackberry devices and towards Apple devices. This further adds to the problems being seen for Blackberry and their future.

And it is not just in the US where the problems are being experienced. Last month, information was revealed that the Canadian Government had issued a warning about the Blackberry communications as not being secure. This involved the Pin to Pin communication and the warning indicated that this was not a secure method of sending a message. And this is coming from the country where Blackberry is based.

The Blackberry 10 OS should have arrived in 2011, but here we are in 2013 with its arrival in an extremely competitive market. Blackberry has allowed for others to take over their place as the leaders in the mobile device world and did not keep up with the needs of consumers. Relying on Government and Corporate sales was not the thing to do and that has caught up with them. With the Blackberry 10, they may now finally be going after the consumer market in a big way. And the addition of running Android apps on Blackberry devices is a great way to greatly expand choices for Blackberry owners.

But the question remains as to whether they can begin to take back market share losses from the past 3 or 4 years. Going from the 20% range in 2009, I have watched them decline into the 1% range. And that is with the addition of Microsoft Windows Phone into the mix and the rising of Samsung as a world leader in mobile devices. Given their current position, future predictions have them taking until 2016 to reach 5% worldwide. That is a very slow growth to continue to remain in the less than 10% group of worldwide devices. With all the other competition, will Blackberry be able to come back?

Transporter - Your Personal Cloud Server Now Available

The idea of storing information in the Cloud is what we see being pushed every day. But, if you are working on a project where you are not allowed to store information in a public cloud, such as DropBox, it limits what you are able to do. The ability to share files and information is critical to many of us and restrictions for security reasons make for problems. But, what if you could have your own personal cloud server where you were in control of it and who could access it?

Enter the Transporter which was at first billed as Social Storage and has turned into the concept of a Personal Cloud Server which you are in charge of. And you know exactly what it costs up front, not the unknown in the public clouds which vary depending how much information you move. The Transporter contains a hard drive where you store your information and the capability of determining who can access that information. Everyone else is locked out giving you the confidence to know that the information is secure on your personal Transporter.

We talked about the Transporter back in January and were impressed with the features at that time. Now that it is available for sale at the prices shown above, you have the ability to get one for yourself. And with this, you are literally bringing your own drive to work, but it is sitting at home waiting to be accessed. No more having to copy files to a USB stick or USB drive to take home. You just connect to your Transporter and pushed them to the hard drive and that is all you need to then access them at home.

There is a draw back to this right now and that is security. If someone steals your Transporter from your home, they have access to everything. Not a lot different than stealing a computer, but something that you need to be aware of. And the ability to sync between Transporters to backup is not currently available.

You can pick up your Transporter personal cloud at the Transporter Store. Or you can pick it up at other online stores, such as Amazon, MacMall, newEgg and others. One thing I did notice when looking at all the online stores where you can get these is one is in limited supply. The Transporter which does not include the hard drive is out of stock in some locations. That would tend to indicate that it is selling very well. We expect to see the Transporter sell very well as an alternative to the Public Cloud giving you your own personal cloud server.

LUMOback Helps With Your Bad Posture

If you are like some of us who work in front of a computer a lot, your posture tends to not be very good after you have been at it for a long time. For those who write code, long hours of keyboarding often means slouching the longer you work. We know that we should pay attention and keep our posture at the correct position. But, that requires paying attention to that. Not something many of us are going to remember. Now, there is some technology which can help you maintain the correct posture when sitting.

This comes as the LUMOback sensor which when combined with the associated iOS app provides you with the necessary feedback to aid in keeping your posture correct. The two items together are the key to this. The sensor is contained in a belt which you wear around your waist and it can identify your posture along with whether you are walking or running as well. The sensor can communicate wirelessly to either your iPhone or iPad via Bluetooth. And the LUMOback sensor is about the size of a credit card. This sensor presses against your back to measure your posture and communicate that back to the iOS app.

As with any technology which communicates with your mobile device, the LUMOback is powered by a battery. Using a standard micoUSB cable, you charge the battery up which should last about 4 days before needing to be charged. The battery usage, other than Bluetooth communication, is used for vibrating the sensor to tell you your posture is incorrect and should be adjusted. The vibrating belt is going to help retrain you to have good posture.

The LUMOback is not a cheap product, coming in at $149 and two sizes. But, things related to health often have some expense to them and a lot of value to be provided. The Nike Fuel band comes in at the same price. The one draw back that we see to the LUMOback is the limitation of only having it available for Android mobile devices. There are a number of reports they are working on the issue and we can expect to see the Android app for the LUMOback in the coming months.

Drones For Private Use Raising Concerns

The idea of drones has been a hot topic here in the past few months and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. And it is not just because of the military purposes of drones which people are concerned about, but rather that of privacy concerns. Drones are quiet while hovering up in the air providing information to who ever is operating it. The concerns of law enforcement using them is a problem for everyone. But the bigger concerns are those individuals not associated with the government causing growing conversation to taking place. There are no regulations or enforcement for the private use of drones.

And we are not talking about those who are using drones as part of illegal drug activities or during the commission of a crime. Those are already happening and will continue. The issue is the use of drones by news agencies and how that will impact privacy. New's Corp admitted flying a drone over flood areas back in 2011 to show the damage which was caused. The big issue is when people take pictures and then sell them to news outlets. The "Paparazzi" take pictures now of the rich and famous by trickery and cunning. Long range lenses on cameras collect pictures which news agencies are willing to pay lots of money for.

What is there to stop the same people from using a drone to do the same and get a whole lot closer to the subject than ever before. That is what we should all be fearful of. The cost of a very good small drone can be purchased from Amazon for $299.99. And then all you have to do is add a great miniature camera to it and you are set to go. Prices go up from there with more features being added. But, at that price, anyone can get one and use it. And it is very easy to use. As you can see from the picture below, you can control it from your smart phone with ease. A drone and a smart phone is all that is needed.

This is definitely an invasion of privacy and may not be limited to just those being followed by the paparazzi. With drones, a burglar can look at various homes without even getting close to them. And then would be able to look into windows from a distance. This is the kind of privacy invasion that we should all be concerned about. The use of technology is not always for the correct purposes and drones is another example of this.

Netatmo Personal Weather Station Now Available For Android

Providing you with weather information is something that many of us are interested in. And the Netatmo weather station can provide that for you. With a unit mounted outside, you have the ability to get information to display on your smart phone to see the weather. This is all accomplished through the unit mounted indoors which is connected via WiFi to the outdoor unit. The Netatmo weather stations are pre-setup to be paired together for communication. While you might think that this is all there is for measuring the weather, it is the connectivity to your mobile device which provides the enhancement and value. And it is available now from various locations for the price of $179, depending on the retailer.

We wrote about the Netatmo Personal Weather Station a few months back talking about all the features that this can do for you. At that time, they were offering the Netatmo weather station as being only available for connection to iOS devices which really limited who would be able to use the great product. The associated app for iOS devices is available at the Apple App Store. The good news now, is that the same app is available for Android devices at the Google Play Store and with that, the Netatmo weather station extends to all the Android mobile devices in the world.

It is all the added features which make this a valuable product. While it takes a few days to collect information and establish patterns for your location, it can measure both outside and inside information providing you with a very complete picture. And that includes the indoor air quality as well. Unfortunately, the only way to see the information is via the mobile app as there are no indicators on either the indoor or outdoor Netatmo units. But, the information that you do receive has a lot to it.

And the one really great feature is the ability to share that information. The Netatmo weather station provides information which can be collected and it is that shared information which can provide for a wealth of information for all. If you remember the SETI project and the value created from all the computers sharing the work load to larger purpose, begin to see the potential for this. And with the shared data from the Netatmo weather stations, it can proved data for a larger purpose.

myIDkey - Password Management With Biometrics

KickStarter Friday - Biometric password management thumb drive

For many of us, the idea of password management has become an important topic given the number of sites which have been hacked over the past few years. The idea of having your logon information stolen for sites is an ongoing concern. If you are like me, the more complex a password the better. And the idea of generating a long random password has moved me to use password management software. I have this on my computer and a USB thumb drive for traveling. But, the USB thumb drive is for my laptop and is something to be carried around. What would happen if I were to lose the USB thumb drive? There needs to be some sort of way to secure my USB thumb drive.

And that is this weeks KickStarter project with the myIDkey which is a voice activated and finger print secure USB drive containing your vital information. This is an extended KickStarter project where they are closing in on $400,000 with 6 days to go. The combination of features is what will make this a coming industry standard for password management across devices. The idea of biometric access provides you with the confidence that your information is secure. You access the myIDkey by swiping your finger print across the reader on the USB thumb drive. And there is always the backup method of a series of taps to gain access.

While myIDkey does the normal method of filling in logons and passwords to sites that you access from a computer, it can do much more than that. It has the ability to use voice commands to search for things you have stored on the myIDkey such the example of a bank account. This is a great idea as I never remember my account number when I go to deposit a check. Before you can even use the voice command, you must first unlock it with your fingerprint scan.

The bigger news about the myIDkey is that this will work with your mobile devices. This is done via Bluetooth and can filling in logons and passwords for your apps on your smart phone or tablet. These is set to work with iOS and Android mobile devices. Given all the passwords we now have to use so that we are not duplicating them on sites, this biometric access thumb drive is going to be important for all to have.

And if you are concerned about what happens if someone takes it and tries to access the information, there are built in features to protect you. If someone attempts to access it, it will erase all the information on the myIDkey after a defined number of failed attempts. That is exactly what we need to have so we know we are safe and secure. The information can be recovered from your PC or the Cloud to return it to a usable state. Backing up to the Cloud can be to the myIDkey or others such as Google Drive or DropBox. Giving you the flexibility to chose where you want things to be stored.

The current plans have those who have pledged to myIDkey to receive them in September this year and we would expect to see retail sales begin no later than November. If you want to join in, there is still time for you to make a pledge of $99 or more to receive your myIDkey as backer of this coming biometric password management device.

Drones Used For More Than Just Military Purposes

[caption id="attachment_4504" align="aligncenter" width="578"] Credit: Inquisitr[/caption]
We have all heard the news about drones and all the negativity associated with them. And this has included concerns about them being used against citizens here in the US. While we should be concerned about exactly how drones may be used by the military or law enforcement to create a Big Brother watching us situation, those are not the only uses for drones which can benefit society. There are so many places where the use of a piloted plane can now be replaced by a drone. Here are a few examples of how that can be utilized.

Radiation measurement by drones

We all remember the nuclear power plant problems in Japan and the problems with trying to get accurate measurements in the air without causing harm to the pilots flying overhead. There is now the ability to affix the equipment to a drone and fly that over a nuclear plant without placing anyone in harms way. This is being done at Sandia National Labs in New Mexico where they have recently developed drones to fly over areas to detect whether there has been a nuclear detonation and the impact of that. The same concept applies when a nuclear power plant has significant mechanical failures. With drones, they can get much closer to the location and not risk someone's life.

Climate changes measured by drones

With all the discussion about climate change and associated concerns being raised, drones are now being used to fly over various locations to take measurements. These are immediately fed to computers on the ground while the drones fly for up to 31 hours. Piloted planes for this kind of research cannot stay up anywhere near that time. All the information gathered will provided necessary information to determine the impact to the atmosphere and provide answers as to what should be done.

Wildlife monitoring by drones

Scientists have had difficulty monitoring some wildlife as they may be too mobile. Flying an aircraft to monitor them makes too much noise and has an impact. By using drones, there is far less of an impact to wildlife which they are monitoring. The ability to monitor poaching of animals in the jungle has become a much easier process with the use of drones. Or monitoring Sea Lions in the arctic is another example of using drones to accomplish scientific needs. Or the study of Sperm Whales is another of the scientific study. And there are many other examples of this going on.

Conclusion

The use of drones for military or law enforcement usage is one that is in the news and controversial. The use for research which can have benefits to society is one that we can all agree is something which should be pursued. We can all hope to hear of many more examples such as these in the future.

Portable Fold Up Stand For Your Tablet

[caption id="attachment_4488" align="alignleft" width="375"] Akron Fold Up Stand[/caption]There are so many products on the market for tablets that at times is may be difficult to decide what it is you are looking for. We have been talking about clam shell cases for the iPad Mini and Nexus 7 here this week with those meeting a needed function. But, what if all you need is a stand to hold your tablet up without an included keyboard. And it has to be something simple and easy to transport along with being inexpensive. A typical example might be on a plane or sitting at a table somewhere. I am sure that there are other places you can think of where a simple fold up stand for your tablet. A place where your tablet can be utilized to make things easier for you.

Well, fortunately there are a number of them available and it seems that they all look like they come from the same manufacturer. With that, there is going to be some competition over price and you can come out the winner when looking for one. In researching for this, I found even more than what is listed here and some are shipping these directly from China indicating where these are manufactured and distributed.

Akron Portable Fold Up Stand

The Akron stand is one that was reported several years ago and appears to be one of the first available. It is available at Amazon for $8.98. It measures in at 7 inches tall, 1 inch thick and 1 inch wide with a weight of 2.9 inches when closed. It opens up to support 7 to 10 inch tablets in the stand, even if there is a case on the tablet. And when it is closed, is relatively small and can easily slip into a pocket for carrying. The picture above shows you just how small it is when closed.

IPAD-ST Univeral Fold Up Stand

The IPAD-ST stand looks to be exactly the same as the Akron portable fold up stand. The measurements are the same as well, so one can assume they are getting it from the same manufacturer. The price for the IPAD-ST is lower at Amazon with a price of $6.30.

AmazonBasics Portable Fold Up Stand

The AmazonBasics stand looks to be the exact same stand and the same characteristics. It has the same plastic shape and size along with non-slip features on it. And it has a different price as well at Amazon of $9.99.

FocalPoint Portable Fold Up Stand

The FocalPoint stand again looks to be exactly the same as the previous three, but with a different price as well. From the FocalPoint store, the price is $6.99. Another product that looks to be exactly the same as the others, but at a different price.

Summary

There are a variety of these on the market and you can see just how different the prices can be for the portable stand. And the idea of taking a portable stand for traveling does make sense when you are on a plane.

Nexus 7 Case With Bluetooth Keyboard Included

After our post yesterday for the iPad Mini, it is only fair to now look at a case for the Google Nexus 7 that holds the same features. The Nexus 7 is an immensely popular tablet using a clean version of Jelly Bean (Android 4.2), as compared to other tablets which include added features from manufacturers and wireless carriers if coming with AT&T or T-Mobile connections. The ability to have both a carrying case and a keyboard together is an important feature for a select group of people. So we went out looking to see what was available that met the need for the Google Nexus 7 tablet.

We decided to talk about the HipStreet case for the Nexus 7 with the included Bluetooth keyboard. This provides for a great Black leather case to carry around your Nexus 7 in style. All the while, protecting it from getting scratched during the day. The Nexus 7 case with Bluetooth keyboard is actually called the Asus Google Nexus 7 Venture Case. The Venture must have some significance, but I could not see any information.

With this Nexus 7 case, you get a magnetic latch to hold it closed and looking sharp. When it is open, your get a stand to hold the tablet at the correct angle for viewing and typing on the keyboard. And speaking of the Bluetooth keyboard, it is detachable so that you can put the keyboard in other locations or angles than just attached to the case. That is a very nice feature. The Bluetooth keyboard has "active pairing" so that once you have set things up to tie them together, it will do it automatically for you in the future when you turn on your Nexus 7.

As with any Bluetooth keyboard, there is a battery involved and the issue of battery life comes to mind. The rated life of the HipStreet Bluetooth keyboard is 45 days, so you can assume 30 days of use before having to recharge the battery. It is far easier to remember 30 days than 45 when keeping track.

If you are considering getting a clam shell like case for your Google Nexus 7, take a good look at the HipStreet Nexus 7 case. This is not a case made to fit 7 inch tablets, but rather one that is specifically made to fit the Nexus 7, That insures that all the access you need to ports and buttons is easily accessible for your use.

While it is available in a number of locations, there appears to be some inventory issues. We found that the Nexus 7 HipStreet case is currently available at Notebook Nerds and Walmart.

iPad Mini Bluetooth Keyboard

The iPad Mini has become a very successful tablet for Apple, even though Steve Jobs once said they would not produce one. And for some of that success, it has come at the expense of the full size iPad which some had suspected. With a smaller iPad Mini, there are some issues which come up which are solved by adding accessories to the mobile device. One of those is the need to provide a physical keyboard to be able to type quickly.

The iPad Mini Bluetooth keyboard from Zagg may be exactly what you are looking for. The idea of having to type on 7 inch tablets is what has made the Bluetooth keyboards popular. And with the popularity of the iPad Mini, the ability to have a keyboard to type on adds value. And not just with the keyboard either.

he Zagg iPad Mini Bluetooth keyboard is more of a clam shell case for the Mini and provides added protection. When closed, you can carry around the iPad Mini and it is protected from nicks and scratches that one would get when out and about. That added features makes this a worthwhile item to have. In addition, there is a "kickstand" in the back for holding your iPad Mini up at the correct angle for you to be working with.

As with any Bluetooth keyboard, it relies on a battery for power and connectivity. And with any mobile device, one can expect issues with how long you can use something before you have to recharge it. There have been some making comments where the battery life of the Zagg 7 and 9 inch keyboards are not as good as they should be. But, most people working with the keyboard are reporting battery life of about a month, so you should not have any problems with this.

You can pick up the Zagg iPad Mini Bluetooth keyboard at the Zagg site. The 7 inch Bluetooth keyboard is listed at $89.99 on the site. The 9 inch Bluetooth keyboard for the iPad Mini is currently listed at $44.99 on sale and looks to be a great bargain.

Walking Cane Gets New Technology To Help The Elderly

As we look at the aging population here in the US, the need for technology to assist them in the future is looking very good. Soon, the days of wearing a locket around the neck to press a button to summon help are going to be replaced by much newer technology. Take something as simple as the cane which you see so many people using for balance as they walk about. Even that has the ability for technology to be associated with it to help those who are in need.

Fujistu is working on the New Generation Cane which was shown at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. And with the future becoming closer, we are going to soon see a day where those who are retired can take advantage of technology not available to them today. The idea of a simple cane being something more than it is will soon leverage technology to help those who are older make there way in the world.

The New Generation Cane will be able to do a multitude of things. The most basic functions will be using GPS to help them navigate to a location and back again while walking. With built in WiFi connectivity, LED lights can represent the direction they are to go in the shape of an arrow. Making the process very simple for getting around. But, these advanced technology canes will include even more.

The handle will have sensors in it to monitor your body, such as keeping track of the heart rate for the person as they are walking. It also can keep track of the location of the cane and the temperature of that location, passing it to someone else who may be monitoring the retired person. There are even plans for a cellular radio to be included. That would provide for the ability to talk between the location of the cane and person to someone at home. A great way to keep tabs on someone.

Now for some of the things they have to work on with this. The first is the LED lights which will display the direction via GPS. In the outdoors and bright lights, they are going to be tough to read as currently shown. Obviously that can be improved. The other is the same thing plaguing smartphone owners, the battery. The current model has a battery life of 2-3 hours which is no where close to what this needs to be. Very few people who are retired are out and about for only a few hours. It is generally for the day that they are gone, so this is going to need to significantly improve.

The future for leveraging technology for the retired set of people has a bright future and this cane is just one example.

USB Stick With Corsair Flash Padlock 2 Hardware Security

How many times do you make sure that your smartphone or laptop is secure when you walk away from your desk at work. Probably every time. But how much thought do you give to the USB stick that you carry around with you and just left laying on your desk?. And more than likely, there is some important information contained on it which you do not want others to look at. But there is no hardware lock to secure your USB stick. Software to lock a USB stick looks to be fairly easy to break. The real solution is to use a hardware lock to protect that USB stick you carry around with you.

One solution is the Corsair Flash Padlock 2 which comes with 256 bit hardware encryption to protect you and the data. On these, you have the ability to enter a 4 to 10 digit pin to protect access to the USB stick. As with most smartphones which have a standard 4 pin access, this provides for a variety of different lengths or combination when you pick the pin you want to use. And you can set a master pin in addition so that there is always an access method. They have placed a rubber case around this secure USB stick making it more durable and another layer of physical protection.

The actual numbers you press do not stick out and will not get damaged or accidentally triggered if bumped or dropped. In fact, they are part of the molded rubber case so that nothing will leak inside, thus protecting the USB. So, what is there to stop someone trying to guess the pin? After 5 incorrect attempts to gain access, it locks the Corsair for 2 minutes and blocks all attempts until that time has expired. Not bad as another layer to protect your USB stick.

What happens if I forget my PIN? The Flash Padlock has an option to let you reset it back to the factory default options. And if someone takes your Padlock and does a reset, it will not do them any good. A factory reset wipes everything off the USB stick, so there is nothing for them to gain access to at that point.

This seems like a pretty good solution to adding another layer to protect your USB stick. You can pick up the 16 GB version through Amazon for $39.13.

No Outlet Battery Charger For Your Mobiles Device

KickStarter Friday - Ultra-high capacity batteries coming from no name company

Batteries seem to be a re-occurring theme in the products that we are seeing. And the reason for that is very simple. When your mobile devices gives you a low battery warning, panic tends to set in when you are not near a power source. That has happened to me on a number of occasions, so I tend to notice when I see something new. And this week, I have found a product which is being created by someone who travels in the range of 200 days per year, though he lists it as 200 nights per year.

These coming batteries are from a company with no name on KickStarter this week and are well worth the look. They have just closed funding to create 3 different size batteries to help the business travelers who are "fighting for outlet space at airport terminals" to charge up their mobile devices. If you have been in that situation, you know. With a goal of $25,000, the project closed today with $144,516 in funding to move this forward.

Since the company does not have a name, we are going to call it the "No Outlet No Problem" company and they are working towards providing 3 different battery charger models. They 3 are:

• Adventurer with 6,600 mAh battery at 2.55 by 3.9 inches and 0.75 inches thick. Weight is 5.5 ounces.


• Expedition with 11,200 mAh battery at 4.8 by 3.2 inches and 0.80 inches thick. Wieght is 8 ounces.


• Destination with 10,000 mAh battery at 3.75 by 5.25 inches and 0.64 inches thick. Weight is 8 ounces.

Using lithium-ion batteries for these, they are providing large sized capacity in a very small form factor. These various sizes will give you the knowledge that you do have a battery to recharge your mobile device when you have to. While these are not going to be the speediest of charges, they will do the job for you. Each of the batteries will contain a charging circuit to control the discharge to your mobile device. And they are including a universal adapter with 8 different adapters to charge up a wide variety of mobile devices.

The "No Outlet No Problem" company is going to be providing a solid product with two USB outlets on each one of their charging batteries. Current plans have them providing the selected battery to backers of their KickStarter project in May this year. There is no indications of when retail sales of these may start nor possible pricing for them. For those who backed this project at various levels, the price for them is $30 for the Adventurer, $50 for the Expedition and $65 for the Destination. If those translate into pricing when it comes to market, this will make it a very competitive product for a battery charger.

Google Now Gives You Boarding Passes On Your Phone

If you are like most of us who love our Android smartphones, you have probably felt some envy for the Apple crowd. That is because the Apple iOS and apps are able to provide the Apple Passbook which gives you electronic tickets instead of paper ones. The big thing is it provides you with boarding passes for airlines so you don't have to pre-print your boarding pass from home or hit the kiosk before you go to the gate. For Android users, we have been looking at this great feature waiting for the day we could get it on our Android phones.

In January, Google unveiled their Google Now with the boarding pass feature. And with that, the envy for the Apple folks goes away and you can now use your smartphone to show your boarding pass at the gate to board. All you have to do is check-in online before arriving at the gate. That is is and you are doing it without paper helping the environment.

Google Now boarding passes are using a QRCode to be scanned at the gate which is different than what you normally see as a bar code. But, as the screen shows, there is everything visible that you need from the terminal and gate down to your seat number and boarding group. All right there on your smart phone. And while not all the airlines are on board with this yet, so we expect to see more of them as time goes by. That is the same situation when Apple's Passbook first came out last year, so watch for a growing list of airlines participating with Google on the Google Now Cards.

This does require the Google Search app in order to use Google Now to show your boarding pass. And it is not limited to that as it has other cards you can create to keep track of things, such as sports scores and electronic tickets to movies. This is a great feature and one that is customizable based on your individual needs. If you have not taken a look at Google Now, this is a great time to do so.

ChargeCard - Credit Card Size Smart Phone Charger

If you are like most people, you are on the go all the time and taking along your mobile devices. And you have probably been caught with a low battery and not had a charging cable with you. I know I get in a rush sometimes and grab the essentials to get out the door and forget about the extras like a cable to charge up my smartphone. Then I have to find someone to borrow a cable from. It would be great to be able to always have one with me so that I do not get caught in this situation again.

And that solution is the ChargeCard from the Charge Card Project which is now coming to market with this great product. A flat charger which you can carry in your wallet instead of the wire cables that we are all so familiar with. The ChargeCard is small and the size of a credit card measuring in at 0.1 inches in thickness making it pretty much unnoticeable in your wallet until the need arises to use it.

The ChargeCard rubber "tongue" in the middle folds out with a USB connection that you can connect to a computer for charging your smartphone up. The end that sticks out is specific to the smartphone connection. MicroUSB, 30 pin iOS or the iOS Lightning connector will all be available in this flat form. The 30 pin iOS modle is currently shipping with the MicroUSB to be shipping here within weeks. The iOS Lightning connector should be available by the end of May which will provide a product line to cover the best selling phones on the market today.

We wrote about the ChargeCard KickStarter project last July and what a great idea it was. This KickStarter project was funded last August and they have been working towards this date ever since. And now that things are starting to be shipped for one model, the talk about the value this provides is going to increase. This is using USB 2.0 and for smartphones which support it, you can transfer data over the ChargeCard as well.

The plan was to provide 3 colors; black, white and teal, but it appears they are only offering black at the moment. The iPhone 4 ChargeCard is currently available from ChargeCard and you can pick yours up for $25.00. While the price may seem to be a little high, you have to remember that this is small in size and has far more value when you are in a situation where you are without your charging cable and have to charge up your smart phone. The ChargeCard looks like it is going to be a very successful product and meets a need that has not been filled in the market.

Smartphone Fingerprint Detection And Recognition

With all the reports of smartphones being stolen and hackers accessing servers, there needs to be another way to improve the protection of your smartphone. We have seen how apps are able to track your phone as part of efforts to locate your lost smartphone or tablet. But the current methods of unlocking the screen via a 4 digit number need to be improved significantly beyond what is available today. Coming technology needs to involve the use of biometric features to recognize you as the owner of the smartphone. Something as simple as a fingerprint could add another level of security to your mobile device.

Today, there are USB devices which can be added to a tablet or computer providing fingerprint recognition, but these do not provide what is really needed for your smartphone. You may have even had a laptop with the fingerprint reader as part of the device. The added feature a fingerprint reader on your computer was great add on, but we really need something for our smartphones which use biometric recognition. This may be the year we see multiple smartphones with their larger screens incorporate a fingerprint scanner. So, where are we know.

The Motorola Atrix smartphone is sold as having biometric features, but is one of the few which provide the features. And the Atrix has the biometric scanner on the back side of the smart phone, as shown above and not the front. In order for the scan to be done on the display side of the phone is going to require changes to the displays for resolution and adaption of the scanner. Smaller smart phones cannot support this due to a lack of space.

In recent news, Sony has filed a patent here in the US for fingerprint scanning. This is generally the first step for coming features on a smart phone and to protect their intellectual property from other companies. This will be a combination hardware and software solution. Today, there are apps which you can download which provide a software only solution, but we truly need a hardware solution. And it does appear that things are beginning to look like we are going to see something in 2013 for biometric scanning of fingerprints for authentication and access to a smartphone.

Apple's purchase of AuthenTec last summer clearly shows an interest in getting into the world of fingerprint detection in the future. Current rumors about the next iPhone coming with fingerprint detection are circulating. These are rumors, but tend to indicate that smart phones with fingerprint recognition is something we are going to see this year. And since Samsung is a big player in the smartphone world, we can expect to see something from them later this year as well.

With companies like Validity who was present at CES this year, there will be solutions for manufacturers to take advantage of. For smartphones, they have a fingerprint sensor which can be added to smartphones. And this is only one of the product offerings they have. Their current products could give us exactly what we need in a fingerprint reader for smartphones this year. It does seem that software and hardware will be coming together in 2013 to gives us biometric features to lock our smartphones. The only way into your smartphone will be through fingerprint recognition.

As this technology comes to market, it is definitely something you should look at for securing your smartphone.

iSmartAlarm - Personal Home Security System

We all hear about how someone had their home broken into and things stolen of value. Or that may have happened to you. One of the options for people is to pay for a service which will monitor your home for you and in the event of someone breaking in, contact the police. But that does come with a cost on a monthly basis and comes with the knowledge that the police will be contacted. But what if you want something less costly?

The iSmartAlarm may be exactly what you are looking for as a way to monitor what is going on in your residence with alerts sent to your iPhone. This is currently an Indiegogo Funding Campaign. And it comes with a variety of components which you can purchase all together or individually for your use. Individual pieces will be available in May for those interested in expanding what they currently have.

There are various parts of the iSmartAlarm which you can purchase individually or as a package. The central unit to this is the CubeOne which has all the intelligence included in it, including a wireless router for communication to you and the various parts. Other parts to this include motion detectors for movement in the residence, contact sensors to detect a window or door being opened and even a camera (iCamera) which can take pictures. When an event is triggered for any of these sensors, it will send an alert to your iPhone. You can then control the camera through your iPhone to see what is going on. It then becomes up to you to decide what to do about it. There is no monitoring service with monthly costs. You become the monitoring service.

With traditional home security systems, you have a company which comes in to install all the pieces for you. But with the iSmartAlarm system, you can install it yourself as there are no wires to run because of the built in WiFi. All the parts communicate with the central CubeOne over the air, which is far different from the systems of today.

You can still participate in the the funding campaign and place a pre-order for iSmartAlarm at various levels to receive the early shipments which are planned for April 2013. Prices start at $79 for those who participate in the Early Bird funding and will be much more when they come to market. As of the moment, this is planned around iOS for communications to your smart phone, but there is work being done for an Android version of iSmartAlarm and should be released some time this year.

Samsung HomeSync Enters Media Hub Market

Media Hubs have been around for a few year. Apple TV functions as one currently, though there is still speculation that Apple will be able to provide content from the major networks in the future. Google has also been involved in bringing content to your TV. Due to a variety of issues, we are not going to see media hubs providing TV content for a while. In the mean time, we are seeing TV media hubs as the future for merging TV and the Internet together. Roku is another of the well known names in that area. And the media hub market is gaining another company to compete for your home.

The Samsiung HomeSync is coming to provide you with a home media center which will be running Android (Jelly Bean) and was announced this week at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. There are several things which make this different than others on the market today. The first one is the on board storage which is set at 1 TB. That provides for a decent amount of disk space for videos that you might download. The bigger feature for the HomeSync is that it lets you use your Galaxy mobile devices to control the HomeSync as a remote control. That gives you access via your Samsung Galaxy S3 or Galaxy Note as an example to control this media hub.

The ability to use your own mobile device to control this is great and removes the idea of having yet another remote in the house. Coming with a dual core 1.7 Ghz processor and 1 GB of memory, along with 8 GB of NAND storage for apps guaranteeing fast performance. You can either use a wired network connection or WiFi to provide for streaming data or other activities. Performance over WiFi may be an issue, so for the best performance, stay with a wired connection. Since this is part of your network, you can share things from other sources on the network. Or you can go to the Cloud to pull down other content. Samsung has their own Cloud service and we expect to see them offering a decent amount of storage space for free with the Samsung HomeSync.


The current planned release for the HomeSync is set for April with no pricing revealed at the moment.

Lumio Book Provides Portable Light When Open

KickStarter Friday - Book provides light for up to 8 hours

Every now and then, we see something which is very unique and provides for a great functional purpose. In our time of moving about to work or enjoy life, there are times where having more light than what we have at the moment would be a wonderful thing. But carrying a light around is not something you can do when there is no place to plug one in. Using your smart phone to provide that light will surely drain the battery very quickly which is not desirable. So, this weeks KickStarter report is all about providing light in a very unique way and through the use of a book.

A book providing light sounds interesting and the Lumio Book light can provide that and is currently an active KickStarter project where their goal of $60,000 has already passed $374,000. It is the marvel of what this can do which is drawing a lot of people and money to the project which is expected to begin deliveries in July of 2013. Carrying around something which looks like a hard covered book and opens up providing for light just over the equivalent of a 40 watt light is a novel idea.

As you can see, just opening the book turns on the light and provides illumination to the area. It seems such like such a simple concept and yet, no one has provided something which looks great both open and closed. The light book weighs in at about 1 pound and the LED light can provide light in a limited area to meet your needs. The rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are charged via a standard USB charger, so there are a variety of ways to keep the battery charged for the Lumio book light. There are no other wires or connections associated with this and with the USB cable removed, it looks like any book measuring 8.5 inches tall, 7 inches wide and 1.25 inches thick.

The Lunio Book Light will come in three different covers of blonde maple, warm cherry and dark walnut. Choice is always a great thing in a product and they have considered that here. There are so many different ways that the video below shows how it can be used. Take a look as it is versatile and functional in a small package. You can control the amount of light being produced by opening the Lumio book a little or a lot. The more you open it, the more light you will get.


As with anything, there are some concerns. One is how long will the battery last? It should last for a period of about 5 years. More than long enough especially since it is not something you can replace. The LED light should last for about 6 years, so the life on this is petty good. The only other item which we could not find is a battery level indicator. We are not sure how you can determine how much of the battery charge is left and when you should charge it. There may well be a solution to that when they start shipping the product. Expect to see the Lumio Book light coming to market for everyone, after the pledgers receive theirs, by the holiday season.