Limeaide Blast Battery Provides Juice When You Need It

KickStarter Friday - Limeaide Blast Battery With Faster Charge

We have all been there. We get the low battery indicator (or the dreaded beep) telling us we need to charge up our smartphone or risk having it shut down because the battery has drained. Until batteries improve significantly, that is a fact of life that we have to live with. And that is why you see a lot battery chargers which are portable and provide a solution for when there is no place to charge up your phone or other mobile device. A coming one to market is the Limeaide Blast.

The Limeaide Blast is a KickStarter project which closed yesterday and with some impressive numbers. With a project goal of $30,000, they raised 940% of the goal or $284,290. This shows just how important it is to have a portable charge when you are on the go and people continue to want to see improvements. The Limeaide Blast contains high capacity batteries which they are calling as ultra high capacity batteries. They are Lithium-ion and will be available in 3 sizes. The L130x (13000 mAh), L156X (15600 mAh) and the L180X (18000 mAh).

With these ultra high capacity batteries, you might think they are going to be difficult to carry around. But they only measure out at 4.8 (4.5 L130X) by 3.1 by 0.9 inches and weigh in at 11.4 oz, 12.8 oz, and 13 oz. That is a lot of power packed into a small space for those times when you need it. The Limeaide Blast may be the one you need. With these, the charging of your mobile device may be just as fast as if you were charging it up at home. So, what makes this one different from all the others on the market.

Current portable batteries like this are charged up at 1 amp which for me seems to take forever to charge up. But, the Limeaide Blast is charged at 2 amp giving you the potential to cut the battery charge time in half. This makes this a far better product with this feature alone. On the output side, or charging your mobile devices, they have included 2 USB connections. One outputs at 1 amp and the other at 2.1 amps which is going to make a difference when charging up your tablet.

The Limeaide Blast web site is up and running, but there is no longer a place to order your Limeaide Blast since the Kickstarter project ended. Deliveries for those who made pledges is set for June and since they are reporting the first shipments from manufacturing have arrived, they are going to meet that pledge. Check back on their site for when you can order your own Limeaide Blast.

Smart Door Lock Provides High Tech Access To Your Home

Security is something that pops up every now and then because we want to protect what we have. And one of the ways to do that is with a good deadbolt on your home. But using keys is not futurist and we need to move towards keyless entry which requires the use of technology. A growing market has been emerging this year and another company has provided information about their coming product. The August Smart Door Lock may sound similar to some others, but it has a great look to it making it both stylish and functional.

The August Smart Lock is coming to market soon and you can reserve one now on their site for $199. While they are saying it will be available in the winter of 2013, the August Smart Lock could be released in the same month as its name, August. That is a guess on my part. The August Smart Lock operates on iOS devices via Bluetooth. There is no connection to your WiFi to have your smart phone open the door. As you get close to the lock, the Bluetooth communications matches the phone and lock to then open the door. You do not have to take out your keys to gain entrance. And after you gain entrance, the door will lock behind you. All handled via the app you run on your phone.

The installation is claimed to be simple taking only 10 minutes and from what we can tell it is. The lock unit itself is powered by 2 batteries as there has to be some power to the lock. A great feature with this is that it will send you an email to tell you that the batteries need to be replaced. They are using a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connection which is something relatively new and requires less power. Google will have Android supporting that with Android 4.3.

This smart lock is similar to the Lockitron we reported on, but that one has a plastic case associated with it. The August Smart Lock is made of anodized aluminum so that it looks more polished in its appearance.

You have the ability to grant other people access to your home with the August Smart Door lock. It is those kinds of features which make this product an important part of your home security. And, this smart lock knows when you leave and will lock the door for you. That removes the nagging questions of did I lock the door?

They are working on an Android version, so by the time that the August Smart Lock is released it should be available. The key is going to be the correct version of Android to use the August Smart Lock.

Golden-i Headset Computer Is Alternative To Google Glasses

We have all been hearing about Google Glasses and the various test groups which are using it. This has been making the headlines around the country as being the future for technology. And while there are a number of pros and cons to this process, Google Glasses are not the only one which is being developed. Google Glasses are currently aimed at the consumer market and seems to be doing quite well in generating interest for the product. But, it is not the only one on the market. The Golden-i headset is designed for commercial use and is providing some great features.

The Golden-i 3.8 Headset Computer is designed for use by professional, not the general public. This includes Police, Fire, Medical, etc. as the group which is going to be able to take advantage of what is being offered. The planned product offerings for the immediate future are Police Pro, Firefighter Pro and Paramedic Pro. And the Golden-i is a headset that includes a computer, video streaming, facial recognition, infrared and voice recognition to name some of the features which are built in.

The Golden-i Police Pro model contains infrared which can show someone standing behind a wall. And this single feature is going to make the jobs of police who use this much safer. With the on board computer and streaming video, they can be in constant communications. They can get feedback information while on location, such as floor plans to buildings that they are in. Or the ability to get facial recognition to immediately identify someone and get their history. All without having to go to a computer in the car. And with the ability to issue voice commands, the Golden-i is a hands free unit

There was a movie called RoboCop back in 1987 which had a half man half machine showing features that are being now included in the Golden-i 3.8 for interacting with technology. The movie showed the future and it looks like that is here with the Golden-i headset. With its noise cancelling microphones (there are 2), the near ear speakers and the microdisplay, technology is wrapped around the person wearing it. And the display has 800 by 600 resolution, which according to the company is like using a 15 inch LCD display 18 inches away. That is a lot of screen real estate to show things on.

As with all technology that is mobile, the Golden-i relies on batteries which they claim will last for 8 hours or more. As with most mobile devices, there is Bluetooth and WiFi abilities included. And you can connect USB devices to it. It contains GPS and a digital compass to enhance the value for emergency personnel. The future for this kind of technology looks very bright and should be available in the future for non-emergency commercial usage.

Powertraveller Silverback Gorilla Provides All Day Laptop Power

Sounds like an interesting title and makes one wonder what this actually is. Are we talking about the zoo and the silverback gorilla's? How can a gorilla provide you all day laptop power? No, it is nothing like that at all. This is about a product which can give you power to your laptop when there is no power available to plug the power cord into. And while that may not be a big deal for most, there is a group where that is a really big concern to be able to continue working. I get to work from home which does allow me to essentially work from anywhere. So, if there is no power, I cannot work and that is a big deal in continuing to work from home.

As a result, I am always on the look out for alternate power sources. One that I found over the weekend is the Powertraveller Silverback-gorilla which is a coming product. And this is one that should be of interest to anyone who gets to work from home. The key feature that caught my eye is the fact that it can power my laptop for up to 14 hours. In reality, this is a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) battery which is powerful enough to provide for a day of work and light enough to carry around. Weighing in at just over 5.5 pounds, you can easily throw the Silverback Gorilla charger in your laptop bag to take with you. Or you can leave it plugged into the wall so that when the power does go out, it is fully charged up.

With a size of 9.6 by 8 by 1.3 inches, it is not going to take that much space. And the insurance of having all day power when the power goes out could be considered as being "priceless". The 60,000 mAh battery is the key to this and it contains 2 USB plugs so that you can charge up your mobile devices as well. But, what about your Internet connection? The Silverback Gorilla also comes with a 250 watt output plug to connect up your Wifi or modem to it. That way, you continue to be connected to the Internet while you are working. This sure looks to be a great solution for those working from home when the power goes out.

Another of the features coming with the Silverback Gorilla is the ability to set various voltage outputs for this UPS. Those various settings for USB output include 5v, 8.4v, 9.5v, 12v 16v, 19v or 24v. With that variety, you can set the correct setting to match your mobile devices. That kind of flexibility is not seen that often.

The Powertraveller Silverback Gorilla UPS battery is expected to arrive this summer at a price of about $460. If having power when there is none is critical, this is a great choice for those of us working from home. You can add your name to an email list for when the Silverback Gorilla Charger will be available at their website.

Cinemin Swivel Lets You Share You Smartphone Video

It seems that movies and TV shows are quickly moving from being viewed on a fixed TV to that of mobile devices. This has been shifting for several years now and with the expansion of 4G LTE speeds to mobile devices, the time for the shift has come. The problem becomes how to share what you are watching. A smartphone is pretty good for single person viewing, but when there are others to share what you are watching with, the ability for all to see drops quickly. That is where the small projection devices come in to have value for sharing. The Cinemin Swivel is part of the pocket size projection devices which are growing in popularity.

The Cinemin Swivel from WowWee is one of those small projection devices turning your personal mobile device for watching movies into a shared mobile device for watching movies. And as the name implies, you can swivel it to project the picture upwards. The Cinemin Swivel can put out a picture on a wall from 8 inches up to 50 inches, though they claim higher. Or on the ceiling so you can watch a movie while laying in bed. It is recommended that you keep it under 50 inches so that you get good clarity. And you need to do this in a darkened room for best results.

This is very portable with a size of 5 inches by 3 inches by 8.5 inches with a weight of 6.4 ounce. Primarily designed to work with the iPhone or iPod, there is a 3.5 mm AV cable connection you can connect with other devices for an extra cost. While the Cinemin Swivel looks to be a great device, it not going to show HD movies. But, with 480 by 320 resolution, it should meet your needs given its small size.

The Cinemin Swivel comes with an included battery for when you are not connected to a power outlet. This gives you over 2 hours to show your movies and TV shows that you are streaming to your smartphone. If you are watching a movie longer than 2 hours without power, you are not going to make it. The Cinemin Swivel looks to be a great portable device for showing short presentations for business settings.

You can get the Cinemin Swivel from Amazon for $199.99.

CommBadge: Star Trek Like Communication To Replace Headset

If you are a fan of the Star Trek series, then this one should interest you. We have all been following technology where much of it seems to have started from the Star Trek show in the 60's. Think of the communicator back then to the smart phones of today with the Bluetooth headsets that so many of use wear. And for myself, after a while, having the ear piece stuck in my ear becomes uncomfortable. As well as blocking off sounds being received to my left ear. So, an alternative to that would be of interest. A coming product called the CommBadge may be a unique idea for the 21st century for hands free communications.

The CommBadge Communicator is looking to become the first real world communicator and sure looks like it was patterned after those of the Star Trek - The Next Generation series. CommBadge Technologies is very close to bringing to market their CommBadge Communicator. A hands free device that contains a speaker and microphone which connects to your Android or iOS phone with Bluetooth. With that, you immediately replace the Bluetooth headset. So, you can answer calls or do voice commands over Siri, S Voice or Google Now to do many of the things you had to do requiring you to hold the phone.

The coming CommBadge seems like it is too big and too visible, but this is the first generation. If you have seen pictures of the first mobile phones as compared to what we use today, it will become smaller with newer models in the future. That is the normal process of things. And with the CommBadge using an app on your smart phone for control, it is something that can easily be updated with features via software rather than hardware. If you are in an office setting, this may be an excellent way to keep in contact with each other in a fast moving environment.

With past technology advances, the CommBadge is leveraging noise cancelling technology in the microphone so people only hear you and not everything going on in the background. But, you might think that all those around you would hear what is coming out of the speaker. The design of that has the sound traveling only about a foot and after that it is not going to be understood. And that is why you have to wear the CommBadge towards the upper half of your body.

If you are interested in ordering one before they hit the market this summer, you can do that over at CommBadge.net as a pre-order. The price for the base model is $89 and you get to chose between white, black, red or silver colors. Consider getting in as part of the leaders in technology change for the future.

Emergency Light Source With Kilty Luma Twist

In this electric world where we rely so much on electricity to provide light sources at night, you need to be prepared for times when there is none. When the power does go out, having a decent light to use is key to trying to continue doing activities. While candles are OK for providing general light for moving around, they flicker and do not provide consistent light. And when there is a disaster, such as the recent tornado in Oklahoma, you will need lights at night. We have found one that seems to meet more then the general needs of providing light and has the ability to direct the light in 2 different directions. The Kilty Luma Twist may be well worth considering as your source for light in a power outage.

The Kilty Luma Twist has 2 separate LED panels which fold out for use. Each one can turn 360 degrees and be angled in various directions. And they operate independently of each other. So you can point each light panel at a different person so that two people can be reading or doing other activities during the power outage. This is something which one can deem as being a very unique light.

The two light panels on the Kilty Luma Twist which operate independently is great. And you can only have a single LED panel turned on if that is all that you need. This is powered by 4 D batteries and with everything else in this world which requires standard batteries, you have to supply your own. But the good news is that the life on the batteries is very good. When the lights are powered on high strength, the batteries should last 42 hours. When they are at low strength, they will last 105 hours. For camping or an emergency, that should provide for an extended period of having light.

The Kelty Luma Twist is 6 inches in height and 4 inches square making it easy to store and find unlike the round flashlights that we are so often trying to find. One of the places you can pick up the Kilty Luma Twist is at Back Country Edge and we are providing a video from the site showing how the Twist works. This looks like a very interesting light.

SunVolt Solar Panel Charger Lets You Charge Devices Directly

KickStarter Friday - Connect your mobile devices directly to Solar

There are a growing number of solar panels on the market and they are continuing to be added to. Interest has been increasing this week because of another disaster causing people to look at their emergency plans. There is interest in how to make sure you can keep your mobile devices going when there is no power for an extended period of time. And a disaster is one that can create that situation. A portable solar panel is one of the options you can look at. And one that lets you connect your mobile devices to it for charging is one you should consider. And one that does exactly that is SunVolt Solar Chargers which come in several different sizes to meet your needs.

This week's KickStarter project is the SunVolt Portable Solar Power Station where they raised more than double their goal of $30,000. This one closed in September of last year and is already selling their products on the Gomadic.com online site. What makes this one different than many of the portable solar panels is that it is a single panel. Many of the other ones on the market are a series of smaller panels put into a case. By having a single and larger panel, they are able to collect more of the sun's power.

This Sunvolt model presented here has 2 charging ports where you can directly connect up devices. Coming in at 4.3 pounds, the ballistic nylon case with handles makes it easy to carry. And with a size of 13 by 12 by 1.5 inches, this is a good sized panel to collect the sun's rays. The panel is rated to put out 8 to 14 volts depending on the angle you have set it towards the sun and the brightness of the sun. The SunVolt Max comes with a larger solar panel and can connect mobile devices to the 3 charging ports.

The SunVolt Solar Panel allows for you to connect up your mobile devices to charge them up. But, you can also charge up those battery chargers that many of us carry around so we can use our smart phone when there is no place to get power. The SunVolt also has an add on of the Solar Cache which you can purchase. It goes along with the SunVolt and holds a charge so that you can charge up devices when the panel is not set up and being carried.

This looks to be a great additional to your emergency package, though you will more than likely use it for many other activities. One of the best things about the SunVolt Solar Panel is that it has a lifetime guarantee which is unusual to see. For $100, this may become one of your most used chargers when there is no power around.

Emergency Power From Goal Zero Yeti 150

When the lights go out at home, we reach for the flashlights and then look for the candles which are buried for just this situation. But, when the power outage runs longer than a few hours, it is time to try and get back to some sort of normalcy by using technology to see what is going on. We need a power source to keep using that technology. And, if you have been in a disaster as was experienced this past week, you may be on your own for a while. You need to have something that you can rely on to charge up devices and even provide you with some light during that time. There are a variety of ways to get that and a recently released one is the Goal Zero Yeti 150.

The Goal Zero Yeti 150 was announced last January at CES and while the site is showing it as not available, we were able to locate it over at Amazon. At a price of $199.99 is is much cheaper and smaller than the larger Yeti 1250 which is over $1,000 and weighs 103 pounds. At that weight, you need two people to carry it or wheels to be able to move it around. The Yeti 150 weighs 12 pounds making it a much better choice for an emergency or even taking with you camping. And as you would expect, the life between charges is going to be less.

The Yeti 150 is a little larger than a car battery and contains a 150Wh battery to meet your needs. It measures 7.8 by 6.8 by 5.8 inches making it a compact enough for transporting. And with the low weight, just about anyone can carry it. With this smaller weight, you are not going to be able to connect up a large number of items. But, you can run your laptop on this for about a week. There is USB connection for charging up your tablet or smartphone. And while using your laptop, you can plug in a light to see what you are doing. The more things you plug in, the faster the battery will drain.

Goal Zero wants to pair the Yeti 150 with their Nomad 13 Solar Panel ($159.99). And with the Solar Panel attached, it can completely charge up a drained Yeti 150 in 15 hours. For the size of the battery, that sounds very impressive. To charge up the battery when plugged into a wall outlet will take 4 hours.

In a disaster situation, the Goal Zero Yeti 150 and Nomad 13 Solar Panel will provide you with power until power begins to return to your location. In the mean time, you can use the Yeti 150 to communicate with the outside world because you do not have to worry about charging up your devices.

The Goal Zero Yeti 150 is available at Amazon for $199.99 and free shipping right now. And you can pick up the Nomad 13 Solar Panel at Amazon for $135.61.

Is The SpareOne Phone The Best One In A Disaster?

With the recent tornado in Oklahoma, it brings to mind the need for being prepared. And one of the very specific needs is communication. Whether it be for emergency communications or connecting with family, you have to have a phone as part of your emergency plans. Without one, you are going to be isolated and will have to rely on others to communicate with the outside world. You could rely on your own cell phone, but that probably has a low battery from being used. The SpareOne emergency phone is becoming very popular after it was released this year.

The SpareOne emergency phone meets many needs you may have in a disaster. It runs on a single AA battery which so many of us have on hand and with a price of $100 is worth your consideration. What makes this different is the convenience it brings. With the AA battery, they are saying that it can sit for up to 15 years with the included battery and maintain the charge. That may be overstated, but even at 5 years, that makes this a good idea. They have included a water proof bag to hold it in. And given the current disasters with rain getting everything wet, this makes it ready as part of your disaster kit.

The SpareOne works out of the box to call 911. But that is where it stops. If you want to use it to make regular phone calls, you are going to have to add a GSM capable sim card. For those of us on Verizon, you will have to purchase one as your sim will not work. There have been some suggestions to purchase a GoPhone and use that sim card. That could work, but adds to the expense. You might be better off purchasing a phone where you just add minutes to it for a base price instead of the SpareOne. Then you only have to make sure that there are enough minutes on it when an emergency happens.

The other feature for the SpareOne is a feature that will respond to someone sending you a text message. It will reply to them automatically saying that cannot receive text messages. This is because there is no screen with the SpareOne to conserve battery life. In today's world of Social Media, the lack of an interface to text message is a huge draw back. I doubt there are few countries around the world where text messages is not a concern in an emergency. This single lacking may be the deciding factor for many as phones have long since moved beyond being used for voice and now have a larger usage for communicating via data with texting and interfaces to the web with apps.

Take a look at the SpareOne and decide for yourself as to whether it meets your needs. Or you might be better off getting something like the Eton FRX3 which can charge up your phone. If comes with a solar panel or a hand crank to keep its internal battery charged up.

Eton FRX3 - Emergency Power To Charge Up Your Mobile Devices

The events in Oklahoma yesterday should cause everyone to start thinking about what we might do in the event of an emergency because of a disaster such as this. It does not matter whether it is a hurricane, tornado or earthquake. The resulting damage and impact has far reaching effects. The first and most obvious needs are going to be food and shelter, so you need to have plans or at least an idea of what you are going to do. If you only have an idea, now is the time to put together your plan. As part of those plans, the Eton FRX3 is the one item that you need to have as part of your emergency kit. It can provide you with a number of different benefits in an emergency.

The Eton FRX3 is associated with the American Red Cross. While the Eton may not look like much, it is a multifunctional unit which will meet a number of your needs in an emergency. The big item from a technology perspective is that it can charge up your mobile devices. Your ability to communicate with friends and family is extremely important to let everyone know that you are safe. The Eton FRX3 contains a battery which can provide power to charge via the USB port. And when that runs down, you can charge it up via a car cigarette lighter. Or you can use the included Solar Panel or use the hand crank to add juice to the included battery. This will give you the ability to communicate over the web until power is restored. And that might be several days.

As in so many past disasters, phone service is disrupted for days. And that includes the cell towers as well, so with communications down, you need to have some way of hearing what is going on in the world. The Eton FRX3 includes a radio which can let you listen to AM or FM stations along with the national weather as well. A very important feature when you do not know what is going on and when services might be restored.

It is not that big of a device at 2.6 high by 6.9 long and 5.8 inches wide. And is less than 1 pound. There is an included LED light which will come in handy when there is no power. All of this in a compact package to give you some of the conveniences of life when things go wrong. And it gives you the big feature of being able to keep your smart phone working when there is no power for an extended period of time.

The ETon FRX3 is available at Amazon for $56.06. You should considering buying this for the next disaster which may happen.

SlimTester Makes Checking The Car Battery Simple

If you are like many of us, you have had the pleasure of trying to start your car when there are problems with the battery. If you have not, you are one of the lucky few. For those who have had that experience, you have no idea as to how many more times you are going to be able to start the car. Or it could be the battery in a boat or a plane if you are the owner of one. Being able to tell the strength of a battery without having to pull out tools and devices is not available. But, there is a coming product called the SlimTester which may meet that need.

We have found a coming product called the SlimTester Battery tester which is gathering funding to do the first production run. They have already completed pre-production activities and will be submitting this to the FCC and EU governmental bodies for approval. This is nothing more than a strip of plastic with measuring technology built into it.

There is no special equipment other than this to test the battery. You spread out the SlimTester which is made of plastic and then place each end on the battery terminals. You have to know which is the positive and negative sides on the battery, though the company says that does not matter. You push down on the top of the battery terminal and it will then measure the battery strength and report that in the display window. It is just that simple to use and nothing very complicated about the process. And they are saying the SlimTester will last two years or longer.

This is all being done by a company called Vivainnova in Spain and is expected to come to market soon. Backers can expect to see their SlimTester in June. And soon after that, we would expect to see it available for the general public. Current price to the public will be $39.95 for a 2 pack SlimTester. For the next 11 days, you can pre-order your own SlimTester for $30 as part of the group helping them getting funding for the production run.

Drone Invasion Of Privacy May Be Solved By DroneShield

With the rise in personal drones being flown just about everywhere, it is going to start to raise privacy concerns for a growing population. With drone prices continuing to come down, just about anyone can buy a small drone and add a camera. Then can then spy on you for any number of reasons. Or they can see what you might have of value to steal. With the rise in drones, the idea of protecting yourself against drones spying on you is going to become very important. There is a coming new product called DroneShield which holds promise to help protect us against invasive drones.

The company preparing to release the Drone Shield has a web site at DroneShield.org. And they are also in the process of raising funding at Indiegogo right now. With 28 days left, they have raised over $8,000 for a goal of $3,500. With more than double of the funding campaign, this is has packed in a lot of interest from people who are more than likely very concerned about their privacy and drones. So, the big question right now is exactly what is the DroneShield going to do for me.

Using the Raspbery PI computer as the starting point, they are going to be adding other pieces that can listen for sounds of a drone and compare them to a known list of sounds. They can then let you know of a drone in close proximity. This will do nothing for high flying drones that are not being heard from the ground. But, for those personal drones which you can hear buzzing around, the DroneShield will alert you to one nearby. But, it requires that the sound being heard is a match to a known list. If it does not match that known list, you will not get an alert.

Obviously, there is going to be a lot of trial and error to get this right, but in the end, we can hope it delivers on what is being proposed. The DroneShield should provide those who purchase one with some added peace of mind. Right now, you can be part of the initial group of people by pledging $69. You can be part of the group who will receiving a DroneShield version 1 with an estimated delivery in August this year. If you are concerned about your privacy and the invasion of that privacy from drones, you need to take a look at this.

BRCK - Claims To Be Internet Backup Generator

KickStarter Friday - BRCK, Internet connection when it is missing.

There are times for all of us when you are not able to get a connection to the Internet. Whether it be because there is no WiFi available or your actual connection to the web is just down, it has happened to each of us at one time or another. Now, think about being in the wilderness where there are no connections available. You could use a device from you mobile carrier which lets you make a connection over 3G. But, what if you did not have any power as well to make that connection. The BRCK claims to provide all of that for you in a compact package.

This week's KickStarter project is the BRCK which is your backup generator for the internet. Now that is a big claim and is sure to get your attention. It looks like the shape of a brick and probably explains the name. And, it claims to contain both a power source and modem so that you can make a connection no matter where you are. The company, Ushadi, has developed a number of open source items to share information.

But, back to the BRCK. The BRCK is an interesting idea and since the people behind it are pretty much located in Africa, it provides the perfect setting to develop and test the idea of giving you a self contained unit to connect to the web. The BRCK contains power for times when there is none, contains a modem to do dial up connections and it acts as a WiFi device to share the connection. Some of the specifics include an Ethernet connection, WiFi b/g/n, 3G HSPA+ modem, USB 2.0, microUSB charging port and a 4,000 mAh battery. These are just a few of the items in the list and everything is potentially subject to change as their move towards providing the BRCK to the public.


The current claims for the BRCK is that the battery in this will provide 8 hours of power when being actively being used. And considering all the items contained in this, the name may also provide an indication of the weight to go along with this. This looks to be a mini computer with everything in it along with 10 expansion slots they are planning to include. The BRCK is going to be a great product in countries where there is not reliable power or Internet connections. Think about the disasters we have here in the US and just how valuable this kind of a product would be.

The BRCK still has 18 days to go as they close in on their project goal of $125,000. And you can help them meet that goal and get a BRCK for yourself. They are running out of the lower end pledges to get your own device. $150 is gone and the $200 level is close to being gone with a delivery of November this year. The amount of $200 will get the 2nd version of the BRCK which would come out in May of 2014. If you must have one in November, then you will need to pledge $300 or more.

This is a great idea and looks like they are going to be successful. If you find the BRCK to be a worthwhile endeavor, head on over and pledge funds to help them exceed their goal.

Build Your Own Power Bag With MyCharge Summit

There are a lot of choices when it comes to your travel bag for carrying all your technology items. If you are like me and have to go to locations to do repairs on occasion, you need a bag which fits your needs and has the ability to charge up some of your devices. You do not want to have to plug into a wall socket at a client to charge up your smart phone. Which brings up the need to be able to charge things up in your tech bag. In the selection of bags, you can go for one that has the battery built in, but they are not as flexible as I would like. While they are the perfect solution when traveling by air, I prefer the idea of selecting a bag that fits my needs for calling on clients and then add in the charging abilities. For this, I really like the MyCharge Summit as the solution for keeping my devices with sufficient charge during the day.

The MyCharge Summit is a 3000 mAh battery which provides exactly what I need when helping clients. It is strange that the company web site is showing the MyCharge Summit as coming soon, as this has been available since last year. Guess they missed updating their site. This small battery charger which can charge up your smart phone multiple times is about the size of a smart phone, but a lot thicker. It comes with a built in Apple 30 pin connector and a built in microUSB connector. Handles my Samsung Galaxy S3. And it comes with a built in USB port where you can connect the device of your choosing.

This flexibility comes in handy to charge up a tablet and smart phone while I am moving from one location to another in SF. And the built in microUSB means that I do not have to carry a USB cable with me for my S3. If I have to charge up my tablet, the USB port is the answer. And if you have an iPad with the 30 pin connector, you are all set. If you have an new iOS device with the new Lightning connector, you will have to use the USB connection. The MyCharge Summit has 5 LED indicators on it to let you know the battery levels along with a retractable plug for when you need to recharge it.

One of the items that you might consider as strange is the talking voice on MyCharge Summit which tells you verbally when it begins charging the device and other status items. And if it knows the device, that will be included in the audio alert. If you do not like the voice notification, you can simply change it to a tone indicator or make the notifications silent which is my preference on many of the device which I have. Too many sounds may cause one to start to ignore them.

The MyCharge Summit 3000 is available at Amazon for $42 and is available in the colors of white, blue, purple or red. If you have a special bag you really like to use when visiting clients, then the MyCharge Summit is a great add on for making sure that your mobile devices have enough juice when you are on-site.

UNO III - Electric Scooter Or Electric Unicycle

We have all seem some interesting ideas over the years and some are so unique that when you see them, you are not quite sure you are seeing what you think. And with new concepts moving from the drawing board to reality, we have come across one which really seems to be unique and rather strange at the same time. The idea of things moving towards the use of electricity for propulsion has been a growing need. And the idea of an electric bike one that continues to attract attention. But the idea of something that is a cross between two different concepts is something of interest and could be coming to market in the future.

The UNO III is being developed by BPG Werks and their current product is called the "Shedder" which is a dual track ATV which you stand on. Visit their site, as it has to be seen. This same group is working on developing the UNO III. It is both a scooter and a Unicycle which runs on batteries to provide the power. The all electric vehicle has the ability to transform from being a 2 wheeled unicycle to scooter on the fly. You can see just what they have done so far by watching the video below.

In the unicycle mode, this electric unit moves with grace and balance much like we have seen with the Segway. But, the conversion to the electric scooter is an amazing site to watch as it converts. All of this is done with such balance creating something very unique. As a scooter, it can travel 30 - 35 miles before needing a charge. They are indicating a charge of the batteries will take about 3 -4 hours. That is good for an all electric scooter. Various laws limit the speed of scooters to 35 mph, so that will apply here.

The work being done for this all electric transformer continues in an effort to prove the concept and bring it to market. Given our strict regulations, it could be launched in other countries. But with its uniqueness and the growing desire for all electric scooters, they will have a market here in the US. And with the UNO III operating as a unicycle, it is small enough to fit into an elevator and then into an office. This concept is an interesting one and will be big news when it comes to market. Exactly when that might happen is unknown, but it sure looks like they are getting close.

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Scanadu Scout - Star Trek Like Tricorder Coming Soon

If you are interested in future technology, you only have to look back at the Star Trek series to know what the future holds for us. There have been so many items from the series in the 60's which have become reality over the years. The one that we have been waiting for is the small device that Dr. McCoy used to diagnose the medical status of a patient, all within a mere few seconds. The medical tricorder from the series is something which will revolutionize things for all of us. And the wait may not be long as the Scanadu Scout should be coming this year.

The Scanadu Scout from Scanadu is a very small device which can collect your vital signs. In 10 seconds, it can record your blood pressure, blood flow, body temperature, heart rate & rhythm among the items that it can do. Just think about all the devices your doctor has to use to gather all this information. And the collected information can be transmitted to your smart phone via Bluetooth, all without them poking you with various devices. Now that is the future I would like. All in a very small hand held device which looks to be the size of a smart phone battery. There are few specifics available for this at the moment as to when Scanadu Scout will be arriving.

The idea of being able to gather important medical information simply by placing the Scanadu Scout on your temple and having it record key vital information is going to empower people to monitor their own condition. And it you nave to call your doctor, having the information from the Scanadu Scout available is going to give them more information in making a decision about what you may need. The possibilities for this in the medical community are endless in improving diagnosis time and accuracy. And it is all recorded electronically reducing the time to manually record things.

The future for the Star Trek like Tricorder will be here very soon in the Scanadu Scout. At a rumored price of $150, this will become the must have device for those who regularly see the doctor for medical conditions. Or for families with small children. The value for this is going to be priceless. At the moment, one of the key steps before coming to market is to get FDA approval. While the Scanadu Scout is not required to get that approval, the trust that is acquired with the FDA approval will greatly help moving forward. One of the bigger values is that medical professionals will be able to use the Scanadu Scout after it has been approved.

Once the FDA approval has been completed, we should see the Scanadu Scout available for sale within a few months. And it could well make it to market before the coming holiday season.

Kevo Lock From KwikSet Removes Need For Keys

The idea of using technology to secure your home is a growing trend with more companies entering the field this year. Being able to open your front door without actually using a key is going to be the future and more of that technology is now using your smart phone as the mechanism to achieve the security. Much of the focus has moved to door locks with various abilities to lock or unlock your door. The latest one which is entering the market is going to be the Kevo deadbolt lock from Kwikset. And since they are a major player in the door lock industry, it makes this one interesting to look and view it as a solution for home security.

The Kwikset Kevo lock is an interesting new item coming very soon. At the moment, there is no set date for release or availability, but your can add your email address to a list and receive notifications for further information. But, with no pricing being announced, the Kevo becomes an unknown as to how well it will do. Some are speculating that the price will come in under $250. And, they are saying there will be no annual subscription fees for the service. As you can see from the picture, there is a blue halo that shows on the lock and gives it an interesting look. It is not know as to how practical that will be in actual use. If your door faces the street, it will make the lock highly visible. We can hope that they will provide some way of turning off the futuristic looking blue ring on the Kevo as to attract less attention.

There are some great features coming for the Kevo. One is the use of Bluetooth to open your door instead of having to take your phone out. You merely touch the lock with a finger and because your iPhone is in your pocket, the Kevo opens the lock and lets you in. And if you are already home, someone coming up and touching the lock will not get it to open giving you additional security. At the moment, the included app is only going to be available on the iPhone and not for Android owners. That is not going to help the sales as much as it could given the large number of Android smart phone owners.

And to those who do not have a smart phone, the Kevo will have an available key fob which you can attach to a key ring which will operate in the same manner allowing you to touch the lock with a finger to unload the door. And you can still use a key to unlock the door in the soon to be old fashion way. There is also a feature which will let you grant others access to unlock your front door by giving them an "eKey" which they can use to open the Kevo via their web portal. That will give that person the ability to unlock the door using the Kevo app and their iPhone. And you can remove their access via the web portal. As with any electronics, there is a battery component which comes into play. They are reporting that 4 AA batteries will power the Kevo for a year before needing to be replaced.

Another of the unknowns for the Kevo is how much space the batteries are going to take up in the unit. None of the pictures or information for the Kevo show interior pictures as we expect it to be large enough to hold the batteries. The Kevo looks like a great product. The big question is just how big it will be as compared to some other products. We reported on the Lockitron last month and with an expected price of $179, it is cheaper than the Kevo. And it has the ability to lock or unlock your deadbolt remotely. That single feature may be the key difference in what people are looking for.

The Kevo will more than likely be a very popular item for new homes which have built in technology for home security.

Insect Drones Are Already Here And Getting Smaller

We have all see drones in the headlines over the past few years, but that has done a lot to intrigue those who want to have their own drones for flying. And with that, the size of the drones has been scaled down to a much smaller size for hobbyists to be able to join in. They have moved to the 4 propeller helicopter style drones moving the prices downward to under $1,000. But that is not enough as they have now moved down to the size of insect drones. And the number of them is increasing.

It is being reported that Harvard has released a paper describing the work they are doing with robotic insects being able to fly. The video below from Harvard demonstrates what they are doing and where the size of robot drones is going. And the tiny little insect drones are very tiny. And with that comes stealth which is far better than the large drones that the military flies today. The value of these tiny insect drones is going to be huge for the military.

But for the rest of us, it is going to be a few more years before they will be available for the hobbyist types to get their hands on. But, there are some larger insects which will be available soon. And that will more than likely be some time this year. The Robot DragonFly from TechJect should be available for purchase this summer. And a more sophisticated BionicOpter from Festo should arrive by the end of the year. These two can be controlled by your smart phone and will be the smallest ones available to the public for now.

If you think that these small size insect drones are not being used, you only have to realize that the military uses technology for years before it is available to the public. There are reports the government has been working on insect drones for years. Now, with the positive demonstration from Harvard, scientists have clearly shown that tiny insect drones are soon going to be available for all to purchase.

With DragonFly drones available this year to purchase and explore, what we will see next year as a much smaller robot drone is anyone's guess. But, it will not be too long before we see these tiny little insect drones for sale.

Space Monkey Changing Cloud Storage To Crowd Storage

KickStarter Friday - Space Monkey moves Cloud to many locations

The current idea of Cloud storage is to have huge warehouses of computers where information is stored, along with web sites which are critical to business. The loss of a Could storage location can be huge until it is back up. Take the Amazon outages and you know the impact. But, what if you you could do something like the SETI Project and take advantage of a whole lot of computing power to distribute information so that there is no one point of failure. That would be the dream for all.

This week's KickStarter Project is Space Monkey which is providing a big twist on how Cloud storage is going to work. Instead of having rows of computers centrally located in warehouses, they have flipped things around and are crowd-sourcing so to speak. By having individuals all over the country act as Cloud Servers, they have spread things out so that there is no single point of failure. They do this by providing you with a small device which has a 1 TB drive inside and we assume that some will be larger.

For $10 per month, you will have the ability to store up to 1 TB of storage on that drive. And it will be replicated on selected drives in other people's homes or businesses. And you do not have to worry as all your data on other people's Space Monkey drives will be encrypted. Your files will be distributed and broken up so that you can get to them from anywhere, even if your Space Monkey drive is not on or connected to the Internet. This is distributing the Cloud to potentially as many people who have a Space Monkey device.

If you remember the SETI project, which is still going on, they are processing computations on over 3 million individual computers. This distributed model uses volunteers to crunch numbers and data for them and return the results. The Space Monkey replacement for Cloud computing is distributed much in the same way. By providing the Space Monkey as a subscription service starting at $10 per month, they are quickly going to have thousands of them through out the US. With the distributed devices and stored data, you will be able to access your information from any location and with very fast speed.

They are approaching $300,000 pledged for their $100,000 goal and you still have the opportunity to join in as they are going to extend the participation. If you pledge at least $119 dollars, you will get a Space Monkey device and a paid subscription for at least 12 months. If you are storing things in the Cloud, the Space Monkey looks to be a far better alternative. Look for deliveries to begin some time in July.

Conserve Valet Charges Your Mobile Devices

If you are like me, you have multiple devices which need to get charged up everyday. Or evening as most of us do when we get home. It seems that the lack of battery life requires us to look at options for getting things charged up every day. And with a smart phone and a tablet, that takes a few cables being plugged into the power strip. Add in an iPod and a laptop, and you are out of space in the power strip. And you now have wires running all over the desk as you are charging and does not look pretty. But, Belkin has a solution for this problem of wires with their Converse Valet. And with its USB connections, it is the solution to wires.

The Belkin Conserve Valet provides you with a device that allows you to hide the USB cable cables under the lid so that they are not all over the desk. With 4 USB connections, 3 of them allow for hiding wires and the 4th is off to the side for your tablet. The lid doubles as a place to put your smart phones and other mobile devices which have the need to be charged daily. And with its simple looks, the Conserve Valet will fit right in just about anywhere that you put it. The measurements come in at 6.25 by 8.5 by 2.25 inches.

The Conserve Valet is stated as having some "green" features to it. If you have nothing plugged into any of the USB ports, it does not draw any electrical power. That is a good thing. So, you plug in all your devices to be charged up and then press the button to start the charge cycle. At that point, a timer starts and the Conserve Valet will shut off the power when it goes over 4 hours. That means that I can plug things in before heading off to bed and not worry about them over-charging because of the timer. That is a great feature.

One of the interesting things is that if you add a device to the Conserve Valet an hour or so later, it will reset the timer and the 4 hour timer starts over. That is probably not what we would really want to see as we all remember warnings about over charging the battery on your smart phone. If you are aware of this, you can make sure to plug everything in before starting the process. But, if you have to remove your smart phone to use it and then add it back when you are done, this could become a real pain after a while. As technology has been improving, it would be great if the Conserve Valet could detect that the battery on a device is full charged and turn off providing power to that single port. And it does for a select list of smart phones, which is dominated by Blackberry.

While this is designed for small mobile devices, so many of us are now carrying tablets. And charging up two tablets at the same time is going to be a problem. Tablets take a lot of power when charging, so adding them may cause a problem for other devices being charged. There are a few reports of selected tablets not being able to be charged on the Conserve Valet.

Until mobile devices get far better battery life, the idea of organizing how you charge them up is going to continue to be something that we all need. The Belkin Conserve is available at Amazon for $35.73 when last checked.

Roku Streaming Stick - Moving Beyond The Set Top Box

So many would love to cut the cord along with the high prices which we seem to pay for TV programming. We are paying for far more than we will ever watch. And we are not able to watch specific items without paying for all the premium packages. While that is the way which things are for today, that may be changing in the next few years as new products come out to show what is coming. One of those is the Roku Streaming Stick.

What makes the Roku Streaming Stick different is that it is a shift from what we are used to seeing for getting content from our TVs. It resembles the standard USB stick, but is much more. Many still have cable coming into to the TV as the primary source for entertainment and information. And in recent years, we have been seeing Apple TV, Google TV and many others with their set top box to provide you with an alternative to the existing providers of TV programming. Roku is one of those new technology providers of their popular Roku 3 box giving you access to a whole other world of content, such as Netflix, Hulu Plus, HBO Go and a large number of others available for their popular service.

The Roku Streaming Stick is a glimpse into what the future holds for us. This "stick" plugs into the HDMI port of new TV's and replaces the need to have the set top box of today. It provides for a wireless connection to the Internet over equipment that you probably already have. And the number of people with an Internet connected TV is continuing to grow. And there are no wires to connect up to your TV.

The Roku Streaming Stick represents the future. That is because it requires a special HDMI port called a "mobile high-definition link (MHL)" which has special capabilities. Unfortunately, the number of them currently on the market which will support the Roku Streaming Stick is low. So low in fact that it only includes three companies right now. They are selected models from Hitachi, Insignia and Mitsubishi. So that is very limited for the market now.

But this is about the future as the Roku streaming stick is something new and unique. And with something this new, it is going to take time for TV manufacturers to add the MHL capabilities. But once that does catch up, you are going to see growing interest in the Roku Stremaing Stick. Along with a number of Me Too solutions showing up.

Add A Microscope To Your iPhone With ProScope Micro Mobile

There have probably been times when you need to take a very close picture of something very small, but that was not possible with your phone, let alone your regular camera. Getting an up close picture required a special lens. As technology continues to improve and smart phones get better cameras, the ability to take a picture using a powerful lens is possible with an add on kit. And the ProScope Micro Mobile for the iPhone will give you exactly what you need to take extremely close up pictures. And this takes pictures like a microscope.

The ProScope from Bodelin will give you exactly what you need for your iOS device to get up close shots like a microscope. Sorry, Android owners, this is only for the Apple faithful. You can get the ProScope Micro Mobile unit for your iPhone 4/4S or iPhone 5. And they also have units to provide your iPad Mini or iPad (2nd generation up to 4th generation) with the same functionality. With these, you can get great pictures with 20 to 80 times magnification for your microscope like pictures.

Taking pictures this close requires light and that is being provided via 12 LEDs in a ring around the lens. These are adjustable as well to what you are taking a picture of. As with all technology, there are batteries included which can be charged up. They are using lithium-ion batteries which are charged up using a USB cable. They report you can expect to get 5 hours of use from a 2 hour charge.

If you don't want to get an attachment for your iPhone or iPad, they have the ProScope Mobile which is a hand held microscope as you see here. It connects via WiFi, but only works with iOS devices.

The ProScope Micro Mobile for the iPhone or iPad is available for $149. This product is very new with shipping starting last week. The ProScope Mobile hand held starts at $399.00 with a 50x lens. If you have the need to take close pictures, you should take a look at what the ProScope products can offer.

Powering Your iPhone In Style With Mili Power Spirit

if you are an owner of the popular iPhone, you have a certain style about you. And with that, you want your iPhone to look stylish as ever no matter what you are doing. And being different, you are always looking for something new which not everyone else has associated with the iPhone. Whether it be a case for your iPhone or an app, you want to see your phone have unique items on it. So, why not search for a battery backup which is far different from what everyone else has. The Mili Power Spirit is just the unique item that you are looking for to set your iPhone apart.

The Mili Power Spirit provides you with the ability to use your iPhone when you are out when the battery is low. And this battery looks stylish as well as functional. There are no wires to connect or carry. It is all self contained. You plug it in to your iPhone and the phone can stand up with the battery attached. All the while, looking very stylish and different than everyone else. If being in style is important to you, then the Mili Power Spirit is worth considering.


Unfortunately, the Mili Power Spirit only supports the iPhone 4/4S right now, but that covers a lot of people. And if you are one of those stylish people who owns the iPhone 4/4S, you should take a look at the Power Spirit.

What you are getting is an 800mAh battery which is more than 50% of the included battery in your iPhone, it will solve your problems when you get that dreaded low battery indicator on your phone. The Mili Power Spirit is small in size and will work to add power to your iPhone or iPod using the 30 pin connection. This is rated to give you another 3 hours of talk time on your phone. And while doing it in style, will give you all the talk time you need until you can charge up your iPhone.

Size matters and this one is very small. It is 2.48 inches tall by 1.33 inches wide by 0.66 inches thick and will drop into your pocket and not be noticed. There is even a key chain attachment which you can add to this as well. The Mili Power Spirit is truly a very unique item to provide you with added power when your battery runs down. And it does it in style. You can pick one up from Mili Power Spirit's online store for $39.95. While they show a red color, it is not available in the drop down list of colors to select from.

FitBark - Monitoring Your Pet's Fitness Levels

If you are concerned about your own health, you make sure and exercise to maintain your fitness. And there are so many options to do that today. But, what if you want to make sure that your pet is healthy and fit? There is not exactly a lot of tools to make sure that your pet is getting the necessary exercise to be healthy. We know that there are a variety of technology solutions for us humans. But for pets, which are very important, they are not what they should be. Things are about to change for providing technology solutions to keep our pets in shape by getting the right amount of exercise.

FitBark is gathering funding right now through KickStarter to provide you with the tools to track the amount of activity that your pet gets. This is a similar concept to the popular FitBit, but for your pets. And they are an important part of your life. The concept here is very simple. You attach a small electronic device to you dogs collar and it will track the activities of your pet. This is after you connect it to your iOS device over BlueTooth and the downloadable app. From that point forward, information recorded on the FitBark can be transmitted to the app for your use.

As with all these great technology tools, it has a battery to record the information which is supposed to last up to 10 days. And the FitBark unit can record up to 3 weeks worth of information if you cannot sync it with your iOS device. Recharging is via a standard microUSB connection.

One of the things they understand is that there is often multiple people who are taking care of pets, so they have opened things up for multiple people to be able to keep track of your pet's activities. That way a group of people can make sure your pet is getting the correct level of activity. With FitBark, they are going to be providing you with the recommended activity levels for you pet so you do not have to guess.

At the moment, FitBark is gathering funding as a KickStarter project and if you are interesting in keeping your pet healthy, you can join in to make this a success.

Robot DragonFly - Your Personal Drone Flies Like A DragonFly

If you are a fan of personal drones and are looking to purchase one this year, the market is growing. And the size of the drones continues to get smaller and as a result, we are seeing prices moving downward as well. Much of what has been out there resembles a plane or helicopter in the design and flight. We are now seeing them move to mimic things in nature and recently has been to have them look and fly like a dragonfly. Having them hover, move forward and back is exactly what is desired in working with a personal drone.

The Robot DragonFly was an Indiegogo project last year and things are coming close as they prepare to begin shipping for the Robot DragonFly. Each model will come with an on board computer for control. You control these with an app on either your Android or iOS smart phone giving you the control in the palm of your hand. They are saying that battery life will vary depending on how you are flying it. If you are just hovering the robot, battery life will be between 8 to 10 minutes. Battery life continues to be the big problem with all mobile technology.

They are building in a hybrid mode which will do a combination of gliding and powering the wings which is reportedly going to give you 25 to 30 minutes of flight time. That is more than enough time to work with your personal DragonFly as you fly it around. Each model has different feature sets and the entry level is not going to have the hover capability, so you will need to look at a more expensive model. And as the models go up in price, so do the features, such as an included camera.

These are small as compared to other drones and the body is about 6 inches long, so it is pretty small. And the DragonFly is light starting at less than an ounce making it very portable and when folded up can clip into your pocket. Most of the weight is in the 250 mAh lithium polymer battery. The US Air Force thought so much of TechJect was planning to develop that they gave them a grant of $1 million to fund the process. And that was last year. They are wrapping up the development and manufacture of multiple versions of the Robot DragonFly this quarter.

The DragaonFly comes from TechJect.com and with the scheduled date some time in July for release, there is going to be growing interest in the very small drone. The initial shipments will be for the basic model with more advanced ones coming in September and October. And with the various products being offered, it is going to meet the needs of many to work with their own personal drone. Those who helped fund the product jumped in at low prices which started at $99 for the base model. We expect to see things a little higher than that when they are made available to the public. And there will be an ultimate model which should be priced at less than $2,000. Watch for the DragonFly in the fall and pick one up.

BikeSpike: Tracking Your Bike With GPS

KickStarter Friday: BikeSpike is like LoJack for your bike, but better

If you are the owner of a great bike, you know the concerns about protecting your investment from being stolen. You purchase a really good lock so that you bike will be there when you return. But sometimes, that may not be enough. There needs to be something else you can do to protect your investment using technology. A coming product called BikeSpike may be exactly what you need.

This week's KickStarter project is BikeSpike and provides you with a small GPS device which you can track with your smart phone. All this is done with technology we are aware of and use today. With the provided wireless service, BikeSpike can track what is going on with your bike. With the generated information, you can see where your ride has been. But it is the security features which look to be the most valuable with this.

With the coming Android or iOS app, you will know that someone is tampering with your bike. And if they are able to break the lock and ride away, you will be able to track them with BikeSpike and know their location. This information can then be shared over existing social media or with the police as part of your efforts to recover your bike.

For some who steal bikes, they will try and remove the BikeSpike from your bicycle which will not be easy without special tools. For the most diehard of thieves, they will make sure that they have them. But just like the LoJack for cars, most will not even think about a tracking device on your bike.

The BikeSpike, with the built in GPS and accelerometer, will be able to detect that you have crashed and send you a message to your phone over Bluetooth. If you do not answer the message, it will send text messages to those you have listed on your smart phone to contact as part of BikeSpike. This is all done through the provided app on your smart phone and provides added value to what this can do for you.

For those who taking biking very seriously, this is an investment in your bike. And those who ride in San Francisco's Critical Mass on the first Friday of every month, they will agree with what this can do for you. The BikeSpike is estimated to arrive in October this year and will be very popular. Early backers got a break on the price, and it is hoped that they will open up pre-orders soon. The pricing for data plans or the BikeSpike has not been announced.

Plug Hub: Fixes The Jumbled Mess Of Power Cords

With all the gadgets, USB drives, dual monitors, a few computers and the associated items like firewalls and routers, the power cords can really pile up. Under my desk, it is a maze of wires piled up on the floor in one huge jumbled mess. When I have to trace a cable, it is a slow and troubling process. Every few years, I pull all the cables out and try and lay things out in an organized manner so that I do not have to go through this. But, when you get a new toy which requires power, you do not think about that as you want to use that new piece of technology.

Enter the Plug Hub from Quirky which is an item that will help to clean up all the cords under my desk. This charcoal colored plastic box has three holes in the top to run power cords through. And you can stand it up on the rubber bottom, lay it on its side or even mount it under your desk. And with the swing open cover, it is easy to add or remove power cords to the organizer. All as part of your efforts to get things cleaned up.

You supply the power strip of your choosing to the Plug Hub, run the power cords through the top and wrap the excess on the brackets and you are good to go. This measures out at 3.5 by 10.5 by 9.5 inches and is basically just a bit longer than a standard power strip. A great size to handle the mess of power cords. Have a flat screen TV along with all the associated DVR and sound system power needs? The Plug Hub can help hide all those power cords for you.

While the Plug Hub is not going to deal with some of the really large brick plugs, it will provide you with a fantastic way to keep things organized under your desk. Removing that pile of power cords is a great start to clean up the mess under your desk. You can get the Plug Hub for $24.99 from their site.

Battery Life For Google Glass Not Looking Good

It seems that all the hype about the coming Google Glass may be for not as early reports begin to come out. As is the problem for smart phone users, getting an all day battery charge should be the minimum for everyone. Smart phone users are still dreaming about getting more than 8 hours of use for their phones before having to replenish the battery. And while companies try and get us to accept a lower expectation for using our smart phones, the reality is battery technology continues to drag down technology. There is so many fantastic products coming out this year, but we are not seeing any which are going to be providing outstanding battery life. The reality for a smart phone should be 48 hours before having to charge it up.

The latest victim to fall to limited battery life is Google Glass. This is a fantastic product which is going to revolutionize how we record our lives. In the past, we had to hold a camera and with Google Glass, you wear the camera and get hands free recording. And it is so much more than just that. It is a computer on your head. But with all that this futurist product can do, it is still limited by the battery. And while Google has been saying you will be getting all day battery life, it appears that in real life, the battery does not last anywhere near that time. We really do need to get new battery technology.

The Google Glass Explorer Edition is now available to selected developers and individuals to test out this great tool. And the reports are beginning to come in. A complete review comes from Tim Stevens of Engadget where he is providing an in depth coverage of all the features and things he thinks need improving. But the one glaring item we saw was the comments regarding the battery life.

Battery size is unknown, but battery life is: it's poor.

It appears that average usage is about 5 hours on the current models. And that includes regular activities of reading emails, pictures and some video. Not a very warming endorsement for the fast battery drain here. And this is not the only one. Another report from Robert Soble has the battery dropping by 20% after a 6 minute video. The shooting of video is going to be one of the great features for Google Glass and must be greatly improved. These are probably real world examples of what can be expected when Google Glass comes to market next year.

It is rare to get the battery life as stated by manufacturers and this is no exception. Some are already talking about the need for an add on battery pack to extend the life of the batteries for Google Glass. That is not the solution, but rather a band aid. The real answer is for battery technology to finally catch up and exceed the needs for our technology and mobile devices.