Another neat gadget from Clickfree. Clickfree DVD Transformer.

Monday, June 15^th, Netcast 851

The Clickfree DVD Transformer is an inexpensive, easy way to back up music, photos, files, etc. The device itself is a small, flash-based gizmo that connects to a PC's USB port. Just plug it in and it automatically searches the entire computer for documents, photos, music files, videos, etc. Once the search is complete and the content identified, you can decide which items you might want to back up. Or you can back up everything to DVD’s. Simply insert a blank disc into the computer's burner and Clickfree does the rest. If you need more than one blank DVD, Clickfree will tell you have many you’ll need for the backup you asked for.
At $39.99, it’s an economical way to quickly backup and save files. Coupled with all those recordable CDs and/or DVDs most our us have laying around it’s easy to burn the latest family photos to send off to mom, dad, the grandparents, etc. The Clickfree DVD Transformer will automatically backup data to optical discs of many popular formats, including CDR, CDRW, DVD+R, DVD-R and Dual Layer DVD. If you want you can backup multiple computers: There is absolutely no limit - just connect the Clickfree DVD Transformer to any computer and the Clickfree software will automatically start and search for digital content. The Transformer keeps a complete record of every computer and every backup disc created. The DVD Transformer comes complete with Clickfree's unique automatic "Smart Restore Technology” that is as easy to use as Clickfree backup. It allows the customer to effortlessly restore or share all files with any PC or Mac.

http://www.clickfree.com/products_transformer.php

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw851

Yesterday we talked about the smallest speaker Altec Lansing ever made. Today it's one of their biggest.

Friday, June 12^th, 2009, Back to Dick’s Gadget Warehouse Netcast 850

The massive 604, via our friends at mixonline.comIt’s the ALTEC LANSING 604 15” DUPLEX STUDIO MONITOR. The Altec 604 Duplex has had one heck of a long life! How many gadgets remained in production from 1943 to 1998! In 50's, 60’s and into the 1970's, it was said that more recording and broadcast studios used the Altec 604 more than all other monitor systems combined. I had the 604-C, but over the years the letters kept working their way down the alpabet. The last one made in 1998, was the 604-K. My family had a finished basement in a house they owned in Brooklyn, so I had the space for the two speaker cabinets. There were blonde wood, real wood of course, and each was 40" x 26" x18". Not big for a nightclub or theatre, but big for a home theatre which was a rare thing back then. It had a multi-cell horn in the middle of a 15" bass driver. And it used alnico V magnets, which had 2.5 times more energy than a ferrite magnet of comparable weight. The massive alnico magnets is one reason why the speaker was so sensitive: 105dB. Frequency response was 30Hz to 22kHz. (Okay, I found the last couple of pieces of info on the net!) I do remember the incredible sound, especially when I played stereo records engineered to show off stereo speakers. Since the houses on either side of my parent’s home didn’t have finished basements, no one used them, so I never got complaints about the sound! I recall they cost about $650 each, quite a fortune back in the early 1970's. Where are they today? I don’t know. My mother gave them away a year or two after I moved into Manhattan. When I asked where they were she told me a young man who did chores for the family always admired the speakers so she said: “You want them, take them!”

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw850

Probably the smallest speaker Altec Lansing ever made, the Altec Orbit

Thursday, June 11tth, 2009 Netcast 849 

The Altec iM-207 has been replaced by the Altec Orbit. (Model iM-237.) The Orbit is great for use in a hotel room, at the beach, on a boat, actually anywhere you want to listen to music from a portable player without wearing headphones. It’s also a way to share your music at a gathering or party. It’s not stereo, but the music sounds like it’s coming from a much larger sound system than the demure Orbit. Altec calls it 360 degree music. The iM237 Orbit has a glowing LED so you know when it’s powered on, a feature missing from the original version. It comes with a padded, zippered carrying case. The speaker cord is neatly concealed under the base where it winds around a channel where it’s neatly stored. The sound is excellent for its size. Anyone I played it for was quite surprised when I showed them what they were listening too. Most thought it was a much larger speaker. List price is $40, but I did a web search & found it for about $26 at J&R Music.

http://www.jr.com/altec-lansing/pe/ASN_IM237/

Company website: http://www.alteclansing.com/index.php?file=north_product_detail&iproduct_id=orbit_mp3

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw849

Leo loves magnets. I love LED’s. Here’s something for both of us!

Wednesday, June 10^th. 2009 Netcast 848

It’s about the size of a golf ball, but the resemblance ends there. The new Striker Magnetic LED Light is a powerful LED spotlight that can be used almost anywhere you need illumination. Using the 12 powerful rare earth (neodymium) magnets you can stick it to any steel surface with the LED facing where you need it. Or if there is no magnetic surface, just rest it on any surface and aim the light towards the workspace at almost any angle. The company says it’s perfect for automotive technicians, electricians, plumbers and do-it-yourselfers. A use I hadn’t thought of is to use the 12 magnets as a “pick up” tool for dropped screws, nails and hardware. It’s powered by three alkaline button cell batteries which are included. Retails for $6.99. The company says it will be at Home Depot stores soon. 

www.strikerhandtools.com.

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw848

The Logitech VX Nano. Yes, again!

TTTT, June 9^th, 2009, Netcast 847

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009 and March 11^th, 2008, Daily Giz Wiz 523: Logitech VX Nano Mouse.  (Yes, the first time in more than 800 shows we each did the same gadget! It was 15 months apart though. That's 12 years in gadget years.)

 When Leo started talking about the Logitech VX Nano Wireless Laser Mouse I was totally familiar with it because I have one. It wasn’t until I started typing the notes for this entry in the Daily Giz Wiz Journal that I thought, “Wait a minute, didn’t I already do this gizmo myself on the Daily Giz Wiz?” A quick search at my old website showed I did it. Here's that report with some new comments from Leo. This gizmo is a travel mouse that about 60% the size of your typical desk mouse. The Logitech wireless VX Nano mouse gives you a nice, comfy, contoured, rubber grip body. Just plug the tiny (said to be the world’s smallest – 15 months ago, anyway) receiver into your USB port, and forget about it. It’s small enough to stay plugged in, even when you put your laptop into most cases! If you want to take the receiver out of the laptop, it stores right in the bottom of the mouse. Something I did learn from Leo is that when you put the receiver in its holder inside the mouse, it shuts off the VX’s power. Nice! Then the mouse fits into its own travel case, which ships with the unit. With 6 buttons and tilt wheel, the laser VX Nano offers you smooth cursor control on nearly any surface. For long web pages you can “unlock” the scroll wheel for high-speed, low friction scrolling. You can fly through your documents, moving side-to-side or up and down. Suggest retail is $99.

Company's website: www.logitech.com

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw523 Dick De’s Netcast

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw847 Leo’s Turn The Table Tuesday Netcast