A MP3 player you wear like a watch. Because it IS a watch.

Friday, December 31^st, 2010, Netcast 1255

Photo via our friends at The Gadgeteer.It was CES 2004 when I saw my first TechnOtunes watch. (The big “O” is part of their name.)  TechnOtunes offered six analog, and one digital version of their watch/MP3 player. Each watch came in a very nice presentation display box complete with a window to view the watch and what looked like a brass TechnOtunes logo on the front of the carton. Buttons for volume and fast-forward were on one side the watch, and buttons for “play” and the equalizer were on the other side. There are five EQ settings, but with no display available to see what mode you’re in, you picked the mode by the sound you thought sounded best. The included headset used a special plug, but the watch shipped with an adapter that accepted standard 3.5mm headphones. When plugged into a computer, the watch showed up a removable drive or disk. Mine was the 128MB model, but they also offered a 256MB model. The larger memory watch could hold 28 songs, so I guess mine could hold 14 of my favorites! You added music via drag and drop, using USB 1.1. You can imagine how fast that was! Price: $199 (included free shipping). But it more often sold for $149. The company is no longer around. 

SEE or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1255 

CLEAR can give you a clear shot at the Internet pretty much anywhere you go in the US.

Thursday, December 30^th, 2010, Netcast 1254

The Clear Spot 4G/3G mobile USB modemis the first mobile USB modem I ever used, and I was impressed. I was down in Orlando, Florida for the High Performance Trade show and I asked about WiFi at the Rosen Plaza. It was available for ten bucks a day. It was ten bucks if you wanted to use it in the lobby! So I figured this was my chance to try the CLEAR USB modem. CLEARoffers 4G coverage in Orlando, so I was set. Installation was easy. I just plugged the USB modem into a port on my PC laptop (it works with MAC too) and it installed in minutes. When the connection manager LEDs light, its connected. A blue LED means you're getting 4G service, green 3G service. That means you'll get 4G speed everywhere in CLEAR coverage areas and stay connected with 3G service nationwide. CLEAR says you can download and stream whatever you want, virtually anywhere you go in the U.S.—all with no extra monthly service fees. I used the CLEARdevice for 3 days and had perfect service. I watched some Netflix movies too so I could try out streaming video, and it was fine. The cost is $55 a month with a 2 year contact and the device fee is included. At the time I wrote this, December 26^th,  with a two year contract, CLEARwas offering free activation, free shipping and the first two months of service at half price. You'll have to check to see if that offer carries forward to today. And be sure to check all the other details at the company website.

www.clear.com

SEE or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1254 

1st Think Geek had a guitar shirt, then a drum shirt - and now Think Geek introduces ---

Wednesday, December 29th, 2010 Netcast 1253

This time it's the new Synthesizer T-Shirt. In the past I showed the Electronic Rock Guitar Shirt and Drum  Shirt from Think Geek. But now there’s a brand high tech addition. It’s a fully-playable synthesizer t-shirt that features professional quality sounds in a unique wearable format. With eight-voice polyphony, high-quality sampled sounds and stylist retro amp box, you'll be jamming in no time. But parents, don’t worry. There’s a headphone jack so you should be able to convince the kids to play in their own room, or else play through their own headphones. The mini amp fits in a pocket on the shirt, or it can be worn on the belt, with the attached clip. It has a volume & tone control. In case you want to wash the shirt, the electronics are removable. It requires 4 AAA batteries (not included). Recommended for ages 12 and up. $29.99. There’s a video at the Think Geek website here:

http://tinyurl.com/38d7ldz

SEE or Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1253 

Another month, another phone!

Turn The Table Tuesday, Tuesday, December 28^th, 2010 Netcast 1252

Leo visited Google Headquarters in San Francisco and they presented him with a product sample of the new Google Nexus S. (Don’t be jealous. He’ll be returning it when he’s done evaluating it.) The Nexus S is the first phone to run Gingerbread, the newest and fastest version of Android. A 1 GHz Hummingbird processor paired with 16GB of internal memory makes the Samsung Nexus S, one of the fastest phones on the market. (For now anyway.) Feature-wise, it has pretty much what you’d expect in a tech phone: Wi-Fi 802.11 n/b/g, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Near Field Communication (NFC) – although Leo said right now there’s really no support or use for this feature, Assisted GPS (A-GPS) and microUSB 2.0. The display is smaller than Leo’s DroidX. It’s a 4.0" WVGA (480x800) Super AMOLED screen. It’s said to have a contour display with a curved glass screen but that seems to be something you really can’t see, as Leo demonstrated in the video version. Although it has a front and back camera, there’s no application to make video calls like FaceTime (on the iPhone) does. But that will most likely come in time. And there’s no HD video capture, just play back. Although there doesn’t seem to be any real knockout features on this phone, Leo pointed out a major advantage for geeks who must have the latest OS. With this device, users are the first to receive software upgrades and new Google mobile apps as soon as they become available. That’s because other manufacturers will first customize new software for their own line of phones before they release it. That means you may wait a few months to get your phone carrier’s version of the latest Google software. With a T-Mobile contract the Nexus S is about $200 with a two-year service plan, and about $500 unlocked. For now the phone is available only at Best Buy. More details are at the company website: 

http://www.google.com/nexus  

SEE or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1252 

Buying a new external hard drive? Why get one with USB 3.0?

Monday, December 27^th, 2010, Netcast 1251

Looking for a USB 2.0 external hard drive? Why? With an eye on the future, all the new offerings at the Iomega website are USB 3.0 drives. (Some 2.0 USB drives are there, often offered at deep discounts.) But it looks like prices are similar for the newer, faster 3.0 hard drives. So I could see one in person, Iomega sent me a product sample of their 500 GB eGo USB 3.0 drive. Except for the cable hook-up, it looks exactly the same as earlier eGo drives. But instead of the standard mini-USB jack into the drive, there’s the new USB 3.0 SuperSpeed connector. That connector looks like the number eight flattened on one side or a sideward letter B. If you want to buy one of these USB 3.0 drives, but don’t have computer equipped to handle the new format, you can use this drive as a 2.0 USB device. The supplied USB cable offers connections for both 3.0 and 2.0 profiles. Obviously, you won’t get USB 3.0 speed or performance when plugged into an older computer, but you’ll have a drive that’s ready when you move up to USB 3.0. I don’t have instruments to check out download & copy speeds, but most online reviews found a 2 to 2.5-time faster response time using USB 3.0 over 2.0. Iomega says you can save your media in a fraction of the time – up to 10 times faster than with USB 2.0, but hey I’ll take 2+ times faster. The drive features 256-bit hardware encryption built-in for your data security (PC only) and Iomega Protection Suite software is included at no additional cost (software available via download) with antivirus and backup software. But wait, there's more! The comfy Iomega Power Grip Band and the Iomega Drop Guard Xtreme feature helps protect the drive from drops up to 7 feet! By the way, the USB 3.0 interface doesn’t require an external power supply. Iomega also offer a 2.0 to 3.0 USB dongle for under $30 which allows you to get higher speed USB performance from your current computer. List prices for the Ego 3.0 USB hard drives are $159 for 1 TB and $109 for the 500 MB unit –but discounts are widely available.

http://tinyurl.com/2fg3h6s

SEE or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1251