Leo's Back From Down Under For The Giz Wiz - Week of November 27, 2012. Show 1392

First there was Boost from IFrogz. Now there's BoostPlus. We all know the audio from a cell phone, tablet, PDA, etc. is pretty awful. You can buy an external Bluetooth speaker, assuming your device is Bluetooth enables. Or you can buy the iFrogz Boost NearField Audio speaker. Just put nearly any smartphone or digital media device on top of the Boost and it magically amplifies the sound. Have the sound playing on the device and make sure the speaker on your device faces the blue “on” light of the Boost. Then lay it on top and it works. No wires. No Bluetooth. No Synching. No problem. An auxiliary line-in jack is provided for devices without external speakers. I also think there’s better bass sound when used with a wired connection, but a lot of the “magic” is missing! If you think the Boost has a hidden microphone, you’d be wrong. TheBoost uses iFrogz’ patent pending NearFA technology that actually syncs the audio signal from inside your device before pumping it out the two high-quality 2W x 2RMS speakers. The company says: “Your tunes are boosted with room filling sound.” I don’t know about that, but it sure does make it loud enough for several people to enjoy. TheBoost gives up to 15 hours of play time when powered by three AA batteries - or can be powered by a Micro USB cord (sold separately). Remember that this is not a stand, so it’s not ideal for amplifying sound from a video you might want to watch on your cell phone, or other device, but it probably will work with a little jury-rigging. MSRP is $39.99. If you do a web search, you can find a lower price.1The BoostPLUS works exactly the same, but it adds an additional speaker, for a total of 3. It does a bit better, but the retail price is $59.95. It isn't on Amazon as I write this - 11/27/12. But it is on the manufacturer's website:

http://www.zagg.com/ifrogz/

Here's the original 2-speaker unit for under $28.00.

http://www.amazon.com/iFrogz-Near-Field-Portable-Speaker/dp/B007CU56X2/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1354067033&sr=1-1&keywords=ifrogz+boost

Giz Wiz video demo of the original unit: http://youtu.be/fxyaii65EnE

See or hear this show: www.twit.tv/giz1392

Turn your $600 iPad into a Pinball Machine!

Figuring Leo likes playing games on his iPad, I asked the folks at Duo-Games if they’d send Leo a product sample of their Duo Pinball controller. It’s a way to experience some fun pinball wizardry and relive some of your favorite arcade moments. Once connected to your Apple device, you can play five free pinball tables in the wildly popular Pinball HD Collection app (available in the App Store). You can play Wild West, The Deep, Snow, DaVinci, and Jungle Style. Flipper buttons and a spring-loaded plunger make pinball game play unbelievably real. Connect your iPad, iPhone, or iPod to the Duo Pinball controller wirelessly via Bluetooth and launch the app. Then just choose one of the five free tables and play. Duo Pinball is compatible with iPad 1, iPad 2, iPad (3rd generation), iPhone 5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPod touch (5th generation), and iPod touch (4th generation). There’s even a tilt feature. Just touch the screen with your finger as if you were pushing the table. Becareful not to activate the ‘tilt’ alarm. Uses 3 AA batteries, which are included. 

http://www.amazon.com/Duo-Games-04-0019ML-Pinball-iPad/dp/B008M0NDRM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1353723399&sr=8-1&keywords=ipad+pinball

See or hear this show: www.twit.tv/giz1392

Put a Barnacle on your phone or other electronic device.

Barnacles on boats are no good. But this Barnacle is a mount that can attach your gadget to any slick surface. Two suction cups placed at a 45-degree angle from each other, gives yiou can way to stick your phone, PDA, etc. on a desk, car windshield, or on any slick surface. I found it works well when using my Galaxy S3 in horizontal plane. But when I tied to use it vertically, the phone tended to fall backwards And it wasn't strong enough to hold my 10.1 Galaxy Pad in position. But I tried using two Barnacles and that worked. The suction cups hold well, and  have a little tab for easy removal, but they have to used on a totally smooth surface. My Motorola Droid has a rubberized textured back and I couldn't get to stick on that. Prices on Amazon are all over the place. Depending on the color, you can get them from about $2 to the MSRP of $4.95. The orange Barnacle is here for $1.95, but S&H is $5.95! 

http://www.amazon.com/iLoveHandles-ILH010-Barnacle-Retail-Packaging/dp/B0065UZH4I/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1353854075&sr=8-2&keywords=ilovehandles

The company website, with the great name: i love handles 

http://ilovehandles.com/

The endless search for a way to carry earbuds without the wires tangling brings another new product!

 It’s called The Nest and the company says it’s “Earbud Storage Made Easy.”

It’s hard to figure out what this gizmo does when you first see it, but The Nest is an earbud winder headphone case that protects earbud-style headphones or earphones from tangling and damage. It’s made of high-quality silicone so it’s soft, flexible, and durable. You pull the case open, drop your earbuds in the center, wind the cable around the outside, and pop it closed again. It’s to use and fits easily in any pocket. I wish it was a little bit smaller, but it does work. They’re $9.99 at the company website: 

http://www.digitalinnovations.com/the-nest-earbud-headphones-protector.html 

See or hear this show: www.twit.tv/giz1392

Looks like Leo give a "no" to the No No.

We received an email from a girl in college asking us to please try the No No hair remover. It's expensive and she didn't want to spend the money if it didn't work well. First, here's info from the No No website:

Now you finally have a solution that, when used continuously, lets you achieve long-lasting professional results – in the comfort of your own home. You no longer need to hassle with the inconvenience and high cost of expensive and time consuming professional treatments. Instead, you can use the no!no! whenever and wherever you want – as often as you like. no!no! is a doctor recommended device that is based on years of research and development. It has been featured in hundreds of magazines, including Vogue, Allure, Elle, and others. It was also the recipient of the 2012 Product of the Year for the Consumer Survey of Product Information.

So Leo bought one. Although it seemed like it was $100, it was three payments of $100! But since there was a money back offer, Leo ordered one. He tried it on the air. Although the hair didn't just disappear like it does in the video, you could smell hair burning. But after repeated sweepings back and back on Leo's arm, it didn't look like it really removed much hair at all. So it's going back.

www.trynono.

See or hear this show: www.twit.tv/giz1392

We didn't do our "Crap From Sky Mall" segment this week, but you can (and should!) vote on what Leo should buy next!

Gadget Warehouse Time -- Leo & I open boxes from the past!

While Leo & I were reminiscing about our first Atari computers, the 800 and 800XL, a friend of mine Larry Gerson said to his tons of Atari equipment and would gladly ship them out to TWiT.

Larry did ship everything out to the Brick TWiT House and Leo & I opened some of the box live on the show. Not only did Larry have the Atari 800, but he also then bought the Atari ST, a much higher end machine that came out in June 1985. For a computer, it had an incredibly long life. It was discontinued in 1993. Here’s a bit more from Wikipedia. A link to the whole entry is below. 

CPU Motorola 680x0 @ 8 MHz & higher / Memory 512 kilobytes (512×210 bytes) to 4 megabytes (4×220 bytes) / The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals. Due to its graphical user inferface, it was known as the "Jackintosh", a reference to Jack Tramiel. The ST was the first home computer with integrated MIDI support. Thanks to its built-in MIDI, it enjoyed success for running music-sequencer software and as a controller of musical instruments among amateurs and professionals alike, being used in concert by bands and performers such as Jean Michel Jarre, Madonna, and Eurythmics. 

Read all about the Atari ST computer at Wikipedia: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_ST

See or hear this show: www.twit.tv/giz1392