Bad Elf GPS Pro for iPod touch, iPhone and iPad

Strange name for a product, but the Bad Elf GPS Pro (BE-GPS-2200) Direct Satellite GPS was good enough to be named the Best GPS Device in the TechRadar Best of CES 2013 Awards presented by DTS.

The small, compact, water-resistant handheld Bad Elf GPS Pro is an Apple-approved accessory that wirelessly connects (via Bluetooth wireless technology) up to five users of an iPod touch, iPhone or iPad to share real time, direct satellite GPS data for display on digital charts and a wide range of other compatible marine apps on board via satellite – anywhere in the world. Bad Elf GPS does not rely on cell tower assistance to achieve a lock or to determine position. The Bad Elf unit includes a high performance satellite receiver and antenna that receives data directly from the GPS satellites. Locking on to up to 15 satellites, a Bad Elf unit supplies GPS data up to 10 times a second that can be accurate to within 9 feet (2.5 meters) - allowing users to improve their GPS lock on the water beyond cell phone coverage areas. MSRP US $ 179.99.

Info about the Bad Elf GPS Pro, visit www.bad-elf.com.

Ahoy, Mateys! The New York Boat Show is about to drop anchor in the Big Apple.

Go to the official website: http://www.nyboatshow.com/

During Hurricane Sandy, more than 70,000 people viewed the storm through my Dropcam!

How did I get that figure. Well the folks at Dropcam are the ones who host the Dropcam service. The day of the storm they emailed to say if I felt like bragging more than 55,000 had already watched the storm through the Dropcam I have behind the windshield of my Farallon workboat. The Dropcam went offline hours later when the marina office flooded and the electric and phone lines went under water. At the time Dropcan had recorded 70,272 views for the day! My Dropcam lets me check in on my boat from any place I have WiFi! The newest version is the HD WiFi Video Cam. (I added one to the Gizneyland Studio so folks can see the east coast half of what goes on when we record The Giz Wiz!) You can use the Dropcam app to view your camera on Smart Phones (Android or Apple) or computer. You can check in on pets, the baby, the baby sitter, etc. anywhere there’s WiFi. (During hurricane Irene, my Echo Dropcam let me monitor my boat from home throughout the entire storm! The phone and electric stayed on throughout that storm.) This new model is smaller that the original Echo model. The camera itself is about the size of a hockey puck and it sits in a hinged aluminum base. You can rotate the cam and adjust the hinged base to any angle you like. You can even pop the camera out and make it almost invisible in a dark corner since it’s black. The new HD WiFi Dropcam uses a single cable for set-up and then for power. (Unlike the Echo there’s no Ethernet option, just WiFi.) Setting up the Dropcam is really easy. There’s no software to install! Just plug the Dropcam HD into your computer via USB, create an account at the Dropcam site and pick the local WiFi network it will work on. You only have to do that once. After that, it automatically logs on when it’s powered on. New also is a 12-LED infrared light array around the lens for nighttime use. The HD WiFi Dropcam has a speaker and a microphone for two-way communication. The camera includes their free basic service that you lets you view live streaming video on a computer, Android or iOS app - assuming they're getting WiFi. For $9.95 a month you can get a package that includes seven days of archive access and the ability to download clips to your own computer. The new camera comes in at a lower price too, $149.00.

www.dropcam.com

This is why my Dropcam went offline during Hurricane Sandy. That's the Hudson River flooding Riverside Park. The marina office has 7 feet of water inside! 

It's astronomical high tide during hurricane Sandy. At the West 79th Street Boat Basin, the Hudson River overflows the seawall and floods Riverside Park! The marina office, that white building on the right, probably has six or seven feet of water inside. Of course there's no power, phone, etc.

Captain Dick pilots his boat and shoots HD video at the same time!

When I first heard about a new gadget, Point-of-View (POV) video-recording glasses, I thought the name they picked was rather strange – Pivothead. But after using a pair to shoot some HD video, I think the name is pretty accurate.  Pivothead glasses are available with clear lenses so you look like you’re wearing old-fashioned black plastic frame eyeglasses. Or you can buyPivothead disguised as trendy sunglasses with various color lenses. If someone is standing directly in front you, looking you in the eye, they will probably feel you’ve got a hidden camera in the center of your glasses. But from a few feet away,Pivotheadcan pass as ordinary glasses. The various models (Aurora, Durango, Moab and Recon) are only different on the outside. Inside each one features an eight-mega pixel Sony sensor, a four-element glass lens and 8GB of built-in storage. (There is no external storage, but a wireless option is coming.) The company says you can capture about an hour of video with the built-in 440mAh battery. Video modes include: 1080/30fps, 720/60fps and 720/30fps. Shooting video is really easy once you turn the camera on. There’s nothing to hold, you record whatever you're looking directly at. (All the controls are built in the frame and tiny LEDs let you know if you’re in video mode, still mode, etc. You can see these lights even when you’re wearing your Pivothead device. There's built-in optical image stabilization, which I definitely needed. I shot video as I left the dock, and drove my boat out into the Hudson River. With a fast moving tide, I swing my head quite quickly from side-to-side to avoid hitting anything, and you see it all happening in the video. (Don’t get whiplash watching!) You charge the glasses via a micro-USB port also built into the frame. The same cable is used for downloading files and adjusting settings. Most settings can be adjusted directly on the glasses. The blinking LEDs tell you the settings you’ve choosen, but I found it far easier to use the digital dashboard on my computer to set everything up. Once you have the Pivothead set the way you want, your choices are sent to the glasses via the USB cable. The glasses feel well made and the video results are quite good. The MSRP is $349.00. There is an external WiFi device availabe too. Info is at the company website

www.pivothead.com  

The Giz Wiz (aka Capt Dick) using Pivothead Glasses while piloting his boat

:http://youtu.be/KewFRVb8jVM  

Want to use your smart phone or other touch-screen device on the cold deck of your boat?

Digits is a way to stay warm while staying connected. It’s from the folks at Quirky. The cold weather is here in a lot of the country. But you don’t have to let the cold keep you from your digital connections!Digits are mini conductive pins that attach to the gloves you already love. so you can use them on electronic touch screen devices, like smartphones and MP3 players, even when it’s below zero. They’re simple to use. Digits separate into two pieces. Place the backside of the digit (with post) inside the fingertip of the glove and push through. Then twist the other side of the digit onto the post. Digits are made of conductive silicone, with a metal pin on the back for attaching to your glove. They’re black in color and come in packs of four so you can use them on multiple sets of gloves or give a set to a friend. You probably will use two Digits on the glove you use for your electronics. $11.99 a pack at the Quirky website. You should be able to find them for a buck or two cheaper if you do a web search. 

http://www.quirky.com/products/37-Digits-Conductive-Glove-Pins