A convenient gadget gets an upgrade.

The Newer Technology Power2U USB outlet adds two convenient USB charging ports to their AC power outlets. There were introduced at CES about two years ago. But now the Power2U USB device has been upgraded. Among the new features: They've added 2008 National Electrical Code (NEC) tamper resistant receptacles and NEC tamper resistant shutters to make the Power2U USB as kid safe as possible. It also ensures the device will meet any local home building/improvement code requirements in addition to their UL listing. They've also added a 20Amp version for commercial, hospitality, education, and municipal applications, as well as installations in homes where higher powered appliances and tools might be used. That includes places like basements, kitchens, utility/HVAC rooms and garages. There are new colors too. IMPORTANT NOTE: Note: Newer Tech says electrical boxes typically range from 15 to 16 cubic inches. The Power2U USB device requires the 16 cubic inch electrical box. On their website, they explain how to determine the size of your electrical box. Prices start at about $12 for the 15A model, about $25 for the 20A model. Available at:

http://eshop.macsales.com/search/Power+2U

They're also available at ACE Hardware and soon other retailers.

Let there be light - and lots of ways to control it.

Satechi has been making clever accessories for the past few years that are attractively priced. Their Smart LED Desk Lamp is one of the newest. It’s multi-purpose device that offers many ways to brighten a room, while adding a USB charging device at the base of the lamp. (It’s in the back of the lamp, so it’s out of the way. Charging power is 5V/700 mAh.) There are four touch controls to toggle between four different brightness levels.  Here’s how Satechi describes the four lighting modes:

Reading Mode – Stimulates concentration and reduces eye strain with mid-range color temperatures (4300K-5300K)

Study Mode – Increases attention and concentration with high-range color temperatures (6000K-7000K)

Relaxation Mode – Promotes relaxation along with improved mood with low-range color temperatures (2500K-3300K)

Bedtime Mode – Encourages deep sleep with a comfortable soft light (2500K-3300K)

Within each of those modes you vary the light with the up/down touch arrows. The company says the Smart LED Desk Lamp has a lifespan of 40,000+ hours. The energy efficient lamp consumes only 1/8 of the power of an incandescent lamp and less than half of the power of a florescent lamp. That translates to only about 11 watts of power consumption!  Additionally, the timer function automatically turns off the lamp after an hour of inactivity to avoid unnecessary energy consumption. The Smart LED Desk Lamp is made of three joints able to adjust the LED panel up to 140 degrees and the frame up to 90 degrees to ensure it fits perfectly on any desk. It’s available in black and white. The product sample I received is black. It’s really sleek with it a high tech look, but it does gather fingerprints quickly. My guess is the white version may not show fingerprints as much. For this many features, the price is right too. Introductory price is $99.99 at Satechi.net and at Amazon.com There’s no mention of the price going to the suggested $150 retail.

www.satechi.net

The Remote Control Car That Really 'Carries' Your Tunes!

SilverLit has been making remote control models of high-end cars for about two years now. But the latest model adds some very unique features. The iCONNECT Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Bluetooth car comes with RC Tunes. So not only do you have interactive Bluetooth remote control, you can play your tunes through the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG. As with their other models, the car is controlled by your iPod touch, iPhone or iPad. But this clever vehicle also makes the classic connection between cars and music with “RC Tunes”. Using your own iTunes Library you can play your favorite songs two ways. You can have music play from your iDevice through the model car while you control it, so it’s like playing the radio in your car. Or you can stream music through the speakers in the car as a display item on your desk. But wait, there’s more! The unique gull-wing doors open remotely from your iDevice and headlight, plus signal lights flash to the beat of the music. You can pick custom light shows or pre-configured patterns. When driving the car full gesture tilt control allows you to control by tilting the controller. Digital sound effects straight from Mercedes deliver the rev of the engine and force feedback delivers the rumble of the engine that increases as you go faster (iPhone only). The Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG body is crafted with great detail and authenticity features functional headlights, tail lights and even signal lights! App is free for download with purchase. MSRP: $129.99. Age: 8+ Available on the company website now, coming to stores in Spring 2013.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8uqUZqGRok

Their website says “ships 2/18/13 & 10% off if you sign up as a member on the website”

Here's some video of the SilverLit car I showed in Vegas at Showstoppers:

http://shop.silverlit.com/toys/our-latest/interactive-bluetooth-r-c-mercedes-benz-sls-amg.html

It's also on this Giz Wiz episode: www.twit.tv/giz1403

A Newer Version Of A NewerTech Universal Drive Adapter.

Leo talked about an earlier version of this device on the Giz Wiz Podcast back in March, 2007. Now there’s a newer version of the NewerTech USB 2.0 Universal Drive Adapter. It’s called the NewerTech USB 3.0 Universal Drive Adapter. The company calls it the "Swiss Army Knife" of Disk Connectivity...It lets you turn pretty much any old hard drive you have into an eternal storage device. The NewerTech USB 3.0 Universal Drive Adapter makes it easy to transfer data between the old and new drives. And since it gives the old drive a second life as an external storage solution, it’s also a “green” solution. It allows any 2.5″, 3.5″, or 5.25″ hard drive or optical drive with any standard IDE/ATA/ATAPI 40 pin or SATA interface to be connected via USB to any USB equipped computer for file transfer, back-up and file storage archives. After an easy hook-up you can access the data on stored backup drives with Plug & Play ease on a Mac or PC. An LED informs you of an accurate device connection and disk activity. It supports USB 3.0 & USB 2.0 & USB 1.1 standard. Maximum transfer rates up to 300MB/s and it supports hard drives up to 4.0TB. The price is right too, under $30. All the details are at the company website:

http://www.newertech.com/products/usb3_universaldriveadap.php

A visit with Scott Wilkinson on this week's Tech Guy.

Some 30 years or so ago, the only giant TV screens were projection TV’s. And there was Beamscope (and Beamscope II), which claimed to be better than any projection TV system on the market back then. The biggest difference was the price. While a projection TV was $2,000 to $4,000 for a 40-50" system, a Beamscope II, which could be compared to a 41" TV, was about $200. Beamscope II was a “precision” ground lens; complete with stand that you placed in front of your smallish TV, so you could watch a much bigger picture. I owned 2 of them. The 1st one I bought turned my 21” TV into a 32” TV. The picture quality was pretty good, but only the person sitting directly dead center in front of the Beamscope got an undistorted view. Two people sitting close together side-by-side had a pretty good view too. But sitting too far off center meant you saw a totally distorted picture. The Beamscopes were expensive too, for their time. About $100 for the 32” one, and almost $200 for the 42” model which came out a year later. And they were HEAVY! One model came with a rolling stand so you could roll in front of your TV for the shows you wanted to watch on “the big screen”. I used it mainly for watching movies on TV. I really didn’t need to watch The Match Game with the Beamscope. I didn’t have the one with the stand. I hung mine from the ceiling and lowered it for the movies. I piped the sound from my TV through my stereo amp. I guess I had one of 1^st home theatres.