Month: February 2018

Jibo. He’s not Alexa, but he’s adorable!
The Good
- Jibo’s expressions make him much more human than Siri or Alexa
- Can take photos and store up to 700 images
- Can track flights, scores, daily news
- Can control Phillips Hue and Nest.
The Bad
- Cannot connect to your phone
- No calls, text, music, or streaming
- Is much more expensive than the Alexa or Google assistants
The Conclusion

Jibo is a very charming and helpful assistant to who can do a fair amount of task such a control your homes lighting, thermostat, track schedules and flights, but is limited in comparison to Alexa or Google. Jibo is more focused on being a social robot opposed to just cold services. His friendly movements and disposition make him feel much more human that the other competitors. But at $900.00 is he worth it?

Jibo Arrives

In 2014 the Boston based Jibo Co. released Jibo as a concept and received a lot of buzz. But unfortunately for Jibo, Amazon released Alexa that same year…All of Alexa’s capabilities immediately surpassed Jibo’s and did so from a sleek 8oz can. Jibo’s production slowed but he made it through and is available for purchase now. Unlike Alexa, Jibo is a robust helper, standing at 12 inches tall and weighing 9lbs. With being friendly animations, adorable look, and features such as a camera, Jibo is finding his way into homes as we speak. Jibo is a much more social robot that seems to want to talk to you and has a proactive approach to tasks. Jibo is at sometimes too helpful and can make people well..uneasy. Jibo will likely have all the features that Alexa and Siri have and will eventually have the edge do to his cuteness. He’s a bright entity in the house and children seem really responsive to him. But at $900.00, you may want to wait to get your monies worth.

Final Thoughts

If you’re like me, you might welcome a friendlier robot who can’t do as much as his cold faceless competitors. Jibo is just that. He has limits, but he also has a lot of love…from taking photographs of you and your family at the dinner table or even reading a bedtime story to the kids, Jibo does bring a factor to the table that others cannot. With adorable animations and expressions, the kids sure like him, and he can still control and connect with a lot of the household gadgets such as Nest, and Phillips Hue. But the question is, is he worth $900.00? I’ll leave that to you.
February 12, 2018
Apples’ Beats by Dre…Can They be Beat?
The Good
- Unrivaled sound quality, especially in bass heavy songs
- Lithium Ion Battery provides 22 hours of continuous listening
- New noise cancellation tech is an important focal point
- Robust and sturdy craftsmanship makes them hard to break
- Wireless and portable headphones make them great travel companions
The Bad
- The sound quality drops when not listening to songs through Apple Music, (i.e listening from Youtube, Pandora, Spotify)
- After extended period of wearing the headphones, the comfort-ability rapidly declines
- High price point. On average consumers pay an additional $100.00 just for a name.
The Conclusion

Apples’ Beat by Dre are clearly the best headphones on the market. With incredible clarity and tone, songs we’ve heard a millions times before are elevated to a different plain inside those earbuds. Coupled with quality craftsmanship and care, there is a reason why they are so distinguished from competitors. But can competitors get close in quality for a significant drop in price?

The upgraded Studio3 Beats are here to stay

The newly released and upgraded Studio3 Beats by Dre have continue to progress and fix the previous versions and continue to hold up the good Beats name. With focusing on the noise cancelling aspect of the Studio3 beats, these bottom heavy headphones are quieter than ever. And Apples W1 Bluetooth chip makes pairing a breeze. Additionally, iPhone users can switch between devices logged into the same iCloud account to easily move from an iPhone conversation to watching a movie on your Mac. (The headphone also works with Android and other Bluetooth-enabled devices.)Totaling 22 hours of wireless playback with the new Noise Cancelling Tech and approximately 40 hours of battery life without it.

With tough competition such as the Sony WH-1000XM2 noise cancelling headphones or the Bose QuietComfort 35 II, Beats has an uphill battle to stay at the top. Sony’s new headphones very closely rival Beats sound and quality, but struggle a bit in terms of battery life and comfort-ability. But for $100.00 less than the Studio3 beats, they are a great option for those not wanting to spend $379.00 on headphones.

Final Thought

The Studio3 Beats have made a great addition to the Beats line, and continue to rule the headphones playground for now. But at this point much is expected from Beats, and they need to find new ways to keep their customers coming back. The strong competition is gunning for Beats, and doing so by significantly under cutting Beats prices. The Bose QuietComfort 35 II has even added a Google Assistant button to their headphones for that extra bit of personality. I’ll be waiting for Beats next move…
February 11, 2018
The Future of the Gaming Mouse is now.. I Mean Soon

Are you ready to experience total wireless freedom with the Razer Mamba HyperFlux. Backed by the new Razer HyperFlux Wireless Power Technology, you get an ultra-lightweight, wireless gaming mouse that runs indefinitely* with wireless power from the included Razer Firefly HyperFlux mouse mat.

Show Me, Tell Me

The Mamba HyperFlux is a wireless mouse that features 16,000 DPI and uses the 2.4GHz frequency band, thus providing gamers with a strong signal. As for the Firefly HyperFlux, this is the mouse mat that you can use the Mamba HyperFlux on, which means that it charges the mouse as you use it, thus you can be reassured you’ll never run out of juice. If this sounds familiar, it is because we’ve seen similar products from Logitech and more recently, Corsair. Razer’s HyperFlux technology uses the mouse pad to create a magnetic field that constantly powers the mouse. Unlike competitors, which use their powered mats to charge a mouse battery, Razer has forgone a battery altogether, resulting in an extremely lightweight mouse. It’s just 0.2 pounds.

Hands On

For those of us that have gotten to put a hand on this next generation gaming tech, I can say we are all very impressed. My initial reaction was the classic “shut up and take my money”. Due the battery being, well..non existent, weight is added to devices to give it swift and precise control. It moves quick and precisely accurate. The look and design is really tight, everything is black except for some bright, colorful light. This will be my next mouse.

Razer will be selling the Mamba and Firefly as a combo which is priced at $250 and will be available in Q1 2018 worldwide.

February 11, 2018
Drones grounded at opening ceremony _ but not on tape delay

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) — An army of high-flying drones expected to light up the sky at the opening ceremony of the Olympics was grounded.

Viewers of NBC’s tape-delayed broadcast in the United States still saw it, but it was a pre-recorded version.
Intel Corp. was expected to launch 300 drones as part of an extravagant light show, but those plans were scrapped. International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams said Saturday that the drones were not deployed Friday night because of an “impromptu logistical change.”

NBC aired a light show, but it was from Intel’s launching of more than 1,200 drones in December in Pyeongchang. That didn’t keep the television network from highlighting the moment. NBC tweeted on its official @NBCOlympics page: “A swarm of drones brings us one of the most incredible sights of the #OpeningCeremony.”

Intel celebrated breaking a Guinness World Record for the most drones flown simultaneously by tweeting a link to the video . “More than 1,200 drones,” the Santa Clara, California-based company tweeted. “One amazing show. See how our drone team pulled off a Guinness World Records title for the Opening Ceremony.”

The incident was reminiscent of the Sochi Games in 2014, when one of the five Olympic rings failed to light — but Russian state television aired rehearsal footage of it happening.

___

More AP Olympic coverage: https://wintergames.ap.org

February 11, 2018
Xbox One X is a 4k Beast
The Xbox one X is the world’s most powerful gaming console. With 40% more power than any other console, experience immersive true 4K gaming. Games play better on Xbox One X. This is the Xbox One enhanced for true 4k gaming.

The Great
- 4k gaming and content
- 4k native content and High Dynamic Range (HDR)
- Digital 5.1,
  TrueHD with Atmos
- Liquid Cooled
- Plays the best games of the past, present and future
- Stream and record clips in 4K resolution at 60FPS
- Built-in Blu-ray player
The Not
- Xbox Gold subscription required $69
- 1TB HDD fills up fast
The Conclusion

The X Box One X is one of a kind. You will feel fully immersed in the game as you play. With 4K resolution, the colors are brighter, whites appear whiter, blacks appear blacker with great contrast. and you can see differences in detail that truly bring the image and experience to life. The console will revert to a still brilliant 1080p if you don’t have a 4K resolution. If you have a high end HD or 4k TV and are not sure yet if you should get it, just do it, you won’t regret it.

I got very excited watching the Microsoft Xbox E3 2017 press Release, They said the Xbox One X is ‘the most powerful console’ Microsoft ever made, like a monster in the gaming world. I also happened to be needed a new game console, since my day one Xbox One seems to be unexplainably hosing up. As an avid life long casual gamer, I’ve been waiting for the Xbox One X system to be released every since news of its inception. When offered an opportunity to test out the system, I quickly jumped on the opportunity.

Tech Upgrades

I’m really impressed and surprised at how much power Microsoft has managed to squeeze into the Xbox One X’s small case. The Xbox One X boast a new processor bulking up its power out put. They used the Scorpio Engine with 6 Teraflops, 326GB/s of Memory Bandwidth and advanced, custom silico. Unquestionably is the world’s most powerful console gaming processor. That’s nearly two teraflops more than the PS4 Pro, a faster CPU, and 3GB more of overall RAM. The Xbox One X comfortably outperforms the PS4 Pro. On hardware alone, it’s smaller, more powerful, and even includes a 4K Blu-ray player over its PS4 Pro rival.

4k Gaming

The Xbox One X has the power and the peripherals to provide the best gaming experience, but you need the right games. Most games made for the Xbox One are designed for 1080p TVs, which have a quarter of the pixels found on a new 4K TV. The Xbox One X is more than four times faster than the original Xbox One, so it’s capable of 4K gaming.Some games like Forza Motorsport 7 will offer the best of all worlds: 4K, HDR, and 60fps. Its still early and the ultimate content will follow. You can tell by the “games and apps” menu that lets you sort by “Xbox One X Enhanced Games.” Doing this doesn’t tell you exactly how each game you have installed is enhanced, but at least Microsoft leaves players without a doubt that, yes, your game has (or has not) been patched with Xbox One X in mind.

The Final Thought

This isn’t the next gen system we need, its the console we deserve. You’re not just getting the Xbox One version with more pixels and a grimy suite of dated visual niggles, It is the monster promised. The only thing to consider is you need a high end 4k TV to make any difference over the One S.
February 11, 2018
Samsung’s 4K Ultra TV is Easy on the Eyes
The Good
- Vivid colors, and excellent blacks.
- Quick 120 Hertz refresh rate
- Excellent upscaling, especially from 1080p content
- No light-bleed at all
- Hi quality Frame and extremely thin bezzle
The Not so Good
- Sub-par viewing angles
- High cost for a Television that does live up to the cost in comparison
- “Game Mode” displays very poor gradients
The Conclusion

This is very well built and sturdy television. The thin metal bezzle is a welcomed improvement from the all plastic ones in Samsung’s prior LED TVs. The 65” model is large , but fairly lightweight and easy to wall mount. The 4K resolution is very impressive and the darks are very dark. It’s a pleasure to watch TV on this Samsung, but the cost is high and there are other cheaper and still high quality options out there.

4K Resolution

The incredible detail of the 4K resolution is amazing. With vibrant colors and deep blacks, it looks like the images were painted on the screen. With the 120 frame rate, it’s just simply a joy to watch a 4K movie such as Wonder Woman, on it. In terms of the TV’s remote, the Samsung remote is really nice and the voice control is a great addition. It’s a simple remote that liken to the Amazon FireTV voice remote. The toggle channel/volume buttons take some getting used to, but it’s a short learning curve. The TV’s set up is pretty straight forward and it easily detect gaming systems, such as Xbox One and PS4 as well as the Apple TV. The Cost can be steep considering the price tag for a 55 inch is around the $1,500.00 mark. There may be some better options for the price out there.

Final Thoughts

Depending on who you are and how much television you watch, this could be the television for you. With stunning visuals and vibrant colors, this television elevates watching movies and sports to a whole new level. If you’re willing to shell out a hefty price tag, then look no further. If you’re looking to save a few bucks, there are some cheaper options that should do the trick as well…
February 11, 2018
5 “Smart Home” gadgets every house should have…

It’s 2018 folks, and the future is here. Astronauts are driving Tesla’s through space and the Reese’s company is doing some really innovative stuff with popcorn. With all this technology around us, it’s easy to take it all for granted and we sometimes don’t get all the use we can out of it and take advantage of smart home gadgets.

And the most important place you can use all this cool tech to your advantage is right in your very own home. Here are some amazing new smart home gadgets to make your life easier…

1. The iRobot Roomba

Ever since it’s inception in 2002, the Roomba vacuum has been an integral piece of smart home tech. With the ability to program this round robot to vacuum your home 7 days a week it can be a real time saver. With the latest 980 Model, the Roomba is more advanced that ever. With cutting edge mapping technology and dirt detection programs, this “set it and forget it” vacuum is a must have! For dog or pet owners life myself, I can stress it’s value enough. I have a lot on my plate and one thing I don’t to concern myself with is the daily sweeping thank to “Roger the Roomba”. Yes I named my Roomba, he’s family, folks. Word of advice…there are several competitors is the robot vacuum department, do yourself a favor and stick with the iRobot Roomba. You may a little more, but in this case “you get what you pay for”. This was been probably the best $900.00 I’ve ever spent.

2. The Nest Thermostat

Coming in at a price tag of $279.00, the Nest Thermostat is well worth the extra cost. Thanks to it’s smart and adaptive AI, the Nest knows when your home and learns your work schedule to monitor the A/C usage. You can also control the thermostat right form your Nest App on your mobile device to fine tune your A/C needs. For a native Floridan like myself, A/C usage and consumption is a real beast you have to tame. In the summer months, electric bills can soar thanks to primitive thermostats. There is nothing like a thermostat shutting down for the day knowing your at work, and then turn on a half hour before you get home so you don’t walk into a hot and muggy house. It’s just bliss. Once I had installed the Nest, I noticed an immediate 50% drop in my A/C consumption and a large drop in my electric bill respectively. This is a must have in your home.

3. Brilliant Light Switch

With the ability to control your homes, light, music, ambiance, and even take pictures with voice commands, the Brilliant light switch is a 2018 must have gadget for your home. Brilliant light switch also connects to several of your home’s smart gadgets such as Nest, Alexa, Sonos Speaker, Ring doorbell system, and more. Starting at $200.00 per panel, Brilliant Switch is a costly addition but this innovative new gadget gives your home a brain.

4. Amazon Echo and Echo Dot

This smart home “must” is quickly finding it’s way into every home, world wide. Alexa and Echo Dot, is a voice-controlled system that used to play music, make calls, send and receive messages, read the news, set alarms, and even order and Uber or takeout! With the capability of syncing up to Amazon-Fire, Apple Music, Audible, Pandora, and more, you easily find usage and justification for this piece of smart tech in your home. At a price tag of $150.00, the Amazon Echo has many uses to help in your home and is a fantastic smart home gadget. Word to the wise, Alexa has a built in microphone for consumer purposes that is ALWAYS LISTENING…Use responsibly.

5. The Ring II doorbell system

The Ring Video Doorbell, provides you with the capability to see who is at your door from the safety and comfort of your bed or couch. It lets you accept or deny visitor calls if you’re not home, and uses motion detection to alert you of activity on your doorstep even when the bell hasn’t been rung. By working off your home’s Wifi and mobile data, the 1080HD camera will alert your smart phone of any activity at your door step day or night. For an extra $3.00 a month, you can pay for cloud storage and have all moments video recorded for later purposes if desired. The newest model also has a 2 way intercom system, and infrared night vision. For that extra bit of security at a relatively inexpensive cost of $199.00, this doorbell is the must have for any smart home.

The Conclusion

With so many smart gadgets available, some better than others, these products can make our homes better, safer, and more convenient. 2018 is going to be a big tech year and the “smart home” business is growing evermore advanced daily. If you can pick-up just one of these items this year, you’ll be headed in the right direction. I’m still anxiously awaiting the release for Rosie the robot maid, but I may have to hold my breath for awhile.

February 10, 2018
The Fire TV 4K, If Prime Is Right
Amazon Fire TV with ultra 4K let’s watch live TV and sports through your TV with subscriptions to Hulu, Netflix, PlayStation Vue, and Sling TV, or connect an HD antenna to your TV to get free broadcast networks like NBC and PBS. It Simply plugs into an HDTV streams in minutes.

The Good
- High quality vivid 4K Ultra HD up to 60 fps,
- Alexa enabled voice remote
- Free broadcast TV
- Fast performance with solid Wi-Fi streaming.
The Bad
- No support for Dolby Vision.
- Some big streaming services not available
- No phone casting
- Amazon Prime is effectively a must
The Conclusion

The new Amazon Fire TV is the an awesome Ultra HD box for Amazon Prime subscribers without the capabilities built in their 4K TV. For everyone else it’s pretty much just an average streamer. It’s quick and responsive, but the Amazon branding ensures you won’t get the full use without Prime.

Video Quality

The headline feature here is the ability to output video in Ultra HD 4K at 60fps, and in high dynamic range. The previous version could do 4K but only up to 30fps, because it had an HDMI 1.4 connection and that’s all it could do. The new version has HDMI 2.0.HDR support comes in HDR10 flavour. That’s the open standard everyone has adopted. There’s no Dolby Vision, a rival format using dynamic metadata to optimise the picture scene by scene. That’s something the Apple TV 4K has for justifying its higher price tag.Streaming 4K UHD/HDR video via 5GHz band WiFi works flawlessly, and with minimum initial buffering. The picture quality, with this TV’s OLED display, is astonishing.

The Interface

The interface is clear and easy to use, and thanks to the boosted hardware inside the Fire TV it feels smooth when in use as well. I do not like that I have no way to explicitly browse content that streams for free via my Prime membership. Add in that Amazon has intentionally chosen not to include flagging on the thumbnails that identifies which content is Prime and which is not. Fire TV has introduced a regression in this regard by requiring users to click on a thumbnail before they can find out if something is pay-per-view or free.

Alexa in the TV

So I haven’t figured out how to make Alexa clean my house like Cinderella…yet. But I’m working on it. In the meantime, I have figured out that she is much more than a glorified alarm clock or DJ. Although, you should know that alarms are “not currently supported on this device,” like they are on the Echo. This is a more basic version of Alexa. It doesn’t have her full functionality. You can, however, use the new Fire TV for shopping.owever, the best part is definitely Alexa and the voice activated remote. You can say things like, “Alexa, show me comedic movies.” It will take you to a list of comedies. You can access anything on the box, such as games and apps, but it is also a virtual search engine. You can ask, “What is the overnight weather forecast for San Diego, CA?”

Final Thought

Despite the cumbersome interface, the Fire TV with 4K is in my opinion the second best streaming device out in the market especially now that it has Alexa and a payment option.For $70 you get a virtually hands free streaming device (if you have an echo and smart hub), which none of its competitors have,combined with a Prime membership it’s a great entertainment solution.
February 10, 2018
Apple TV in 4K
Apple TV 4K is a high quality smart video system that connects your TV to life. It makes all your favorite TV shows and movies even more amazing. Videos play in stunning detail with picture quality that’s more true to life. Enjoy content from iTunes and apps like Netflix, Hulu, and ESPN — or use the Siri Remote to find just what you want.

The Great
- Best streaming video available to compatible 4K
- Greatest remote on the market
- Fantastic Siri voice capability
- Mirror mode from IOS devices
- TvOS is smooth, intuitive and interactive.
- Sleek interface looks great in 4K
- Can control your Homekit devices
The Not
- Expensive compared to competition
- No 4K YouTube
- No Dolby Atmos
- Non-4K owners no real advantage over the previous model
- Occasional lag while switching apps
The Conclusion

If you have the dough and live in the apple eco-system I highly suggest in picking one up.. It is so choice.

The Picture Quality

In three words. Breathtaking, Amazing, Perfection. The 4K gives you a crisper picture using four times more pixels than standard HD and (HDR) delivers brighter, more realistic colors and greater detail. The colors are amazing and the crisp lines make it far better than regular HD. I use iTunes as my main source of purchasing video and Older movies I had purchased such as The Princess Bride, or the James Bond movies have started showing up as 4K content. Combined with the newly available tvOS settings to match content frame rate, and HDR settings, older movies are much improved especially when HDR is captured. The black levels and popping colors of older film movies, along with the loss of frame conversion judder can result in a nearly transformative viewing experience. On the downside, telling the TV to switch display mode does result in a frustrating couple seconds of black screen as playback begins.

The Remote

It’s small, intuitive, and so easily lost. The remote has rechargeable battery last forever, so much so that many don’t realize it’s rechargeable, they think it’s just gone bad after a year. The Apple TV 4K remote has also been subtly redesigned: there’s a white ridge around the menu button now, which makes the thing far easier to pick up correctly in the dark, and there’s a new three-axis gyroscope in it for better motion tracking. It’s still very sensitive and the touchpad is still frustrating. I manage to overshoot constantly.

The Final Thought

Apple has smashed the best streaming video quality available today, Dolby HDR, with the slickest, most intuitive, completely refined, and elegant feel. Add in Siri and Total iOS it’s destroys any streamer around. If you just bought an expensive 4K HDR TV, accept no substitutes. I mean the price of stepping up to an Apple TV seem like your only true option.

While is quality is so superb there are some caveats. Apple TV doesn’t support Atmos and it doesn’t support YouTube in 4K HDR and it doesn’t have Disney or Marvel movies in 4K HDR and it makes some 1080p content look funky.
February 10, 2018
Sony’s “Robo-Puppy” is Back!
Initial thoughts
- Highly advanced puppy AI
- Adorable movements, and physical cues
- Extreme price tag
LAS VEGAS- At the 2018 CES convention Sony unveiled Aibo, the world’s most adorable robot-puppy. The world has seen Aibo in the past, but Sony has re-imagined and reanimated the once stiff “robo-puppy”, and he’s melting hearts.

Let’s Meet Aibo

You remember seeing Aibo years ago at the old KB Toys store doing binary back-flips for attention but to no avail. Well in 2017 Aibo was brought back to life by Sony and he’s actually pretty great! At first glance, you see the initial robust face lift Aibo has, along with the new OLED eye displays he comes equipped with. Aibo’s movements are shockingly fluid and his his facial impressions are full of emotion. What gives Aibo his life-like movement is the 3-axis gyroscope and 3-axis accelerator system, along with three facial sensors to give him those darling facial cues. Aibo has a total of 4,000 parts and 22 moving actuators, which is what makes his movements so impressive. At the 2018 CES, Aibo was slow to respond to some of the voice commands, but usually processed within 10 seconds. Regardless, this pup can boogie around, and do so with a very high cute factor.

That’s right, He Needs Training!

Aibo’s new AI system is a whole other animal in itself (Pun intended). Aibo is able to sit, stay, shake, and even cutely responds to head scratches. Aibo is also programmed with learning AI capability so the more time you spend with him, the more he learns about his master. Aibo also will respond to training! Sony’s new hook for Aibo is that you will have to train it through voice commands and positive reinforcement, just like you do a real dog. Aibo has the ability to mimic a real puppy due to the series of sensors and cameras he has which help him to understand both his environment and your interactions.

This little pup is built with three touch sensors (one on the back, one on the top of the head and another under the chin), two cameras image recognition and area mapping, one Time of Flight sensor for proximity detection, a special sensor to detect your presence from behind, four microphones and a motion detector. Aibo even comes with a little pink plastic ball which he can fetch! Dawwww.

The Cost…Wowsers!

At a whopping $2,000.00 this is one expensive thoroughbred! On top of the initial $2,000.00 users pay a monthly $26.00 for the Aibo services. Those services include continual software updates and cloud storage to help Aibo retain, learn, and grow. To most, that cost is way too high for what is essentially a toy, but other’s might see it a small price to pay for what is a very advanced and innovated pet. Right now Aibo recognizes English and Japanese, but other language will be added in the near future. Like most new tech, the cost for Aibo will likely drop over time but for now, get out your wallets!

The Upside
- Sony has made incredible advances in Aibo’s robotics and it’s very impressive
- The learning AI will keep Aibo relevant in your home.
- Because of Aibo’s AI structure, the capacity to fall in love with a robot is REAL…
The Down
- The high price tag obviously. Paying $2,000.00 plus $26.00 monthly is not very realistic for the average consumer.
- Aibo still has a lot of glaring robotic issues to address before major release.
- Not a lot of aesthetic options to make Aibo’s exterior to your liking. Just the plain “cold steel” look for now
The Solutions

If Sony can make Aibo a much more affordable ‘Robo-puppy” and really tap into the pesonalization of Aibo’s exterior, it could really be a home-run for Sony. Aibo’s movements, responses, and emotions seem genuine…yes that kinda of terrifying, but also incredible at the same time. Once the kinks are worked out, I feel Aibo could really offer someone emotional and physical companionship on a very real level.
February 10, 2018