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Tri-County Sentry
Friday
FEBRUARY 21, 2014
Tech News
This Company Can Help You Build A Look Into the Future of Technology Yourself a Car in Just One Hour
CES 2014:
(NewsUSA) - The first International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) took place in New York City in June of 1967. Since then, thousands of products have been announced at the yearly show, including the VCR in 1970, the CD Player in 1981, HDTV in 1998, 3D HDTV in 2009 and Ultra HDTV, Flexible OLED and driverless car technology in 2013. Tech expert Brett Larson and KillerApps.TV gave a glimpse of the cutting-edge tech unveiled at the CES 2014: TV Tech. Beside the big introduction of the new Ultra HD or 4k TV technology, DISH Network introduced three new ideas. Extending the capabilities of a Hopper, the SuperJoey gives users the ability to watch and record up to eight shows simultaneously. The Wireless Joey system opens up installation options where coaxial or Ethernet wiring is difficult to achieve or undesirable, like above the fireplace or in the kitchen. And Virtual Joey provides a nearly identical experience to the Hopper's hardware-based Joeys within the new Sony PlayStation 4 with a Joey app for the PlayStation 3 system and select smart TVs. For the home hobbyist. Brother featured the
Each year, the latest tech is showcased at the CES. ScanNCut machine -- a revolutionary new home and hobby cutting machine with a built-in scanner. It's the only home and hobby cutting machine that can take an image, photo or hand drawn sketch, scan it and allow you to precisely cut the shapes or outlines you want to create unique, one-of-a-kind scrapbooks, greeting cards, appliqués, quilts, and crafts. Gaming Tech. The Logitech PowerShell Controller + Battery turns the iPhone 5s, iPhone 5, and iPod touch (5th generation) into a mobile gaming console. Just insert the device into the PowerShell like a standard case, and enjoy favorite games on the go, with double the play time, thanks to an onboard battery. Wearable Technology. The LG Lifeband Touch is
a physical activity-tracking wristband with a full touch OLED display. It offers a convenient way to view key fitness data such as time, distance, speed, number of steps taken, calories burned and projected pace. The device enables data to be easily transmitted to LG's smartphone app for the connected user's convenience and tracking. The connected car. Audi presented its newest electronic technologies at CES in Las Vegas for the fourth year in a row. The Audi stand showcased the integration of 4G LTE technology into Audi connect services. This technology allows for a faster transfer of data to the car for info on parking availability, social media, video streaming and more. Visit www.KillerApps. TV for more information.
battery life stays reliably terrible. Now it seems major phone makers are finally doing something about
that -- though they're still way behind the curve. Apple engineers are studying new ways to power devices, according to The New York Times, including using miniature solar panels and the swinging motion of a gadget owner's walk to charge batteries. Google and Samsung are doing similar research, according to the NYT. Poor battery life is pretty much the biggest complaint people have about their phones. A recent 2013 J.D. Power & Associates survey found battery life to be the least satisfying of 19 smartphone characteristics. An informal poll of HuffPost readers last year found the same dissatisfaction. Article after article online is dedicated to improving phone battery life. The quest for new powering techniques has been happening for a few years, but the rise of wearable technology has made the project more urgent. If smart watches and Google Glass are going to have mass appeal, they'll need pint-sized powerhouses that won't die after just hours of use. These experiments may still be years from producing batteries for general public consumption. But better batteries are already long overdue. The lithiumion technology powering most of today's electronics was introduced to consumers in the early 1990s. Though it paved the way for today's pocket-sized computers, it hasn't improved at the same rate circuitry has.
The Unsexy Feature that the iPhone Desperately Needs
By Dino Grandoni No matter how advanced and slick iPhones and other gadgets get, their
If you're a full-grown adult who misses the days of playing with Legos, this may be the car for you. The OSVehicle Tabby is a build-it-yourself ride you can order online. The pieces to the car are shipped to customers, and, based on the video (above), they look fairly easy to assemble with basic tools. Plus, it doesn't look like you'll need to weld anything together or have much mechanical knowledge of engines or motors. However, the base-model Tabby is a "car" in only the strictest sense of the word. A distinct lack of body panels, lights or even a windshield, means the Tabby is far from street legal. According to the manufacturer, the Tabby is the first production-ready “open source” vehicle, and the company estimates a customer can build the car in approximately an hour. As the promo video shows, pros can cut the build time down to 41 minutes. A Tabby assembly set -complete with four wheels, two seats and the appro-
priate electric powertrain and battery pack -- can be purchased for a little more than $4,200 via the company's website. If you want your Tabby to be street legal then you can order the Urban Tabby model. (Wired notes the vehicle is currently only road legal in the United Kingdom.) The design plans for the Urban Tabby will be available for consumers to download and even improve upon. The company notes that, compared to the cost of the basic chassis, the Urban Tabby can nearly double in price once it's been fitted
with a body. OSVehicle plans to offer three powertrain choices for the Tabby: an electric motor, gas engine and gasoline-electric hybrid. The most powerful of each of these powertrains will help the Tabby reach speeds of around 50 mph, according to the company. Overall, the vehicle appears to be a unique way to bring inexpensive transit to the do-it-yourself crowd. It also looks like the perfect project for those who have yet to master the art of welding, but have graduated past building Legos.
By Harry Bradford After soaring into our hearts with equal parts frustration and addiction, it looks like the viral smartphone game Flappy Bird is coming in for a landing. For good. The Vietnam-based creator of the surprise mobile gaming sensation, Dong Nguyen, tweeted that he would be taking the game down soon. Nguyen wasn't exactly enthusiastic about the overwhelming response the app has received since taking off in January. He previously tweeted that the press was "overrating" the game and that he wanted "peace", according to App Developer Magazine. The success of the game felt like a curse, Nguyen tweeted.
While Flappy Bird was reportedly bringing in some $50,000 in sales daily, according to The Verge, Nguyen added that he wouldn't be selling the app. An email to Nguyen's development company .GEARS from The Huff-
ington Post was not immediately returned, and TechCrunch reports that it is still unclear whether or not those who've downloaded the addictive game will be able to continue playing it or not. Still, fans of Nguyen's work shouldn't lose all hope.
If you're unhappy with the photos and status updates that Facebook chose, you'll be able to pick your own, turning your video from a snoozefest to a real tearjerker.
Until then, you should check out the fake Look Back videos that people made for Toronto Mayor Rob Ford and singer Justin Bieber. They're much more fun than the real thing.
Creator Of Addictive Game Flappy Bird Taking App Down
Facebook Promises 'Look Back' Videos Will Get Better Soon
Soon you may be able to edit the generally lame and embarrassing "Look Back" videos that Facebook rolled out for its 10th anniversary. Hopefully, this will make them all less awful. On the support page for "A Look Back," there is an explanation of how to edit your movie and a mention of an "Edit Your Movie" button that doesn't exist yet. "How can I edit my movie?" asks the support page. "Click Edit Your Movie below the video player. Use the checkmarks on your photos and other stories to adjust whether they appear in your movie." Facebook told TechCrunch that the edit feature is coming "soon." Right now, Facebook's algorithm just chooses from your top posts over the years and turns them into a 62-second slideshow over music.
Show This Chart to the Next Person Who Leaves You a Voicemail Reasons I check my voicemail:
To hear the message To get rid of the notification
By Alexis Kleinman The truth is out. Nobody is listening to your voicemails. We see that you called. If what you needed to say was that important, you should've texted us. Otherwise, we'll
just call you back. We will never, ever listen to that voicemail. "Hi, just calling to say hi. Call me back." Seeing a missed call on my phone tells me that you called. Sorry, mom and dad.