This wrap up of CES2015 highlights brings some great technology from the International Consumer Electronics Show in computing, photography, smartphones, personal transporters, security, audio and home automation.
If you own an Ultrabook and you are a power user, you’ve probably often wished you were at your desktop with all those additional ports to plug in all your gadgets. Now there’s a compact accessory from IOGear called the Universal Dock (GUD342) that will replicate all those desktop ports that are so handy – 6 USB 3.0 ports (2 on the front), HDMI or Displayport at up to 4K, gigabit Ethernet and more.
Looking for an all in one security solution that you can install yourself? Consider Swann One – an integrated home automation and security solution that’s easy to set-up and expandable as your needs grow. Packages range from $299 to $699 and can easily be installed by the average homeowner if you have a Wi-Fi system already in place.
Brinno has been making time-lapse cameras for years (see past reviews) and now with this waterproof bike mountable unit, you can record long bike rides as easy as pressing “Record” and “Playback”. Batteries last for days – not minutes. Record video all day long without replacing media or batteries. Play your videos back on your computer or upload to the web.
Camera phones are great for selfies….in the daylight. At night however, you don’t want a picture that looks like it was processed with sand. To avoid all that digital noise, you’ll need more light than you camera’s flash can provide. The new Lenovo Selfie is made to go right into the headphone jack on your Motorola Vibe 2X Pro phone and provide just enough illumination to smooth out those skin tones.
Speaking of the Motorola Vibe 2X Pro, this is the camera phone of camera phones for taking selfies. Sure it’s a great phone, but the photo features are outstanding. No more tiny images with the front facing camera. The Vibe 2X Pro features the same 13MP image size on both front and rear facing cameras. Even if you crop some of the image, you’ll still have a decent-sized image file that should print very nicely.
Hovertrax by Solowheel is the slickest little transporter to date. Easy to lift and easy to recharge, you can hop on the Hovertrax and be whisked along at 5 MPH. Just lean forward and off you go. Simple to learn, you’ll be riding confidently in a matter of minutes. Arrive refreshed and stick the Hovertrax under your desk until it’s time to go home.
Just happened to wander by Mountie’s booth at the CES2015 show and was immediately attracted to this simple solution to a problem we all face daily. How to keep your laptop, tablet and/or phone handy and readable all at the same time. With a Mountie, you can clip your tablet and/or phone to the screen on your laptop and instantly have all three accessible and readable. Takes hardly any room in your backpack, so you can take it with you.
Three-Legged-Thing is a brand of tripod that is worthy of your consideration. If you travel, and you want a tall tripod, this is a great solution. With a folded length of 12.5” and weighing under 3 pounds, this tripod can fit in any travel bag. Capable of holding a 22 pound camera, these economical tripods will do everything their more expensive competitors can do – and save you money as well.
Leaving a light on while traveling to prevent a break-in is about as effective as leaving a flyswatter on your shelf. It’s just not going to stop the determined thief, any more than the sight of a flyswatter will keep away the fly. With Fake TV however, lights randomly flash and stay on briefly, just like the glow from your TV set. Burglars now have to wonder if you are home watching TV, and chances are they’ll move to the next home and not take the chance.
iRig has been making music and recording devices for iOS for years. They’ve now come out with the ideal add-on for your iPhone 6 – the HD Mic Field microphone. Simply slip it into the Lightning connector and enjoy high quality sound along with your HD video recordings. Used one direction, it records mono sound – flip it 90 degrees and now you are recording in stereo.
If you shoot photos on a multitude of devices, getting them all organized and archived can be a hassle that most people aren’t serious about. Only after people lose a lot of images does it start to seem important. Saving you that initial grief is what Eye-Fi Cloud is all about with their new “no matter what you shoot” auto-uploading program and cloud storage. You no longer have to shoot with one of their Wi-Fi enabled cards to take advantage of their Cloud archiving system, just set up an account and start uploading.
Lume Cube is coming off an amazing Kickstarter program and is gearing up production for their uber-popular photographer’s lighting device. Only an inch square, this light functions either as still flash or video light with an amazing 1,500 lumens of output. Pair it with GoPro, iPhone or Android and you’ve got the brightest ultra-portable package possible. With their smartphone app, you’ve got total creative control.
With all the “smart home” automation shown at CES2015, it was only logical that windows would eventually be automated. And so it came to pass, Pella introduced their Insynctive line of smart windows. Program your internal blinds to match the sun’s path and open and close ventilation as needed.
