Author: Juan Carlos Bagnell

Juan has been obsessed with consumer electronics since before computers had GUI’s. Out of college he worked on a JIT computing contract which supported DOE facilities in New Mexico. He’s been featured on numerous podcasts and radio shows lending his tech insights. You can also find him in LA directing voice over actors and producing spoken word recording.
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One Terrible Day Without a Smartwatch…

qualcomm toq activity tracker update smartwatch

It wasn’t something that I planned to do. In fact the problem was I didn’t plan as much as I should have before a shoot, and I left my house in a scattered flurry. Arriving at the studio after an hour on the 405, I checked my phone to see an assault of tweets, G+ messages, Youtube comments, emails, and a new survey for the Google Opinion Rewards app.

Why hadn’t my amazing wearable data device alerted me to all of this digital activity? Because I had carelessly left it on its charging dock at home.

It was an opportunity to see if smartwatches really did provide a benefit beyond just being cool techy gadgety things. For the last couple months, between a Pebble, a Toq, a Martian, and a Gear 2, there really haven’t been any days where I haven’t been wearing something on my wrist. Like my favorite traditional timepieces, I often wondered if they were more of a fashion statement than actual productivity devices. Continue reading “One Terrible Day Without a Smartwatch…”

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FFC VLOG: Will the iPhone 6 EVER be able to shoot 4K? NO. Here’s why. (shot on LG G3)

After producing our iPhone 6 camera review, I got a handful of comments from folks wondering if the iPhone 6 will ever be able to shoot UHD video. Unfortunately, I think it’ll be impossible, but not because the phone isn’t powerful enough. Let’s do a little math…

Continue reading “FFC VLOG: Will the iPhone 6 EVER be able to shoot 4K? NO. Here’s why. (shot on LG G3)”

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Verizon Wireless Backtracks on Throttling Plans for Unlimited Customers

Well done VZW.

Verizon-logoBig Red as decided to pull the plug on their “Network Optimization” plans which would have throttled the data connections on the top 5% of heavy users. Droid Life is reporting on a company spokesperson’s comment:

Verizon is committed to providing its customers with an unparalleled mobile network experience. At a time of ever-increasing mobile broadband data usage, we not only take pride in the way we manage our network resources, but also take seriously our responsibility to deliver exceptional mobile service to every customer. We’ve greatly valued the ongoing dialogue over the past several months concerning network optimization and we’ve decided not to move forward with the planned implementation of network optimization for 4G LTE customers on unlimited plans. Exceptional network service will always be our priority and we remain committed to working closely with industry stakeholders to manage broadband issues so that American consumers get the world-class mobile service they expect and value.

Even more incentive to hold onto those unlimited plans if you’re still rocking one!

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Review: The LG G3 S (Vigor) on AT&T – The New Android Mid-Range!

I’ve been very critical of mid-range phones. They face intense competition by a new breed of entry level phones like the Nokia Lumia 635, and we know that high-end flagship phones can drop in price really quickly.

Does the G3 Vigor have what it takes to rise above the competition? Let’s take a look!

Shop the LG G3 Vigor on Amazon to support our channel!
LG G3 S (Vigor) Speaker Review!

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AT&T Doubles the Data on Mobile Share Plans, But You Have to Act Soon!

ATT logoThe carriers are waging price wars, and AT&T took another blow at family data sharing by introducing new share plans and rates.

Starting today, AT&T’s new plans double the data shared for the same price, which means the smallest plan starts at $130 for 30GB of data, scaling up to 100GB a month plan for $375. All plans support up to ten lines, unlimited talk & text, and unlimited messaging.

This is a promotional rate however, and the sign up period runs through October 31st. If you don’t activate one of these new plans by Halloween, then data rates revert back to their old caps. Once you sign up for the plan though, you will receive that data cap for the life of your account with AT&T.

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Check the full press release below!

Continue reading “AT&T Doubles the Data on Mobile Share Plans, But You Have to Act Soon!”

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Friday Fun: #LootCrate Unboxing for September 2014 “Galactic”

It’s time again to tear into our monthly subscription geek and gamer gear service LOOTCRATE! This month’s theme is “Galactic” which means we can expect to see stuff from shows and movies with the word “Star” in the title! Let’s dig in!

Save 10% on a Loot Crate by using promo code “SGLOOT” at checkout!

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Will Nokia End HERE Maps Support for Windows Phone?

wp_ss_20140925_0001When Microsoft acquired Nokia’s hardware division, they did not get all of Nokia’s assets. One team to remain under the Nokia badge was the HERE mapping division, and it’s quickly become a favorite of Windows Phone users, bringing terrific turn-by-turn directions and downloadable maps to Microsoft’s ecosystem.

Reported today by The Next Web, a Nokia Executive Sean Fernback was quoted in regards to future HERE development:

“today we still maintain the [HERE] Windows Phone apps, it has our brand on it so we need to look after it, although we’re not particularly investing in them at the moment, that could still change. With the Nokia X program, we were authorized to continue to work on it until about now really, but that work is about to cease. I think there have been a number of different programmes that have continued through the year onto different platforms, but now it’s just going to focus on the two – Android and iOS.”

We’ve known that HERE Maps would be making a transition to Android, specifically on Samsung devices, and it would make sense that the team would be turning more resources to the newer (and larger) platforms. HERE Maps is not leaving Windows Phone, but for fans of Microsoft’s OS (and ostensibly Nokia’s hardware) a reduction in support could be a worrying proposition. There are already precious few outlets developing for the WP platform.

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iPhone 6 Plus Camera Review: Video Samples – Outdoor, Low Light, Stabilization, Slow-Motion (AT&T)

A new iPhone means we have a new iPhone camera to test out! Staying with the same 1/3″ sensor at 8MP, the iPhone 6 Plus adds proper hardware optical image stabilization to the mix. Let’s see how Apple’s first phablet performs in our real world tests!

Shop for the iPhone 6 Plus and accessories on Amazon.

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