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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FOX Sports streaming Super Bowl XLVIII Online for all for free!

Super_Bowl_XLVIII_logoI know a lot of people who have cut the cable cord over the last couple years. For the most part services like Hulu and Netflix can satisfy TV and movie viewing, but live sporting events can sometimes present a challenge. One pal in particular lives in an area where he can’t quite get good reception over the air with an HD Antenna.

Well for The Big Game™ ®©, Fox isn’t taking any chances with people not watching the game or the ads, and are allowing everyone to stream over Fox Sports Go. This is a service similar to HBO Go and normally requires authentication from a cable provider. Today they’re waiving that requirement.

Starting at 12pm ET, pre-game coverage will start streaming for free. It’s a brilliant move, as sports fans will get to try out the service, and it makes those expensive ad buys even more valuable as more eye balls will be on data driven screens.

Thanks to Derek Ross on G+ for the tip, and he also mentions that streaming the game over a computer and sending it to your TV via a Chromecast works well!

Super Bowl XLVIII on Fox Sports Go!

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Just For Fun: Young Rival – Black is Good (Magic Eye, 3D Music Video)

Young Rival - Black Is Good - Magic Eye VideoIt’s not a schooner...it’s a Sailboat.

Remember those stereogram “Magic Eye” posters which were all the rage in the 90’s? It caused an entire generation of people my age to get really good at going cross-eyed at a moments notice.

Young Rival is going retro, making the entire music vid out of that blurry 3D technique. I think the song is pretty decent too.

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Photo samples: Kodak PIXPRO AZ522 (Camera Review Coming Soon)

Color saturation out of the box is a little hard on reds, but thankfully detail isn’t overly sacrificed.
The AZ522 does a solid job of exposing in this back lit scene. Detail in white isn’t lost.
The AZ522 does not have the closest minimum focus for Macros, but shots come out nicely detailed.
Another close up shot from the AZ522.
Using a point & shoot image sensor, depth of field is respectable. Background blur is pleasant.
Solid color saturation and dynamic range. The AZ522 manages good exposures even on auto settings.
Reds and yellows tend to over-saturate slightly, but we still see detail in this flower pic.
Another good example of dynamic range. The sky is still blue, clouds still have detail, and the shaded side of the palm tree is not under-exposed.
At the longest end of the zoom however, details can start to soften. It’s difficult hand holding the camera unless you’re in very bright light.
AZ522 field of view fully wide.
AZ522 field of view fully zoomed in.
Direct sunlight pics come out well exposed with a minimum of fuss.
Indoor and lowlight pics showcase some aggressive noise reduction, but the OIS does a great job with hand holding. This pic was taken with a 1/4 second shutter and is still pretty crisp.
AZ stands for “Astro Zoom”, and Kodak isn’t joking…
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Honda Let’s You Download a Car, Makes 3D Printing Design Files Available.

honda 3d printing nsxYou wouldn’t download a car would you? Well, if it’s a Honda, that might not be such a serious issue.

Honda is making 3D printing design files available for five of their older concept vehicles. As part of their Super Ultra Daydreams branding project, if you’re inclined to DIY, you could print out all the pieces for your very own NSX.

It’s kind of a crazy idea, aknowledging that IP law is going to have a difficult time reigning in consumer behavior once 3D printers become more commonplace, but crazy ideas seem to be right up Honda’s alley at the moment, if this video of theirs from the 43rd Tokyo Motor Show is any indication.

Yeah… I totally downloaded the NSX by the way…

Honda 3D Printing files.

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SomeGadgetGuy 2.0 – Faster, Stronger, Better

bluehost 01

Yesterday was an interesting day…

I was planning on wrapping up a few videos, maybe doing a live hangout, and I had some articles I wanted to write. Trying to log into the site, I could barely type a handful of words into WordPress without getting kicked off the server.

See, when you host a site through a company like Bluehost, they’ll set aside a certain amount of server power for you. Cross that threshold and the server will throttle your site. When I moved SomeGadgetGuy over to Bluehost, it was kind of an emergency maneuver. I never really took the time to properly optimize this site. Surprisingly even my plain, old, white-backgrounded theme was a humongous resource hog.

As the site has grown in popularity, all of that inefficient code has exponentially exacerbated those throttling issues.

Continue reading “SomeGadgetGuy 2.0 – Faster, Stronger, Better”

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Samsung Intros Galaxy Tab Built for Education

375_Galaxy-Tab-for-Education_Front_Horz_1-27Google and Samsung really are working on their relationship.

Featured at FETC 2014, Samsung is showing off a Galaxy Tab 10.1 which focuses on Education markets, and they say it’ll be ready for the 2014-2015 school year.

Starting off with a fairly normal Galaxy Tab 10.1, it’s software and services which separate it from the herd. Piggybacking on their recent gains getting Android devices ready for corporate IT, these new tablets will feature simple set up and device management for teachers to utilize tablets in the classroom.

This also highlights Google’s push into the education market by working with Google Play for Education. This division of play focuses on teacher approved apps and media, gives teachers the ability to filter content by grade level and topic, and allows schools to order content via PO. Once content is purchased, it can be quickly pushed to students tablets.

Hopefully the controls are more robust than what we experienced here in LA using iPads last year…

Full press release below.

Continue reading “Samsung Intros Galaxy Tab Built for Education”

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T-Mobile Featuring Free Agent Tim Tebow in Super Bowl Spots

T-Mobile LogoGet it? Because neither Tim Tebow nor T-Mobile want to sign contracts? And they both start with the letter “T”? Get it?

Actually this is a pretty cute spot featuring the QB who couldn’t lead my Broncos to a Super Bowl, and all the crazy shenanigans he’s been getting into since he’s not locked down by a contract.

But I have a question in earnest, for you folks who watch the big game for the commercials, what’s the point if all those spots are already online?

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Kansas Legislature Trying to Stall Fiber Internet Outside of Kansas City?

Google-Fiber1Hey Google. If the rest of Kansas doesn’t want Fiber, might I suggest breaking up some of the monopolies here in Southern California? Maybe? Think about it OK?

I try not to soapbox politically too often on this site, but network infrastructure is one of my trigger topics, especially when business and politics meet preventing a level playing field and stifling competition.

The “municipal communications network and private telecommunications investment safeguards act” would seek to prevent other municipalities in Kansas from offering the same kinds of incentives Kansas City provided Google. Of course, the boilerplate goals of the bill all triumph protecting consumer interests, and providing services through “fair competition”, and letting the established ISP market decide what fair rates are for that service.  Continue reading “Kansas Legislature Trying to Stall Fiber Internet Outside of Kansas City?”

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