Category: Articles

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European Commission pushes for universal laptop charger to reduce e-waste

laptop chargerHow great would this be.

The International Electrotechnical Commission was the same body behind adopting a universal cell phone charger standard after deciding on Micro USB for all mobile devices (koffCawfAppleCOFF), and now they have their sights set on our laptop chargers. It’s the bane of the mobile warrior’s existence. Knowing that it’s pretty unlikely that anyone around you will have the same kind of laptop charger as you. It sparks my liberal guilt as those kinds of accessories can’t travel with you when you buy new hardware, so it’s very likely they’ll end up in a landfill.

The IEC estimates that adopting a universal charger would eliminate approximately half a million tons of e-waste per year. Yikes.

We have three laptops in house right now, and none use the same charger, so the cost and convenience of a standard would be terrific.

(Via ITProPortal)

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Viber releases new app for Windows 8

viber for windows 8 screenshotViber is quickly becoming one of the primary third-party competitors to services like Google Voice and Skype. Allowing users to call, text, and send voice and video messages to each other over the internet. They rolled out a service during the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan, allowing people to call land lines, which became a standard part of the Viber package.

Now they’re expanding their service again, with a proper Metro app for Windows 8. This is pretty significant, as it continues their build out on being a global service. Currently supporting Android, iOS, Blackberry, Windows Phone, traditional Windows Desktop, and OSX. Now Windows 8 Hybrids and tablets can utilize the service without leaving the modern UI. Doubly helpful for folks using Windows RT, which can’t install third party software.

If Viber is the way you keep your family connected, it’s always nice having an additional option for how you might use that service.

Viber in the Windows App Store.

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Apple Mac Pro available to order December 19th

MacPro_Core_Exposed_PRINT.tifIt’s been a long time coming.

For you professional types out there, Apple might FINALLY have a reason for you to open up your wallet for some new gear. The Mac Pro has been languishing of late, but it’s getting a top to bottom refresh, and a new smaller design. The guts have been radically improved. It’s assembled right here in the US of A, and it’s available to order starting tomorrow!

The base model featuring a 3.7 GHz quad-core Intel Xeon, dual AMD FirePro D300 GPUs, 12GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD starts at $2999. All hardware considered, not too Apple Tax-y. If you’re rocking an OSX work environment, this might be just the trick to get your workstations up to date.

No word yet on when you might expect delivery, but you can secure a place on line starting tomorrow. Full PR after the jump.

Continue reading “Apple Mac Pro available to order December 19th”

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Avegant’s Glyph 3D goggles coming to Kickstarter in January!

Avegant-Glyph-BlackI’d be really happy to see more 3D headsets make their way to consumers faces next year. After playing with Oculus Rift and Sony’s 3D headset, they offer up a unique experience for watching movies and playing games. More competition in this space, especially when we can put pressure on pricing, is great.

Glyph is looking like it could be the more mobile solution for a wearable 3D display. Contrary to others making this comparison, this has nothing to do with heads up displays like Google Glass. With the eye pieces in place, immersion is the name of the game. Why the Glyph might be more portable comes down to their innovate headband design. The screens can swivel up to provide a simpler headphone mode for on the go audio. Swivel the band back down over your eyes, and it should resemble the feeling of sitting in your own private theater.

What’s interesting is watching Avegant get ahead of the social media game, announcing their Kickstarter push nearly a month before the crowd funding goes live. I like watching a company like this get a bit more aggresive in getting their message out, and Glyph looks like it could stir up a little passion in the A/V communities. The Kickstart will launch at $599 with an HDMI/MHL cable and a battery pack.

More info on Glyph: http://www.avegant.com/

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Dropbox improves folder sharing for Android app users

dropbox mobile-shared-blogpost-image-v2I’m so happy to see this.

I’ve been stuck in situations using the Dropbox app where I’ve needed to create and share folders with people, and the experience hasn’t always been seamless. Often I’d just wait until I could get to a proper computer to finish the job, but now it looks like I wont have to do that anymore. Dropbox is cleaning up the quick actions on sharing and creating folders in their Android app. If you’re burning through a lot of cloud storage on DB like I am, this should be a welcome improvement to the service.

I especially appreciate the new folder settings page for controlling permissions and user options. Greatly appreciated.

Go hit the update on Google Play! It’s only available for Android users at this time, with word that iOS should get an update soon.

(via Dropbox Blog)

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Opera looking for Android Beta Testers for Opera Max Data Saving Service

Opera_Max-phone1Welcome Opera! You’ve been kinda quiet lately!

Opera was the browser of choice for us hip kids during the Windows Mobile days. Back then, data compression was helpful because we often had slow Edge and baby 3G networks to browse on. Opera would squish that data down, and pages would load and render faster on those old phones. Nowadays, we have access to much faster 3G and 4G networks, but many of us have plans which include data caps, so data compression serves a different (yet equally useful) purpose, especially if you do a lot of browsing on your phone or cell network enabled tablet.

Opera Max is in open BETA now, and Opera is looking for testers using Android 4.0 or newer phones and tablets. Utilizing a Virtual Private Network, where Opera squishes data down for you before sending it out to your device, they claim they can shave a considerable chunk of data usage off your monthly tally. Especially as this set up will work for any non-encrypted data you receive, it’ll also help reduce data usage for a variety of apps and services you might use on your device. That’s right, not just data through your browser, but all data streaming to your phone.

It’s a little similar to how Blackberries used to handle network connections, sending through RIM servers before delivering to the handset. One of the tools which made BB so formidable during the early days of smartphone use. I’ve been a big fan of improving network efficiency, and this could be one way in which we end users can help reduce the load on cell towers.

If you’d like to try out the BETA, the full details are on the Opera Max site!

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PlusUs unveils LifeLink cable for Apple and MicroUSB devices, smallest fold-able charge cable.

LifeLink in Hand PhotoLooks like ChargeCard has a little competition…

There’s just never a cable around when you need one, right? You use your phone to its fullest, and the battery will probably be dead by dinner time, if you’re lucky. LifeLink looks to help ease some of those usage issues. A small plastic card unfolds, allowing you to connect your phone to a computer, battery, or charger. If you’re losing your charge cables, forgetting to take them with you, or they’re becoming a rats nest of tangles in your bag, Lifelink could be a nice peace of mind solution to help insure you can recharge your phone on the go.

Available in Apple Lightning connector or MicroUSB flavors, they’re currently pre-order only, and should ship “early next year”. Grab one now for $19 during the pre-order period. The price jumps up to $24 when it goes full retail. A portion of every LifeLink sale will go towards a charitable cause of the customer’s choice. A very nice sentiment indeed.

Full PR after the jump.

Continue reading “PlusUs unveils LifeLink cable for Apple and MicroUSB devices, smallest fold-able charge cable.”

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Reddit explains new Terms of Service, responding to user concerns

reddit-alienWho owns what you create online?

In this age of social online services, we produce a lot of content. Every comment, photo, video you share is being stored on a server far away from you. Depending on where you share, you may or may not actually own the media you make. Take Facebook for example, it’s even become popular with Facebook users to post their own legalese renouncing Facebook’s control over their property. Though signing up for Facebook means you agreed to their Terms of Service, and such moves are pretty much bunk (Snopes).

Social news site Reddit recently updated their terms of service, and during any transition, users grow concerned about changes to the platform they invest so much time in. One passage in particular generated a lot of discussion:

Continue reading “Reddit explains new Terms of Service, responding to user concerns”

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