3D Printed Octopus: “Shabbat Shalom”

This is a 3D Printed Octopus.  

The bendable legs are cute. 

It’s sitting on a camera and tripod. 

Soon 3D Printed Objects will even talk, and when they do, this one will say: 

Shabbat Shalom!

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Amazing – They Go In And See

Had my routine colonoscopy this morning. 

It is so amazing that they can go in with camera and everything. 

Look around and if necessary, cut out anything bad. 

Years ago, people just felt sick or pain and maybe saw some symptoms from outside.

But they had no idea what was happening inside. 

So grateful to G-d for the technology and doctors that can make sure all is okay. 

We are truly living in miraculous times. 

They even send you home with some pictures afterward.

It’s interesting to see, but maybe a little TMI. 😉

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

When Your Pants Are Down

Yesterday in the news was how a drone was used to fly over and take pictures at a nude beach. 

So at a nude beach, even those that advertise privacy protections, let’s face it your walking around in the buff. But still, the use of the drone with a camera was a violation of people’s expectations not to be photographed and by those outside the facility.

And about a week earlier, a five year old finds a camera phone in the lady’s bathroom in a Starbucks. 

Yesteday, I had a similar lesson about people’s warped sensibilities or perversions (but without the drone or smartphone–this was the low tech version). 

I’m at the pool for a swim after work. 

There are 2 locker rooms for men and women, of course.

But at one point, I see this LADY get out of the pool and head straight for the MEN’S locker room–she actually proceeds to go in one side–through and past the bathrooms, showers, sauna, and lockers–and out the other side to exit the facility. 

So trying to give her the benefit of the doubt, when I get out of the pool, thinking maybe the locker room wasn’t clearly marked, I check it–and there is a big sign with a picture (the symbol for men) and you couldn’t miss it!

Also, this lady was clearly not new as she gestured a friendly hello to the lifeguard, and she wasn’t the slightest bit confused (she had actually made some small talk with me in the pool)   

When she left, as she headed into the men’s room, she didn’t hesitate, knock on the door or anything, and obviously didn’t care whether anyone was in there–dressed or naked.

Perhaps, because the men’s locker room is closer to the exit, she was just taking a shortcut–for her, how convenient!

Then again maybe she was a true perv and this was her way of getting some cheap thrills regardless of other people’s right to privacy and safety, including those of children. 

In a sense, this is more than just about generalized privacy (such as with information), but even extends to your very privates!

We live in an age when it is a balancing act between sharing and privacy, between openness and modesty, and between doing what’s right and pure self-gratification. 

Unfortunately, to put in bluntly, some people just don’t seem to give a sh*t about respect for other people’s decency or rights, and they will do what they want regardless of the social balancing act or the necessity to use common sense good judgement in public and private.  

The lesson is that when your pants are down, as creepy as it sounds, it’s best to assume that someone is always looking or at least may be on the prowl, so be careful out there. 😉

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Drones Made Easy

OMG, this is awesome.

This Lily Camera Drone is “throw and go” and simply lands in your hand. 

You can set it to follow you–almost like a guardian angel– or to lead you where you need to go. 

Records video, sound, can do slow motion, and takes photos.

It has a tracking device.

It’s waterproof.

Awesome for extreme sports or personal surveillance.

Would like to be able to communicate with it by voice command, and also see what it sees and hear what it hears with augmented reality glasses or on a smartphone or wearable.

Finally, if only it would come with a laser to zap anybody or anything bad that may come at us–that could be reassuring. 

Costs = $619 and ships in May 2016.

That was easy.  😉

Selfie Heaven

So this lady found out how to take the best selfies.

She has an extendable stick with an adjustable ball head that attaches to her smartphone, and a separate remote control for snapping the photos.

Here she is with the camera snapping away.

I looked it up on Amazon and this device is only around $6.

For a completely ego-centric society without friends, why not get this doodad and you too can take selfish selfies all day long. 😉

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

The Sony Wig Nut

Sony has so missed the mobile technology revolution.

In desperation, Sony has filed a patent for the SmartWig.

How incredibly useful (uh, not)?

Your faux hairdo can dial your hairdresser and make your next appointment for you.

It can locate via GPS the nearest salon.

And the SmartWig can even take selfies while you admire yourself in the mirror.

While Sony is goofing around again, and hasn’t had a hit since the to die for Sony televisions of yore (and let’s not forget the Walkman from 1980s), Google is moving out with bravado on Glass.

Google is getting display space for Glass in eyeglass retailers, and working with opticians to make prescription lens eye-Glass.

Let’s just say one company gets wearable technology and the other is hiding under wigs in The Technology Hall of Shame.

Then again, one customer may be interested in talking with Sony—the CIA for undercover operations.

Maybe a Smart Groucho Marx mustache that automatically shakes out the soup after you eat would be a cool new product, as well–go for it Sony!

(Source Photo: here with attribution to Annetta)

Apple Is Giving Us The Finger

As I always say, I love Apple–and they still have the best darn Smartphone on the market–but they continue to disappoint with anything new.

This week, with the introduction of the iPhone 5S, Apple had the opportunity to introduce something new and exciting, but instead what did we get?

– A faster processor and Touch ID fingerprint reader.

In nutshell, since Steve Jobs untimely passing, Siri was a bombshell, actually just a big consumer product bomb.

And now with the fingerprint reader as the big newcomer add-on to the iPhone, it’s as if (sorry to say), Apple is giving us all the proverbial finger.

While the fingerprint reader is cute and a faster logon, it is really not a must-have or a game-changer.

The only thing less exciting than Touch ID is the new Yahoo logo.

In the last two years, Apple has taken a mighty innovation lead and squandered it.

Still, no one can touch their highly integrated iPhone product.

However, if much more time goes by without something meaningfully new and innovative, they will be in trouble.

Rumors of an iPhablet (iPhone/tablet) with a significantly larger screen (ranging from 4.8 to 6 inches) will be more like the Samsung Galaxy S4 with 5-inch screen rather than than iPhone 5S 4-inch screen, and would have attraction for people who like to read or watch on a larger, better display.

Of course a significantly better camera would be helpful too–need I say more?

Some interaction with wearable technology, like a Google Glass with augmented reality would also be a winner.

And a fully ruggedized smartphone, similar in concept to a Panasonic Toughbook–and up to military grade specs–that withstands drops, spills, dust, and lots of everyday field use punishment, would be way cool for the action-adventurer in all of us–and maybe then we wouldn’t need all the silly looking cases.

In the meantime, put your index finger on the home bottom, while Apple puts their middle finger up at you, the consumer.

Steve Jobs, where the heck are you? 😉

(Source Photo: here with attribution to CNET)

They Aren’t Smartwatches…they Are Dumbwatches

The Wall Street Journal asks “Is it Time for Smartwatches?”

With the arrival of the first generation of smartwatches–Samsung Galaxy Gear, Pebble, and Sony Smartwatch–we have hit the rock bottom in innovate and design thinking.

These watches look cheap–flimsy plastic or ultra-thin aluminum or even stainless doesn’t cut it as a fashion statement when larger and substantial is in.

The screens are too small to be user-centric–let along there being any room for a physical or soft keyboard.

You can’t really read on it and you can’t type on it (any significant form of email, texting)–except by voice command. Ah, let me talk into my wrist, no!

Also, for videos or gaming, the small rectangular screens aren’t of any useful function–how much of Madonna’s new wild getup can you see or how far can you fling that angry bird on your wrist?

Downloading music on the Gear, uh, also no.

Taking photos with a 1.9 megapixel camera on the Galaxy Gear at a time when the 8 megapixels on the iPhone is running way short is good for maybe a James Bond, but not anyone else.

Plus for smartwatches like the Gear, you still need to pair it with a companion smartphone for it to work, so you now have added expense (between about $150 for the Pebble and $299 for the Gear smartwatch) with no significant added benefit.

For the Gear, you also have a separate charger because the watch only has a battery life of about a day, while for the Pebble and Sony Smartwatch 2, you have between half a week to a week.

And believe it or not, the Galaxy Gear is not compatible with their own Galaxy S4 smartphone–oh, so very smart.

My 16-year old daughter said, “If they had this 10 years ago maybe, but now, who needs it!”

No, Google Glass has it right–concept yes, fashion still to be worked out–and the smartwatches for now, have it wrong, wrong, wrong.

If you buy it, you’ve bought yourself a very dumb watch.

Maybe the iWatch can save the day? 😉

(Source Photo: here with attribution to Nathan Chantrell)

Remembering Every Moment

I saw a frightening movie a while back about a girl that had been drugged and brutally raped. 

In the movie, the girl is eerily warned, “You won’t remember, but you will never forget!”

That line leaves an indelible mark–that something can be so horrific, so scaring that you can’t recall it, and can’t forget it. 

Now there is a new device coming to market that helps you recall everything.

Memoto is a 5 megapixel tiny camera (36 x 36 millimeters) with an embedded GPS that is worn around the neck, like a necklace. 

When clipped on, it starts taking the phones and when put down or in a pocket it shuts off. 

The Memoto takes 2 photos a minutes (1 every 30 seconds or nearly 3,000 a day if worn all the time).

The photos are stored in an accessible cloud app that uses GPS to sort the photos on a timeline with a date and location stamp.

Photos are private by default, but can be shared using traditional social media, such as to Facebook or Twitter. 

The battery lasts about 2 days and is rechargeable by connecting to your computer at which time the photos are uploaded to Memoto’s servers. 

Wear, photograph, recharge/upload and repeat. 

Privacy issues abound with a device like this–imagine wearing this into the bathroom, locker room, bedroom, or even a private corporate meeting–lots of embarrassing and compromising no-no’s here!

At the same time, imagine all the precious or memorable moments in life that you can capture and enjoy–it’s the realization of the photographic memory you’ve never had, but always wanted. 

Also think of that rapist or other criminal approaching you–getting photographed, caught, and punished–so that the victim really does remember, and can forget with a new peace of mind. 😉

Action Video Extravaganza

This is an awesome action video–5 minutes and totally worth it.

It feels like being inside a single player shooting game.

I first saw this video on Facebook posted by a colleague as a interesting advertisement for Go Pro wearable helmet cameras, often used for capturing extreme sports activities.

Now we are going from helmet cams to Google glasses.

With the new Google Glass coming out this year for $1,500–that mimics most smartphone functions including taking pictures and videos just by a simple verbal command such as “Okay Glass, record a video” or “Okay Glass, take a picture,”– things are going to get a lot dicier.

While this type of James Bond action doesn’t happen everyday for most of us, if we can capture every day events like these –it will be both awesome from a recall, sharing, entertainment, study and scientific perspectives and scary from a privacy one.

If Google Glass really works as it’s envisioned, it is going to revolutionize how we interact with the world and each other–get ready augmented reality, here we come. 😉