Tag Archives: video

Cycle Safely with the Smart Light by Cosmo at CES 2018

February 6, 2018ces, Interview, Special Media, videoces, CES 2018, Cosmo Connected, Cycling, Interview, safety, videoAndrew

After the success of their smart helmet light for motorcyclists, Cosmo Connected are back at CES with a new version for bicyclists. For once the smart moniker is well deserved and it really could save lives. Todd goes for a ride with Emily.

Winning three CES awards in 2018, the Cosmo team’s smart helmet for cyclists builds on bike version. With investment from Michelin, the new helmet light not only shows when the cyclist is braking but also when they’re going to turn. For braking, the light uses accelerometers to detect deceleration but for turns, it’s more sophisticated. The smart light is pre-programmed with the cyclist’s expected route and then uses GPS to anticipate upcoming turns, indicate either to the left or the right as appropriate. This is particularly useful for cyclists who have regular routes such as commutes.

In the unfortunate event of an accident, the Cosmo smart light can automatically call for help via the rider’s smartphone (Android / iOS) using Bluetooth.

The new cycle light will be available in the summer for US$59 – that’s amazing value and I’ll be getting one. As promised, here’s last year’s CES video for the motorbike light.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Smelly Garbage or Old Dumpster? NeOse Pro Knows the Difference at CES 2018

February 5, 2018ces, Interview, Special Media, videoAryballe, ces, CES 2018, Interview, smell, videoAndrew

Smell is one of the last human senses to be conquered by machines, with human noses still assessing and testing a wide range of products such as tea, perfume and body odour. French firm Aryballe Technologies are smell specialists with their new NeOse Pro, which aims to bring consistency to the market. Todd sees the end for Q Graders….

Aryballe’s NeOse Pro brings objective analysis to the identification and measurement of odours and smells. The NeOse Pro isn’t designed to suggest what’s a good smell or a bad one, but rather that a standard for a smell has been met. This could be for quality control purposes in a fragrance or to detect fruit ripeness. There’s a wide range of opportunities in food, beauty, medical and manufacturing. New car smell anyone?

The NeOse Pro is intended for commercial uses so the hand-held unit won’t be on the shelves of stores anytime soon. Businesses will need around US$10,000 to get their hands on the device.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Watch Lassie Come Home by Wagz at CES 2018

February 5, 2018ces, Interview, pets, Special Media, videoces, CES 2018, Interview, pets, video, WagzAndrew

The smart home is where-it’s-at, and while there are all kinds of automated lights, plugs and switches for people, there’s a growing market for the “internet of pets” – activity trackers, smart beds, smartphone apps. Jenna throws Todd a bone and shows him the latest kit for the connected canine.

The Wagz team have range of products which work round a connected collar. As expected, the collar tracks steps and activity, building up data on the pooch’s fitness and lifestyle. There’s LED lighting to avoid road accidents and the smart dog collar has an OLED display for name and owner info. Amazingly the collar has built-in GPS with 3G/LTE mobile connectivity, meaning it’ll phone home tell you where your mutt is when it gets lost. There’s even an option for a camera to get a dog’s eye view of the world that streams in real-time. Now you can watch Lassie come home as it happens. Here girl!

Mind you, this isn’t cheap – the basic collar will cost US$295 – and for the camera version, it’ll set you back a cool US$495. Pre-orders are open for expected deliveries in Q2 2018. The Wagz collar will also be available in stores as it was recently picked up by Black and Decker. Integrating with the collar are a pet feeder (US$250) and a pet door (US$250) which will be available later in the year too.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Go Cordless with the Volo Go at CES 2018

February 4, 2018ces, Interview, Special Media, videobeauty, ces, CES 2018, Interview, video, VoloAndrew

For relatively small devices, handheld hairdryers use large amounts of power for anything up to ten minutes at a time. As a result, it’s one of the last things you’d think to be successfully battery-powered. Nevertheless, the team at Volo Beauty have taken on the challenge to develop the world’s first cordless hairdryer, the Volo Go. Todd discusses the problem with Ryan and Jonathan.

Their approach for the Volo Go has been to re-engineer the hair dryer, changing from heating the air to heating the hair via infrared. This reduces the power demand to only 600 W – that’s about a third of a traditional hairdryer – without increasing drying time. At this level, battery-power is feasible, and the Volo Go lasts 14 minutes on a charge. As the average drying time for a woman’s hair is 7.5 minutes, this is ample. Extra batteries will be available for extended use.

The Volo Go will launch in summer 2018 priced at US$388, with a Kickstarter campaign in the spring.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Flic Gets Smarter with Flic Hub at CES 2018

February 4, 2018Bluetooth, ces, Home Automation, Interview, Special Media, videobluetooth, ces, CES 2018, Flic, Interview, smart home, videoAndrew

Flic‘s smart Bluetooth buttons will be familiar to GNC readers as I reviewed them back in 2017. To be honest, the buttons aren’t that smart but it’s the clever smartphone software that does all the cool stuff. Consequently, if the Flic button is out of range of the owner’s smartphone, it’s somewhat useless. Fortunately Flic recognised this and announced an Indiegogo campaign for a Flic Hub that would take away the reliance on a nearby smartphone. Todd clicks with Elin to find out what’s new at Flic.

The new Flic Hub removes the need for a nearby smartphone in a home or office environment and lets Flic smart buttons integrate more closely with other automation and process management systems. Flic is looking to grow in the enterprise with customers focusing in the safety and hospitality industries.

The Hub can communicate with more Flic buttons so in theory, there could be hundreds of buttons in a location, and the integrity of the overall system is improved without dependence on the smartphone vendors. This creates a more reliable and dependable platform that enterprise customers are looking for, taking Flic beyond smart buttons.

The Flic Hub is expected to go on-sale shortly.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Just a Drop of Blood with Apollo Medical Devices at CES 2018

February 4, 2018ces, health, Interview, medical, Special Media, videoApollo Medical Devices, ces, CES 2018, Health, Interview, Medical, videoAndrew

With the advances in medical sciences and technology, there’s often no longer the need to “Send it to the lab, stat!” to get up-to-date info on blood chemistry. Soon, readings will be given at point of care in a few minutes, if not seconds. Todd consults with Brian on their latest blood diagnostic device.

Apollo Medical Devices has been working with Case Western Reserve University in Ohio to develop a point of care blood diagnostic unit that uses a drop of blood to give information in seconds on eight key indicators such as sodium, potassium, pH and blood oxygen.

The new devices should be in production with 12-18 months and cost will be in line with industry norms for the test.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Titan Platform Brings AI Companion to CES

February 3, 2018cesAI, ces, CES 2018, Interview, Titan Platform, videoShawn Thorpe

Voice-activated digital assistant devices have become somewhat commonplace in recent years, with the most well-known being developed by Amazon, Google, and Apple. These assistants can be good for getting help with basic tasks. But we’ve all had disappointing experiences with these platforms where it just felt like they weren’t “smart” enough to do what we wanted.

Todd met with Frank of Titan AI. Frank talked about his company’s up-and-coming “AI companion” device that can do much more than just turn on the lights or order a pizza. Titan’s device uses both voice recognition and visual cues (courtesy of its built-in camera) to determine a user’s mood. Come home from a rough day at the office? Titan might suggest entertainment options that’ll put you in a better place of mind.

Pricing is not yet available for Titan’s AI device. It is expected to go on sale between the third and fourth quarters of 2018.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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