The Gadgets Page

I’ve have received so much joy and laughter from the iPhone app, Ghost Radar by Spud Pickles [iTunes link], and that’s just from the user reviews. As far as I can tell, the app is a fancy random word generator. Now, I’ve always been a friend of The Random, so it sounded like something perfect for me. After I read the reviews, however, I just HAD to buy it.

Here are a few of the funniest reviews for your enjoyment.

One Word “Wow” by Night Lover: ok I bought this app this morning thinking that it’s fake and also being a skeptic I’m not sure what to make of it. After I installed it I launched it in my garage and it was dead silent and a few minutes later it started showing strong feilds and then said my name, after that I was a little creeped so I got up to leave and it said “don’t leave” I’m not saying it paranormal but it’s deffinetly strange.

Should I tell him that iPhone apps can access the phone owner’s name?

Is a quiet house worth 99 cents? by monkeyrotica: I have on idea if this really detects anything or if this is just a random word generator. I don’t care. All I know is that I put this on the table in front of my kids and whispered to them, “Ever notice haunted houses are quiet? Ghosts hate noise. The Ghost Detector only works if you’re QUIET.” For the next HOUR they sat silently and listed to the app spit out a bunch of random words. They then whispered among themselves what those words could possibly mean. If you have kids and want some peace and quiet, buy this app.

I actually tried this with my husband’s little sister. We had a very enjoyable (and quiet) half hour talking to the iPhone, OuiJa board style.

Still testing by SoYLaVoz: Ok so it’s been 3 months since I used this app. I thought it was a random word generator until that one day it said my grandmothers name while she was talking. So now 3 moths later I’m playing with it again noted that I’m still thinking this app is a joke. 2 mins into it the word came “Keplar” now this isn’t a random word because I’m a cop and my Keplar (bullet resistant) vest is on my top shelf next to me. So I’m still wondering…

I don’t have the heart to break it to him that Keplar is a random name and KEVLAR is what his vest is made out of.

As I’ve said before, I’m a BIG fan of The Random. I talked about it in detail almost seven years ago:

• Pick Me! » Gathering Randomness

Music Match is long ago defunct, but the iTunes shuffle feature has nicely taken the place of Auto DJ. When I don’t know what to write about, I put iTunes on shuffle, listen to the songs and do whatever they tell me. It’s a true exercise in creative writing and very helpful to me.

Ghost Radar is yet another way for me to get creative inspiration from randomness. I can just turn it on, collect a few words and write a short story based on them. It rarely produces something I can post on any of my blogs (fiction or otherwise), but it really gets the creative juices flowing.

How Could They Make It Better?

I really wish the programmers for Ghost Radar would take it a step further. Instead of believing their own baloney, I wish they would cross over into full-time chicanery. Here is what I’d like to see Ghost Radar do in future updates:

• Look up location and spit out words of nearby streets and points of interest based on data from the GPS
• Access the contacts folder and regurgitate names of people in the contact list or, even better, the recent calls list
• Listen to the people playing with it and using word recognition, parrot back the words said
• Scan for laughter and give more words when people interact with it
• Track the reaction to certain words and give synonyms to the ones that receive more laughter or speaking

In the end, I’ve enjoyed Ghost Radar far more than the 99 cents it cost me. Does it channel the words of non corporeal spirits? No. I don’t even believe it measures electromagnetic fluctuation. Is it entertaining? Hellya.

I was browsing through my old Seventeen Magazines from 80’s and I found this AWESOME article in the May 1986 issue called High Tech Turn Ons.

The most interesting gadget is the second one on the list:

Pocket Watch: Liquid crystals may sound like something in a diet drink, but the only thing they make thin is a TV set. A liquid-crystal display (LCD) makes a TV set flat because it replaces the whole picture tube, much as a tiny microprocessor chip replaces a clunky, old-style circuit board. Less than an inch thick, Panasonic’s CT-301 Pocket Watch is the first high quality TV to use a liquid-crystal display. There have been other color TVs with LCDs, but this exceptional new model is the first to deliver a subtly hued, finely detailed TV picture. Measured diagonally, the screen is 3 inches across. $300

Here we are over thirty years later and now 20% of Americans have a tiny TV in their pockets at all times. It ALSO is a phone, a keyboard tutor [iTunes link], music player, and game machine. In fact, my iPhone can replace EVERYTHING that was featured on this High Tech Turn Ons article all for less than the cost of ONE of these items.

After reading this old article, I realized that the future is AMAZING. The iPhone and other smartphones are everything I wished for as a kid and MORE. I thought that I’d have a flying car by now, but I guess I’m willing to forgive that in exchange for my iPhone.

Can we just have a shout out for Inventive Ingenuity?! Take, for instance, the Pooch Power Shovel. No matter the size or texture (ewhh!) of the waste, the Pooch Power Shovel can suck up your pet’s mess without letting it touch you or the machine. You load it with a small bag, wrap the bag around the nozzle and the machine does the rest. It’s cordless, rechargeable and (according to the video) does the job pretty well.

It all looks awesome until you realize that it costs a hundred bucks.

I’ve been using the small version of this rake and pan scooper set for the last eight years. I never have to touch the waste because I dump it in a small garbage can lined with a grocery bag. It’s not as high tech as the Pooch Power Shovel, but it cost me less than a third of what the Pooch Power Shovel costs.

Inventive Ingenuity is a wonderful thing, but only when there is a NEED. Necessity is the mother of invention has long ago been abandoned. The Pooch Power Shovel may be a cool way to remove pet waste, but it is a far cry from the simplicity of a rake and shovel.

Via: Electric Pooper Scooper: The Pooch Power Shovel | CraziestGadgets.com

There is a new game coming to PS3 and XBox Live Arcade called Costume Quest. Here is a trailer for it:

It seems to have everything I love: Halloween, candy, evil witches and scary amusement parks. Deep down, however, I know it’s just a first-person fighting game and I’ll probably hate it.

Via: Littlest, Yellowest, Differentest

I can’t believe it took us this long to get a product like the Silicone Oven Shield. It provides a burn-free grip for your oven racks. Why don’t all ovens come with this feature. I have been using silicone baking pans for years now and I never once thought, “Hey they should put this stuff on oven racks so I don’t burn my arm on them.”

There is a warning in the Amazon user comments stating that you only get one shield and that the shipping is really high for the small item. Even though the picture shows two shields, you should know that you only get one. Unfortunately, the buyer didn’t bother actually USING the shield to see if it works.

In the future, manufacturers will put silicone guards on all oven racks. Until then, we’ll have to retrofit our own.

Via: Put Your Hands in the Oven with a Silicone Oven Shield | CraziestGadgets.com

As hard as I’ve tried, I haven’t been able to get paper out of my life. Although I now keep a journal with my iPad instead of writing on paper, I have one weekly goal sheet that I still use. I also get handouts from Weight Watchers every week and I am continually ruining them because they don’t have a nice place to go in my iPad.

I’ve finally found a iPad case that is just as good as the Apple case AND has a spot for my papers and even a pen.

• Acase Deluxe Leather multi-view Case/Folio with Stand for Apple iPad at Amazon.com

The case easily holds a 5 1/2″ X 8 1/2″ paper, which is what I use in my journal. It could hold a 8 1/2″ X 11″ paper folded in half as well. I have some 7″ X 9 1/2″ composition books that looked like they would fit, but they are a little too thick to slip into the pocket. My 5 1/2″ X 8 1/2″ composition books fit perfectly, however.

There were plenty of pictures of the case on Amazon, but they didn’t answer all the questions I had about it. In particular, I wondered how the case propped up. Was there velcro? Did it just stay there? I have a pretty clear picture showing that feature.

If you look carefully, there are grooves on the case that allow the flap to stay in one place. There isn’t much variation in the viewing angle, but the Apple case only had ONE choice, so this case is better than that.

The entire case is fatter than the Apple case, but it stands on a table with more stability than the Apple case does, so I feel like that’s a fair trade-off.

When closed, the Acase isn’t as simple and pretty as the Apple case. You can clearly see the grooved section here. What it gives up in beauty, it gains in stability.

I really appreciate the pocket for papers and the smaller pockets would be nice for ID or credit cards if you wanted to use this case as a wallet and a planner.

I was worried that the flap would flop open all the time, but there is a nice little magnet in it that keeps it in place when you’re not using it. It sits so flat that I barely notice it unless I need it.

On the whole, I’ve been pretty happy with the Acase Deluxe Leather multi-view Case/Folio with Stand for iPad. Until I can completely excise paper out of my life, a case like this is very helpful.

• KeyCase iPad Folio with Integrated BT Keyboard. Do WANT! http://tinyurl.com/25oaavk #
• Plants Vs. Zombies to come to the Nintendo DS with exclusive content. Yippee!! http://tinyurl.com/2drmhsp #

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Anyone who has ever had a cat and a laser pointer in the same room has noticed how much cats love to chase that elusive red dot. But, what do they wish for if they actually were able to CATCH it? The ever-brilliant comic, XKCD, has brought that desire to life:

• xkcd: Laser Pointer

If you have never played with a cat and a laser pointer, now is the time to try it out. Here are a couple of good and inexpensive ones:

• Red Laser Pointer Classic Style with Carrying Case at Amazon.com
• American Science & Surplus Red Laser Pointer With Case and Batteries at Amazon.com

This week’s postcards from PostSecret told a couple of interesting stories. Here is the first one:

It reads:

I liked you better before you got your iPhone.

But the second one tells a different story.

It reads:

I’m automatically more attracted to you if you use Apple products.

I found the dichotomy of the two interesting and even laughable. Our computers and cell phones are TOOLS. They shouldn’t make us more or less attractive to others, but they DO. Why?

This strange attraction (revulsion) might go as far back instinctively as our Cro-Magnon days. Those early humans started using tools and the best tools guaranteed survival. Mating with a human with better tools might be like mating with a human with a healthy glow in their skin or wide child-bearing hips. It assures survival of our progeny.

I find it interesting that Apple is able to elicit two very different instincts in people.

PostSecret‘s beneficiary is the National Hopeline Network. It is a 24-hour hotline (1 (800) SUICIDE) for anyone who is thinking about suicide or knows someone who is considering it.

LED replacement bulbs are the most efficient bulbs on the market. A 13 Watt LED light bulb generates as much light as a 100-Watt conventional bulb. I’ve been testing various LED replacement bulbs and really like the EvoLux 13 Watt Warm White lights from Smarthome.com. They replace any medium sized light bulb and come in both short (for recessed lighting) and long (for lamps) lengths.

LED replacement bulbs are expensive, retailing for about $60 compared to the $2 cost of a typical light bulb. But LED bulbs last 50 times as long as conventional bulbs, and they use 1/8th the power. These two factors can lower the lifetime cost of an LED bulb dramatically.

Whether or not LED bulbs make sense for you depends on where you live. In San Diego, where I live, I pay 28¢/KWh for the majority of my power. This means that a typical light bulb costs me $30 per year to operate, whereas an LED bulb costs just $4. I’ll also have to replace that incandescent bulb each year based on normal lifetimes, so in ten years I’ll have paid $320 to operate a normal bulb, but just $100 to operate an LED bulb. That’s less than 1/3rd the price overall. Over the 50 year lifetime of the LED bulb, it’s 1/5th the price.

However, if you pay 10¢/KWh for power, you’ll never actually recoup the cost of an LED light bulb at $60.

For me, it’s already time to make the switch to LEDs. Your rule of thumb is simple: When LED bulbs cost twice in dollars what you pay for a KW of electricity in cents, it’s time to make the switch. For example, if you pay 15¢ for electricity, LED bulbs make sense at $30 retail.

The current generation of LED lights are not dimmable, and their light is quite directional, so they are best used in recessed ceiling lights rather than in lamps. Also, most LED bulbs cast a cold white glow that people often find to be harsh, so if you like the warm yellow glow of incandescent, make sure you order warm white bulbs with a color temperature below 3500K. Finally, you’ll have to remember to take your LED light bulbs with you when you move, or you’ll lose their cost effectiveness.

In the end, LED lighting has a initial investment that may seem daunting, but can be well worth the investment, depending on your electricity bills. With a little research, you may find a way to save yourself money AND save the planet.