Gadgets Category

FrequencyCast Show 55, for the 1st of September 2010, is now available.

Here’s what today’s free show contains:

• News Updates: Rivals to Facebook, ABC, ITV plus new TV and radio channels
• Hands-on: We’ve got a new Amazon Kindle, and we want to talk about it
• Preview: Project Canvas and Sky Anytime+ previewed
• Social Collaboration: Harnessing the power of the crowd
• Gadgets: Car reversing kits and cable tidies
• Your comments and questions on BT Vision HD, Freesat and Powerline

You can download Show 55 direct to your MP3 player or listen online at http://www.frequencycast.co.uk/latest.html.

If you have an iPod or iPhone, get shows faster by signing up via iTunes.

Links:

• Show Notes for Show 55
• Transcript: Hands on with the UK Kindle

We hope you enjoy today’s show. We’d love to know what you think.

As ever, if you like what you’ve heard, please spread the word to your Facebook and Twitter chums…

 FrequencyCast Show 55 [30:17m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The UK version of the Amazon Kindle eBook device is hitting people’s doorsteps today, one day ahead of the 27th August release date.

It seems some lucky customers that placed a pre-order are seeing deliveries today, with more expected over the next few days, although it seems that the early deliveries may only be for the “wi-fi” version, and not the “3G” version, with rumours that the Kindle 3G may not be shipped in any significant volume for the 27th August.

One of our contributors ordered a wi-fi version early on in the pre-order process, and is set to receive their Kindle on or around the 27th August, but another of our team who also ordered early (this time a 3G version) doesn’t even have an estimated delivery date, with the order stating simply:

“We’ll notify you via e-mail when we have an estimated delivery date for this item”

An email to Customer Services gave us the following:

“Due to strong customer demand, orders are prioritised on a first-come, first-served basis. Your Kindle is expected to dispatch in the next several days. We will send you an e-mail confirmation as soon as your order has dispatched with an estimated delivery date. We will dispatch your Kindle to you as quickly as possible and will keep you informed by e-mail as we get more precise delivery dates.”

We’re seeing discussion that indicates Amazon are still waiting stock of the 3G version from their supplier, suggesting many may not be getting delivery on or close to the 27th August estimated date, but I guess we’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see what gets dispatched. Watch this space for “the next several days…”

Ordered a UK Kindle? Got yours yet? We’d love to get your comments…

The Wand Remote Control, which we featured back in Show 46, got an appearance on the BBC Dragon’s Den this evening.

Control your TV,  Hi-fi, audio and home electronics with the flick of a wrist.

It’s a great product, as proved by the fact that all five Dragons wanted to invest.

For our full hands-on review of the Magic Wand Remote Control, please go to frequencycast.co.uk/wandremotecontol.html

A brand new version of Amazon’s eBook Reader is due out at the end of August 2010.

The new Kindle has 3G and Wi-fi for book download wherever you are, it’s 21% smaller and 15% lighter than the last version, can hold over 3,500 books, has better contrast and one charge will give you a month’s reading.

Amazon’s taking eBooks very seriously at the moment, and the upcoming release of a UK-specific version of the Kindle (as opposed to an imported US version) is a sign that Amazon’s serious about the UK market. The UK Kindle includes a 3G modem for over-the-air download of books. The data service will be provided using the Vodafone network, and no subscription is required.

The new 3G and Wi-fi Kindle is available for pre-order now for the very impressive price of £149, or you can get a wi-fi-only version for £109

At this impressive price point, this is destined to be a hit, and we can expect Amazon to be pushing their Kindles hard here in the UK.

The new-look Kindle is available from 27th August 2010: Pre-order the Amazon Kindle

The Joggler is once again on sale for a daft price. Originally £150, then £100 – and now, just £49.99, but only for a couple of weeks.

Here’s what you get for £50:

• Internet Radio
• JPG photo frame
• MP3 and video player
• Shared online diary (inc Google Calendar)
• Live travel news, weather, news and sport
• Games
• Audio streaming
• SMS text messaging
• Google Maps and YouTube

All this from a full-colour, wireless touch-screen device that has a USB slot for expansion.

If you want to know more about the o2 Joggler, have a listen to  Show 41… or to get one, go to shop.o2.co.uk/joggler before the half-price offer ends.

A nifty gadget to let you take control of your TV, home cinema and hi-fi direct from your iPhone – the iPhone Universal Remote.

The product is actually a jacket into which you slide your iPhone 3G or 3GS. Once in the case, the iPhone can transmit the required infrared control commands to take control of virtually any IR device.

To use the jacket, you’ll need some software. Control TV from your iPhone? Of course – there’s an app for that, and it’s free.

The controller allows you to control multiple devices from one screen, is easy to customise and doesn’t need any additional hardware or dongles – the case itself is slim and smooth that also protects your iPhone from accidental lounge mishaps.

The iPhone Universal Remote is now available in the UK – for full details and pictures, hop over to http://www.firebox.com/product/2683/iPhone-Universal-Remote

If you caught our Gadget Show Live special released a few days ago, you may have heard us talking about EnigmaTAG.

We’ve now had a chance to give this impressive technology a try. If you’ve ever lost, or being worried about losing, one of your precious bits of tech, then you need to consider EnigmaTAG.

Essentially, you apply a dot of the magic liquid, and that item is marked with a unique code that can be read under UV light by the police. The micro-particles contain a code that’s linked to the UK Immobilise database, so if your lost or stolen device is recovered, the police can reunite your kit.

To see how this works, and to find out more, see our full review of EnigmaTAG.

Want £5 off? FrequencyCast listeners can use the following code at the checkout: EGSL15 for a limited time if you order online at www.enigmatag.com

As gadget-lovers will know, there’s a huge gadget show taking place now at the NEC in Birmingham. Our listeners asked us to attend, and so we did.

Our Carl and Pete were at Gadget Show Live yesterday (Thursday the 8th April), and we’ve been able to put together our review of the show in record time. Gadget Show Live runs until Sunday the 11th, but tickets are sadly sold out.

If you want to hear what we thought of the show, and details of some of the hot products on offer, take a listen to our 30 minute Special Report.

You can download the Special Report to your MP3 player, or listen online at www.frequencycast.co.uk/gadget2010

If you’ve been to the show, we’d love to know your thoughts. We hope you find our Gadget Show Special Report of interest!

 Gadget Show Live Audio Report [29:47m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Do you Joggle?

You may recall the TV ads for the o2 Joggler screened last year? Or our podcast coverage of this device? At the time, o2′s home communication device carried a £149 price tag.

o2′s shocked us by slashing this down to under £50, which now makes the Joggler hard to ignore for that price.

What does it do? How’s this:

• Internet Radio
• JPG photo frame
• MP3 and video player
• Shared online diary
• Live travel news, weather, news and  sport
• Games
• Audio streaming
• SMS text messaging
• … with more apps on the way soon via the new App Store.

All this from a full-colour, wireless touch-screen device that has a USB slot for expansion.

We’re not sure how long o2 will be able to offer this device at under £50, but it won’t be for long.

For more on the Joggler, check out our review in Show 41… or to get one, go to shop.o2.co.uk/joggler before the half-price offer ends.

Carl and Pete were out and about this weekend at the Dabs.com Live Gadget and IT Show.

The show took place in the Great Hall at Wembley Stadium,and was showcasing a number of new products and gadgets.

We took our roving mic with us, and recorded a few interviews with some of the key players at the show. Our thirty minute review of the show is now available online for your listening pleasure.

For pics of the show and transcripts of our interviews, and to listen to our Dabs Gadget Show Special, go to:

www.frequencycast.co.uk/dabsshow.html.

If you have an iPod or iPhone, download and listen via iTunes: FrequencyCast on iTunes.

 FrequencyCast Dabs.com Show Special March 2010 [31:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Remember this bad boy? Classic 80′s retro toy Big Trak is set for a come-back.

Programmable fun… Forward… Forward…. 90 degrees Left… Fire Phasers! Now watch that cat scarper!

This six-wheeled tank has a 23-button keypad, used to enter a series of commands. None of this remote-control malarky with Big Trak.

Big Trak is due back on shelves in August 2010, you can even pre-order one at find-me-a-gift.co.uk

What’s the best game for the iPhone / iPod Touch? Flight Control, of course.

Hideously addictive, and oh-so-simple – land the planes without them crashing into each other. If you’ve not tried it – get it from the iTunes App Store now (assuming you don’t want to be productive for the next few hours, that is).

Now, Flight Control is available for a whole new platform – the Nintendo DSi. Congrats to the makers Firemint.

If you have a Nintendo DS, you owe it to yourself to fire up your DSi, go to the Nintendo store, go to DSIWare and download Flight Control. You’ll soon be gliding planes to a save landing with your stylus. It’ll cost you 500 DSI points.

If you beat our highest score, there’ll be trouble!

The iPad is out. We’ve been listening to a flaky audio stream live from Apple’s Keynote speech to find out what’s new, and here’s what we can report:

The iPad:

It’s a 9.7 inch touchscreen tablet – think of it as an iPhone that’s two and a half times larger. It has a 10 hour battery life, comes in 16, 32 and 64 Gig versions and is wi-fi enabled – a 3G version will also be available. Price for the iPad starts from $499 in the US (converts to £310). An iBooks (eBook Reader app and store) will be available, as will iWork (Apple’s new wordprocessing, spreadsheet and presentations applications). It’ll run existing iPhone apps. Looks like this will be available in the UK sometime from June onwards…

Other Stuff?

Many were expecting an announcement of a new iPhone OS, expected to be iPhone OS4. Sadly, nothing.

Our thoughts

Looks like a nice piece of kit, and it’s bound to be a hit with many. A little larger than we were expecting, but thin and sexy, as with all of Apple’s stuff.

Interesting to see Apple’s dipping into the eBook market, and their iBooks store could be a big hit, as Apple’s bound to make book purchase as easy as App store. Also, with the Apple iPad being available for $499 for a colour touch screen, Sony Reader and Kindle will have a struggle competing.

It’s going to be available in the US “in 60 days”. The 3G element will mean it’ll be several months before we see these in the UK.

Thoughts?

It’s jolly chilly out there, so our advice is to stay in and have a nice cup of coffee.

Our Pete considers himself to be something of a coffee connoisseur, and he’s been on a quest for a decent home coffee machine for a while. He’s tried a generic coffee machine, been sadly disappointed by a Tassimo machine’s awful cappuccino capsules, and until Christmas, was happy with a Nespresso machine. He’s been craving a decent home Italian coffee solution – either Illy or Lavazza – and now he’s found one.

Today, Pete’s been playing with an Amodo Mio Lavazza coffee machine (well, it’s cold outside), and has recorded a short review of his ability to make a decent cappuccino.

If you’re at a loose end, have a listen to 4 minutes of Pete talking about coffee – See and hear our Amodo Mio Lavazza Review.

Into your coffee? We’d love to hear your home coffee stories and preferences.

 FrequencyCast Lavazza Amodo Mio Unofficial Guide [5:55m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Do you want to be a record breaker? Share the gadget love this festive season by taking part in the Global Secret Santa.

Secret Santa is the tradition of swapping gifts anonymously amongst groups of friends or workmates. Those guys and gals at Firebox.com are attempting to get into the Guiness Book of records by creating the largest Secret Santa. Here’s how it works:

Go to the special Global Secret Santa site, pick a gadget gift from the section on offer, and write a quick message. Firebox will send your gift to a random person somewhere in the world, and you’ll get a mystery gadget from someone else in return. It’s a bit of fun, and you’ll get a gadget for your trouble.

All of the team at FrequencyCast HQ have joined in – so some lucky tech lovers out there will find a gift and a message from FrequencyCast.

Join in too, and share the gadget love at globalsecretsanta.com

Lovers of the Nintendo’s Wii can now access TV and radio from the last seven days for free.

Sure, it’s been possible to watch the BBC iPlayer via the Nintendo Wii web browser for a while, but from today, the 18th of November, you can now install a free BBC iPlayer channel from the Nintendo Wii Store.

After a few hours of watching Doctor Who, flicking through content, and testing the Listen Again radio service, we’re very impressed.

The quality of video playback is a huge improvement over watching video via the Wii web browser, and the interface is well laid-out and optimised for the Wii. The channel works well, TV and radio streaming is smooth, and setup was a breeze.

Get installing, y’all…

Remember the o2 Joggler? The home device that o2 pushed in May of this year as a replacement magnets on the fridge door as a way to keep the family in touch?

Two bits of news out today are set to make this device that little but more desirable.

The o2 Joggler is already a powerful device – digital pictureframe, wireless media streamer, Internet-connected News, Sport, Travel and Weather browser, text message device and online diary… but today, it’s become an Internet radio.

An over-the-air update has added DAB radio experts Pure’s “Lounge” Internet radio application, allowing an initial 100 free streaming stations to be accessed on the Joggler.

An app store is promised by the end of the year, and the Joggler platform is open to developers to create applications.

Also, best of all, o2′s just slashed the price to under £100.

We reviewed the o2 Joggler in FrequencyCast Show 41. If you want to get a Joggler at the new low price, go to shop.o2.co.uk/joggler

In Show 45, we took a quick look at the Olympus LS-11, pictured here. This is a high-spec recording device that can record high-quality stereo audio on the move.

As we only had a few minutes in the show to cover this impressive bit of kit, we’ve put together one of our special “Unofficial Guides”, where we go out and about with the recorder capturing sounds and exploring what the LS-11 can do.

Carl and Pete had lots of fun playing with this recorder, and it gave Carl a chance to show off that he does actually know something that Pete doesn’t (which makes a change). have a listen to hear something of a role-reversal for our on-air duo.

The show lasts a little over 18 minutes, and can be downloaded now as an MP3 podcast.

Photos of the LS-11, a detailed review, and the original, uncompressed sounds, can be found at www.frequencycast.co.uk/olympusrecorders.html

 FrequencyCast Olympus LS-11 Unofficial Guide [18:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We’d like to introduce you to Chumby…

Always keen to explore new gadgets, we think the Chumby is a rather interesting concept – somwhere between a Nabaztag and a Joggler, the Chumby sits quietly where you put it, and uses an wi-fi Internet connection to pull down weather, news, Internet radio, podcasts (including ours, we hope), and whole host of other feeds and content via Flash widgets (around 1,500 of them).

Thanks to Michael Johnson, one of our regular listeners, for pointing this little chap out to us – anyone interested in us giving this a review in the next show?

The Chumby is available now in the UK from Firebox.com. See our Chumby Review for more.

On Monday 19th October, the Kindle hits the UK.

If you’re not in the know, the Kindle is Amazon’s eBook Reader. It’s been big news in the US, and until now has not been available here in the UK.

Things have opened up, and it’s now possible to get a Kindle direct from Amazon – But it’s Amazon.com, not Amazon.co.uk

So, how does the Kindle differ from other eBook readers, such as the Sony Reader that we reviewed last year? Well, it’s a connected device, using 3G to get new books and newspapers (no need to hook up to a PC). It also has a keyboard, and buying books from the Amazon store is a lot easier than the Sony purchase route.

The Kindle has a mobile phone chip inside (to allow you to get books on the move), but there’s no monthly fee or data costs – just the purchase price of the Kindle, and books (more expensive in the UK than the US, sadly). You can also get UK and US papers on a Kindle.

Including import and delivery, it’ll cost £216 to get a Kindle here in the UK. For the full SP on the International Kindle, go to www.amazon.com.

To fight back, Waterstones has recently dropped the price of their Sony Reader collection.

More details on the Amazon Kindle on Amazon.com’s Kindle site.