30 posts tagged “alarm clock”

Link: Neutrano iTalk

Another voice-operated clock, after the Moshi (Episode 784).  The iTalk from Neutrano has the usual voice commands you would expect to operate an alarm clock: setting the time, setting the alarm, choice of alarm sounds etc.  It has a larger digital LCD display (with a choice of high/low intensity), and seems to work more reliably than the Moshi.  The biggest attraction for Dick is the voice command "Snooze" after the alarm goes off.

On the day this show was recorded, 9 June 2009, the featured TTTT gadget in the podcast (Episode 847) was the Logitech VX Nano, which had been covered previously by Dick, and even Leo himself, in Episodes 523 and 522.

Leo's sister Eva, who now reads Leo's emails, gives Leo and Dane Golden a weekly report on listeners' feedback.  There's the usual bit of moaning, but not about the Daily Giz Wiz - which earns Leo a great deal of good will.

Dick has become quite a ladies' man, as he is getting more and more fan mail from lady listeners, including Jennifer, who shares Dick's love of model trains.  However, she wants to correct a slip made by Dick in Episode 841, who reversed the N- and Z-gauges.  The Z-scale is the size of model trains which can fit on to the brim of a hat.  For a photo of an example of that, taken at an Easter Parade in NYC, click here.

The Moshi IVR (Interactive Voice Responsive) Alarm Clock takes voice commands from you to set the time, set the alarm, choose the alarm, tell you the time, and put on the night light.  In case Moshi gets incalcitrant in refusing to recognise your voice commands, there are buttons at the back to change your settings manually.  Available at Hammacher Schlemmer.

Nero Fettled While Rome Burned
Leo is in fine fettle;  Dick is in medium fine fettle; Nero fettled while Rome burned, and Dick fiddles with the Moshi all this time.

Those Days Are Dead Gone
No matter how obscure a Warehouse gadget might be, there's always someone who has owned or used it before.  Kenneth Helchein was a photography major at the School of Visual Arts in New York.  He managed to get hold of a Sony CV-2000 (Episode 770) from the school, and lugged the video camera and portable deck up and down flights of steps, down the subway, walked blocks and blocks to his grandmother (born in 1892, an emigre from Russia) to record stories from her earlier days.  "Those days are dead gone!' said Grandma, and all that gear for nothing.

Moshi's Revenge
Dick wouldn't let go of the Moshi, and finally got it to accept his command to set the time.  Leo cheered, and kicked his screen to oblivion.  Moshi's revenge.


Listen to Episode 784
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Friday the 13th Encore
Listen to Leo explain triskaidekaphobia and try to pronounce paraskavedekatriaphobia, and to Dick's story of Bill Gaines looking for a 13th floor for the Mad Office, as in Episode 590.

Valentine Plans
Dick will still be at the Miami Boat Show for Valentine's Day tomorrow.  Leo is leaving later today with Jennifer for San Francisco to spend a romantic evening away at a boutique hotel, and having breakfast in the morning at Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store.  Leo has got his Valentine present lined up this year - thanks to Cammy Blackstone in Munchcast Episode 58.  Jennifer is getting chocolate-covered caramels topped with sea salt from Fran's Chocolates, which happen to be President Obama's favourite, and Obama happens to be Jennifer's favourite at the moment.  She's using Obama soap (the Obama Bar - "The Audacity of Soap") and an Obama purse!

We Salute You
Tony Devito doesn't think there was a Salute in Laugh-In (Episode 760), but there was one in Hee Haw and Home Improvement.  What Laugh-In did have was the Flying Fickle Finger of Fate Award.


Listen to Episode 765
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Listener Dan McCormick, who suggested the Multi-Colour LED Light Bulb with Remote Control (also carried by Think Geek) in Episode 704, wonders if Dick, who did the original Neverlate 7-Day Alarm Clock in Episode 421, knows that there is a new upgrade model of the Neverlate clock.  Does Dick know?

"Dan, Dan, Dan," sighs Dick, "what do you think this is, sitting on my shelf right here?".  "Who do you take us for, complete amateurs?" Leo chips in.

The original Neverlate clock features a 7-day alarm schedule (different alarm time for each day).  The new Neverlate  Executive Alarm Clock, retaining the same 5" cube body design, can best be summarised as a 2x 7-Day Alarm Clock, as it allows you to set two 7-day alarm schedules, for you and your significant other.  Plus 7 extra independently configurable alarms in addition to the two banks of 7-day alarms.  The alarms can be set as one of 4 buzzers and 20 preset FM/AM radio stations.  You can also use the clock as speakers and charger for your MP3 Player via the USB port, too.  The best feature for Dick remains the nap timer fuction - one of his all-time favourites was the Westclox Nap Timer (Episode 40).

Power Needs
Dick has heard about the power cut during the ice storm in Kentucky and thinks the folks there could do with his Honda Super Quiet Generator (Episode 69).

In the Year 2020
Dick and Leo talked about doing podasts in 2020 (in Episode 750), and Tobias Robinson has some gadget suggestions, including 4D glasses and the morphing Smart Spork.

A Riddle from Leo
"What gets wetter as you get drier?" Leo asks, hoping to stump Dick.  "Leo, Leo, Leo.  Who do you take me for, a complete amateur?" - should have been Dick's riposte.  Instead, he quips, "A sponge?"

Next Recording Session
Note the change of schedule.  Dick will be off to the Miami Boat Show this week, and the next recording session has been brought forward to Monday (today) at 15.15 (Pacific time) or 18.15 Eastern time.  Dick and Leo will do 6 shows including the 3rd Anniversary show for 20th February 2009.


Listen to Episode 761
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Back in Episode 616, when Dick and Leo talked about how airports did everything to prevent you from lying down, Dick referred to an article in the New York Times which reported the invention by someone of an "airport tent".  That someone is Frank Giotto, and the airport tent is called the Mini Motel.  The package includes all you need to construct a tent, an inflatable mattress, an inflatable pillow and bed sheet, plus an alarm clock, a reading light, ear plugs, and eye shades.



When folded up, the package is only 17" x 12" x 3", but it might be a little difficult to get the tent and all its accessories back into that shape.

Match Game Moments
The Live Stream of Match Game Moments took place on Saturday 29 November 2008, which Dick greatly enjoyed.  Unfortunately no one seems to have captured the video stream.  Dick hopes that Andy of Stickam has a copy, but if not, he might do it again.

Farewell to Disco Dick
Dick has finally given away his houseboat, complete with a disco, as he told us in Episode 703.  He's given it to a charity called Boat Angel.  Here's Dick's farewell video:


A Hot Couple
Ralph Evinrude of Evinrude Motors and his singer wife Frances Evinrude had a 100-foot boat.  Dick has a story to tell about Evinrude's generosity about replacing Evinrude engines.

A Junkie for Flashlights, Pens, Pocket Knives and Everything Collectible
Most frequently read DGW correspondent Steve Miller from Westerville, Ohio confesses to being a pen, pocket knife and flashlight junkie.  He bought a Stanley Tripod Flashlight (Episodes 548), and since the Travelon Sheets (Episode 689), has managed to stop buying DGW gadgets for about a month so far, and hopes that Dick will not be covering pocket knives for a while, or he will be broke.  For Steve's earlier collection, read the list in Episode 279.

For those interested in flashlights, Steve recommends SureFire, which has the E2D LED Defender, a tactical self-defence flashlight with a crenellated strike bezel.



Listen to Episode 719
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Dick briefly mentioned this new Casio watch in Episode 694.  Part of the G-LIDE (or Glide, for surfing?) series, the G-Shock GLX 5600 series are designed as surfing companions.  Water-resistant up to 200m, shock resistant, 29 time zones (48 cities), displaying Tide Graph and Moon Data (presumably relevant to surfing and boating), automatic electroluminescence backlight display with afterglow, and all sorts of timer functions, alarms, sleep and snooze.

The Ears of Alfred E Neumann
At the Alfred E Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner on 16 October 2008, President--Elect Barack Obama quipped, "It is often said that I share the politics of Alfred E Smith and the ears of Alfred E Neumann."  The similarity in the ears has often been noted, and you can find morphs between Obama and Alfred on YouTube, here and there.


WTHII 0810

For last month's WTHII, Dick had to tape over the product to hide its name.  It's the QuakeAwake, an earthquake detector that was intended to give you a little more time to run for cover or safety, as Leo suspects.  An earthquake generates 2 kinds of waves, "primary waves" and "shear waves".  Primary waves travel faster but cause no damage, while the shear waves travel more slowly but are the shock waves that give rise to the real destruction.

By sensing the primary waves, the QuakeAwake takes advantage of the time lag between the 2 types of waves and sounds an alarm before the shear waves arrive, giving you up to 30 seconds' advance notice, in some cases, of an earthquake (as "themepark" in the chatroom found out).

The QuakeAwake is installed with a switch mounted on a load-bearing wall.  The switch will only be shaken by vibrations coming from the foundations of your building or house, the detection of which will trigger the alarm.  Read about it in a 1991 article in the New York Times.

The winner was Todd Wittenmeier who gave the closest answer, a motion detector.

Dick in Michigan?
Mention of Kate Botello in Episode 689 reminds Jeffrey Hackett of his first-time meeting with Kate and Leo when they attended a special ZDTV event in Taylor, Michigan (on 6 November 1999).  He still has the ZDTV Cube autogaphed by Kate and Leo.  A video of the event is available on YouTube.  Now that he's met Leo, when is Dick coming to Michigan?

From 1991, Cobra, which makes radar detectors and CB radio, produced the Traveler, a battery-operated portable answering machine.  Back in those days, hotels didn't offer voice mail.  You would connect the Traveler to the phone jack in the hotel room, and it would operate as an answering machine in the normal way.  It also came with an AC adapter.

Like the Kodak Disc Camera from last Friday (Episode 690), the Traveler was also a "product to watch", thought Fortune Magazine, in February 1991.

Atari Video Music, Sold
Dick sold something from the Gadget Warehouse to a listener, his 2nd copy of the Atari Video Music (Episode 85), still in the box.  We've heard that Steve Gibson of Security Now! bought a whole lot of Palms and put them in the freezer.  Dick says that when Bill Gaines found a pair of shoes he liked, he would get 10 pairs of them.

Another Title for Dick
Austin from Plymouth, England thinks that Dick, especially on Fridays, should be called "The Wizard of Was".  The rest of the week, Dick is just the Giz Wiz at Wizneyland.

Off the Air
Leo has an "On The Air" sign, but he never uses it because he's always on the air.  He needs an "Off The Air" sign.

Mad Cocktail
Dick is off to the cocktail party for the Heritage Comics auction for Mad Covers (Episode 687).  He hopes there is no cover charge, ha ha, from ha.com!

Making Hay
Dane Golden has been making hay while the sun is still shining.  His retirement plan is hey.com.


Listen to Episode 695
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The Firebell Alarm Clock is shaped like a firebell, and works like an alarm clock.  Standing at 7" tall, it has the usual alarm clock features.

It has 3 modes: Alarm, Snooze, and Off.  In Alarm mode, pressing the big silver button will stop the alarm completely (while turning on the backlight on the LCD screen).  In Snooze mode, pressing the silver button will stop the alarm temporarily, which will resound every 8 minutes.  You need to turn the clock to Off mode (button at the top) to stop the alarm completely.  Available from many sellers, including VAT19.

You Are Here
VAT19 also sells the "You Are Here" Doormat.  It is made from 100% recycled truck tyres and nylon flocking, measuring 24" in diameter.  Highly durable.  Also available from Perpetual Kid.

The Jingle Singers on Music Video
Aaron Radford happened upon Dick and Leo recording DGW on TWiTLive the other day, and thought it would really make his day if he could see the Jingle Singers appear on TWiTLive.  It was not to be.  Give those ladies their minite of fame, please!

Aaron's request comes at an opportune moment, and Leo obliges.  He has located the link to a recently made music video of the Jingle Singers, and played it no TWiTLive.  For those who were not able to watch TWiTLive in the middle of the day, here is the video, made by Ed Ross.

Or you can go directly to YouTube at http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=admGQaLTKFw.

This deftly selected and perfectly sync'ed video has been created by Ed Ross, who has taken the trouble to give me access to the great video, and the sources from which he compiled it.  The original video is an excerpt from "Jiveroo" by Harry Day and Della with the June Taylor Girls, at http://www.archive.org/details/soundie_11.  The envelope at the end of the video is from Wikimedia at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Envelope_-_Boonville_Address-000.jpg.  The Letters Jingle itself is of course the work of George Wood of Promedia.

Incidentally, with Dick and Leo's numerous references to past showbiz names, it should come as no surprise to anyone that they have previously referred to the June Taylor Girls, in Episode 394 and 396.


Listen to Episode 594
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A special clock/timer for the busy mum or dad who has to look after a baby, called itzbeen.  Press the right button, and it keeps track of how long it's been since you last changed the diaper, fed the baby, or put the baby to sleep (or woke the baby).  The 4th button you can use for whatever task you want to assign it to.  The L/R button is to remind mother which side the baby last nursed from.  You can choose to have itzbeen beep an alarm for you, too.

eBay Scams
David from Ohio and his wife have been stung by a scam seller on eBay.  The product was never shipped, and eBay and Paypal were less than helpful.  Dick and Leo have both been similarly stung, Dick when trying to buy a pair of Piloti racing sneakers, and Leo when he tried to buy a camera for the TWiTLive Studio.  Dick lost $70, and Leo lost a whopping $2,200.

Leo suggests that anyone buying from eBay should check the seller's reputation and rating on eBay and make sure that he has been in business for over a year.  Also, choose a seller with an insurance coverage enough to cover your potential loss.  Or just buy with a credit card.  When there is a claim or complaint, file it within the 45-day limit.


Listen to Episode 588
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Made by Eagle Creek and available at Magellan's, the Multi-Function Travel Clock tells the times of 16 cities around the world, is an alarm clock (with snooze function), calculator, currency converter, and even tells the temperature.

Brand New Monday Jingle
It's a brand new week and a brand new day and a brand new Monday Jingle, from Dan Lueders again, which has incorporated Leo's Monday ditty, their occasional slogan "The worse your life is, the better we sound" and even the Gravy Slogan.

Rock My Teeth
Patrick Warn from Georgia, Vermont writes about Rock My Teeth - a musical tooth-whitening system.  Attach the whitening kit to your iPod and the music, Professor Bocelli claims, helps line up the peroxide molecules to make it easier for them to penetrate through the enamel into the dentin to whiten the teeth.  Watch the video here.  Dick thinks the HydraBrush (Episodes 226, 480) - though Dick thinks it's called Turbo Brush - makes a lot more sense.

Cotati Accordion Festival
Dick is joing Leo at TWiTLive on Friday 20 June 2008, and Dick has had difficulty getting a room at the local hotels, because that weekend is the Cotati Accordion Festival.  Dick manages to book himself a 2-night package at the Metro Cafe and Hotel, one of Leo's favourites.  Kim from Wild Planet is going to demonstrate their Christmas toys and she'll come dressed as an elf.


Listen to Episode 566
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