101 posts tagged “led”

Dick tried hard to resist buying another LED flashlight, but after 3 emails about it, and a further price reduction, Dick succumbed to the temptation.  The First Alert FX-1 Multi-Colour LED Flashlight uses ordinary batteries to power its LEDs which have 10 different colours.  Available in black and silver bodies.

Dick at the TWiT Cottage
After the Wine Train on Monday and a drive in a Tesla Roadster on Tuesday, Dick settled down with Leo in the TWiT studio to record this week's Giz Wizzes.  Here are the highlights of today's show.  Video from odtv.me.  Sitting in the background is FunCrunch Julie Bernstein.


Wine Train
Dick, being a train enthusiast, thoroughly enjoyed the Napa Wine Train.  Dick and Leo's party were given a private railroad car.  Dick finally met Jennifer, and they got on like a train on fire.

WebLoyalty
Dick bought his new flashlight from Buy.com, and Leo warns him and listeners about the danger of inadvertently joining the "webloyalty" programme and getting charged on your credit card.  Other websites including Fandango and Orbitz also take part in this webloyalty.  For more details, listen to Security Now! Episode 207.

Shoot-It
Listener Seth Combs finally gets his first iPhone app on to the App Store.  It's called Shoot-It.  You take your photo on the iPhone, send it to Shoot-It together with your message and addressee (for the US, the UK and Western Europe), and a proper postcard with your pic and message will be posted for you in the good old fashioned way.  It so happens that Leo has just bought the app, and Leo wonders if Seth is related to Sean Puffy Combs, aka P. Diddy.


Listen to Episode 896
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Find DGW Info on GizWizSearch

After Leo's TTTT Coleman Flashcell Screwdriver (Episode 782) comes another product using ultracapacitors for charging.  The Light For Life UC3.400 is a flashlight with 3 LEDs.  Just under one foot long and weighing 1 pound, it uses an ultracapacitor charging station for charging which takes all of 90 seconds.  A full charge can last for over 120 minutes (running at 90 lumens for 90 minutes, 25 lumens for 30 minutes and cycling down to 15 lumens for another 30 minutes).  With the LEDs rated to last for 50,000 hours and the rechargeable battery capable of up to 50,000 charging cycles, the Light for Life has a rugged body to match the longevity of the other main components and essentially no parts to replace - hence the name.  Made of durable polymer, the flashlight's body is resistant to impact, abrasion and water, and perfect for use by law enforcement agencies.

Leo Conducts
Leo was at the Skywalker Ranch watching an orchestra record the score for the PS3 game Uncharted 2 (Episode 864).  He picked up a few tricks of the trade from the conductor.  Watch him conduct the Daily Giz Wiz Monday Theme (video clip from odtv.me):


Flashlight Stats
In Episode 843, Dick wondered aloud how many flashlights had been covered in the Daily Giz Wiz.  Ludwik Trammer of GizWizSearch was paying attention, and with a flick of his fingers (more like a click of the mouse), Ludwik has come up with the statistics.  There had been 15 flashlights (now 16), 61 gadgets that emitted light as their main functionality, 13 of which using LEDs.

GizWizSearch Features
This type of information is in fact available to all DGW listeners.  All DGW gadgets have been tagged on GizWizSearch, now being done by Alfred Chan of InsideDGW (but for a period of time by another listener Ryan Waterer who shares the credit).  Click a tag on the home page and, with Ludwik's coding, you can see all the gadgets with that tag; or you can just type in a tag in the search box.  To see all the tags, click on "More Tags" on the home page, with the more frequently appearing tags displayed in larger fonts.  If you want to find more detailed info from the InsideDGW Show Notes, click the "Advanced Search" to the right of the search box and tick the appropriate option.

Dick's Next Visit to TWiT Cottage
Before recording this episode, Dick and Leo chat about Leo's new Obama wrist-watch, more instant coffee from WO and Dick's visit to TWiT Cottage for Episode 900.  As usual, video clip from odtv.me:

A suggestion from Robert Forbes of Wasaga Beach, Ontario, Canada, the Striker Magnetic Light is an LED light that has 12 magnets for easy attachment to any metallic surface to free your hands for working at your task, giving you a wide choices of angles of light.

Chowing Down
Dick and Leo reminisce about the joys and horrors of faux Chinese food in stacked cans (like chow mein), Hungry Man's TV Dinners, and talk about the Chungking and Swanson brands.

Hazardous Wastes
Rod Miller from California writes in about hazardous wastes, and he's not talking the Daily Giz Wiz podcasts.  Back in Episode 819, Dick talked in the Letters Section about scrapping a GE microwave oven with a misbehaving door.  In California, used electronics are considered hazardous wastes which cannot be disposed of in the regular trash streams.  He recommends, for Californians, erecycle.org that he works for, with which you can make an appointment (3 days a week) for disposing of your e-waste.

Cellphones for Troops
Dick and Leo talk more about recycling, including batteries, underwear and cellphones.  There is a programme called Cellphones for Soldiers, which helps overseas soldiers call home.


Listen to Episode 848
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Another flashlight from Dick.  The Stealth LED Flashlight is designed as a car accessory.  It has 6 LED lights as a flashlight, a red LED light as a warning light in case your car has broken down, and a strong magnetic base for attaching it securely to any part of your car.  The flashiest part of this gadget is however a panel of 10 LED lights which flips out from the side (at an adjustable angle) as a task light.

A Question for Ludwik
Dick has done so many flashlights that he's lost count.  We need Ludwik Trammer for the statistics.

Home Office Relocated
Previously Leo settled on Pickles Gap, Arkansas (not Carbuncle Falls) in Episode 831 as the location for the TWiT Home Office.  Other suggestions have been floated, including Sioux City in Iowa, Lake Rogerene in New Jersey, Susquehanna in Pennsylvania (Episode 830), and Truth Or Consequences in Mexico (Episode 832).

Listeners (Mark, a brewer; Jeff from Pittsburgh; Joe aka Toyota Boy, Paul Griswold, and Denny Pyott) have come up with the following suggestions: Boring in Oregon; Cheesequake in New Jersey; Blue Ball or Intercourse, both in Pennsylvania; Lake In The Hills in Illinois; French Lick or Gas City in Indiana.

Dick and Leo have now relocated the Home Office to Cheesequake, New Jersey.  Pickles Gap, Arkansas is now TWiT's Satellite Office.

For more suggestions from listeners, check out the thread in Answer Giz Wiz Questions on Dick's site, about the TWiT Home Office location.

InsideDGW
Dick reminds listeners that they can now read Alfred's posts on GizWiz.Biz as well.

"The Crap Goes In ...
... before the name goes out", that's DGW's new slogan.  There shouldn't be any cease-and-desist letters from Zenith.


Listen to Episode 843
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Leo now rides his newly-acquired recumbent Terratrike Cruiser (Episode 837), and is in the middle of kitting it out with accessories.  Apart from his pennons, headlights and tail-lights, he's got a loud-sounding horn recommended by kiwinerd, the Delta Airzound Bike Horn which requires no batteries and uses compressed air (refillable from any bike pump) to produce up to 115 db.


But the TTTT gadget for today is the Cateye Micro Wireless, CC-MC100W.  It is a bicycle computer (sometimes called a cyclocomputer) which is a speedometer and odometer, with LED backlight, which gives you your speed, maximum speed, distance travelled etc, like a little dashboard on the handlebar of the bike.  It is wireless in the sense that it does not need to be wired to the speed sensor which sits on one of the spokes of a bicycle wheel.

Coming Next on TTTT
Leo has an abundance of gadgets to talk about these days.  Next week he will cover his new heart-rate monitor.

Health Warning
Many people, including doctors and nurses, have written in after Leo talked about the dangers of swallowing the BuckyBalls (Episode 827).  The letter which Leo has picked is from Phil Tilsley of Ferndale, Washington.  Phil's wife works as a 911 medical dispatcher, and can confirm that strong magnets pose a serious hazard to children.  Strong magnets when swallowed can join together inside the intestines causing a blockage.


Listen to Episode 842
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Leo has 2 related gadgets to show today.  The first one is the Dynaflex Powerball Gyroscope, which you shake using the arm and wrist.  Inside the ball is a gyroscope which by its nature keeps itself stable by resisting outside movements.  The resistance offered by the gyroscope, up to 40 lbs of torque, makes you work hard to speed up the movement inside.  Light and sound included.  A speedometer is optional.  so is a docking station.  You can also get it at Think Geek.

If you want serious resistance, you can try the Dynamax Core Trainer 2, offering up to 200 lbs of torque, which works in the same way, but with 2 handle bars for upper body training.

Power Demos
Watch Leo demo the 2 gadgets today.  Clip taken from odtv.me.


Another Guest Appearance on DGW
Guests on DGW are rare.  There have been Amber MacArthur (Episode 77) and Henry Laporte (Episode 252), and Dane Golden, after his voice appearance as White Fang in Episode 826, makes his video debut as himself.  He's angling for a Dick and Dane show, but before he can do that, Leo will make him work hard for it, by acting as Leo's proxy in exercising with the Core Trainer.  Dane is also thinking where the TWiT Head Office should be, perhaps in Truth Or Consequences in New Mexico.

InsideDGW on GizWiz.Biz
Dick has created a page for InsideDGW on his new website at Square Space, which features all the letters read on the shows, plus any links, pictures or videos worth following up.  Check out InsideDGW on GizWiz.Biz.

Thumbs-Up for the Pogoplug
Toyota Boy is very happy with the Pogoplug (Episode 817), and Leo confirms that the iPhone App designed for it works on 3G as well as Wifi.  Pity it doesn't work as a cup warmer too.

Exercise Fanatic
Leo has become an exercise fanatic.  He goes to the gym, does TWiT Fit, rides his Terratrike, and has just signed up for a Pilates class, working on the "Reformer" Pilates machine.

Terratrike on TTTT
Next Tuesday, Leo will review the Terratrike.  See Episode 829 for a preview.  Leo is going to ride it through Petaluma with an orange pennon and a TWiT pennon.


Listen to Episode 832
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Quik Brite is an LED light for a closet or drawer that will go on automatically as you open the door of the drawer, as seen on TV.  They come in a package of 8, plus 2 "SwivelSpots", which are also LED lights, with manual switches, on a rotating base which you can turn to control of the direction of the light.  Dick found a great bargain for these at Bed, Bath And Beyond.

Bright Feet
Talk of Quik Brites reminds Dick and Leo of Bright Feet, the night slippers with headlights that light up as soon as you put them on, from Episode 73.

Tea Time Movie
Dick and Leo reminisce about Johnny Carson, the Tea Time Movie, the character Art Fern and the Matinee Lady played by Carol Wayne.  Here is a clip.



Funk and Wagnall's Porch
Dick and Leo have referred to something having been "hermetically sealed in a mayonnaise jar in Funk and Wagnalls' porch" a number of times now.  It's one of the lines that Ed McMahon used to say about the envelopes of questions which Carnac the Magnificent, another character played by Johnny Carson, would know the answers to before the envelopes were opened.  Funk and Wagnalls is a book publisher.  Here is a video clip of Carnac.


A Gadget to Remember
Toby Robinson thought the Zircon Repeater Tape Meaure (Episode 795) was a good idea, and told his wife Elaine about it, who was not impressed, as you would still have to remember the Zircon itself.  Trust the wife to ruin the fun.  What a killjoy!

A Name to Remember, Or Not
Toby also says that his last name is pronounced robe-in-son.  Tough, say Dick and Leo.  If Dr Mark Sukoenig has become Dr Forrester to Dick and Leo, Toby is lucky they're even calling him Toby.  He will remain a rob-in-son.


Listen to Episode 828
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The Z Bar Desk Lamp from CCrane has 66 LED lights, using only 9.6W, giving 112 lumens focused within a 50 degrees viewing angle.  The Z shape gives it flexibility while the weighted base gives it stability.  If your desk is too cramped, it comes with a desk clamp so that it doesn't take up more desk space.

TWiT: The Early Days
Leo explains the origin of the name TWiT.  When the old gang from G4/TechTV, including Leo, Patrick Norton, Kevin Rose, David Prager and Robert Heron, got together for the podcast, they originally called the show Revenge of the Screen Savers.  They soon got a cease and desist letter from G4.  Eventually they asked the listeners to make suggestions for the name, and the winning entrant would get a surprise box of stuff from Patrick's garage - the "box of crap".  Entries included Revenge Of The Green Saviours, SledgeCast, Saved By The Geeks, and This Week In Geek, the last of which was closest to what Leo wanted.  In the end Leo decided on This Week In Tech, shortened to the acronym TWiT which became the name of the site and his podcasting network.

For a summary of the early episodes of TWiT (0 to 9), you can get Episode 81 of TWiT: The Early Years.  It is a collection of tidbits from the podcasts (but not a best-of) outlining how the podcast evolved in the early days, badly put together by none other than myself, which I would have called TWiTbits.

TWiT Trademark
Leo has trademarked the brand TWiT for virtually all media, including audio, video, variety show and musical.  Leo's lawyer questioned Leo about his involvement in variety shows.  Of course we do variety shows.  The Daily Giz Wiz.  What about musicals?  The Daily Giz Wiz.  The only 4 media left are vinyl, cylinder, 8-track and wire recorder.

Just don't talk to Leo or Dane Golden about TWiT and Twitter.

Leo's Life Stories
Dick and Leo have often talked about Leo's autobiography and its title, the last time in Episode 812.  Tom Pruett has 3 ideas for Leo's book, all of which lend themselves easily to TV production as well.

The PodCouple - Leo Laporte has recently lost his job at TechTV.  Despondent, he wanders aimlessly until his friend Dick DeBartolo comes to the rescue and the two do a podcast together.  The trouble is Dick is neat and tidy and Leo is a slob ...

The PodFather - An aging patriarch of an organised podcasting dynasty, Leo Laporte, wants to transfer control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant friend Dick DeBartolo.  A story of power and greed, culminating in the Toothpick Bird and Spork Episodes.

Podman Begins - Explore the Podman legend and his emergence into a force for good.  A disillusioned tech journalist Leo Laporte travels the world seeking the means to fight injustice and to turn fear against those who prey on the fearful.  He comes back as his alter ego Podman, a mass crusader who uses his strength, intelligence and vast podcasting network to fight sinister forces.  Don't forget his butler, Leo adds, Dick TheBartolo.

MAD 500
MAD 500 is out, with retrospective looks into different parts of MAD Magazine's past issues (or episodes as Leo persists in calling them).  By MAD 502, Dick will have completed 40 years of unbroken contribution to every issue of MAD.  You can get MAD 500 along with the 2 Obama-cover issues as a collection autographed by Dick from MAD Stuff.


Listen to Episode 824
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The Rapid Edge from Rapid Tools is a utility knife/cutter with an LED light that comes on as soon as the blade is extended out.  The light helps illuminate the area you're cutting into, but also acts as a safety device, a visual warning that the blade is exposed.  The blade has a specially designed serrated edge which is supposed to keep the blade sharp for longer.

Rapid Shark
Another product from Rapid Tools is the Rapid Shark.  In addition to Rapid Tools' standard serrated edge, it has a wire cutter.



All in the Name of Duty
Last Saturday (25 April) was Petaluma's Butter and Eggs Day, and Leo had to miss the parade again, as he was performing his duty as a radio host on The Tech Guy.

The History of Petaluma
Leo explains the history of Petaluma.  In the 19th century, anti-semitic pograms in Russia under the Czar forced many Jews to leave and some of them who went to the US were set up with chicken farms in Petaluma, which at one time was the egg basket of the States and produced millions of eggs a day.  Today, the chicken and eggs business has changed, and what remains is a gourmet duck and chicken business.

All About Woot - Wii Wii
Ted Norris writes in about the Woot divisions, after Dick talked about the Woot T shirts in Episode 806.  There is woot.com which has a daily item with $5 shipping (up to 3 items).  There is shirt.woot.com, which sells a daily shirt for $10, with free shipping.  Then there is wine.woot.com which sells wine and wine accessories, also $5 shipping.  Finally there is sellout.woot.com.  Ted's favourite Deal of the Day was the Sony Playstation 3.  Woot asked, "Woot sells PS3?  Wii Wii !"  See Woot's Blog.  There is also the combo day and the occasional Woot Bag O' Crap (which gadget junkie and long-time listener Steve Miller wrote about in Episode 796).

The GizWiz Bag O' Crap
Dick of course has his own self-deprecatingly funny bag of crap, called the Ultimate Ludwik Package, now only 3 left.  Available at GizWizShopping.

Calisto Pro
Leo doesn't just listen.  He buys Dick's recommended stuff, the latest being the Plantronics Calisto Pro (Episode 803).


Listen to Episode 816
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Flashlight-er

Car Accesory/USB charger adapter

Link: theflashlighter.com

The cigarette lighter in the motor-car is now more useful as a power charger than lighter.  The Flashlight-er, apart from being a 3-LED flashlight, acts as an adapter that connects to the cigarette lighter and gives you a USB port for charging your USB devices.  There is also a Dual-Function model available which gives you both connections.

Do not confuse the Flashlight-er's website (which is www.theflashlighter.com) with another website www.flashlighter.com.  The album art embedded in the mp3 file for this episode's download has been taken from the wrong site, and is NOT the Flashlight-er (it's just a Kingston DataTraveler thumb drive).

Dick saw the Japanese Game Show Brain Wall (the North American version of which is called Hole In The Wall) and wondered how anyone could make a game show out of that idea.  Why not, if Leo can make a show out of pumping air into his fitness ball?  Dick thinks that Leo needs the Duracell Powerpack 450 (Episode 693) which includes an air compressor.  Leo remarks that he's got an air mattress in the TWiT Cottage that comes with its own pump, all ready for Dick when he next visits Petaluma.

In Episode 799 Leo joked about writing out cheques in crayon.  It turns out that it wasn't so absurd after all.  David from Durham, North Carolina, used to deliver pizzas in the 1990's, and one of the styles of cheques you could order from banks in those days had all the blanks printed out as if they had been drawn by a child in crayons.

Dick tells the story of a big row he had with Bill Gaines over one of Dick's smaller Christmas bonuses, which got Duck Edwing really worried.  He also fought with Sergio Aragones over a beach chair during a MAD vacation.  Just snippets of Dick's practical jokes.