54 posts tagged “radio”

The SPI Shower Radio is a water-resistant radio for use in the bathroom.  It has an FM radio, 2 small speakers, and a liquid crystal analogue clock (an analogue dial using liquid crystal display), and an anti-fog mirror for shaving and grooming.  It comes with an FM transmitter to plug in your MP3 player (or any audio source with a headphone jack), for transmitting audio from within 50 feet to the bathroom.

If, like Tim from southern Australia (Episode 47), you want to listen to the Daily Giz Wiz in the shower, this Shower Radio is the one for you.

Born To Kvetch
Peggy Grant is a telecommuter and like Tim, she listens to the show every morning, which gets her off to a great start.  She has an Audible book to recommend, Born To Kvetch by Michael Wex, all about Yiddish culture.

DrMom on Yiddish
After Leo botches the pronunciation of "kvetch", chatroom stalwart DrMom (or Dr Lillian Banchik) decides it's time for a lesson in Yiddish for Leo.  She calls in on Skype and explains, among other things, the difference between a shlemiel and a shlimazel.  Leo gets it immediately.  The shlemiel is the hapless one who spills the soup; the shlimazel is the luckless one who gets the soup all over his lap.  We get it too: on TTTT, Leo is the shlemiel and Dick is the shlimazel.  Watch the clip here in which Dr Mom expounds the intricacies of the Yiddish language (video from odtv.me):

Listen to Episode 878
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Another gadget from the National Hardware Show, the Permaflow is a P-Trap made from ABS plastic with a paddle wheel inside.  The plastic is transparent so you can see through it.  In normal usage, the water pressure will push the paddle wheel round for normal drainage.  If you see something getting stuck inside the drain, you can turn the knob from outside to force the waste through with water running, or use it to help retrieve something (where the Alligetter in Episode 716 might prove handy).  There is also a bypass mode which helps drainage flow even when something is stuck inside the P-Trap.


Internet Meltdown
Apparently all of New York is suffering from a bad internet connection while Dick and Leo are recording for this session.  Leo has to give up Dick's video on TWiTLive.

1000 Episodes and More
Dick and Leo are looking forward to Episode 1000, but Bill Allen knows another podcast which reached Episode 1000 on 13 June 2008.  It's History According to Bob, a history podcast by Bob Packett.  But does he have any jingles?

A companion to yesterday's Wonder Wash, the Mini Countertop Spin Dryer spin-dry your laundry (2.2 lbs dry laundry capacity) in 2 to 3 minutes, ready for ironing, or hang-drying.  Unlike the Wonder Wash, this does use electric power (82W).  Portable as well, 15" x 13.5" x 13.5".

Play for MAD 500
Today's the last day for Dick's WTHII contest.  We're playing for MAD 500.

Bringing down a Site, Live
When Leo did the Screen Savers, any mention of a website on the live show used to bring the site down.  It's now happening all over again with TWiTLive, but not when you use SquareSpace.

Refrigerator LED Light
John Fiedler from The Woodlands, Texas may not be a huge gadget fanatic by GizWiz standards, but shares with the crew certain gadget fascinations, such as flashlights, radios and LED lights.  Recently his 20-year-old refrigerator finally broke down.  He was surprised to find that the GE Profile Series uses an array of LED lights.  The conventional 40W incandescent bulb has been replaced by a blue LED.  Opening a fridge has never felt so comforting.

The Fixer
Leo is not exactly a handyman when it comes to fixing things like the microwave, as he has no tools, only a butter knife.  When he needs a butter knife, it's always in the garage and he uses his tongue (cf Jackie Mason, says Leo).  But when it comes to fixing a computer, he's a magician, as Dick witnessed in person while doing the Screen Savers.

What A Scandal
Leo confesses that although he has a Toothpick Bird (Episode 282), he's never owned a Spork (Episode 182) all his life.  What a scandal !

Cleaning Up after TWiT
Leo and his TWiT crew had a ball doing This Week In Tech two Sundays ago.  Wine, women, song and a lot of cleaning up after himself.

TWiT Shirts
During the intermission just before this episode, Dane Golden shows Dick some of the new shirts made for the TWiT network.  No word that they're available to fans, presumably just for the TWiT staff?  TWiT T-shirts, designed by Lori LeBeau Walsh (who designs the Album Art for the TWiT netcasts) are available, though, from Art and Tech Tees.



Listen to Episode 819
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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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Dick acquired this portable cassette player recorder in about 1991.  The AIWA HS-JX707 was released between 1991 and 1993 as a high-end product, had an all metal casing, and used the then common rechargeable lead acid batteries (although it used the also common AAA battery screw-on compartment).  By 1991, the Walkman-style cassette player was already in decline, but that didn't stop AIWA from jamming this gadget with features, including an external microphone for recording, wired remote, AM/FM tuner with 10 memory presets, and other sound enhancements (all with abbreviations or acronyms that make little sense to Dick now), with numerous controls on the case.


As Dick observes, little can be found on the internet about this cassette player recorder, except on auction sites (many in Asia).  According to this Chinese website, some of the acronyms mean:

BBE - BBE High Definition Sound - a sound technology developed by a company called BBE Sound Inc (tempting as it is to think it's bass boost or boom bass enhancement).  The HS-JX707 offered 2 levels of BBE.  [By the way, "BBE" stands for the original company name Barcus-Berry Electronics, with which musicians may be more familiar.]

DSL - Dynamic Super Linear Bass - a bass enhancement technology developed by AIWA itself

PLSS - Personal Listening Sound System - Then, as now, people blasted music into their own ears which also annoyingly leaked through the earbuds, especially the high frequency sounds.  In those days, people cared, and AIWA developed the PLSS which, when turned on, reduced such leakage, so that those around you wouldn't need to "wow and flutter" when you listened to Leo's falsetto.

Dolby NR - Dolby Noise Reduction System (with a choice of Dolby B or Dolby C!)

Automatic Daily-Theme Ringtone Switcher for Windows Mobile
Dennis Wright from Manchester, England (Episodes 606, 724) wants to use the daily theme from his favourite podcast as the ringtone for each day of the week on his Windows Mobile phone.  Not easy if you want the phone to switch automatically, so Dennis has written some computer code to accomplish the feat, and published the full instructions on his site "Hasta la vista, Vista!" (or snipurl.com/dailyringtone), including the program and theme files.  Now Dick is ready to take over the world.

"We salute you!" say Dick and Leo.  Leo wonders if the salute was from Dan Rowan's Laugh-In.

Giz Wiz Stuff
Dick's "Here's Mad In Your Eye" has quickly sold out, but you can get Dick's "Good Days And Mad" for $18 at BuyMadStuff, or one of his GizWizBiz Cap at Giz Wiz Shopping.

Another find from CES 2009, the iCap MP3 Player is a specially constructed baseball cap with an MP3 Player slotted into a cut-out in the front flap of the cap.  The package comes with a clip for attaching the MP3 player to your own cap or elsewhere.

The MP3 player comes with 1GB storage, a microSD card slot for expansion, FM tuner, and built-in speakers (with surround sound).  The idea is you don't need to listen to it through the earphones, which may save your life in certin circumstances.  It is detachable and can be used as a stand-alone player too, and you can also listen to it with your earphones (which are also included).  It has a buillt-in microphone for voice recording.  The rechargeable Lithium polymer battery is replaceable, and the player supports MP3 and WMA (including Windows Media DRM-9 and DRM-10 files).  The stand-alone player weighs about 2.65 ounces.

Dick thinks that a combination of the iCap, the Cell-Mate (Episode 744) and the nPower PEG (Episode 748) from yesterday would look great, if you could survive the dorkdom.  Dick isn't going to walk down the streets of New York "with his head playing".

A Political Scientist at TWiT
Leo was earlier broadcasting the feed of Barack Obama's Inauguration when he discovered that Dane Golden, a major in policital science, knew who all the politicians were.  Little did Leo know that Dane was just bluffing him.

The Letters C, H and P
Stefan from Sweden and Jeremy on the TWiT Army write in to explain the letters C, H, and P for APS film's different aspect ratios (Episode 745).  They also point out that you could decide which aspect ratio you wanted, when you had the Advantix rolls of film developed into prints.

A Bout of Amnesia
At the beginning of this recording session, Dick and Leo thought that they had already recorded Episode 749, and so started with Episode 750, a Gadget Warehouse Friday show.  A little bird tipped off Dane Golden who told Leo about the missing Episode 749.  Dick then realised that he thought he had done it because he had earlier talked about the iCap on Leo's radio show - which drew a complete blank from Leo.


Listen to Episode 749
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The Coby MP305 is what an MP3 player used to be: on a USB stick with a simple LCD display with backlight.  USB2, plays MP3 and WMA files (and DRM support for WMDRM10), FM Tuner.  Uses one AAA battery, 8 hours of play time.  7 colours of backlighting to pick from.  Choice of 1, 2 and 4 GB.  Dick has the 2 GB version.  From the Coby site, you get a link to a 14-day free trial on eMusic too.

Low Vision Glasses
The Beam Scope in Episode 735 got Dick and Leo to talk about Fresnel lenses and low vision glasses.  Dr Mark Sukoenig writes in to tell us that those low vision glasses are for patients with macular degeneration.  Dick and Leo tell us that Fresnel lenses are used in traffic lights and lighthouses too.


Listen to Episode 739
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Turn-The-Tables-Tuesday

Leo was thinking of doing an update on the Chumby (Episode 456), which he might still do.  Thanks to sunkenplanet in the chatroom, Leo is reminded of a gadget he's been using recently, CCrane Radio's CC Wifi Radio.  With this "radio", you can access over 14,000 internet radio stations and streams, either via a hard-wired Cat 5e ethernet cable or Wifi (b or g, supporting WEP, WPA and WPA2).  Supported audio file formats include MP3, AAC, WMA, AU, AIFF, WAV and RealAudio.  99 presets, IR Remote Control.

You can browse for stations, arranged alphabetically, by Genre or Location.  To add you own Station or Stream not already on the Wifi Radio, you can set up an account at Reciva and register your CC Wifi Radio, then make additions to "My Stations" and "My Streams".  The new additions will then appear and can be accessed on your Wifi Radio.

The firmware is upgradable.

Wait For Dick
Dick has to answer the door, for a UPS delivery.  It's a Belkin box, which Dick will open tomorrow for another "What's In The Box?" session.

Leo has been pretty quick coming up with the Wait For Dick jingle the last few occasions.  There is hope yet that one day he may become tech-savvy.

GizWiz Video
Ludwik has asked Leo for permission to put the video recording for each episode on GizWizSearch.com.  He might do the capture himself, or use the streams captured by kiwinerd and others, lower-res versions of which are available on odtv.me.  Follow his progress on the TWiT Army.  Meanwhile, go to odtv.me for the weekly recording (in one whole chunk).


Listen to Episode 712
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After the Toiletry Sheets (Episode 689), Dick introduces another of Travelon's products, the Luggage Scale with Tape Measure.  The airlines have yet again reduced not only the baggage allowance but also the total linear measurement.  So the tape measure would come in handy, too.  The scale comes with a hook from which to hang the suitcase for weighing.  The scale has a memory lock which locks the indicator at the measured weight for easy reading.  That's why the scale is also called "Stop and Lock".

And don't try Leo's trick of weighing himself with and without the suitcase and subtracting one from the other.  The scale's capacity is only 75 lbs.

Thanksgiving Eve
Dick is going to make his pineapple upside down cake again.  For his recipe, take a look at the classic cookbook Joy Of Cooking and just double up the amount of butter and brown sugar for the topping.

A Tale From the Tunnel
Dick has an old tale to tell about a trailer truck which was too high for the Holland Tunnel and got stuck.  A little boy had a brilliant solution.  Don't saw off the top.  Just let the tyres out!

Air Tickets form 1983
Recently unearthed from Dick's Gadget Warehouse are air tickets from 1983, from New York to Miami, and to Oakland.

That Blinking Idiot
While recording the show, Leo notices a blinking light behind Dick (near the top right corner of the screen), and Dick can't work out what it was.  But the chatroom works it out.  It's the flashing cursor of Leo's mouse on his Skype video screen.

Stromberg Carlson TV Sets
Dick and Leo find out that Stromberg Carlson, apart from the Candlestick telephone that jammerb gave Leo (Episode 696), used to make radio and television sets as well.  Leo also uncovers an advertisement from 1950 on TV History.


Apocalyptic Waste
Software developer Michael O'Connor (Lepton in the Chatroom and the TWiT Army), who has followed Leo since the days of "The Site" (see Episode 187), plays Fallout 3 on the PS3 and finds, among the apocalyptic waste and wreckage in Washington DC, a spork (Episode 182), which he uses on his rocket launcher - which can do serious damage.  Michael has recently developed an iPhone app called AirMote which has found its way to the iTunes App Store.


Listen to Episode 708
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