11 posts tagged “video game”

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:

Link: Weather Direct

Weather Direct by La Crosse Technology makes a huge catalogue of weather stations with a whole range of different functions, which Dick first talked about in Episode 501, after CES 2008.  The WD-3103 is described as a 4-Day Internet-Powered Wireless Forecaster.  Hook up the Secure Weather Gateway to your router, and 24-hour weather information on your chosen location (from a choice of 60,000 locations) will be sent wirelessly (up to 330 feet) to the display unit.  Also included is the TX-50U wireless temperature sensor which sits in your backyard or garden and keeps track of your own outdoor temperature.

No subscription is required for weather information on one selected location.  There are subscription packages if you want to receive forecasts alerts or severe wether alerts, or just add 4 more monitored locations.  You can also check whether there is a location near you from Weather Direct's list of locations.

The WD-3103 is available on Amazon, which means one-click trigger-happy Leo has ordered it through his membership of Amazon Prime.  Leo has to ask TWiT intern Abby Laporte, who is around in the studio, to stop him by slapping him hard.  This obsessive buying reminds Dick of Bill Gaines.  When Bill learned from Dick that the Casio TE2500 Dictionary Watch (Episode 45) was available at a reduced price, he thought it was a great bargain and bought one for everyone at MAD.

Today, Leo and Henry will be heading to Tokyo on Northwest Airlines Flight 27, en route to his China Tour.  Leo is most looking forward to seeing the Forbidden City in Beijing, which commoners were prohibited from entering, in China's imperial days.

Kung Fu star David Carradine, who played Kwai Chang Caine aka Grasshopper in the show, passed away on 3 June 2009.  This reminds Dick of a MAD magazine parody of Kung Fu, featuring "Mosquito" who chose a blade of grass over a sack of gold, and got slammed by his master.  Hence the title of the satire - Kung Fool.  Check out collectmad.com and look for Issue 164 in January 1974.

Leo had the privilege of visiting the Skywalker Ranch, courtesy of Greg Edmonson and Alan Steinberger, composer and arranger respectively for the sci-fi TV series Firefly, to watch them work with a 70-piece orchestra who were recording music for the PS3 game Uncharted 2.  Leo interviewed them on TWiTLive on 10 June 2009, video at odtv.me.  Those of us who are less fortunate than Leo would have to content ourselves with watching the virtual tours of the Skywalker Ranch, at Skysound.com.

This is the 3rd letter about Episode 844.  John Paradox, a parody writer for the Daily Giz Wiz (see Episode 520), reminds Dick and Leo, who were wondering what Titanic musicals there were, about the Unsinkable Molly Brown, which was first a musical, and then a film.

Jeff Lundberg, from Northville, Michigan and long-time listener since Episode 1, has another suggestion for the TWiT Home Office.  Dick and Leo have already got Kalamazoo, but how about Hell, Michigan?  For souvenirs from Hell, try hell2u.com.

Leo looks in fine fettle these days, not because of his new super duper glasses, his new eyeliner, or his new wig, but because he has been working out and improving his balance on the Wii Fit.  Since the Wii came out, Leo has never found the urge to buy it, but one day the "little woman", or the wee bonnie lass aka Jennifer Laporte, decided that she wanted the Wii Fit.  The Wii Fit is a video game played on the Nintendo Wii.  It's a balance board on which you improve your balance and fitness through different games and exercises such as yoga, skiing, soccer heading, hula hoop.

Leo still feels that the Wii is not for serious gamers but not a bad idea for casual gamers like Jennifer, or as a fun family or social game.

Butter And Eggs Parade
Leo is going to suggest to the Committee a Wii Fit Brigade float.

Wining the Lottery
Leo searches desperately under his desk for a letter and manages to find a letter from Dennis Payot, Senior from Glide, Oregon.  Dennis has bookmarked many gadgets, and one day, when he wins the lottery, he will get round to buying them.  Dick and Leo wonders if Ludwik has a running total of the costs of buying all the DGW gadgets.

Dennis thanks Leo for his TTTT recommendation of the CCrane Wifi Internet Radio in Episode 712.  His wife works in the Far East and after work she can listen to radio stations from her home country, while he listens to hockey games from Canada.  And as long as the TWiT Network is there, in the famous words of Dick, "I'll be here."

Leo's Mexican cleaning lady is not so impressed, though, as Leo has yet to find a radio station she likes.

Wifi Radio for Mama Laporte
Leo finally decided to choose the CCrane Wifi Radio for Mama Laporte (see Episode 747), who can now listen to the audio feed from TWiTLive.  Leo listens to BBC Radio 3 a lot, and wakes up to Ancient FM.


Listen to Episode 772
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page

In 1997, Tiger Electronics released game.com, a hand-held video game console.  It had 2 game cartridge slots on either side, and what's more, had some PDA functions, such as calendar and phone book.  The screen was a touch screen, had 192 x 160 pixels resolution and only 4 shades of grey.  There was an even smaller, pocket version, which was more expensive.  Games included Scrabble, Wheel of Fortune and Lights Out.

What was pretty unusual was it had an internet connection accessory, a 14.4 kbps modem with which you could send emails via Tiger Electronics' site.



Match Game Moments
Tomorrow on Saturday 29 November, Dick will be live on Stickam with Match Game Moments at 8 pm EST.


Recording TWiTLive
Robert Taylor, who thought the Painters' Pyramids were dice used by the Luxor Hotel in Vegas (Episode 633), would like to know if it's possible to record TWiTLive.  You can access screen captures of the shows on odtv.me (thanks to kiwinerd and others).  If you want to do it yourself, try Camtasia, or Applian's Replay Capture for recording streaming video.

Or try the re-runs, although there are no published schedules for the re-run shows (which may include surprises such as the recent showing of an old episode of the Screen Savers, from Dan Hendricks, one of Leoville's chatroom moderators).

Turn-The-Tables-Tuesday

Inspired by Dick's gadget yesterday, Leo introduces the Gene Simmons Axe.  A ¾-size replica of the original Axe of the bass guitarist and vocalist of Kiss, it is a game controller made by Kobian USA for playing Rock Band and Guitar Hero on Playstation 2 and Playstation 3, with all the standard game controls.  It plays wirelessly (up to 30 feet) or directly plugged into the USB port of the game console.



The PS2 and PS3 version will be released on 15 November 2008.  Versions for the Nintendo Wii and XBox 360 are expected towards the end of the year and early next year.

Gene Simmons's long tongue not included.



Looking Under the Desk
Leo spent in long time during the recording figuring out this week's gadget for TTTT (hence Dick's remark that Leo searched for almost one month).  The Rovio was not ready yet, the Epson P7000 had been done; so had the Toothpick Bird.  Then he was about to embark on the aTV Patchstick, but fortunately the Chatroom realised that it had also been covered.  Finally Leo picked the Axe.

In Flanders Fields ...
... the poppies blow, between the crosses, row on row ... Today is Veterans' Day, or Armistice Day, commemorating the armistice signed between the Allies and Germany and the end of WWI on 11 November 1918.

One Good Turn Deserves Another
Dr Mark Moran, a lasic surgery specialist who has emailed a picture of himself and his nurses in the operating theatre all wearing GizWizBiz Caps, has received the gift certificates for 3 iPods for him and his nurses (who aren't nurses, but members of his staff) from Leo, with thanks.  Anxious to restore faith in a cynical anaesthesiologist who thought that he would never see an iPod, Dr Moran has made a generous donation to the TWiT network.  For the history of this happy exchange, revisit Episode 683 and Episode 691.

So, one good turn deserves another, and more.  Leo has just got an email from a fan who has an old Mac Cube he'd like to send over to Leo (who famously bought a Cube the day before Apple announced its end of life).  Another fan who does animatronics wants to take an animatronic model (of Leo?), like Abraham Lincoln in Disneyland, to the TWiT Cottage in person.  Now Leo can do TWiTLive 24/7.



Listen to Episode 697
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page

After being told by Leo that he uses Plantronics headsets for his guests and co-hosts on TWiT podcasts (Episode 652), Dick went to check out Plantronics, and learned about the new GameCom 777 Surround Sound Gaming Headset.  It gives you 5.1 Dolby surround sound via the USB sound card (which you can disconnect in case you need analogue sound).  Noise-cancellation mic boom, inline volume and mute control.  Dick can vouch for the quality of the sound you hear through the earpods, but the sound produced through the mic is not as good as the Logitech Clearchat Headset (Episodes 401, 596) which Dick has been using for the show.

Money Matters
Leo has sold his entire stock portfolio in protection of his retirement fund, while Dick has learned to abstain from checking the value of his stock.

GoToMeeting ...
... is back (after Episode 613).  For a free one-month trial, go to www.gotomeeting.com/gizwiz.

Caution against the Smart Car
Cory Klimonsky, who has lived in Germany for 12 years and has had experience with the Smart Car (discussed in Episode 661), warns Leo about it.  It's a joint operation by Mercedes and Swatch, and the car is so small that sitting inside it, he looks like Lurch from the Addams Family.  All the panels are changeable, and so you can change the colour of the car easily (or mix and match, as Dick has seen).  Leo has already put down his $99 for the convertible Cabriolet which he has reserved for Abby, but is open to dissuasion.  Meanwhile, he can take comfort from the following crash test video on YouTube:



One Way Passage to Petaluma
Dick was watching Turner Classics Movies and stumbled upon the old black and white film One Way Passage.  Dick was much amused when, towards the end of the film, the cop expresses the desire to retire in his chicken ranch in Petaluma, the then chicken and egg capital of the United States!


Listen to Episode 666
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page

The Speaking Spelling Bee from Franklin is a handheld game station with a qwerty keyboard, for playing spelling games.  You can compete against the machine itself, or against your friends (up to 6 players).  It also has a Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Thesaurus and Rhyming Dictionary.  For children ages 8 upwards.

Happy Birthday
... to Henry Laporte who turns 14 today.  Dick wonders what Henry is getting for his birthday, which explains his expressionless face resembling those depicted in Grant Wood's painting American Gothic.  Henry is getting, with the help of Colleen, a skateboard made of aircraft aluminium, and Corinthian leather, just like the Chrysler Cordova, as advertised by Ricardo Montalban.

A Family Affair
The Epistle of the Day is from Brian Drake again, of Gallatin, Tennessee.  Jennifer Laporte thinks the slogan "The worse your life is, the better we sound" terrible.  Since she is a mental health professional, she should start treating listeners of DGW.


Listen to Episode 645
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page

Dick saw this gadget at the Marine Aftermarket Trade Show at Las Vegas.  The CoolHut is the equivalent of the Swiss Army Knife for a backpack.  Ideal for the beach or camping.  It has a cooler with a 24-can capacity, a tray for sandwiches, ....



... , a waterproof awning big enough to shade the "ground lounge" of 50 sq. ft . area with UV protection, complete with 2 lounge chairs, and an amplifier and speakers for the iPod.  A higher model, called the CoolerHut, includes Inflatable cushions.



Following the Party Line

Floss Weekly co-host, DGW fan and regular correspondent Randal Schwartz has a story to tell about a "party line" (Episode 614).  Alex, a friend of his, lived in a house in the late 70's with a party line.  Alex loved playing online games on his 300-baud modem connection, and had to wait until the line was free.  One day, Randal and Alex wanted to play a game and picked up the phone to check the line.  They overheard a neighbour say, when asked if they could be overheard on a party line, that all you could hear when the line was engaged, was a series of clicks - the classic noise of Alex's modem.


Listen to Episode 623
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page

The Handler is essentially a hook to avoid contact with door handles.  Capable of 60 lbs of pull, the hook of the handler is made of Nano Slivers which kills the most common types of germs.

Germ-o-phobic
Howie Mandel is one of those, and when Dick first met him, they shook hands by knocking closed knuckles.  Another Howard, Howard Hughes, was famous for his fear of germs.

Old Time Candy
Tony Devito writes in, not about gadgets, but about Old Time Candy.  Leo knows about the website and thinks he may have talked about it on Munchcast with Cammy Blackstone.  In fact, it was Dick and Leo themselves who talked about it, at the start of Episode 308.

Listen to Episode 476
Go to TWiT
Read Dick's Write-Up

The Norcent XIAS DCS-760 is a 7MP digital camera, 16MB internal memory, uses SD card, 3x optical zoom (37.5mm to 112.5mm) on a Pentax lens, with different white balance settings and picture taking modes, 2.5" LCD screen, ISO 50-400, video resolution up to 640x480 at 30 fps, voice memo function.  Uses 2 AA batteries.  Available at Wal-Mart.

Mattel Football 1
John Woody Woodward has just got from eBay (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dick's Gadget Warehouse, says John) the hand-held Mattel Football 1 (from 1977), as a Christmas present for his children.

Listen to Episode 474
Go to TWiT
Read Dick's Write-Up