9 posts tagged “voyager”
T-Mobile G1
Smartphone
Link: T-Mobile G1
As hinted at in Episode 673 and last week, Dick and Leo finally talk about T-Mobile's G1. Made by HTC, the G1 is the first phone featuring Google's open-source smartphone operating system Android.
It has bluetooth, wifi, GPS (though not turn-by-turn), 512 MB built-in memory, although it has an microSD card slot and comes with a 1GB card; a back-lit qwerty keyboard (which is revealed by sliding out the screen) and a replaceable battery; a 3.2MP camera, but like the iPhone, it does not shoot video, and like the iPhone it does not support Flash on the internet. Unlike the iPhone, it supports voice dialling and "cut and paste".
Physically, it weighs just under 6 ounces. At the bottom is a panel of buttons: a big Menu button, underneath which at the centre is a trackball (for navigation and as a select button). To the left of the trackball are the "Call/Send" button and the "Home" button; to the right of the trackball are the "Back" and "Hangup/Power" buttons.
On the left hand side of the phone is a Volume toggle, and on the right hand side the camera button. For the earphones, unfortunately it's a microUSB connection and you'll need an adapter for your 3.5mm jack earphones.
The display is 3.2 inches at 480 x 320 resolution, with a capacitive touch-screen. It does not support multi-touch, but does support long presses (through which you get a context menu including "cut and paste"). It has an accelerometer and is supposed to adjust itself to Portrait/Landscape mode, at least when the qwerty keyboard is open.
Since Android is open-source, many applications are expected to come out supporting the platform, and will not be filtered as in the case of the iPhone. You can access the apps from the Android "Market", and Google will tell you in relation to each app what types of access the app may have on the phone - such as communications, your location and your personal information.
The phone comes with the standard Google apps, such as Gmail, Contacts, Calendar, and like the iPhone, offers a mobile version of YouTube. If you don't use Gmail, there is another mail application. Unfortunately, this other mail app cannot open attachments (which Gmail can by HTML conversion), nor save them. The IM app supports major instant messengers such as AIM, Windows Live, Yahoo and of course Google Talk. Like Google's desktop browser the Chrome, the Android browser is WebKit-based. Another app that comes with the phone is AmazonMP3, with access to Amazon's DRM-free mp3 downloads - which only works with Wifi, and not 3G or Edge. The phone also has its own music player software.
At the moment, the phone is available in T-Mobile stores only in cities which has T-Mobile's 3G coverage.
Favourite Episodes
In Episode 679, Dick and Leo were asked if they had a list of their 20 favourite/funniest episodes. Ludwik Trammer of gizwizsearch can answer for them. Search queries on his site show which episodes are most frequently accessed - 182 Titanium Spork, 465 Electron Echo Piano, 462 MP4 Watch, and of course 282 Toothpick Bird.
Ludwik also tells us that the accumulative length of all the DGW shows now exceeds 7 days.
One More Thing
Ludwik is going to introduce a new feature on his site. In fact it is already operational. Just go to his site and see if you can spot the difference. Otherwise, just wait for an announcement through Dick and Leo in tomorrow's recording session, or in next week's episodes.
Video Podcasts To Wait
The last time Leo talked about video podcasts (with hopes of getting DGW on video) was Episode 671. Unfortunately, with the economic downturn, Leo has decided to be a little more prudent, and maybe putting that on hold, although he may still put out a weekly "best of" video podcast.
Second Longest Episode
At 31:03, today's show is the second longest episode, just 12 seconds short of Episode 634, the Lexmark X9575 Professional.
Listen to Episode 686
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
It has bluetooth, wifi, GPS (though not turn-by-turn), 512 MB built-in memory, although it has an microSD card slot and comes with a 1GB card; a back-lit qwerty keyboard (which is revealed by sliding out the screen) and a replaceable battery; a 3.2MP camera, but like the iPhone, it does not shoot video, and like the iPhone it does not support Flash on the internet. Unlike the iPhone, it supports voice dialling and "cut and paste".
Physically, it weighs just under 6 ounces. At the bottom is a panel of buttons: a big Menu button, underneath which at the centre is a trackball (for navigation and as a select button). To the left of the trackball are the "Call/Send" button and the "Home" button; to the right of the trackball are the "Back" and "Hangup/Power" buttons.
On the left hand side of the phone is a Volume toggle, and on the right hand side the camera button. For the earphones, unfortunately it's a microUSB connection and you'll need an adapter for your 3.5mm jack earphones.
The display is 3.2 inches at 480 x 320 resolution, with a capacitive touch-screen. It does not support multi-touch, but does support long presses (through which you get a context menu including "cut and paste"). It has an accelerometer and is supposed to adjust itself to Portrait/Landscape mode, at least when the qwerty keyboard is open.
Since Android is open-source, many applications are expected to come out supporting the platform, and will not be filtered as in the case of the iPhone. You can access the apps from the Android "Market", and Google will tell you in relation to each app what types of access the app may have on the phone - such as communications, your location and your personal information.
The phone comes with the standard Google apps, such as Gmail, Contacts, Calendar, and like the iPhone, offers a mobile version of YouTube. If you don't use Gmail, there is another mail application. Unfortunately, this other mail app cannot open attachments (which Gmail can by HTML conversion), nor save them. The IM app supports major instant messengers such as AIM, Windows Live, Yahoo and of course Google Talk. Like Google's desktop browser the Chrome, the Android browser is WebKit-based. Another app that comes with the phone is AmazonMP3, with access to Amazon's DRM-free mp3 downloads - which only works with Wifi, and not 3G or Edge. The phone also has its own music player software.
At the moment, the phone is available in T-Mobile stores only in cities which has T-Mobile's 3G coverage.
Favourite Episodes
In Episode 679, Dick and Leo were asked if they had a list of their 20 favourite/funniest episodes. Ludwik Trammer of gizwizsearch can answer for them. Search queries on his site show which episodes are most frequently accessed - 182 Titanium Spork, 465 Electron Echo Piano, 462 MP4 Watch, and of course 282 Toothpick Bird.
Ludwik also tells us that the accumulative length of all the DGW shows now exceeds 7 days.
One More Thing
Ludwik is going to introduce a new feature on his site. In fact it is already operational. Just go to his site and see if you can spot the difference. Otherwise, just wait for an announcement through Dick and Leo in tomorrow's recording session, or in next week's episodes.
Video Podcasts To Wait
The last time Leo talked about video podcasts (with hopes of getting DGW on video) was Episode 671. Unfortunately, with the economic downturn, Leo has decided to be a little more prudent, and maybe putting that on hold, although he may still put out a weekly "best of" video podcast.
Second Longest Episode
At 31:03, today's show is the second longest episode, just 12 seconds short of Episode 634, the Lexmark X9575 Professional.
Listen to Episode 686
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Southwing SH241
Bluetooth Headset
Link: Southwing
Available in the US only at A T & T stores, the Southwing SH241 is another bluetooth headset in a crowded market. Special features include automatic call pick-up, "Whisper Mode", in which the headset will whisper the incoming telephone number to you to see if you want to take it (the BlueAnt Supertooth Light from Episode 362 has a similar feature). You can also listen in while a caller is leaving a voice mail. It's also hooked up to A T & T's Voice Info for the weather, stock reports etc.
Rock That Ball !
As Dick observes, there's nothing Leo does that doesn't end up as a podcast. Leo's trainer Al Scardino does a show called TWiT Fit every Thursday at 1 p.m. Pacifc time on TWiTLive. Meanwhile, Leo continues to rock his Gophersport Ultrafit No-Burst Stability Ball (Episode 322), which goes ... "Round and round, and round it goes; Where it stops, nobody knows." Like magic.
"I Am Incensed !!"
More on the DGW commercials. Bruce Horn, Media Computing Systems Analyst/Administrator at University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), is incensed. "Here you've been giving us the best, the funniest, the most informative pocast anywhere for the past few years," Bruce writes, " ... but the nerve of you wanting to get paid at least a little something for what you do! Just to provide me with free entertainment? ..." It turns out that Leo, whose father used to teach at UCSC, knows Bruce Horn.
Listen to Episode 659
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Rock That Ball !
As Dick observes, there's nothing Leo does that doesn't end up as a podcast. Leo's trainer Al Scardino does a show called TWiT Fit every Thursday at 1 p.m. Pacifc time on TWiTLive. Meanwhile, Leo continues to rock his Gophersport Ultrafit No-Burst Stability Ball (Episode 322), which goes ... "Round and round, and round it goes; Where it stops, nobody knows." Like magic.
"I Am Incensed !!"
More on the DGW commercials. Bruce Horn, Media Computing Systems Analyst/Administrator at University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), is incensed. "Here you've been giving us the best, the funniest, the most informative pocast anywhere for the past few years," Bruce writes, " ... but the nerve of you wanting to get paid at least a little something for what you do! Just to provide me with free entertainment? ..." It turns out that Leo, whose father used to teach at UCSC, knows Bruce Horn.
Listen to Episode 659
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Pentax Optio W60
Underwater Digital Camera
Link: Pentax
A digital camera built for underwater photography, the Pentax Optio W60 operates up to 13 feet underwater, at subzero temperatures (down to 14°F, or about -9°C). 10M pixel sensor, 5x zoom (internal zoom) starting at wide angle 28mm, 720p HD video, Macro capture up to 1 cm, up to ISO1600 (or ISO6400 at 5M reduced resolution), image stabilisation, face detection. Comes in silver or ocean blue.
For photography in deeper waters, check out the Liquid Image Underwater Digital Camera Mask Model 302 (Episode 484) - up to 30 meters. For an underwater camcorder, see the Sanyo Xacti E1/VPC-CA65 (Episode 348).
Sleeping-In Sunday Theme
Robert Hounton has sent in a theme for Sleeping-In Sunday, after another listener's suggestion in Episode 624. Unfortunately neither Dick nor Leo can play the file.
Flipper the Dolphin
From Flickr to Flippr, to Flipper the Dolphin, learn all about uploading your photos, and the 1960's TV series.
Dick on Audible?
Audible is now part of Amazon, and their charter is every book on Audible. Perhaps they can get Dick to do Good Days And Mad.
PalmPilot
Daniel Bersteiner writes in response to Episode 590, the Palm Pilot. He has been using a Palm device for 12 years, upgrading from one to another, with his current one being the Palm Treo, which has data which he entered 12 years ago.
Old-Timers
Who is Abbe Lane? What about Xavier Cugat? Listen to Dick's story about his encounter with Abbe Lane, and an interesting quote from Dolly Parton.
Longest Episode
This show overtakes Episode 291 (The Smart Cab) as the longest episode so far.
Listen to Episode 628
Go To TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
For photography in deeper waters, check out the Liquid Image Underwater Digital Camera Mask Model 302 (Episode 484) - up to 30 meters. For an underwater camcorder, see the Sanyo Xacti E1/VPC-CA65 (Episode 348).
Sleeping-In Sunday Theme
Robert Hounton has sent in a theme for Sleeping-In Sunday, after another listener's suggestion in Episode 624. Unfortunately neither Dick nor Leo can play the file.
From Flickr to Flippr, to Flipper the Dolphin, learn all about uploading your photos, and the 1960's TV series.
Dick on Audible?
Audible is now part of Amazon, and their charter is every book on Audible. Perhaps they can get Dick to do Good Days And Mad.
PalmPilot
Daniel Bersteiner writes in response to Episode 590, the Palm Pilot. He has been using a Palm device for 12 years, upgrading from one to another, with his current one being the Palm Treo, which has data which he entered 12 years ago.
Old-Timers
Who is Abbe Lane? What about Xavier Cugat? Listen to Dick's story about his encounter with Abbe Lane, and an interesting quote from Dolly Parton.
Longest Episode
This show overtakes Episode 291 (The Smart Cab) as the longest episode so far.
Listen to Episode 628
Go To TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Instinct
Touch-Screen SmartPhone
Link: Samsung Instinct
Turn-The-Tables-Tuesday
Sprint doesn't have the iPhone but it offers the Samsung Instinct, another touchscreen smartphone. Features include turn-by-turn GPS, live TV on Sprint's fast and extensive 3G coverage, voice dialing, java applications and haptic response on the touch screen. Comes with a 2GB microSD card for storage.
No Letters from Leo
Leo again doesn't have a letter to read, and invites letters from listeners again. What good is that if Leo doesn't read his emails?
Phone Rental
Kerry Lutz writes in again to report a story from the San Francisco Chronicle from a couple of years ago about a widow who had been renting a rotary phone for 42 years. She spent about $14,000 over the years just for the rental. Dick suggests we all check our parents' phone bill.
Exorbitant Rates
Leo uses a business calling card when he travels, and learns a hard lesson. He's been charged operator-assisted call rates for his calls to Roz Savage's satellite phone (3 times a week), about $10 a minute and $400 a show.
More Exorbitant Rates
A guest of a tenant of a unit in Dick's building was locked out of the apartment, called a locksmith in, and was charged $666 for the service.
More GizWizBiz Gadgets
Dick has sold out his GizWizBiz Caps, but has more merchandise on offer, which he self-deprecatingly calls Giz Wiz Garbage. These include the Clip Hanger (see Episode 549), the folding LED lighted ball pen, and the LED Ice Cube.
Listen to Episode 622
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
No Letters from Leo
Leo again doesn't have a letter to read, and invites letters from listeners again. What good is that if Leo doesn't read his emails?
Phone Rental
Kerry Lutz writes in again to report a story from the San Francisco Chronicle from a couple of years ago about a widow who had been renting a rotary phone for 42 years. She spent about $14,000 over the years just for the rental. Dick suggests we all check our parents' phone bill.
Exorbitant Rates
Leo uses a business calling card when he travels, and learns a hard lesson. He's been charged operator-assisted call rates for his calls to Roz Savage's satellite phone (3 times a week), about $10 a minute and $400 a show.
More Exorbitant Rates
A guest of a tenant of a unit in Dick's building was locked out of the apartment, called a locksmith in, and was charged $666 for the service.
More GizWizBiz Gadgets
Dick has sold out his GizWizBiz Caps, but has more merchandise on offer, which he self-deprecatingly calls Giz Wiz Garbage. These include the Clip Hanger (see Episode 549), the folding LED lighted ball pen, and the LED Ice Cube.
Listen to Episode 622
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Plantronics Discovery 925
Bluetooth Headset
Link: Plantronics
Turn-The-Tables-Tuesday
With effect from 1 July 2008, California and Washington will be among the many states which prohibit using your cellphone with your hands while driving. One could of course still use a wired hands-free, but the Plantronics Discovery 925 will come in handy. Super light-weight, it weighs in at 0.3 ounces only. It comes in a carrying case, with a built-in rechargeable battery which recharges the device when you slot it into the case.
The package also comes with a USB charger and an AC charger, which you can connect to either the charging jack on the earpiece itself to recharge the device directly, or connect to the charging case to recharge the case. 3 earclips come as part of the packaged contents.
Plantronics' AudioIQ gives you noise cancellation, its multipoint technology allows you to pair up with up to 2 devices at the same time, and a single charge gives you 5 hours of talk time. Leo thinks this is better than the Aliph Jawbone or the BlueAnt Supertooth Light (Episode 362) and feels very comfortable. A worthy replacement of the Voyager 510 (Episode 252, which Leo lost while kayaking) or the Discovery 655 (Episode 173).
An Epitaph for Leo
Martin O' Connor from Galway, Ireland, who registered the url www.gadgetising.com (which has now lapsed) for Dick in Epsiode 148, suggests the following epitaph for Leo's tombstone, which Dick and Leo discussed in Episode 589 (while talking about the name for Leo's autobiography): "Another TWiT, is in the can."
TWiTLive.com
Leo uses the URL twitlive.tv for TWiTLive. A listener has registered twitlive.com and he is transferring the registration to Leo, which will take a little time to come through.
Thursday Theme?
Mike Wills of Podcastmike.com has done a Thursday theme for no-theme Thursday. Maybe not, says Leo Cowell.
Listen to Episode 597
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
The package also comes with a USB charger and an AC charger, which you can connect to either the charging jack on the earpiece itself to recharge the device directly, or connect to the charging case to recharge the case. 3 earclips come as part of the packaged contents.
Plantronics' AudioIQ gives you noise cancellation, its multipoint technology allows you to pair up with up to 2 devices at the same time, and a single charge gives you 5 hours of talk time. Leo thinks this is better than the Aliph Jawbone or the BlueAnt Supertooth Light (Episode 362) and feels very comfortable. A worthy replacement of the Voyager 510 (Episode 252, which Leo lost while kayaking) or the Discovery 655 (Episode 173).
An Epitaph for Leo
Martin O' Connor from Galway, Ireland, who registered the url www.gadgetising.com (which has now lapsed) for Dick in Epsiode 148, suggests the following epitaph for Leo's tombstone, which Dick and Leo discussed in Episode 589 (while talking about the name for Leo's autobiography): "Another TWiT, is in the can."
TWiTLive.com
Leo uses the URL twitlive.tv for TWiTLive. A listener has registered twitlive.com and he is transferring the registration to Leo, which will take a little time to come through.
Thursday Theme?
Mike Wills of Podcastmike.com has done a Thursday theme for no-theme Thursday. Maybe not, says Leo Cowell.
Listen to Episode 597
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
LG Voyager
Cellphone
Link: Verizon
Dick follows up his coverage of the V (Episode 9) and the enV (Episode 219) with the LG Voyager. Carried by Verizon in the US, the Voyager has touch screen controls, like the iPhone, and it opens up revealing a Qwerty keyboard. 2MP camera and camcorder, microSD slot, bluetooth capable.
You can subscribe to Vcasts and even TV broadcasts (with a built-in TV antenna). It can also do web browsing, and utilises Verizon's fast 3G wireless.
Nintendo Virtual Boy
Mike Kunkel, who previously corrected Leo about the PSOne in Episode 409, writes in about another vintage game gadget, the Nintendo Virtual Boy, which Leo thought in Episode 450 was a hood you put on a Game Boy. Mike explains what it was.
Listen to Episode 478
Go to TWiT
Read Dick's Write-Up
You can subscribe to Vcasts and even TV broadcasts (with a built-in TV antenna). It can also do web browsing, and utilises Verizon's fast 3G wireless.
Nintendo Virtual Boy
Listen to Episode 478
Go to TWiT
Read Dick's Write-Up
Zodiac2
Portable Game Console/PDA
Link: The Gadgeteer Trusted Reviews
Dick's Gadget Warehouse
From 2003, the Zodiac was a portable game console and PDA hybrid. Tapwave made 2 models for it, the Zodiac1 with 32MB built-in memory and the Zodiac2 with 128MB, but both with an SD card expansion slot. It also got a licence from Palm to use the Palm OS for its PDA functions. It looked pretty good, but sadly got nowhere.
Something's Coming, Something Good
As promised in Episode 350, Dick and Leo celebrate the 400th Episode with sound effects - a sneeze, a rattle and crappy sound quality from Leo.
Keeping Track of a Bluetooth Phone
Nils Anderson wants to have a USB dongle bluetooth-based alarm to keep track of another bluetooth device like his cellphone. Dick remembers Leo once did a bluetooth headset which alerts you if the cellphone goes out of range. They wonder whether it's a Plantronics Voyager or a Cardo, and think it's a Cardo. It is actually the Plantronics Voyager 510 which Leo reviewed in Episode 252, and a listener Peter Lee pointed out in Episode 281 that Leo forgot to mention these extra functions of the Voyager 510 in his original review. The Cardo Scala 700 (Episode 191) comes with a headset locator. It locates the headset, not the cellphone.
What makes a guaranteed hit
After 40 years of gadgeteering, Dick still doesn't know what makes a gadget sell. Dick and Leo talk about the iPod mini and Erich Segal's Love Story, the iPhone packaging, and then on to the Zune Phone as predicted on YouTube.
Listen to Episode 400
Read Dick's Write-Up
Go to TWiT
Coby TF-DVD7307
Portable DVD Player
Link: Coby
The first Coby reviewed by Dick, the DVD8500, in Episode 116, has proved to be popular. The newer DVD7307 has a swivelling wide screen 7" LCD display, audio and video in for games or other video source, plays DVDs, CDs and MP3s, composite video out, coaxial digital audio out.
Coby has made a 2.5" portable TV, which Leo wanted to show on Regis & Kelly, but Michael Gellman the producer thought otherwise.
Automated Uploading System
Leo's automated podcast uploading system is a little buggy and he has not been using it. So Dick is still getting emails saying, "Tell Leo he forgot the podcast again."
Sponsors
Leo has heard that their sponsors have been very happy but Dick and Leo will have to wait till the new fiscal year for their comeback.
Leo's Omission
Peter Lee points out that in reviewing the Plantronics Voyager 510 (Episode 252) Leo has forgotten to mention that the bluetooth headset can pair with 2 cellphones; it will also beep when it gets out of range of the paired cellphone. Leo has lost his Voyager 510 during kayaking.
March '07 WTHII
It's a lollipop holder that plays music when you bite on the lollipop. The sound waves are sent via the lollipop, via the teeth, up the jaw lines, into the inner ears, so that only the person biting on the lolly can hear the music. Some models have FM radio. Dick's lollipop holder was made by Hasbro and the line of products were called Sound Bites. Here's a CNN report on the product when it first came out in 1998.
A later incarnation was a toothbrush that plays music called Tooth Tunes. Hasbro is not selling the Sound Bites any more but is still selling the Tooth Tunes.
Here's how the Tooth Tunes works.
Bandai from Japan had a similar idea with the lollipop called the Silent Shout. Read about the Bandai product in the Augusta Chronicle.
Listen to Episode 281
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Automated Uploading System
Leo's automated podcast uploading system is a little buggy and he has not been using it. So Dick is still getting emails saying, "Tell Leo he forgot the podcast again."
Sponsors
Leo has heard that their sponsors have been very happy but Dick and Leo will have to wait till the new fiscal year for their comeback.
Leo's Omission
Peter Lee points out that in reviewing the Plantronics Voyager 510 (Episode 252) Leo has forgotten to mention that the bluetooth headset can pair with 2 cellphones; it will also beep when it gets out of range of the paired cellphone. Leo has lost his Voyager 510 during kayaking.
March '07 WTHII
It's a lollipop holder that plays music when you bite on the lollipop. The sound waves are sent via the lollipop, via the teeth, up the jaw lines, into the inner ears, so that only the person biting on the lolly can hear the music. Some models have FM radio. Dick's lollipop holder was made by Hasbro and the line of products were called Sound Bites. Here's a CNN report on the product when it first came out in 1998.
A later incarnation was a toothbrush that plays music called Tooth Tunes. Hasbro is not selling the Sound Bites any more but is still selling the Tooth Tunes.
Here's how the Tooth Tunes works.
Bandai from Japan had a similar idea with the lollipop called the Silent Shout. Read about the Bandai product in the Augusta Chronicle.
Listen to Episode 281
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Plantronics Voyager 510
Bluetooth Headset for Cellphones
Link: Plantronics
Turn-The-Tables-Tuesday
An "ultra comfortable" bluetooth mobile headset with a steady connection. It can also pair with 2 bluetooth cellphones. Leo has finally found a bluetooth headset that he likes in the Plantronics Voyager 510.
Dick's Cellphone Number
Only 7 people know Dick's cellphone number. When he goes to trade shows or conventions and has to leave his number, he tells people that his cellphone is rented.
Leo's Number
Leo has an 800 number. A remnant from his dating days.
Special Guest on First Anniversary
It's the first anniversary of DGW, and special guest Henry Laporte joins the celebration by singing Happy Anniversary to Dick, accompanied by a ukelele.
Acoustic Coupler
The Hayes SmartModem (Episode 245) reminds Henry C. from Southfield, Michigan of the acoustic coupler, the Teletype Model 33 in the late 60s (see vintage-computer.com), and the days when the Bell 130 was a fast modem.
Listen to Episode 252
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
