Ringly: Beautiful Wearable Tech For Women

Ringly is an 18k-gold plated ring which connects to a smartphone.  The ring then discreetly notifies the wearer when she receives a text or a call.  The idea behind Ringly is to incorporate new tech into women’s everyday accessories.  This is so that they may enjoy the moment without missing something important, even when they are not wearing clothes that have pockets or holding a bag.

Ringly cofounder Christina Mercando informed Business Insider, “It started with me being frustrated from leaving my phone in my purse and missing a bunch of calls and texts…It turns out a lot of other people have a similar problem.”  The jewellery that Ringly offers is a selection of four different stones set in gold plating, which vibrate and light up when they are activated.

Mercando and co-founder Logan Munro wanted all of the technology; the accelerometer, Bluetooth LE, motor, and LEDs — to be incorporated into the ring as discreetly as possible as they were designing Ringly. “We were going for something that was simple, classic, something that a lot of women could get behind…It’s so small and discreet that people wouldn’t know the technology is there.”

Once you connect the ring to your smartphone through the Ringly app, which is available for both Android and iOS, you can then customise the way you want to receive notifications. The options that are available are varied, from blinking lights and vibration patterns, which are adjustable, as well as selecting which apps you want to receive notifications from.  You can even customise different notifications for different people.  To charge the ring, all you have to do is drop it back into its box.

The project has come together rather quickly.  In August 2013 the team had received $US1 million in funding from Mesa+, First Round Capital, PCH, and Andreessen Horowitz. The team subsequently then spent four months in San Francisco working on the prototype.

Ringly has just launched, at a price of $US145 per ring, on pre-order. The price will then go up to $US195 once it ships in the fall of this year.

How to Watch The FIFA World Cup 2014 Across Multiple Devices

The 2014 FIFA World Cup has arrived!  Whether you like it or loathe it, for the next month it will be the subject on most peoples’ lips.  There are more ways than ever to watch the World Cup, you don’t just have to watch it at the bar! Here is a quick guide to using your tech to get the best out of the beautiful game.

 TV

The World Cup, is always shown on terrestrial channels.  This means that all the games are shown on one of free network channels. In other words, you don’t need to sign up to Sky Sports for a month. In the UK the group games have already been split up between BBC and ITV. The 2014 World Cup final will be shown on both BBC One and ITV on July 13th at 8pm.
With the interactive Red Button, BBC’s coverage will be the most comprehensive. They have daily news round-ups and video features galore. With the interactive service you can have the option of picking alternative commentary teams.

Computer

Both the BBC’s iPlayer and ITV’s version of the catch up service, ITV Player, are available to watch on your PC.  Both services offering live streaming, so you’ll be able to catch a game on your desktop or laptop. Sky Go customers can stream ITV’s matches to their laptops also.  If you just want to see who’s playing next and get a quick update on scores, just type into Google ‘fifa world cup’ and viola! instant info.

Games Consoles

Microsoft has just launched its OneGuide TV integration feature for the xBox One.  There is a Destination Brazil World Cup-themed dashboard page and Brazil Now snap app.  With Brazil Now, you can snap real-time stat-tracking information onto your screen, as well as getting commentary from Twitter.
The Xbox One does not have iPlayer catch-up options though, but you will be able to live stream the BBC’s games through iPlayer on the PS4, PS3 and Xbox One. The PS3 also has ITV’s ITV Player app.  If you have a PS4, then I recommend getting the BBC Sport app, it will live stream the BBC’s matches.

 Smart Phone/Tablet

The best thing to stream the live matches on a mobile device, whether that be either iOS, Android, Windows Phone is to use the BBC iPlayer or ITV Player apps.
For iOS devices, use BBC iPlayer  or ITV Player.  Android can head over to the Play Store for iPlayer and ITV Player.  Windows Phone users can download their version of iPlayer from the Windowsphone Store as with ITV Player.

So there you have it.  A quick round up of how to follow the greatest game on earth with the tech you use everyday.

As always, if you would like to leave a sensible comment regarding this how to, then please do so in the comments section below.

How to Turn Your Smartphone into A WiFi Hotspot

If you are like me and use the Internet on a daily basis, then you need a good strong reliable connection.  But what if you are out and about with your laptop/tablet and there is no WiFi connection?  How do you get online?   Don’t panic, as no doubt you will have your phone with you. The standard mobile phone contract that most people receive with their handset comprises of Talk-time, SMS allowance and Data.  It is this data allowance and the ability to connect to either a 3G or 4G network that is going to help get you online when no WiFi is available.

You can set up your smartphone as a WiFi hotspot quite easily.  The ability to do this is available on ‘most’ contracted phones.  That goes for if you are using an Android phone, an iPhone, a Windows smartphone or a BlackBerry.

All you need to do is look into the settings on your particular device, then set up tethering/personal hotspot.  Once this has been done, then just pair and connect your laptop (or other device) to that connection.  Got it?  No. Then allow me to break things down for you.

If you are using an iPhone, just look for Personal Hotspot in your settings while Android users can find a Tethering or Portable Hotspot in their settings. Windows smartphones use the feature, Internet Sharing.  BlackBerry has a Mobile Hotspot Connections option in the network settings.

For the purpose of explanation, I’ll use a connection with an iPhone to elaborate on, but in reality all the basics are pretty much the same. Once your device is in the wi-fi hotspot mode it will then create a network, which can be seen in the list of available networks by the wireless device you’re trying to connect, i.e. your laptop.

iPhone: Settings, Cellular, Personal Hotspot, if Bluetooth isn’t on, iPhone will inform you that Personal Hotspot will only be available over WiFi and USB.  It will then ask you if you also want to enable it over Bluetooth as well.  You need to connect via Bluetooth or USB cable, as you are not near a WiFi signal.  Once you agree to turn on Bluetooth, Personal Hotspot is now discoverable.  iPhone will ask you to provide a password of 8 characters.  Once you have done this you will now be able to connect with your iPhone, as it will be visible as a network from your laptop.  All you need to do is find the network that your phone is called and provide the password you have just created and then connect to the network and use the 3G/4G signal to connect to the Internet.  It really is that simple. *Note: If you are an Android user, after you select your phone in this list you will be asked for a password if you have set up password protection. This password will be generated by the smartphone in the hotspot settings.

There are notable advantages and disadvantages to using tethering. The advantages are; It’s convenient and you can use your smartphone anywhere you have a cellular connection. And you can take advantage of the speeds 4G provide, if you have a 4G contract.

The disadvantages are; tethering a device to your smartphone drains your battery a lot faster. There is a risk that you might exceed your monthly data allowance limit if you are not careful.  If you have poor signal on your smartphone you will have a poor data signal too.

So there you have it, a quick guide to connecting another device to your smartphone and using it as an Internet connection.
As always, if you would like to leave a sensible comment regarding this how to, then please do so in the comments section below.

The Funniest Things You’ll See On Google Street View

Some people relish the opportunity to be captured on Google’s Street View camera, whilst others would have preferred advanced warning, however both result in some pretty hilarious  photos. Here is a selection of our favourite Google Street View shots.

Scuba gear and pitchforks, a strange combination

He was murdered in the garage with the axe...or was he?

British Airways To Offer in-Flight WiFi in 2016

British Airways is all set to become one of the primary airline to offer passengers in-flight Wi-Fi using the new S-band satellite called Europasat.  UK-based firm Inmarsat operates Europasat and they are planning to go live in 2016 with the goal of serving the European aviation market.

The world-class airline will at first offer in-flight Wi-Fi on domestic routes before their expansion plans out-fold to encompass the service across Europe as the network begins to grow.  In 2013, UK communications regulatorOfcom paved the way for satellite Wi-Fi on aircraft by offering to relax the current rules.

Kate Thornton, head of product and service at British Airways says BA is currently in discussion with Inmarsat regarding leading Europe in a new era of “broadband in the air…Starting with UK domestic routes Inmarsat intends to deploy Europe’s first ground-based 4G broadband network giving our customers the Internet access they expect on the ground while in the air.”

The aviation network deployment of Inmarsat will utilise its existing European approval to manage integrated satellite-terrestrial communications in 30MHz spectrum across the 28 member states of the EU.  The company is currently working on gaining additional licenses within Eurpoe and says there is “strong support” for their applications and a steady framework can be agreed soon. As soon as this approval has been granted, Inmarsat will then work on expanding the ground network deployment part of the project.

The cost of manufacturing, launching and operating Europasat is being shared with Hellas-Sat.  Each partner receives exclusive rights to a separate payload and each firm will pay between $200 million and $250 million.  Inmarsat will pay out the same sum on its ground network over the next six years as it then copes on the growing demand for in-flight Wi-Fi.

Inmarsat CEO Rupert Pearce says, “We believe that the same in-flight connectivity opportunity exists in Europe and that, with the support of EU telecoms regulators, Inmarsat can rapidly bring to market unique, high speed aviation passenger connectivity services to meet this market demand on an EU-wide basis…A number of European airlines are aligned with this vision and we are absolutely delighted to announce advanced discussions with British Airways to be a launch customer on our new aviation network.”

As always, if you would like to leave a sensible comment, then please do so in the comments section below.

US Military Launches $2M Hacking Contest

Imagine a computer that has the ability to fix its own problems!  What would that mean for this technology driven world?  It is a hope, by the Defense Department, that supercomputers will be able to find and fix (or exploit) their own computer flaws in the near future!

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), a research wing within the military, has decided to run a $2 million contest for hackers.  The catch is, the hackers are computers themselves.

One of the biggest problems faced in cybersecurity, is the cost to defend against hackers.  Companies have to spend a lot in order to protect themselves.  Researchers and new technology costs money but it is what is needed in order to find holes in their own software, fix these holes, then buy systems that alert firms of any hacker attacks.  For $1 million, anyone could create a team of hackers who could get into any online computer system.  However, finding a team to defend cyberthreats would be a lot more difficult.

DARPA’s program manager, Mike Walker, wants to make protection a lot more cost effective by making machines that will find and patch their own security holes. “If you look at the imbalance of power between attack and defense, it’s a problem of economics,”

In the competition, any computer that can hack into another computer will gain points.  Those that fend off attacks will also gain points.  It is like capture the flag for computers.  Many organisations would benefit from this supercomputer.  However, even a basic machine that hacks itself is far off!  The finals won’t be held until 2016 at Def Con.  The winner will get $2 million; second place gets $1 million; and third place gets $750, 000.  Not too shabby!

5000ppi Hologram Projection Phones To Arrive Next Year

The advent of lifelike holograms is upon us.  We have seen celebrities who are no longer around; appear on stage and ‘converse’ with real people thanks to new standards in holographic technology.  Imagine this type of breakthrough tech being wielded in the palm of your hand?  Well folks, we don’t have to wait too long as the technology, which makes an image ‘float’ as a 3D image in the air, is finally here.

The company that has made this breakthrough, Ostendo, has produced a hologram with a 5,000ppi projector.  It is this type of projector that should interest us, as they plan to fit it into smartphones in the second half of 2015.
The hologram is created using six projectors, which layer light to create an image floating in the air, much like a real and solid object.  The discovery came from fusing an image processor with a thin layer of micro LEDs to create the Quantum Photonic Imager. The result is quite remarkable; a projector that is approximately the size of a TicTac candy. The projector is powered by the chip that controls the colour, brightness and angle of each individual beam of light.

When the holographic projector prototype, was demoed to The Wall Street Journal, it displayed a floating 3D dice.  This dice looked solid from all angles that it was viewed at. Unlike the iPhone’s Retina Display, which operates at 300ppi, this object is displayed with ‘almost real’ 5,000ppi projectors.
Ostendo has said they are working with handset manufacturers now for a 2D projector into a mobile device by the summer of 2015. The full 3D projector however, should arrive later in 2015.

The firm is aiming to make the pixels even smaller to enable higher resolutions. It will also be scaling up the size, to make 3D holographic projections, which can appear from our TVs!  As with all speculations regarding prototypes; until we see a working model, we’ll just have to keep on waiting.

As always, if you would like to leave a sensible comment, then please do so in the comments section below.