Publication History For : Michael Fereday
Click to see this members public profile
Older articles
While Android and iOS are the dominant force with regards to smartphones, they are not the only choice. Windows Phone 8.1, with a promised upgrade to Windows Phone 10, is a viable alternative.
Continuing to play “Catch-up” and join the major players of Android and Apple in the mobile phone arena, Microsoft has released the Lumia 640 as it first offering to appear without any reference to the Nokia name that was previously associated with the Lumia brand. With its 5-inch touch screen delivering 1280 x 720 pixels at 294ppi, this Windows 8.1 Handset is available in a choice of blue, orange, white and black.
Extra measures are a sensible precaution when storing your data on a portable hard drive. One company which offers to help in this respect is iStorage.
While many manufacturers of external hard drives bundle an appropriate data encryption tool to help safeguard the driver’s content from unauthorised eyes, there is one company who takes the responsibility for data protection one stage further. That company is iStorage Ltd with products such as diskAshur Pro. This product is an external, portable drive that is currently available in capacities of 500, 1000, 1500 and 2000GB.
As with the Oxford and Go products, this next DAB/FM radio is part of the Goodmans line up of offerings.
With over 90 years of experience in the development of home entertainment technology, covering areas such as loudspeakers, radios, in-car audio and digital television sets, Goodmans has added to its product portfolio with the release of its Canvas offering. This product is a portable DAB Digital and FM radio that can be powered direct from the mains or by batteries. When purchasing this device you have a choice of going with a Slate, Copper or Apple colour scheme.
No sooner do I finish checking an in-car dash camera than another example of this product genre comes my way.
As a child, living near the northern seaside resort of Morecambe, I was sometimes taken to the fairground where a ride on the Dodgems would be a particular treat. Nowadays though, being involved in an incident of cars colliding is an entirely different matter even if nobody is injured, the possibility of financial penalties can be afflicted on the guilty party.
In the past I have checked out numerous All-in-One, Multifunction and standalone printers, either of the inkjet or laser variety, from various manufacturers. On this occasion, however, the printer under the microscope is the first printer product that I have had the opportunity to check out from Ricoh. The product in question is the Aficio SG2100N model which offers colour print facilities.
With dimensions of 395 x 360 x 215mm (W x D x H), the Aficio has a sturdy and solid box-like appearance. Predominately black in colour, with white front and rear face plates, this printer’s connection options are located on the left side of the unit. Here you will find the mains power socket plus USB and wired Ethernet ports – sadly there is no Wi-Fi connectivity with this model. Both the USB and Ethernet ports are initially concealed within a covered compartment.
Have you considered how boiling a kettle can help keep a watchful eye on the elderly? 3 rings have.
Set up by Steve Purdham and fellow tech entrepreneur, Gareth Reakes, 3rings is a start-up company concentrating its expertise on the Internet of Things (IoT) with products such as its initial offering of a 3rings electric plug. The company’s stated aim is to showcase how technology can help in assisting society (that’s you and me) care for the elderly, especially those who are considered at risk and dear to us.
As the main competitor to the Amazon Kindle range of eBook readers, Kobo has released it Kobo Glo HD product. Arriving with the claim of being the highest quality eReader at the best possible price, the Kobo Glo HD is, presumably, the companys direct challenger to the Amazon Kindle Voyage, a device I have yet to check out.
The Kobo Glo HD has a 6-inch Carta E Ink HD touch screen that has a high-resolution of 1448 x 1072 pixels which works out at 300dpi. This screen is encased within a body that is made up of a black plastic front and a tough black rubber dimpled back plate. The side bezels are of a size that allows you to get a good grip of the device. While reading you can rest a finger on the bezel ready to be used to activate a page turn either with a swipe or a tap at the edge of the screen.
While designed to accompany one of the many recent technological devices, this next product could bring back memories of your youth as it did with me.
My first experience of a bean bag, like many others I’m sure, was during school days during PE lessons. Small bean bags would be used for various tasks and exercises, some more enjoyable than others. Later the bean bag grew in size as a large bean bag being a fashion item. This bean bag was pear shaped with a strong plastic or leather covering skin. When placed on the floor, this bean bag could magically turn itself into a chair when it was sat upon.
When the name of BenQ pops up, my thoughts immediately turn towards the range of display units produced by the company. However BenQ does have other strings to its bow as the arrival of a new product clearly indicates. This product is the treVolo which is claimed to be the worlds first portable electrostatic wireless speaker. Just in case you are not familiar with the term then I should explain that electrostatic drivers emit sound both forwards and backwards with mid and high range frequencies their target area.
When you first remove the treVolo from its packaging, it is a wedged shaped solid device that is encircled by a dark grey metallic collar. In this state, the unit has dimensions of 176.6 x 134.6 x 78.5mm (H x D x W). On either side of the device are panels which, when flipped out, add a bird-swooping like effect while increasing the width to 275.1mm. These wings provide the electrostatic output with audio delivered from the front and back.
As part of Goodmans range of radios, this next offering adds a number of extra features.
With the short, snappy title of Go, this next product from Goodmans is a radio that could easily be described as a multifunction device. It does not limit itself to just providing DAB+ and FM radio signals but has a number of other functions to which I will return to a little later. Initially I will concentrate on the appearance and its radio features.
Whether you refer to them as Cold Calls or, probably more appropriately, Nuisance Calls, they are unwanted interruptions to your daily living routine. While some of these calls are merely annoying, to say the least, others are more criminal orientated in that they are designed to relieve you of your hard earned cash by illegal methods.
Recently I took a look at BT’s solution for dealing with these Cold Calls and now it is the turn of Gigaset, a German manufacturer of telephones, tablets and baby monitors, with the company’s C620A Duo product. As the “Duo” part of the product’s title indicates, this kit consists of two DECT phones each with its own base station.
Mens shavers tend to fall into a wet or dry category. However there are some products, of a more recent development, that are classified as being both wet and dry devices for use when removing the stubble that continues to appear on our faces.
This next offering is meant just for dry use when shaving although you can use water to clean the head which, I suppose, almost classifies the unit as both a wet and dry product. The product in question is the Braun MobileShave M-90 model.
While devices, such as televisions, smartphones and tablets, have their own speaker facility, you can enhance this output with the addition of a soundbar.
While the product number SB-2501 gives very little away regarding this piece of kit, an inspection of the packaging from Evolve Audio reveals that it is a soundbar with wireless sub-woofer and wireless headphones. Accompanying these elements are an assortment of leads, remote control and button battery plus a Quick Start Guide and User Manual. The leads cover mains power, USB charging facility and connectivity between the soundbar and a television.
While most wearable technological devices are meant for every day use, this next product is not the type you would wear when out and about.
One thing you can say about 3D, without fear of any major contradiction, is that this is a technology that refuses to admit defeat with regards its general acceptance by the public. There have been at least two major attempts to bring the technology to the big cinematic screen as the next big thing to make a lasting impression.
Unlike the major players of Apple, Samsung, LG and HTC who prefer the top end of the market, ZTE positions its smartphone products in the budget arena.
According to ZTE, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of telecommunications equipment and mobile phones, most young people (into which category I left behind long ago) like smartphones with large screens. However, in ZTE’s opinion, devices with 5.5-inch and larger screens present a problem as to where they are stored as they do not easily fit into a jeans or jacket pocket.
The de facto standard for electronic documents is PDF. Software for the creation and working with such files can cost from £400 downwards. This review is based on a product costing under £60.
There was a time when, in order to read a document, it would be necessary to have the particular software that created it on your system plus any special attributes used in the original created. For example you would need to have the fonts, as part of your system, which were used in the document. Now matters are totally different. One reason for this has been the rise in popularity of the Adobe created PDF (Portable Document Format) software.
Computer databases have come a long way since those of early days of the D-Base products developed by Aston Tate with libraries of instructional books written on the subject. While the ability to store and correlate different types of data might not be the sexiest task, it still serves an important role for both the home and office user.
One company that has established an impressive pedigree in the particular field of databases is FileMaker. Starting life as an Apple company, FileMaker was, for a period of time, totally independent before being drawn back into the Apple fold. Sharing its name with that of its product, FileMaker is software that I have been using for a number of years for managing specific data.
While your driving skills might be up to scratch with regards to your own safety and that of other road users, the same might not be true of some others. Accidents can, and do, happen. Sometimes it is hard to establish just where the blame belongs. This next product has been developed to help in such instances.
As part of its range of in-car camera product line-up, NextBase has released its 402G Professional model. This is the company’s top of the range product. Along with the main camera device, NextBase has included a suction mount, car power cable, a standard-to-mini USB lead, HD lead, a mini CD with software for both the Windows and Mac platforms plus instruction manuals for setting up the camera and installing the supplied software on the appropriate platform.
This next headset is available from the House of Marley, an organisation set up to promote Bob Marleys vision of One Love, One World.
It has been quite a while since I last took a look at a Marley product. If that flaky component I call a memory is anything to go by then it was around four years ago that I reviewed one of the first products to bear the Marley branding. This was the over-the-ear style of headset known as the Exodus. Now it is the turn of the company’s Liberate XLBT product which is also a headset and the company’s top of the range offering.
Not one, two or three games but four games are included in this next offering based on the Match-3 genre.
I do enjoying playing Match-3 type games. I find the genre particularly relaxing and ideally suited for taking a break from other pressing matters. This next offering, available from GameHouse.com, brings together four Match-3 titles from Suricate Software. The titles are Jewel Match, Jewel Match 2, Jewel Match 3 and, surprise surprise, Jewel Match 4.
Well known for its range of radios, Goodmans has come up with a model whose title makes me think of times gone by.
When ever I encounter a product that has “Oxford” in its title, it does tend to engender visions of a by-gone age. I do not know why this happens but I tend to imagine images of a period when life was conducted at a more leisurely pace. This is especially true when the company responsible for the product has gone for a retro look to its design styling. A recent example of this approach is the Goodman Oxford classic radio which has arrived for review.
At one time we used to be known as a nation of tea drinkers. Now, however, there has been a sea change and coffee has taken over as the national beverage of choice for those not hooked on something with a stronger effect.
You only have to walk down any High Street to see the evidence as big brand coffee shops are springing up all over the place and plying their wares of various coffee-based drinks that old-timers, such as myself, find confusing despite the attractive aroma wafting from these premises. Even pubs, with their wide range of alcoholic beverages, are now selling coffee to their customers.
Making a change from the numerous wireless headsets now appearing from various manufacturers, Pioneer has released a tethered model.
The Pioneer SE-MX9 is a tethered set of dynamic headphones. Described as providing Superior Club Sound, an environment I must admit to have not visited recently, the SE-MX9 (hardly the most memorable product name) is available in a choice of bright silver, indigo black or red and bright copper colour schemes. My review sample is the latter option which does give the headphones a distinctive metallic look. Keeping this headset company in its sturdy box is a couple of leads.
Anybody who has entered one of the previous Wadjet Eye game environments will have some idea of what is waiting for them in Technobabylon. Here you will find retro-styled pixel art, plenty of dialogue professionally delivered by voice actors and paths that can take you in different directions based on your choice of actions.
Starting life as a series of eight planned freeware episodes (actually only three were released) by indie developer James Dearden, Technobabylon came under the strong influence of Wadjet Eye Games. The game takes place in a dystopian cyberpunk future where genetic engineering is the norm. The use of the addictive Trance phenomena, with its virtual reality environment, has reduced the need for human interaction to a bare minimum.
As part of its new product line-up, Pioneer has released a new Bluetooth speaker with a title that does not refer to its price.
Aptly named the FREEme product is a Bluetooth speaker unit from Pioneer that has been released under the tag line of “Listen in Style”. Unpacking the product reveals the FREEme unit, 2 and 3-pin power plugs with an AC adapter, standard-to-micro USB lead, 3.
I once worked as a beach photographer snapping holiday makers in the hope they would purchase these items as a memento. Maybe I could be considered an early form of this next product.
There is one aspect of a smartphone’s use that I am sure never considered during the early development stages of this particular type of mobile device.
With its expertise in producing stylish and quality headsets, Sennheiser does not disappoint with its Urbanite XL Wireless model.
While there is a tethered Urbanite XL headset, I have recently being trying out the wireless version of this stylish Sennheiser product. Included in the box with this collapsible headset is a standard-to-micro USB lead for charging the headset’s internal Lithium battery, an audio lead with built-in remote and mic, a draw-string soft cloth carry pouch and a folded sheet of Quick Start instructions in various languages.
Considering you have been sent to look into the disappearance of a young boy called Simon, the name of the location where this event happened does seem rather inappropriate as you travel to Joyville. But then you have entered the virtual reality that is known as the world of Puppet Show.
Belonging to the Hidden Object Adventure genre, Puppet Show: The Mystery of Joyville casts you in the role of a detective sent to investigate the disappearance of a young child. As usual with titles on this genre, you can make some adjustments to the game’s environment. These adjustments relate to the volume levels for background music and sound effects plus whether to opt for a full screen approach with the use of a custom cursor.
While the Cloud is available to store data accessible in different locations, some still prefer having personal control provided by a portable hard drive.
Adding to its family of MiniStation™ products, Buffalo Technology, a global manufacturer of innovative storage, multimedia and wireless network products for the home and business users, has released its MiniStation Extreme model. This particular product is a portable storage hard drive that is available in either 1TB or 2TB capacities. My review unit is the 1TB version of the MiniStation Extreme.
Continuing my look at mobile devices available from Vodafone, it is the turn of the Sony Xperia M2 Aqua offering.
The Xperia M2 Aqua is a member of the Sony family of smartphones. This handset is available in a choice of purple, white or black with the latter being the colour of my review sample kindly provided by Vodafone. The Xperia M2 Aqua has dimensions of 139.7 x 71.1 x 8.6mm (H x W x D) and weighs in at 148g as Sony seem to be positioning this model at a middle of the road market sector.
Main Menu
