Hey all, it’s that time of year where everyone looks for new tech to impact your life. I’m a little late with this post that I am typing it from my handheld to get it done! I gotta tell ya this year I haven’t really seen (as of yet) the “must have” technology! However, I do feel that there are several top candidates & technology services & devices that I truly believe can have a positive impact to your life, business or non-profit. Not listed in any particular order, ohh & check back tomorrow I’ll have a video of some of the items for you to see in action.
Livescribe
Pulse Smart Pen, this pen or should I say mini-computer in a pen enables you to be a better note taker! The PulsePen has a built-in microphone that can record audio & sync the audio it captures to what you ate writing or drawing in you notebook. For example you are in a meeting or lecture hall and you are recordin audio and taking handwritten notes. Later, be it a week or months you simply tap the pen on a sentence and it will play the exact audio that was captured at that time! You can also connect it to your computer via usb and download the audio & written notes right to your computer. Costs from $149 for 2 gig version.
Bottom line: I personally use thi device and it has made me a more effective listener because I now know there are another set of ear in the room I can focus on what being said not on trying to write everything down!
Who for: Students, notetakers, teachers, biz professionals, entrepreneurs & anyone who takes alot of handwritten notes!
Online: www.livescribe.com
Beats by Dre
These headphones are insane, professionally designed, great fit & the quality of the sound is unbelievable. For those who don’t know Dr. Dre is an award winning hip-hop producer who has been in the music biz for a longtime! He has produced hits for artists ranging from Snoop Dog to Eminem. He joined popular Record executive Jimmy Iovine in creating a pair of booming bass headphones with Monster! I interviewed Dr. Dre when these were launched at CES. There are 4 types of headphones. 1) The Studio version which are ideally for artists & musicians (be aware with this version you can hear the sound outside of the headphone, this is why they are really for those in a studio). The 2) Solo version which are a tad smaller and have noise-cancellation, great for music buffs & mp3 player carrying peopl who can’t live without music. 3) In-ear version, these are small ear buds that the majority of folks use to listen to music on mp3 players & mobile devices. 4) they recenty announced a version for women by Lady Gaga, they are pearl white with a heart red colored shaped ear budyou are using the standard default ear buds that come with products you are really missing out on quality sound! You def need to upgrade!
Pentax
Digital Cameras are def still on the Top 5 gadget lists! The category has grown significantly, I mean point & shoot cameras with more than 12 megapixel is crazy. Megapixels aren’t the only way to measure a cameras ability. Durability is also a newer factor. My fav is Pentax WS80 digital camera that’s ruggedized to handle water depths of 16ft, drops from 3.3ft, coldproof & dustproof! My best features (that may annoy some ppl) are the smile & eye-blink detection. Should Just smile at the camera & when in that mode it will automatically take the shot. Blink-detection helps identify when your subject closed their eyes-a nice addition!
Online: www.Pentax.com
VR wearable HD camera
Yep a wearable camera! It can attach on your helmet, handlebars and many other contraptions. Enabling you to capture your life in 1st person mode! Can’t wait to try these out skiing.
Netbooks
Hmmm, I haven’t different feelings about this category. I’m not really a Netbook fan (so yes I’m a bit biased). My problem is that the screen resolution of most netbooks forces you to scroll & scroll & scroll & scroll! Web-browsing is a bit of a pain. The keyboards are about 88-92% size of a regular keyboard, which may be uncomfortable or cause typo errors for some. They are really meant for those who need Internet access, email & basic wordprocessing. The price however is why they are so appealing to people. I mean, when you can have a “laptop-like” computer for under $300 it causes you to pause & take a look. My advice is to goto the store & test drive these for several minutes.
Stocking Stuffers (coming soon)…