Hasta La Gadget!

Vizio’s 42-inch soundbar is all fine and dandy, but not everyone has the TV or budget to justify that kind of audio — college students, anyone? The company is clearly aware of this problem, as it just announced three soundbars built for smaller screens like those in the M-Series. The 29-inch S2920w ($80) and 38-inch S3820w ($120) cater to simple setups with 2.0-channel sound, while the 38-inch S3821w ($180) adds a wireless subwoofer for some extra oomph. All three support Bluetooth streaming from nearby devices, and they use DTS audio processing to both fill out the frequency range and hush noisy commercials. The soundbars will ship between late August and September, or just in time for the annual dorm room invasion.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Source: Vizio

When it comes to keeping track of all your personal belongings these days, that alone can be quite a workout for your brain. Back then, you only had a watch, your wallet and keys to worry about. These days, there is that tablet, the smartphone, an Ultrabook in your messenger bag perhaps, and yeah, how about a digital camera to go along with your everyday backpack, which happens to tote all sorts of chargers and cables within as well? Enter a gadget to help you keep track of all the other gadgets in your life – the PROTAG Elite.

The PROTAG Elite is touted to be a new Bluetooth Low Energy device which will play nice with iOS as well as Android-powered devices in order to tag and track your belongings. Having launched on Indiegogo today, it intends to raise $100,000 in the coming 31 days so that the PROTAG Elite can be a reality. It boasts of an automated system which will alert you whenever your belongings remain left behind, at the same time showing you the belongings’ last known GPS position. All you need to do is place the credit card-sized PROTAG Elite into whatever thing you want to keep track of, and you’re good to go.

Sporting an integrated USB port to juice up the battery whenever it runs low, and without any annual fees to worry about, the PROTAG Elite could very well be a hot ticket item should it materialize. [Indiegogo Page]

PROTAG Elite Helps You Keep Track Of Your Belongings original content from Ubergizmo.

When the HTC Butterfly (better known as the Droid DNA here in the US) launched in China several months ago, it was soon followed by a companion device called the HTC Mini. This accessory — not to be confused with HTC’s One mini — is basically designed to be a Bluetooth handset and remote control for the larger smartphone. It features NFC for pairing, plus a numeric keypad and monochrome LCD. What’s more intriguing, however, is that UK retailer Clove recently outed an update to the product — the HTC Mini+ — which gains an IR blaster and the ability to remote control a variety of TVs, along with HTC’s Media Link HD. The companion device is expected to be available soon fort £54.16 (about $83) before taxes.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC

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Via: Android Community

Source: Clove

Many shops that use Square readers still have to accept checks and gift cards, but they haven’t had an easy time reconciling those physical payments with the digital variety. Thankfully, updated versions of Square for Android and iOS should bring harmony by recording and tracking payments in virtually any format. The new release is particularly friendly to iPads serving as registers, giving them both cash management tools and support for printing receipts over Bluetooth. Storeowners whose sales still involve lots of paper or plastic will want to grab the latest Square apps through the source links.

Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Tablets, Mobile

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Via: The Next Web

Source: App Store, Google Play

Many mid- to high-end headphones have noise-cancelling features. But sometimes you need to hear what’s going on around you. That’s where open ear headphones come in. The Sound Band is one such device. It’s a Bluetooth headset that conducts sound through your bone and tissue. Your ears will be uncovered and you’ll be the only one who hears what’s coming through the Sound Band.

As I said, Sound Band falls into an existing class of headphones. Similar products include the earHero and the AfterShokz. What intrigues me about the Sound Band are its two omnidirectional MEMS microphones. Hybra Advance Technology, the company behind Sound Band, claims that the microphones have noise reduction and echo cancellation.

If they can get that part right, they might have a leg up on the competition.

Pledge at least $125 (USD) on Kickstarter to get a Sound Band as a reward (Hybra says the product will retail at $189). Or just take your earphones off for a minute. That’s an option too. I’m just putting it out there.