Hasta La Gadget!

LG Electronics USA and The Walt Disney Studios have come to an understanding, where popular 3D movies from the House of Mouse will be made available for rental to the “3D World” application which is found on LG’s Smart TV platform. Some of the popular titles include the “Toy Story” trilogy and “Alice in Wonderland,” while scheduled 3D blockbuster titles in the months ahead include “Marvel’s The Avengers,” and Disney-Pixar’s “Brave” this coming November 13th.

Looks like getting a Smart TV in your living room does have its advantages after all, although there really isn’t that much of a quantum leap to make everyone a believer at this point in time. On the other hand, at least it makes good use of your TV’s 3D functionality which in all probability, owners of 3D-capable Smart TVs still stick to 2D programming most of the time, even on the media that they purchase by their own free will. To round things up, LG’s 3D World will be available via all LG Smart TVs including these series: LS5700, LM6200, LM6700, LM7600, LM8600, LM9600, PM9700, PM6700 and PM4700. [Press Release]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: LG Smart TV to get Voice Control before May 2012, LG unveils Smart TV app platform SDK optimized for Adobe developers,

Programmable thermostats are proven to reduce the cost of heating in homes but the new Nest 2.0 sure takes it up a notch. The second generation thermostat looks pretty good, and will connect with more heating and cooling systems than the original.

The Nest 2.0 is 20% thinner than the original, and the design has been altered somewhat. The single, solid stainless steel ring surrounds a sleek lens, that shows the digital display of the thermostat. The lens replaces the grille from the first generation. It also comes with an updated thermostat. The new asterisk connector will allow you to use this with a lot more heating and cooling systems. It can even tackle three-stage systems that include heat pumps.

As with the original, the Nest 2.0 can automatically generate a custom schedule based on the way you use it, and can be remotely operated from your smartphone, and its updated app is available for both iOS and Android devices. The Nest 2.0 sells for $250 (USD).

[via Uncrate]

Apigy made waves last year when they released the Lockitron, a door lock system that was remotely operated via phones. They’ve recently unveiled a significantly improved version of the device, adding tons of new features at a much lower price. That said, it still works as before, i.e. it turns your phone into both a house guard and a security risk.

The first version of the Lockitron was a full deadbolt lock that connected to the Internet via Ethernet. The newer version is much more practical because it no longer comes with its own lock – it attaches to existing deadbolt locks – and it has Wi-Fi connectivity as well. The old Lockitron also supported automatic opening via NFC, but the newer version now uses Bluetooth 4.0 to detect your phone and automatically unlock the door.

The new Lockitron is also more talkative. It sends notifications if your door was unlocked, if its battery is low and, thanks to a sensor, can even tell you if someone’s at the door – as long as they knock, that is. All of the other features are still present in the new device. In terms of security, the signal that the Lockitron app sends is encrypted and you can also remotely disable the app should your phone be lost or stolen.

You can reserve a Lockitron from its official website for $149 (USD). Apigy ran its own fundraiser and has surpassed its target amount, which bodes well for the product.  That said, the device has garnered a considerable amount of negative feedback from YouTube commenters for obvious reasons. But if you think about it, a regular deadbolt is no more or less secure than this device, especially since it’s now just basically a smart mechanism that moves the lock and not the lock itself. You can still use your key if you want or need to and you can use the remote disable feature if you lose your phone.

[via Reddit]

[CEATEC 2012] Thanks to all the advancements in technology, our daily lives are becoming more and more sophisticated. What we used to fantasized about has now turned into reality for a lot of us. While some of us are happy with what we have right now, companies aren’t stopping just yet. Panasonic has an idea of what it wants our lives to be like, and at CEATEC, the company unveiled its suite of Smart Apps and appliances. Smart Apps consists of an app that runs on an Android smartphone with NFC, and a whole bunch of home appliances that are designed to work with the app: washing machines, refrigerators, microwave ovens and more.
(more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Panasonic shows off foldable Windows 8 Ultrabook, CEATEC Japan 2012 – Day 2 Round-up,

A nation-wide study of more than 1100 pre-school children up to 5 years of age in Australia
indicates that 20 percent of children are obese even before they enter
school.  Particular habits formed at home were identified as leading
causes of a condition that is both physically and socially deleterious
to kids and can continue all their lives – obesity….