Picture Frame Phone Charger

It's pricey at over $55, but I really like the idea of this picture frame with a builtin wireless charger for your smart phone. It also keeps the phone upright so you can see notifications easily. I could see myself with one at the desk in my office and another one on the end table beside by chair in our family room.

GarageMate

I could see this GarageMate (Bluetooth garage door opener) being very handy for bike rides and things around the neighborhood. I wonder how frequently I would wish I could open the garage door remotely from work or somewhere. At $54 and an easy install, I may give it a whirl.

Via KK Cool Tools

Working FM Chip in New Samsung Phones

I'm sure some accountant is complaining about the pennies it will cost, but I'm glad new Samsung phones will have a functional FM chip.

How to Charge Your Smart Phone

Interesting advice...

- Don't charge to 100%
- Try to keep the charge between 65-75%
- Partial charges do no harm

Zello

Business Insider:

"A walkie-talkie app called Zello is No. 1 in the App Store because of Hurricane Irma"

Definitely better than nothing, but nothing like having some real radio options.

Linc Smartphone Walkie Talkie

So I'm still not sold on buying an add-on radio for a smartphone that I'm going to replace every couple of years, but I have to admit the Linc solution is pretty cool. It does FRS/GMRS, but what makes it interesting is the amateur radio options:

Linc Smart Walkie Talkie is also great for Amateur radio operators! Unlock the dual band (2m & 70cm) feature with your verified callsign and gain access to APRS tracking and Packet Radio capabilities. Linc can join your existing gear and help make some fun projects!

• Packet Radio

• Repeaters

• RoIP Repeaters

• Beacons

• Tracking devices (APRS)

• High altitude ballooning

• Long range mesh networks

• Scanning public safety frequencies

• Weather stations

• And much more!

Linc Smart Walkie Talkie operates on 2m & 70 cm band!

FM Radio on Your Smartphone

The debate continues.

Speaker Mic for Your Phone

And the worst thing about it... it won't work with your iPhone 7 if the rumors are true and the headphone jack is going away.

And the "useless item of the century" award goes to... But maybe I'll give it a try with #Echolink. #hamr #hamradio pic.twitter.com/SvLKBQGTi9

— Christian Diemoz (@Chris_Diemoz) August 30, 2016

Pokemon Go

Funnies... even Ham related!

Children Tangled in Dipole After Special Event Station Becomes Pokéstop https://t.co/Uxonh5ZWFT #HamHijinks #PokemonGO

— Ham Hijinks (@HamHijinks) July 13, 2016

Dear @TSA,

I caught 4 pokemon inside the secured area of the airport. What, exactly, are you protecting us from? Apparently nothing.

Joe

— Joe Onisick (@jonisick) July 11, 2016

GUYS I FOUND A POKEMON HOW DO I PUT IT IN MY PHONE WHY DOES IT BITE SO HARD pic.twitter.com/gKcGebNjjN

— Jelisa Castrodale (@gordonshumway) July 11, 2016

The @Oatmeal gets it! #PokemonGO pic.twitter.com/uSXpp0MkYD

— Lethality (@real_lethality) July 12, 2016

Hytera NDP-950

Hytera NDP-950 professional Intelligent Interphone https://t.co/hZHpzir1W6 pic.twitter.com/m2b5UzR4iQ

— HAM-DMR.NL (@HamDMRNL) June 4, 2016

Via @TravisGoodspeed

Beartooth

Speaking of VHF/UHF radios that work with your smartphone http:https://t.co/rjRiD8lHqT

— BobW (@K0NR) December 4, 2015

Along the lines of the goTenna... the Beartooth:

"Beartooth is a software defined radio peer to peer communication platform that encases your phone and doubles your battery life. Our proprietary software defined radio allows your smartphone to communicate even without cellular or wifi service. We allow for Push to Talk "PTT" voice communication, text messaging, and geolocation sharing on our offline maps."

And:

"Our product will require FCC approval. We are currently working with attorneys and technical advisors who specialize in FCC approval. Our products are designed to meet the technical and legal requirements of the FCC, and we anticipate a favorable part outcome."

The audio on this video is spotty and you still only get high level info, but they do mentions amateur radio as a target market (along with consumers.)

Multi-Device Bluetooth Keyboard

This Logitech Multi-Device Bluetooth keyboard ($37) came across my radar. You can use it with three devices - just turn the dial to switch between devices. The slot for your tablet or phone has a couple of benefits - it creates a pseudo mutli-screen experience and defines a place for your phone.

Runbo Q5-S Android Phone/Radios

I saw in an e-mail from Grapevine Amateur Radio that they are selling the Runbo Q5-S (in UHF or VHF):

"Brand new. The Runbo Q5 S is the successor of the Runbo X5+. It comes with a Quad Core processor at 1.5 GHz and a better graphic processor. It has overall better performance than the X5+. As all Runbo products, it has been built with high quality materials allowing him to be the next starting line of Runbo models. 

The Runbo Q5 S has a resolution of 1280×720 and support multi-touch capacity. It features a powerful Gorilla Glass which is extremely resistant again scratches and impacts. Enjoy you photos and videos as you would on other popular smartphones with the great 4.5 Inch screen.

Runbo Q5 S is equipped with an RF connector so you can connect the delivered antenna to use it as a Walkie Talkie device; the actual version covers Very High Frequencies (VHF, 136-174 MHz)."

LTE Direct

Forget the goTenna or FireChat, the carriers are looking at providing direct phone to phone communications.* (Although, it looks like FireChat proved its usefulness in China.)



* Well, I think direct communication, but the more I read, the more it looks like a BLE alternative/beacon/marketing tool.


Via Slashdot.org

And an Alarm Clock, too

I was thinking about how my phone had replaced my alarm clock this morning. I had an alarm clock that I used for the better part of 25 years. A while back, my daughter was playing with it and broke the snooze button. It kinda stressed me out - change bad!!!! I replaced it with a similar one, but I never use the alarm functionality on it. I still like to glance at the time in the middle of the night, but I suppose I could get use to doing that on the phone, too.

In just 20 years, a 200x reduction in volume, 1000x in weight, and 20x the speed & resolution! pic.twitter.com/BOEihvHLR5
— Bill Gross (@Bill_Gross) July 29, 2014

Dumb Glass

From my Twitter feed:

BenedictEvans Spoke to a big UK broadcaster this week - apparently their strategy team is worried about the TV becoming 'dumb glass'. Nice new jargon...
Thu, Sep 12 13:06:46 from Twitterrific for Mac
retweeted by tim

I can't wait until it is smart enough to filter the ticker that runs across the bottom of my screen, so I can eliminate all those MLB and NBA scores that I don't have any interest in.

The Practical Meter

A Kickstarter project to help you monitor the capabilities of your charging device (wall outlet, solar panel, car charger, laptop, etc.) for your phone or other USB device.

WIREDInsider Kickstarter: Not all USB ports are created equal. This little device can tell you which one to use: ow.ly/mxCCD Mon, Jul 01 14:03:27 from HootSuite

Help for Picking a New Phone

A cool web site to do side by side comparisons of various smart phones. Somebody should whip one of these up for ham radios!

Via LifeHacker

The Math Must Work

Verizon won't waive a $30 fee, so they lose the long term revenue stream worth much more than that. On the face of it, this makes no sense. I can only assume for every person that leaves Verizon there are more than enough people that will just pay the $30 to offset the other lose. It is tough being one of the few that want to fight against silly policies that are not logical, but may make financial sense to Gigantic Corps.

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