My 'gadget guru' technology for TRE Talk Radio Europe March 2017

Here's a quick reminder of the technology I talked about in my March 2017 'gadget guru' chat on TRE Talk Radio Europe:

Alcatel A5 LED smartphone

Alcatel phones are produced by TCL, a Chinese company that now makes BlackBerry devices as well as everything from air conditioning units to TVs.

The phone that caught my eye is the Alcatel A5 LED, which was revealed at Mobile World Congress 2017. TCL is calling it the World’s First Interactive LED-covered Smartphone

Most smartphones have an LED at the top: a little light that changes colour when the battery runs down and flashes when you have a call or a message.

This phone has the back panel covered in LEDs. There are 35 of them that can be used for notifications. So you can have one kind of light show for incoming calls and perhaps a different one for messages, another one for alarms and another one for social media alerts.

But that’s not all. You can also have the lights moving when you play music, like a miniature night club.

And, yes, it’s a phone as well. It runs the Android operating system; there’s a 5.2-inch HD display, an 8 megapixel camera on the back and a 5 megapixel on the front with a flash, so you can take selfies in the dark.

Availability is expected from May, with an unconnected price of €199.

Gemini PDA

Some people - myself included - would be tempted to described the Psion 5MX of 1999 as the ultimate Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). It would just about fit in your pocket but had a 5½ inch screen, a QWERTY keyboard and ran for hours off a couple of AA batteries.

You had all your contacts and your diary on it - and could use it as a tiny computer for writing documents and running spreadsheets.

Jump forward almost 20 years to 2017 and we're presented with Gemini, which is likely to put a smile on the face of anyone who fondly remembers their Psion 5MX. For a start, one of the people involved in the project is Martin Riddiford, who was part of the design team for the Psion Series 5.

As with the old Psion 5MX, there’s a proper QWERTY keyboard and a standby time that’s measured in weeks, not hours. It’ll have a 5.7-inch colour screen – a touchscreen – and the option of built-in mobile connectivity, plus a choice between running the Android operating system or Linux.

It's currently being promoted on crowd-funding site Indiegogo; the company behind Gemini reckons it’ll have the first units delivered in November.

Final retail pricing is expected to be around $600 but there’s an opportunity for early backers to get one for around £350.

Coros Linx smart cycling helmet

This isn’t just a regular helmet but has high-tech safety features and a built-in hands-free kit as well.

The hands-free part uses Bluetooth wireless technology - but you don’t need to wear earphones. Bone-conducting speakers in the straps turn sounds into vibrations and send them directly to your inner ear. It means your ears aren’t obstructed, so you can still hear traffic and people’s voices.

The microphone for hands-free conversations is just inside the front of the helmet, which helps cut down on noise – and, of course, you can also use the helmet for having the sat-nav on your phone speak directions to you.

Because of all this connectivity, the helmet can even send an alert if you have an accident. There’s a sensor that can tell if you’ve fallen off: when that happens it’ll send a text message to your chosen contact.

It all connects to your phone via an app and there’s also a remote control that can be fitted to your handlebars. The helmet itself weighs 400g, so all this tech hasn’t added too much to the weight.

Pricing is £179.99.

Rocketbook Wave reusable notebook

This is, to all intents and purposes, a paper notebook. So you’ve got the freedom of writing or sketching or doodling as you would on any other piece of paper. But when you’ve finished, you can upload it to your phone. There’s a QR code at the bottom of each page – that’s one of those square barcodes – and when you point your phone's camera at it, the Rocketbook app on your phone takes a copy. You can have your notes saved automatically in Dropbox, or Evernote, or Google Docs or even email – whichever of those online services you prefer.

The book is designed to be used with the Pilot FriXion pen, which is erasable. If you make a mistake, you can flip the pen upside down and rub it out. What actually happens is that when the ink heats up to over 60°C, it becomes invisible.

Here's the unexpected bit. When you've finished your notebook and uploaded all your notes, you can put the whole thing in the microwave. Seriously. Give it a few minutes with a mug of water on top and all the ink will disappear.

You can do this for around five times before the paper stops working, so you could say it’s not an 80-page notebook you’re buying but the equivalent of 400 pages.

The price for the Rocketbook Wave Reusable Notebook is £32.99. And if you're not quite convinced, take a look at the forthcoming Rocketbook Everlast. That’s designed to wipe clean – literally – with a moist paper towel.

Miss Odeyne Spark

Several years ago a friend gave me a signed photograph of Miss Odeyne Spark, dated May 1905. I'm pretty sure it is actually signed, rather than printed with a signature - and I'm working on the assumption that the signature is that of Miss Spark. But who was she? Online copies of old newspapers have given me a glimpse of her career.

She's described as a dancer and comedienne in a number of English regional newspapers from late 1902. The Shepherd's Bush Empire, where she appeared in May 1906, called her a "Delightful Comedienne and Dancer". She's also mentioned as being on a vaudeville bill in South Africa earlier in 1906.

Variety in 1907 tells us "a case today under sharp Federation scrutiny [presumably the Variety Artistes' Federation] is that of Odeyne Sparks, engaged to open Oct. 7 at a Keith house for four weeks. She is considered a good turn here, and was booked through Hyman's agency, Mr. Feiber never having seen the act, his tactics toward Miss Sparks are construed by sound legal authority as intimidating." It goes on to say "if Miss Sparks concludes to face the music she will have ample artistic support".

The Cardiff-based Evening Express on 30th August 1910 reports that "Odeyne Spark is electrifying as a comedienne and dancer" at the Newport Empire.

Adelaide's Evening Journal of 19th January 1911 contains an advertisement that informs us Miss Odeyne Spark is "arriving to-day by the R.M.S. Malwa, direct from London" and that she is "one of England's daintiest and brightest comediennes and dancers".

The Advertiser reviews her show with "Miss Odeyne Spark, a bright comedienne from London, made her first appearance in Australia on Saturday, and proved herself an artiste with plenty of charm and originality. Clog-dancing is one of the strong points in her turn."

She proves popular in Australia: the Sydney Sportsman of 15th February 1911 describes her as "a recent arrival from across the herring pond" and notes that she "piles up encores nightly".

The Argus of Melbourne, Australia, dated 20th March 1911, tells us "A number of good new turns were given at the Opera-house on Saturday afternoon. Miss Odeyne Spark, described as a singer and a dancer, is neither a very excellent singer, nor does she dance very well, but her turn is a very bright one, as she has a good appearance and a pretty way of putting her work before the house. She had the gallery singing her chorus for her on Saturday, and that is a sure sign of approval. Her songs include one concerning the advantage of being named William, and another centred about the hobble-skirt."

A month later, the Amusements section of The West Australian (Perth edition) dated 25th April 1911 alerts us to the "Decided Success of Miss Odeyne Spark". It was around this time that some of her dresses were stolen from the Cremorne Theatre; William Parsons was sentenced to two months' imprisonment for the crime.

Odeyne Spark returned to England at the end of April 1911.

How many words in a minute?

How many words in a minute? It's a question that appears to mix disparate disconnected units, like measuring an Olympic-sized swimming pool with double-decker buses or calculating the height of Nelson's Column in football pitches. Besides, there are also issues of size and speed - from the single syllable to the sesquipedalian, from relaxed to rushed. How many balls of string would it take to reach the moon? One, if it's long enough. As a child I was told that was one of the oldest recorded English language jokes - unless, of course, someone was having me on. Incidentally, your ball of string would only need to be a few metres across. Now that IS surprising. More recently, researchers have found a tenth-century double entendre in a poetry book at Exeter Cathedral. What's the punchline? And is double entendre hyphenated? We'll come back to those another time. Ultimately, any calculation can only be an average. Fortunately, I am an average man - although for copyright reasons I won't be quoting any of Rockwell's lyrics. Unlike his protagonist, I cannot afford to pay the price. But there is an answer to my question. One hundred and ninety nine and a ha...

TRE Talk Radio Europe 'gadget guru' chat from February 2017

Here's the technology I talked about in this month's 'gadget guru' chat on TRE Talk Radio Europe:

Nintendo Switch game console

This is due to go on sale next month, with the UK price expected to be £279.99 [around €325].

It’s being called a hybrid console because you can use it at home, plugged into a docking station that connects to your TV, or you can take it out the house like a tablet computer. The 'brains' of the console has rechargeable batteries and a six-inch touch-sensitive screen: imagine a small, fat iPad and you won’t go far wrong

The Nintendo Switch comes with two 'Joy-Con' controllers – part joystick, part controller – that can either be used separately or clipped to the console. So when you’re out and on your own, you clip them to the side of the device and the whole thing is like a giant controller with a screen inside. If you're out and want to play games with someone else, you can have one controller each – depending on the game you’re playing, of course. And when you’re at home and the Nintendo Switch is in its docking console, you can slide the controllers into a separate gamepad accessory that makes them easier to hold and use.

You get the console, the TV dock, two Joy-Con controllers, safety straps to stop you from accidentally throwing the controllers at your TV, the grip that connects both Joy-Con controllers together, the mains adapter and a cable for your TV all in the box. If you want a premium game, you’ll need to buy that separately.

Games can either be bought on cartridges or downloaded online, with over 80 already in the works – although there won’t be that many available when the console launches.

Braven Flye Sport Glo earphones

Cordless earphones have been around for a while. First of all you could get them for your HiFi at home but they needed a special transmitter. Next, along came Bluetooth technology, which let you connect to your phone or your tablet – but most of these still have some kind of cable attaching the left earphone to the right earphone.

Then last year Apple announced what it called AirPods, which are separate wireless earphones for the left and the right ear. Although it wasn’t the first company to do this, it’s certainly made this kind of thing more popular.

Which brings us to Braven, an American company that until now was best known for making Bluetooth loudspeakers. They’re getting into Bluetooth earphones – and one of their designs, the Flyte Sport Glo – is completely cord-free, like the Air Pods.

So you’ve got these earphones that hook onto each ear, with batteries that’ll last for around 4 hours before they need recharging. They come with a storage case that contains its own rechargeable battery, so you don’t need to search for a mains socket when you’re out. That case will fully recharge them five times. And, as with other earphones, there’s a built-in microphone so you can make and receive calls.

So what’s so clever about them? Well, first of all there’s a smartphone app that lets you adjust the sound: equalisation, boosting the bass and so on. They’re waterproof, which is what you want if you’re going jogging in the rain. And there’s a bright red laser light in the ear hook, which you can either have on constantly or flashing – it's designed to keep you safer if you’re outside when it’s getting dark. That, very literally, makes these earphones hard to miss.

Pricing is $249.99 [approximately £200 / €230]; they’re expected to be available this summer.

LOVE turntable

Despite what a lot of people expected, CDs didn’t kill off vinyl records. Not only are many album covers still seen as works of art, there’s a lot to be said for the sound quality you can get from vinyl – as long as you’re using the right kind of turntable and stylus.

I can’t promise that this gadget will please audiophiles but it’ll certainly intrigue them. The LOVE Turntable is being called an ‘Intelligent Record Player’ and also ‘the first high-end, smartphone controlled record player that you can use with or without its app’.

In simple terms, the LOVE turntable plays vinyl records. It’s got a traditional stylus but also connects to Bluetooth and WiFi and can be controlled by a smartphone app. You can connect it to Bluetooth loudspeakers or plug it into your home stereo system with a cable.

But it’s the design of the LOVE turntable that set it apart. There’s a base that’s 7-inches across and a separate arm that sits on top. The arm is 10-inches long and 3½ inches wide, with rounded edges. This contains the stylus and all the technology. Instead of the turntable tuning the record, the base stays still and the arm part moves anticlockwise round the record.

The physical design comes from Yves Behar, who’s been involved with all sorts of things, from fitness trackers to company logos. And the technical specifications look pretty good, too.

It automatically detects the size of your vinyl disc; you then use your phone to play records, to skip or repeat tracks, to change the volume, and even select the right speed. If you prefer, there are some controls on the arm itself.

Inside is a rechargeable battery that will last for 15 album sides before it needs charging.

This is a project on Kickstarter, so the usual terms and conditions apply. The retail price is expected to be $599 but early backers can get one for $319 plus $25 postage – that’s around €320 / £275. Delivery is expected in October.

Volta magnetic charging cable

This is another Kickstarter project - and it's another 'world first', according to the creators. It is, in fact, claiming to be the world's strongest cross-device magnetic cable.

Magnetic connections started to be used for chargers a few years ago. There are two main advantages. Firstly, because the magnet on the device attracts the magnet on the cable, you don’t need to look at what you’re doing. You can connect the charger in the dark or when the socket on the device is at the back and you can’t see it. And then, if you trip over the cable or accidentally pull it, the connection is more likely to simply disconnect rather than pulling your iPad off the table and crashing it on the floor – or breaking the charging plug.

With Volta, you put a little magnetic connector into the socket on your phone: there's one for the microUSB socket used on Android devices and another for the lightning connector on iPhones. You then replace your regular charging cable with the Volta cable.

It’s got gold-plated connections and copper wires, so you should get a good connection. It uses N52-grade Neodymium magnets, which are particularly strong. And it’s covered in three layers of military grade PVC, helping make it 15 times stronger than standard cables, according to the creators.

Retail price for a cable and two connector tips is expected to be 54 Australian dollars plus postage, which works out to around £40 / €45, although there are savings for early backers. Delivery is expected in April.

The shame that attaches

"I recall the times in fall 2011, during the occupation of Philadelphia’s City Hall, when I’d do something frivolous, like browse in a bookstore, and be overcome by the shame that attaches to any private activity undertaken in a moment of public upheaval."

Nikil Savil, writing in n+1 magazine, issue 26

Copy deadline

It's 1877. Newspaper reporter Archibald Forbes needs to write a report about the Russo-Turkish war but hasn't slept for the previous three days:

"I told the waiter to bring me a pint of dry champagne, unopened. I took the cork out, put the neck of the bottle into my mouth, drank it with all the fizz, sat up and wrote the four columns you read next morning in the Daily News."

From Famous War Correspondents by F Lauriston Bullard; quoted in The First Casualty by Phillip Knightley.

TRE Talk Radio Europe gadgets from January 2017

In this month's 'gadget guru' chat on TRE Talk Radio Europe I looked at some technology that had been on show at CES, the annual consumer electronics trade show in America.

Hushme voice mask

Hushme is being called the world’s first voice mask for mobile phones. It’s been created to stop mobile phone conversations from being overheard. That has two benefits: if you’re talking about something private – whether it’s personal or confidential – it prevents other people from listening in. And if you’re working in an open-plan office or even out in a public space, it makes life a little more pleasant for other people.

The device consists of a pair of Bluetooth earbuds and a mask that clips together in front of your mouth with magnets. If you’re not using it, you can leave it hanging round your neck like a large pair of headphones.

Built into the mask is acoustic insulation designed to stop your voice from getting out while still allowing your mouth to move. There’s also some kind of active voice suppression. Together, that should muffle your voice pretty effectively.

But what the company has also done – and you’ll either think this is brlliant or completely daft – is add loudspeakers to play noises that’ll mask your voice even more.

You can have something pleasant and natural, like the sound of rain or the sea, you can have animal noises and you can even have Darth Vader’s breathing or R2D2’s beeping from Star Wars.

If you want one, the company isn’t selling them yet but is planning a crowd-funding campaign later this year, with pricing expected to be around $200 (€190 / £165).

BACtrack Skyn wearable alcohol monitor

This is apparently another world first: it’s being described as the world’s first wearable alcohol monitor.

BACtrack Skyn is a kind-of bracelet that measures alcohol through your skin and synchronises with an app on your phone. Whenever you want to check, it’ll tell you how much alcohol is in your body and can also warn you when levels are starting to get a bit high. And this is all passive: you don’t need to blow into a tube or worse.

The way it works is by measuring your Transdermal Alcohol Content (TAC), which is the tiny amount of alcohol that passes through your skin when you’ve been drinking. Your TAC can then be converted into a figure for Blood Alcohol Content (BAC). That’s the figure the police talk about for drink driving.

If you’ve got an Apple Watch, there’s a version of the BACtrack Skyn that can replace your watch strap, so you don't need to wear two separate devices.

And this isn’t just about people who are curious about their alcohol consumption or who want to double-check they’ve not had too much: it also has clinical uses because it’s a practical way for doctors to keep a constant record of patients.

BACtrack Skyn will be available sometime in 2017. At the moment there’s no official idea of pricing but I’ve seen suggestions it could be around $100.

Withings hair coach

Claiming to be the world’s first smart hairbrush, this next device comes from tech company Withings and beauty specialists L’Oreal.

Inside there’s a collection of sensors including a microphone, a gyroscope and an accelerometer.

The gyroscope and accelerometer will detect how forcefully you’re brushing your hair. If you brush too hard it’ll vibrate as a warning. And the microphone is there to listen to the sound your hair makes, providing you with information about hairs breaking, split ends and frizziness. (Sadly it can't connect to iTunes for a spot of bedroom karaoke.)

The information from all the sensors is then sent to an app on your phone that analyses the way you look after your hair – it can even sense if your hair is wet or dry – and gives you a hair diagnosis of dryness, damage, breakage, tangling and so on. You can check if your hair is getting better or worse over time and can see recommendations to help with hair care.

It’s all powered by standard batteries and will be available this autumn at a price of around $200 (€190 / £165)

FLIR ONE thermal camera attachment

Back in February 2016 I mentioned a smartphone that had a built-in thermal camera. The company whose technology was inside that particular phone has now released a couple of clip-on thermal cameras, which means you don’t need to buy a new phone just for thermal imaging

Thermal imaging lets you take photos that show different temperatures as different colours, so you can use it for things like detecting heat loss around windows and doors, working out where insulation is failing, seeing if electrical equipment is getting too hot and – surely everyone’s favourite – going outside in total darkness to detect people or animals creeping about.

FLIR have announced the FLIR ONE Pro – which is a high-spec professional camera – and the new FLIR ONE, for people who haven’t used a thermal camera before. Each comes in two versions: one for the Apple iOS Lightning connector and the other for Android phones or tablets.

The new FLIR ONE is a little box that connects to the bottom of your phone and has an adjustable length connector, which means most people can plug the camera in without taking their phone out of its case. It’s even got its own built-in rechargeable battery.

There are actually two cameras in the device: there’s a thermal camera and a visible light camera, with the images combined to create a more detailed picture. It can measure temperatures between -20° to 120°C and can detect temperature differences as little as 0.1° C.

Pricing for the new FLIR ONE is from £199.99, with availability expected in the next few months.