All posts by Todd Cochrane

Keep it Hot with a Cauldryn



Stainless steel insulated water bottles are commonplace today and have largely taken over from the glass vacuum flasks – the latter are just too delicate, especially for camping and hillwalking. And while the steel bottles are good are keeping stuff warm, the liquid has to be hot in the first place….or does it? Cauldryn Fyre bottles have a built-in heating element which not only keeps liquids warm, it can actually boil water. Colten and Joe have a quick Americano.

The Cauldryn Fyre water bottles feature a modular design, offering a 16-ounce, stainless steel, vacuum insulated bottle with the revolutionary Fyre heating element. The standard Cauldryn Fire is powered from AC but the Fyre Mobile features a rechargeable battery to heat the liquid and keep it hot all day. The mobile base has a couple of USB charging sockets too. There’s a DC base available for heating from 12V / 24V.

The Cauldryn Fire system is modular. Want a smoothie? There’s a blender attachment. Need a light? Snap in the rechargeable battery. It’s even got integration with Ok Google. Seriously, I want one of these.

The Cauldryn Fire is shipping now. The standard Fyre is US$69.99, Fyre Mobile is $129.99 and additional battery units are $69.99. DC base $9.99.

Colten Clymer is one of the team at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Wander the World with the Fonebud W



Mobile data charges abroad can be prohibitively expensive and tethering for wifi burns through the phone’s battery. The new Fonebud W wireless hotspot solves this problem for over 80 countries worldwide. Don chats with Dixon about the features of this new device.

Using your home SIM while in a foreign land typically ends with a large bill when you get back, though seasoned travelers will have a pocketful of SIMs for local telcos. Mind you, it’s still a pain making sure that your smartphone is unlocked and forwarding your calls to your new number (unless you have a dual SIM phone). A much better solution would be the upcoming Fonebud W personal WiFi hotspot which works in over 80 countries, particularly in Asia and China. The 10,000 mAh battery will run the Fonebud W for well over a day and can be used to wirelessly charge a smartphone. Yes, it has a wireless charger built-in, though you can still charge with a cable. The small LED screen shows details of connectivity and battery life.

The Fonebud W will be available in Q2 2018 and will cost US$129-$169 including 24 GB data which is valid for a year.

Don Baine is the Gadget Professor and gives lectures at TheGadgetProfessor.com.


CES 2018 Planned Coverage Announcement



Tech Podcast Networks CES 2018 coverage is going to be a huge departure from previous years. This year the TPN team made up of shows you love and trust will have our broadcast booth at the Sands Expo. What we have found is that startup space, and vendors in that building alone are more aligned with what our teams and audience have come to expect from us. CES has grown so massive it is impossible with the 25 people on the ground to cover it all. The TPN team will be broadcasting from the Sands Exposition center the full four days of the show and to our knowledge, we will be the only group that will have a dedicated broadcast center in that hall.

This means a big change for the vendors who have been accustomed to come seeing us in the North Hall at LVCC. We will only have a small number of folks roaming that will be covering specific areas of LVCC and the surrounding lots. But this opens up a huge opportunity to all the startups that found it hard to come see us in the past at LVCC. This will also give us access to the Sands second-floor vendors who are introducing innovative products on their own.

New this year will be our roving live team that will transmit back to our broadcast booth to our viewing audience allowing us to broadcast directly from the vendor’s booths. Broadcast appearance application open!


NAB 2017 – Liveblog




Drone n’ Base is The Gaming Drone at CES



There are plenty of drones that can be used to take videos from the air or to take aerial photos.  That’s great for photographers, but doesn’t do much for gamers.  Drone n’ Base has created The Gaming Drone.  Use these little drones to play augmented reality video games.

Todd spoke with Matus, who explained what The Gaming Drone can do.  There are two styles of video game that you can play with The Gaming Drone.  One is an augmented reality game where you play against a computer.  You control your physical drone and battle the computer’s drone that is inside the game.

The other video game is a multiplayer race and battle.  Each player places a game board on the floor, and flies his or her drone over it.  This enables the player to race and battle with other players in the video game.

The Gaming Drone by Drone n’ Base is priced at $199.  Each package comes with one drone, one base, and two batteries.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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Avido WiBa is a Contactless Power Charger at CES



Avido has created something that many people have been wanting.  The Avido WiBa is a contactless power charger that you can take with you when you travel.  Todd spoke with Kevin about this amazing new charger.The Avido WiBa is a CES 2017 Innovation Award Honoree.  It is the first of its kind.

The Avido WiBa wireless charging power bank does not require cables.  It is very simple to use.  First, put the Avido WiBa portable power bank onto the charging dock.  In just a few seconds, the power bank begins to charge wirelessly.  Put your phone on top of it, and it instantly begins to charge.  The portable power bank and the phone charge at the same time.

The Avido WiBa is priced at $79.95.  It comes with everything you need to get started, including the power plate and the Avivo WiBa itself.

Todd Cochrane is the host of the twice-weekly Geek News Central Podcast at GeekNewsCentral.com.

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