On Computers

Google Maps is much smarter now, thanks to Gemini AI, but it hasn’t rolled out to everyone yet. No matter. I like the free Gemini app. It’s map savvy. Gemini is so good that Siri recently threw in the towel and pleaded with Gemini to save her. Or rather, Apple made a deal with Google to give Siri a Gemini brain. Future Apple operating systems will also have Gemini brains. Turning to the Gemini app on my iPhone, I asked: “What’s the best way to get from the University Club to the Union League Club without a car?” Gemini said it would take 11 minutes to walk and nine minutes by train. As for restaurant stops along the way, it […]

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Filed under: cameras, Google, health, Internuts, maps, photos, robots | Comments Off on GOOGLE MAPS GETS SMARTER

Here are some of the strangest and most amazing things to come out of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this month. Ride and Fly A flying moped is coming to a driveway near you in 2026. You could be pedaling one moment and taking off into the air the next. The Rictor Skyrider X1 flies at a maximum speed of 62 miles per hour for 40 minutes. Thanks to artificial intelligence, it takes off and lands on its own and plans the optimal route. According to the company, it lands safely even if an engine fails, in which case, a parachute pops out. Thank goodness for AI. Without it, I might smash into the top of a skyscraper. […]

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Filed under: AI, analytics, cameras, environment, gadgets, health, Linux, monitors, robots | Comments Off on VEGAS ELECTRONICS SHOW FEATURES FLYING MOPED, SOLAR UMBRELLA

I can hardly wait to get my free 55-inch 4K “Telly” TV. You can get one too. In the first 36 seconds, 100,000 people signed up, mostly Millennials and Gen Zs in the higher income and education brackets. The first half a million TVs will be shipped next month, and millions more will be shipped in 2024 and 2025. Unfortunately, the Telly is getting a bum rap because of the data it collects. That’s ironic. Today’s TVs already spy on you, then sell your data to third parties. The main difference between the Telly and other TVs is that the Telly is up front about it and gives you a TV for free. Sign up at FreeTelly.com to get a […]

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Filed under: cameras, Internet, Internuts, TV | Comments Off on FREE 55-INCH TV

Most people rely on their phones to take pictures. But professional cameras, such as DSLRs, do a much better job.  Professional cameras have sensors about the size of 12 Lego bricks. Your phone’s sensor is probably about half of one, according to CNET.  But phones are catching up. Some have sensors the size of two Lego bricks. Meanwhile,  Xiaomi, the world’s third largest phone maker after Apple and Samsung, is developing one that lets you mount a Leica M lens. It’s been dubbed the “12S Ultra Concept Phone.” In other news, LG Innotek is introducing a new telephoto zoom camera module at this month’s Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas. The module’s moving lenses will be similar to professional camera […]

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Filed under: apps, cameras, DVD, environment, Internuts, keyboards, passwords, printer | Comments Off on PHONES CATCHING UP WITH CAMERAS

California just approved a new kind of license plate. It uses e-ink to display messages, like: “This car has been stolen.”  It could be the beginning of a trend. With the “RPlate,” by Reviver, you control your license plate’s messages from an app on your phone. Compared to a personalized license plate, the RPlate can display much more info, such as your business’s website and phone number. The new plate uses a monochrome e-ink screen protected by a cover six times stronger than glass. Its battery lasts five years, and it works with Bluetooth, allowing the plate to join the “Internet of Things.” The cost is $20 a month or around $215 for four years. A wired version for fleets […]

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Filed under: Amazon, Android, apps, cameras, Internuts, printer, trends | Comments Off on E-INK LICENSE PLATES FOR CARS

Netflix is trying to crack down on the 100 million customers worldwide who get free movies by signing in with a friend’s username and password. But a new service called Gowd lets you buy your Netflix sign-in credentials from strangers. Gowd is like eBay for TV. Sellers choose their own prices, starting at 50 cents a month. When I looked, Apple TV Plus was 50 cents but there was a waitlist. A Disney/Hulu/ESPN bundle was $5, Netflix was $5, and Amazon Prime was $2. The site has every service you’ve ever heard of and then some. To start, register at Gowd.com and put a dollar or two into you account. I signed up for PeacockTV for $1, and enjoyed the […]

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Filed under: apps, cameras, photos, troubleshooting, video | Comments Off on GOWD COMPETES WITH NETFLIX

I have friends who buy new iPads when theirs run out of storage space. But here’s an easy way to free up space: Offload apps you’re not using. It’s nearly automatic. Tap “Settings,” then “General,” then “Storage.” You’ll see a list of apps. Choose one and tap “offload.” You won’t lose any data associated with it. Besides, you can always tap it again to bring it back. I just saved more than half a gigabyte by offloading iMovie, which I’d only used once. Another way to go is to send photos to your computer. In Windows, when I plugged my iPhone SE into a USB port on my computer, Windows popped up with a message asking me what I wanted […]

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Filed under: cameras, gadgets, Google, Internuts, iPad, iPhone, spam, trends | Comments Off on STORAGE TRICK FOR IPHONES AND IPADS

I remember when my sister used a stand-alone photo printer to print photos at her son’s birthday party so the guests could take them home immediately. Now you can get one that’s as small as your cell phone. The Canon “Ivy Mini Photo Printer for Smartphones” is the best pocket-sized printer for parties, according to an extensive review by TheVerge.com. Kids love the photo stickers it prints, and adults may appreciate having new faces to stick on their refrigerator. On Amazon, the printer is $99, but I saw the same ones on eBay, brand new, for $55. The prints are about the size of credit cards, two-by-three inches. You don’t have to use their peel-and-stick backing; just peel it off […]

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Filed under: Amazon, browsers, cameras, cheap calls, gadgets, Internuts, wearables, web | Comments Off on PARTY PRINTER

Thank goodness for plant apps: I tend to under-water, except when I over-water. I don’t fertilize. I only re-pot when the roots are so big and gnarly there’s no dirt left. “Planta,” for iPhone and Android, rescued me. It puts every task on a schedule without being a Nazi about it. On watering day, for example, it will ask me if the soil is still damp. If so, I can snooze the alert. Different plants are on different schedules. For example, my ZZ plant is over three feet high but almost never needs watering. Unfortunately, the free version of Planta only gives watering reminders – no plant identification or care advice. The paid version, for $36 a year, gives you […]

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Filed under: apps, cameras, education, gadgets, Internuts, troubleshooting | Comments Off on PLANT APP PUTS HOUSEHOLD PLANTS ON A SCHEDULE

On a recent plane trip, I watched in dismay as the power drained from my phone. By the time I got from Chicago to New Hampshire with a stop in Philly, it was circling the drain.  A portable power bank is the answer. Here are two questions: How fast can it restore a phone to full charge? Does it lose power when not in use? In the past, on the rare occasions when I’ve thought to bring a power bank with me, it turned out it wasn’t charged and I didn’t have time to mess with it. Power banks with lithium ion batteries should retain their power months after they’ve been charged. But some products that claim to have lithium […]

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Filed under: apps, batteries, books, cameras, computers, graphics, Internuts | Comments Off on NEW PORTABLE POWER BANK SAVES THE DAY