Month: January 2017

CES: Have the Amazon Echo make you coffee in the morning

Dan Uff January 7, 2017 0

A company called Gourmia showed off a new Alexa Skill that will let a person stay in bed, and tell Alexa to start the coffee.

Gourmia displayed a new line of six Wi-Fi-enabled appliances at CES 2017 in Las Vegas. The company hasn't released prices for these countertop gadgets, and they anticipate a release in the second quarter of 2017. You'll be able to control all the of appliances through Gourmia's new app, but three of those appliances will work with Alexa, Amazon's voice-activated digital assistant:

A 10-cup automatic drip coffee maker with a built-in grinder
A loose-leaf tea infuser
A sous vide pod (it's a device that will create a temperature-controlled water bath)

The controls will work thanks to a Skill (aka the capabilities that you enable Alexa to perform) called Mia. So if you want some tea in the morning, you'll be able to say, "Alexa, tell Mia to start my tea."

Integration with Alexa has been big at this year's CES. And we've already seen small appliances like the Joule sous vide circulator work with Alexa.

Portions of this article were taken from CNet.com

Mickey or Minnie not speaking on your Apple Watch? Try these two things

Dan Uff January 7, 2017 1

A friend of mine just got a new Apple Watch. While setting it up, she decided to try the Mickey and Minnie Mouse watch faces.

When she did, we noticed that they wouldn't speak the time. After looking online (thank GOD for Google.com) we found two possible answers to get them to speak the time:

Repair the watch to the iPhone:

You may have to un-pair, and then repair the watch to the iPhone. (Please refer to this support document for help).

Make sure the iPhone is connected to WiFi.
Go to the Watch App on the iPhone.
Activate the Mickey (or Minnie) watch face. Make sure the "Tap to Speak Time" is turned ON.
Leave the iPhone on that screen for at least 15 minutes.
The watch may need to download the sound file(s) for the face(s).
That's it.

Do you have a Kindle? Get more hints and tips by downloading the 2019 Apple Watch User's Guide from Amazon.com.

Ft. Lauderdale Witness: “Laptop Saved my Life”

Dan Uff January 6, 2017 0

Mid Friday, a shooter invaded the Fort Lauderdale airport killing and injuring several people along the way.

One of these people named Steve Frappier has two things to thank for not becoming a shooting victim - his backpack and his MacBook Pro.

CNN's Anderson Cooper interviewed the gentlemen who stated in the interview:

Laptop stopped bullet from hitting me.

The laptop in question looks like an Apple MacBook or MacBook Pro.

To see the actual interview, click here.

Image: CNN.COM / Anderson Cooper 360

CES: Matias announces Backlet Wireless Aluminum Keyboard

Dan Uff January 6, 2017 0

From the website:

The Matias Backlit Wireless Aluminum Keyboard is a slim, aluminum, wireless (Bluetooth) keyboard with a similar layout to the familiar Apple Wireless Keyboard. It has four features that enhance your experience compared to the regular Apple Wireless Keyboard:

It has a numeric keypad.
It has a rechargeable battery with a typical battery life of up to 1 year before needing recharging. (This is the battery for keyboard operations.)
It has the ability to pair to up to 4 Bluetooth devices at the same time, and easily switch between the 4 devices with the press of a button. Now you can use the same beautiful, great-feeling keyboard for your Mac, iPad, iPhone, Android, or PC; the keyboard even pairs with the optimal layout for each type of device, so when you switch between devices, the keyboard layout is what you expect.
It is backlit! You can control the brightness level, and turn it on or off. The backlighting has its own rechargeable battery, so the keyboard still works even when the backlight battery drains. (The backlight battery lasts a few days to a few weeks depending on how much you use it and how bright you make the backlighting).

This product is currently only available in the U.S. layout.

For more information, click here.