Where to buy a Gear VR controller
Where can I buy the Samsung Gear VR Controller?
The biggest news from the last couple of months for Gear VR fans is undoubtedly the release of the new Controller. It stores neatly on the side of the headset, fits conveniently in your hand, and removes the need to touch the side of the headset. The best part? If you already own a Gear VR you don’t have to buy the new $130 bundle with the Controller included. You just buy the Controller separately, and it pairs to whatever Samsung phone you’re currently using.
Read More at VR Heads!
Get some Awesome on your home screen with these Guardians of the Galaxy wallpapers
Ooga-chaka Ooga-Ooga Ooga-chaka Ooga-Ooga…
The Guardians of the Galaxy are back, with another AWESOME soundtrack that lives up to its Awesome Mix name, old foes made allies, new foes to threaten the galaxy, and there’s plenty of out-of-this-world wacky weirdness to go around! Before you head to theaters this weekend, you should put some galactic goodness on your home screen, so we’ve got our own little Awesome Mix going… an awesome wallpaper mix that is.
Starlord is a devilish rogue that’s easy to love, and nobody makes him easy to love than Chris Pratt. Being a half-human raised across the universe by a variety of aliens, it’s amazing that the Guardians’ leader is as well-rounded, mostly-moral, and ridiculously fun as he is. It’s easy to forget that all of that amazingness is often hidden under that awkward and quite intimidating battle helmet.
It’s not as easy to forget that under that battle helmet, he’s probably humming top 70’s hits.
Starlord by DannySchlitz
Drax is a serious man with some serious issues as well as a seriously difficult relationship with metaphors, slang, and the intricacies of non-literal language. A serious warrior deserves a seriously kickass wallpaper, with him about to absolutely destroy someone, hopefully not the artist capturing his unbridled fury. If you’re someone who dreams of violently letting out your frustrations… you should maybe see someone about that, but in the meantime, take this wallpaper and let Drax get it our for you!
Drax by Puekkers
Gamora can kill a man a hundred different ways, with or without a weapon, but she’s still got a soft side, and after years of torment and torture (giving and taking), she’s learning to explore a softer side of existence again. From stealing Starlord’s tunes every now and again to learning to love and accept herself, Gamora is a reminder that no matter how far into the dark we go in life, we can always come back to the light.
Gamora by Avionecta
Nebula by Deviantapplestudios
Who else is excited Nebula is joining the “good guys” for a while this time? Because I’m excited for Nebula to join the Guardians for a while. The cybernetic killer with the electrical weaponry played two sides in the first installment, but both were murdering psychopathic villains, and there’s more in her than hateful comments and death glares… right? Well, looking at this wallpaper, I’m not sure, but I will say that Nebula is one cyborg chick you do NOT want to cross.
Baby Groot may be the best upgrade this time around, and yeah, there’s something about a chibi character with amazing abilities and limited vocabulary that lends itself to pop culture adoration and internet memes. Baby Groot is like a tiny Pokemon that’s going to evolve back into a giant warrior, but for now, he’s a slightly OP little scene-stealer who gets carried around on everyone’s shoulder.
“I am Groot.”
You said it, sapling…
Baby Groot by TheSmokeirx
Aukey WatchTower review: Low-cost connected security done mostly easy
Aukey is a longtime seller of, well, all things electronic. Turns out that means IP cameras and an integrated security system, too — and at a price that doesn’t break the bank.
Save 20% off WatchTower: Aukey is helping us help you by giving 20 percent off the WatchTower series if you use code AUKEYWMN at checkout. The code is good through May 13. Do it to it!
I’m at that point in my life where I kind of can’t have too many security cameras on hand. Maybe it’s being a Father of Daughters. Maybe it’s just that I’m getting older. In any case, I want to see what’s going on. All the time.
Aukey is a well-known name in the electronics business, but traditionally we talk about them in terms of cables and chargers and batteries. They also have a basic IP camera security system — the Aukey Watchtower — and they set it to ye olde Modern Dad to check out. And check it out we have.
Here’s the breakdown: The WatchTower system comprises a series of IP cameras (either 720p or 1080p — I’ve been using the latter) and comes in sets of four or eight. You pair them with an XVR (think DVR, really, like you’re used to with television) to which you connect all the cameras. The footage is stored on an internal 1TB hard drive.
If that sounds pretty simple, it is.
If you can use a screwdriver or drill, you can set up Aukey WatchTower.
Setting up the cameras is something any homeowner — really, anyone who’s ever held a screwdriver — should be able to do. Each camera comes with its own mounting hardware. It’s just screws and anchors. Figure out where you want the camera to go, then screw it in. The hardest part here is deciding how conspicuous you want the wiring to be. I set up our cameras in the office and did a little bit of cable management. If you’re installing at home you might well consider running the 60 feet of wires through an attic or crawl space.
You’ll also need to decide where the XVR is going to live. It’s not a huge box — definitely smaller than all of the DVR’s I’ve used — but you will want to plan ahead to make sure it’s accessible and in reach of all the cameras.
Once you’ve got your cameras placed, you’ll run your wires, and plug everything in. One end of the cables go to the cameras, the other to the XVR. Easy.
Local playback doesn’t take any more effort than plugging everything in and turning it on. The user interface isn’t exactly what I’d call current. Think generic Windows. Functional, but not exactly up to date. But I fumbled through it easily enough. You can view each camera individually, or all at once in a 2-by-2 grid, or you can automatically flip between them. Standard security stuff.
Plugging the XVR into a router opens up remote viewing. This is where the user interface actually hampered me a little bit — and there’s no real documentation to help you through things. Some basic networking skills will help a little, but mostly I just fumbled around until I got things working. A QR code in the settings leads you to Android and iOS apps (so do these links here), as well as the serial number and unique ID of your XVR, which you’ll then need to input into the apps. If you want to view remotely, you’ll need to register an account on Aukey’s Watchtower site, and that will need to be input into the apps. (Hint: Look for where it says “Normal” login and choose the server you ended up using.) Again, the UI doesn’t help things here. But a little patience will get you through it.
Flipping back through previous footage is simple enough. You use the included mouse to browser through the calendar and timeline until you find where you want to watch. (There are motion and disconnect alarms that can be turned on if you want.) You also can export footage through a backup manager (again, being patient with the UI) to use elsewhere.
The end result is usable video and stills. We’re talking about 2-megapixel cameras (with 1080p resolution). Chances are the front-facing camera in your phone has a higher resolution. But for my purposes in the office it’s been fine. There’s enough definition for me to see what’s going on, and the infrared night vision works as expected to illuminate the dark room in the back, as well as to see what’s going on out front after the sun goes down.
It’s worth mentioning, too, that these cameras aren’t inconspicuous. That is, you’ll know they’re there. And so will everyone else. To me that’s actually a selling point in a storefront environment that is my office If you can see the camera, you know it can see you. And hopefully anyone looking to cause trouble will think twice about doing so.
The WatchTower system probably won’t be something I play with every day. But then again I don’t think it needs to be. It’s watching over things so I don’t have to. It’s easy to install, relatively easy to set up, and it does its job in the background without much fuss. I definitely appreciated the all-in-one nature of the package — everything you need to get going is in the box — and it’s one of those things that the most basic of handyman (that’s me) can set up. If I want to go further and run the cameras through a third-party IP camera system, I can do that. Or not. It’s up to me.
WatchTower is a low-cost system with a basic UI — and now bad at all for the price.
For me, the real attraction here is having everything together, for a price that’s not bad at all at about $359 retail. It’s a good mix of convenience and cost. (And the eight-camera bundle with a 2TB XVR is just another $150.) WatchTower would be well-served by an updated UI and maybe some more documentation. But I’m also fairly confident that if I can do this, so can you.
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Sprint introduces all-wireless ‘Magic box’ small cell for homes and businesses
Sprint’s key to coverage is a small cell tower in your window.
Cellular carriers have long offered so-called “microcell” hardware to help boost cell signal from that carrier at your home or business, but Sprint is taking a slightly different approach with the launch of its “Magic Box” small cell. Despite having a questionable name that tells you nothing about what it does, the Magic Box is super simple: set it in a window and plug it into power, and it amplifies Sprint’s network throughout the building.
The shoe box-sized appliance configures itself on the network automatically and unlike some other solutions doesn’t need to be hooked into your home internet or require any sort of configuration on your end. You really do just plug it into power and enjoy the benefit. Sprint claims one Magic Box is good to cover 30,000 sqft of indoor space, and over 300 feet outdoors in the other direction from the window.
Just plug it in, and everyone around you gets better Sprint coverage.
Because of this simple and open setup, the Magic Box isn’t just for you — it’s actually cleverly a small cell tower in itself that can be used by any Sprint customer within its range, up to 64 simultaneous customers. So by offering these boxes to customers, it’s really improving its overall network footprint without having to install costly towers or small cells on buildings itself. That’s particularly important in urban areas where it’s tough to blanket multi-story buildings in coverage.
Since Sprint is honestly benefiting from this just as much as you are, there’s no cost to you to get the box — all you’d pay for is the negligible power bill having it plugged in. Sprint says there are some limitations to find out if you “qualify” to get a box, but chances are these will be handed out pretty liberally.
If you have weak Sprint coverage at your home or office and want to see if you qualify for a Magic Box, Sprint has a website where you can get more details.
The next ‘Horizon Zero Dawn’ patch ups Aloy’s selfie game
Horizon Zero Dawn is already a fantastic game, but that doesn’t mean it can’t get any better. Next week, Horizon patch 1.20 will go live and bring a raft of changes to the game, with a focus on improving photo mode and squashing bugs (in the code, that is). Sony and developer Guerrilla Games laid out the fixes on the European PlayStation Forum.
Horizon’s photo mode is fairly robust, but patch 1.20 adds new poses and facial expressions for Aloy, three new filters, a mode that makes Aloy look at the camera, the ability to add “greetings from” to an image and improved camera controls. It will also be possible to hide Aloy inside settlements while in photo mode.
The game’s HUD sees some upgrades, too. For example, whenever Aloy dons the Shield Weaver Armor, a blue status bar will appear above her existing health bar, indicating the amount of extra health she receives. The in-game map also gets some new filters and a legend for easy traveling, and players will finally be able to categorize and sort their inventories.
Spanish speakers in North America, rejoice: Patch 1.20 adds Spanish subtitles to the game, and a voiceover pack will be available in the PlayStation Store next week.
Horizon itself should simply play better in patch 1.20, with dozens of fixes to various missions and actions that caused players to get stuck or otherwise cheat the game. The full patch run-down can be found on the PlayStation Forum.
Source: PlayStation Forum, PlayStation Blog
Apple Releases Safari Technology Preview 29 With Bug Fixes and Feature Improvements
Apple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview, the experimental browser Apple first introduced one year ago in March of 2016. Apple designed the Safari Technology Preview to test features that may be introduced into future release versions of Safari.
Safari Technology Preview release 29 includes fixes and improvements for JavaScript, CSS, Rendering, Web Inspector, WebCrypto, Accessibility, Media, and more.
The Safari Technology Preview update is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store to anyone who has downloaded the browser. Full release notes for the update are available on the Safari Technology Preview website.
Apple’s aim with Safari Technology Preview is to gather feedback from developers and users on its browser development process. Safari Technology Preview can run side-by-side with the existing Safari browser and while designed for developers, it does not require a developer account to download.
Tag: Safari Technology Preview
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