All posts by Matt Porter

The Gadget Man – Episode 74 – Fuze

Fuze reviewed by Matt Porter
Fuze reviewed by Matt Porter

This morning I chat to Rachel about the Fuze, which is “A programmable computer and electronics workstation, the FUZE, with FUZE BASIC, is an ideal platform for learning and teaching computational thinking and computer programming and provides a safe environment to experiment with simple electronics.”

It has been really interesting testing the Fuze and I will be reviewing here in more detail in the next few days, for now enjoy the audio.

 

 

The Gadget Man – Episode 73 – Halloween Ideas from Digital Dudz at Morph Suits

This morning I chatted to Mark about some Halloween and Christmas costume ideas from Morph Suits.

I was sent three different costumes ideas, the first was Cyclops Mask (available here) which aside from being a very well made full head mask, also had the added feature of fully animated eye which is achieved by slotting your mobile device into a special slot about the eye socket whilst running the Digital Dudz app for iPhone or Android.  When inserted, you can then centre the eye in its socket and pinch to zoom in and out to get the right size and positioning.

 

As you can see from the photos and video above, the effect is amazing and a little disturbing, but a fantastic use of technology all the same.

The second and third costume items where a clown t-shirt and Christmas jumper. The clown t-shirt has a hidden slot on the front which allows for the insertion of a mobile phone with the same app running. This gives another really spooky twist to Halloween costumes! The Christmas jumper allows the insertion of a mobile phone above the photo of a Gingerbread Man, again running the app, the Gingerbread man is slowly devoured!!

The Clown T-Shirt can be purchased by clicking this link and the Gingerbread Jumper at this link. You can browse the entire range of Morph Suit clothing here.

There’s still time to order your Halloween costumes in time for this weekend at http://www.morphsuits.co.uk/

 

The Gadget Man – Episode 72 – Internet Dating

This week the BBC are looking at dating later in life, so this morning I talk to Mark about Internet Dating and how it has evolved over the last 10 – 15 years. We discuss how to keep yourself safe online what you should look out for.

We also chatted about the new raft of apps available to help people connect up with each other online.

Danvers Baillieu from Hide My Ass was also due to chat, but was unable to due to a comms failure. I have also linked to my interview with him last week.

 

The Gadget Man – Episode 71.5 – The state of Internet security with Danvers Baillieu from Hide My Ass

Danvers Baillieu from Hide My Ass
Danvers Baillieu from Hide My Ass

We’re half way through Cyber Security Month and you can’t open a paper or turn on the TV without hearing about the latest high profile data leak. Security Issues are certainly something that we have covered in the past, so today I was delighted to have the opportunity to interview Danvers Baillieu, Chief Operating Officer of Hide My Ass!

Hide My Ass! or HMA are one of the leading firms of companies providing secure VPN connections to the internet and it was great to speak to Danvers to hear his view on current Internet security issues that are seemingly constantly in the news.

In the interview we covered internet security from both a company and personal point of view, how the governments should or shouldn’t involve themselves and what we should be looking out for in the future.

Listen in the stream and let me know what you think of the topics covered.

Thanks to Danvers for taking time out of his day and for Jocelyn from Cow PR for setting up the interview.

 

The Gadget Man – Episode 71 – Edifier MP211 Wireless Bluetooth Speaker with NFC + The Rolling Stones

This week I have been able to sample the audio delights of bluetooth streaming with the Edifier MP211 Wireless Bluetooth Speaker with NFC. This is a very nice wireless speaker solution for people looking for a mobile solution to playing their music quickly and easily.

The Gadget Man - Episode 71 - Edifier MP211 Wireless Bluetooth Speaker with NFC plus The Rolling Stones

 

 

 

 

 

Listen in to the stream to find out all about it, full review of the product coming up shortly.

 

The Gadget Man – Episode 70 – MiniSun Bluetooth LED Colour Changing Speaker Bulb

This week I chat to Mark about the MiniSun Bluetooth LED Colour Changing Speaker Bulb, a very nice product which would be perfect for upcoming party season.

To find out more, listen in to the stream, a full review will be posted in the next few days.

MiniSun Bluetooth LED Colour Changing Speaker Bulb
MiniSun Bluetooth LED Colour Changing Speaker Bulb

 

 

 

 

 

#minisun #speakerbulb #ledbulb

The Gadget Man – Episode 69 – Star Wars BB8 Sphero App Enabled Droid, plus we live taste Brew Barrel

The gadgets are coming in thick and fast at the moment, but one gadget I was really looking forward to reviewing is none other than the Star Wars BB8 Droid from Sphero, not only was it featured on the show but I also spent some time in the green room demonstrating it to none other than magician Paul Daniels and singer Andy Abrahams. I also had the duty of cracking open our fully brewed keg of Brew Barrel which featured last week, it was very tasty!!!

Listen in to the stream above and watch out for a full review on BB8 in the next few days

The Gadget Man – Episode 68 – Brew Barrel – Home Brewing made easy

Home brewing kits have come on leaps and bounds in the last few years and the amazing startup from Germany called ‘Brew Barrel’ have certainly been at the forefront of developments in this area.

This morning I chatted to Mark about a Brew Barrel, so listen in to the stream to find out more and afterwards watch the video of me making a batch up at home for testing next week! So don’t forget to tune in to BBC Radio Suffolk or check back here!!

Porsche to enter the electric sports car market with the Mission E – 310 miles – 15 minute charge

There has been a slew of announcements from Volkswagen Group today, but the the real news for us is the announcement of the Porsche Mission E electric sports sedan!

Back in April, I spoke to notable people at Porsche (notably Mark Webber) at the WEC at Silverstone about the potential of Porsche launching a fully electric sports car, at the time everyone was understandably tightlipped even going so far as to say that they couldn’t see it happening. Well, it has happened, in the form of the four seater Porsche Mission E.

Obviously there is a direct comparison to the Tesla Model S P90D with it’s Ludicrous Mode and super fast charging and it seems that Porsche have specifically targetted these areas with Mission E.

The Mission E has all wheel drive dual electric motor drive producing 600HP accelerating the car from 0-60mph in less than 3.5 seconds. The technology for this vehicle has been inherited from the awesome Le Mans class Porsche 919 LMP1 giving exceptional energy recuperation.

Charging the vehicle can be just as rapid as Porsche have chosen an 800 volt ‘Porsche Turbo Charging System’ which can replenish the battery to 80% in just 15 minutes! The car also supports 400 volt home charging and even inductive charging meaning parking over an inductive charging plate will begin replenishing the cars power plant. Fully charged, the Mission E gives up to 310 miles range, which is again in Model S territory.

The interior is future-proofed by the inclusion of 3d eye tracking displays and holographic controls with race bucket seats for all four passengers.

This is a massive announcement from the world’s most popular sports car manufacturer and we can now look forward to the eventual production model and the technology finding its’ way down the VW Group food chain to the other brands in the group.

I love the fact that Porsche are so incredibly active in the EV and Hybrid market. It’s a very exciting time for car manufacturers at the moment. As I’ve said before, we are seeing a gold rush in the electric vehicle market, driving it forward faster than ever and this can only benefit ‘us’, the drivers in fuel efficiency, performance and most importantly – safety.

The Gadget Man – Episode 67 – Fitbit Charge HR

This morning I talked to Mark Matthews about the Fitbit Charge HR. Fitbit are a well known player in the fitness band marketplace and the continuous heart rate monitoring is a great feature.

Fitbit Android App
Fitbit Android App

Listen in the the stream to find out what I think of the Charge HR and keep an eye on the site as I spent the next few weeks monitoring my progress wearing the Fitbit Charge HR.

Thanks to Rachel Taylorat Kaizo for organising the Fitbit at such short notice.