360 Degree Photos, The Next Big Selfie

Posted on August 22, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

I’m not so sure this is going to catch on, but 2016 is supposed to be the year of aerial view selfies. Yes, you throw a 360- degree, ball-shaped camera in the air and it automatically snaps a picture at its highest point. Be sure to catch it.

It’s a spherical photo. You get to see yourself submerged in all of your surrounding from the top, down. Called the Panono, it has the highest resolution camera available.

The Panono just finished a successful Indiegogo fund raising campaign. The camera costs $1,499, but don’t dispair. The initial production run is only ramped up for 1000 units. After that, the price should come down.

The camera is no larger than a grapefruit. It features tiny, indented lenses and a rubberized green trim so you can get a grip on it. You can also use a removable handle if you don’t feel like tossing the camera in the air. You simply click the a button at the end of the grip.

The Panono has a companion app on your smartphone to view the photos you shoot. Watch the video to see what you’re missing on your present day camera. Good luck.

Mashable did a detailed story on Panono.

Amazon’s Competition

Posted on August 21, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

Image from Bloomberg’s Businessweek , Marc Lore

At dinner tonight my girl friend Bonnie asked me if I ever heard of Jet.com. She said it was a new competitor to Amazon and in many cases less expensive.
I had never heard of Jet.com so I told her that she probably got her facts wrong. She told me to check it out. I forgot all about it until I turned to my nightly ritual of checking in with a few tech sites.

The second I opened Engadget, I spotted a detailed post on the concept of Jet.com. What a coincidence. The biggest takeaway that I got from the Engadget post is that “the more you buy, the more rewards you receive.” This amounts to very big savings.

Read Wikipedia’s explanation of Jet.com. The founder, Marc Lore, was also the creator of diapers.com and soap.com, which he later sold to Amazon for $545 million.

I’m anxious for a few of you to try Jet.com and then report back if you think it’s a true Amazon competitor.

Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places

Posted on August 20, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

Image from: 2001 – 2015 Avid Dating Life Inc

By now you have all heard about the Ashley Madison snafu. It’s all over the press. The website, devoted to married people who want to cheat, was hacked. That means someone broke into their database and is slowly releasing the names of 33 million users.

It may seem unreal, but 33 million people actually signed up with their real names, emails, credit cards, addresses, street addresses, phone numbers, and oh boy….. sexual preferences. The hackers revealed that the Ashley Madison patrons include execs from Bank of America, JP Morgan, Amazon, Department of Education, Boeing, and every big company you can think of.

There are tons of people who have a lot of explaining to do. I, myself, can take a big sigh of relief. A few years ago, a former client, was thinking of financially backing a new company that was going to compete against Ashley Madison. His friend, a former Ashley Madison executive, was going to head it up.

They both met with me to discuss my PR agency handling the account. They must have thought I was the biggest idiot alive. I had no idea who Ashley Madison was and what function it performed. I was hoping it had something to do with ice cream.

When they finally explained the concept to me, I went into utter disbelief. I was paralyzed with fear. I didn’t know if they were kidding or trying to trick me. I wasn’t taking any chances. I made up some stomach ache excuse and left the building. I never heard about their venture again and I’m not bringing it up. Amen!

Shoes Turn Into Roller Skates

Posted on August 19, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

This is for me. I can’t wait to buy a pair of shoes that turn into roller skates. All I will have to do is flip a switch when I get tired. I predict this project on Indiegogo will be the start of more roller skate shoe companies to come. It’s a natural.

This one is called Walk Wing. The shoes will be available in 2016. The Walk Wings strap over your shoes. A lever lowers the wheels to turn your shoes into roller skates and then the wheels retract when you want to walk again.

The WalK Wings will retail for about $100. If you contribute to the fund, you will get a discount. Click here to see the offer. Let me know if you buy a pair.

Periscope Claims 10 Million Plus Users

Posted on August 17, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

I wrote about Periscope last March when it was first introduced. Click here to see that story. Today, Periscope announced they surpassed 10 million users. That’s just four months in operation. Pretty amazing. I think that many of you would love it if you gave it a try. I will do a Periscope video and hopefully show it to you in the next Digidame post.

What makes a Periscope video so special is you are live as you record. You become the broadcaster. People who like your subject matter in addition to one’s family and friends, get to watch you in real time. All you do is download the app for iOS or Android and you are ready to go.

If you are currently on any of the social media platforms–Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, then you will enjoy Periscope. It’s the same social interaction that you enjoy when you follow people and they follow you, only live.

Just as a reminder, Periscope was purchased by Twitter for approximately $100 million last March. Today the founders, Kayvon Beykpour and Joe Bernstein, said they’re seeing over 40 years’ worth of video watched per day. I can’t even fathom that kind of time in 24 hours. Mind boggling.

Attention All Dog Lovers !!!

Posted on August 15, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

I am introducing you to a dog collar that’s on steroids. You may want to view the video a few times to understand the full capacity of the Buddy Collar. It has so many features that you will probably throw away many of your other devices.

The water proof, LED collar lights your dog in the dark, has a temperature sensor, an activity tracker, and a location monitor. The collar was the brainchild of Australian startup Squeaker. It connects via Bluetooth to an accompanying iOS (Apple Watch version included) or Android app.

One of the biggest selling points of the collar is that you can draw geofences on maps. That means you will be promptly notified if your pet steps out of the zone you designated.

The accompanying app also gives you an overview of your dog’s activity levels, food intake and vet appointments. The Buddy collar features a small OLED screen that shows the dog’s temperature, calorie intake and exercise for the day.

The Buddy is also connected to the Nest thermostat. It adjusts the air conditioner, or heater, based on your pet’s body temp. That’s pretty awesome.

The basic Buddy collar is $180. The one with a fitness tracker costs $240.

Woof, woof

I’m A 40-Year Manhattanite

Posted on August 14, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

Map of Tesla charging stations
Image credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

They say that NYC never sleeps. How can we? We are the testing ground for everything new. The latest is that Tesla is putting an additional 24 charging units in garages around Manhattan. I can’t wait to see this. I’m going to check one of them out in the parking deck at the Waldorf Astoria. Tesla wants to cure road anxiety. Too many folks in this area are worrying about the lack of charging stations. Tesla wants to make sure there are no excuses for anyone to buy an electric car. Read more about it in Engadget.

Do these New Yorkers look like they need an excuse for something they really want to buy? I live in a Manhattan building with some of the same neighbors for decades. I can immediately count 25 long timers like me. They say that New Yorkers are not friendly. We are very friendly, but we know our boundaries. We don’t knock on each other’s door. We always ask the doorman to call first. It’s kind of like, “good fences, make good neighbors.”

Tonight, a group of us sat on our roof reminiscing about the past. City lights, wine and lots of life. Yes this is our roof deck. Nothing fancy but it does the trick.

More Computers, Less People

Posted on August 12, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

I felt like I was in the land of automation this morning at the Miami International Airport. First, we were greeted with more check-in computer screens than ever before, then we got directions from a full motion information display and finally a Minion chased us around until we agreed to enter the store the character was pitching.

Was someone trying to tell us something?

Comments when I posted this on Facebook.

Inebriated Bicyclists

Posted on August 11, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

If you have a bike friend who drinks too many cocktails when you get together, you may want to consider buying a Alcoho-Lock from Koowho for that person. It never occurred to me that we have to be just as concerned about tipsy people who drink and ride as we do about those who drink and drive.

The Alcoho-Lock is a combination breathalyzer and bike lock. It has the same premise as ignition locks for cars. You are required to blow into a mouthpiece of the lock. It measures the amount of alcohol on your breath. The lock releases if you are below the legal limit. If it’s above the legal limit, the Alcoho-Lock sends an alert to a family member or friend telling them you had one too many. Your contact can then decide what to do with you.

Price is around $250. Now you really need a drink to understand why the price is so high.

My Meeting With Sheila Elias

Posted on August 10, 2015 by loiswhitmanhess

A few weeks ago I spotted a group of 60-plus woman who were having a great time over lunch at La Piaggia, our beach club in Miami. They were all decked out, fashionable, chatting away, lots of laughs, toasting each other, and trying a few things on from club’s clothing boutique. I was captivated by them because they had such great energy.

I did something I rarely do. I walked right up to them and asked if I could get a picture of the group. I explained that I write a blog geared for over 50 folks and I wanted to show my readers how grand life could be if we just had the right attitude. In exactly six seconds the ladies were ready for their close up and I clicked away.

I found out they were all In the arts. After the gal in the orange hat, Sheila Elias, heard I was involved in the tech business, she invited Eliot and I to her studio to see the paintings she created on an iPad.

It turns out that Sheila, known for painting, sculpture, collage, and mix media, has had her work exhibited all over the world including the Louvre, Brooklyn Museum, Art Basel, New York University, Kunsan Contemporary Museum in Korea, plus plus. Sheila’s work is also collected by many serious art collectors. Check her out at http://www.sheilaelias.com.

Sheila Elias

Visionary Art Trends, an online art authority, has said that Sheila, along with David Hockney, are two important artists working in new technology. Sheila found that the iPad gave her tremendous creativity. She uses her finger and various apps to come up with very abstract and colorful designs. When I asked how she felt creating a painting on an iPad, she said “any new platform is always very exciting to an artist.” The video shows why she is so passionate about using an iPad.

Sheila’s work has been exhibited in Apple stores all over the world. My mission is to get Apple to provide a bigger platform for Sheila’s work, such as an advertising campaign, corporate exhibitions, national programs, and special events. I will let you know if I am successful.

The next seven paintings, were created by Sheila, on an iPad.