David Pierini - page 50

This photo-sharing app adds voices to your photos

By

everyStory allows you to curate digital photos albums and add audio to each photo.
everyStory allows you to curate digital photos albums and add audio to each photo.
Photo: everyStory

Dave Keene had colon cancer and wouldn’t be sure until after surgery whether it would kill him. What he did know for sure was if it did, his young son would eventually forget the sound of his voice.

Keene, a veteran engineer in the gaming industry, used his time before surgery to develop an iOS app that would change that. He created everyStory, a kind of digital photo album that includes audio attached to each photo.

Clashem turns iPhone into an arena of epic video battles

By

Five-second video clips go head-to-head on the iOS app Clashem.
Five-second video clips go head-to-head on the iOS app Clashem.
Photo: Red Bull Media

There is now an iOS app where you could possibly see a flashy snowboarder fighting a guy who can spit ping-pong balls into distant beer cups. The best part is, you decide who wins.

Red Bull Media rolled out a free mobile app called Clashem, where users try to win fame five seconds at a time in a video battle where the community votes what wins and what loses with the swipe of the finger.

Apple Watch your Airbnb plans take shape

By

The new Airbnb app for Apple Watch simplifies communication between hosts and guests.
The new Airbnb app for Apple Watch simplifies communication between hosts and guests.
Photo: Airbnb

When Airbnb set out to design an app for the Apple Watch, its team did so like a master woodcarver. Whittle away until you leave what is essential.

The popular community hospitality network launched a watch app today that provides a simple messaging hub for hosts and guests. Travelers can send a host a message with name, photo and requested dates. A host can accept or decline right on the wrist and respond to messages, either through dictation or a preset response.

Cute Apple miniatures will transport you to 1984

By

This 3D printed miniature of an Apple II was designed to house a Raspberry Pi computer.
This 3D printed miniature of an Apple II was designed to house a Raspberry Pi computer.
Photo: Charles Mangin/RetroConnector

Apple rolls out new products next week at the annual fall reveal, but you can’t stop thinking about the Apple IIc from 1984.

Self-taught hardware hacker and 3D printer Charles Mangin feels you. So much so that Mangin, of Raleigh, NC., creates tiny versions of classic Apple computers that encase the Raspberry Pi computers. He has even made a classic Mac that serves as a working charging dock for the iPod Nano and an SD card reader that looks an old Apple disk drive.

Your very own Star Wars BB-8 droid is not so far, far away

By

BB-8, the cute little droid from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, is now available as an app-enabled companion.
BB-8, the cute little droid from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, is now available as an app-enabled companion.
Photo: Sphero

The editing on Star Wars: The Force Awakens isn’t finished yet but one of the characters already promises to be the hot toy of the Christmas season.

BB-8, the roly-poly little droid seen spinning across the screen in trailers for the highly anticipated movie, is now an app-controlled toy with an adaptive personality that responds to voice commands.

First manned drone uses 54 propellers

By

A British man made a personal helicopter with the rotors of several quadcopters.
A British man made a personal helicopter with the rotors of several quadcopters.
Photo: gasturbine101/YouTube

History is full of DIY flying machines, including the occasional Joe who ties a bunch of helium balloons to his lawn chair.

So it was only a matter of time before someone would figure out the number of drone propellers it would take to put a man in the air The answer is 54.

A British man may have made the first manned drone flight, if there can be such a category, when he fastened a 54 rotors from quadcopters to make a personal helicopter he dubbed the Swarm.

Mount shows use of Apple Watch not all in the wrist

By

This Apple Watch mount by accessory manufacturer Satechi will fit on steering wheels and handlebars.
This Apple Watch mount by accessory manufacturer Satechi will fit on steering wheels and handlebars.
Photo: Satechi

Maybe your Apple Watch doesn’t always do its best work on your wrist. There are functions and situations that need rapt attention, making looking down at your wrist inconvenient, or even risky.

For those moments, the Apple accessory manufacturer Satechi has come up with an Apple Watch grip mount, ideal for bike and motorcycle handlebars, steering wheels and treadmills.

There are few surprises among the top iOS apps of all time

By

Some Mac apps are vulnerable to man in the middle attacks.
Some Mac apps are vulnerable to man in the middle attacks.
Photo: Apple

There are more than 1.6 million iOS apps, but if you had to guess the top downloaded games and apps of all time worldwide, chances are good you would get a near-perfect score just by looking at your iPhone.

Four of the top 10 are apps from to Facebook, while Candy Crush, Fruit Ninja and Angry Birds continue to dominate the games section of the iOS App Store.

Sleep machine promises a good SNOOZ

By

The makers of the SNOOZ white noise machine vow to turn your bedroom into a
The makers of the SNOOZ white noise machine vow to turn your bedroom into a "haven for sleep."
Photo: SNOOZ

Maybe the problem with your sleep is the noise. You actually might need a little.

A startup called SNOOZ has developed a white noise machine based on the premise that quiet rooms make our hearing acuter. The breeze-like sound coming from its machine will provide a gentle buffer between you and sudden startling sounds.

Future spacecraft could repair its own skin

By

The International Space Station occasionally has to dodge pieces of debris floating in space.
The International Space Station occasionally has to dodge pieces of debris floating in space.
Photo: NASA

To see a satellite image of the field of space debris that floats around the earth is like looking at fleas swarming an unfortunate dog. About a half-million pieces of debris are the size of a marble, but even tiny pieces that travel more than 17,000 miles per hour could be deadly to a spacecraft with astronauts.

Researchers from the University of Michigan and NASA have developed a self-healing material that could instantly plug up a hole in the hull of a ship just milliseconds after impact.

The classic Holga camera finally goes digital

By

The Holga, a favored toy camera of artists and photographers, will have a digital model thanks to Kickstarter.
The Holga, a favored toy camera of artists and photographers, will have a digital model thanks to Kickstarter.
Photo: Holga

I have three Holga cameras sitting in a box with at least one still loaded with film. Plastic and unpredictable, the low-fi aesthetic makes portraits and landscapes look dreamy and from another time.

But film isn’t as easy or as cheap to develop, scan and print as it once was, so many photographers like me have watched the dust build up on these cameras while hoping a digital alternative would come along so we could relive the surprise and magic in a Holga picture.

The Hong Kong company that has been making Holga cameras since 1981 now has a digital offspring available on Kickstarter.

A monthly magazine where your life is the subject

By

For $8.99 per month, your iPhone camera roll can become a glossy magazine.
For $8.99 per month, your iPhone camera roll can become a glossy magazine.
Photo: Recently

It sounds cool and convenient to say your photo album is in your phone. But your life spread across the pages of a glossy magazine sounds a whole lot better.

A new iOS app called Recently turns the camera roll on your iPhone into a monthly magazine. The one-step app is free and for a subscription fee of $8.99 a month, the creators will send you an elegantly designed magazine of up to 100 photos.

Turn your kitchen timer into a time-lapse video tool

By

The Hobie attaches to a kitchen timer for an inexpensive way to get time-lapse and 360-degree videos.
The Hobie attaches to a kitchen timer for an inexpensive way to get time-lapse and 360-degree videos.
Photo: Overlab Experimental Design

Photography equipment can be expensive, but there are plenty of items lying around the house that can help you get your shots. Why buy a pin-hole camera made of fine hardwood when you can make one out of an oatmeal container?

Designer Mattia Ciucciarelli wants to spare us the cost of an expensive tripod head for time-lapse and 360-degree videos with a device he calls the Hobie that attaches to the common kitchen timer.

Some iPhone jailbreakers are in for a nasty surprise

By

iPhon
iPhon
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

More than a quarter-million Apple users from 18 different countries had accounts stolen after they made themselves vulnerable by jailbreaking their devices, researchers announced today.

The theft represents the largest known theft of Apple accounts caused by malware, according to Palo Alto Networks, adding further caution to Apple users to avoid installing programs not meant for iPhones and iPads.

Kickstarter project puts cameras in the hands of London’s homeless

By

The cover of the 2016 calendar called My London photographed by homeless artists.
The cover of the 2016 calendar called My London photographed by homeless artists.
Photo: ROL

David Tovey became homeless on the streets of London after a stroke and found salvation in an unlikely place – a disposable camera.

Tovey was invited to participate in an art project giving Londoners cameras to record life on the streets for a calendar now being sold on Kickstarter. He has had photos selected for the Cafe Art calendar project two years in a row.

When it’s time for music, just reach for the BOTTLE

By

The boomBOTTLE+ is a take-in-any-weather portable Bluetooth speaker.
The boomBOTTLE+ is a take-in-any-weather portable Bluetooth speaker.
Photo: SCOSCHE Industries

Don’t let the bottle in the name fool you. The boomBOTTLE+ by SCOSCHE Industries is no place for a beverage. But your ears will quickly realize it is filled with sound.

The boomBOTTLE, rolled out today on the SCOSCHE website, is a portable Bluetooth speaker that has the height and girth of the common water bottle, thus fitting in a drink holder on a bike, boat or camping chair.

This giant octopus is a sucker for good TV host

By

This giant Pacific octopus didn't want to let go after meeting a new visitor.
This giant Pacific octopus didn't want to let go after meeting a new visitor.
Photo: BBC/YouTube

Who knew watching a guy get a bunch of hickeys would make interesting television?

When the affection comes from a giant Pacific octopus, you can’t help but be a little jealous of Matt Baker, a presenter for the BBC’s new Big Blue Live series.

Spyder’s battery case gives your iPhone extra legs

By

The Spyder PowerShadow battery case is available for iPhone 5 and 6, with a model for the 6 Plus due in September.
The Spyder PowerShadow battery case is available for iPhone 5 and 6, with a model for the 6 Plus due in September.
Photo: Spyder

It may be a while before we see those long-lasting hydrogen-powered batteries in our iPhones. In the meantime, the options are bulky: pack your charging cord, carry a battery charger or go the power case route.

For those who don’t like the thickness or extra heft of power cases, Spyder has just introduced a new battery case weighing in at 3 oz and measuring a relatively thin 12.5 mm.

Apple returns to its roots at historic San Francisco venue

By

Apple will host its fall media reveal at the same place it unveiled the Apple II computer.
Apple will host its fall media reveal at the same place it unveiled the Apple II computer.
Photo: StadiumUSA

When Apple takes the stage at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco for the fall media reveal, company execs will walk knowing they are in a sacred space.

Sure the building is 100 years old this year and is part of the city’s renaissance following the devastating 1906 earthquake. But the ground at the auditorium really shook in 1977, when Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak brought the Apple II computer to the West Coast Computer Faire.

Tinder releases its list of most ‘right-swiped’ colleges

By

Tinder data now shows which U.S. colleges and universities have the hottest student bodies.
Tinder data now shows which U.S. colleges and universities have the hottest student bodies.
Photo: Tinder

Colleges and universities bend over backwards to earn accreditation and good reviews. It’s good for recruiting.

But what if your school earns honors from the dating app Tinder as the most “right-swiped?” A hot student body can’t hurt.

A baseball coach changed the game with a little police work to solve fastball mystery

By

An early radar gun used by a Dodgers scout during the 1970s.
An early radar gun used by a Dodgers scout during the 1970s.
Photo: efastball.com

Michigan State University baseball coach Danny Litwhiler was reading the campus newspaper one day in 1974 when he decided to call the cops on some of his pitchers.

An article and photo of campus police showing off the department’s new radar gun to catch speeders caught Litwhiler’s eye and he wanted police to swing by the ballpark with the new toy to see if it could read the speed of a pitched baseball.

Litwhiler – a flawless defensive player in the bigs who evolved into a beloved college coach – changed the game of baseball that day. No longer would myth and mystery surround the fastball. Pitchers, for better or worse, would be scouted and evaluated based on a new number – miles per hour.

Ashley Madison hack airs tech’s dirty laundry

By

Email addresses from some of the top tech companies are on the list of outed accounts following a hack on the infidelity site, Ashley Madison.
Email addresses from some of the top tech companies are on the list of outed accounts following a hack on the infidelity site, Ashley Madison.
Photo: David Pierini/Cult of Mac

Some of the tech world’s brightest may have been caught with their hard drives in the wrong place.

Email accounts from some of the biggest technology companies, including Apple and IBM, were among those outed as a result of the recent hack on Ashley Madison, the dating website for infidelity.

With each sip of coffee this cup lid gives you some sugar

By

This coffee cup lid will let you drink from its delicious lips and include an awkward touching of noses.
This coffee cup lid will let you drink from its delicious lips and include an awkward touching of noses.
Photo: Jang Woo-Seok

Jang Woo-Seok loves coffee and kisses. But it’s only coffee he gets on a daily basis – that is until he designed a cup lid that provides both.

The designer from South Korea has taken the common coffee cup lid and gave it puckering lips for B2B, a chain of coffee shops in his home country.

Jony Ive will offer another peek behind Apple curtain at Vanity Fair Summit

By

Jony Ive
Jony Ive doesn't find failure very interesting.
Photo: Vanity Fair/YouTube

Jony Ive seemed embarrassed when Vanity Fair’s Graydon Carter started their interview by calling Ive the “greatest industrial designer in the world right now.”

The Apple design guru closed his eyes, rubbed his head, and then provided a soft-spoken but enlightening 25-minute peek inside his head during 2014’s Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit. Wonder what he’ll say this year?

Send your photos to a select few with XY Share It

By

The XY Share It lets you transmit photos to only those you want looking at them.
The XY Share It lets you transmit photos to only those you want looking at them.
Photo: XY

You have a great picture of your kid on their first day of school and you would like to share it with just two people. You could post to Facebook or Instagram, but then everyone sees it. You could attach it to an email or text or you could just pass the phone over the next time you see them.

The company XY has another option. It has designed a Bluetooth device the size of a keychain that lets you share an album of pictures with select people.