HOUR 3:
Tech News & Commentary
Victor in Buffalo, Missouri listening via the Android App asked: “It’s time to upgrade my battery backup for my computers and also wanted to get one for my 47-inch TV. Is it based on how large the screen is? Or, how many amps do I need to watch my TV for, like, 30 minutes when the power goes out due to electrical storms?”
Probably, the main thing you want to look for, when shopping for a battery backup unit, is the wattage it can handle. If you know what how many watts whatever you want to pug into it uses, you should be able to find one fairly easily that fits your needs. Most of the units will have a chart on the outside of the box with how long the power will last based on how many watts you are pulling.
Plasma TVs pull more watts than LCDs do, so if you have a plasma, you’ll probably need a more powerful unit. Check the manual or manufacturer’s website for the TV you have and it should tell you how much power it consumes.
If you have trouble finding the info, you could always look into products like the Kill-a-Watt. This is a small device that you plug into the wall. You then plug whatever you want to measure in the front of it, and on its LCD screen, it’ll tell you how many watts are being pulled from whatever you plugged into it. That would help you determine how big of a UPS to get. You can find the Kill-a-Watt devices at places like Amazon or Newegg for about $20.
“Into Gaming Update” Weekly Feature with Mark Lautenschlager
Dan in Clarksville, Tennessee listening on WTN 99.7 FM asked: “I’ve heard of VOIP, or home phones, called video phones. Is that the wave of the future? It seems like less and less houses have home phones and are using cell phones.”
The Voice Over Internet Protocol started to become a mainstream telecommunications portal in 2009 with services like Skype, Vonage, Lingo, Google voice. When competition arises in the market, it only benefits us as consumers, because we can get even better rates because of the competitor market. As for videophones, there are a few that also work well with VOIP.
The future is looking extremely good. Rates for international calls are skyrocketing down. In a few years, we can probably expect less than 1 cent per minute calls to many countries worldwide.
Mobile will open up a whole new level as well. Mobile is growing tremendously with new phones that are capable of handling VOIP such Google Android, iPhone, Windows Mobile.
Guest in this hour:
Noam Bardin, CEO – waze
Waze is a free mobile navigation application that allows drivers to build and use live maps, real-time traffic updates and turn-by-turn navigation to improve their daily commute.
John in Houston, Texas listening on XM Ch.139 sent us the following email and asked: “Since Comcast has a monthly cap of 250GB on bandwidth usage, are there any cable modems or hubs that provide an accurate read-out on how much data passes back and forth? I have a network of five computers in my home, so installing any of those software bandwidth monitors on each machine is not the best idea. I would like some sort of visual display or other means of alerting on bandwidth usage for the network. Also, can we expect other ISPs to follow Comcast in limiting bandwidth, possibly with fines, higher rates, or disconnect?”
This will become a common feature on broadband routers in the near future, but the Netgear WNDR3700 is one that has it right now. It’s a cable router with dual band wireless support and a bandwidth usage monitor that tracks by the day, week, and month, and will alert you when you approach your cap.
You can expect models from Linksys and other companies with this same feature to be on the market before August.
Dave in Nashville, Tennessee listening on WTN 99.7 FM asked: “Looking to buy a new computer and I’d like to find out which company, either Dell or HP has better customer service, in English, from a tech person here in the states.”
We have seen reports that HP customer service is based in India, if you talk to enough people there, you do get transferred to a “case manager.” Supposedly in the US, they will speak to you in English, but it’s not typically their first language.
Dell seems to have some customer service in the US, but we have read reports that it’s restricted to business users only, so you’re going to buy as an individual you’ll probably get connected to either India or El Salvador.
In terms of customer satisfaction, they both get roughly 75-76% in surveys.
If you have any questions about any of this week’s show info, please email us here.
Into Tomorrow Product Spotlight with Rob Almanza
— By Rob Almanza, “Into Tomorrow” Correspondent
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
Amazon: HydroRight Smarter Flush Technology Converts any size toilet to Dual-Flush AND Anti-Siphon Fill Valve!
Cooper Lighting: Several Might D Light – Rechargeable LED worklight
iMPROV Electronics: Several Boogie Board Paperless LCD Writing Tablets
Joby: GorillaTorch Original – Hands-free flashlights with flexible, bendable legs and magnetic feet