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Tech News & Commentary
Leonard in Raleigh, North Carolina listening on WPTF 680 AM asked us: “I have a situation where I’m trying to contact my daughter and my Apple iPhone was completely dead, I tried to charge in the car with a car charger but wouldn’t do anything. Is there any tech device out there that will streamline my phone to charge faster instead of plugging it to a wall unit.”
Leonard, The list of chargers is endless. From charging pads, to power cases, to even solar-powered chargers. They all have the same purpose but which type of charger depends on how will you use it.
It seems that the best charging device in your case would be a power case. Since it is a case, you kill two birds with one stone; you get protection and a charger at the same time. Brands that we recommend are Mophie, TYLT, and uNu. Prices can vary depending on the 
brand.
The uNu has a very slim lightweight design but ensures protections and can range around $30-40. Mophie can range from $70-120 which can be very pricey for just a wireless charger but it does quality charging from 1500 mAh to 2100 mAh power changing depending on the case. TYLT offers 2500 mAh power charging at a market price of $60-$99, which is a great price for the amount of energy that the phone is being charged on.
Wireless iPhones chargers can found in most places that sell technology such Best Buy, Walmart, Target. Also in websites like Amazon or on the actual manufacturer’s website.
As for speed though, there’s nothing that will be able to beat your wall charger. Unfortunately batteries just take a while to charge and there’s no way to get around that by buying a third party gadget. iPhone chargers are rated for the most power the phone can take in at once, your iPhone can be charged slower, but nothing will charge it faster than it’s original charger.
There is some good news though, any 1A USB car charger should charge your iPhone just fine. If your current one doesn’t, that’s probably because of a problem with either the car’s 12-volt port, or the charger itself, but if everything works as it should any 1A charger or above will charge your iPhone.
If you connected your iPhone to a car charger and the phone “did nothing,” then something is wrong with either that charger or your phone. Once the iPhone is connected to a charger, even if the battery is completely drained, the phone should power up and become usable again–as long as it’s plugged in to the charger–in just a few seconds.
I use one of the Tylt ENERGI Sliding Power Cases with my iPhone 5, and I believe Chris uses one also. I highly recommend it. It’s a two part case with a slim inner case that will protect the back and sides of your phone from scratches or dings, and a larger case containing a battery into which the phone “docks.” Whenever I notice my iPhone getting low on battery, I press the button on the back of the case and my phone recharges. Just that simple. It does add size and weight to the phone–¼” thicker, ½” longer, and 3 ounces heavier–but I personally don’t find it objectionable. They’re not cheap, at $100, but it has eliminated any worry I have about using my phone too much during the day.
For more information tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Consumer Reports Feature With James McQueen
Microsoft of course just recently unveiled the Surface Pro 3, which is somewhere between a tablet and a laptop. How well does it pull off both? Consumer Reports electronics spokesman James McQueen is here with a quick review.
The “Into Tomorrow” team discussed the latest apps that they have been playing with recently.
• Mark recommends: Skype 5.0, FREE
- “Skype 5.0, aka “Skype remastered” for iOS. I thought I’d talk a little bit about this app because it’s stirred up some very strong feelings among its users and there are a lot of 1 and 2 star negative reviews driving down its score on the App store. Microsoft has redesigned Skype for the iPhone and done two things. They’ve made it much easier, faster, and smoother to use…AND they removed a lot of features the old version supported. That’s the rub. If you used features like file transfers, for example, the old version supported it and the new version does not. The new version lets you send pictures and videos to your contacts, but not files. On the other hand, if what you used Skype for was voice and video calling and you don’t care about anything else, then I think this new Skype program is a VAST improvement over the one we had before. Voice and video quality are excellent, the program FEELS like Facetime to me, and that’s high praise. I would personally give the remastered Skype a 5 star rating, because it does the things *I* want it to do better than it did before, HOWEVER I also understand that if a feature you used is removed, you will get a little salty in your comments and ratings. Skype is free in the iTunes App store.” — Mark
• Michael recommends: Slingshot, FREE
- “Slingshot is my app of the week which happens to be owned by Facebook. You can take a video or photo no matter how big or little the moment is you can sling it with your friends and family who are also users of Slingshot. One difference I noticed between Slingshot and Snapchat it that when you sling something to someone the only way they can view what your shot is if they sling something back to you first. Once you swipe a shot away you will no longer be able to view the photos or videos. You also have the ability to lock shots so you can view them later without losing them. One good thing is that you don’t need a Facebook account in order to use the app and it’s free for iOS and Android devices.” — Michael
• Samantha recommends: Thyme, FREE
- “My app of the week is Thyme. Have you ever had more than one thing cooking on the stove and can’t remember how long it needs to cook? This app will let you keep 5 times at one time. I found this app free under the Starbucks free app of the week which comes directly to my phone as I am a gold card member. Never again will you scorch a pot!” — Samantha
What are your favorite Apps? Let us know at 800-899-INTO and we’ll feature them in this segment!
- Tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast for more details
Guest Segment:
Kurt Bauer, CEO – One Llama Labs
understand the meaning behind sound, audio and acoustics for all things
OWC Feature with Larry O’Connor
You’ve heard us talk about the importance of backing up your data. Larry O’Connor from Other World Computing is here with his brand new feature to share some important tips about backing up to the cloud.
Ron in Interlochen, Michigan asked us: “I have a Windows 8 and recently I have been getting phones calls but there’s something wrong with my computer. I don’t give them any more information but they keep telling me that they’re from Microsoft Windows and they won’t even give me a phone number to call them back. I don’t know if they’re the legit thing or something that has been going on.”
Ron, They are not legitimate calls, it’s actually a very well known scam.
As a rule of thumb for any future calls, no company that claims to have sold hundreds of millions of licenses of the product you’re currently using will bother calling each customer one by one to let them know there may be something to fix.
In fact, this is what Microsoft says about whether it ever calls customers: “There are some cases where Microsoft will work with your Internet service provider and call you to fix a malware-infected computer—such as during the recent cleanup effort begun in our botnet takedown actions. These calls will be made by someone with whom you can verify you already are a customer. You will never receive a legitimate call from Microsoft or our partners to charge you for computer fixes.”
You can read more from Microsoft’s own site by clicking here.
Microsoft’s consumer support phone line is 1-800-642-7676, and you can find it on Google (tell them you used Bing, it’ll shock them and make them happy). It’s not a big secret and no one from the company should have any problem giving you at least that number if they’re legitimate.
Don’t fall for it, they’re pushy and they’re just scammers. You should report these people to the FTC, it’s what Microsoft recommends.
For more information tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Wireless Update with Chuck Hamby
Summertime is here! Want to get fit for this year’s swimsuit season? Chuck Hamby is here with some tech tips to fight the flab.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
Kanex: GoPower Pack – 6,000 mAh and 11,000 mAh battery packs with built-in stands for smartphones
Other World Computing (OWC): NUGUARD KX – Kinectic Energy X-Orbing Case for iPad Air
Bits Limited: Mini Squids — Travel-Sized surge protected power strips
Tylt: ENERGI Sliding Power Cases for iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S4.
“Into Tomorrow”: Microfiber Screen Cleaning Cloths with Dave’s cartoon on them, for all your smartphones, tablets, TVs, camera lenses and computer screens!