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Tech News & Commentary
Leonard in Raleigh, North Carolina listens on WPTF 680 AM told us: “I watch TV and DVR a lot of shows. Is there some type of product out there like AT&T or Time Warner have, a DVR for consumers?”
Leonard, There are a few DVRs for consumers, but unfortunately, they really are few
The Nuvyyo Tablo can record over-the-air TV and stream it to various devices including Chromecast and AppleTV. It will not come cheap, it costs $220 and requires a $5 a month subscription to work, but it has a nice user interface and it plays nice with devices you may already have.
If you want a more traditional solution, the ChannelMaster DVR+ has been around for years, it’s a little more expensive at $250, but you won’t have to pay for a subscription to continue to use the service.
The main strike against the ChannelMaster is that it’s not a fully self contained product, it requires that you bring your own hard drive, if you want WiFi, that’s an extra module too, if you don’t already have an antenna, you will need to get one. Considering all streaming sticks seem to be able to bundle in WiFi at a total cost of $40, it seems kind of strange that a much larger device that costs a lot more will require you to pay extra for WiFi support.
The other popular option is trying to access content online, it’s not always as straight forward as it should be, sometimes it’s actually easier to get it from illegal sites than it is from legal ones, but there are more and more ways to view content online these days without having to put on an eye patch and setting a trusty bird on your shoulder first.
Hulu has a lot of annoying and very repetitive ads, but they also do tend to keep a good library of current episodes, even if you’re not a subscriber.
A lot of the network’s own websites allow you at least partial access to shows if you don’t have a cable subscription (or don’t want to put on that eye patch and borrow a friend’s subscriber number).
TiVo Roamio is another interesting choice. The device costs $49.95 for the OTA-only version with a one year commitment for DVR service at $12.50 per month. Depending on which model you get, it will accept input from digital cable, Verizon FIOS, or over the air with an HD antenna, which is where we presume you are.
The OTA-only version holds up to 500 hours of recording. The $200 model that also supports digital cable and Verizon FIOS doubles that for 1000 hours of recording. TiVo Mini is a $149 remote viewing box that lets you have whole-house DVR viewing and control.
And of course there are apps for your smartphones and tablets. TiVo is one of the oldest and most widely recognized names in DVR software and that’s a big reason to always give them a look.
For more information tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Consumer Reports Segment:
The Internet is teeming with malware that can infect your computer, and it’s important to use security software to protect yourself. But can free software do the job, or is it better to pay for Norton? Consumer Reports recently put a few of the leading products to the test. They’re electronics spokesman James McQueen is here with some of the results.
The “Into Tomorrow” team discussed the latest apps that they have been playing with recently.
• Dave recommends: Arcus, FREE
- “This app delivers hyper-local forecasts on Android. It’s similar to Dark Sky on iPhone, which is a favorite for a lot of iPhonies. The app lets me see the anticipated precipitation for the next hour as well as hourly and daily forecasts. The app also includes notifications before it rains or – if you’re not here in Miami – before it snows. Now, in addition to Arcus, you should consider installing a free Local Weather App – so you can quickly see alerts for your area and professional forecasts for your city when severe weather approaches.” — Dave
• Chris recommends: EasilyDo, FREE
- “The app I’m talking about this week is called “EasilyDo.” It’s a free app that works as a personal assistant and automation tool. You connect the app to a variety of online services, such as your email, calendar, Facebook account, and so forth, and EasilyDo looks for things it can help you get easily done. For example, a notification might ask you if you’d like EasilyDo to add the contact details of someone who has recently emailed you to your address book. Or it might spot an upcoming birthday of a friend and let you set up a “happy birthday” post to their timeline in advance. It’s an amazing productivity app that helps you take care of a variety of tasks quickly and efficiently. EasilyDo is free and is available on iOS and Android devices.” — Chris
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:
Karim Hijazi, Founder & CEO – Tagspire
Charlotte in Erie, Pennsylvania asked: “I seem to have a virus on my computer, at some point I heard about a website to go onto to figure out what was on your computer and remove everything that is bad. Right now things are opening on my computer that I never told to opened up. Right now I have something that says Optimize Click Finder and now WW Blinks Video, that I never told to open. I’m very confused.”
Charlotte, Those don’t sound like viruses as much as they sound like malware, or browser hijacking toolbars. The method of removing them will vary a bit, depending on which web browser you’re using.
Assuming that you’re using Windows, if it’s malware (a term meaning “malicious software”), the best solution is to download the free-for-personal-use on-demand scanner from Malwarebytes.org.
It gets a little technical here. You’ll want to install Malwarebytes Anti-Malware on your computer, run the Update feature so it has the latest database, and then restart your computer in “Safe Mode” before running the scan. That gives you the best chance of finding any malware.
To restart your computer in Safe Mode, click Start, then type MSCONFIG in the search box and press enter. When the MSCONFIG utility loads, select the Boot tab, tick the check box for Safe boot, then click OK and let it restart your computer. To EXIT Safe Mode later, load MSCONFIG in the same way, but under the General tab click the radio button for Normal startup, and again click OK and let it restart your computer.
Now what about your browser? If you’re using Internet Explorer, click the Gear icon, choose Internet Options, then the Advanced tab, and click the Reset button at the bottom of that window. That restores everything to the default setting and disables all extensions and toolbars. You may want to review which of them to re-enable later, you do that by clicking the Gear icon and choosing Manage add-ons.
The approach is different if you’re using Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox, so if that’s the browser you have, call back and let us know, and we’ll give you more specific instructions. It’s really hard to hijack those browsers, however, so if you’re using Chrome or Firefox, it is more than likely that these are simply pages being loaded automatically at startup, and you can easily delete those using the Settings or Preferences command of your browser.
We’re sure it feels like we just threw a lot of stuff at you. We’re sorry, but sometimes the answers about technology ARE a bit technical. If you’re not confident about doing these sorts of things on your own, it might be wise to seek the help of a more computer-savvy friend or family member. Let us know how things turn out!
For more information tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Charlotte asked: “I have a question regarding my galaxy note 3 cell phone-unknowingly the back fell off in the dark-it still works (I have in a leather covered case but acts a bit possessed when I am texting-do you know where and how I can get a new back without having to get a new phone?”
Charlotte, You can buy a new back cover directly from Samsung.com, it will cost you around $10. Now, if that’s too much for you, you can also go to Amazon and buy from seller “Samsung” and pay $2.99 instead.
As far as we can tell, it seems to be the real deal, and most reviewers seem to think it’s a five star product so, for $3, it may be worth a try, but then again $10 is not that much more and that’s definitely coming from the manufacturer.
For more information tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
OWC: Dual USB Flash Drives – The amazingly small flash drive with both a Micro USB and a regular USB interface all-in-one.
Education.Com: Several “Brainzy” 12-month codes for online early-learning programs for math and reading. If you’ve got Kids … you WANT one of these!
PhoneSoap: Several Antibacterial – All Natural Touch Screen Polish (Ad lib: sorta like Cap Stick for your Phones & Tablets)
NanoTech: Several UltraFlix Gift Cards for 4K Content, like movies and a ton of other cool stuff. Let us know if you have a 4K Ultra HD TV!
iLuv: A pair of ReFashionOlogy Canvas Exterior, Collapsible Headphones with a Titanium Diaphragm
Westinghouse: Unplug Wireless Bluetooth Sound System