Battery back up: Protect your electronics

The storms over the past week have reminded me of the benefits of investing in battery backup systems. Our uninterrupted power supplies (UPS) have provided backup power during both short and medium length power outages.  These units also feature automatic voltage regulation (AVR), which maintains voltage at safe levels allowing us to work during brownouts and overvoltages.  Our UPS units provide peace of mind from threats of power surges which can result in lost data, equipment damage, or even total system failure. During Sunday's (March 13) wind storm as the lights flickered and all power went out, my server continued to hum.  The UPS allowed me time to shut that system down without once having to worry about losing our corporate data, family photos or frying a mother board.  If the television or gaming system had been in use, all of them would have been safe and protected. Not every electronic needs to be plugged into a UPS but for those major investments or systems which contain important data, it is highly recommended.  Take some time and evaluate your home.  Do you have the right devices to protect against a power surge or power outage? If not, there are some easy, cost effective solutions which can provide peace of mind.

Football Sunday, Sunday, Sunday...and Monday, Thursday and Saturday too

If you are a football, or really any sport fan, you are more likely to own an HD TV that is 40 inches or larger.  While being at the game can be exhilarating, most of us find that the best seat in the house, really is at home.  The camera angles have gotten better, you can pause the game, and lets face it, it is way more affordable.  While it may be the best seat, it can always be better.

So if it is time to look for a new TV, make sure you take a look at 4k ultra-high-definition televisions.  While it may seem like the hottest buzzword, it really is rewriting the rule book for image quality.  It is now available from most major TV manufacturers, and soon you will see cameras, smartphone, and practically anything that captures or displays images offering it. What does it mean to you, more pixels (about 8 million more, about 4,000 pixels wide) which produces a more "pixeless" image.

For you techies, yes there are rumblings of 8k on the horizon, but Super Hi-Vision TV broadcasts are still almost a decade away.  So why aren't the networks ready? Well changing to 8k means building a new infrastructure to support the format and extend the bandwidth requirements, which is just cost prohibitive at this time unless someone develops a new compression technology.

Samsung Gear VR Headset

If you are a gamer, you've probably been waiting for the Oculus Rift release.  While the holidays are quickly approaching, that February drop date feels like it is still too far away.  Don't worry, Oculus has made it possible to unlock virtual reality in the meantime for just $99, if you have one of Samsung's 2015 Smartphones the Note 5, S6, S6 Edge, and S6 Edge+.

The Samsung Gear VR will begin shipping sometime in November, in time for Black Friday and Cyber Monday.  It is lighter, more comfortable, and contains a trackpad on the temple of the headset which includes a tactile directional pad so you know where your fingers are touching.  And while initial reviews talked about limited gaming, developers have been stocking the Oculus Store with games and videos.  There are plenty of freebees with it too.

From all of the gaming reviews we have read, the first full games that are must buys are: Dreadhalls, Viral, and Herobound: Spirit Champion.  They are immersive entertainment which should satisfy the new and experienced gamer.  These are currently available for the Gear VR Innovator Edition for the S6 and Note 4, which will set you back $199.

Apple event - Sept 2015

Have you been on the edge of your seat waiting to see the new 2015 Apple releases?  You should be according to Chief Executive Tom Cook, claiming that Apple is going to change how we interact with our TVs.

Today, Cook unveiled the new Apple TV set-top box with voice commands ala Siri, which allows you to search across Netflix, iTunes, Hulu and more.  Behind it all, a new operating system, tvOS, which is to encourage developers to create new apps and games for the device.  Cook said, "We believe this is the future of television."

The wait shouldn't be too long for the new Apple TV, which is due in late October and available for $149 for the 32GB model or $199 for the 64GB, and the current model will remain at its $69.

Beyond the Apple TV and coming out right on its heels in November, is the iPad Pro.  This newest version of the iPad is 12.9" diagonal screen, running a A9X processor which according to Phil Schiller is about twice as fast as the current processor.  The 128GB iPad Pro with Wi-Fi and cellular capabilities will set you back $1,079, or if you can do without the cellular you can save $150, $949.

Yes, Apple also announced the new Apple Watch and the iPhone 6S, which both have some great features.  It isn't that they aren't worth writing about, just not ground breaking enough for us.