My posts on this blog have been pretty few and far between now that we've had the little one join us, but I thought it would be fun to do a post about some of the geeky presents I received this Christmas. Not just to catalogue, but for the possibility of input about future projects that could involve said gifts or recommendations on how to use them. :-)
SmartStick 
The SmartStick was one of the first geeky gifts that I received for Christmas from my parents. As you can see, it looks like a really big usb thumb drive, except that instead of USB it is HDMI and it is a fully functional little Android computer. Snazzy things can sure come in small packages! :-) This was definitely one of those geek toys that I thought would be really cool to have, but I didn't have a very specific need/task for it. It is just cool, haha. I have only played with it a bit, but I think it will be pretty easy to find some usefulness for it either in the guest room or as a travel item that will give me a lot more options on hotel TVs. So far I think I only have one real complaint and that is the lack of bluetooth. To me that is a glaring oversight. This is a device that will most likely plug in to the back of a TV, and you make the remote an IR remote with a little corded IR receiver that I have to place somewhere? The thing is definitely bulky enough that adding the bluetooth hardware would have had a negligible effect on the size of the unit so I really don't understand. Also, using the interface with the simple little remote was a bit cumbersome so, if it looks like I will be using it a decent amount, I will likely invest in the full keyboard + touchpad remote that they have for sale (which is, funnily enough, bluetooth but comes with an adapter to plug in to the unit).
Arduino Uno 
I had a couple of microcontrollers on my wish list and this was one of them that Julie got me. It is supposed to be one of the best for beginners, and seems like it would be something pretty fun to play around with. There are tons of different projects that I have found that sound interesting, but it is hard to know what to choose! It might be interesting to do something basic with robotics, but to do what? I'm not sure if I want to find some really cool project to just play around with things like servo motors and led lights, or if I should try to find something that would actually be pretty useful, like an internet controlled thermostat. Anyone have any thoughts?
Fitbit One 
This is a little monitoring device from my parents to help you learn about your movements, habits and sleep. Sounds like a pretty interesting idea and might definitely be interesting to monitor how my lifestyle is while keeping up with little Ruby. ;-) Unsurprisingly, I haven't had a chance to play with this either, but it definitely looks like it could provide some interesting information.
Moga 
I found this when I began looking at using one of my old android phones as a mobile gaming device. Gaming tends to eat up a lot of battery life so it can be really annoying when you are traveling and you have to choose between your entertainment and the possibility of killing your communication device. So I figured I would just set up an old phone with games. While I was at it, I thought I might as well go old school and put a few emulators on it so I could play some more classic games when traveling. I actually had a bit of luck connecting a PS3 controller to a phone via bluetooth, but it still made for a bit of a cumbersome gaming platform. Enter Moga. Moga is a controller made with a mount to hold your phone. So it is made to do exactly what I was looking to do! It also connects via bluetooth, which opens up some possibilities. Not only can I connect it to a tablet for a larger screen, but the phone I will likely use has a mini-HDMI out so I could plug it in to a regular TV and use it as a full console. Sounds pretty snazzy to me! Julie got this for me and now I have to find a trip where I actually have some free time to play with this (which might be a bit difficult with a 2 month old, haha).
Raspberry Pi 
Along the same lines as the Arduino Uno is the Raspberry Pi that Julie also got me. Raspberry Pi has been growing in popularity (I have heard of CS programs using them as a platform to develop on through a range of courses and a buddy of mine has one set up to be a home media server), and have a good bit of power for such a tiny little device. Just like the Uno, the main problem arises with how to decide on the project! With this one, I am likely to tinker around with it a bit and get a feel for the development environment before I actually lock it in to a single use. That will also give me time to get familiar enough with it that I can better know what types of projects I am capable of handling and give me some time to think about how best to put it to use. I see a soldering iron purchase in my very near future. ;-) Any project ideas/suggestions are greatly appreciated for this as well. Now if I could just find some free time to play with all these fun gadgets! :-)
The SmartStick was one of the first geeky gifts that I received for Christmas from my parents. As you can see, it looks like a really big usb thumb drive, except that instead of USB it is HDMI and it is a fully functional little Android computer. Snazzy things can sure come in small packages! :-) This was definitely one of those geek toys that I thought would be really cool to have, but I didn't have a very specific need/task for it. It is just cool, haha. I have only played with it a bit, but I think it will be pretty easy to find some usefulness for it either in the guest room or as a travel item that will give me a lot more options on hotel TVs. So far I think I only have one real complaint and that is the lack of bluetooth. To me that is a glaring oversight. This is a device that will most likely plug in to the back of a TV, and you make the remote an IR remote with a little corded IR receiver that I have to place somewhere? The thing is definitely bulky enough that adding the bluetooth hardware would have had a negligible effect on the size of the unit so I really don't understand. Also, using the interface with the simple little remote was a bit cumbersome so, if it looks like I will be using it a decent amount, I will likely invest in the full keyboard + touchpad remote that they have for sale (which is, funnily enough, bluetooth but comes with an adapter to plug in to the unit). Arduino Uno 
I had a couple of microcontrollers on my wish list and this was one of them that Julie got me. It is supposed to be one of the best for beginners, and seems like it would be something pretty fun to play around with. There are tons of different projects that I have found that sound interesting, but it is hard to know what to choose! It might be interesting to do something basic with robotics, but to do what? I'm not sure if I want to find some really cool project to just play around with things like servo motors and led lights, or if I should try to find something that would actually be pretty useful, like an internet controlled thermostat. Anyone have any thoughts? Fitbit One 
This is a little monitoring device from my parents to help you learn about your movements, habits and sleep. Sounds like a pretty interesting idea and might definitely be interesting to monitor how my lifestyle is while keeping up with little Ruby. ;-) Unsurprisingly, I haven't had a chance to play with this either, but it definitely looks like it could provide some interesting information. Moga 
I found this when I began looking at using one of my old android phones as a mobile gaming device. Gaming tends to eat up a lot of battery life so it can be really annoying when you are traveling and you have to choose between your entertainment and the possibility of killing your communication device. So I figured I would just set up an old phone with games. While I was at it, I thought I might as well go old school and put a few emulators on it so I could play some more classic games when traveling. I actually had a bit of luck connecting a PS3 controller to a phone via bluetooth, but it still made for a bit of a cumbersome gaming platform. Enter Moga. Moga is a controller made with a mount to hold your phone. So it is made to do exactly what I was looking to do! It also connects via bluetooth, which opens up some possibilities. Not only can I connect it to a tablet for a larger screen, but the phone I will likely use has a mini-HDMI out so I could plug it in to a regular TV and use it as a full console. Sounds pretty snazzy to me! Julie got this for me and now I have to find a trip where I actually have some free time to play with this (which might be a bit difficult with a 2 month old, haha). Raspberry Pi 
Along the same lines as the Arduino Uno is the Raspberry Pi that Julie also got me. Raspberry Pi has been growing in popularity (I have heard of CS programs using them as a platform to develop on through a range of courses and a buddy of mine has one set up to be a home media server), and have a good bit of power for such a tiny little device. Just like the Uno, the main problem arises with how to decide on the project! With this one, I am likely to tinker around with it a bit and get a feel for the development environment before I actually lock it in to a single use. That will also give me time to get familiar enough with it that I can better know what types of projects I am capable of handling and give me some time to think about how best to put it to use. I see a soldering iron purchase in my very near future. ;-) Any project ideas/suggestions are greatly appreciated for this as well. Now if I could just find some free time to play with all these fun gadgets! :-) 
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