What is a Voice Activated Assistant and What Does it Mean to Me?
Posted on June 29th, 2018 by RESCUECOM
Voice activation of computer technology, beginning with using human speech to get a computer to understand a function you want it to perform and developing from there, has been a dream for many years but a practicality much more recently. The potential applications are almost innumerable, and one cannot exaggerate the helpfulness of technology that you do not need to sit directly next to, hold in your hand, or even touch. IBM’s Shoebox, introduced at the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair, was able to recognize sixteen spoken words and the digits 0 to 9. Now, nearly everyone carries a device with them daily that can perform dozens of tasks, if not more, via voice command. Read more »
“Buzzwords” are very popular in the tech industry, but these often vague and uninformative terms are not always clear to consumers. One of these terms is “the cloud,” one that everyone knows but of which fewer can explain the particulars. To put it simply, it refers to software and services that operate on the Internet rather than your computer, which you can access in a browser like Microsoft Edge, Firefox, or Google Chrome as well as some dedicated mobile apps. When your data is in the cloud, or you work in the cloud, that data goes somewhere for storage. In the case of the cloud, is goes to numerous locations from which a network of servers can find and deliver it when needed. With remote servers handling most computing and storage, you can do any work on any computer and access it from any other computer with an Internet connection at any time. 
Shure is not exactly a household name, but it is certainly one with which anyone who records music is somewhat familiar. Founded in 1925, it was one of the earliest radio parts wholesale companies to exist today. In that time, it has become a global leader in audio electronics. Its specialty is designing mics for music, so it should come as no surprise, given their ability to adapt to technology from the early 20th century into this one, that they have developed microphone technology for current tech. Shure has realized this no more evidently than with the MV5 iOS digital condenser microphone, one of the most innovative recording devices on the market. It has USB connectivity, ideal for recording vocals, acoustic instruments, and podcasts, but it is obviously also suitable for anything that can make use of a USB microphone. The unit itself has a headphone jack built-in, volume control and DSP (Digital Signal Processing) options as well. 
Until recently, relatively speaking, a high-tech setup necessarily involved a mess of wires. While it would be impossible to overstate the benefits of the technology that made this necessary, all of the wires needed to run various tech was still problematic, even if bundled as best as anyone could manage. It meant that one had to maintain a specific position in a room unless using extension cords or power strips, which in themselves further added to the mess. On top of that problem, so many cords together could easily tangle together and the stretching of cords everywhere posed a tripping hazard, not to mention the electrical danger as well as the cost of running so much electricity at once. With all of the different peripheral devices and accessories we love to use with our computers, we needed a solution, and one of those solutions was the invention of Bluetooth. What exactly is Bluetooth, though, and how does it work? The basic, overarching answer is that Bluetooth was the perfect solution to several problems caused by tech. Firstly, it solved the issue of the excessive need for cables and cords. It also provided hands-free solutions for tasks that previously could not be or, at the very least, could be with some difficulty (or more cords). Another benefit was the ability to pair numerous devices together to access much more quickly and easily without the use of anything extra. Simply put, it is a wireless technology that allows the exchange of data between mobile devices, computers, accessories, and more over short distances. Technically, it is a newer technology that utilizes much older technology, as it actually operates using radio. Specifically, it uses FHSS (Frequency-Hopping Spread Spectrum), which is a method of transmitting short-wave radio signals by quickly switching a signal among many different frequency channels. 
Bose has long been the best-known name in consumer electronics, particularly high-end speakers. It has topped the market and made a name for itself in audio systems for decades, though many tech companies are now edging into the market in the hopes of taking it over. That does not mean that Bose has lost its edge, however, and that is no more evident than it is with its new Wave SoundTouch Music System IV. This stereo shelf system combines the latest technology with some more nostalgic elements to give everyone something to love while maintaining the standard of excellent sound quality for which Bose has always been so popular. The company released the first iteration of its Wave SoundTouch Music System line in 2004 and has since improved on every aspect, added more advanced features as they have developed, and even managed to lower the price along the way. 
The telescope has existed for over 400 years, and improvements over the centuries have mainly involved pieces like the lens, including the design of the lens itself as well as the addition and placement of more. Later improvements saw the addition of reflecting mirrors and eventually active optics, culminating in the era of radio telescopes in the later 20th century. With the arrival of infrared, ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma ray telescopes, it seems that any use of an optical telescope is almost archaic. For most people, however, a traditional optical telescope is the most practical and affordable option as well as the easiest to use, and there is no shortage of telescopes made for home use from which to choose. Very few have implemented newer technologies in their use, and one of those that has to great effect is Celestron’s Travel Scope 70. 
While digital photography is no longer a new technology by any means, top-tier digital cameras are still the best means to capture the highest quality photographs, and it is not as though technological development has left digital photography behind. DSLR cameras are still utilizing innovations in tech, and there is no camera in which this is more evident than the Nikon D500. It holds top rankings and some of the best reviews among such esteemed tech publications as CNET and TechRadar as well as photography sites and magazines like dpreview, photographylife.com, and Popular Photography. Upon reviewing the camera’s top of the line specs and features, it is easy for any amateur or photography professional to understand why. 
Popular VR headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive are excellent at immersing people in detailed virtual worlds, but there are some limitations to them as well. They all require external cameras and beacons as well as a lot of physical space to work. These are all problems addressed with great success by Acer’s Windows Mixed Reality Headset. Instead of having all the aforementioned hardware and being unnecessarily bulky or difficult to set up, all of the cameras for tracking your head, body and hand controllers are built into the headset making, setup much faster and simpler. Once set up, the motion controllers allow you to bring your movements into the virtual world in which you can become fully immersed. 
Portability was a revolution in computer file storage, initially in the form of floppy discs and CDs. The release of flash drives in 2000 was another revolution in file storage that went even beyond those methods. Flash drives offered the same storage, data backup, and file transfer capabilities but with far more capacity and more portability. Having no moving parts, they were also more durable, and surface scratches could no longer damage the data stored on them. They offered a much less volatile, safer medium for storage on which people could more easily add, erase, and reprogram the data on it. Flash drives are easily removable, rewritable, and even more portable than ever before, fitting easily in a pocket and weighing less than one ounce. Every desktop and laptop now has USB ports, and now some mobile devices can also utilize them using special adapters. The SanDisk iXpand, however, is a step beyond most flash drives and allows for uniquely simple mobile device data storage working on the same principles upon which the technology always has. 
Baby monitors were a revolution in infant care, limited first to audio and then advancing to audio / visual. It still requires close proximity and a certain degree of attention to see and hear what is happening in a baby’s room. Baby monitors give parents peace of mind in knowing that their baby is safe or, at the very least, being able to notice if he or she is not and actually do something about it. While certainly not perfect, they have decreased cases of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome over the decades. Enter Owlet’s Smart Sock 2, a more advanced style of baby monitor that is well-designed, easy to use, and reliable.