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UberX Ambulance

Get help in an UberX Ambulance?!

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Apparently people are requesting Ubers to get to the hospital rather than calling the ambulance. As it’s quicker. It’s not an UberX Ambulance though. Uber aren’t getting in to the services industry.

A study from the University of Kansas found that there was a 7% decline in calls to the emergency services where an UberX was available.

The guys over at the Hustle report that their very own CEO Sam called an Uber when his appendix burst when he was out shopping. He called an UberX and was at the hospital in 10 minutes. So in effect, his very own UberX Ambulance.

Consequently he would have been a lot heavier in the money department. Over in the US, an ambulance ride can cost anywhere between $450 and $5000. So that $20 (I’m spitballing here) UberX ride just saved your life and a LOT of money!

Uber and Lyft are said to discourage users from calling their fleets for emergencies. However, according to the guys over at Slate most medical professionals interviewed that they’d agree with UberX’s or Lyft’s over the emergency services. Though if you’re having the below, they’d advise you call the ambulance:

  • Trouble breathing
  • Severe pain
  • Pregnancy-related complications
  • Suspected internal bleeding
  • Signs of stroke (numbness, weakness, or speech problems)

UberX Ambulance – Our thoughts

Now we’re based in the UK and this does sound very interesting to us. While it would seem that the UberX can most likely get to you quicker (if they’re close enough to an incident) will they be able to get to the hospital just as quick? Probably? Probably not? If you’re in an Uber you’re going to have to wait in traffic. If you’re in an ambulance, you can part the cars like Mohammed and the Sea and get there super quick. Plus you’re getting medical attention at the same time.

Is this a good route to go? Maybe? Maybe not? It all depends on the situation that you’re in.

 

California Cowboy

California Cowboy – Your next favourite shirt

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As tech enthusiasts and tech lovers, we have found a great shirt. A wonderful shirt. A shirt that will make you open your mouth in awe. The shirt that we have found is so good, we almost wanted to keep it a secret. It’s called the California Cowboy and it’s a multi-functional shirt that can do an all manner of things. Don’t worry though, we know what you’re thinking, it definitely has a tech element to it. It’s a wonder that no one has thought of it before! We are now wondering why we didn’t survive our summers without this!

California Cowboy

California Cowboy

California Cowboy: Features

So where to begin:

  • Firstly this shirt is really really comfortable
  • It has a secret pocket to keep all of your gadgets clean and safe from water
  • A sunglasses loop to keep your eye protectors safe
  • Bottle pocket and kazooie to keep your drinks with you at all times (can’t be losing them beers!)
  • Bottle opener (Of course)
  • Conversation card (if it ever gets awkward around your AWESOME SHIRT!)
  • Slim fit
  • Vintage prints (so like flowers and beach type designs, perfect for the streets of california – or margate)
  • Plus THE BEST FEATURE – a built in towel! No need to carry a towel to the beach! You can just wear your shirt, then take it off to swim, then put it back on to dry off!

 

California Cowboy

California Cowboy

 

If this doesn’t get you dizzy, I don’t know what will and we cannot wait to take the California Cowboy to the beach in the summer. It’s going to be a lifesaver!

To purchase your own California Cowboy shirt please click here!

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Listen to the guys chatting about this here! (Link LIVE from May 31st)

Eufy

Eufy Robovac 11

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We feel that smart homes are going to be more common place in 2018 and beyond. With the introduction of Amazon’s Alexa, Google Home and of course Apple’s Siri, there’s always going to be something new that’s smart or designed to make your life easier. The Eufy Robovac 11 is the latter, an automated robotic vaccum cleaner that will clean your house with the click of a button. With that we were very impressed! We know that robotic vaccum cleaners have been around for some time, but the technology has come a long way!

Eufy Robovac 11

The Eufy Robovac can:

  • 78mm ride depth, allowing the Eufy Robovac to get into areas other vacuums can’t
  • Clean every nook and cranny with the use of versatile cleaning modes
  • 3 point cleaning system: Side brushes, rolling brushes and a powerful suction ensures a thorough clean:Dirt is loosened and  then extracted from the floor, which consequently is vacuumed into the dust collector.
  • 3 Cleaning modes: Edge, Spot and Max.
  • Clean for up to 1.5 hours due the the high-capacity li-on battery
  • Anti Scratch tempered glass cover for protection
  • Infared-sensor for obstacle evasion
  • Drop sensing tech to avoid falls and the ability to ride over rugs and uneven flooring (We were so impressed with this!)
  • Recharing automatically feature
  • Triple-Filter System: two regular filters and one high performance filter

We love the Eufy Robovac 11, the fact that it can clean autonomously is a wonderful little feature. We know that robotic vacuum cleaners have been out for some time now. But, we’ve never tested them ourselves. We wish we had tried them out sooner! We don’t think we’d hoover up without one now, it saves so much time! Especially the Eufy, a great little device!

 

To purchase your own Eufy Robovac 11 please click here! 

 

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chemex

Chemex Coffee Maker

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We love our coffee here at the How To Kill An Hour offices and when we saw this coffee maker, we had to try it out! It’s elegant in design and minimalistic in tech. A little different than what us tech enthusiasts usually use. However, we are a place that’s more than just tech. We’re the place to come to find out the best ways to spend your free time. Drinking coffee is one of those past times that can be done whilst working or when away from the desk! Without teasing too much, we tested the Chemex 3 cup classic coffee maker and we loved it! But how do they achieve this?

Chemex: Taste

It claims to deliver the ‘purest flavour experience’ and it does just that! The coffee from the Chemex coffee maker is absolutely lovely! It certainly delivers a different taste than the coffee that we usually use out of an electronic coffee maker. The way that Chemex deliver such a great tasting coffee is due to one thing. Working in tandem with the Chemex Bonded filters the coffee that’s delivered is pure. Like filtered water. No sediments or any bitter elements like that, just pure gloriously tasting coffee.

Included with the Chemex Three Cup Classic is a polished wood collar and a leather tie, providing great grip. The coffee maker is glass, so it helps prevent a user burn their hands on the glass. All in all a great design that doesn’t look out of place in your kitchen. We were very impressed here at the office!

 

Purchase your own Chemex 3 Cup Classic Coffee Maker here!

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Mikme

Mikme – The Future of audio recording?!

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This is the Mikme Microphone, a supremely powerful microphone that  boasts studio quality sound. From experience, we can tell you first hand that this microphone, really does produce some amazing sound quality! Consequently, in a tiny package too, we were seriously impressed when we reviewed this awesome little device! It’s touted as the world’s first wireless mircrophone and audio recorder in one. Simply press the button and voila, you’re recording. While you’ll need a smartphone to connect it to, to monitor what you’re recording, but other than that, you’re set! However, that’s no stress either! Simply connect your headphones to the Mikme to the reverse of the device to listen to the crispy clear audio!

Features

  • The internal 16GB memory stores recordings anywhere. The 1″phantom-powered, gold-plated condenser capsule delivers 24Bit/96kHz studio-grade audio.
  • Their App receives the audio wirelessly to give you total freedom to move. The patented Bluetooth protocol ensures all samples arrive safe and sound.
  • Also, their App syncs the audio from the device with the video from the iPhone in realtime. Create, edit and publish content in studio-quality on the go. (Credit)

The Mikme is perfect for everyone be that a creative, a musician or a journalist anyone can take use of this amazing little device. Since, no longer is there a need for people to carry around expensive gear. All you need is a smartphone and the Mikme device and you can create content that rivals that of which has been recorded with high end products! Great for on the go, on field recordings!

So, to purchase your own by clicking here!

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Listen to the guys chatting about this here! (Link LIVE from May 31st)

mind control

Will there be Mind Control for real?!

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Well turns out we’re all screwed. We may not even know what free will is even more, mind control could be happening!

Ok enough movie quotes, let’s get on to the real reason as to why we may be seeing Jedi mind tricks in the real world at some point in the future. Hope you’re sitting down for this, scientists have suggested that we humans could tuen into mindless ‘cyborg’ type super consumers. The same technology has been used on rats – successfully. Well, it’s time to turn off all technology. It was nice knowing you!

Mind Control: Shopping

It relates to shopping. A team of researchers working at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology discovered that by stimulating a certain part of a mouses brain. The process triggered a craving, a craving for possessing unnecessary objects. Looking at you impulse buyers! The intended use of the discovery of this process is intended to treat people. The idea is to treat people with brain disorders such as kleptomania or hoarding. However, they also stated that it could be used to ‘control human behaviour’

You may think that craving objects is quite scary in and of itself. Prepare to be bamboozled. The team said that it can control the behaviour with a technique known as MPA-Induced aDrive Assisted Steering. This, when used, made the mice chase whatever is in front of them whenever the same region is stimulated.

Psychological

The joy that we as children got when we recieved a toy from our parents has followed us into adulthood. We experience the same sort of lust for objects – one example of this would be if you have a shopping addiction. Which of course, could be used to exploit us, coroporations couold make us shoppers just grab anything, mindlessly. Though, would mean shops would have access to our brains. Which isn’t going to happen.

Professor Kim noted that:

‘This study provides evidence to treat brain disorders such as compulsive hoarding and kleptomania. ‘It also contributes to the development of technology to control the behaviour of animals and humans using strong innate motivation, and thus could impact neuro-economics, defence and disaster relief.’

So there is some good to the mind control news. Of course, the treatment of brain diseases. But disaster relief could be good if it got more people to safety. But again it needs access to the brain!

 

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Staring at a screen

Staring at a screen won’t make you go blind!

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We are not doctors so do not take our advice! Then mess up your eyes and then sue us. Please take this and use the information about staring at screens damaging or not damaging your eyes at your own risk.

So allegedly according to a report by some scientists staring at a screen all day doesn’t damage your eyes. With the Verge reporting that, Nielsen reports that we spending up to 10 hours a day in front of a screen. So we can all sigh a collective sigh of relief that we all won’t go blind! Yay! However, there is a chance that you may feel uncomfortable after a period of time. That’s due to the backlight. There is also a chance that you will experience symptoms of eye strain and discomfort. Scientists call that Computer Vision Syndrome.

With Dr Rebecca Taylor stating in their video report that “The devices that we use, do not appear to cause any long term eye damage”

The reason we feel some discomfort is due to our eyes blinking less when we look at a screen. Dr Bozung reporting in their video report. That we can blink up to 67% less or slower than we would without looking at a screen.

Staring at a screen: Discomfort

If you are experiencing discomfort, the guys over at the Verge suggest that you can adjust the height of your monitor and/or desk setup to help ease the pain. Could even use moistening eye drops. The Vege also suggest a 20-20-20 rule. (Which we’ve never heard of before here at the How To Kill An Hour office!)

The rule is, for every 20 minutes you stare at a screen, you should stare at something 20ft away for a total of 20 seconds. The Verge also report about some special blue light filtering glasses that can help, but scientists don’t believe in those claims at all!

Our screen’s refresh rate can also affect our eyes, so for example a 60hz refresh rate monitor will cause your eyes to focus more often. Therefore causing you to tire quicker. The faster the refresh rate, the less often your eyes will need to refocus. The Verge are also reporting that positioning of your monitor also can affect your eyes discomfort. A 20degree angle at an arms length away is a good distance to eye health ratio. Brightness and contrast can also have an affect. Also fonts that you use can cause a problem! (Size most often) Lighting and the environment your in also has an affect. So staring at a screen isn’t so simple after all!

Apple have gone someway to combat discomfort in recent years with things such as Night Shift and Truetone, designed to lessen the blue hue in your phone’s screen!

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Alexa Blueprints

Alexa Blueprints

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Alexa is great and is one of our favourite smart voice assisstants available today! However, would you like it if you could make Alexa, just that little bit more personal? Would you like to make your own Alexa commands? Even your own Alexa, voice controlled games? Now you can with a new feature and website from Amazon! Head over to bluerprints.amazon.com to get started on your very own Alexa commands. Furthermore you don’t even have to know how to code! Plus you can make as many different Alexa skills as you like!

Alexa Blueprints: How To

Alexa Skills are just like the apps you have on your smartphone, but are placed on your Amazon smart speaker instead. There’s already loads available on the Alexa Skills Store! You can download apps which help fit your lifestyle, order a pizza, order a cab even pull down the latest football scores!

Once you start using Blueprints you can use templates that are available to you to create your own personal Alexa skill within minutes! You can create anything that your heart desires. Be that custom games, to-do lists, learning! Furthermore you can get creative with them and make things such as a learning and knowledge skill but make it about your family. Such as a trivia game “Alexa, open My Family Trivia”

There are a whole host of skills that you can make, simply browse the blueprints that are available to you in the following categories:

 

  • Fun & Games
  • At Home
  • Storyteller
  • Learning & Knowledge

What skill are you going to make? Let us know by contacting us via our social media pages, we’re @howtokillanhour across all socials!

 

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Dyson

New ‘product’ from ‘Dyson’

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So, the guys over at ‘Dyson’ have created a brand new product. It’s designed for the guys and it helps dry off a very specific area of the body.

It’s called the ‘Dyson’ ballblade and works just like the hand dryers you get in public restrooms. You stick your hands in the slot and the product jets out a burst of air. Blowing off any excess water you had on your hands.

This particular product is designed for your b*lls. It works by having the user sit down on the product and lower their man sack into the two ball shaped slots. Then. BOOM. A jet of air thrusts upwards and gets your b*lls dry as they were before you entered the shower.

Furthermore you can also use the included b*m hole cleaner too! By pressing a button a small hose type device emerges from the machine and shoots water. Just like on a bidet.

Squeaky clean they say!

Dyson: It’s not real.

However, don’t get too excited as you cannot buy this in the shops.

As we don’t think it’s real for some reason.

Listen to the guys chatting about this on the show by clicking here!

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Apple leaks

Memo about Apple leaks – Leaked.

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Firstly, I’m getting more convinced we’re all living inside a movie each and every day. Apple, the huge tech company, prizes itself on secrecy and the mysterious allure it has! Apple like’s to keep things under wraps around it’s software and hardware each and every year. So they’re going to take a very hardline on anyone who breaks NDA’s. So those Apple leaks we get giddy about, someone, has put their job on the line to leak the information, hence why we always get blurry images and bit part information. Well turns out, that according to Bloomberg, Apple’s had 12 employees arrested over the course of the year for leaking information regarding future software plans. This was part of a memo which leaked.

Apple leaks: The Memo

In the memo, it stated that it had caught 29 people who had leaked info over the course of the last year. 12 of which were arrested. They were employees, contractrors and supply chain partners. So Apple has a job on it’s hand, to keep everyone in line when it comes to secrecy around their products. As there’s A LOT of people that are handling precious and important information on a day to day basis.

According to Bloomberg the memo read:

“Leakers do not simply lose their jobs at Apple….In some cases, they face jail time and massive fines for network intrusion and theft of trade secrets, both classified as federal crimes.”

Furthermore, the memo allegedly goes on to warn employees of any potential ‘friends’ that they may make from the media. Stating that the people aren’t your friends. They are just trying to get information out of them for their own benefit.

“While it may seem flattering to be approached, it’s important to remember that you’re getting played,”

Which reads like your telling you about a shady love interest. Apple are cool, even when you’re being warned about future work conduct!

Listen to the guys chatting about this by clicking here! 

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