In LOVE with vinyl records? This smart record player is a must have!

Have you got a love for vinyl records? I fell in love with them after high school, collecting them because I really just wanted to scratch them like the renegade turntablists of the time. In the search for rare samples and grooves I discovered so much more; that as my record collection grew with me, they became symbols of a time and place too, like micro time machines that can bring past moments back to the present.

My several crates of records have become an everyday family presence, and my own kids, far removed from this old technology, love to have a look (and sometimes scratch) at these strange circles that "have music inside them".

 

I miss Cbaby2 being the right height to dig in the crates. #throwback #genydad #love #familytime #awesome

A post shared by Mike Cbay (@mikecbay) on Oct 24, 2013 at 6:59pm PDT

As my __kids grow older, I wonder if they'll discover their own love for their dad's old records in an increasingly digital age? The sound, the smell, the fact that you can hold a piece of recorded music...

I know there's no feeling like putting a needle on a record, but this sleek new record player has some fancy features up its sleeve.

The LOVE keeps everything we love about playing records - the use of a traditional stylus, the crackles and pops, and of course "the warmth". Like a new age record runner the LOVE flips the traditional method of playing records: you don't put a record on, you put LOVE on a record. It's somewhat endearing actually, when it's put in that way. The LOVE also connects to a mobile app, and can connect to wireless speakers for playback - now that's a smart record player!

Record lovers argue that "you can't hug an MP3", and the LOVE helps introduce the next generation of music enthusiasts to the affinity for these magical grooved discs.

The LOVE looks like a great record player, but it totally leaves me hanging as there's one major thing I need it to let me do... How can I scratch records with it?

Find out more about the LOVE Turntable here. 

This Truck Has An Amazing Secret

Kids love remote control cars and trucks. They are so much fun to play with. And what could be more fun than a dump truck full of sand.

Oh wait…is that sand? Or biscuit?

And what it that truck made from?

OH MY GOODNESS it’s a cake.

A real life, delicious, spongey birthday cake.

This epic design is from the Pandora cake shop in Hong Kong. Apart from the mechanics underneath, the wheels and the remote control, it’s made entirely of sugary goodness. It even has real headlights that turn on and off.

Imagine seeing your __kids face as this beauty rolls into view across the table in front of stunned guests.

Becoming an e-tree after life: Eco-friendly or eco-creepy?

Whatever your beliefs about life after death may be, there’s no denying that our planet earth, at its current state, could do with some more trees. There’s also the fact that at the end of our lives, a decision needs to be made about where our remains end up.

A company named Bios, attempted to solve both these issues using simple mathematics: you + seeds = trees. By putting one’s cremated remains into a biodegradable urn also containing seeds, your remains could be used to effectively “convert cemeteries into forests”.

It’s as if the seeds of this idea have grown, and now the company is taking their space-saving, eco-friendly solution to the next plane of existence.

That’s right. You can now plant your loved ones at home. And watch their progress on an app via a smart-urn. What. The.

The Bios Incube is the world’s first tree-as-afterlife incubator, in which you can plant your loved ones and track the growth of their tree. The sensors track moisture levels, temperature, electrical conductivity, and solar irradiance. Based on the sensor data, you’ll be recommended a set of optimal growing conditions via the app, and the urn will also add water as needed to continue to keep the tree alive. That’s surely taking the Internet of Things to the next level (and life too).

And if you’re not too much of a green thumb but you’d still like to keep your afterlife-tree-family-member around, you could ask Bios to grow it for you in one of their ‘incubator centres’. Wait a minute, that sounds suspiciously like a retirement, uh, garden?

Maybe I should make sure my __kids get into the habit of watering the plants…

Would you like to become an e-tree after death?

To find out more about becoming a connected tree, check out Bios Incube.

The Internet Is King – TV Plays Second Fiddle

Forget the old line “Video killed the radio star” – times have changed, and now the Internet has officially killed the television, at least where children are concerned.

According to research from Roy Morgan, Australian children aged between six to 13 spend an average of 12 hours a week using the Internet, as opposed to 10.5 hours a week in front of the TV.

The survey spanned almost a decade, from January 2007 to December 2016, and had an annual average sample of 3,150 children. Its results showed that over the period there was a consistent rise in Internet usage that correlated with a decline in time spent in front of the goggle box.

What’s important to note, however, is that while the Internet may reign in terms of overall hours per week, when comparing what children spend their time doing solely at home, television still has a slight upper hand. A large percentage of a child’s Internet consumption – almost 30% in fact – is believed to be undertaken outside the home, either on the go or at school, where television isn’t available.

Time devoted to surfing the web has jumped from just over six hours a week in 2008 to almost double that by the end of 2016. Internet usage is forecast to overtake television consumption within just a few years as more and more children gain access to personal devices.

As Michele Levine, the CEO of Roy Morgan Research says, “The Internet is taking time away from TV in large part because it’s what many __kids now treat as television. Watching online videos is the most common Internet activity, something two-thirds of __kids do in an average four weeks. Almost one in four kids say YouTube is their number one favourite website.”

This has created an interesting shift in dynamics in the family home, not just socially but physically and functionally as well. Parents are finding themselves in the bemusing position of encouraging their children to watch more TV, as they now consider it a more ‘social’ activity than searching the web, which is often done on a personal level with little or no interaction from other family members.

Others are finding benefits in no longer having to install televisions and related equipment in multiple rooms, as households revert to days gone by when only one television set was required.

Household interactivity is also changing, with some families now embracing the new way of life and trying to incorporate Internet usage as a family activity, gathering together to watch funny video clips, entire movies or searching up information for educational purposes as they huddle together on the couch.

There’s clearly no stopping the juggernaut that is the Internet, but the thought of families and friends being physically present but with devices out and eyes down leaves most of us with a cold feeling, even when we know we’re guilty of it ourselves, right? My friend Mike raised an interesting point when he posed then answered his own question, “Are there are methods to consistently bring everyone back together? Family dinner with no devices I guess!” It’ll always come back to the simple things, no matter how far technology takes us.

This New Science Game Is Out Of This World

Although I enjoy racing games the most, as well as the odd sidescroller, I never thought I’d be this excited over a puzzle adventure game… about science.

To most, the thought of a game about astronomy and mechanics might send the Nerd Alert Level skyrocketing to extremely high (to the moon, even), but this new game may have just nailed the formula and raised the bar for meaningful and engaging science education games.

There’s no Abe, Homer, or Magnavox here. This is an Odyssey much more rewarding; one that brings you on a journey through the minds of ancient astronomers and philosophers.

The game developers, The Young Socratics[link: http://theyoungsocratics.com/], wanted to create a ‘next generation science game’ to challenge the way science is currently taught. Instead of presenting facts and figures to memorise and rote learn, Odyssey aims to help players explore how these facts and figures were reached through a Myst-like island adventure.

Players make discoveries about science by solving puzzles, and get an insight into how the ancient philosophers, physicists, and astronomers thought about the nature of things.

Not only is Odyssey able to bring keen children to an understanding of these seemingly difficult concepts, but it can reignite a passion for science in parents too. Like being struck in the head with an apple for the first time, the things that didn’t make sense in science class all those years ago might just finally click.

Who knows, it might even bring both adults and children to accomplish chores faster in order to earn some science-game time before going to bed!

Are you ready to reach for the stars and get your mind into celestial orbit? Check out theodysseygame.com

This Machine Helps You Work Out… In Virtual Reality?

In entertainment and gaming we've had virtual and augmented reality experiences increasingly come into play over the last few years. Usually based around gaming, there have been several interesting developments such as a VR theme park, and a multiplayer augmented reality online shooter.

Now a new VR experience is on its way, promising to fill a gap that video games aren't traditionally great at providing: physical exercise.

So strap on your VR headset, get ready to fly and... get fit?

The Icaros is a combination of workout machine, virtual reality headset, game, and hand-held controllers (mounted on the machine frame). You somehow carefully prop yourself onto the frame without falling over in an awkward mess, pop on your VR headset and game, and then you're off to a flying start. The concept is pretty cool though, I'd love to give this a try. I wonder how many different flying simulators/games there would be available, and be developed for this workout system?

Once the novelty of a virtual flying experience wears off, I'm not sure how it would be incorporated in a daily exercise routine. Sure, it looks like it could tone and refine your core muscles... but somehow it reminds me of those informercials from daytime tv in the 90s where it seemed every few weeks a new ab-sculpting machine was introduced as the hottest thing since the last ab-sculpting machine. I don't see this as being able to be used with young __kids around (or anyone else around for that matter).

If my goal were to tighten up my dad-bod physique, I'd prefer to go jump, run, and climb in a playground made for grownups

What do you think - is the Icaros a hit or miss?

Find out more at icaros.net

Real-Life Road-Test: Foxtel Kids App

The new Foxtel __kids app, has been designed just for kids, so, who better to help me to review it than my 5 year old son? The conversation to convince him to help out went something like this…

“Do you want to help mama with her work today?”

“No”

“You get to watch Paw Patrol”

“Yes, yes, yes yes!!!”

Ahh, child-labour, how sweet it is!

Mr 5 and I took the new Foxtel Kids app for a real-life road-test and this is what we thought.

What’s it about? The new Foxtel Kids App has been designed especially for kids. It contains content from Nick Jr, Nickelodeon, CBeebies, Discovery Kids, Disney (plus XD and Junior), Cartoon Network and Boomerang.

It’s available to watch both online and offline – the offline works as long as you have pre-downloaded the shows.

Getting Started: Download the app from Google Play Store or the App Store and just get going. You initially set a pin to ensure that only you can set the functionality of the app – like what shows your __kids can see, what age your kids are, and whether you’re allowing only G shows to be watched or G and PG.

The Good Bits: This app has been designed for kids to use and they’ve really nailed it. Navigation is ridiculously simple – just a horizontal line of large images of each show – perfect for pudgy little fingers to easily find their way. Mr 5 had no problem with the navigation – he got to his beloved Paw Patrol in approximately 1.78 seconds.  

Plus, we loved that no matter what crazy angle your kid is holding your device at, the app automatically locks to a landscape format. There’s no, “Mum, why is it moving around funny?”

For parents, the genius function is the ability to set a timer – you can program the app to lock after certain amount of minutes. This could definitely help you avoid the whole technology-tug-o-war-tantrum.

Another genius function is the ability to register 5 devices to Foxtel Kids, plus you can have two devices running at the same time! No more sibling fights about what to watch!

The Not So Good Bits: Just be mindful that the default setting for downloads is ‘on’. So, if your kid happens to get a hold of your device they could end up downloading a whole stack of content without your knowledge, which could potentially impact your data limits. You can easily get around this downside by clicking the ‘Require PIN to download’ in the Filters section.

Safety: The app has a whole range of functionality to ensure that your kid is never going to see anything you don’t want them to.

From the get-go, when you open the app for the first time, you program in the age of your child, so it will automatically select channels based on age suitability. For example, choosing 5 and under, limits access to content solely from Nick Jr, Disney Junior and CBeebies.

You can even set whether you want to allow only G-rated shows to be seen on the app, no matter what age you’ve said your kid is.

There is no external access to anywhere else and there are no ads.

Most Suitable Age Range: All ages - the app is deigned for the very young up to older kids.

Tech Info: Available on mobile devices, Android and iOS

How Much? FREE as part of the Foxtel Kids Pack.

See more here

Parent App of the Week: Hardbound – Stories For Curious Minds

Parent App of the Week: Hardbound – Stories For Curious Minds

What It’s About

Every Thursday, a new, original illustrated story is produced that teaches readers something fascinating about the world. It’s an app that’s perfectly suited to our current lifestyles, where mobile-based storytelling is the new way to learn and be entertained at the same time.

The Good Bits

The app is easy to navigate and gives a great introductory run-through the first time you use it. The story topics are varied, and virtually all of them sparked my curiosity enough to want to read them.

I also loved the way they tell you how many people have already viewed each story, and approximately how long it will take you to read (usually stated as 4 or 5 minutes per story, but in my experience they can be flicked through a lot faster while still taking in all the information).

Each story consists of a series of ‘pages’ (screens) with a small amount of text and a photo/illustration/animation to accompany it that helps tell the story. The stories are cute, interactive, quirky and interesting, and easy to navigate at your own pace.

There’s also a separate section called ‘The Nightcap’, which is a handy nightly visual roundup of the day’s news – exactly what busy people need when they have the desire to stay connected with the world but not the time to sit and watch the news.

The Not So Good Bits

Older stories are ‘locked’ and can only be access by agreeing to become a monthly subscriber (costs range from $2.99/month to $30.99/month depending on how generous you wish to be).

What it Teaches

You’ll learn lots of random facts that you would never have otherwise known – it’s the stuff awesome dinner party conversations are made of! Want to impress with your knowledge of ‘How Sushi Became A Thing’ (hint: it didn’t originate in Japan), ‘Why People Like Music’ or ‘The Secret History of Salt’? This is the place to gather your intel!

Tech Info

As an app, Hardbound is currently only available for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch users (requires iOS 9.0 or later) but you can read the stories via their website if you are an Android device user.

Most Suitable Age Range

Ages 12 and above

How much: Free, but with options to pay per month for access to the back catalogue of stories.

This Pen Lets You Draw On Your Food With Spices

I'm sure we have amongst us some talented masterchefs and skilled kitchen ninjas who enjoy creating wondrous dishes that look as incredible as they taste. For the food-decorating connoisseurs out there, you can now add a little extra spice to make your creations extra nice using this nifty little gadget:

The CinniBird is a curved, pen-like device (I actually think it looks a bit more like a banana) that helps you to draw on your food using spices. Cinnamon, cocoa powder, paprika, ground parsley, you name it.

Is it bordering on ridiculous? You bet. Is it useful? Perhaps. Honestly, at the very least, I wouldn’t mind using something like the CinniBird to add a bit of a personalised cocoa powder drawing (or a sweet message to my wife for extra brownie points) to the morning coffees (yes, more than one, am I right?)

I think it could open up a great opportunity to make food preparation and mealtimes more fun. Both parents and their __kids can partake in bringing extra creativity to the table, and adding a hand-drawn seasoning smiley face might make all the difference. Decorating food with a device like the CinniBird might even help to entertain, and hopefully encourage, even the fussiest of eaters. If you’re daring and time-savvy enough, maybe you could add a little ‘please, eat me, please’ message to your kids’ insanely epic and/or healthy school lunches.

And if you or your __kids aren’t so keen on ground-up dry spices and more into liquid condiments, well then I’m sure a good ol’ squeezy bottle of tomato sauce will do just fine, too (just not in the coffee though!)

Find out more about the CinniBird

The App You Don’t Want To Live Without! David Attenborough Does It Again!

Just the other day I found myself reminiscing about my childhood Sunday nights, when David Attenborough documentaries screened before 60 Minutes. Despite the fact that this combination of TV shows caused nervous butterflies in my stomach (because it signalled the end of the weekend and the imminent start of the school week, ugh!), I still adored watching anything made by Sir David Attenborough, and it’s a love I hold to this day.

You can imagine my excitement when I discovered the app from the BBC – ‘Attenborough Story of Life’ – and the extreme joy of having my expectations exceeded when I started using it.

At last, gathered in the one spot, are over 1,000 of the greatest wildlife moments Sir David has caught on film. The app features the broadcast legend himself giving an introduction – it’s almost impossible to believe he’s 90 years old because he looks and sounds so spritely. (I’ll have what he’s having thanks!)

As for the app itself, users can explore a comprehensive collection of Sir David’s work, presented as short clips of around 2 minutes duration each. They’re perfect for our busy lifestyles and it means I can spend idle time learning and being awe-struck by nature instead of rolling my eyes at the never-ending stream of selfies on social media. This app takes us back to the days when the cameras focussed on the world around us, instead of on our own insular existences.

The content on the app spans Sir David’s 60-year career and includes highlights from more than 40 BBC programs, including Planet Earth, Blue Planet and The Life of Mammals. There are plants and animals from every continent and habitat – kangaroos, polar bears, lions, sharks, insects and whales – you name it, and this app will no doubt have it covered.

There was a particular thrill revisiting clips that I first saw when I was 5-years-old. I even loved the grainy footage, and seeing Sir David in his cream-coloured safari suit from the early ’80s was a total hoot.

As would be expected with a product from the BBC, this app is high quality, and I particularly love the innovative design. You can search for clips to watch by using your finger to scroll a wheel and selecting a category, or you can simply type in a specific word and you’ll get search results. You can then create and save your own collections of videos and share them with family and friends. And to gamify the experience, there are even hidden films featuring Sir David that were made especially for the app!

The cost? Free! The only slight catch is you need to be connected to Wi-Fi to watch the film clips, but this shouldn’t be a problem in most locations these days.

So go forth in your best safari suit and see what you and your __kids can learn about the world. No selfie stick required! Click here

This New Construction Kit Lets You Build Your Kid’s Rides!

Ever wanted to build a little ride-on cart or bike for your kid but just never knew where to start?

Normally these projects might mean flexing your carpentry and mechanic skills, but let’s face it: we all don’t have those skills to build something awesome and safe for the __kids (just yet anyway).

If you at least know how to wield an Allen key after all of your IKEA furniture-building experience, this construction set may be just right for you. Looks like building your toddler a little trike just got easier!

It’s almost like a super-sized Meccano kit that lets you make things that your __kids can actually ride on. Awesome!

Armed with an Allen key, Infento sets can let you build up to 12 rides for your child, making it an incredibly flexible construction kit that grows with your child from the ages of 0 to 10.

By having a single kit to build multiple vehicles, you eliminate the need to buy different sized trikes, scooters and bikes every year as your kids outgrow them. Infento encourages the whole family to think sustainably in this way, and to be creators and inventors of their own toys as other construction kits do.

My only concern would be making sure the loose bits of the kit are packed up properly after use – if having Lego stuck in your feet is a thing then I imagine stepping on large Infento bits will hurt just as much!

So who’s up for some Infento-ing? Check out the Infento website