Family Tech Blog

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The Family Tech CES2020 Preview

Every year at CES, tens of thousands of people gather to see the latest that technology has to offer. Every tech media outlet covers CES. They’ll be talking about everything from virtual reality to massage chairs. This is your Family Tech CES2020 preview. There are a lot of interesting topics being covered at CES this year. Here are some that I think are the most interesting and some that are specifically important for families like yours.

TV Talk

Welcome to the age of the 8K television. That’s right, we’ve skipped from 4k resolution to the mind bendingly clear 8k quality. Some say that the human eye can’t even discern that kind of clarity but it sure would be fun to find our for ourselves. The 8k tvs from LG, Samsung, and Sony tout such amazing tech that you need a screen larger that 65 inches to even get the full benefit.

Voice-Enabled Digital Assistants on Everything

Voice assistants are in everything. It’s in your car, your TV remote, even your toilet and shower. That is going to continue at CES 2020. Look to find voice activated technology in more and more gadgets this year. Even our kids are being offered toys and gadgets with voice command tech built in. Voice Assistants aren’t new but seeing them integrated into everything else only proves that this concept is here to stay.

Crazy New Gadgets

There is always some crazy stuff at CES. Some is pretty unimportant but interesting. Some things are said to be the new face of technology but just seem strange to me. Foldable phones fit into that category, so do many of the robot offerings at the conference. Either way I’ll be looking for the most amusing and interesting gadgets to show you at this year’s CES.

5G Technology

5G is a bit of a buzz phrase these days but there is some actual technology behind the term. This fast, “over the air,” data connection is finally starting to spread for real. Many major cities are adding 5G to their infrastructure. It’s expensive and coverage is spotty but wherever it works, it’s lightning fast. The reason 5G is so critical is the role it will play in the roll out of self driving car technology. The connection speed that 5G offers is critical to the success of the self driving revolution.

Self Driving Car Technology

Self Driving Cars are always the bell of the ball at CES. This year will be no different with more and more companies finding ways to implement the improving technology. Not only are the cars themselves a big deal but the tech around mapping, connection speed, and entertainment inside your self driving car is becoming a major reality as well. It isn’t easy to hitch a ride in one of these vehicles at CES but I’m going to try my hardest this year.

What Parents Should Know

The future of technology is always going to include products to entice our children. Coding toys, games, gadgets, and safety tech are all being highlighted at CES2020 and I’ll be there to show you what to look out for and what to look forward to. As I look toward this year’s conference, here is a family tech preview of CES2020.

Ed-Tech

As highlighted last year, education technology is a going to be all over the show floor at CES. I’ll show your new coding games and toys as well as virtual and augmented reality classrooms. Robots will play a major role in training students for future technology jobs as well. Keep your browser open to the Family Tech Blog to see more as the conference starts up next week.

Pet-Tech

The furry members of our family have a place at CES as well. Dog toilets, cat toys that move across the ground, connected leashes, and even fenceless boundaries highlight the pet tech industry at CES. You’d be surprised how much tech can help people care for their pets and help pets care for their people. You probably wouldn’t be surprised, however, at some of the goofy pet tech that shows up at CES as well.

Smart-home/ Home Security

Everyone’s homes are becoming smarter and smarter, even if the way we use the technology isn’t so wise. Technology that can keep our home network and connected devices safe is crucial and thus, a major factor at CES. I’ll be spending quite a bit of time chatting with developers about their products intended to keep your data secure. Some even offer new parental control solutions as well.

Connected Toys

So many of our toys are connected to the internet now. Games, robots, even racetracks are finding ways to connect your tablet or smartphone. You are given an online account in order to fully play with these toys. This is introducing our kids to use of the internet earlier and earlier. What products are coming up that feature connected toys? I’ll gave updated information for you from CES next week.

Avast All-in-One Security and Safety – Omni

I’m very excited to test out one specific piece of family safety technology. Avast’s Omni device is an all-in-one way to protect your network from hackers, malware, spyware, viruses, and even set up parental controls and GPS alerts. I’m excited to have a hands on look at Omni while I visit their booth at CES. I’ll also be able to hear from their VP of Product Deliver as she shares at the Family Tech Summit on Thursday of the conference.

A Long Six Days

Hope you enjoyed this family tech CES2020 preview. This event is a lot of work and makes for long days. It is, however, some of the most useful and rewarding work I do all year. The new tech, updates on the latest trends, and marketing strategy research gives me such great information to pass along to you, parents. Thank you to those who have partnered with BecauseFamily for this trip to Las Vegas. If you would like to partner with our organization just visit our Partnership page. You can follow every detail of my adventure to CES2020 on our Facebook Page, our Instagram, and on YouTube. Thank you again, see you soon, from Vegas!

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January 1, 2020
Family Tech News From Apple’s Developer Conference

WWDC was held last week at Apple’s Headquarters in Cupertino, California. Every year, the tech giant hosts a conference for developers and media from all over the world. The company’s Project Managers and Chief Officers all take their turns on stage to discuss what they’ve been working on over the past year in order to increase the hype around Apple’s products and software. Much of what is announced at WWDC targets developers and “tech-heads” who can’t wait to find out how to make apps for Apple products or what the next big thing is going to be. Some of Apple’s new feature’s however could bring some peace of mind to parents. Here is a break down:

Apple TV+

Apple’s streaming video device has been great for viewing other services but Apple’s streaming service itself has been lackluster. One thing that has been missing for a while is the ability to make separate accounts or profiles for viewers, including children. Apple announced at WWDC that this is changing. They are making it possible to create profiles for every member of your family. Your viewing history and suggestions will be sorted according to your accounts and best of all, your recommendations won’t be overloaded with shows that your children love to watch.

Apple Music/iTunes

iTunes is officially no more as Apple will be separating iTunes offerings into multiple apps. Books, Podcasts, and Music will all be separate now on the MacOS. When you plug in your iPhone to sync with your Mac, nothing will happen. Your phone will sync in the background. It has become pretty apparent that most folks don’t need software to manage their music collection. Streaming music has taken over and iTunes wasn’t very good at that job. Apple Music is taking over the music service and Podcasts is mainly accessed through the mobile app, not on desktop.

iTunes has been around since 2001 and while there are those who have become used to the software, most have been aggravated by frequent updates and overuse of computer resources. Apple is likely accurate in thinking the software won’t be missed by very many people.

Apple Arcade

Apple is also working their way into the video game streaming world with Apple Arcade, due to release this fall. Apple Arcade will consist of a series of exclusive games made just for their system and will be playable through your phone, tablet, Mac Computer, or Apple T+. They have a controller that you can use with AppleTV but are adding support for Playstation 4 and Xbox One controllers as well. The 100 or so available games are a bit weak looking but they are sure to find some developers who are willing to put out some quality content for Apple before too long. They’re going to have to in order to compete with Google’s Sadia and the new service coming soon from Sony and Microsoft.

iOS 13

Probably the most relevant of updates from WWDC has to do the Apple’s latest smartphone operating system, iOS13. The software boasts a new dark mode, faster app launches and downloads, faster Face ID unlock, and a new (to Apple at least) “swipe” style typing system.

Dark Mode is cool and faster downloads and unlocking features are great but the iOS update doesn’t really have anything going on that is relevant to parents besides their focus on data security. More on that below.

Photos and Video

Photos in iOS13 is getting an overhaul as well. With the ability to pinch to zoom in your galleries and a new sorting method that groups photos together based on the date they were taken. Photos will also include a new smart gallery that will remove images like screen shots from your view, only showing the photos you’ve taken with your camera.

Privacy is a Key Theme

Every update at this year’s WWDC had privacy as a key theme. Directors and Developers mentioned over and over again what Apple does and doesn’t do with your data. Apple Maps uses encrypted data to help you find your way, the photos app does its date and location tracking locally, and they even mentioned a new “Sign in with Apple” that allows you to sign in with your Face ID and create accounts with individual dummy email addresses.

Data security and privacy has been in the news a lot lately and Apple has been very vocal about their desire to keep their user’s information secure. Whether it is a direct attack against other tech companies who have made most of their money by collecting and selling data or just an honest desire to maintain their user’s trust, the result should be a bit more confidence that your information is safe if you are using their products. I always advise, however, that you continue to make efforts to protect your own privacy. Be careful what you share online. Turn off location access to apps that don’t require that information to work properly and most importantly, teach this approach to privacy to your children.

You can listen to this article as a podcast on Family Tech Update.
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June 12, 2019
Fortnite is Available to Play Now on Nintendo Switch

At E3, today, Nintendo announced that the extremely popular battle royale game, Fortnite, is available to play on their latest console, the Switch. Fortnite is an online multiplayer battle royale game that rushed onto the scene several months ago and broke all kinds of records. The game is free to play on PS4, XBox, Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, and now on Nintendo Switch as well. There are some limitations, however, as PS4 won’t allow you to play online with players who use other consoles or computers to play. Also, Nintendo says they will be using a pay model for their online gaming platform beginning in September, whether or not Fortnite will fall into the pay to play category at that time remains to be seen.

What Parents Should Know

I wrote an extensive article about my thoughts on Fortnite. If your kids enjoy playing the game and have a Nintendo switch then they will likely ask to download it for their console very soon. Nintendo announced that it’s available now so be sure to keep an eye on what your kids are playing and installing and who they are playing with. Fortnite keeps pretty well with Nintendo’s seemingly family-friendly nature since the game is rating T for Teen and not M for Mature. While some Mature games are available on the Switch, most of the games produced for the console are rated T or below. Just keep in mind that multiplayer gaming is officially unrated and that Fortnite is famous because of the ability to play online with other players.

June 12, 2018
PODCAST: Should I Follow My Teen on Social Media?

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Facebook wouldn’t stop talking about augmented reality, the Hooked app is super addictive, and should you follow your kids on social media?

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April 22, 2017
The Consumer Electronics Show Tells the Future for Your Family’s Home

CES is an annual event put on by the Consumer Electronics Association. All of the major companies are in Las Vegas showing off their latest technology. Smartphones, smart bicycles, smart watches, smart everything. Today kicked off the event with the press day. Every major company had a chance to promo their most impressive new tech for the members of the media who were in attendance. I had my eye on those press conferences and I thought I’d share a few of the innovations that I felt could be relevant for your family. While they may not be products that protect your kids online, they’re definitely going to impact your life and tell us a few things about the direction our society is going.

In Your Home

– Washer and Dryer

How lame is it that I am so excited about this washer and dryer? Seriously though, these things are super cool. Samsung’s Flexwash + Dry features a “twin-wash/dry” system that will let you do four loads at once. The top load washer built in to Flexwash will allow you to wash a seperate smaller load than what’s in the front loader and the dryer has a similar feature to allow you to dry at different temperatures for each compartment. Pretty sweet. Especially for a family like ours that does laundry for six.

– Countertop Induction Oven

This oven by Panasonic is said to cook most recipes in minutes that would normally take an hour or more. This product reminded me of the old Disney “Home of Tomorrow” movies.

– Audio Equipment

While it’s a bit silly to me, our audio listening tech has digressed a bit back to the vinyl age. Panasonic is highlighting their newest turntable and speaker set that provides some of the clearest audio quality around.

– TV “Wallpaper”

While it’s not actually wallpaper, it’s pretty close. LG’s OLED televisions are the width of cardboard. They are so light they can stick to your wall with magnets. My brother, who used to install entertainment systems for Best Buy, told me about the possibilities of OLED years ago and it looks like it’s all coming to pass.

In Your Car

– AI Assistants

Vehicle after vehicle from Chrysler, Toyota, and Hyndai were showing off their ability to use facial and speech recognition to customize the driver experience. They also had new features that would sync with every technology under the sun.

– Automation

The vehicles highlighted at CES all featured some level of automation. Yes, that’s right. Self driving. Chrysler even had a minivan to show off. Most of them are using “Level 3 Automation” which requires the driver to intervene in certain circumstances. The cars use mirrors, cameras, radar, and gps to drive itself and communicate with other cars and the road infrastructure (where available.) We may not be looking at hovercars or Jetson’s space vehicles yet but having to “intervene” to help your car drive iteslf sounds pretty darn futuristic to me.

Just for Fun

– Drones

Selfie sticks are out and selfie drones are the new thing. That’s right, this drone will identify with its user and follow his/her face, taking a selfie whenever they do a certain hand motion. There are drones all over CES with different camera qualities and flying abilities. Some with VR and some with AR, it seems that drones are becoming more of an entertainment item now than a photo/video professional tool.

– Robots

The robots I saw people talking about on press day fell into all different categories. There were some that were for hospitality, some had AI for your smarthome system, there was even one that is designed to help kids with disabilities overcome some of their development issues. Robots are always, always, cool.

– Virtual/Augmented Reality

Finally, this VR thing seems to be staying around. It seems every smartphone manufacturer is providing a way to turn their device into a Virtual Reality headset and the products being promoted at CES were no different. There were new gloves, headsets, bikes, and even a pair of VR shoes that let you feel the virtual world with your feet. Augmented reality was featured at CES as well with a device that will help you find your keys and exercise bikes and other workout equipment.

Thoughts From Day 1

You didn’t see any products on this post that are designed to help your family be safer online but you did see a collection of new tech that proves our homes are becoming more and more connected to the digital world. When your washing machine and exercise bike are using as much computer tech as your smartphone, you know we’re at the point of no return. Some folks wish they had been born years earlier when things were “simpler.” Well, it looks like we are going to have to just get on board or get left behind. Things are progressing towards digital everything faster and faster.

As we raise our children it is important to provide them with the kinds of tools that will help them get ahead in life. Computers designed to help kids learn and exercise equipment that can use their love of gaming to entice them to be more active are tools that can be a blessing and not a burden to our children. Our job is to regulate and even curate their use of these new technological achievements. We must understand what tech they have and what it’s capable of. If we get left behind then we aren’t just putting ourselves at stake, we are putting their safety on the line as well.

I think much of the new technological items being featured for consumer purchase are pretty amazing. This first day of CES has convinced me that some of what I thought was a fad isn’t going away. I recommend you check back in tomorrow and keep your eye on our instagram and twitter as I continue to follow the action at CES and highlight anything I think may be relevant for your family.

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January 4, 2017