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Beddi smartphone alarm dock hooks up to Uber, Spotify and Nest
We've seen plenty of smartphone -- well, mostly iPhone -- alarm docks in our lifetime, but there's been little development on that end in recent years. OK, there was that one bacon scent alarm from Oscar Mayer, but not much else. That's why we were pretty stoked when we came across Witti's neat and affordable solution dubbed Beddi. This $100 minimalistic dock houses an iOS or Android phone in landscape mode on the top, and recharging is done via your own USB cable -- you get a 2.1A port and a 1A port on the back. But it's really all about the companion app: Once paired up over Bluetooth, you can preset Beddi's three physical buttons to either call an Uber taxi, toggle a Spotify playlist, control the temperature on your Nest or switch on a Philips Hue light. Some of these can even be automated according to your desired schedule.
Watching 'Sharknado' with Syfy Sync and Philips Hue
When I open my mailbox, I often find Amazon packages that I don't remember ordering. But today's surprise was a DVD of Sharknado, a movie I absolutely did not purchase. My first instinct was to contact Amazon and change my password, but then I found a note inside: "For you to test out the new Syfy Sync app with your Philips Hue lights." Wait, what? A quick web search cleared things up pretty quickly -- the latest Syfy Sync app enables full control of a Hue bridge (and connected lights) on the same network. The movie, app and lights work together, in theory, to bring you a more immersive entertainment experience.
Dad hooks up an iPad and Hue light to Minecraft for his son
Sure, the Phillips Hue (a light bulb that can be controlled with an iPad) might seem slightly silly, but one dad found a really good way to use it: By helping his son play some Minecraft. Dad #1 Jim Rutherford set up a quick iPad app to easily and quickly sync up the Hue light with wherever the sun is in his son's Minecraft game, and then the app automatically controls the light according to Minecraft's schedule. In other words, the light makes it exactly the same brightness in the real world as it is in the game's world. It's a very cool idea (and the app also has the added benefit of serving as a clock for the Minecraft game, as well as giving Rutherford some good experience for setting up the Hue). He's now open-sourced the project as well, and you can find the code for it on git. It's as neat a use for the Hue as any, and it's a great way for father and son to bond (and code) thanks to an iPad. [via TechCrunch]
