Parents, your kids always take your phone and play with it. We need to accept that kids this days are more impressed by technology than traditional pastimes that earlier generations may have enjoyed. But what if technology could compliment those things we used to do?
Disney’s research and development department have been working on something very cool using augmented reality. Augmented reality uses your phone’s camera to sync its screen up with the real world, blending the two together. Disney’s new app, available on iOS and Android, brings the characters your kids colour to life on your smartphone’s screen.
There’s some positives and negatives. Unfortunately, this won’t just work with any old colouring book you have lying around. It has to be the Disney Colour and Play colouring book. The upside of this is that there are plenty of free pages online you can print off yourself at home.
So if you’re after some peace and quiet this evening, here’s your solution. You’re welcome.
It’s been a pretty hectic week for fans of Liverpool Football Club. Following a draw against bitter rivals Everton, underfire boss, Brendan Rodger was finally given the boot before Jürgen Kloop stepped in as new gaffer. The big highlight to come out of this was the Thierry Henry/Jamie Carragher reactions to the news breaking in studio.
While there have been countless Vines created, we’ve been watching this on repeat for quite some time now.
In an unsual step, Facebook unveiled it’s long awaited answer to the calls for a dislike button, exclusively to their Spanish and Irish markets. Users can now like, haha, yay, wow, sad or angry in response to goings on with “the book”.
But let’s be honest here, these are a little tame and don’t really capture the raw emotion of the average Irish Facebook user. Here’s a few more reactions we feel the people of Ireland could make use of.
Christ on a bike
You see a picture of that unpopular kid from school is now marrying your ex of over 10 years ago. Sure it doesn’t mean anything any more, but the sheer shock of the situation would have you screaming “Christ on a bike”. Works also for that couple who’ve been together since playschool, but one then changes their relationship status on Facebook to single.
Ara go shite
This one would be specifically useful for when you see someone have something you want. Could be a day off or maybe they won €845 in the local lottery. By saying “ara go shite”, you’ll surely sleep easier knowing that you’ve shown your disdain for their general happiness.
Fair play to ya
Whether you’ve just scaled Mount Everest or managed to carry 7 Starbucks coffees in one go, the option of “fair play to ya” provides genuine congratulations while maintaining the ability to be hugely sarcastic. Context is king with this one.
Savage
To be honest,”like” should be just generally replaced with savage.
Some dose
When something awful happens to someone, only one phrase can truly make everything better; “some dose”. From broken bones to lost phones, “some dose” is a must have reaction to have in the old repertoire.
We won’t be holding our breath for these to appear on Facebook, but they really would improve it right?
So a little something something happened in the industry that pipes Facebook and Netflix into your home, as UPC has officially re-branded to Virgin Media.
Yup the one and very same Virgin crowd that were in Ireland until iTunes drove them out of business. Well they are back and in typical Virgin style, back with a bang. Last Friday, Virgin Group founder, the one and only Richard Branson, arrived in the RDS aboard a massive bull-nose truck, announcing the re-brand of UPC to Virgin was here. Shortly after, Branson was on the Late Late Show with Ryan Tubridy, cutting off Tubs’ tie.
Sure enough, this was a little bit of cringey pantomime, but it’s a publicity stunt of a company that really does care what the customer thinks of it. To this date, certain customers still refuse to let go of the horrendous customer care that was received at the hands of NTL and Chorus, but we really must move on and realise that Virgin Media could provide the Irish market a much needed shake up. In the UK, Virgin have positioned themselves as a cool technology based network, bringing the very best entertainment and prices to their customers. While it’s very early in the life of Virgin Media Ireland, one can only hope they bring the same energy to the Irish market that they have in the UK. This only leaves one real question.
Who would win in a fight between Richard Branson and Michael O’Leary?
Web Summit does a great deal to cater to more than just the conventional startup tech industry. No where is this more visible than through the Sport Summit. Here are three of the best speakers who can be found speaking on all things Sports at this year’s Sport Summit
Ian Ayre – Liverpool
Commercial deal making at it’s best
Whether you should be taking advice from him now or not is debatable, but Ian Ayre has a history of success in business. Currently he is the CEO of Liverpool Football Club, one of the most internationally recognised football clubs in the world. He has also been heavily involved with delivering TV signal digitally to peoples homes through his time with Pace Systems, Premium TV and NTL, so the guy knows how to make money. His money making ability is evident through the Standard Chartered shirt sponsorship deal for Liverpool, believed to be one of the most lucrative in the world.
Sam Allardyce – Football Manager
One of football’s biggest characters
Affectionately known as “Big Sam”, Sam Allardyce is a well known and widely loved manager, owing largely to he fairly mad character. Attending the Sport Summit for “Big Sam” is sure to be entertaining. This is not Sam’s first trip to Ireland though. The 1991/1992 League of Ireland season saw his Limerick team run out First Division champions in his first managerial post as player/manager. He will surely provide some laughs as well as an insight into the technology used at Premier League level.
Jamie Heaslip
Ireland number 8, Movember Champion and social media legend
His mighty pinstripe mustache was something to behold last year, but this year his highlight will hopefully be playing a part in leading Irish Rugby towards the Web Ellis Trophy. Straight off the back of that Jamie will be speaking at the Sport Summit. No doubt he’ll be discussing Movember and social media exploits, which led him to be one of our favourite Irish Rugby players to follow on social media for the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
It’s time for another episode of Good Idea, Bad Idea while looking at the latest Apple have to offer.
The iPhone 6s launch date
So it’s finally confirmed. Apple today updated their site to show that the iPhone 6s will be available from the 9th of October.
iOS 9 WiFi Assist
Okay, calling it a bad idea is a bit harsh, but this is something that should have been made clear and defaulted to off. WiFi Assist is a new feature which appeared on iOS devices following the update to iOS 9. If you’ve ever been on a dodgy WiFi connection and experienced it connecting and disconnecting for craic, you know the frustration. WiFi Assist uses your data plan to fill in the gaps, reducing the likelihood of you being interrupted. The downside is that if you do not have an unlimited or all you can eat data plan, you could find yourself with a hefty bill.
If you would rather not run the risk, simply make your way to Settings > Cellular > then scroll to the bottom and you’ll see WiFi Assist turned on if you’re already upgraded to iOS9. Just tap to turn off.
The power of the people is a common theme emerging from today’s latest tech start ups. We’re looking at the biggest crowd funding and crowd powered companies.
Sean Rad – Tinder
Revolutionising the way we shift and drift
Tinder was not Sean Rad’s first endeavor, but actually his third. In true Bill Gates style, Rad began college but never finished, dropping out and creating an email service and marketing company before creating the world famous Tinder. Tinder matches around 12 million people per day, leading to many wondering if that awkward couple in the bar are on a “Tinder date” or not.
Yancey Strickler – Kickstarter
The new way to start up businesses
Strickler is a co-founder of behemoth crowd funding platform Kickstarter. Kickstarter provides a platform for early life projects to raise funds from the public, who in return get early access or other rewards relating to the Kickstarter project. The sheer volume and variety of projects on Kickstarter is stunning, with the most popular of all time being this year’s Pebble Time smart watch.
Lukas Biewald – CrowdFlower
Many hands making light work
As we gather more and more data, it becomes more difficult to keep on top of it all. Lukas Biewald is co-creator of CrowdFlower. CrowdFlower provides large crowds and a verification system for sorting through large volumes of data, which cuts costs and centralised workloads.
Ireland’s final Web Summit is sure to be packed full of great talks and info sessions and Goos3D will be there to bring you the latest. Follow Goos3D on social media or sign up for the Goos3DLetter for the latest speakers ahead of Web Summit 2015.
We recently brought you news of Indiegogo campaign, Keezel, a box which could unblock international versions of Netflix along with plenty of other features. Now we’re bringing you a similar product, built here in Ireland! Let us introduce you to InvisBox Go.
Given the connected world we live in, more and more public areas offer public WiFi. Connecting to these may save you some coin on your data bill, but you are leaving yourself wide open for cyber attacks. Following the Snowden leaks, more and more people are also concerned about who can see their info. InvizBox Go seeks to solve that problem.
Imagine the scene. You are sat in a coffee shop looking to connect to their open WiFi, but there is a classic computer hacker looking guy in the corner smiling at everyone connecting their devices to the shops WiFi.
You don’t want to play right into his hands with all your private data now do you?
InvizBox Go sits between your devices and the cafe’s open WiFi. If you’re interested in the super technicalities of how secure all of this is, you should check out this Ars Technica article covering the InvizBox Go’s older brother. As always, we’ll be keeping this focused on why this makes the everyday persons life better!
Unblock Netflix
What appears to be one of the most common desires of smart devices users, is once again made easy by the InvisBox Go. The InvisBox Go can trick your connection into thinking you are elsewhere in the world using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). This is great if you are Spanish, German, Chinese etc and want to watch some stuff from back home, but get smacked in the face with a geoblocked message, as you can simply side step this hurdle.
Extend your WiFi
A lot of problems were around for a long time before everyone started noticing them. Every Tom, Dick and Harry uses WiFi now and is finally realising how frustrating a poor signal can be. Just as frustrating is having a black spot in your home that’s simply too far away from the router to get a good connection. The InvizBox Go has a smart feature where you can use the device as an extender. It basically sucks the internet in and throws it back out again at full whack from it’s position, giving you a little extra range.
Charge your device
The InvisBox Go, as with the Keezel, can provide emergency power when needed. So if your phone dies when you’re out and about, plug into the InvisBox Go and power it back up.
The long term
Just like the Keezel, InvizBox Go is currently going through a crowdfunding process. Backers will receive one years free premium VPN access. Following that first year, you can continue to use the device for free or sign up to the premium service for €4 per month. This will be required to unblock Netflix.
Should I invest in Keezel or InvizBox Go
With two very similar options, this is the toughest questions. All tough questions are solved by tables.
InvizBox Go
Keezel
Cost to Back
€89
€88
Delivery
Included
Not Included
Premium VPN
1 year
1 year
Premium VPN Price per month
€4
€4.50
Delivery Date
February 2016
December 2015
Pros
Irish, slightly better value, proven track record or delivering crowd sourced projects
Design is gorgeous
Cons
You’ll have to wait a little longer
Don’t know how much delivery will cost, first time crowd sourcing project
and….
Right fine we’ll get off the fence. It’s really close between the two devices. While they match up on spec, the Keezel is designed to perfection aesthetically. With that in mind, the InvizBox Go is still in the prototype phase and is being created by a team familiar with the crowdfunding method. Their first device, the InvisBox, was a logicl first step and relatively successful. Finally, they’re Irish, so call us biased and all, but we love Irish companies like this.
Over the course of 5 years, Web Summit has grown from a small conference that just under 400 people attend its first year, to an event which expects 30,000 attendees this year. It’s easily the biggest date on the Ireland’s tech calendar, but today it was announced it won’t even be on the calendar in Ireland next year.
Why is Web Summit moving to Lisbon
Without stating specifics, given the issues with WiFi and public transport surrounding the RDS venue in previous years, give Web Summit founder, Paddy Cosgraves words an obvious context. Cosgrave stated”if Web Summit is to grow further, we need to find it a new home. Our attendees expect the best“. The RDS is not the only party to blame for the loss of what Bord Failte claim is a €35 million event. Hoteliers of Dublin who inflate prices beyond recognition have also player a part.
While these are the generally accepted reasons for the move, WiFi can be dodgy at most big events, and hotels will always take an opportunity to make money. It’s likely the RDS is reaching a headcount limit that Lisbon can overcome.
Reaction to Web Summit’s move to Lisbon
The news of the move has been received with widespread anger and disappointment. Government officials have described their feelings at the move from disappointment to embarrasment. Twitter is naturally where the majority of the public’s mourning has taken place.
Without over complicating things, the tech industry was here before Web Summit was created and will remain long after it’s gone. Sure enough, Web Summit was and will be (for this year) an amazing tech event for people to attend in Dublin – we’ll be covering the event too remember! Let’s not forget that Web Summit itself has grown at a ridiculous rate over the past five years. It would be complete insanity to consider it will not be replaced by another event or series of events.
#WebSummit move creates an interesting opportunity for a similar conference in Dublin. People did not just come for the wifi. — Leo Moore (@leommoore) September 23, 2015
If you think Web Summit vanishing from the Irish calendar will stifle the emergence of Irish startups, just stop and think for a second. What is the likelihood of these small companies meeting a compatible backer during 3 days of cold calling face to face? Slim. Place this along side Ireland’s still booming tech industry, owing largely to tax breaks, coupled with an increasing willingness for startups to turn to crowdfunding, and you still have the conditions which encourage growth and emergence of new companies.
Web Summit has achieved great things and to a certain extend made tech cool, with companies all over the country and world funding people to attend this conference with insanely expensive tickets.
Web Summit has created the space in the calendar, but it’s move to Lisbon and the subsequent move into this space by the many other events such as the Startup Gathering, may very well be what develops tech in Ireland more than anything.
Is this you whenever your search history gets mentioned? Your search history can tell alot about you, as can that of a nation. Google Trends provides some great insight into how Ireland searches Google and what the nation is thinking about.
What have Irish people been searching for on Google?
Top Google searches
Straight to it! The most common searches wont surprise anyone too much. These are the kind of searches that everyone makes as soon as they turn on their computer. Top spot is held by Zuckerberg’s Facebook, followed by Google themselves and YouTube.
News and weather are the only non traditional online services that people are searching for the most in Ireland.
Rising Google Trends
Growth in searches is where things get more interesting. Here are the searches, in order, experiencing the greatest growth:
Windows 10
So all Microsoft had to do was release a free version of its operating system to generate a bit of buzz. Windows 10 tops the Rising Google Trends list following their free upgrade program which is still open. This is extremely interesting, as 1250% increase in searches suggests there are a huge amount of everyday computer users seeking to upgrade their operating system. A few years ago these users wouldn’t have considered it possible they do this themselves. Technology is going in the right direction.
Conor McGregor
Love him or hate him, the Notorious Conor McGregor has a distinct ability to make the headlines. While his rise to the top of the UFC has been meteoric, his rise in the Google rankings has been equally impressive with an impressive 130% increase in searches. We’re sure if he could give it all up for the title of top rising search term in Google, he would.
Showbox
Is it legal or isn’t it? No one seems to care about the app that’s so deep in a grey area it needs a safe-word (50 Shades joke there). Showbox sits in third position on the rising trends table. Just like Windows 10, this shows people are adopting technology to consume entertainment in new ways. Go you. You can get Showbox for Android by following this guide.
Airbnb
Sticking with this theme is Airbnb. Crowd sourcing everything is a hot trend in itself with Indiegogo and Kickstarter leading the way. In terms of the public however, Airbnb is dominating the public heart. Up until recently, the cost of travelling would be inflated by accommodation. Airbnb allows people to rent out their own home for cash. So simple, and popular, it’s experiencing a 100% increase in searches.
Euro to Dollar
Because of insane fluctuations and people doing the bit of travelling, the exchange rate is up 60% in Google Searches.
Slimming World
First it was Weight Watchers, but now it’s Slimming World. Slimming World has become one of Ireland’s most popular ways to lose weight. So if you are considering giving it a go, now you know you’re not alone!
Now we must all wait patiently for the annual report to be released by Google in early January. Keep an eye on out social as we’ll be dissecting that as soon as possible.