screamingnerds

To tired to donate to a Non-profit? Not anymore.

2011-08-22T00:57:00.000-07:00

We are all guilty of hitting the snooze button once in awhile. Or, if you're like me, you hit it every morning like you're hitting King Hippo on Mike Tyson's Punch-Out (NES). Recently a new app for iOS aka iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch came out that could make us all feel a lot better about sleeping in and hitting that ever so popular snooze button. It's a rather simple app. It's an alarm clock with a snooze button. Nothing more, nothing less. The big difference with this app is the fact that every time you hit the snooze button you donate 25 cents to a non-profit charity. So lets just say you stayed up really late studying and you end up hitting snooze 4 times. Before this app was made available, you might have felt bad for slacking off. But with this new app you might be able to argue that it is socially irresponsible not to sleep in an extra 45 minutes. Using this new app could easily cost someone 50 cents a day. This could either help someone find a way to donate to a charity in a fun way and make them feel good about helping others out, or it could help some people get out a bed quicker if they don't want to donate that day.

So the app is called Snooze and is brought you us by a company called LetGive Inc. You can click the link to learn more about the charities and more how this actually works. Or you could just go to Apple's app store and download Snooze now and start donating right away. Although I haven't actually downloaded the app, I've found somethings out from the companies website that I feel they need to change about this app. First, it doesn't look like you actually get to choose which non-profit you will be giving to. It is clear that it will be going to one of the charities on their list. It says something about giving it to a featured charity. So I'm not sure if that means you get to choose or they choose for you. Either way, you're donating to a good cause. Someone who tries this out please share your comments on weather you can or can't choose. Second, and this is the bigger deal to me, it doesn't donate right away. Rather, it periodically tells you how much you should be donating based on the number of snoozes you hit and then asks you how much of that actual amount you want to donate or not donate at all. The reason I think this is a bad idea is simple. If after 2 weeks I owe 20 dollars, I may be inclined to only donate 2 dollars or none at all, but less likely to donate the entire 20 dollars. I think the program would have more teeth as well as make more money for the non-profits if it in-fact made you donate the moment you hit snooze. I feel that would be much more interesting and more meaningful. One more thing of note, is the company that put out this app is a for-profit company. Now I actually don't think that's a big deal since they said that on average 93 cents out of every dollar goes to a non-profit, that's an amount that I feel is acceptable. None the less, I felt I should make you aware of the fact, because I'm aware some people only donate to non-profits and don't like a middle man. In this case, I honestly feel that they are providing enough service to warrant a small fee. With that aside, I hope they continue to make improvements to the app and hopefully many people will benefit from all the zzzzz's of the world. Sweet Dreams!!!!!

Taylor Patterson is a regular reviewer here on screamingnerds.com

Super Power?

2011-08-21T23:44:00.000-07:00

O.K. Nerds... If you could have any super power... what would it be? The power of flight? Super-strength? The ability to turn anything you look at into a Twinky ( they are delicous ) ... It can be anything. Comment below and let us know... we won't judge ( unless you say the power to see through walls. Pervert)

Scott's Top Back to college Gadgets

2011-08-15T00:12:00.000-07:00

I thought I would post some links to the products I am talking about today on the radio.

Texas Instraments Ti-89 Click Here

Be the envy of campus with this amazing calculator. Your teachers and friends will think you are graphing some sweet bell-curves but in all reality you are playing Dope Wars. Take that teach! Who are we kidding... do not buy your kid an expensive calculator unless it is required for a class, and if you are in a class that requires a Ti-89, I recommend switching majors. Just Saying.

Clocky or Sonic Bomb Click Here or for Sonic Bomb Here

Lets face it. College is not just party, party till you vomit. You eventually have to get up after that late night bender. So if you actually want to make it to class on time I recommend either Clocky or Sonic Bomb. Both will get you up in their own unique way. Clocky will roll off your night stand onto the ground so you have to get out of bed to turn it off ( tricky little guy), while Sonic Bomb takes an entirely more upfront approach....Its really, really loud. Like 113db loud. Hey if you don't get to sleep, why should your roommate (or neighbors).

3 in One Breakfast Maker. Click Here

After pressing snooze 4 times, you might be running low on time... But don't take it out on your poor innocent body.... It needs fuel, and only you can provide it what it needs. So make your mom proud with a 3 in One Breakfast Maker. Eggs, Toast and some Coffee...Now your body will thank you later.

Flyp n Sync Click here

A sleek little ipod cable that is always on your keychain. Now where ever you go you can "share" your friend's Itunes library with your cute little Ipod Nano.

LiveScribe Pen Click Here

This digital pen is pretty cool... everything you write down, it saves... so keeping your notes organized has never been easier... oh wait, until the invention of the computer...but I digress.

Break time with style.... The PS3

Not every student can become a doctor, so that's why the PS3 was invented... to give the rest of us, something to do while all your over achieving roommates are out becoming our future leaders or whatever. Comes in two models. "Slacker" and "Can you believe my mom thinks I'm studying" edition

The Ipad

Now I know that everyone nows what an Ipad is, so I'm not going to explain why they are so great, but I will recommend a few great apps to help you out as a student

-Notetaker HD... The best way to take quick notes as if you were writing on paper ( which is arguably more economical option)

- Flashcards.... Again, Something you probably could do with actual physical flashcards... but trust me. This is just much cooler.

Top 5 Websites to visit while on the John

2011-08-07T23:30:00.000-07:00

Now with smart phones being so common, it's hard to not want to take in information all day long, and as gross as it may be, one place I love reading my Iphone is on the John. I usually try to visit quick sites that are full of short but useful or funny information to pass the time ( and pass something else, if you know what I mean...sorry).

I have compiled a list of my favorite quick and easy sites to visit while on the toilet.

5. www.fmylife.com

This site is hilarious. Bad things happen to all of us, and thankfully there are people who want to share their daily mishaps for us to laugh at.

NOTE:This is the only site on my list that sometimes has some questionable material. You can set filters or only visit the cleaner subjects which is a nice touch

4. www.straightdope.com

Cecil Adams is pure genius. If you have not heard of the Strait dope, check out this site. Basically it's a really smart dude who answers any and every question.

3. www.failblog.org

Again, other people's pain is our gain.

2. www.engrish.com

I know the Engrish sensation is so 2004, but hey, a classic is a classic.

1. www.stumbleupon.com

This site will ensure you that you are never bored while dropping the kids off at the pool. Seriously, so many great new websites to judge with the ever so powerful thumbs up or thumbs down.

Scott is a regular writer here at www.screamingnerds.com and also at www.showtimeshowdown.com

App Recommendation: Heytell

2011-08-02T00:48:00.000-07:00

So here's the deal, Apple officially offers more apps to the world than anyone could care to count. At first it was pretty cool to see apple list off the thousand of apps that have been made for iOS. At first is was the thousands, then the tens of thousands and now that they are in the hundreds of thousand of Apps they can offer us, it's like, okay, we get the point, you've truly got "An App for That." The biggest problem with having so many Apps is it's impossible to sort through them all. I've decided that I'd help people find some of the cool apps that people don't hear too much about. I'll be doing App recommendations as well as App reviews from time to time. Recommendations will usually be that hidden gem of an App that I feel are defiantly worth trying out. Reviews will often times be a straight forward simple review of the more popular Apps in the App Store.

My first recommendation is an App that turns your phone into a really cool walkie talkie. Heytell is the name of this hidden treasure. It's brought to you by Voxilate, Inc. You can visit their super simple website at www.heytell.com and view the flash demo they have waiting for all to see. Or you could simply look for Heytell in the App Store or the Android Market Place. It's basically a program that allows you to send over a voice message similar to the way you'd send a buddy or family member a text message, only that it's voice only. That's actually what makes it cool. You simply push to talk to a friend and they push to talk back. No need to have a phone conversation just to ask if your brother wants to go golfing. Yes I know that text messaging is great for this type of a question, but I'm telling you, sometimes it's just quicker and easier to ask verbally. The whole process actually reminds me a lot of Nextel's Push to Talk. One of the coolest features of this App is the ability to show your friends or family members where you are on a map. In other words, my brother can voice text me asking how close I was to getting to the golf course and I could quickly send him my exact location. No longer will I be able to tell him I was close, when I was really only backing out of the drive way. There are lots of reasons why sharing your location can be very useful. Also, it does push notifications, so even when the App is closed, you can still get through to the person you wish to communicate with. Best part about this App, it's free. It does have some in-app purchases available, but the features I told you about are free. Also, it's available for both iOS user as well as Android. So what are you waiting for, go download it to your phone and give it a spin.

Taylor Patterson is a regular reviewer here on screamingnerds.com

Apple Iphone 5 Rumor Roundup

2011-08-01T00:16:00.000-07:00

With the rumors of the Iphone 5 going crazy, the folks over at Cnet have an ongoing one stop list. I highly recommend checking it out

Cnet's Iphone 5 Rumors

ThunderCats reboot Review

2011-07-31T20:01:00.001-07:00

Whenever I hear that someone is doing another remake of something from the 80's I get a little naucious. I have watched my childhood smeared around like poop being rubbed off of a shoe too many times. From the new super-kiddy Ninja Turtles, to the giant crap of a movie that G.I.Joe became, and even more recently they brought back Voltron and squeezed all the cool out of it. Let's just say I was not super excited when I heard they were bringing Lion-O and gang to a "reboot" of Thundercats this summer on Cartoon Network (the very same network that crapped out the new Voltron).
Now as for where I stand on the original ThunderCats. I will not go as far as to say I'm the biggest die hard fan of the original. I liked it a lot as a kid and have fond memories of it, but in watching it as an adult, it has not really aged as well as I imagined it would. From the midly slow pace, to that annoying cat-nanny, Snarf. Other than it's great nostalgia, it's not the my all time favorite 80's cartoon out there. I'm not saying it's not still worth watching, but I'm more of a Bravestarr man if I have to be completely honest.
So how does the new pilot compare to the original? So far all systems are go! The premiere was pretty great. The animation does side a bit on classic anime style, but that not nescarily a bad thing. It's crisp and vibrant and really well drawn. They have taken some liberties with the plot, which in my opinion all work pretty well. For one, Snarf is more of a pet and does not talk at all (thank you!), and with out really spoiling anything that is not revieled in the first five minutes, Pantho starts off dead,I don't think he actually is however, but that's how it starts. I also like that Lion-O looks more his age. His immaturity is much more fitting in this new body of his.
It's hard to tell from just just one episode if this is going to be a good series, but the pilot did so many things right. From the great animation, to the cinematic score and the well done , if not a bit predictable plot. So far I can proudly say "ThunderCats ho!"

ThunderCats is on Cartoon Network on Fridays at 6:30 pm Mtn. Time

Scott is a regular reviewer here at Screaming Nerds and also reviews movies at www.showtimeshowdown.com

Who wants unlimited data? Not so fast!!!!

2011-07-30T20:20:00.000-07:00

Yes, it’s official, your all you can eat data from AT&T wireless will now take years to ingest. AT&T wireless just announced that on October 1st, 2011, they would be throttling the speeds of some of it’s unlimited data costumers. To make things worse, it’s only going to be throttled down, not up.

Let’s step back a bit and look at the history of AT&T’s wireless data. I’m only going to skim the top of the surface and I’ll be referencing AT&T Wireless even though I’m aware that at one point they were also Cingular Wireless. They are one in the same in my book.

Pre-June 2007: AT&T had wireless plans but who cares about the amount and price because there wasn’t much data being used before June 2007.

June 2007: The month Apple Inc. changed everything. They introduced the world to the iPhone. More importantly, they showed the world how to build a proper smart phone. They were able to build off the success of the iPod (for the hardware) and use their OS expertise (for the OS of the phone) to build the perfect phone. Once millions of people got their hands on this phone, they quickly found that having internet on their cell phone was pretty neat. In fact that’s when the wireless industry learned that they’d need to greatly improve their data networks in order to keep up with the demand. It’s also worth noting that at the time of the first iPhone it was running on a second generation speed called “EDGE”. It actually wasn’t too bad for day to day surfing of the web and the occasional music stream.

July 2008: The release of the iPhone 3G. This was a well received update to the iphone simple because of that 3G. 3G or third generation wireless data was highly desired because it now meant that we’d be able to load our web pages faster and be able to hear our music stream to us with less interruptions, also it would open the world of streaming movies or TV shows, simply put, all things multimedia related just got better. The success of the App Store on the iPhone quickly showed us how much internet we needed to make these apps more interactive and how much faster we wanted our data to be. When Apple released this phone to the wild, AT&T wireless offered us a data package of unlimited data for $30. That did seem like a lot of money, but hey we didn’t care because it was unlimited and now we’d be able to watch movies on the go. More importantly for me personally, I’d be able to listen to my many music streaming apps on the road without lagging out and in high quality to boot.

June 2010: The release of the iPhone 4. Yes I realize I skipped past the release of the iPhone 3GS, but nothing really changed then with AT&T’s data plans. Back to the iPhone 4. Let’s clear this up for some (sadly more people then you’d think),the 4 stands for forth generation iPhone, not 4G data speeds. Now that that is cleared up, lets get to the changes. Apple added a front facing camera and other changes, but the front facing camera was a big deal for many people. Why you ask? Apple added it to insure we’d be able to Facetime with our friends and family. Facetime for those who weren’t made aware from the millions of Apple commercials explaining to us how cool it is, is simply video chat. I must admit this is a feature I really do enjoy. It’s also important to note that AT&T Wireless also did away with their unlimited wireless data plans and offered us tiered plans at cheaper prices. They were nice enough to allow those of us fortunate enough to already have an unlimited plan to keep that unlimited plan. I think they were hoping that most would switch to a cheaper tiered plan, but millions stayed unlimited. Even the tiered plans had access to unlimited data, just that after you reached your data limit you’d have to pay extra for another chunk of data. I’m sure the cheaper plans have made many people happy, I just wanted to keep my options open, so I stayed with the unlimited plan. Now that Facetime was on my phone I’d surely need the extra data to be able to video chat myself at the store to show my wife what cool new stuff I was about to buy. But wait, AT&T wasn’t going to allow me to use Facetime over their 3G network. I’d have to Facetime over wifi only. Well surely those on the tiered plans would be able to Facetime because they are just buying blocks of data and who cares how they use it right? I understand their fears with us unlimited types, but what about those that are only getting 2 gigs? Why should AT&T care if I use my paid for data to Rick Roll my friends using Youtube or if I choose to Facetime my doctor asking him about my new foot fungus while sitting at the beach. Data is data right? I actually didn’t want to get into the whole net neutrality argument, but couldn’t avoid at least bring it up when talking about the cell phone industry.

Now lets jump back to the now. AT&T now wants the top 5% of users to be penalized by slowing down their data speeds. As I understand, they’ll only be slowing people down as they reach the top 5% of usage and that they’ll be fairly warned. AT&T also tried to make it very clear that this would only affect those still using the unlimited plan and that even still it wouldn’t affect the majority of those costumers. They also let us know that if you are someone who likes faster speeds and loves to use a ton of data, you'll be able to do both if you moved down to a tiered data plan, since they won't be throttling down those costumers and you’d be able to buy as many blocks of data as you’d like. That’s great news for the super rich nerd that needs to watch the entire series of Wings on netflix. But for the rest of those data hogs, keeping eating all you want, just could you slow down a little and chew once in awhile. If you have a problem with self control, AT&T will soon be giving you a straw to eat your steak. What do you guys think about this move from AT&T? Do you think it will better their Network? Also, it’s only fair to note that T-Mobile as already been doing this for awhile. Only, T-Mobile lets you know when they’ll be throttling you down depending on your plan. Also, how long until Verizon follows suit? Until Sprint gets the iPhone I don’t care about their awesome unlimited plans. When Sprint gets the iPhone, will they continue their unlimited data plans? Please comment below to share with us your views on AT&T throttling news. Good thing or bad thing? Where will this take the cell phone industry and will this re-spark everyones interest in getting some net neutrality ruling?

Taylor Patterson is a regular reviewer here on screamingnerds.com

How to tolerate 3D movies

2011-07-22T11:00:00.000-07:00

whenever I hear the number 3 and the letter D in the same sentence, my brain starts to hurt a little, knowing that I am probably gonna be suckered into paying more money to see a darkened picture with minimal off the screen effects. I mean Captain Eo was pure awesome, but I swear that little rodent thing was gonna land on my face, and we all know MJ was born to be in 3D.
I don't know if its just my eyes, or my brain, or both, but after about thirty minutes of watching a "3D" movie, I get killer head fog ( not really an ache, just a loss of being able to use it), and I end up taking off the glasses in favor of watching a blurry yet bright movie, over a dark and head-hurty movie. Needless to say, 3D has ruined many of these new summer blockbuster movies for me.
This is why I invented the 3D-not-suck-so bad Glasses ( Patent Pending), and today I am gonna show you how to build your very own.

Step One.

Now this may seem counter intuitive, but you are gonna take a pair of those cheap non-active 3D glasses and pop out that left lens. You can try the right lens if you would like, but in my experience the left one seems to be the way to go

Step two is a little trickier. Take a piece of clear tap, and attach the lens back on to the top of the very glasses that you just popped the lens off of.....now your'e thinking "But Scott, I just popped that off, why are you making me put it back on"... Calm down there, it will all make sense in a second

Now flip that lens up so you are only watching through one lens and there it is! You are ready for 3D toleration! By doing this it de-blurs the movie 95% of the time ( we will get to that 5% in a second, and this greatly brightens the image so it does not feel like you are watching a movie with sunglasses on. The only con is that the movie is now mostly just 2D.

Now this is not perfect.... About three times a movie the image will still get kinda blurry so that's why the lens is still there...on these rare occasions, just flip that lens down and watch it in full 3d like the rest of the chumps you are with (or just whenever you are curious about what 3d effects are going on).

So next time I get forced to watch a movie in 3D (which happens more often than I would like because all the review screenings are in 3D), when they try to hand me my glasses, I will simply smile and wink and say.."Thanks. but I brought my own"

Scott is a regular reviewer here at Screamingnerds.com and also over at Showtimeshowdown.com

Want a Google+ or Spotify invite?

2011-07-18T14:22:00.000-07:00

Hey guys... We have some extra invites to Google+ and Spotify.... and the cool thing is once you receive your invites, you too will have your very own invites to give away to you closest friends/enemies, and then they will also have some invites to give away to their friends, and it goes on and on till everyone in the world has google+! So in a way we are giving away millions of invites...your'e welcome.

Just drop your email and which service you would like in the comment section, and we will try to hook you up.

Spotify hits the U.S.

2011-07-17T12:37:00.000-07:00

Listen to Scott and Taylor talk about Spotify Vs. Rhapsody

Netflix gives it's loyal users a little kick in the rump. Doesn't even take them to dinner first.

2011-07-17T12:20:00.000-07:00

All right kids, you ready for a rant? Let's talk about Netflix for a little bit. You all know them for the streaming service with load of 80's action movies and the red envelopes that always give you 2 seconds of excitement before you actually see the movie delivered and think to yourself, "I wanted to watch this last week?"
I would like to give my personal history with Netflix. Please be patient. I joined them in 2004 strictly to watch new TV series and they were good to me. But being a fickle consumer I made the move to "the Big Evil" Blockbuster where they had a fantastic deal of online rentals plus unlimited store trade-ins. I hate doing business withe the devil but a good deal is a good deal. Well it wasn't long until blockbuster turned everything on its head and gave much less for the same rate. See that review . So my satisfaction with Blockbuster dropped just as Netflix started offering dvd mail-ins packaged with Unlimited Streaming. Holy movie heaven Batman! I also reviewed that . I had unlimited streaming rentals to watch anytime I booted up my PS3 and still received one dvd at a time for new releases or shows for my wife. And I got this for only $10 a month. Life was good.

Which brings us to the email that many of us receive on July 12th. Without apology, Netflix has decided they're charging too little for their plans and have decided to split the streaming plan from the dvd plan and have no bundle pricing. The breakdown of it all is: 7.99 for only streaming. 7.99 for only one dvd at a time. So we're saying over 16 dollars and tax for the same plan I'm paying 10 dollars for. For those who want more dvd's you can just do 2 at a time for 11.99 without streaming.

About 6 months ago, Netflix upped their rates 1 to 2 dollars. And that sucks but it's nature. As consumers we understand that prices go up every once in a while by a fraction. But now Netflix has the gall to increase prices to nearly double?! That's a lot of nerve. Let's imagine that Little Caesars (who are known for their 5 dollar hot and ready pizzas) all of a sudden decide to start advertising their new $8.50 hot'n'ready pizzas. I would give them 2 months before they went bankrupt. No one would go anymore. The American public has standards and it relies on not paying more than $5 for a cardboard pizza.

I hate to say this but I am equating Netflix's streaming selection to carboard pizza. If I've ever tried to sell anyone on signing up to Netflix(and yes I've actually done this), people often will reply that the movies available on streaming suck, with nothing that you actually want to watch. I became a netflix apologist as I would state that the TV series on streaming are fantastic, while always skirting the lack of new release movies on streaming. Well no longer, The movies on streaming really do suck. It is overloaded with National Geographic documentaries, anime, and crappy soft-core horror movies made by Rob Zombie's little brother, Brent. Many news stories about this issue have claimed that Netflix is restructuring their plans so they can improve their streaming selection. I cry Foul! The only new releases they offer have been available on video for months and are only available because they were shown on the Starz channel. And even that deal is falling apart.

I would like to say that I'm completely cancelling everything Netflix because of this news but sadly I am not. They do have a wide variety of kids shows that my 2 year old loves. And it can be nice to have 20 minutes of free time and watch an old episode of twilight zone. So Netflix, the jerks, have me there. Bloody drug dealers. Yes, this does save me 2 dollars a month but it's 2 dollars I would gladly pay to keep the same service.

I value a business who takes care of their customers. I, along with millions of others, was put out when hackers attacked Sony's Playstation Network. I couldn't play Black Ops for almost 2 months. Well they thankfully realized that Sony fanboys were upset and offered, in my correct opinion, a great Welcome Back package including 4 free games. That is what I'm talking about. I don't even pay to use the playstation network, but Sony still decided to reward people for their patience, for a free freaking service!!! If Sony had Netflix's business model they would have decided to relaunch the network after it had been down for 2 months and start charging people to use it.

Many will say, "But even streaming and one rental for 16 bucks is a better deal than anywhere else you can go." Shameful. I can't respect a company that decides to double my rates overnight. I really hope that Blockbuster gets smart to this and launches a great on-demand package. Thousands would jump ship. And where are all the other streaming services? This is their moment to take down netflix.

As I said, I'm keeping the mediocre, yet necessary unlimited streaming. For new releases I guess I'll go fight the lines at Redbox.

Shame on you Netflix! Your new plans get a Big Fat Zero and may the rental Gods have mercy on your soul.

Kent is a regular writer for Showtimeshowdown.com and Reviewspew.com