Tech Break (Video)

Megan Morrone and Georgia Dow from iMore talk to Harrison Weber, Executive Editor at VentureBeat, about the rise and fall of Project Ara, Google ATAP's modular phone. Tech news moves fast, and often the articles we read and talk about are a few paragraphs, just a snippet of what's really going on with no context. That's why we were excited to read Harrison Weber's VentureBeat piece called "The dream of Ara: Inside the rise and fall of the world's most revolutionary phone." Weber writes that Project Ara was a modular phone concept that at one point was supposed to start at $50 and was intended to give you the power to decide what your phone does, how it looks, where, and what it's made of, how much it costs, and how long you'll keep it. That sounds fantastic. We find out why it failed.

Full episode can be seen at twit.tv/tnt/1683

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Fr. Robert Ballecer met up with 3M at CES 2017 to learn about their non-electrically conductive 3M Novec Engineered Fluids, which may help revolutionize data center design in the enterprise.

Full episode can be seen at twit.tv/twiet/222

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.

Leo Laporte and co-host Alex Wilhelm help one of the founders of HandkerchiefPro.com level-up his video production game in the 'Call for Help' segment.

For the full episode visit twit.tv/tnss/86.

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Leo Laporte and Megan Morrone look at the Pair app, Houzz, Zillow Digs, and other apps that let you remodel the inside of your home with your iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV.

For the full episode, visit twit.tv/ios/328.

Hosts: Leo Laporte and Megan Morrone

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.

Father Robert Ballecer, SJ had the chance to speak with James Ouellette, Senior Market Manager with LG, at CES. LG has announced its newest line-up of ultra-thin TVs, the W Series. The signatures series has a 4K OLED display and supports HDR10, Dolby Vision and HLG. The TV is comprised of two components - the display and a Dolby Atmos soundbar connected by a very thin cable. The TV is so thin, less than an inch think, that it has to be mounted on a wall, and it so light and flexible it is attached using magnets. The TV has deeper blacks and is also 25% brighter than previous models.

For the full episode, visit twit.tv/specials/316.

Host: Fr. Robert Ballecer, SJ

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.

Leo Laporte and Alex Wilhelm talk to Dr. Zhong Lin Wang, a Regents' Professor at Georgia Tech's School of Materials Science and Engineering. He and his team developed a new type of hybrid textile that can harvest energy from sunlight and motion.

For the full episode visit twit.tv/tnss/86.

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.

NextVR has signed a multi-year deal with the NBA to stream at least 1 game a week in VR. Father Robert Ballecer, SJ spoke with Danny Keens, VP of Content for NextVR about what this means for fans.

For the full episode, visit twit.tv/specials/315.

Host: Fr. Robert Ballecer, SJ

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.

Leica, the German camera company, is collaborating with Autodesk, the design software giant. The result is the BLK360 and it is equipped with a 360-degree sensor that takes a 150-megapixel spherical image and an integrated IR Camera, along with a full laser scanner. The sensor is able to create a comprehensive and extensive model of an interior that can then be used for 3D modeling.

For the full episode, visit twit.tv/specials/315.

Host: Fr. Robert Ballecer, SJ

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.

Scott Johnson from the Frogpants Network talks to Megan about his Twitch channel at Twitch.tv/frogpants compared to YouTube's new ways to help creators make money. Today, YouTube announced that you can now pay to get your comment seen by your favorite live streaming YouTuber. Super Chat is a new a tool that lets you pin your comment to the top of a live stream, for a price. So if you want a 350 character message to stay up for 5 hours, that'll cost you $500. But if your Youtuber ends the live stream and starts another, your comment does not transfer to the new stream. Super chats are non-refundable.

Full episode can be seen at twit.tv/tnt/1682

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.

Father Robert Ballecer, SJ had the chance to speak with Eduardo Campos, PR Manager with Anker, the mobile charging company about it's newest series of chargers. The PowerCore lineup includes a lipstick size portable battery, all the way up to the smallest 20,000 mAh portable charger in the world.

For the full episode, visit twit.tv/specials/315.

Host: Fr. Robert Ballecer, SJ

Bandwidth for TWiT Bits is provided by CacheFly.