Category Archives: tech

Lenovo Mirage: VR for the Real World?

I was crestfallen that I was unable to attend CES this year but one of the benefits of working with Lenovo is that they still gave me the lowdown on some of the products they are coming out with this year. Nothing quite stands out to me like the Lenovo Mirage Solo and the Lenovo Mirage Camera. I, like most geeks, have longed to VR but being a cheap geek every system I have seen hasn’t been quite as adaptable as I want, user-friendly as I want, or has enough to actually do to justify its price tag. I think I may have finally found a VR system that will be worth investing in.

Let’s start with the Lenovo Mirage Solo. It is solo because it is all in one! No tethering a cord to the computer, no popping your phone into the system. I know, many people don’t consider it a big deal, but I do! I can just see putting a headset on a kid me and I trip, therefore pulling the computer down, falling and breaking me, and the headset falling to the ground. So no cords make me happy. No phone? That makes this more immersive. I already have the whole “hold your phone” viewer and it is fine but not all I hope for. So all that is huge.

The headset itself is supposed to be very wearable. This is a downside to not going to CES, I don’t know that this is true firsthand but I have heard about it from some reliable sources. The weight is distributed around the head and not just in the front so that makes it more comfortable and your experience less stilted. There is also breathable padding anywhere that it sits on your face.

It sounds great but really? What all is there to do and you really part of it? That is what really gets me! This project is a partnership with Google’s Daydream and that is a huge value add. First, they are using WorldSense which is Google’s Daydream VR platform. That allows you to actually walk around and be responsive to your environment. Which will be so cool in their new Blade Runner game because the player with be on the streets! It is also cool because there are already over 250 apps and games for Daydream. As a homeschooler, this will allow me to take my kids to the Acropolis or even into some the educational shows that we watch. This takes the virtual field trip to a whole new level. That adds a huge incentive for me because then you are no longer just buying a toy but a tool. 

With the Mirage Camera, you are taking the Mirage solo from tool to connection.  The camera, that is going to be less than $200, has 2 sets of lenses that have a 180 field of view. You can shoot family events and then people who weren’t able to attend can view your footage and immerse themselves in the experience. It isn’t the same as being there but the closest way I have ever seen. 

This camera isn’t just for sharing your family events. It really does so much that I, especially as a blogger and vlogger, really love. It shoots in 4k in 2D and supports Youtube’s VR180 video format for its 3D. It can take still pictures and live stream. It even has wifi so you don’t have to tether it to your phone to stream. You can use a microSD card to hold 128GB of storage but it also has 16GB onboard. It is even small like a phone and can fit in your pocket. 

I am so excited to get my eyes on this physical product that should be coming out sometime this spring/early summer. I may have finally found a VR experience that I am willing to splash out for! What do you think? Do you see the VR applications in your day today? I am curious to hear what you all think!

(Disclosure: I work with Lenovo as a Lenovo Insider but I am not paid. All words and opinions are mine and mine alone.)

 

Minecraft Monday- Secrets of the Woodland Mansion

Hi Minecraft Monday readers! I’m sorry I haven’t posted in a while, but I’m back! I’ve been really busy, but I’ve found time in my schedule to write a post that I think you’ll really enjoy. I think that this topic is something that most Minecraft blogs don’t address. That’s right, I’ve finally managed to find a Woodland Mansion.

Ok, so you might want to know some simple facts about the Woodland Mansion to start you off. First of all, you might think that it’s fairly easy to find. WRONG. It’s very hard. I finally, however, found a seed that worked: -4589128118707775879  *This is for PC edition, 1.11* It worked for me, but I’ve found that seeds can be unreliable sometimes. 

Anyway, onto the Woodland Mansion itself. It’s very large and impressive. It may be hard to find an entrance from the outside, but I assure you, there is an entrance. Once your inside, you might be either super excited or a little overwhelmed. Or, you might be neither. But don’t be overwhelmed, once you learn where the stairways and pillars are, you should be able to find your way around. Now, I’m just going to warn you, after you’ve been around a few times, the place kind of loses its charm. But, it’s still really cool to visit.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed reading my article!

Nightmare before Blocktober!

So, as you may or may not know, I LOVE MARVEL! And why not? It and all things made by marvel are awesome. So I was playing my favorite game, Roblox (woot!), when I looked and saw there were two events going on (woot again!). So, as any curious person would do, I clicked on both pages to see what they were about. I found that both events were sponsored by MARVEL (woot once more!) and had to do them! The first event was sponsored by Spider-Man: Homecoming! and the other by Thor: Ragnarok! I went and played the Spider-Man event before even looking at the Thor event because Spider-Man is cooler (duh). So when I looked at the thor event and saw it was called Nightmare before Blocktober, I knew it had to be good. It sounded even better when two of the games were games I love, WFYB and Assassin. The other game, BTD: Redux, I recommend for those whose hearts are strong and love of hulk and/or zombies is stronger, who like getting scared, and love a challenge. I attempted (and failed) this one. But if anyone reading this loves Marvel or just a fun game, try both these events. But remember, the Spider-Man event goes until October 10, and the Thor until the 14th. Plus, there is the first 10 minutes of  Spider-Man: Homecoming under the event. With four games overall, this is the time to win some sweet Roblox gear, and have some Marvel fun!

The Creation Crate Mood Lamp!

Creation Crate Mood Lamp

CUE FLASHBACK!

So one day, Mom and Dad called me into their office along with Nerdpie and said, “We got sent this buildable mood lamp from Creation Crate, and were wondering if you wanted to make it.” Nerdpie was like, “Kind of, but if Nerdster wants to, he can!” Of course, to this, I said, “I would really like to make the lamp! Thanks!”

 END FLASHBACK!

And here I am, a week or two later, and I learned a lot. A couple of things I learned are:

  • I learned about circuit boards.
  • I learned about charges and how they travel.
  • I (surprisingly) learned about programming.
  • I especially learned about inputting circuits and lining them up.
  • And I learned about CHIMICHANGAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This lamp was super fun to make and incorporated a couple of cool features and skills, including:
  1. Circuit boards
  2. Programming
  3. Troubleshooting and Debugging
  4. Wire attachment
  5. Proper care of wires and LEDs (I learned this one the hard way :)C. Let’s just say, there was supposed to be three LEDs.)
All in all, this was really fun to make. I only have a couple complaints.
1)The wiring is a little confusing.
2)It didn’t come with a power source.
But other than that, the lamp was perfect. I really enjoyed learning how to implement the programming to the board, and how to program the timer for switching colors. Arduino programming is like some of the languages I like, such as JavaScript, Es6, or Python, but it also has its own sort from combining languages like JSON, CSS, or C++. It was really interesting and taught me things I hope to use later in life. Maybe I can get a job making supplies for Arduino. That would be fun. This was a super fun project which was very educational and helped me brush up on my programming skills.  Over all, this was a great experience and I can’t wait to see what will come next time. I rate this creation crate… two enthusiastic thumbs up! Comment on what you think would be something cool to make!
 
NerdMom’s 2 cents:
 
I love Creation Crate and the idea of it! This is one of the first STEM/crafting kits that I have seen that is actually for kids 10 and up.  It is something you can use as an actual curriculum. They claim that if you do 12 kits you will have more hands on programming experience than 99% of college computer science students. The cost ranges between $22.50 – $29.99 just depending on if you go month to month or a year at a time. It was a great project and my son learned a lot. This would make a wonderful gift because it is very educational and very fun!
 
(Disclosure: We were given the Creation Crate by the company and this post contains affiliate links. That said, all opinions are ours and ours alone)
 

Minecraft Monday is Back!

Minecraft_Minday_is_Back
Ta-da! Minecraft Monday is back! I am Nerdalicious, a fan of Minecraft Monday, and friend of the Nerd Family. Anyway, I thought for my first post, I’d just do an intro to Minecraft- surviving the first night. Plain and simple. I’m sure Nerdpie did something of the sort, but it is my belief that everyone does things a little differently. So I hope you find this article informational.

Ok, when I play survival I generally play with the All Biomes setting, you can do this by entering advanced world settings, and selecting custom. Not that hard. After I enter the world, I usually make my way to a Savanah biome, although any biome with hills or mountains will work, as my preferred house is in the side of the mountain, it is convenient, and you get materials out of it. Of course for this house, you will need a pickaxe of some form, which requires basic materials and a crafting table. Once I make my house, I generally look for sheep to get wool for a bed. After that, you’re pretty much set for the first night, but if you have more time, you might want to get some basic necessities. 

I hope you liked it!

-Nerdalicious

 

 

HP Black Friday Deals Online Now!

(This is a sponsored post!)

There are some more awesome Black Friday deals. What can be cooler than tech on Black Friday. So lets check out a couple of the HP.com deals. 

hpmonitor Monitors are always a good deal on Black Friday and HP is not failing us! Their ER line of monitors are all on sale, starting at $119 for a 22 inch.

 

hproar

I am a super fan of portable speakers! I use them in my kitchen, bathroom, and outside all the time! So I am always looking for great wireless speaker deals for me and as gifts. HP has their Roar Mini Speakers 20% off.  They have them in some great colors. 

hpsprocket

The last item I want to mention is a bit of a splurge. It is the HP Sprocket Photo Printer. This is an instant photo printer that you can pop in a bag. This would be great to take to a party, use in a scrapbook, or any event! It is on sale for $129.

There are a lot more deals for HP.com so I will leave you with the ad!!! Happy Shopping!

Happy Birthday to a Great Company

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Today is Lenovo’s 32nd Birthday and I just wanted to say Happy Birthday to this company whom I enjoy! What do I enjoy about them? Of course I love the fact that I have a relationship with the company but that grows out of my deep fondness with their products.

Lets start with the Yoga line! I love the convertible laptops. I have had 3 generations of Yoga computers and they just keep getting better. While the Yoga 900 was light enough to serve as a convincing tablet, it is hefty enough as a laptop to run multiple monitors and tons of applications at the same time. I use this as my main blogging computer right now. I also love the Yoga tablets. Not only are the displays gorgeous but I have a projector. Need I say more?

The Home line of all in one computers aren’t just great computers but also a great arcade experience. Then look to the Thinkpad lines and Motorola phones. Both are rugged and powerful. The Motorola phones are so cutting edge and cool that they bleed;). No, I am not getting paid for this, I just really like their stuff.

I also love that they are doing more and more with the gaming world. At the same time they are very giving. What do I mean by that? Well, Lenovo has a Twitch channel now! As they build more gaming machines they want to engage and entertain gamers. But they are also supporting Make A Wish with their Twitch channel. I love that they choice to use their twitch platform as a way to give back!

So those are just some of the reasons I like Lenovo and home that they have a fabulous birthday and many more!

(Disclosure: I do work with Lenovo as part of their Insiders but this is all my opinion and not compensated.)

Tech and Homeschooling

hp printer(This post is sponsored by HP but all thoughts and opinions are mine alone!)  

Everywhere I turn lately it seems people are both attached to their tech and bad mouthing it. About how there is life beyond the screen. I agree but technology is a tool and tools are something that are used to create. I have been homeschooling now for 11 years and my #1 tool beyond books is tech. So I thought I would go through some of the ways we used tech in our homeschool. 

Desktop computers: One of the biggest things we use a desktop computer for is media! We run our tv off of a desktop computer. Back when the kids were little, they all started preschool on a desktop. They played dexterity games and did early reading activities. 

Laptop computers: As the kids have gotten older (and laptops have gotten cheaper) they now work a lot more on laptops. When they started moving to laptops we started moving to online curriculum.  Laptops have definite advantages. #1 they are mobile! This means the kids can easily work in a variety of places without plugs so I don’t have to have a ton of tables set up for only computers. We use Khan  Academy a lot and when kids get stuck, they can bring their laptop to me and we can work together. It also means great family time when all 6 of us can play Minecraft in the same room. 

Tablets: We love tablets for the fun and reference side of homeschool. There are a ton of learning apps that the kids can play. But, it also means you can look up tutorials, wikepedia, etc to place along side an activity. 

Readers: We love our Kindles and Nooks! Books are the basis of so much and Kindles and Nooks are just great conduits. You can get all the books in public domain on them and we all love them so much. 

“Get Tech is a tool, utilize it and control it! It can enrich your children’s education no matter how they are schooled! To make it a little easier run over and use the coupon at HP!!!

(Disclosure: HP sponsored this post but all thoughts are mine!)

My new everything! Yoga 900 by Lenovo

 

I just realized this week that I never posted my video about my new Lenovo Yoga 900! Lenovo sent me this computer as a bit of an early Christmas present and it rocks. This is a mighty little machine! It is a convertible laptop like the previous Yogas. I think at this point a convertible laptop is a necessity.

The tablet is great as a standard tablet. But the Yoga 900 in tablet mode is even better because of the WriteIt app. I can write directly into standard computer programs. It is really awesome for jotting down note, writing pieces, and tweeting on the go.

Not only is the Yoga 900 gorgeous and travels well but it is my everything machine. I am even typing this on my 2nd monitor I have hooked up to it. It is a workhorse with lots of RAM and a great SSD. I have been using it now for a few months and highly recommend it to all. 

Here is where you all can grab 1 for yourself: http://www.geek4therealgirl.com/lenovo

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(Disclosure: Lenovo gave my the Yoga 900 and case as part of the Lenovo Insiders group. All opinions are mine alone!)

Happy Birthday Lenovo!!! A Tour of Lenovo History from Beijing!

Lenovo turned 31 last week!! And to celebrate the birthday of my favorite computer company,  here are some of the pictures from my trip to Lenovo in Bejing!

Explore_Lenovo

For those of you who follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook you got to see some of the fun I had in Beijing just a few months ago. (For those of you who don’t follow me on all those place you should;) I was so stoked that Lenovo took me to Beijing for their great Lenovo Tech World event as part of the Lenovo Insiders (#LenovoIN) program.  

Before Lenovo Tech World we got to go on a tour at Lenovo’s headquarters! I can not do justice with my pictures or words as to just how informative and cool it was but I am going to try;).  I love the fact that we were taken on historical tour about Lenovo!  Here are just a few pictures!

Lenovo_Main_Campus
What a gorgeous view of the Lenovo Main Campus

The Lenovo campus was absolutely gorgeous. Not just from a tech perspective but the buildings and everything! There is plenty of open green space with trees which are perfect for those mental health breaks everyone needs at work;). And they even have a Starbucks on campus!

We got to go through the official Lenovo tour that talked all about their history.

Lenovo_Chinese_character_card
Legend’s first product: The Legend Chinese-Character Card
Legend_Computer_Break_Throughs
Did you know that Lenovo (at that time Legend) produced the 1st Chinese Home PC?
YY (the CEO of Lenovo) headed up the original PC Department!
YY (the CEO of Lenovo) headed up the original PC Department!

We also heard about how Lenovo has always been on the cutting edge, not only in actual technology but how they do business. Lenovo’s business practices have been documented and taught for years.

How they treat their employees! I didn’t realize that as Chinese society was changing in the 1980’s and 1990’s it became hard for employees at many companies to buy a home because it used to be part of the job benefits. So Lenovo saw that their employees need help and took the initiative to help their employees get mortgages and buy homes.

When Lenovo bought the ThinkPad business from IBM that created an international company. That is when YY actually began going by YY! He realized how hard it was for the Americans to say his name and in order to prevent any embarrassment he made it a company policy to call him the very informal YY. This in addition to the fact that electric tea kettles were brought into all the American offices and coffee was brought into all the Chinese ones just show what an effort that has been made to create this cohesive company and company identity.

We just got a small glance into Lenovo’s history and it made me respect and admire a company beyond the products that I already adore! It is easy to see why Lenovo is company that creates such loyal fans that span many years and products!

(Yes, Lenovo took me to China as part of the Insider’s program but all thoughts and opinions are mine and mine alone.)