Drumming to a new beat!

1^st project is a name that became synonymous with high energy performances that saw shirtless men with six packs drum away to a beat of their own entertaining crowds of thousands! Their sets included beating on drums with lights, drums with water and even chairs, buckets & ladders, but something was missing. Their fans were looking for something that they didn’t even know they were looking for…enter ‘Drum Machine DJ’!

Drum Machine DJ is a technological masterpiece utilising a one-of-a-kind 55'' transparent Holoscreen, accompanied by 13 light drums and cymbals, this state of the art, custom designed machine was built to rock dance floors around the world.

The leader & creator of 1^st Project, Shannon Ellinas decided that having to drum half naked and have women throwing themselves at him had become a tad boring and he needed a challenge. A challenge that has since changed the way you and I will look at drumming forever.

The human need and desire for something new and exciting is a difficult one to quell but I can say that with confidence, the drum machine is a proudly south African export that will no doubt subdue those impulses to go elsewhere to stimulate our senses!

Jetovator - A water rider with a difference!

Ever since I can remember all I’ve wanted to do is swim like a dolphin. I mean think about it! You can dive deep and then shoot, rocket-like, out of the water and twist and flip and soar…before diving back into the water! Sadly unless an  animal morphing serum gets cooked up in a mad professor’s lab somewhere, it’s not gonna happen. However, I have stumbled onto the next best thing… Ladies & gentlemen, I give you, the Jetovator!

Looking like a contraption from Star Wars, this machine adds a whole new dimension to water sports… meaning you can now have your jetski and eat it too! Attached to the jetski by a 40 foot hose, the Jetovator uses power from the craft to force water out through outlet pipes whereby you control in which direction you want to travel. Up, down, forward, in a corkscrew and even under water!

So, naturally, being a Tech Report reporter, I was forced into going to the Vaal to have fun. They make me do such awful things. But before I go twisting and turning and laughing and thoroughly enjoying myself, let’s find out how it works. (watch video clip)

At R85,000 excluding the cost of a jetski, which you need to have, it is expensive but if you can afford it then get it and if you can't...you can always hire it.

Drift HD Ghost vs Sony HD Action Cams

The age of the humble betacam hand held recorder was indeed a pleasant one filled with images of bad fashion, bad hairstyles but the best music. Well in my opinion anyway. However an age it was and my goodness have we come full circle. From only being able to record a home movie with a machine resting on your shoulder to the state of the art action cam that’s no bigger than a small rock. With that said, I give to you the brand new Drift HD Ghost & the Sony HDR As15!

The evolution of extreme sports saw the evolution of the action cam, with them becoming smaller, more durable and being tested to their limits on a daily basis. The need to record yourself pushing yourself so that you can put it up on youtube is becoming an absolute addiction and I need to see if it’s as exciting as it looks. 

So I’ve stuck them both on my helmet and am now bike ready to hit the trails of the cyclepark to see which of these make my ride look that much more spectacular and that much more dangerous! Here we go!

I’ve finished my extreme rush ride and now to look at the footage before I put it up on Youtube! Before we do that though, let’s take a look at some of the features of both cameras.

Drift HD Ghost Camera

·      Full HD 1080
·      2 inch Gorilla glass with lcd display screen
·      Waterproof without housing up to 3 metres for 30minutes
·      Built in wifi to play back your videos through the drift app on your smart phone and watch it live 
·      4 hour battery
·      remote control
·      R4650

Sony HDR AS15

·      Waterproof to 60m with supplied housing!
·      Carl Zeiss Tessar wide angle Lens
·      Built in wi-fi (will only work to import videos, pics, etc through the downloadable software off of Sony’s website called: Play memories BUT: if you’re a MAC user then sorry for you. Obviously Sony’s in bed with Microsoft only – ah, monogamy is such a blissful thing hey?) – HOWEVER: you can download the play memories app for your smart phone incl. iPhone.
·      Full HD 1080
·      R3499

At the end of the day they both have their pros & cons and for an extra thousand odd rand, I'd buy the Drift purely because of it's playback screen and it's ruggedness! I mean, I am a man after all...and I am rugged... *ahem*

Apps to help you keep your New Year's Resolutions!

You’ve worn the outfit… done the countdown… popped the champagne and dealt with the January first hangover…  but what do you do now that 2014 is a reality… and those New Years resolutions are looking ever so challenging? We’ve looked into that for you and found a few free apps that could keep you on track for living a successful 2014.

Lose it

We’ve seen these before. An app that tracks your diet and helps you to lose weight. However Lose It! Has made it a fun and simple process with restaurant menu integration and a full database of foods & ingredients. It also lets you see how your friends are doing with their diet & keep up to date with their progress. What I also like about it is that you start to learn the caloric value of foods before choosing them so that you can make healthy choices.

Snapguide

Using a peer to peer system, Snapguide will get you started on a new hobby in minutes. With a wealth of guides within the Snapguide community you can learn something new every day like how to make your kitchen smell amazing in seconds or how to naturally clean your drains and help you discover a talent you never even knew existed! However, there is a slight drawback, the guides don’t go into too much detail but hey, it’s a great starting point!

My Last Cigarette

You know you want to quit smoking but you just can’t. I know the excuses that come with that but My Last Cigarette will help helps users quit smoking by mapping out the changes in their health as they quit. Simply enter in your smoking habits, and the app keeps you informed on how you're bettering your life through quitting. For example, since I stopped in June of last year, I’ve saved over R16,000 and almost all the levels are at green. My lung health is only improving slowly but it’s improving nonetheless! By seeing these improvements in your quality of life, the app can be used as a reminder each time you feel the need to light up.

All I can say from here is, good luck! It’s up to you to keep your resolutions and here’s hoping that these little apps might make life just a little bit more joyful, better & easier! Happy 2014!!