Laptop or desktop computers and any components within.
Hardware
The Giz Wiz - Spherical
Episode 1667
Dick's gadget this week is called the Spherificator, which he saw at the Inspired Home Show in NYC. Okay, so what the heck is Spherification? Here's how the company describes it. Spherification is ideal for creating pearls that will liberate their flavors while bursting in your mouth. The Spherificator uses the reaction between the vegan food additives sodium alginate (extracted from algae) and calcium chloride (a salt) to form a spherical membrane around the ingredient you choose.
Can I get a DVD Player for My New MacBook Pro?
Episode 1667
Jason fromJason bought a new 16" Macbook Pro. But it doesn't come with a DVD drive. Leo says that he can buy an external DVD writer with USB-C for as low as $20. And a third party reader/writer is just fine. He can buy Apple's Superdrive for $80, and Pioneer also makes one which plays blu-ray. But he will need a USB-A to USB-C adapter.
Why Does My Laptop Fail to Boot?
Episode 1667
Scott fromKurt replaced the hard drive in his Lenovo laptop and now it won't boot up. It stops at the boot screen. 24 hours later, it booted up no problem. What gives? Leo says that's common and usually results in a hiccup in the BIOS or UEFI. Leo suspects that the battery on the motherboard has failed. Also, underneath the splash screen could show if the computer tried to boot into Windows and failed. That could indicate a faulty hard drive. Leo suspects a failing power supply could also be the issue.
Why Aren't My Gaming Headphones Playing Surround Sound When I Watch TV?
Episode 1667
Chris fromChris wants to know why surround sound for gaming is different from Dolby 5.1 surround on his headphones. Leo wonders if the gaming audio is set up to use an app to give surround in the headphones vs. just listening to the system. Scott says that has to do with the bitstream that has to be decoded and the app is required. So if he's watching TV with his gaming headphones, he may not get surround. That's why Leo suggests hardware encoding. Even if he figures out a workaround though, Chris will likely be going to have lag.
Buy the Amazon Smart Oven.
Episode 1667
Olga fromOlga is disabled and recently bought the Amazon Smart Oven and it's amazing. It uses convection heat, microwave, roasting. It does everything. The best part is, it's Alexa enabled!
Used Tesla Car Dealer Sells Car with Autopilot. Tesla Turns it Off
Episode 1667
A used car dealer bought a used Tesla directly from the carmaker, with autopilot and a host of other features. He then passed the car along to a customer who wanted the autopilot feature. Tesla turned it off, saying that the customer didn't pay Tesla for the feature. Leo says that is the realm we are in now, companies can disable features and hold them hostage until the new owner pays up.
How can I get my computer to reboot?
Episode 1666
Mario fromMario recently replaced his hard drive with a Samsung Solid State Drive. Then he upgraded to Windows 10. The computer went to sleep. And now it won't come back on. He managed to get a boot menu by pressing F12. But nothing else. Leo says that means the screen is still good. But it could also mean that the hard drive died. Even though it's new, they can die out quickly. If your computer is old enough, it could be the CMOS battery has died and needs replacing. Check the date/time in the setup. If it thinks it's 1969, then that's what happened.
How do I manage the media in my iPod?
Episode 1666
Carol fromCarol has an iPod that's getting too full and wants to know how to get everything off it and allow you to put other music on it. Leo suggests using iTunes and it's sync feature. Set it up to only sync checked items. Anything that isn't checked will be removed. Some items, though, won't get unchecked in her iPod. Leo says that's not where you uncheck them. You uncheck them in iTunes. Here's how - https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201593
Sam Abuelsamid ... Hummering along
Episode 1666
General Motors is resurrecting the old HUMMER brand name and will soon be releasing an electric pickup truck with that name. But it won't be a separate car line, but a model. You'll get a glimpse of it during today's Super Bowl. It isn't anything too futuristic in its design either, favoring a traditional pickup look. There will also be coming out with a Ford F150 electric truck, and one from Fisker. Then there's that Tesla Cybertruck. Sam says it'll be interesting how well an eTruck performs since the range is going to be the big issue.
Can I Still Use an Old Plotter Printer With a New Computer?
Episode 1665
Ralph fromRalph has an old HP draft plotter printer and wants to know how he can use it with a modern computer. Leo says that those old plotters used an RS-232 port and he will need to get a USB to Serial adapter in order to use it. Ralph will also need software to configure it. Leo says to do some google searching for user forums and YouTube videos to walk through it. The tricky thing may be drivers.
