December's Digital Life from Lökwest - tech shopping, news, security ideas, and more!
As another year comes to and end, we're closing it out with some great reading for you! (always curated with care 🙂) It seems like we didn't curate as much in November with the lengthened holiday specials and other news items taking precedence. However, we found some interesting tidbits.
First, check out how Amazon is planning to share your wi-fi with strangers by default and read a little about Apple's new and AMAZING Macbook chip. Then, how about three ideas to improve your security to close this year out? If you're still shopping, we included two of the best tech shopping guides we ran across. Finally, learn about some crazy new technology and some crazy old technology. (Or rather, it was crazy before it was invented - read on to see why!)
Best wishes for a safe and happy December!
Newsworthy notes
Amazon Sidewalk will be enabled by default on Echo devices — ow.ly
Last year, Amazon announced Sidewalk, a shared network designed to keep your smart devices connected beyond the reach of the typical WiFi router. What that means is by default, you share part of your network with strangers for things like finding lost dogs. Beware of this trend - if you rent your router from your ISP, they may be doing the same thing to provide "free" neighborhood wi-fi. We'll probably turn it off for now.
Apple's new MacBook and Mac Mini could change PCs as we know them — ow.ly
TL;DR - Apple's new laptop chip is closer architecturally to what you have in your phone. Previously, these chips weren't used in laptops. Apple's new M1 chip has changed that - meaning apps and programs will now process the same way on any Apple device. An interesting read if you want to learn about the "brains" of a Mac!
Three ideas to improve your security
Do an annual password check — nordpass.com
Do you use strong, unique passwords? You should, especially if you watched my recent tech talk on the subject! 🙂 We always like to share the list of the "worst" or most common passwords. The end of the year is a great time to make sure you're not using one of these (or something similar). Also check out https://haveibeenpwned.com/ to see where your info has been sold!
Check your smart device privacy and security — foundation.mozilla.org
Check before you buy and use! Smart home gadgets, fitness trackers, toys and more are rated for their privacy & security on this Mozilla website. Mozilla is very privacy oriented, so we trust their recommendations. Bottom line - stick with name brand smart devices, but beware - even those send a lot of data behind the scenes!
Sign up online with a burner number — ow.ly
DoNotPay, the robot lawyer that works to get you refunds and cancel your trials, has another add-on for a new privacy-focused benefit to its subscription service. Unlimited burner numbers that deactivate after 10 minutes. That’s perfect for signing up for trials and services where you don’t want to share your real digits! Did we mention, we love the work DoNotPay is doing?? 🧡🧡
Still shopping? We've got you covered
Introducing Engadget’s 2020 holiday gift guide — ow.ly
We read a lot from Engadget, and their holiday gift guide doesn't disappoint, especially if you have a tech lover in your life! Introducing Engadget's 2020 Holiday Gift Guide.
Google's Shopping Gift Guide will show you what everyone's buying — www.engadget.com
Google has unveiled the Shopping Gift Guide, a microsite that lets you browse trending categories, compare prices and find local buying options. It's a pretty cool way to see what other people are out shopping for.
Best TV streaming service for cord cutters: Hulu, YouTube TV, Sling TV, and more compared — www.cnet.com
Here's a little update on the state of streaming, if you're moving in that direction. If you're looking to save money on your cable bill but want to keep live news, sports and other channels, these are the best live TV streaming alternatives, according to CNet.
Crazy new technology
New device puts music in your head — no headphones required — apnews.com
Imagine being able to beam sound into your head, playing as loud as you want, without the person sitting next to you noticing! That's the dream from this new product in development. What they don't mention is this technology has been in development for years in covert and military applications. (Imagine being able to direct an officer from a distance without a wire!) Maybe you'll be trying it out in your living room soon, rather than a sound bar?!
Crazy old technology - light the candles on the tree?
Yep, prior to 1882, if you had a Christmas tree and someone told you to light it, you'd strike a match and proceed to the candles. 😮 Hopefully, you didn't have a dog, cat, kid, or inebriated family around! 🙂
From Today in Science History: The long-standing tradition of using candles on a Christmas tree was both sentimentally popular but also dangerous as many house fires resulted. Thus, the use of a string of light bulbs to illuminate a Christmas tree had an important side benefit of increasing safety.
Yet the idea was captivating, not because of safety, but because of the novelty of electric light when Thomas Edison's business associate, Edward H. Johnson, in 1882 decorated a Christmas tree in his own home with small electric light bulbs. When Johnson first used them on 22 Dec 1882, it was just three years after Edison had invented a practical way to manufacture them.
Johnson's glowing Christmas tree was visible through his home's windows, and caused a stream of people to pass by his house, intrigued by this new use of electricity. It was described in an article by William Augustus Croffut, a Michigan newspaper reporter. Read more
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
It's nearly here, the end of a historic year. Wishing you and yours all the best this holiday season. Be safe, be socially distant, and remember to be thankful for all of the technology keeping us together!
Oh, and good luck with the Christmas lights!🙂🎄🎄