Tekzilla #100: 100th Episode! Great Gadgets Under $100, Cellphone Security Hacked, Patrick @ Defcon
DIY Home Audio Streaming, Wireless Headphones, Is Mint.com Secure? Flexilis, PronounceNames.com, Free Video Game. It's our one hundredth episode!
Welcome to Tekzilla... hands on reviews of the latest tech, and how to make the most out of the gear you already own! Veronica Belmont and Patrick Norton are your hosts.
Patrick's back from Defcon, the annual hacker convention, where folks presented vulnerabilities in the iPhone (update to 3.0.1 right now), SSL encryption, the FAA's need to update security and more! Yes, there was a fake ATM machine trying to capture ATM card and PIN numbers. (It's a fairly common scam!)
Patrick's favorite hack at the show: that Apple Keyboard Firmware's been Compromised. A researcher found a way to use flaws in apple keyboard to infect a machine or capture passwords.
It's Tekzilla's 100th Episode! Rather than throw a faux part on screen, we figured we'd fire up a list of our favorite gadgets under $100!
Veronica's list included:
Patrick's picks included System Memory, USB Thumdrives, Flash memory, Grado's SR60 headphones, 1TB WD Black Hard Drives, Magnovox's $98 Blu-ray player from Walmart, and Windows 7 upgrades... crud, those aren't under $100. (Yet!)
More picks include:
This week's Free Software Pick is Sam And Max Episode 104: Abe Lincoln Must Die!. If you grew up PC gaming in the early 90's you've probably played Steve Purcell's politically incorrect comic book turned adventure game, Sam and Max. If not, download a free sample of Telltale games awesome episodic revival!
Security tools for your cell phone sound silly until you realize that mobile devices are rapidly evolving into mobile PCs, or you were at BlackHat or Defcon and got a chance to see the attacks that the security researchers at Flexiliswere able to demonstrate. Flexilis founder John Herring joins us to talk mobile security research, demos an SMS hack and talksa about what you should be looking out for!
- This week's Website We Can't Get Enough Of is: Pronounce Names! Since we get emails from all around the world, we use pronouce names.com to figure out how to say all of your names. It works exactly the way you think it would, with one nice twist: anyone can enter in a name, and anyone can type in the best way to pronounce it! This way, the database is always growing and improving, and new entries are added everyday.
Last week we promised you a DIY multi-room music alternative for those who can't or won't spend the cash on a Sonos. We show off the basics of using iTunes along with Apple Airport Express and Apple's Remote application on the iPhone or iPod touch to roll your own any room in the house streaming audio setup!
Kyle wants to know if Mint.com< is safe... Veronica's use the site every day to keep an eye on her finances and walks Kyle through the site's safekeeping procedures.
Alex wants some cheap wireless headphones that sound good. First off, cheap and sound good don't go together too often when talking wireless headphones. That said, Sennheiser makes some decent wireless models, and their portable headphones, the MX W1 use Kleer's wireless audio technology instead of sucky Bluetooth to deliver respectable sound with no wires to your iPod or other audio gadget. A lot of folks speak highly of the Etymotic ety8, but they're a bit bulky for our taste.
DIY special effects for movies? Even if you never make a zombie's head explode, or want to build a green screen on the cheap, chances are you'll laugh your ass off while you're learning how movies get made on Film Riot! Check it out.
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