Ted Kritsonis

Parrot is known for drones, and has generally stuck to the quadcopter design—until now. The Disco is a fixed wing drone that not only looks completely different from what came before it, but will also fly differently, too. The new model was showcased to a select group of journalists prior to CES, and I got some face time with it.

The 2016 Consumer Electronics Show—or CES as it’s more commonly known—is upon us, and poised to show off more cool technology to wow attendees. The show is largely an opportunity for vendors to introduce what’s possible, like proof of concepts, prototypes and ideas that may never be available to you, the consumers. Still, much of what is there does make it to retail, like Best Buy, and in 2015, that was certainly the case.

Virtual reality is a real thing now. Yes, it has existed for some time, but the concept of immersing yourself in it in a portable way at home and on the go is one major difference. As is the quality of content. Samsung’s Gear VR is a headset with the imprint of Oculus, arguably the most popular company in the VR space today. It’s not the Oculus Rift, of course, but the Gear VR can open up some new worlds with the right smartphone inside.

Smartphones can have a fairly short shelf life, given how quickly new models come out to replace them. Even after moving on to a new handset, it doesn’t necessarily have to be the end of the old one if it’s still functional. Outside of selling or pawning it off on someone else, there are some great ways to give an older phone a second life.

Losing a smartphone, or having it stolen is a terrible feeling. For such a personal device, a smartphone is highly susceptible to either scenario, and as such, some precautions should be taken to mitigate the fallout from it. Each mobile platform has some form of protection in place, but they usually aren’t on by default. Here’s what you need to know and what you can do to for preparation and response.

Cable and satellite TV bills are high. There are few in Canada who haven’t felt the pinch of paying for access to hundreds of channels in order to watch a fraction of that. Depending on where you live, you can gain access to some of the most popular network channels in both Canada and the United States. With the right gear, you can also watch those channels throughout your home.