Gadgets Add Bang to Your 4th of July
By Nerd Chick Andrea Eldridge for GalTime.com
The 4 th of July is a great time to gather your friends and family for food, fireworks, and festivities. Of course, Nerd Chicks are always looking for ways to add some sparkle to any get together, and your backyard BBQ is no exception. Pick up one or two of these cool tech gadgets for your upcoming party and your bash is sure to be the talk of the town.
TUNE IN
No party is complete without a soundtrack of great tunes, but who has time to DJ while you're manning the BBQ? Use your iPod or MP3 player to create a play list of your coolest dance party mix and plug in to the iHome iP29 Portable Speaker Case, retailing for about $80. These compact speakers produce impressive stereo sound and will play music from your iPod, iPhone, or any device with a headphone jack. The unit runs off an A/C adapter or four AAA batteries, so you can easily take it with you to the pool. The splash resistant case will even offer some protection from your cannonball contest. While plugged in, the docking station will charge your iPod or iPhone so you'll be rocking out even after your party is long over.
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LIGHT IT UP
Who needs to fly to Vegas when you can create your own music and light display in your backyard pool? The "Light Show Fountain" from Solutions retails for about $70. Drop the floating, LED-lit disc in your pool, spa or pond to create a lighted, multi-color fountain water show. The separate wireless base station connects to your iPod or MP3 player and speakers so that the water and lights "dance" in time to your music. It can be used without a music source as well, resulting in a random flashing light show for after-dark ambience. There's a video on the Solutions website to see it in action. While you probably won't get away with charging admission, you will be the coolest kid on the block.
OUTDOOR THEATER
While sitting through Uncle Bob's last family photo slide show, did you secretly ponder if there could be a better use for his projector? Now you have a reason to borrow it. The Airblown Inflatable Movie Screen allows you to create an outdoor movie theater in your own backyard. Available at Target for about $170, the unit comes with stakes, tethers and fan to quickly self-inflate the approximately 9' x 12' screen. You'll need a projector to get an image large enough to fill the screen, but you won't worry about keeping your guests entertained. Project movies from your laptop, or connect your Wii for a rousing Wii boxing tournament. Just make sure you invite the neighbors, or you'll be scrambling to feed your extra guests when they crash your party.
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FAKE THE FIREWORKS
A July 4 th celebration isn't complete without fireworks, so what do you do if there aren't any viewable in your area? Consider the Uchiage Hanabi Fireworks Projector for $125. Bring the fireworks display indoors with four sounds, five display modes and fifty-five different designs. You can even allow your younger party guests to create unique firework designs with an included template. Fireworks appear to launch from the ground to explode up the wall or on the ceiling. The unit runs off three AAA batteries and can run for about three hours; plenty of time to satiate even your most fireworks-obsessed little ones.
If the photos just don't seem to live up to the excitement of your July 4 th bash, add some pizzazz with photo modification applications. Android users can download Vignette for approximately $4, and iPhone users can get Instagram for free. Both applications allow you to quickly add effects, modify color or make shots sepia, black and white, or retro before easily uploading to Facebook or Twitter. If you didn't get any worthy shots with your phone, never fear. Google's Picasa is a great free photo modification program that will allow you to crop, eliminate red eye, modify color, add effects, frames or stickers to any photo on your computer. Your friends will wonder, "Where was the professional photographer?" We won't divulge your secret.
Still pondering more ways to electrify your summer get-together? Check out Callnerds.com!
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