My Annual CES Summary 2014

On this, my 35^th consecutive Consumer Electronics Show trip, I thought back to my first visit, and couldn’t help but notice that there is almost no recognizable connection to that show in the late 70’s.  Not only was the show about 1/20^th the size, as far as the number of exhibitors and the size and scope of the booths, but also the very nature of the products has changed almost completely. Then it was all hardware-based appliances that once you purchased them, you owned the right to use them outright. And they would most likely perform for you for many, many years to come. Today, most consumer electronics items are tied intrinsically to its’ software. Software that will, they admit to you upfront, “only be supported” for about a year or two. –Meaning: “it will no longer function”. ! –Yes, when you buy most products today, you must expect, and plan, to throw them in the garbage in a very few years. !?  - ‘That’s not bad enough; many products are tied to a ‘subscription model’ of service to make the item useable at all! So, after you shell out a few hundred bucks to buy it, you need to pay tens of dollars per month to use it, and, expect it to become obsolete in a ‘couple a years.!?  - ‘Times have certainly changed. Now,…. having said that, there are some pretty cool products out today, compared to when I first attended CES…

The prettiest things at the show (besides some of the hired help in the booths) were the 4K TV sets, showing the specially shot Ultra-High-Definition videos of beautiful beaches, cityscapes, etc. The first, production, affordable 4K TV’s will begin to ship later this year. These sets will up-convert and display our current Blu-ray discs a little better than standard 1080p sets, however, true 4K content may be quite a ways off, as only Netflix streaming is even announcing any plan to provide any true 4K shows on these potentially gorgeous TV sets.

The silliest thing in TV’s at CES 2014 was “curved screen TV’s”. Yes, the screen curves in toward you at the outside edges, the way old cinema screens used to in order to help the projector stay in focus by maintaining an even distance from the lens. Except, …there’s no projector. No lens. And no need! And it makes it hard to see if you’re off to one side. ? So there’s absolutely no reason to do it!? But I guess ‘having absolutely no advantage or benefit’ has never stopped features from appearing on products before. So don’t expect that to change anytime soon. But just don’t buy one of these silly TVs (unless you can think of a reason to.)

The coolest thing in TV’s was the first (very few) wide-screen (2.3:1) LCD sets (that were as large as 105” diagonal!) This, I have been waiting for, and expecting for many years. You see, our current “wide-screen, flat-panel” TV’s are no longer wide-screen. They were, compared to old, 4:3 aspect ratio TV, of ten years ago. But now all TV shows are 16:9, and that is now the narrow-screen standard. So when we watch a big-budget, wide-screen (2.3:1) feature film on our TV’s, there are black bars top and bottom, and the picture is actually smaller and less immersive than when we watch a regular, lower budget movie! -In my opinion, it should be the other way around. (and is, in my home theater) The black bars should be on the sides when watching regular movies and TV shows! Right?

So,… there’s that. TV’s. (‘always have to get the TV’s out of the way first, in any CES summary. It’s mandatory) 

Another wonderful breakthrough, and way, way over-due, - also in my opinion, - you know,… this whole write-up is just my opinion, so I’m gonna stop saying that from here on in,…ok? Anyway, the main problem with watching TV is commercials, right? Well,...that, and the problem of having to watch “when-it’s-on”, which might not fit with your schedule. So in the 80’s and 90’s we solved both of those problems simply, affordably, and eloquently, with a little thing we called a VCR. Then, they went and screwed that up by making TV digital, gloriously high-def in 1080i, and completely in-compatible with our VCRs. And they didn’t even bother to develop an HD VCR!? ‘Rude. So, in came the DVR. But no stand-alone unit, that wasn’t tied to a cable, satellite, or TIVO monthly subscription model. ‘Very rude! – Well, the (ten year) wait is over. Finally, here is a universal DVR you can buy, with free program guide, for a few hundred dollars (depending on how much recording space you want), that will let you cut the cable or sat habit, and save about $1,200/yr. !!  -See! I just saved you $1,200/yr.! ‘Don’t say it’s not worth the time to read Fred’s CES Summary!

Muse was the most high-tech, future-is-here item that I saw. I waited in line for almost an hour to try this thing out, and I was very impressed. It monitors your brainwaves with a simple looking headband, and sends the results by Bluetooth to your ‘smart device’ (phone or tablet. ios or android) and you use your favorite headphones to hear the feedback in the form of wind sounds that increase as you get agitated, and decrease as you relax. And it really works! The theory is that it helps you learn how to relax, and by using it briefly when you get home from work or whatever, you can reduce stress and thereby live long and prosper (Vulcans use them, that’s why their ears evolved, to help hold the headband in place).

MHL (“Mobile High-definition Link”) is about a thing you may already own, but don’t realize it, and may already want to use! If you have an Android phone, and want to show your pictures/videos/documents/anything onto a big TV or monitor (in 1080p!) with an HDMI input, all you need is a little adapter! (it’s even “4k ready”!) Click here to see if your phone has this ability.

Once again, Microsoft did not exhibit, and again, I think that’s strange, when they’re trying desperately to hold onto their position as the world’s most popular operating system for personal computing.? They have another, new version of their system out, again, and they say that this time it is good and won’t crash all the time. ‘Haven’t we heard this before? You’d think after 30 years of this we’d learn to give up and look elsewhere, but,… well,…O.K., ….’just one more time…’let’s see this “new” version of Windows. ‘Hmm,…same start button,…hmmm,…same massive processor and ram needed to run it,…same 20gb of OS, using up our (now expensive, because it’s solid state flash) hard drive storage space. But hey, it does touch screen! ‘Mac and Linux don’t do that! So, O.K., we’ll buy some more $1,000 machines with this stuff on it and see if it works this time. (don’t forget your anti-virus software!).  Microsoft doesn’t really need a booth because their devoted friend Intel was there, as always, showing one of every single Windows’ desktop, laptop, palmtop, tablet, netbook, ultrabook, tablet/laptop, laptop/tablet, etc., etc., etc. My favorite is the Asus Transformer Book T100, not just because it is lighter, has the longest battery life (12hrs!), and has the best reviews of any of the ‘detachable screen’ laptops, but also because it’s only $400! And it seems like that’s the most we should have to spend for something that, like I said before, has a pre-determined life span of only a few years.

The watches are coming! The watches are coming! 

We keep hearing this call-to-action cry. Well, they may, in fact, be coming, but  s l o w l y, and without much innovation as of yet. It’s no wonder Apple is waiting on theirs (as they usually do), hopefully they’ll get it right when they finally build one (as they usually do). About a half dozen different ones were shown, including Sony, Samsung, Qualcomm, Pebble, Pine, but they are all still large enough to make whichever arm you have it on tired from lifting, and they’re all still really expensive (>$200). Now,…having said that, I think they are really, really cool! And useful! – But I’m a gadget gear-head and think the giant 6”smartphones are worth carrying around all day, so, take it with a grain of salt… (what the heck does that saying refer to, anyhow?) –Just think, every time you get a text notification, instead of digging around for your phone, pulling it out, turning it on, unlocking the screen, navigating to messages, and then finally reading the message, turning off the phone, putting it away, just to read another “last night was amazing, LU!” from someone, you can just glance at your watch instead! And, you can even use ‘speech-to-text’ right on the watch to reply to the text: “Yeah, that documentary on Lowel University was great!” and you can easily correspond about a great TV show viewing with your spouse (what did you think the text was about?). They really do about half of everything we need to do on our phones daily, and that’s great, but I’m gonna wait a bit until they get a little slimmer, and a little cheaper (cus, they’ll be obsoleted in a few years anyway, as the software becomes un-supported).

I drove the BMW i3 electric car at their huge drive event, featuring over 150 cars! It drove really nice. It felt more like a $45k BMW pure electric, than our $30k Nissan electric does. (which, I guess makes sense)  /> Doc Brown (aka Christopher Lloyd) stopped by in his Delorean Time Machine, and came into the Gibson Guitar booth tent and did a promo on their stage. But then he had to get back. To the future! /> iphones are still very popular. Especially in North America. People love their simple-to-use software, and although many are looking forward to Apple’s rumored larger-screen model, most iphone users say they really like the small size, how it fits easily in their pocket and hand. However, most all of them agree that it would be nice if the battery lasted longer, and there was more storage space. And so, Mophie was born. A slightly larger case that has a battery and more flash memory in it to solve both problems! 

/>  Jamstick is a great way to learn guitar. /> There were sportscams EVERYWHERE.  I liked the Sony ones the best.  /> Here’s a terrific little scooter with high-torque, 3 brakes, stand-or-sit, 300lb. capacity, cargo room, that folds up quickly to a fairly small, portable, power-house of a “last mile” people-mover.  /> A better solution to buying one of those expensive keypad entry doorlocks for your front door, is this device that leaves your current deadbolt’s outside-key-half, and just replaces the inside-knob-half with a receiver and motor to lock/unlock. This webpage shows it just working with the supplied transmitter (or original key), but at the show, and coming soon, is a way that you can just touch the outer lock (like, even with the back of your hands when your arms are full) and the lock will open because it recognizes your smartphone by NFC.  /> I tried on one of those virtual reality headwear screens in the Sony booth. And it played a video of driving fast through a town, but when I turned my head, I could see out the side windows of the car, and when I tilted my head up or down I could see up and down, onto the dash!

 />  AIMe by Jigabot keeps your camcorder trained on whatever you’ve attached it’s infrared emitting ‘beacon’ to. /> And Comply foam pads fit onto your earbuds and keep out more noise and stay comfortable for a long time! These work great. I’ve used them for years. (get 20% off thru 1/31/14 by using code: “CES2014”)  /> 3D printing, driverless cars, and wearable technology were also huge topics at this years’ show, but, it looked to me that they were all a little ways’ off.  So I’ll save those for next year’s summary.  /> The one other major topic and category of products that everyone was buzzing about this year was “The Internet of Things”. This is actually happening right now. From connected toothbrushes to make sure your kids are brushing often and long enough, to infant clothing with heart rate monitors to reduce Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, we are connecting more and more things to more and more other things so that they can talk to each other and just send us a text if anything starts going wrong. And this frees up more of our time to go buy more stuff and connect it all together! (and then buy the new version of it in a few years, when these are obsoleted!)   

(please comment if even just something cryptic like "cool!", so I'll now if anyone reads this. Also, you can read all my old previous CES summaries and find out if any of my opinions/predictions came true!)

How NPR changed my life.

As a kid, I never read. ‘Never did homework. Squeaked by in school with C’s. In about 8th grade, a close friend dared me to read To Kill a Mockingbird. I love a dare. I loved the film and thought, how hard could it be? I read it. It took me awhile. ‘There were big words in there I hadn’t heard before, like ‘prejudice’ (not to mention, ‘chifforobe’!?). It was good. It created better pictures in my head than the movie had. So, you’d think I’d read another book. ‘Never did. It’s still the only book I ever read (at least it’s easy to answer people when they ask me what’s your favorite book!). I grew up with an alcoholic single Mom. When she came home from work, right before she started pouring, she’d ask “did you do you homework?”. I’d say “yup” (which I sometimes had, right before turning it in), and that was the extent of my parental involvement in my literacy and education.

My teachers were worse. I always hear people talk about their favorite teachers that really made a difference in their lives and I think, “where did you go to school?”. I never had a teacher say boo to me, except something like “you ‘flunk another test and you’re going to get a ‘D’ for the semester!”. I watched TV. All the time. ‘No time for reading! After school, it was reruns of Lost in Space, My Favorite Martian, Wild, Wild, West, Beverly Hillbillies, -’important stuff! ‘Gomer Pyle, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Gilligan's’ Island. ‘About the most intellectual show I ever watched was The Twilight Zone! And I probably didn’t fully understand about half of those. And ‘PrimeTime’ wasn’t much better, from The Brady Bunch to Mary Tyler Moore.  

I Hate to admit it, but I was an ignorant, uneducated, un-interesting person, who knew every TV commercial by heart, but had no idea what ‘civil rights’ were, or where any other country was on the globe. You know, -like most Americans still today! ‘Needless to say, I was not very self-confident or outgoing during High School. After High School, I took two years’ worth of community college classes, but didn’t complete a degree due to dropping out of required classes like English. As a typical young person, I found music to be the ultimate entertainment source, though looking back, I missed most of the deep meanings of the lyrics. I listened to music all day, everyday, and even got a job where I could listen while I worked. I installed car stereos (assuming that, naturally, everyone else wanted to listen to music constantly, right?).

I started by installing CB radios in it’s boom of 1976, and then worked at a small, ‘wholesale’ radio place where we put in radios for car dealers, right on their lot, right before the car was delivered. Later I was the sole installer at a big-box retailer like BestBuy called ‘The Federated Group’. I was ‘straight commission’, could work any hours I wanted, ‘enjoyed the work, ‘didn’t have a busy social calendar, and for the first time in my life, was making good money. A no brainer! -And ‘no-brainer’ also described my intellectual level at the time. I had a good, home stereo tuner and big speakers on the wall so that I could easily listen to music while I worked on the cars. All day, every day, music, music, music. Commercials, music, commercials, music, ‘news segment -oop! (‘boring! “hope the music starts again soon. ‘what are they talking about, anyway?”)

‘One day, when annoyed by all the commercials, headline-news segments, and same music over and over and over, I spun the the big analog tuning knob all the way to the left in frustration. It bounced back from the end and stopped at around 91.5. There was a guy singing a folksy song and when it ended there was clapping and I realized it was some kind of live music show. Then the guy started talking, the way some musicians do, telling a story to introduce the next song. Only there wasn’t a next song. This guy just kept talking and talking, telling all these stories about weird funny people in some small town in Minnesota. “What is Minnesota?” I wondered. I thought it was just a mythical place they made jokes about on the Mary Tyler Moore Show. ? And what kind of radio station is this, to let some guy ramble on and on, for twenty minutes, before he gets around to playing some more music?

Then they started doing these little radio plays, like in the old-time radio days, and they were really funny and entertaining! Then satires of commercials, ...which I loved! And then all different kinds of music, and then the ‘show’ ended, but they said it was a weekly show, and I remember writing down the date/time and station frequency so that I wouldn’t miss it next week! However, it turned out that I didn’t need the reminder, because after that show was another, very interesting, but very different show where two guys talked about fixing cars, and people called in with their questions, and these guys were really funny! And then another show came on about how to start your own business, which I was kind of interested in doing, since I knew I wouldn't get a degree. And even the news on this station was interesting because they explained things really well, and talked about each topic of the news for like, 5 minutes, instead of just stating the brief title of the item for 20 seconds, never giving any details, and then just going back to more commercials.

That was the other, really amazing thing about this weird station  -  ‘NO commercials!!   None!  -  “Wut??” - It was crazy! With this new station, I could listen all day long, getting news (interesting news!), music, comedy shows, small business tips, excellent interviews of famous people, -tons of fascinating content, -’all new, everyday, ….- and absolutely no commercials to annoy the shit out of me! It was like a revelation! Like the sky opened up! ‘Needless to say, when the next week rolled around, I didn’t have to remember to switch to this station to catch that variety show,.......I was still on the station! I had never left!

And I still haven’t. And it's 35 years later!

Within a year of that revelation-event (which I consider one of the most important events of my entire life), I left that job and started my own car stereo store, and had success with it. Partly due to the info and encouragement I got from that small business show series, and partly due to the self-confidence I got from being informed, intellectually stimulated, and generally aware of the world around me. After awhile, I could keep up in conversations with highly-educated people that were surprised to find out how little schooling I'd had, or that I didn't read a lot . All by just listening to a radio station. ‘For free! While getting stuff done! Normally, people only achieve this as a result of undergoing a proper, formal education. Especially if it follows a childhood where study habits are taught in the home. But I had had neither. And neither do most Americans. And so, unless one can find a job where memorization of TV commercials is considered an important skill-set, I strongly urge everyone I know, to tell everyone they know, about this incredible free education. You just may know someone in the situation I was in, who then may someday say: “NPR changed my life”.  

Backpacking is great fun, if it doesn't break your back,...or your bank.

Backpacking is the best camping. Period. If you’ve never tried it, but like car camping, hiking, and enjoying the outdoors, you’re missing out. There’s just something about being off away from all cars, roads and noise, able to spot wildlife, and enjoying the feeling of being self contained and self-reliant.

But how do you get all that gear you’re used to having when car-camping, along with you on your back? -Answer: You don’t! The fact is that, 90% of that stuff is just not needed, even though you can still be completely comfortable. Here’s what is needed:

A pack, a tent, a sleeping bag, a sleeping pad, a water filter, and some food and incidentals. -All of which can easily fit on your back, and weigh only about 25lbs, making the hike a joy. - - Including 5 lbs of hike-in water! So, you ask, “Isn’t getting all your gear and food down to 20 lbs. expensive, due to having to buy high-end ultra-lightweight gear?” -Answer: Not necessarily! You can purchase all of the following, good, light-weight gear, (with some careful shopping) for under $200! And it is a great investment, even if you only use it every year or two, because it lasts forever and doesn’t take up much room to store. It will probably be the best purchase of recreational equipment you ever make.

Below is a list of specific gear and current links to where to buy as of Sept 2013. If you’re reading this much later, you will have to do some research to find similar items. ‘Keep in mind, you can always spend more and get a little better performing gear, but this is just my list of “How to gear-up for comfortable backpacking for under $200”:

PACKS: I hadn’t shopped for backpack gear for over ten years (or hiked myself, until a friend called and talked me into going again), and so it took some real investigating on some of these categories to find out what was now available. When I last hiked, external frame packs were the most affordable, and best way to carry a lot of weight (>35lbs.) and bulk (>4000cu in.), especially in warm climates, as they had the best ventilation of shoulder pads (even though they weighed over 5lbs empty!). However, now there are many better designed internal-frame packs with clever approaches to ventilation, lower priced, and lightweight (~3lbs empty). And although they are a little smaller (~3000cu in.), I’ve realized that everything you put in them is smaller now, so these work just fine!

how big a pack? http://www.backpacker.com/gear/ask_kristin/233

Most packs start at $100 and you’ll see many for $400! For example, this is the kind of reviews you’ll see when you search for “best backpack”: http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/Backpacks-Backpacking-Reviews/ratings  The cheapest one listed is $176! But in my world, $50 is the target price, ...but we still want all those features listed above (3lbs, 3000cu in., and good ventilated back to avoid “swamp back syndrome”). So I looked at REI (yeah, right. nothing under $140!), Sports Chalet, all over the internet, Walmart, Target, a few other places I can’t remember, and then I stopped in at Big 5 Sporting goods, which I never used to like because all they had was cheaper junk than Walmart. But they have changed (I guess because Popular Outdoor went out of business) and they now sell better stuff at quite low prices. And they have, what I consider to be the two best deals on some really nice packs right now:

http://www.big5sportinggoods.com/product/backpacks-waist-packs/478242-150158/portal-cascade-55-backpack.html   (55 liters = 3356 cubic inches)

http://www.big5sportinggoods.com/product/backpacks-waist-packs/478242-150161/elite-45-backpack.html

(45 liters = 2746 cubic inches)

Both of these packs are on sale for $49 in the local stores thru Sept. You can go look at these and try them on, etc. Buying a pack online is hard due to crappy pics/details (especially venting of back pads), however, I’m sure there are some good deals out there. You just never know. For example this looks maybe good: http://www.ebay.com/itm/330875622748?var=540170089450&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

TENTS: A good tent is one that has a separate rain fly, and MANY windows (or all screen mesh, for walls) in order to ventilate well and not condense water on the inside walls of the tent during rain. A “single-wall” tent might look good, cheap, and very lightweight, but cannot perform well during rain. You will end up with your bag against the tents’ wet walls and it will be a long, cold, night. And a mess to pack out. Unfortunately, a good, dual-wall (“separate rainfly”), lightweight (under 6 lb.) two-person tent usually costs over $150. This blows our budget, and my mind, when you see what goes into these tents. They’re just not that hard to make, but they sure are proud of them, when it comes to pricing them. However, here is one, at a great price ($53):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/111154970081?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649  

Also, there is one at Big 5 sporting goods that is also $50 and says on its' box that it's 5.7lbs, but you never know with cheaper, imported, off-brand stuff. It is also on sale thru sept. for $35:

http://www.big5sportinggoods.com/product/tents/478242-244302/boulder-creek-hiker-2-dome-tent.html

If you can spend a little over $100, (which, you can, even with our $200 budget, because tent costs can be shared) this is the next best deal, and it’s on a consistently offered, from the manufacturer, warranted, well-built, very lightweight (4.1lbs!), two-person, two-door, full-mesh walls with separate rain fly, tent.  (Zye $134 shipped):

http://www.tigeroutdoor.com/db_cartt.php

and, for a short while, there is a good tent from Eureka that is on sale at $99, getting it down to reasonable range. It’s not as light, only has one door, but it’s a good brand, a nice color, and shipping is free: http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___28972#

ALSO: - ‘keep in mind, a 5 lb. two person tent breaks down into just two, 2.5lb loads for the hike! As well as the cost can be split, depending on the situation.

BAGS: Sleeping bags are so important. Along with a good tent and pad, a good bag will determine if you end up liking backpacking or not. Knowing that you have a comfortable, dry, warm bed waiting for you makes all the difference in the world at the end of a long day of enjoying the wilderness. The challenge is to have a warm bag that is not too heavy or big when compressed, in order to not ruin the hike in. And out. Finally, nowadays, there are good synthetic (not expensive lightweight goose down) bags available that will keep you warm when it’s 40 degrees out, and that are small (7”diameter x 12”long in its compression bag), lightweight (3lbs.), and as little as $34!

http://www.amazon.com/Suisse-Sport-Adventurer-Ultra-Compactable-Sleeping/dp/B001TR7QZA/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1379614511&sr=1-1&keywords=suisse+sport+trekker+mummy+sleeping+ba   (Big 5 has this bag in stock, ongoing, so you can see and feel it (and zip into it!) on display. For $69. And they are on sale this week for $35. However, there would be tax on that, and the amazon one includes free ship (with Prime)  There are no doubt other good bags with these criteria/specs, but you have to really look hard for them.

PADS: Sleeping pads are essential for a good nite’s sleep. (even on this hike to Reavis where we are almost certain we will be sleeping below pines on nice pine needles) Not only for cushion, but for insulation from the cold of the ground. The basic blue “closed cell foam” pad at any camp store is fine. They weigh about a pound, and cost  <$10. I like the full-length ones that don’t leave my lower legs on the cold tent floor, although many of these are even longer than you need, but you can cut about 8” off of the end, and take it along as a seat pad, in case the rock you find to sit on happens to be a hard one. And 20” wide is fine (remember, that will be your max width as you hike) They come in different thicknesses. From ⅜” to ¾”. (great for naps on the trail, too!)  I used to subscribe to a rule-of-thumb about these pads that said take an additional pad for every decade of age you are over 20. But hexagenarians would have to try to cram 5 of those things in their pack! Of course, you can also get a high-end, ultra-light air matress http://www.klymit.com/index.php/products-1/sleeping-pads.html (I actually just bought one these for my aging, jointpain-ridden body: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007RFG0NM/ref=oh_details_o00_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

...but they are risky, because they can leak, leaving you on the cold hard ground. (I may take a foam pad as well.) note: it’s a good idea to wrap your foam pad in your nylon poncho because the only place for it is across the top of your pack, with the ends sticking out. And they can get ripped up a bit when hiking beside stickery bushes (of course, it is a good way to leave a trail of blue crumbs to find your way back out of the canyon!).  

FILTERS: Water filters are extremely important, even if you are certain your destination features a natural spring. Animals pee right on the source pool of the spring (they have no manners) and you can get Giardia and really regret not using a filter. They are expensive. And heavy. And a pain to use. But this is our health we’re talking about. Normally, filters are expensive, have hoses and pumps like this:  http://www.amazon.com/Katadyn-8018273-Hiker-Pro-Microfilter/dp/B002CN82V2/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_3?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1379619390&sr=1-3-fkmr1&keywords=MSR+Hyperflow+Microfilter and can be very useful when streams are barely running, and the pools are just an inch or two deep. But now there are a few much lower cost filters like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Sawyer-PointOne-Squeeze-Filtration-System/dp/B00B1OSU4W/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1379618182&sr=1-1&keywords=sawyer+water+filter  that you just “squeeze” water thru. Which work. But you have to have a deep enough pool of water to fill the bag with. Which usually isn’t a problem. The advantage is low-cost and lightweight.

If you don’t mind slightly wierd tasting water: http://www.amazon.com/Potable-Aqua-Water-Treatment-Tablets/dp/B001949TKS/ref=pd_cp_hi_1

AGAIN: - A water filter can be shared among several people (although a minimum of 2 in any size group is needed, due to possible mechanical failure), and so the weight load (and perhaps cost) can be shared.

RAINGEAR: What do you do when it decides to rain for hours, and you don’t have your tent up yet, or you don’t feel like napping anyway? You feel like hiking, or eating, or just sitting around talking, but that’s no fun when you’re dripping wet. You can bring a full rain suit but they’re heavy and hard to put on/off (and hot, if it’s warm). Or an umbrella, but again, heavy, and you have to hold it, and good luck if it’s windy. The only way to have a good time in the rain is with a GOOD, NYLON poncho. A nylon poncho is entirely different than a PVC poncho. A PVC poncho sticks out stiff along its’ fold lines and lets rain in on you. Unless it’s a hot, sunny day, then it will fall down around you (‘course, who needs it if it’s sunny?). A Nylon poncho always falls down around you comfortably, keeping you out the rain, won’t tear when you hike along brush, and isn’t sticky against your skin. It also weighs about half that of a PVC poncho, and lasts forever, as opposed to a year or two. The only problem is, a nylon poncho costs about 4 times what a PVC poncho costs. But it’s so worth it!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271123078064?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

(and you can, and will, use them for way more functions than just backpacking)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Rain-Poncho-with-side-snap-closures-and-corner-grommets-/221284852961?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item33859ae4e1

...and don’t even try to make do with one of those “emergency” ponchos. They’re called that, because if you try to survive in one of those, you’re likely to end up with an “emergency”! (like hyperthermia)  

STOVES: You can cook on the campfire. If there’s a campfire. And if it’s been burning a while to have generated some red hot coals (pot on flames gets black and sticky). Or you can cook anytime, much faster and cleaner with a stove. Most backpacking foods are freeze-dried meals that just need boiling water. There are tiny propane stoves for backpacking that run off of small fuel tanks: http://www.amazon.com/Ultralight-Backpacking-Canister-Ignition-silvery/dp/B004U8CP88/ref=sr_1_2?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1379637195&sr=1-2&keywords=lightweight+backpack+stove

or solid fuel stoves like this: http://www.amazon.com/Esbit-Ultralight-Emergency-Folding-Tablets/dp/B005NGNN3M/ref=pd_sbs_sg_5

many “ultra-light” folks just use solid fuel only with no stove and balance the pot on 3 rocks:

http://www.amazon.com/Esbit-Smokeless-Fuel-Backpacking-Camping/dp/B005NGMJLY/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1379713533&sr=1-1&keywords=esbit+fuel+tablets

or, for the lightest possible stove, you can make an alcohol burning one yourself for free, like this one I made in this video, along with a .3 ounce windscreen/pot stand, and a 5 ounce reflector oven. There are many youtube videos on how to make an alcohol can stove, but I try to show how you can do it in a few minutes, instead of trying to make it an all day project:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90Bz9grkDVE

AGAIN: Stove weight and costs can also be shared.

Lightweight cooksets can be found that are made just for backpacking that start at around $20, but using non-coated aluminum is bad for you, and the coated ones start to get pricey. I’ve found that most all “cooking” seems to be just pouring boiling water into a freeze-dried pouch, and so, just a good lightweight tea-kettle is really all that’s needed. "Hard anodized" aluminum is similar to "coated", and will help keep from allowing high heat to release aluminum into your water. This is a good example of a $20 (select .9liter which is 32 ounces - just right for two, standard, 2-cup freeze-dried meals from the same water-boil) kettle hat is lightweight and has a wide-lid so you can nest other gear inside when packed: http://www.amazon.com/Primus-P-731701-LiTech-Coffee-Tea/dp/B00EE67536/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_4

...Here is another good deal on a "set" of a good kettle, 2 plastic bowls, one with a lid and an insulating neoprene streach band, and a "spork". I've seen this set at REI ($40) and it is really nice: http://www.austinkayak.com/products/11865/GSI-Outdoors-Halulite-Ketalist.html
...or... on the cheap!:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvpD1hEztvY

Headlamp-type flashlites are the only way to go for camping (and most all other tasks that need a flashlite), because your hands are free to do the thing that you needed a flashlite to see. (if you’re not doing anything then you probably don’t need a light (to see what you’re not doing). The best headlamp is one that is not too bright (you only need to see what you’re doing, you don’t need to light up the whole campsite), has an even “flood” type light pattern (not “spot”), and has an easy to use switch (not having to rotary thru “hi,med,low” every time you want to turn it on/off). Also, low cost, low weight, and long run time are of course, desired.

...’and the winner is:

http://www.amazon.com/Energizer-HDL2BODBP-Trailfinder-Headlight-Colors/dp/B00330E6ZO/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_2

Here’s a good pillow/seat thing:

http://www.amazon.com/Klymit-Cush-Inflatable-Pillow-Seat/dp/B00EDYL6GG/ref=pd_sim_sg_1

Here's a good way to do a hydration tube water bottle system:
http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Desert-SmarTube-Hydration-System/dp/B000GM6LWS/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1380057242&sr=1-1

here’s what most people do (that want to spend a lot of money) for “ultra”-lightweight backpacking:

http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ultralight-backpacking.html

http://www.hikelight.com/

‘fairly good generic checklist: http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ultralight-backpacking-checklist.html

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An awful lot of this stuff can be borrowed, hacked together, or done without on a first trial-trip to see if you like backpacking, but I feel that these items are all good buys and good investments and can make backpacking a joy for you, from the very first outing. If you hate it, you can always sell the whole kit on ebay for about what you paid for it! (since it is such good value stuff)(think about, if you saw this whole set of stuff for $200 from someone who said they used it once, it all worked well, but they don’t like the activity, wouldn’t you buy it just for the convenience of it all?)

pack: $50

half a tent $27

bag: $34

pad: $8

half a squeezethru water filter: $15

real poncho: $24

half of solid fuel: $4

half a solid tea kettle: $12

headlamp: $6

total: $180(shipped)  ...and you still have $20 bucks left over to buy freeze-dried food!

"Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain..."

'you need to watch at least the first half of this (the second half is extremely important too). If you don't have time to watch the whole first half, at least watch the first half of the first half. If you don't have time,...make time. Then discuss, forward, and post this repeatedly until something begins to be done about it. America and democracy were too cool of an idea(s) to just be given up on:

http://billmoyers.com/episode/full-show-distracted-from-democracy/

here's an idea, let's turn off the "spoon-fed" "infotainment", walk outside, and scream "I'm mad as hell, and I don't know why we should take it any longer?" Let's look to Brazil for inspiration, and really work at getting our country back from the rich who have bought it recently. Let's reverse Citizens United. Let's tax the rich again. Let's break up the banks and corps that are too big to fail or jail. Let's raise minimum wage back to where it was. Let's re-restore voting rights. Let's boycott Koch Industries, Walmart, McDonalds, and others until they play fair. Let's invest in education, re-build our bridges, build high-speed rail, and pursue sustainable energy. Drive electric cars, charged by solar on our roof tops, until they get the message: "we're not gonna take it anymore!!"

CES Update! -- 3D TV is dead!"

CES Update!   --"3D TV is dead!" (which, if you remember, I predicted a few years ago in my January 2011 CES Summary)  http://fredbellows.blogspot.com/2011/01/ces-2011-summary.html


"3D TV. (boring! Imho) If 3D TV doesn’t become the biggest thing in consumer electronics (and I don’t think it will), all those exhibitors are going to look pretty silly in a few years having spent so much time and money on this dumb-looking fad."


It's still a fun little diversion and enhancement for a movie night (if you have all the equipment) on an occasional action or animated movie, but for the most part, the following sites agreed with me that it's just not good looking enough yet (and maybe never will be!) 

http://www.marketplace.org/topics/tech/3-d-tv-dead-long-live-3-d-tv

http://gizmodo.com/3dtv-is-officially-never-going-to-happen-512905205

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/145168-3d-tv-is-dead

http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/13/tech/gaming-gadgets/3d-tv-dead

http://www.cracked.com/quick-fixes/4-reasons-3d-tv-movement-already-dead/

http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/8/3852452/death-of-3d

http://diaryofageek.com/3d-tv-is-dead/

(related:  in that same CES Summary, I predicted that people would soon be using their smartphones more than their computers, to get email, social networking, news, and even shopping. And I just heard a report the other night that said that day has come, as well)