Kinetic art is absolutely incredible because parts are moving or give the illusion that they’re moving. This coffee table was used as a piece of kinetic art to create ever-changing patterns in the sand. It’s truly mesmerizing! Watch this video to see how this beautifully artistic coffee table moves.
How to stop your TV from spying on you
Of all the “smart” devices, few are more controversial than the smart TV. The idea makes a lot of sense: Combine the best parts of a computer and a television into one super-machine. What could go wrong?
Well, as popular as smart TVs are – especially in the luxury tech department – many critics dislike the format, and the technology is surprisingly susceptible to ransomware. Companies have had to defend their inventions again and again and compared to simpler and less expensive forms of entertainment, the smart TV is struggling to earn its place in your family room.
The latest issue is privacy. Certain models keep tabs on their owners in uncomfortable ways, and there’s really no good reason for this kind of shifty behavior.
Our advice: Turn the feature off. Here’s how to do it.
Vizio
Vizio recently came under fire when customers realized that the advertising was a little too familiar. That’s because Vizio smart TVs were keeping track of what owners watched and then tailored advertisements to them specifically. This happens even if you’re using an external source, like Amazon Fire or Roku.
This may not shock you, given how many advertisements follow you around the internet based on cookies you’ve accumulated along the way. Banner ads for your favorite Amazon products may appear in your Yahoo feed, for example, and Facebook could write an encyclopedia about your preferences.
But Vizio shares this information with third-party companies, and it’s hard for the average consumer to find out where their data go. Meanwhile, smart TVs are famously vulnerable to hackers, and you may not want your device to know quite so much about you.
First go to the TV’s System setting, and then: Reset & Admit >> Smart Interactivity >> Off.
Samsung
Samsung got into some hot water as well when techies picked apart the voice command system. Yes, it’s nice to be able to control your TV with your voice, but Samsung saves that data and then sends it to third-party companies.
According to Samsung’s privacy policy, “some interactive voice commands may be transmitted (along with information about your device, including device identifiers) to a third-party service provider, (currently, Nuance Communications, Inc.)”
In many ways, this is even more frightening, because it isn’t just your preferences in movies and TV shows: It’s your actual voice. Samsung and its affiliates aren’t planning to do anything nefarious with this information, but there’s no reason for them to have it in the first place.
Click here to read Samsung’s entire Smart TV Privacy Policy.
Go to the TV’s Smart Hub, and then: Terms & Policy >> SyncPlus and Marketing >> Disable.
LG
Luckily, most LG TVs don’t use this kind of spy feature as a default setting anymore, so you should be safe. But slightly older sets may have a feature called “Live Plus,” which is essentially the same thing.
Just to make sure your LG television is safe, go to Options >> LivePlus >> Off.
Getting more from your smart TV
Once you’ve taken these steps to secure the privacy of your smart TV, there are many benefits to owning one. Did you know that you can use your smart TV to get regular weather reports, stream live feeds and even browse the web?
Click here to see these features, plus four more unique things your smart TV can do.
Note: If you are reading this article using the Komando.com App, click here to watch a video on changing smart tv settings.
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Using the most basic digital or smartphone camera, you can shoot thousands of photos, dump them onto a computer, and then shoot thousands more. In seconds, you can edit a photo series in ways that would take days to develop in the darkroom. But our images are usually stored on our various devices, often leaving duplicates to sort through.
The smarter way to heat and cool your home
A great way to cut the high energy costs of heating and cooling your home is by adding a smart thermostat. This is smart technology that lets you control your home’s temperature remotely with a smartphone, tablet or computer. It helps you keep costs low by adjusting your home’s temperature even when you are not there. There are just so many smart thermostats to choose from and most have some unique features.
Sponsored: Legitimate search site helps you find people you're looking for the easy way
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Would you give a stranger a foot massage?
Feet really freak some people out. Even if they don’t, we just seem to reserve touching feet for the people we are very close to. So if some stranger sat down across from you, plopped their foot on your lap and asked for a massage, would you do it? Could you do it without laughing? Watch this hilariously awkward video of strangers giving each other foot massages.
Uh-Oh! Most visited porn site spreading nasty malware
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This security setting will stop thieves from emptying your bank account
The massive Equifax data breach has dominated the digital security landscape for weeks. We’ve told you about freezing your credit to protect you from the fallout, however there’s another security setting that you need to know about. This one can actually prevent thieves from stealing your money.
If you have this security software, remove it RIGHT NOW
This is troubling. If you have this line of security software installed on your computer, it’s probably a good time to rethink your options and remove it as soon as you can. I’ll tell you why it may have caused the most significant government breach in recent memory.
Yikes! The Google tracking feature you didn't know you switched on
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Spy apps, internet speeds, secret scanners, and more
Each week, I receive tons of questions from my listeners about tech concerns, new products and all things digital. Answering your questions is the best part of my job. This week, learn how to spot apps that are spying on you and remove them, how to find iOS’s secret scanner feature, how to test the speed of your internet and more.
How to check if someone has read your email
You write an email. No reply. You send another email. No reply. You’re halfway through a third email and you stop. What happened to the first two? Did they end up in a junk folder? Were the messages just ignored? Are your recipients even receiving them? The ambiguity can be frustrating.
Best site for free family tree and people searches
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How to see if your apps are spying on you
When you sign up for a new app, you can often use credentials from social media to automatically log in. That’s scary because the sites that use your credentials suddenly have access to your name, photos, email address and more information that you’d like to keep private.
Yahoo now says 3 BILLION accounts hacked!
It’s been almost a year since I’ve been telling you to close your Yahoo accounts. If you haven’t done it yet, you must do it now! That’s because Yahoo’s massive data breach is shockingly worse than originally thought.
How to unsend an email
Have you ever clicked “Send” on an email and regretted it a fraction of a second later? I’m guessing everyone reading this has, and it’s a terrible feeling knowing it’s gone forever.
Whether you were angry and typed something you shouldn’t have, clicked “Reply All” when you wanted “Reply,” or just accidentally clicked the “Send” button before the email was finished, your first instinct is to find and click an “Undo” button. Unfortunately, there is no undo button for email … or is there?
5 reasons why your Wi-Fi is slow (and how to fix it)
For the two decades that the internet has been in our lives, despite all the changes and technology improvements, one constant has remained: pokey connections. Frustration quickly sets in when pages won’t load, videos buffer, or email crawls to a halt.
Secret way to find out how much life is left in your car battery
Has this ever happened to you? You’re heading home from the store, you’ve just loaded all of your groceries into the car, but when you go to start the engine nothing happens. Dead batteries can really leave you in a pinch, and no one likes to be stranded. Here’s the good news: I know a way to see how much juice is left in your battery, so you’ll never be in a pickle.
Give yourself a color vision test
Give yourself a color vision test.
How to stop ads from following you online
Ads following you around the internet is no coincidence. Whenever you search for products on one site, most likely you’ll see related ads on another. People have varied opinions about this. Some are creeped out by it and others are happy to see ads related to items they’re interested in. If you’re in the first category, there are ways to keep ads from following you.