GoPro’s New Entry-Level Hero Could Be The Category King

GoPro has a new lineup of Hero cameras, including the next-gen Hero4 with fancy 4K video features and touchscreen back displays, but the introduction of a new entry-level Hero today could be what brings the action camera category to the next level. The Hero is similar to the “White” tier of devices GoPro has sold until now, but it’s especially cut-rate at just $130, and packs features the competition just can’t match, like integration into a waterproof housing and automatic low-light shooting mode optimizations.

The basic Hero definitely gives up some ground to drop that extra $60 vs. the White: GoPro has removed its Wi-Fi connection capabilities, meaning you’ll have to control it from the camera itself, and use the included USB cable to connect it to your computer. But the concession might be less onerous than you might imagine, especially if you’ve never used a GoPro before – I actually rarely find myself using the Wi-Fi features for my prosumer applications of the gadget, which tend to involve muddy/wet/snowy situations where I don’t have my phone handy anyway.

GoPro’s price aggressiveness here should stave off competition from new entrants like Polaroid, which has debuted its own Cube action camera at $99. The Cube also lacks Wi-Fi, but it isn’t waterproof out of the box and it lacks the advantages of GoPro’s ProTune software features. Early buzz has pegged Polaroid’s version as a better choice for undemanding consumers, but with just a $30 gap instead of a $100 one, GoPro has now offered a version of its device, with its attendant reputation, that should fall within easy reach of those looking around at the Polaroid and other options. Plus, GoPro’s comprehensive ecosystem of accessories and mounts gives the Hero a huge advantage.

At $129, in fact, you start to see the possibilities of using veritable fleets of GoPros to capture entirely new perspectives on your excursions. A set of three of these might produce much more interesting results than a single GoPro Hero4 Black, for example, especially if your end goal is YouTube, not an iMax theater.

The top-end Hero4 line and its 4K video features are going to excite the imaginations of filmmakers, documentarians and extreme athletes, but the GoPro Hero has the makings of a true breakout device for the category, which could help the company become a fixture in far more households than ever before.

How To Hide Text In Microsoft Word 2007, Reveal It & Protect It

Sometimes what we hide is more important than what we reveal. Especially, documents with sensitive information, some things are supposed to be ‘for some eyes only’. Such scenarios are quite common, even for the more un-secretive among us. You want to show someone a letter composed in MS Word, but want to keep some of the content private; or it’s an official letter with some part of it having critical data. As important as these two are, the most common use could involve a normal printing job. Many a time we have to print different versions of a document, one copy for one set of eyes and others for other sets. Rather than creating multiple copies and therefore multiple printing jobs, what if we could just do it from the same document? That too, without the hassle of repeated cut and paste. We can, with a simple feature in MS Word – it’s just called Hidden and let me show you how to use it to hide text in Microsoft Word 2007. It’s a simple single click process. Open the docum...

Boom, the startup that wants to build supersonic planes, just signed a massive deal with Virgin

Have you heard about Boom? Boom is a relatively new startup that’s aiming to build something pretty crazy. They’re not building an app… or a social network… or even some new gadget for the Kickstarter crowd. Boom wants to build planes. Really, really, really fast planes. Specifically, they’re trying to design and build a supersonic passenger plane that goes 2.2x the speed of sound. If all goes to plan, they’ll be able to shuttle people from New York to London in 3.5 hours, and SF to Tokyo in 4.5. Sound crazy? I wouldn’t disagree. It’s worth noting that the company is in the very early days for something as intensive, massive, and hugely expensive as designing and producing a passenger aircraft. They’re still working on their first prototype, and hope to fly it by late next year. But it’s also worth noting that the team behind the plane has some serious talent in its blood: the company’s 11 employees have collectively contributed to over 30 aircrafts — having worked on thin...

Fun Tools to Translate Your Name into Japanese Calligraphy

Japanese calligraphy is an artistic writing style of the Japanese language. Its Chinese origins can be traced back to the twenty-eighth century BCE. Calligraphy found its way into Japanese culture in 600 CE and is known as the karayo tradition. For Westerners, calligraphy is forever fascinating. However, it takes years to learn how to properly draw the signs. Two basic principles must be known to understand Japanese writing: there are different writing styles and different alphabets. Kaisho for example, is a writing style most commonly used in print media. Tensho on the other hand is used in signatures. Other writing styles are Reisho, Gyosho and Sousho. The alphabets include Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana. Katakana is used for writing foreign words. It can also serve to highlight words, in analogy to capital letters as we know them from the Roman / Latin alphabet (Romaji in Japanese). Each Kanji character has a meaning of its own, while Hiragana or Katakana characters merely repres...

Kiran Upadhyay

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