The 10 Best Smart TV Apps

As apps expand their reach into our everyday lives, so too have smart TVs become all the rage, themselves connecting to the Internet to provide app functionality. According to PCMag, you can find smart TVs in 25 million American households, and by 2015, it’s predicted that 50 percent of all TVs sold worldwide will be smart TVs.

With numbers like that, as the smart TVs come, more useful smart TV apps will follow.

Many smart TV owners still have cable, but others have decided to cut the cord with cable for good, turning instead to these apps as their main source of entertainment. By now, smart TVs offer tons of content, certainly rivaling – if not surpassing – even the best cable subscriptions.

In addition to many traditional TV channels, smart TVs offer entertainment options that expand into streaming media, gaming platforms, and browsing the Internet straight from your big-screen TV—features that not many cable providers can offer at this time.

One interesting statistic though is that according to an NPD Group report, only 12 million of the country’s smart TVs are even connected to the Internet, which means the technology is only being utilized in about half the households that own them.

One way to use your Internet-connected TV properly is to use apps to navigate content and expand your home entertainment beyond what traditional cable or local channels have to offer. Here are some of the best smart TV apps that make the best use of Internet-connected TVs.

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10: AccuWeather

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Instead of having to wait anxiously for your local newscaster to get on with the day’s weather segment, you can enjoy immediate access to weather forecasts for more than two million locations. According to PCMag, “The app gives five-day forecasts in 12 languages, severe weather alerts, and more for your home city and travel locations.”

This app comes in handy while you’re planning your day or upcoming vacation. No more waiting for local and cable channels to get back to the precise weather segment and information you need.

9: Pandora

You may not have originally considered your smart TV to be part of your home music experience, but now with the Pandora app, it can be. Whether you’re entertaining, dancing around the living room, or simply lying in bed or on the couch, you can play all of your favorite tunes and stations for the whole room (or house) to hear.

What’s more, whatever sound system your TV is hooked up to will play the music from Pandora, which is likely much better quality than the sound you were getting from your computer or mobile device.

8: MLB.tv

Similar to NBA Game Time, if you’re a huge baseball fan, MLB.tv is an essential smart TV app for your home entertainment setup. Not only can you stream every game in HD, regardless of whether or not it’s usually available in your area, but you’ll get tons of news updates and real-time scores from around the league—perfect for a fully immersed game day experience.

However, unlike some of the other streaming content smart TV apps, MLB.tv starts at a higher $99.95 for a full season’s worth of all things baseball. Off-season viewing costs $24.95 for any game played during the previous season.

7: NBA Game Time

NBA Game Time is an essential app for all NBA lovers. With this smart TV app, you get live updates of scores of all NBA games currently being played. You can also view highlights and recaps from previous games in HD, and you get access to news from around the league.

The app is currently free. The NBA League Pass is a $199 per season Premium subscription addition that allows you to watch most regular season games and even archived playoff games from the season before. The 5-Team Choice Package is $139.99.

6: YouTube

You love watching YouTube videos on your computer and mobile devices throughout the day, so why not enjoy them true movie and TV-style on your big screen TV? This smart TV app is now built into many Internet-connected TVs already, allowing users to enjoy all of their favorite viral videos.

As with YouTube online, you don’t need a subscription to watch YouTube videos on your smart TV.

5: HBO Go

Though it has recently signed a deal with Amazon Instant, HBO previously exclusively aired its programming on the HBO Go app. It was originally limited to only Comcast, Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-Verse TV subscribers, but with this new Amazon deal, you may see that changing in the future.

HBO Go’s smart TV app streams all your favorite HBO shows and movies currently showing on HBO right to your television.

4: Skype

Love having video chats with friends, family and colleagues located around the world? Imagine being able to see and talk to those same people on a much bigger screen than your computer.

Being so much closer to life-sized, they might even seem like they’re right there in the room with you. This can do wonders for your face-to-face time and truly change your Skype experience.

3: Amazon Instant

Similar to Netflix, Amazon Instant has a wide range of streaming movies and TV shows, though it has different deals with different studios, including a recent exclusive deal with HBO for its TV shows, so some of the content will be different. Amazon Instant does not show advertisements along with its content.

What differs about Amazon Instant is its subscription. Instead of paying monthly, you pay $99 for the entire year (recently raised from $79), which means it costs slightly more per month than Netflix and Hulu, but it also comes with access to Amazon Prime, Amazon’s two-day shipping service, which is valid for many items listed on its website.

2: Hulu Plus

Hulu Plus is another streaming platform well-suited for TV, especially since it specializes in recently aired TV shows. Different from its competitors, Hulu Plus not only has access to older episodes and seasons of many of your favorite TV shows, but also provides access to shows that aired the very day or night before, which is exclusive to Hulu at this point in time. However, Hulu does have ads that play before and within each video, while Netflix and Amazon Instant do not.

Hulu Plus also requires a subscription at $7.99 per month. This price will likely not change anytime soon, thanks to Hulu’s ad-based revenue model.

1: Netflix

This is probably one of the most obvious smart TV apps to use, one that works perfectly not only on computers and mobile devices, but also (especially) on your Internet-connected TV. It has an enormous movie and TV catalog that features exclusive distribution deals with several different major and minor studios, so there will be content on this app that you can’t even get from cable or other streaming TV and movie apps.

To get Netflix, you could buy a second set-top device like Roku or a USB-connected device like Chromecast, but the majority of smart TV app stores usually have the app built in so you can use it right on the TV without having to add another device to your TV setup.

Netflix requires a subscription to function, and its unlimited streaming platform is available for $7.99 per month, though that amount is predicted to rise $1 or $2 in the future. Netflix shows no ads along with its content.

Source: TheRichest.com

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20 Technologies That Will Shape the Next 20 Years

Technology is constantly advancing at a breakneck pace. Things that mystified us 20 years ago seem commonplace and mundane by today’s standards. It follows, then, that to the people of 2034 (assuming, of course, that the Zombie Apocalypse of 2017 doesn’t destroy human civilization), the things they take for granted everyday would be downright magical to us.

Over the next two decades, many of the technologies on this list will shape the world in ways we can’t fully comprehend. Most of the following technologies already exist in some form or another; they’re just waiting for the right scientist or entrepreneur to come along and change the world. Technologies like…

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20. Graphene

Graphene has become somewhat of a buzzword in the tech community these past few years. Essentially a one-atom-thick crystalline layer of super strong, conductive, and flexible carbon, this material has a big future in fields ranging from biomedical devices to desalination to vastly improved battery technology. Speaking of batteries…

19. New Battery Technology

Aside from our friend graphene up there, researches have been experimenting with countless other materials, chemistries and formats in an effort to improve battery technology. From tiny flexible batteries that are constantly being recharged by kinetic and solar energy to sugar-powered batteries that last up to 15 times as long as today’s lithium-ion cells, the promising future of battery technology virtually guarantees that we’ll never again have to bulldoze a group of nuns as we sprint frantically to the nearest outlet before our phone dies and we lose our new high score in Flappy Bird. No promises, though.

18. Google Glass

Google Glass, now you don’t even have to speak to people to let them know you’re awful!

Like it or not, this one’s probably here to stay. Though mercifully it will likely never be as mainstream as smartphones or tablets are today, Google Glass has actually shown some real promise in the medical industry, enabling doctors to quickly access patient information, confirm diagnoses and even aid in complex surgical procedures. Thankfully, Glassholes in the wild are still few and far between, and we can only pray it stays that way.

17. Energy

As the planet’s population booms and its oil reserves dwindle, cheap, efficient, and renewable energy sources will become more important than ever before. Breakthroughs in this crowded field are being made all the time. In the next 20 years, houses could be 100% powered by solar and wind energy, coastal communities could draw their power from the tides, and nuclear fusion may be powering our biggest cities.

16. The Large Hadron Collider

The LHC is a giant particle accelerator built by the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) 300 feet below ground on the Swiss-French border. Its purpose is to carry out large scale experiments to test various theories of particle and high-energy physics. In 2013, experiments were conducted that proved the existence of the Higgs boson (the so-called “God Particle”). With more experiments planned, it’s possible that in the coming years the LHC will play a key role in our understanding of the fundamental building blocks of the entire universe.

15. 3D Printing

Just a little off the top, please.

3D printing isn’t new. In fact, it’s been around since the 1980s. But it’s only been in the last few years that the technology has finally started to come into its own. In the next 20 years, 3D printers will become as common as inkjets are today. Think of the possibilities: you just got back from Ikea and realized you’re missing a screw for that beautiful new Fjorkltünde bookcase you spent $300 on? No need to curse our Swedish furniture overlords. Just go to their website, download the plans, and 3D print yourself one!

14. Genetically Modified Food

OK, this should get rid of most of your wrinkles.

Genetically modified (GM) foods have become quite the hot-button issue in recent years. People hear the words “gene modification” and their brains process them as “Godzilla mutant danger.” As a result, you’ll find no shortage of people yelling on the internet (what better way to be taken seriously?), vilifying genetically modified foods to no end. Right or wrong, their outcry has been heard by many and there are anti-GM food movements popping up all over the world. But the bottom line is that genetic modification has imbued crops like corn and wheat with disease, drought, and pest-resistance enabling them to feed hundreds of millions of people around the globe. You can’t ignore those kinds of results, and that’s why GM foods will play a big role in the next few decades.

13. Darpa

America’s Skynet since 1958

DARPA, a decidedly boring acronym for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, is a subset of the US Department of Defense that is tasked with creating the awesomest weapons possible for the US military. DARPA is no stranger high technology, having created the earliest precursor to the internet in the late ’60s. Today, the agency is hard at work developing modern military marvels, including cloaking technology, Iron Man-style military exoskeletons and the BigDog Legged Squad Support System (basically just a headless demon robot dog from your nightmares).

12. Biometrics

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Biometrics are the next wave of mobile security. They’re nothing new, per se, but their implementation is much improved over the past few years. After Apple released the iPhone 5S last September with its Touch ID fingerprint scanner, other manufacturers have fallen in line. Soon people will just expect all consumer electronics to come with some form of biometric security, whether it be fingerprint scanning, retina identification or voice recognition (maybe all three).

11. Apple iWatch

Hopefully the real thing doesn’t look quite this horrible.

While we’re on the subject of Apple, consumer electronics industry insiders have been hinting for a couple years now that the Cupertino company would one day release a smartwatch, long dubbed the iWatch. Apple has yet to make any formal announcements, but its presence in this nascent category would likely legitimize what until now has been viewed as a bit of a fringe market. Several companies have already ventured into the smartwatch game with mostly middling results. MP3 players, smartphones and tablets already existed before Apple came along and revolutionized those categories. If it decides to get into the smartwatch category as well, there’s no reason to think it wouldn’t do the same to the world of wearable technology for years to come.

10. Brain-Computer Interface

Imagine being able to control your computer with your mind. For most of us, the brain-computer interface would only serve to heighten our dependence on computers and further isolate us from the outside world. But for amputees and victims of paralysis, in conjunction with biomechanical prostheses, the brain-computer interface could provide a return to normalcy. This technology is in its infancy at the moment but it has enormous potential for the years to come.

 9. Holographic Interfaces

There’s a better than average chance Tony’s a little drunk in this picture.

As seen in any movie that wants to make basic interactions with a computer appear high-tech and science-fictiony, holographic interfaces are both a highly intuitive way to interact with a computer and a great way to blow a movie’s special effects budget in one take. Even the best real world examples of this technology today are crude by movie standards but, as with everything else on this list, it will only get better in the coming years.

8. Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is already very common. Services like Dropbox, Google Drive, Apple iCloud and Cubby have been around for years and have tens of millions of users. But in the future, everything will be in the cloud. Hard drives, flash drives, and onboard storage will be a thing of the past. All your documents, music, and photos will be stored in the cloud and available on all your devices the instant you want them.

7. Nanorobotics

Nothing scary about this.

Nanorobotics, or nanites as they should never be called, are still largely in the research and development phase. Largely being developed as in a medical capacity, nanorobotics are microscopic machines capable of detecting and eradicating pathogens, administering specialized medicine directly to the affected area and quickly repairing wounds on a cellular level. There are also numerous agricultural and defense applications being explored. Though, given the complicated manufacturing process and the sheer scale required to be effective, anything concrete is still a long way off.

6. Mining Desalination Waste

As droughts around the world become more frequent and more severe, coastal municipalities are increasingly turning to desalination for their water needs. This comes at a price, however. Aside from the exorbitant costs associated with saltwater desalination, the process produces wastewater with high concentrations of salinity. This waste wreaks havoc on the environment when it’s returned to the ocean. New methods of mining this wastewater for sulfur, calcium, potassium, magnesium and other valuable elements continue to show promise and could provide an ingenious solution to two separate problems.

5. Virtual Reality

Insert your own joke here.

We’ve been waiting for a competent virtual reality system since the ’80s. With the Oculus Rift, it seems like that wait might finally be over. The Oculus Rift, which was recently acquired by Facebook (we we’re bummed when we heard that, too), offers a stunningly realistic experience that will soon be a common feature of every gamer’s dream setup.

 4. Advanced Robotics

I give you the pinnacle of human achievement. You can retire now, Science.

We’ve been promised robots, both the helpful and murderous kinds, for the better part of the last century. For the most part, progress has been slow, but that’s mostly because the technology required to build these ping pong-playing miracles has lagged somewhat. In the next two decades, the fields of artificial intelligence and mechanical engineering will improve considerably and, slowly but surely, our robot masters servants will finally become a reality.

3. Aerogel

This one is really cool. Aerogels are gels that have had their liquid portions removed and replaced by air via a process known as supercritical drying, leaving only the solid parts behind. The resulting product, known colloquially as “frozen smoke,” has remarkable insulating properties and load-bearing capabilities surprising for something with such little mass. Silica aerogels have even been proposed for use in any future long distance space explorations. 3…2…1…Segue!

2. Galactic Colonization

You know you’re in the suburbs when all the homes start to look the same.

Dutch non-profit Mars One recently announced its plans to colonize Mars by the year 2025.  They’re currently in the initial stages of determining who will be the first humans to colonize the red planet. There are many roadblocks standing in the way of success, the biggest of which is how to fund this project. The answer: reality television. The minds behind this endeavor plan to follow every second of the astronauts’ lives for a reality show. But look on the bright side, they’ll probably never have to experience to stigma of being reality stars, because they’re never coming back to earth. It’s a one way trip!

1. Self-Driving Cars

“I’m supposed to hit the cones, right?”

This is something we can all get behind. Google has spearheaded the driverless car movement (you can even see them driving around their Mountain View, CA campus fairly regularly). Many automakers, from Audi to Nissan, have jumped on the driverless bandwagon as well. Government transportation safety agencies from several different countries are currently evaluating the concept of driverless automobiles and how best to prepare individuals who have spent their whole lives driving to give up control to a computer. This one’s definitely coming, maybe sooner rather than later.

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15 Wardrobe Hacks Everyone Should Know

Life is hard, there really is no sugar coating that. We face challenges on a daily basis that can instantly change our mood from good to bad. One of the biggest challenges, that might not be so big in the grand scheme of things, is getting dressed for the day, only to pull a clothing item out of your closet that is distressed in some way. You know you have been there! Need some examples, because the options are endless, but we will list a few:

1. Opening your closet only to find your newest leather jacket is uncomfortable because it hasn’t been properly broken in.
2. Spilling red wine on your new dress shirt during happy hour.
3. Running late in the morning, only to run out the door and find that you have a big run in your nylons.

Things like this happen in life everyday and are a complete nuisance and mood changer for everyone involved. Luckily, we have pulled together a list of 15 wardrobe hacks that everyone should know, leaving you empowered to take on situations like this and kick them in the ass. Men and women alike can benefit from these tricks of the trade for making sure your attire is always on point, day or night.

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15. How To Get Red Wine Stains Out of Clothes

This is something that we have all experienced at one time or another. Whether you spill red wine on your favorite shirt or your white carpet, the resolution is the same: use white wine to clean it up! I know that sounds crazy, but simply take a cotton rag and pour whatever white wine you have handy on it and start blotting away. Before you know it, the red wine will all disappear.

14. How to Clean Dirt Off of Suede.

Whenever you have a piece of clothing, handbags or shoes in your wardrobe that is suede and covered in dirt, simply turn to your pantry to find your cleaning mechanism. Take a slice of bread, remove the crust and let it sit out and get stale. Once the bread has become stale, gently rub it over the dirty area and viola! Dirt easily removed!

13. How to Make T-Shirts Vintage Soft

Truthfully, this is what we all yearn for when we purchase a new tee. Most of them today are made to be soft from the beginning, but other companies still haven’t caught on yet so you will need to do this step yourself. Make yourself some salt water at home by mixing 1 quart of water and a half cup of salt and let the tee sit in the mixture for about three days. Once it is finished soaking, wash it regularly and it will turn out vintage soft, ready for your next wear.

12. How to Restore Sheen to Patent Leather Shoes

Patent leather shoes are obviously purchased for their stellar sheen, but what do you do when that starts to fade?! The secret is found wherever you keep your cleaning products! Grab your windex and spray it on your shoes, wiping it away with a paper towel and your favorite shoes will have their life restored in no time!

11. How to Remove Smells From your Favorite Vintage Treasures

We all love vintage shopping! How else do you find designer treasures for amazing prices? These pieces are priceless, valuable and become our special treasures. The only downfall is that many vintage pieces develop a nasty odor due to their age. This can simply be removed by concocting a mixture of one part vodka and two parts water, shaking it together in a spray bottle and then misting your vintage product. The smell will be gone quicker than you think.

10. How to Remove Oil Stains

With so many products being oil based today, and the fact that it is a key ingredient in most meals, it can be difficult to avoid oil from spilling on your clothes at times. To keep the stain from setting, place the garment on a flat surface and sprinkle a generous amount of baby powder over the entire stained area. Let this sit overnight and the oil should be lifted by morning.

9. How to Keep Angora or Mohair From Shedding

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Your favorite cozy sweaters can surely keep you warm during the chilly months, but their shedding can bring a lot of annoyance and sometimes embarrassment. This can easily be avoided by folding the sweater, placing it into a ziplock bag and put it in the freezer for at least three hours. Let it warm up before putting it on and you will be shed free!

8. How to Keep Your Dark Denim Dark

Denim has easily become a part of everyone’s daily wardrobe as they can be dressed up or down, whatever fits your mood. However, there is nothing more annoying than buying a new pair of jeans in the perfect dark wash, only to see it fade before your eyes every time you do laundry. The solution is to merely add a half cup of distilled vinegar to the final rinse cycle whenever you are washing them to retain their color.

7. How to Remove Scratches From Leather

Scratching anything leather can be beyond frustrating due to the high price of leather products. This can be easily taken care of by rubbing whatever moisturizer you have handy around the house on the tip of a q-tip and rubbing it into the scratched area until it is gone. Works like a charm!

6. How to Keep Your Clothes From Wrinkling

The obvious solution to this one is to iron your clothes…duh. Although, what happens when you iron and they still wrinkle again as soon as you put them on? In this scenario, you need to iron your clothes in the morning and then leave at least five minutes for the ironing to set in before you put them on. This will keep the wrinkles gone for much longer.

5. How to Avoid Runs in Nylons

One of the biggest annoyances that a woman faces while working a professional job and needing to wear nylons everyday is getting a run in them. It’s embarrassing and just looks trashy. As strange as it may sound, this whole situation can be avoided by spraying your legs (while wearing the nylons) with hairspray before you run out the door. If a run happens, simply carry around clear nail polish to help battle it!

4. How to Stretch Out Shoes That are too Tight

Buying new shoes can give anyone a high, but when they are a little too tight it can make them beyond uncomfortable. To help stretch out your new shoes, fill two ziplock bags with water, place them inside your new shoes, and throw them in the freezer overnight. Problem solved!

3. How to Reduce Underarm Stains in Dress Shirts

Pit stains are beyond embarrassing! Unfortunately, they are very prevalent in the white clothing that we wear frequently. To combat this issue, spray lemon juice on the underarm area of your white shirts before washing and it will help battle the stain and keep them white.

2. How to Remove Makeup From Shirt Collars

Whether you are smooching your main or wiped your own foundation on your collared shirt…makeup stains are a pain! These can be easily removed using whatever shaving cream you happen to keep in your bathroom. Simply rub it on your shirt and the stain will rub out.

1. How to Break In New Leather Jackets

Adding a new leather jacket to your wardrobe can be a big investment and something that you are excited about showing off, but that exhilaration can quickly disappear when the jacket appears too “new.” We all know that leather looks better when it is distressed, so use water to break in your new wardrobe addition. Hint: wearing it out in the rain does the trick!

Source: TheRichest.com

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