DT Daily: Fast-charging phone charger, iPhone speaker case, tech leaders on tech spying

By Bill Roberson October 10, 2014

Today on DT Daily: A portable phone recharger pushes charging speed limits, upgrading the sound of your iPhone, and Google’s chairman says the U.S. government is going break the Internet.

High rates of battery drain with modern cell phones are nothing now, that’s why there’s a whole industry around portable charging solutions. But the Pronto charger is different.

Currently on Kickstarter, the Pronto 12 portable charger can juice most phones up to 9 times, but the really neat feature is how fast it will charge up itself! Power Practical says plugging in the Pronto 12 for just 5 minutes will sponge up enough electrons to completely re-gas an iPhone. And with a full charge, it can even power a laptop using a 12-volt adapter. Plus, it’s built tough and features a handy strap to keep your phone from dangling.

Power Practical is no stranger to kickstarter, either. Their last idea, the Power Pot, landed them on the TV show Shark Tank, where Mark Cuban decided to invest in the company. The Pronto chargers should ship next summer.

Compared to even mediocre speakers or headphones, the music coming from the speakers of your iPhone could best be described as tinny. Or, to be honest, let’s just say “crappy.”

The crew of golden-eared folks at Amp have a solution, though: a svelte iPhone case that packs two much better speakers, a battery, and most important, a 24-bit DAC for taking your headphone listening to the next level. It also works as a much improved speakerphone and can charge your phone in a pinch. The Amp app can customize and equalize the sound according to your hearing, musical tastes and listening environment. Sounds good to us!

The AMP iPhone case will debut next year but you can preorder one now for half off MSRP, or about $70, so check the link below for more details, and get ready to pump up the volume.

Edward Snowden’s disclosures that the U.S. government was spying on, well, just about everybody has driven a wedge between the Feds and many tech companies, and no one made that clearer than Google boss Eric Schmidt at a recent meeting of concerned tech leaders.

Organized by Oregon Senator Ron Wyden and taking place in the heart of Silicon Valley, the meeting was an airing of grievances about government intrusion into users’ private data – and Schmidt got everyone’s attention when he said continued unwarranted surveillance could end up “breaking the Internet.” He also said the lingering impact of the spying was “severe and getting worse.”

But could the tide be turning? Apple’s iPhone 6 running iOS8 is essentially spook-proof, and it’s given Apple a legal and technical way to say “we can’t” if Uncle Sam asks them to peek inside someone’s iPhone. Other companies may follow suit. We’d like to hear what you do to keep your private data… private, so leave a comment below.

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