Popular Technology Radio

With technology progressing at such a quick pace it's getting easier for creators to produce content. This year at NAMM 2020 we discuss how the advancements of technology have made it so affordable to make music, and how companies are able to produce quality products at an affordable price, with Tech Expert, Mike Castanon. Whether we notice it or not the NAMM show has changed the way we live our lives fro...

While many headphone and other audio companies are absent from CES this year, there is still a decent number of audio tech companies on the show floor. Audio Tech Writer for the Wirecutter, SoundStage! Solo, and JazzTimes, Brent Butterworth, breaks down what we've learned about new audio tech, and chats about how CES has changed over the past 30 years. The purpose for CES has changed with online marketpla...

Every year tech companies from around the world gather at CES to show their latest and greatest. Freelance Tech and Travel Writer for CNET and The New York Times Geoffrey Morrison, chats about some of the innovative technology he's spied on the show floor at CES 2020. TCL has been making waves with Mini LED screens. Will this challenge LG's OLED tech for the top spot? Then, we discuss Next Gen TV's over-t...

Black Friday is just around the corner and we're scouring the internet for the best deals we can find. This of course means we'll talk about TVs, because as Mike Etchart and Audio Tech Writer for the Wirecutter, SoundStage! Solo, JazzTimes, Brent Butterworth, know all too well, deals on TVs are always the hottest out there around this time of year. We also discuss the importance of having good audio and h...

With Disney+ right around the corner, we take another look of the streaming video landscape. Freelance Tech and Travel Writer for CNET and The New York Times, Geoffrey Morrison, discusses the increasing number of players in movie streaming space and how much the market can bear. The average family seems to have a pain point of about 3-4 subscriptions before they dial back their spending. Then, we learn ab...

We've all enjoyed some of the amazing services that Amazon provides at one point or another, but have you checked out their growing line of consumer electronics products? Host, Mike Etchart, and Co-Founder and Digital Strategist of Label Logic, Jay Gilbert, discuss the culture of change, and customer first philosophy of Amazon, as well as their recent bevvy of new tech product announcements. If you're a f...

Cyber security is front page news these days as big tech companies and governmental organizations are getting caught up in the firestorm of hacking and data breaches. So how do these breaches come to be? Chief Evangelist for Saviynt, and cyber security expert, Diana Volere, discusses the issues that come with living in a technologically advanced world. Corporations and organizations constantly feel the pr...

The automotive and technology worlds clash often, but nowhere are the lines of tech and motor company blurred as much as with the rising electric vehicle market. JoshCAR Hollywood Car Consultant, Josh Hancock, joins us to discuss the new Porsche Taycan and whether or not Tesla should be quaking in their boots regarding this vehicle's release. Then we chat about the public's lower anxiety over the range of...

What is your favorite way to listen to music these days? Are you still a physical record listener, or have you jumped on the Spotify band wagon? Perhaps you listen to an obscure digital service provider (DSP) like Deezer or Music Aficionado. Whatever your cup of tea happens to be, we're discussing the rise of streaming services, and where they may be headed in the future today with Co-Founder of Label Log...

With the news that Nate Mitchell is leaving Facebook, we thought it'd be a great time to check in on the augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) worlds. Gameplay Productions Owner and Director, Cheyenne Decker, discusses the impact of Oculus Rift and the amazing team of visionaries behind the project on the world of virtual reality today. We also chat about the advancement of augmented reality and...

If you've ever thought that big corporate mergers don't affect you, you might be wrong. Mike shines a light on the constant bad hand that consumers get after mergers like the AT&T and Time Warner merger. Then, Writer for The Wirecutter and Editor for SoundStage! and JazzTimes, Brent Butterworth, tells us about the random tornado that came through his part of the greater Los Angeles area and why he's getti...

If there's one thing we've learned as consumers, its that huge corporate mergers never work out in our favor. Freelance Writer, Editor, and Photographer for CNET and The New York Times, Geoffrey Morrison, discusses the proposed merger between T-Mobile and Sprint that has the attorneys general of California, Texas, and New York up in arms. There are a couple of weird facets about this merger that leave us...

If you're a frequent listener of Popular Technology Radio, you've probably heard The Wirecutter Writer and Writer and Editor for SoundStage! Solo, Brent Butterworth, talk about the phenomenon called 'eardrum suck'. This painful, psychosomatic condition afflicts some users of high end noise cancelling headphones, but thankfully the new Bose NC 700 Headphones have a remedy. These $399 replacements for the B...

The news reached us at Popular Technology Radio recently that Jony Ive will be departing from Apple after many years of splendid and revolutionary product design. This departure comes with an asterisk, as he will be setting up shop in a new design studio and his first customer will be Apple. Award Winning Product Design Consultant, Todd Metlen, discusses Jony Ive's unquestionable impact on the world of de...

The biggest trade show in the video games industry recently wrapped up in southern California, and we have our eyes on a few upcoming games revealed at the expo. Gameplay Productions Owner and Director and veteran of the gaming industry, Cheyenne Decker, discusses the rapid pace at which the gaming industry is changing; from trade shows, to consoles, to cloud computing. We also chat about our favorite gam...

When the iPod was released in October of 2001, the world of music changed and changed further still when it was followed up by the release of the iTunes store. Digital Strategist and Co-Founder of Label Logic, and Host of Your Morning Coffee, Jay Gilbert, remembers the history of the iPod and iTunes in light of the recent announcement that iTunes will see the biggest change since it was established 18 yea...

If you feel like your cable internet bill has growing curiously big over the last few years, you're not the only one. Kicking off the show, host, Mike Etchart, remembers the good old days of dial up internet and his $9/month American Online (AOL) bill. Then, we chat with Consumer Columnist for The Los Angeles Times, David Lazarus, about the cable companies stranglehold on regional broadband internet servi...

The TV market has become saturated with jaw-droppingly cheap televisions that still look nice; but don't get too comfortable, there are still plenty of pitfalls to avoid when making a purchase. Freelance Writer, Editor, and Photographer for CNET and The New York Times and Writer for The Wirecutter, Geoffrey Morrison, has written, and talked, and thought, and ranted, and raved about a lot of the misconcept...

Cellular carriers are not loved, but we sure wouldn't want to live without them. As much ire as U.S. telecom companies might face, they are a necessary evil; but which companies have the best plans? Thankfully, The Wirecutter Contributor, Rob Pegoraro, reveals to us some of the inner workings of how cell phone carriers operate, the difference between prepaid and postpaid plans, and the limits of 5G. We al...