December 16, 2025 • 23 mins
(December 16,2025)
KTLA & KFI tech reporter Rich DeMuro joins the show for ‘Tech Tuesday.’ Today, Rich talks about Google opening up live translation to all earbuds, Disney+ now available on Meta’s VR headset, Roomba filing for bankruptcy, the US government is launching a new tech task force, and the top 10 tech gifts that are on everyone’s list this year. Chinses billionaires having dozens of U.S. born babies via surrogate.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to Bill Handle on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
I Am six forty Bill Handle Here.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
It is a Tuesday morning, December sixteenth.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Quick word about Friday at.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
A thirty every Friday morning is handle ask handle anything.
And we need you to be part of it because
without you, it doesn't work. So here's what you do
during the show. You go to the iHeartRadio app and
simply click on KFI and you'll hear this show. And
there'll be a microphone in the upper right hand corner.
Click on to that and then you'll have a few
seconds to record your questions. And it's ask handle Anything.
(00:41):
And they're always fun because they're always embarrassing. Neil chooses
the questions that I answer, and so that happens at
eight thirty every Friday.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Now it's time to go to our tech guy.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Rich Dumurrow, heard every Saturday here on KFI eleven am
to two pm.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Rich on Tech. He's on kt LA every day.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
His instagram is at rich on Tech website, rich on
Tech dot TV.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
And good morning Rich.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
Good morning to you.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
Bill.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
There you are, okay, a few things to talk about,
uh and uh that's uh. We'll talk about that later,
and then we'll talk about that later.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
And that one.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
Okay, this one, Okay, you don't know which one I'm
talking about, fair enough.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
That's radio humor. You know that, rich, don't you?
Speaker 3 (01:35):
I do not, Okay, I just I just wanted I
just wanted to point that out. Uh. First one I
want to talk about is Rumba. Rumba filing for bankruptcy.
But wait a minute, isn't Rumba became the generic name
for those auto vacuums. It was like Kleenex or Xerox.
(01:56):
How does a company that is the name of the
product go into bankru.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Yeah, And it's it's a warning to anyone who gets
comfortable in their industry, no matter what role you're in,
whether you are making robot vacuums or just in general,
you always.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Have to stay ahead.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
And I think that's what happened to Robot I Robot,
the makers of Rumba. You know, remember they were the
first robot vacuum cleaner, and it you know, they're very
expensive at the beginning. They came down in price, but
I don't think they ever got to a place where
they were truly affordable for a lot of people, even
though they sold a bunch of them, but the reality
(02:35):
is this company tried to stay ahead. But I remember
getting this robot, you know, this this vacuum robot, and
it didn't even work that well. And we're talking ten,
you know, years into Roombus, and so that's when I knew, uh, oh,
this company has a problem. And I remember Amazon tried
to buy them for like two billion dollars and regulators
(02:55):
in the US said no, And so that I think
was the turning point for this company. And once that
money did not come through, that was the big issue
because during that time, we saw at every CS, we
saw all these Chinese competitors come up with new products
that were better and cheaper. Robo Rock that's one that
I am always recommending. Eco vax is another one. There
(03:18):
are so many brands out there that are making robotic
vacuums that do a better job, and especially the one
that I really like, the mop and vacuum one. That
one is just incredible from robo Rock. And so now
we see them in a place where they cannot compete.
They don't have the funding anymore, they don't have the money,
they don't have the Amazon name, and now they're bankrupt
and it's kind of sad.
Speaker 3 (03:40):
Actually, yeah, And I had one years ago and it
was supposed to miss obviously whatever sensor device go around
furniture or do something with carpets, and you're right, it
didn't work very well.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
And I never tried the other ones.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
I just, you know, I just went back to what
people normally did before, those things that are called cleaning ladies,
and those seemed.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
To be worked.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
That seemed to work out a little bit better, more expensive,
mind you, than a robo vacuum cleaner.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Do you have one at home? By the way, do
you do you use one of these things, a cleaning
lady or a robot either one. Let's talk about the robot.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
We do well we had when I actually tossed it
in the trash because it just didn't work. I same
thing as you. It's like I had this thing for testing,
and every time I used it, it would become more
effort to actually use the robotic vacuum than to just
vacuum the floor or sweep it up, because you had
to move things around, You had to hide anything that
(04:43):
was on the floor that it might you know, suck
up or try to get stuck on or whatever, and
so it just became such a pain that I was like,
all right, And then I tried the mapping feature where
it can map your different rooms. The idea Bill of
these robotic vacuums, and I'm sure there's some people listening
that are like, Rich, You're totally wrong. Like I love
my robe botic vacuum. I turn it on every day. Great,
I hope they work. But what we want these things
(05:05):
to do is, you know, the ideal scenario would be
you leave the house, you turn on the alarm, and
what happens, Oh, the robot goes, Okay, they're gone, let
me go to work and clean this floor by the
time they get back here. And some of them, yes,
can do that, but I never really got to the
point where it was that automated and that much of
a benefit to me. So again I dropped it. And
now I've got this robo rock that I can't speak
(05:26):
highly enough. It is manual, but the thing mops and
vacuums the floor and it does a fantastic job. You
just have to remember Bill to clean it out after
every time. Otherwise you do not want to smell that
water it is It'll kill you.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Okay, so you say it's manual. That's the only part
this manual. Correct, the rest of it is robotic nor
the regular vacuum. No, this is a regular vacuum cleaner,
but it's a mop at the same time. And that's
the new get it.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
Okay, I'm misunderstood a trend with the robots as well.
They're all doing the mopping and the the vacuuming at
the same time.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Okay, fair enough, All right, Rich, we do this every year.
I'm sure you do this every year on all of
your platforms.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
And that are.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
That is the discussion of the tech gifts, and we're
going to talk a little bit. Ask you to describe
the top ten gifts that should be on everyone's list
this year. Let's go through them if we can all
of them, and a.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Lot of them are Yeah, what number ten? Number ten
is the Apple air tag been around for a while,
but people still love it to keep track of everything.
Easy stocking stuff For Android users, I would recommend the
Chippolo pop that'll work with Google phones. And then if
you have a mixed kind of a bag of Android
and iPhone in your family, checkout tile that.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Works with both.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
Do you want to go to number nine.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Oh yeah, let's do them as quickly as we can. Absolutely,
because we have to go all the way down to
number one.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Number nine VR headset, So you know, Apple Vision Pro
is amazing, but to to expense, Metaquest is hitting the
sweet spot. They just added Disney Plus today so you
can watch all those movies in a VR headset. So
that is a great thing. People love that. Number eight
is an Apple product again, the Apple Watch any of them,
(07:14):
Series three, Series eleven, sorry, the se three, the Series eleven,
the Ultra three. They were all updated this year. Better health,
better sleep tracking, faster charging, So those are going to
be a great gift.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
People always love those.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
Yeah, I'm thinking I bought one early days and it
was just too complicated for me, and I'm looking at
it again because it's either easier to use or I
have a wife that's convinced I need it when I
have a heart attack.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
When I'm running.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
So you tell me that is a good reason I would.
I love mine for running and mostly for the safety
and security of it. Yes, if you're out in the
middle of nowhere running and something happens, you can call
nine one one if you get you know, the cellular
version Number seven noise canceling headphones. There are so many
out there. These are a must have if you travel.
(08:03):
The Sony wh I a silly name. Wh one thousand
x fives their last year's model, but they're still among
the best for the value. They have a new version
that are even better, but the old version you save
money and they're just as good.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
Yeah. I bought the bows and three hundred dollars is
what they cost.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
I mean there were a fortune.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
Yes, but the good news is my bows last for
a good They almost lasted for ten years, I would say,
So you know you got to do the math. Yes,
they're very expensive upfront, but if you travel a lot,
they do pay for themselves over time. Number six the Kindle.
Everyone loves a Kindle e ink I think is much
easier on the eyes than the tablet. Now they have
them in color. I've been testing the color one. It
(08:47):
actually looks pretty good. I'm very impressed. Only get that
if you read like graphic novels or you're like a
third grader. Number five or a ring, So this is
another thing your wife might want you to get. This
is one of those activity trackers on your finger. So
the Aura ring is very popular for sleep tracking. People
love the readiness score it gives them. Just remember there
(09:10):
is a monthly fee. I did see this bill at Costco,
your favor, one of your favorite places, so they're selling
them at a discount there.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
It's not like a mood ring. We're up to I
think we're at number five. You remember the mood Remember
the mood rings?
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Yeah, those were.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
Great if you if you get they give you a
score every morning of how ready you are for the day.
So if you get a bad score, like a seventy
or a fifty, you are in a bad mood. So yes,
it is kind of like a mood ring. Number four.
Smart glasses. We've talked about these a lot this year,
the meta ray bands. They are pretty much the top
(09:45):
smart glasses to beat.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
It's funny.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
I run with my Apple Watch and then these so
I have a camera so I can take a picture
in case someone does something crazy or you know, I
just see something interesting.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
So so what is Tell me what those do? So
basically they are glasses.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
They're like meta ray band or they're sorry, they're rayband
sunglasses or regular glasses with a built in camera, built
in microphone so you can take calls, listen to music.
You can also add AI so you can take photos.
I mean, there's just so many things you can do.
It's kind of like a little computer on your.
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Face and the speaker is in the ipiece part of
it that goes over your ear.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Do I have that right or do you have to
stick something in that ear? No?
Speaker 1 (10:28):
Which is great because that means when you're running like me,
you can actually hear what's going on around you. You're
not completely closed off from the outside world. So that's
what I really like about those.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Okay, number three AirPods.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
I mean I don't really need to explain those, but
they came out with two new versions this year, AirPods
four entry level AirPods Pro three is the best noise canceling.
Number two the Aura Digital Photo Frame. This thing is fantastic.
I've never met someone that doesn't like this. Basically, you
can send photos from your phone to this digital frame.
And now they just added text messaging as well, so
(11:02):
that makes life a lot easier. Get this for a
family member and you can, like Grandma or whatever, and
you can text photos right to her picture frame and
you're ready for Number one. Absolutely, Nintendo switch to number one.
This is the latest version of the handheld gaming system.
It also connects to a TV. It's got better controllers,
(11:24):
got tons of games you can play. It's easy to
find this year, which is nice. Go with a bundle
if you want the best deal. But I've posted all
of these to my Instagram at rich on Tech, so
if you want to see those, they're all there.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Hey, rich, how many of these that you test turn
into your own personal device that you would go out
and buy on your own and not even bother with
telling people about them or doing reviews.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
I would say it's very rare. It takes a lot
to get into my mix.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
Let's put it that way.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
But I will tell you out of this list, minus
the VR headset, minus the Aura ring, that's basically it.
I'm using pretty much all of these gadgets, so I
really like them. Some of them I'm using more than others,
Like the Nintendo Switch is great. They've had a couple
of games I've played. But again, you know, there's so
many gadgets that come out it takes a lot for
(12:19):
me to say, Okay, I love this and I want
to use this forever.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Got it? Okay, Rich?
Speaker 3 (12:25):
Thanks, We'll catch you over the weekend on Saturday, I'm
sure you're going to continue on with gizmo's and gadgets
to buy for the holidays and stocking stuffers.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Anyway, really quickly.
Speaker 3 (12:35):
You can follow Rich on Instagram at rich on tech website,
rich on tech dot tv every Saturday here eleven am
to two pm, and on KTLA every day.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Rich you have a good one. We'll talk again YouTube Bill.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
All right, dog, Now there's a story I wanted to
share with you, and this is what Anne brings to
the table because this is my wheelhouse, and it's a
story of Chinese billionaires having kids here in the United
States surrogacy, Okay, I mean I've been dealing with wealthy
Chinese people from the day I started surrogate parenting in
nineteen eighty and I've got a great story I'm going
(13:10):
to share with you probably the next segment of personal
story about a Chinese billionaire.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
But here is the difference. While Chinese wealthy.
Speaker 3 (13:19):
Chinese have come over four years, I mean certainly in
my world, and I was one of the first ones
out of the gate since nineteen eighty. As I said,
they have children here for all kinds of reasons. The
main one is to have a child be a US citizen.
And this is at a time when people in communist China,
(13:40):
and that's the way it was known in those days China. Now,
people who were able to mask money wanted to have
some kind of safeguards, some kind of a safety net
for their kids, and having an American passport was the
end all be all in those.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
Days and still is to a great extent.
Speaker 3 (13:56):
So these Chinese billionaires and other wealthy Chinese necessarily billionaires,
would come over and hire a surrogate mother. And since
I was practicing surrogacy law, I was the attorney and
I would put all of that together. And so I
went on my merry way and everything was fine, there
was no issue. We'd have the Chinese couple come over
(14:18):
and meet the surrogate and I'll tell you about the
first time out or one of my early early Chinese clients.
But here's what's going on. This happened in a closed
LA courtroom. The clerks were working for this family court
judge Amy Pelman, and they were looking at surrogacy petitions,
which are all over the place, and then they saw
(14:40):
one name over and over again. Wait a minute, there
was a Chinese billionaire seeking perennial lights to at least
four kids, and then additional research showed that he already
had fathered or was in the process of fathering at least.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Eight more, all through surrogate mothers.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
Well, the judge called the father, Zubo, in for a hearing.
Speaker 2 (15:08):
He never even got into the courtroom.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
He lived in China, appeared via video, speaking through an interpreter.
He said he hoped to have twenty or so US
born kids through surrogacy and boys, because that's the other thing.
This uses IVF technology, which means you can delineate the
sex of a child. And he said, because boys are
superior to girls, and he wanted a boy to take
(15:33):
over his business. And some of the kids were being
raised by nanny's and irvine awaiting paperwork to travel to China.
He hadn't even met them yet because he had been
so busy. Well, the judge denied his request for parentage
because you need a court order, because remember, a surrogate
mother is carrying the child someone other than a spouse,
(15:55):
and normally this happens almost instantly. The judge said, oh no, nope, nope, nope,
And here's why I mean the judge can just say
no and they can shop another judge.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Whatever. There's a family court judge.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
But surrogacy is still largely unregulated throughout the United States,
even though it is highly regulated here in California. And
I'm very proud of having me in responsible for the
court cases and the laws that have been passed, so
it gives tremendous protection. You know, the number of kids
(16:29):
you can have is is absolutely not established in law.
As a matter of fact, I don't think it can be.
How does the state say you can't have more than
X number of kids?
Speaker 2 (16:40):
What do you think? This is China.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
So what happens is these Chinese billionaires and elites are
going outside of the US, usually outside of China, usually
in the US, and having kids, and not just one
or two kids, but half a dozen kids simultaneously.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
And I've had, as.
Speaker 3 (17:03):
I said, Chinese families come over, Chinese business people and
they wanted more than one surrogate, and I said, you're dreaming.
I'm not going to give you two or three or
help you with two or three surrogates. That's not the
way I run my practice. It's just not going to happen.
So this has become a thing and a big thing,
and it's now being reported where these incredibly wealthy Chinese
(17:27):
men and their spouses by the way they are because
they're all married, are creating children via surrogacy. And technology
is there where they never even have to enter the
United States or even pick up their kids. They can
all be delivered. It's babies via FedEx. That's what the
(17:47):
nation'd name is a surrogacy agency. Authorities are discovering that
these Chinese billionaires are having kids via surrogate mothers here
in the States. Well, it's been going on for forty years,
except this having lots and lots of kids, in some
cases over twenty kids for one guy. Totally unregulated and
(18:09):
in reality there's I don't know if there's any way
to stop them. Certainly you've got an issue with I mean,
how many kids can someone have before the state says no,
thank you. Probably in terms of surrogacy, there can be
some controls. But this has been going on for a
long time. So here's my personal story.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
Okay, it was.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
In the early eighties. I've been doing practicing surrogate parenting.
That was my specialty is third party, third party reproductive
law surrogacy in particular, and I had as a client
a Chinese billionaire who I had never seen one before.
Will call him. I don't want to give names, so
(18:51):
we'll call him Schmooley, which by the way, is not
his real name. I just want to let you know.
So Schmooley and his wife come to me and they
want a child because his wife was infertile and they
needed a kid because Chinese people need children, and as
many people do. So they come in and we're having
(19:12):
a consultation. And I had never met a billionaire before
in my life. So he excuses himself and goes into
the restroom and I follow him p before and so
he finishes up, and he said, okay, now what I go. Wow,
(19:33):
you do it the same way all the rest of
us do it, don't you? And he said, yeah, I do.
I had developed a pretty close relationship clearly on. But
just to give you a story, and this has very
little to do with the Chinese billionaires doing this and
more and more of them. It was a personal story
because in my practice in those days, I introduced parents
(19:57):
to the surrogate mothers, and so some cases that was
it and the next time they met the surrogate mother
was at the birth of the child, and sometimes they
connected and talked and spoke throughout the pregnancy, and our
psychologists helped to help them to determine which way to go.
And in this case, the our psychologist said, you know what,
(20:18):
you've met her.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
You think she's great.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
The match is fine, and let's keep the let's keep
the connections sort of to a minimum because of the
language and culture differences. Okay, So I called a surrogate
one day, middle of summer, and I asked her how
she's doing, and she said she lived in a riverside
(20:42):
and she said, it's fine, but it's so hot here.
They didn't have air conditioning. They had bought a house
without air conditioning. It was one of the new tracks
that were coming up there, and it was inexpensive. And
then you finish everything up later, and she was complaining
about how hot it was. I go, yeah, I know,
welcome southern California. A couple of days later her I
get a phone call from her, and she is an
(21:03):
utter panic because an air conditioning crew shows up and
starts putting an air conditioning system in her house that
she hadn't ordered. And she called me in a panic,
and I said, let me, let me find out.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
I have no idea.
Speaker 3 (21:25):
So it turned out that Schmoolly not his real name,
Chinese billionaire. And I don't know how he is able
to pull this off because he didn't have her address.
He was able to somehow find out where she lived,
have an air conditioning company, probably in one of the
biggest hot spells you can imagine, show up the day
(21:48):
after he contacts them, shows up the day after I
share the fact that she was hot with him that
she was it was just too hot and they were
having a sweltering time. Was able to pull all that together,
and I go, that's what billionaires can do.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
That.
Speaker 3 (22:05):
I was stunned at how what billionaires can pull off.
And ever since then, I've been super impressed with Chinese billionaires.
Speaker 2 (22:16):
Now in terms of the number of children that.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
These billionaires are creating, and this story is about sometimes
a dozen or more using a dozen or more surrogates.
I had that request where a very wealthy man, generally Chinese,
would come in and say I want lots of kids,
and I want to hire three or four or six surrogates,
and I would say, no, it's just not the way
I do business, and one of the reasons I got
(22:43):
out of the surrogacy business is because, frankly, the stuff
that was going on was just it just wasn't for me.
It wasn't my model, it wasn't the way I did it,
and it was just I'm glad I did And here
I am making a complete ass out of myself.
Speaker 2 (23:01):
And helping you understand the world.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Okay, we'll do some more understanding of the world tomorrow morning,
five o'clock wake up call. Amy and Will Neil is
not with us this week, but I come aboard from
six to nine. Of course, and and Kono make all
of this happen, which is why we're so good at
telling you about the world. Coming up next, it is
(23:27):
Gary and Shannon. This is KFI AM sixty.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
You've been listening to The Bill Handle Show.
Speaker 3 (23:34):
Catch My Show Monday through Friday, six am to nine am,
and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
You're listening to Bill Handle on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
I Am six forty Bill Handle Here.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
It is a Tuesday morning, December sixteenth.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Quick word about Friday at.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
A thirty every Friday morning is handle ask handle anything.
And we need you to be part of it because
without you, it doesn't work. So here's what you do
during the show. You go to the iHeartRadio app and
simply click on KFI and you'll hear this show. And
there'll be a microphone in the upper right hand corner.
Click on to that and then you'll have a few
seconds to record your questions. And it's ask handle Anything.
(00:41):
And they're always fun because they're always embarrassing. Neil chooses
the questions that I answer, and so that happens at
eight thirty every Friday.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Now it's time to go to our tech guy.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Rich Dumurrow, heard every Saturday here on KFI eleven am
to two pm.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Rich on Tech. He's on kt LA every day.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
His instagram is at rich on Tech website, rich on
Tech dot TV.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
And good morning Rich.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
Good morning to you.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
Bill.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
There you are, okay, a few things to talk about,
uh and uh that's uh. We'll talk about that later,
and then we'll talk about that later.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
And that one.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
Okay, this one, Okay, you don't know which one I'm
talking about, fair enough.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
That's radio humor. You know that, rich, don't you?
Speaker 3 (01:35):
I do not, Okay, I just I just wanted I
just wanted to point that out. Uh. First one I
want to talk about is Rumba. Rumba filing for bankruptcy.
But wait a minute, isn't Rumba became the generic name
for those auto vacuums. It was like Kleenex or Xerox.
(01:56):
How does a company that is the name of the
product go into bankru.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Yeah, And it's it's a warning to anyone who gets
comfortable in their industry, no matter what role you're in,
whether you are making robot vacuums or just in general,
you always.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Have to stay ahead.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
And I think that's what happened to Robot I Robot,
the makers of Rumba. You know, remember they were the
first robot vacuum cleaner, and it you know, they're very
expensive at the beginning. They came down in price, but
I don't think they ever got to a place where
they were truly affordable for a lot of people, even
though they sold a bunch of them, but the reality
(02:35):
is this company tried to stay ahead. But I remember
getting this robot, you know, this this vacuum robot, and
it didn't even work that well. And we're talking ten,
you know, years into Roombus, and so that's when I knew, uh, oh,
this company has a problem. And I remember Amazon tried
to buy them for like two billion dollars and regulators
(02:55):
in the US said no, And so that I think
was the turning point for this company. And once that
money did not come through, that was the big issue
because during that time, we saw at every CS, we
saw all these Chinese competitors come up with new products
that were better and cheaper. Robo Rock that's one that
I am always recommending. Eco vax is another one. There
(03:18):
are so many brands out there that are making robotic
vacuums that do a better job, and especially the one
that I really like, the mop and vacuum one. That
one is just incredible from robo Rock. And so now
we see them in a place where they cannot compete.
They don't have the funding anymore, they don't have the money,
they don't have the Amazon name, and now they're bankrupt
and it's kind of sad.
Speaker 3 (03:40):
Actually, yeah, And I had one years ago and it
was supposed to miss obviously whatever sensor device go around
furniture or do something with carpets, and you're right, it
didn't work very well.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
And I never tried the other ones.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
I just, you know, I just went back to what
people normally did before, those things that are called cleaning ladies,
and those seemed.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
To be worked.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
That seemed to work out a little bit better, more expensive,
mind you, than a robo vacuum cleaner.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Do you have one at home? By the way, do
you do you use one of these things, a cleaning
lady or a robot either one. Let's talk about the robot.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
We do well we had when I actually tossed it
in the trash because it just didn't work. I same
thing as you. It's like I had this thing for testing,
and every time I used it, it would become more
effort to actually use the robotic vacuum than to just
vacuum the floor or sweep it up, because you had
to move things around, You had to hide anything that
(04:43):
was on the floor that it might you know, suck
up or try to get stuck on or whatever, and
so it just became such a pain that I was like,
all right, And then I tried the mapping feature where
it can map your different rooms. The idea Bill of
these robotic vacuums, and I'm sure there's some people listening
that are like, Rich, You're totally wrong. Like I love
my robe botic vacuum. I turn it on every day. Great,
I hope they work. But what we want these things
(05:05):
to do is, you know, the ideal scenario would be
you leave the house, you turn on the alarm, and
what happens, Oh, the robot goes, Okay, they're gone, let
me go to work and clean this floor by the
time they get back here. And some of them, yes,
can do that, but I never really got to the
point where it was that automated and that much of
a benefit to me. So again I dropped it. And
now I've got this robo rock that I can't speak
(05:26):
highly enough. It is manual, but the thing mops and
vacuums the floor and it does a fantastic job. You
just have to remember Bill to clean it out after
every time. Otherwise you do not want to smell that
water it is It'll kill you.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Okay, so you say it's manual. That's the only part
this manual. Correct, the rest of it is robotic nor
the regular vacuum. No, this is a regular vacuum cleaner,
but it's a mop at the same time. And that's
the new get it.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
Okay, I'm misunderstood a trend with the robots as well.
They're all doing the mopping and the the vacuuming at
the same time.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Okay, fair enough, All right, Rich, we do this every year.
I'm sure you do this every year on all of
your platforms.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
And that are.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
That is the discussion of the tech gifts, and we're
going to talk a little bit. Ask you to describe
the top ten gifts that should be on everyone's list
this year. Let's go through them if we can all
of them, and a.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Lot of them are Yeah, what number ten? Number ten
is the Apple air tag been around for a while,
but people still love it to keep track of everything.
Easy stocking stuff For Android users, I would recommend the
Chippolo pop that'll work with Google phones. And then if
you have a mixed kind of a bag of Android
and iPhone in your family, checkout tile that.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Works with both.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
Do you want to go to number nine.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Oh yeah, let's do them as quickly as we can. Absolutely,
because we have to go all the way down to
number one.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Number nine VR headset, So you know, Apple Vision Pro
is amazing, but to to expense, Metaquest is hitting the
sweet spot. They just added Disney Plus today so you
can watch all those movies in a VR headset. So
that is a great thing. People love that. Number eight
is an Apple product again, the Apple Watch any of them,
(07:14):
Series three, Series eleven, sorry, the se three, the Series eleven,
the Ultra three. They were all updated this year. Better health,
better sleep tracking, faster charging, So those are going to
be a great gift.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
People always love those.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
Yeah, I'm thinking I bought one early days and it
was just too complicated for me, and I'm looking at
it again because it's either easier to use or I
have a wife that's convinced I need it when I
have a heart attack.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
When I'm running.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
So you tell me that is a good reason I would.
I love mine for running and mostly for the safety
and security of it. Yes, if you're out in the
middle of nowhere running and something happens, you can call
nine one one if you get you know, the cellular
version Number seven noise canceling headphones. There are so many
out there. These are a must have if you travel.
(08:03):
The Sony wh I a silly name. Wh one thousand
x fives their last year's model, but they're still among
the best for the value. They have a new version
that are even better, but the old version you save
money and they're just as good.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
Yeah. I bought the bows and three hundred dollars is
what they cost.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
I mean there were a fortune.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
Yes, but the good news is my bows last for
a good They almost lasted for ten years, I would say,
So you know you got to do the math. Yes,
they're very expensive upfront, but if you travel a lot,
they do pay for themselves over time. Number six the Kindle.
Everyone loves a Kindle e ink I think is much
easier on the eyes than the tablet. Now they have
them in color. I've been testing the color one. It
(08:47):
actually looks pretty good. I'm very impressed. Only get that
if you read like graphic novels or you're like a
third grader. Number five or a ring, So this is
another thing your wife might want you to get. This
is one of those activity trackers on your finger. So
the Aura ring is very popular for sleep tracking. People
love the readiness score it gives them. Just remember there
(09:10):
is a monthly fee. I did see this bill at Costco,
your favor, one of your favorite places, so they're selling
them at a discount there.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
It's not like a mood ring. We're up to I
think we're at number five. You remember the mood Remember
the mood rings?
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Yeah, those were.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
Great if you if you get they give you a
score every morning of how ready you are for the day.
So if you get a bad score, like a seventy
or a fifty, you are in a bad mood. So yes,
it is kind of like a mood ring. Number four.
Smart glasses. We've talked about these a lot this year,
the meta ray bands. They are pretty much the top
(09:45):
smart glasses to beat.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
It's funny.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
I run with my Apple Watch and then these so
I have a camera so I can take a picture
in case someone does something crazy or you know, I
just see something interesting.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
So so what is Tell me what those do? So
basically they are glasses.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
They're like meta ray band or they're sorry, they're rayband
sunglasses or regular glasses with a built in camera, built
in microphone so you can take calls, listen to music.
You can also add AI so you can take photos.
I mean, there's just so many things you can do.
It's kind of like a little computer on your.
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Face and the speaker is in the ipiece part of
it that goes over your ear.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Do I have that right or do you have to
stick something in that ear? No?
Speaker 1 (10:28):
Which is great because that means when you're running like me,
you can actually hear what's going on around you. You're
not completely closed off from the outside world. So that's
what I really like about those.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Okay, number three AirPods.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
I mean I don't really need to explain those, but
they came out with two new versions this year, AirPods
four entry level AirPods Pro three is the best noise canceling.
Number two the Aura Digital Photo Frame. This thing is fantastic.
I've never met someone that doesn't like this. Basically, you
can send photos from your phone to this digital frame.
And now they just added text messaging as well, so
(11:02):
that makes life a lot easier. Get this for a
family member and you can, like Grandma or whatever, and
you can text photos right to her picture frame and
you're ready for Number one. Absolutely, Nintendo switch to number one.
This is the latest version of the handheld gaming system.
It also connects to a TV. It's got better controllers,
(11:24):
got tons of games you can play. It's easy to
find this year, which is nice. Go with a bundle
if you want the best deal. But I've posted all
of these to my Instagram at rich on Tech, so
if you want to see those, they're all there.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Hey, rich, how many of these that you test turn
into your own personal device that you would go out
and buy on your own and not even bother with
telling people about them or doing reviews.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
I would say it's very rare. It takes a lot
to get into my mix.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
Let's put it that way.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
But I will tell you out of this list, minus
the VR headset, minus the Aura ring, that's basically it.
I'm using pretty much all of these gadgets, so I
really like them. Some of them I'm using more than others,
Like the Nintendo Switch is great. They've had a couple
of games I've played. But again, you know, there's so
many gadgets that come out it takes a lot for
(12:19):
me to say, Okay, I love this and I want
to use this forever.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Got it? Okay, Rich?
Speaker 3 (12:25):
Thanks, We'll catch you over the weekend on Saturday, I'm
sure you're going to continue on with gizmo's and gadgets
to buy for the holidays and stocking stuffers.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Anyway, really quickly.
Speaker 3 (12:35):
You can follow Rich on Instagram at rich on tech website,
rich on tech dot tv every Saturday here eleven am
to two pm, and on KTLA every day.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Rich you have a good one. We'll talk again YouTube Bill.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
All right, dog, Now there's a story I wanted to
share with you, and this is what Anne brings to
the table because this is my wheelhouse, and it's a
story of Chinese billionaires having kids here in the United
States surrogacy, Okay, I mean I've been dealing with wealthy
Chinese people from the day I started surrogate parenting in
nineteen eighty and I've got a great story I'm going
(13:10):
to share with you probably the next segment of personal
story about a Chinese billionaire.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
But here is the difference. While Chinese wealthy.
Speaker 3 (13:19):
Chinese have come over four years, I mean certainly in
my world, and I was one of the first ones
out of the gate since nineteen eighty. As I said,
they have children here for all kinds of reasons. The
main one is to have a child be a US citizen.
And this is at a time when people in communist China,
(13:40):
and that's the way it was known in those days China. Now,
people who were able to mask money wanted to have
some kind of safeguards, some kind of a safety net
for their kids, and having an American passport was the
end all be all in those.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
Days and still is to a great extent.
Speaker 3 (13:56):
So these Chinese billionaires and other wealthy Chinese necessarily billionaires,
would come over and hire a surrogate mother. And since
I was practicing surrogacy law, I was the attorney and
I would put all of that together. And so I
went on my merry way and everything was fine, there
was no issue. We'd have the Chinese couple come over
(14:18):
and meet the surrogate and I'll tell you about the
first time out or one of my early early Chinese clients.
But here's what's going on. This happened in a closed
LA courtroom. The clerks were working for this family court
judge Amy Pelman, and they were looking at surrogacy petitions,
which are all over the place, and then they saw
(14:40):
one name over and over again. Wait a minute, there
was a Chinese billionaire seeking perennial lights to at least
four kids, and then additional research showed that he already
had fathered or was in the process of fathering at least.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Eight more, all through surrogate mothers.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
Well, the judge called the father, Zubo, in for a hearing.
Speaker 2 (15:08):
He never even got into the courtroom.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
He lived in China, appeared via video, speaking through an interpreter.
He said he hoped to have twenty or so US
born kids through surrogacy and boys, because that's the other thing.
This uses IVF technology, which means you can delineate the
sex of a child. And he said, because boys are
superior to girls, and he wanted a boy to take
(15:33):
over his business. And some of the kids were being
raised by nanny's and irvine awaiting paperwork to travel to China.
He hadn't even met them yet because he had been
so busy. Well, the judge denied his request for parentage
because you need a court order, because remember, a surrogate
mother is carrying the child someone other than a spouse,
(15:55):
and normally this happens almost instantly. The judge said, oh no, nope, nope, nope,
And here's why I mean the judge can just say
no and they can shop another judge.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Whatever. There's a family court judge.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
But surrogacy is still largely unregulated throughout the United States,
even though it is highly regulated here in California. And
I'm very proud of having me in responsible for the
court cases and the laws that have been passed, so
it gives tremendous protection. You know, the number of kids
(16:29):
you can have is is absolutely not established in law.
As a matter of fact, I don't think it can be.
How does the state say you can't have more than
X number of kids?
Speaker 2 (16:40):
What do you think? This is China.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
So what happens is these Chinese billionaires and elites are
going outside of the US, usually outside of China, usually
in the US, and having kids, and not just one
or two kids, but half a dozen kids simultaneously.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
And I've had, as.
Speaker 3 (17:03):
I said, Chinese families come over, Chinese business people and
they wanted more than one surrogate, and I said, you're dreaming.
I'm not going to give you two or three or
help you with two or three surrogates. That's not the
way I run my practice. It's just not going to happen.
So this has become a thing and a big thing,
and it's now being reported where these incredibly wealthy Chinese
(17:27):
men and their spouses by the way they are because
they're all married, are creating children via surrogacy. And technology
is there where they never even have to enter the
United States or even pick up their kids. They can
all be delivered. It's babies via FedEx. That's what the
(17:47):
nation'd name is a surrogacy agency. Authorities are discovering that
these Chinese billionaires are having kids via surrogate mothers here
in the States. Well, it's been going on for forty years,
except this having lots and lots of kids, in some
cases over twenty kids for one guy. Totally unregulated and
(18:09):
in reality there's I don't know if there's any way
to stop them. Certainly you've got an issue with I mean,
how many kids can someone have before the state says no,
thank you. Probably in terms of surrogacy, there can be
some controls. But this has been going on for a
long time. So here's my personal story.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
Okay, it was.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
In the early eighties. I've been doing practicing surrogate parenting.
That was my specialty is third party, third party reproductive
law surrogacy in particular, and I had as a client
a Chinese billionaire who I had never seen one before.
Will call him. I don't want to give names, so
(18:51):
we'll call him Schmooley, which by the way, is not
his real name. I just want to let you know.
So Schmooley and his wife come to me and they
want a child because his wife was infertile and they
needed a kid because Chinese people need children, and as
many people do. So they come in and we're having
(19:12):
a consultation. And I had never met a billionaire before
in my life. So he excuses himself and goes into
the restroom and I follow him p before and so
he finishes up, and he said, okay, now what I go. Wow,
(19:33):
you do it the same way all the rest of
us do it, don't you? And he said, yeah, I do.
I had developed a pretty close relationship clearly on. But
just to give you a story, and this has very
little to do with the Chinese billionaires doing this and
more and more of them. It was a personal story
because in my practice in those days, I introduced parents
(19:57):
to the surrogate mothers, and so some cases that was
it and the next time they met the surrogate mother
was at the birth of the child, and sometimes they
connected and talked and spoke throughout the pregnancy, and our
psychologists helped to help them to determine which way to go.
And in this case, the our psychologist said, you know what,
(20:18):
you've met her.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
You think she's great.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
The match is fine, and let's keep the let's keep
the connections sort of to a minimum because of the
language and culture differences. Okay, So I called a surrogate
one day, middle of summer, and I asked her how
she's doing, and she said she lived in a riverside
(20:42):
and she said, it's fine, but it's so hot here.
They didn't have air conditioning. They had bought a house
without air conditioning. It was one of the new tracks
that were coming up there, and it was inexpensive. And
then you finish everything up later, and she was complaining
about how hot it was. I go, yeah, I know,
welcome southern California. A couple of days later her I
get a phone call from her, and she is an
(21:03):
utter panic because an air conditioning crew shows up and
starts putting an air conditioning system in her house that
she hadn't ordered. And she called me in a panic,
and I said, let me, let me find out.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
I have no idea.
Speaker 3 (21:25):
So it turned out that Schmoolly not his real name,
Chinese billionaire. And I don't know how he is able
to pull this off because he didn't have her address.
He was able to somehow find out where she lived,
have an air conditioning company, probably in one of the
biggest hot spells you can imagine, show up the day
(21:48):
after he contacts them, shows up the day after I
share the fact that she was hot with him that
she was it was just too hot and they were
having a sweltering time. Was able to pull all that together,
and I go, that's what billionaires can do.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
That.
Speaker 3 (22:05):
I was stunned at how what billionaires can pull off.
And ever since then, I've been super impressed with Chinese billionaires.
Speaker 2 (22:16):
Now in terms of the number of children that.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
These billionaires are creating, and this story is about sometimes
a dozen or more using a dozen or more surrogates.
I had that request where a very wealthy man, generally Chinese,
would come in and say I want lots of kids,
and I want to hire three or four or six surrogates,
and I would say, no, it's just not the way
I do business, and one of the reasons I got
(22:43):
out of the surrogacy business is because, frankly, the stuff
that was going on was just it just wasn't for me.
It wasn't my model, it wasn't the way I did it,
and it was just I'm glad I did And here
I am making a complete ass out of myself.
Speaker 2 (23:01):
And helping you understand the world.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Okay, we'll do some more understanding of the world tomorrow morning,
five o'clock wake up call. Amy and Will Neil is
not with us this week, but I come aboard from
six to nine. Of course, and and Kono make all
of this happen, which is why we're so good at
telling you about the world. Coming up next, it is
(23:27):
Gary and Shannon. This is KFI AM sixty.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
You've been listening to The Bill Handle Show.
Speaker 3 (23:34):
Catch My Show Monday through Friday, six am to nine am,
and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
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