- A ‘claw machine’ for the home? I catch up with Arcade 1Up’s Cyrus Rosenberg about the company’s latest machine for the home – and it’s not an arcade machine or digital pinball table
- Tripp Grant, Senior Director of Partnerships at uBreakiFix by Asurion talks with us about the “right to repair,” following a NYC event co-hosted with Google and iFixit
- A baby stroller that can rock you little one to sleep? I interview Jon McGuire from CYBEX North America, the folks behind the e-Gazelle S electric stroller
- Thank you to Visa, Norton, and Sandisk for your support!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the ever changing world
of technology? Check it Out can help make some sense
of it all. Breaking down GeekSpeak into street speak. Technology columnist, author,
and TV personality Mark Saltzman covers consumer technology each week
for every listener, Mark tackles the latest news, reviews, and
how toos to help you understand what's hot, what's not
(00:22):
and why.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Hey, everyone, welcome to tack it Out. This is episode
four eighteen for those who are keeping track and wanted
to thank you for tuning into the program, whether you're
doing so on your favorite local talk radio station or
in podcast form. Tack it Out welcomes Norton as a
new partner on this program along with Visa. Both companies
(00:46):
in fact, committed to protecting you from fraud in different ways,
but we're going to get to that in due time.
Let me tell you what's on top for today, because
we have three great guests lined up for you. We're
going to start off chatting with Asurian. They're the folks
behind you break I fix those stores that repair your devices.
After that, a claw machine for your home. Yep, you
(01:07):
don't have to go to your local fair anymore. Carnivals
you can enjoy this with your friends and family in
your home. And finally, we're going to learn about an
e stroller for new or expectant parents who want some
help pushing their baby around town. This is pretty wild stuff,
so some very cool innovations on this week's Check it Out.
All right, let's officially kick things off with our first interview.
(01:30):
When it comes to consumer electronics, you may have heard
the trend towards repair ability, or the right to repair,
as it's often referred to, letting users fix rather than
replace their own tech, often with a third party professional
service helping out. And Google recently held an event at
its flagship Chelsea, New York location along with You Break,
(01:50):
I Fix by Asurian and I Fix It, which offers
free repair guides for virtually everything. Joining us to discuss
this trend of repair ability, We're joined on the line
by Trip Grant, he's senior director of Partnerships at You Break,
I Fix. Welcome to the show, Trip, Good to chat
with you.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Yeah, hey, good afternoon.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
Before we talk about repair ability, tell us a bit
about a Sure in which is the company that owns
you Break I Fixed stores.
Speaker 4 (02:16):
Yeah that's right, so yeah, sure you On. It's a
global tech care company, big company. They're best known for
cell phone protection plans, but they actually partnered with all
kinds of companies to provide tech care services real. They
across full life cycle for device, from setup an onboard,
and everything from troubleshooting to trade in.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
They have all sorts of programs.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
But yeah, several years ago they acquired You Break I Fix,
and you Break I Fix is kind of retail repair
arm of a Surrey on the network of nearly seven
hundred tech repair stores across the US, and we say
we could fix anything with a power button. A lot
of people associate us with mobility repair, but it's it's
really more to it than that. You know, we fix
(02:55):
a ton of phones, we take, We fixed computers, tablets,
game consoles, but we all kinds of devices, everything from
like light up Santa clauses to anything.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I actually got a Walkman fixed at a break.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
I fixed, Wow, Sony Walkman. That's correct, that's great class.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
But today, I.
Speaker 4 (03:12):
Mean today we've prepared over twenty four million devices and
we still repair about three and a quarter million a year.
So yeah, it's it's very robust repair focused business.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Wow. So yeah, congrats that's really impressive. And I've had
your CEO of view break I Fixed on the show
before Dave Barbudo to chat about the company, and it's
really impressive how much you've grown, all right, Trip. So
Google recently hosted an event about repair ability. What is
this trend here that they're addressing.
Speaker 4 (03:40):
Yeah, repair ability is really important really across the particularly
of the mobile device industry, and it is a trend,
but it's something that I would say has really been
developing over the last several years since smartphones obviously became mainstream.
When it was first go to market, it was really
about launching device since they had really robust capabilities, right,
(04:02):
that's what would drive you know, user experience, use satisfaction,
and things of that nature. But you know, over time,
what OEMs like such as Google have come to learn
is that a big part of consumer's experience with the
device is the sustainability of that device and how long
that device will last. Repairing for durability is you know,
(04:24):
first and foremost, because you don't want the device to break,
but accidents happen, things can occur, and when the device breaks,
a user really wants to feel confident that they can
do something about that that this is an expensive device,
and obviously it become more and more expensive.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
Yeah, time, you would think these big companies like Google
and Apple, and not to pick on just them, but
they want you to just buy a new device, right.
I mean there's this whole you know, conspiracy about quote
unquote planned obs lescence. You know, where your phone or
other devices just doesn't work as well as it used to.
We should have the right to be able to repair it.
It's also good for the environment, let's consider that too.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
Yeah, I mean I think that you know, it's true
that there's definitely objectives in terms of selling devices, but
at the end of the day, a customer whose device
breaks down and earlier than they anticipated may not buy
the same device for their next device. And so having
that durability and repair ability is really an important aspect.
And again Google obviously hosting an event about this, but
(05:25):
it's really universal across the OEMs. They've all made improvements
on these on the repair ability this factor, and we've
seen that really and really with each new product that
they introduce. First version of a device may have more
challenges when it comes to repair ability, but as they
come out with new versions they've really addressed certain problems,
Okay along the way, and.
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Just to bring everyone up to speed, OEM is original
equipment manufacturer, so it just means brands like Google or Samsung.
Speaker 3 (05:52):
That's correct.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Okay, thank you for that. Yeah, so this isn't just
for folks at home to take a stab at it, right,
like a DIY approach. We're there with the little screwdriver
and we're trying to replace, you know, a screen or something.
But again, this is where you break. Our fix comes in, right.
We want to be able to bring it to a
third party and have someone fix it even while we wait.
In some instances, that's correct.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
Yeah, I think that right to repair it has a lot.
Speaker 4 (06:17):
To do with enabling the end users themselves to repair
their devices themselves if they so wish. But just like
your car, I'm able to change my own oil on
my car. I know how to do that, but it's tedious,
and you know, sometimes I don't have full confidence when
I put it all back together that it's going to
(06:37):
be on as tight as it needs to be, and
so I like professionals to do that. Mobile devices are
even more so in that way, in the sense that
there's a higher level of comfort and getting a professional
to take care of that and bring you know, all
their expertise into that repair and really getting it up
(06:58):
and running to you know, it's peak ability. So that
that's you know, to me, where you break I Fixed
or you know, a repair company is going to bring
a higher peace of mind and greater level of success
to a degree on the repair.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Is it less expensive generally to bring it to a
store like a you break I Fix in a strip
plaza or in the mall than going to directly to Apple,
Samsung and the like. Ituld probably faster when it.
Speaker 3 (07:26):
Comes to cost. I mean, it can be less expensive,
but it may not be transparently. Okay that being said,
it you know will't there.
Speaker 4 (07:34):
Sometimes you get what you pay for, right, and so
the level of professionalism and experience that you can get
from a professional repair shop will often exceed that you
can get elsewhere. Also, when it comes to you break
I Fix specifically, we're committed to using almost entirely ohem,
original parts, So parts originate from the manufacturer themselves, right.
Speaker 3 (07:56):
Got it?
Speaker 4 (07:56):
So you come to you Break I Fixed store to
get a Google Pixel repaired, We're going to be using
a Google Pixel Park stands true for across multiple manufacturers
that we have contractual relationships and commitments to doing so. Yeah, great,
and so that I think brings a high level of
confidence as well. It'll be a high quality part, high
quality repair using OEM tools, software testing, all that type
(08:21):
of stuff that we that we have available to us
in the stores.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
And there's a warranty or a guarantee after the work's done.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
Yeah, it's almost all work that we do.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
Almost all the repairs that we do have a one
year warranty after that, so any recurring issues that should
have been taken care of in the repair can be
repaired under that warranty.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
We are chatting with Trip Grant, Senior director of Partnerships.
That you break, I fix by Assurian or I like
how you say it better a shore yad? Is that right?
How do you say it?
Speaker 3 (08:50):
Honestly? I don't know.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
I like it better the way I've bed say it.
Speaker 4 (08:53):
I mean that I say it wrong, but I don't
know if or to be honest, I've worked here for
almost ten years.
Speaker 2 (08:59):
But it's their name on your paycheck, so whatever you're doing,
you're doing it right. But I thought it was a
Sureian but a Surrey on it sounds more high tech
the way you say it before we wrap up trip
is Google's push for repair ability a big deal.
Speaker 4 (09:12):
I think that Google is really doing great work to
continue to progress this again across the industry that is
already focused on it. It's about raising the bar right,
It's about continuing to look at what makes a person
more confident when they open up this device that they
are going to complete what they set out to do.
(09:34):
So for Google, they're putting a lot of focus on
reducing the adhesives that are used, of reducing this the
variety of screws that are used, all these different types
of things. They go a long way again just in
giving confidence to the person performing their repair, whether somebody
doing it at home or a professional that's done the
same repair twenty times before.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
That it's really important.
Speaker 4 (09:58):
That when you design the product, it's not just about
designing it for functionality, it's about designing it for repair,
knowing that repair is probable at some point in the
life cycle of that device. So so yeah, it's really
good work that they're doing. The watch that they've just
recently launched is a great example of that. Having no
adhesives involved, and I think that's a bit of a
(10:18):
snapshot into the future of progress that we've already made
and yet more progress that will be made for mobile
devices across the board.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Great. And then finally, where can we learn more about
you break I Fix by Assurian.
Speaker 4 (10:31):
You can get more information about you break I fix
services on store locations, different partnerships that we have say things.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
About nature at youbreakifix dot com.
Speaker 4 (10:40):
If you're interested in following the repair ability journey and
how we play a role in that. On our website,
you can click over to our newsroom and that's where
we share a lot of details about any events like
the one that we did with Google last week.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
All that information's there, so it's a great resource.
Speaker 4 (10:57):
And again we're really proud about the role that we
play in this industry and there's more information available there.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Great. Thanks trip. So that's you break I Fixed. That's
the letter you break and then the letter I Fix.
Thank you so much for your time, Thanks so much.
When we return on teck it out a claw machine
for your home, yep, not in an arcade, not at
your local fair or carnival. We're going to hear what's
new from Arcade one up the company. When we return
on tech it Out, stay with.
Speaker 5 (11:23):
Us listen to check it out whenever you want to
find the check it Out podcast, did I Too, or
wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Welcome back to check it Out. Before we learn about
a claw machine for your home, I wanted to spend
a moment talking about Norton three point sixty with LifeLock,
your comprehensive solution that bundles device security and identity theft protection.
Tech it Out has proudly partnered with Norton as they
protect your PC, MAC and mobile devices from viruses, ransomware,
(12:02):
and malware, and LifeLock takes it a step further, constantly
monitoring for the fraudulent use of your personal info, whether
it's your social insurance number or bank accounts. If a
threat is detected, you receive an alert. If the worst
happens and your identity is stolen, a dedicated US based
identity restoration specialist will be there to personally help fix it. Plus,
(12:23):
with the million dollar protection package, you get coverage for
stolen funds and expenses. Norton three sixty with LifeLock gives
you the power to defend your entire digital life, Stop
patching together, protection, get all in one piece of mind
with Norton three sixty with LifeLock. Visit Norton dot com today. Hey,
if you like claw machines, you know the ones you'd
(12:44):
find at a carnival or a Chuck E Cheese and
in movies like Toy Story a Dynastic, then you're gonna
love what Arcade one up has just released with a
home yep, a claw machine to test your skill and
picking up prizes using those little levers and such. Joining
us on the line to grab our attention is Arcade
one Up's Cyrus Rosenberg. He's senior vice president of Licensing
(13:07):
and business Development. Welcome to the show, Cyrus, good to
chat with you.
Speaker 6 (13:10):
Thank you.
Speaker 7 (13:10):
I'm super excited to be here.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Hope you didn't mind the bad dad putting off the
top of grabbing our attention. But yes, before we talk
about the Arcade one up claw machine, tell us a
bit about the company. I guess Arcade one up is
best known for your arcade machines that many a man
cave and she shed has no doubt and digital pinball
as well.
Speaker 7 (13:31):
Absolutely, yeah, glad to and we got to find a
term that encompasses the whole family. But I love man Cave,
and she said back in twenty eighteen. Arcade one Up
was founded based on the idea of a white space
of coming from a toy background. We have so many
people who employed their company who are just true fans,
fans of pop culture, fans of family entertainment, and fans
(13:53):
of the IP that we work with, and through that fandom,
we kind of made an interesting discovery, which is there
is a pleas there is a mountain of top quality,
amazing video game experiences that do not exist on their
original hardware. Coupled with the fact that given the time
that has gone by since the original Arcade boom, there
are so many technological enhancements that the right company could
(14:18):
make if given the time, and we really set out
on that mission to create the best, most authentic version
of these classic arcade games for at home consumer use.
Through that, we kind of went on a little adventure
of our own, constantly improving our products by adding features
like Wi Fi, multiple games per unit, allowing them to
(14:39):
be assembled so they can be flat packed, and all
sorts of other great enhancements. But was really exciting for
us is that the original item became kind of the
line which became ultimately a category, and we as fans
ourselves saw this brand grow and we saw lots of
different people build out there at home game rooms using
our product, which allowed us the creative freedom to kind
(15:02):
of expand. And that's where you get these additional products,
like what comes after arcade machines, We should make a
pinball unit, what would people put on the wall? Maybe
an at home photo booth, which we launched last year,
And of course the item we're talking about today, which
is our at home claw machine and personally one of
my favorite items, honestly.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
All right, So without further ado, let's get to that.
As the name suggests, it looks like and operates like
a claw machine that you would find at a carnival.
Speaker 8 (15:30):
Is that fair?
Speaker 7 (15:31):
Yes, absolutely, And like all of our machines, authenticity is
kind of the foundation of how we build out our products.
So it does have all of the kind of features
one would expect with a claw machine, such as different
difficulty settings, but also what I'm most excited about, which
is a real commercial grade claw inside of there, so
(15:53):
it is grabbing to the efficacy of other claw machines
you might find in a commercial arcade, but of course
made for at home use for you and the family.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
All right, So for those who haven't played with one
of these things before, and correct me if I'm wrong,
it's usually two levers. There's one that moves the claw
left and right and forward and back. There's usually a
glass cabinet that has the prizes inside, whether it's stuffed
animals or candy inside of a ball or something like that.
And then the other lever or it's a button that
(16:23):
you press for the claw to then descend down into
the mountain of stuff, and your goal is to try
to pick it up without it slipping, and then you
get to keep it it falls into a little receptacle
and then you can take it out. The front is
yours pretty much the same idea at its core.
Speaker 7 (16:39):
Absolutely, I honestly don't think I could have said it
better myself. This is actually a fully featured, authentic claw
machine experience, just simply designed for at home use. So yes,
it is a fully featured control deck in which you
are in control of the claw and the actual drop,
with the ultimate goal being to win a prize from
our machine. But what makes this so great for at
(17:00):
home use is that our machine is refillable at the
consumer level, so we actually include twelve capsules alongside that
are perfectly fitted for the claw to be able to
pick up depending on your challenge mode, so you can
fill it with all walks of different prizes that you yourself
thought of or that are readily available. So it really
is a customizable consumer version, all right, And.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
I'm going to ask you more about the difficulty settings
in a moment and a few other features that I
know our audience is going to want to learn about.
We are chatting about the Arcade one up Claw machine
that you can put in your home. Great for birthday
parties or when you're having some friends over a sports game,
you know, loaded up with some snacks or some fun
branded merch as the grand prize to your favorite team.
(17:44):
There's so much you can do with it. I love
the idea. Arcade one Up, of course, is best known
for replicating those classic eighties and nineties arcade games and
even pinball machines for the home. So we are going
to continue chatting in a moment with Arcade one Up
to learn more about the Claw machine. Want to reach
out on social media to say hi, it's Mark Saltzman,
Mark with the C, Saltsman with the Z. You can
(18:06):
find me on all the major platforms. Let me know
what you think of Tech it out and if you
have any tech questions or check it out. Coming right
up after this short break, want.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
To follow Mark Google, Mark with a C and Saltzman
with a Z breaking down geeks peak into street speak.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
This is check it out to check it out.
Speaker 1 (18:35):
With technology columnist, author and TV personality Mark Saltzman.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Welcome back to check it out. We're chatting with Cyrus Rosenberg.
He's SVP of Licensing and Business Development at Arcade one Up.
This is a company best known for its three quarter
sized arcade units from MS pac Man to Golden Tea Golf.
They also have a digital pinball solution where you can
swap between different boards digitally. There's also a games table
(19:04):
called Infinity that has digital versions of classic board games.
But now the company has released the Arcade one Up
claw machine, just like the one that you'd find at
your local fare in your city, a carnival, or at
a Chuck e Cheese, but it's in your own home
and we're learning all about it all right, and I'm
going to ask you more about the difficulty settings in
a moment, so you're responsible for filling it up again.
(19:25):
I mentioned stuffed animals earlier, but you can put whatever
you want inside of those things. So if you've got
a kid's birthday party that's a particular theme, then as
a parent, you can fill it up and have the
kids play and collect something that's relevant to the day.
Or if it's Christmas, you may have some stalking stuffers
in there. Does it have to fit in the capsules
(19:45):
that you provide those little plastic balls if you will,
or can you pick up a stuffy if you don't
want to use those balls?
Speaker 7 (19:52):
Absolutely, so I can explain that a little bit more so.
We actually do a lot of product testing, which I
say testing, but it really means off in the office
love to play these products. But it picks up all
sorts of different items. In our office alone, we filled
it with different kind of trinkets, action figures. We even
put a mini skateboard in there at one point. The
(20:13):
capsules are designed to be if you will, kind of
an adapter. I can guarantee the claw will pick it
up if you put it in a capsule, But we
are very pro experimentation at our cab one up and
we love seeing fans come up with the items that
we haven't even ourselves thought of, so we wanted to
leave that open possibility. So there's lots of different items
that can be picked up with the claw.
Speaker 2 (20:34):
You mentioned difficulty settings. I think at the pain point
for many people who have ever tried to use a
claw machine is that the claw itself is very loose,
and you know, you think you've grabbed that object that
you want, you're hoisting it up and you think it's
yours and then it falls through. So is that something
that you can tweak?
Speaker 7 (20:51):
Absolutely, And let me give you a little industry reveal here.
Speaker 2 (20:54):
Please let's get this scoop.
Speaker 7 (20:57):
But of course, you know, the very first thing when
we come up with any product line is really authenticity.
And there's a certain level of responsibility with our products
because they're so nostalgia based. They are based on a
memory someone might have, so with that requires a lot
of research before even beginning development. And in researching how
the commercial claw machine industry actually works is it's actually
(21:19):
a system of odds. So what a difficulty setting is
representative of of and the commercial level is the odds
that the claw will actually pick up the item, and
let's say maybe one out of three hundred times, one
out of five hundred times. The actual claw operator sets
those odds behind the scene. However, we wanted to make
(21:40):
sure our claw machine was consumer friendly and fun for
the whole family. So while it is a system of odds,
we have easy mode, normal mode, and scam mode, and well,
I'm not going to reveal exactly the odds those represent.
I'm very excited for our consumers to kind of play
around with it and figure it out. But yeah, we
wanted to make it adjustable because again it's a family product,
(22:03):
and you know, family takes many different shapes and forms.
But we wanted a young person to be able to
experience it and have as much fun as somebody in
retirement and everything in between.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Love it and tell us a bit more about the
way it looks and sounds. Does it have like a
light up marquee? Are there any sound effects?
Speaker 7 (22:20):
Absolutely so. There are lights actually on the control deck
as well as the marquee itself, and there's very different
tunes and songs and sound effects to really enhance the experience,
as well as adjustable volume, so if you are throwing
a claw machining party in which this is meant to
be your centerpiece. It has all of the effects to
draw a crowd in. If this is something to distract
(22:41):
someone in the household, or something that you might want
a little quieter, we've of course accommodated that. So again,
customization is very important to us, because because while we
are basing these machines, whether it be claw or arcade machine,
on an original idea, we want to adapt these to
the needs of the modern consumer.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
Great, and I know you offer a volume control and
all that on your arcade machines too, which is very handy,
something that you did not find in the eighties with
the coin op arcade machines. The Galagha that you played
could not change the volume all right? And then finally,
who would you say this is for exactly? I mean,
I love the versatility of you being in control of
difficulty and the prizes and all that. Is it for kids?
(23:19):
Can you put adult toys in there? If it's like
a bachelorette party? Tells who you think the target audience is.
Speaker 7 (23:25):
We design our products for what we call families, but
what we mean by that is we design it for
all age groups. And you can really see that by
the consumers who have already taken to the internet to
kind of praise this claw Machine. Of we really believe
in bringing in person entertainment together, so we definitely want
(23:46):
kids to be able to play it, but all age
groups can have fun with the claw Machine due to
the customizable features. I've seen college kids buy and enjoy
our claw Machine. I have also seen kids under preschool
have the best time with it and kind of everything
in between. I actually just got my parents one and
they love it as well. So you know, we really
(24:07):
intend for everybody to kind of find a meeting point
with our products.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
Awesome. And then with that in mind, how much does
the Arcade one up claw Machine cost? Where can we
buy it? I don't know if you have retail support
or if it's through your website, and is there a
place where we can learn more?
Speaker 7 (24:22):
Absolutely so, the claw Machine is four ninety nine and
the best place for up to date product information would
be Arcade one up dot com.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
All right, arkad one up dot com. The one is
number one. Cyrus, great to chat with you. Congrats on
the launch of the claw Machine. I can't wait to
try it out myself. Thanks again, thank you and thank
you for having me. I mentioned earlier that Norton is
a new partner on Tech it Out, and they join Visa,
a long term partner on this program as well. We
(24:51):
cover cybersecurity a lot on this program and how you
can best protect yourself in the digital age, even if
you're not super tech savvy. One part of the solution
is securely shopping online, and so I'm thrilled about my
partnership with Visa on Tech it Out, as they've made
some significant investments in fraud prevention over the past five years,
as much as ten billion dollars yes that's billion with
(25:14):
a bee to support Visa's brand promise to protect the
financial information of individuals and businesses. Zero liability means peace
of mind when you shop online using your Visa card.
There can be no half measures when it comes to cybersecurity,
which is why the company takes an aggressive and multi
layered approach to combating the rising threat of malicious software
(25:34):
and other threats by well funded and global criminal enterprises.
Read more about Visa and how securing the world's payments
is priority one at Visa dot Com slash security. That's
Visa dot Com slash security. When we return on tech
it Out, We're going to talk with a company called
Cybex to learn about its electric stroller yep for babies
(25:56):
and small toddlers. It's called the Gazelle family of e
strollers or electric strollers. Boy, have times changed. My twins
are now twenty three and my youngest is twenty one,
so we did not have anything like this to say
the least. So yes, the Cybex Gazelle S stroller. We're
going to learn all about this new product line when
we return on teck it Out after this short break, stay.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
With us breaking down geeksbeak into street speak Check it
Out hosted by Mark Saltzman.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
Welcome back everyone, you're listening to Teck it Out. Fun fact,
baby strollers have been around since the seventeen hundreds, when
William Kent, a landscape architect, designed a shelf shaped basket
on wheels, but the carriage was initially designed to be
pulled by ponies or dogs or even goats and not pushed.
(26:56):
The prams that you push came in the mid nineteenth century. Okay,
so fast forward to the two thousands and hey, now
we have electric strollers, e strollers and we're now going
to hear about one with John McGuire. He's VP of
Product Management for Cybex North America. These are the folks
behind the E Gazel S as it's called, which I
just saw for the first time yesterday. Welcome to the show, John,
(27:18):
good to chat with you.
Speaker 8 (27:19):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Why don't we jump right in? Tell us please about
the E gazell S stroller.
Speaker 8 (27:25):
Sure?
Speaker 6 (27:25):
So, the E S stroller is based off of our
Gazelle stroller that was launched in twenty twenty And basically,
the Egazel is a stroller that provides innovation and basically
has a power assist mode that's incorporated into the stroller.
If you think about it in today's world of e
bikes and e scooters, it's similar technology where you have
(27:48):
power either on demand or selectable that is rechargeable with
lithium ion battery. Again, just trying to make the consumer
experience with the product easier and it's very adaptable, all right.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
So with that in mind, it's been said good technology
solves a problem. What's wrong with regular strollers? How do
you make parents' lives easier?
Speaker 6 (28:06):
Yeah, So, the E Gazel because it has so many
different configurations the Egazel can actually go from a single
to a double stroller, so really, depending on your lifestyle,
it can really solve a lot of different problems. I'll
give you a couple examples of that. First one being
if you live in an area with lots of hills,
the Egazell provides power to go uphill, but it also
has power breaking to go downhill and really does that
(28:28):
with the breeze. You can also use the stroller to
stroll on uneven surfaces. So say, for example, you're a
consumer that likes to go for walks in a park
on a nature trail. If you're using the stroller in snow,
potential or even sand, it allows the stroller to operate
much better and provides assistance in those environments as well.
(28:49):
And then lastly, if you're using the stroller with two children,
so in the case of using it as a double stroller,
you could potentially be pushing around eighty to one hundred
pounds with the stroller. So consumers with two children may
choose to use the power feature even on flat services
or using it all the time.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
All right, So if I can unpack your answer here,
the two main advantages to the egaz l s stroller.
Is that A. It's electric, so you push a small
lever if I remember correctly, and it assists you to
push it, and that really is helpful when you've got
a couple of kids, and I have twins, so I
can relate up a hill and on uneven surfaces as
(29:26):
you said, or in snow or sand and that kind
of thing at the beach. And B is that it's modular.
You hint it at multiple configurations, right, So you can
you can add a basket, remove one, you can put
in a car seat that's compatible. You can have a
little like grocery area in the back that I saw yesterday,
that kind of thing.
Speaker 8 (29:43):
Right.
Speaker 2 (29:43):
It's so you can add more or remove parts over
time to the same core device.
Speaker 6 (29:48):
That's correct. Yeah, there's over twenty two different configurations that
you can create with a stroller. As you mentioned, you
can use it with a stroller seat, you can use
it with an infant car seat, which we would then
call it a travel system. Yeah, and you can also
use it with a basinette. So because of the different configurations,
that really has an option that can work for any lifestyle.
Speaker 2 (30:07):
What's so cool is something called a rocking mode that's
something that normal stroller can't do.
Speaker 1 (30:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (30:12):
Absolutely, And this is actually one of my favorite features
and we get a lot of positive feedback from consumers.
The Egazel has a feature called the Rocking Mode that
basically you can set to three different intervals. You basically
set the brake, you power it on, you hit a button,
and it goes into this automatic rocky mode to basically
help soothe your child. It'll run for twenty minutes and
(30:33):
then it'll automatically turn off. And for anybody that's ever
taken a stroller to a coffeehouse or out to dinner
and you're having to sit there and use your hand
or your foot to rock the stroller, you're really going
to appreciate that feature.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
Now, look, I'm not a tall guy. Can I climb
in there? Because that sounds like something I could take
advantage of for a little nap. There is a weight limit,
but maybe it might fit fair enough. And just going
back to the way it works John before we move on.
So it is a small lever that is near your
right thumb if that's fair and it's under the handle.
Speaker 8 (31:03):
It's intuitively placed. You just press it correct. It's selectable.
So basically it's very ergonomic. You use your thumb for
going forward, You just press with your thumb and then
depending on how hard you press, that will affect the
speed of the stroller. And then when you're going into
a downhill mode or a breaking mode, use your index
finger and there's another lever, very ergonomic again that you
(31:25):
just press in reverse and that operates as a break.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
Okay, And speaking of which, if any listeners are concerned
that they think the stroller is just going to take
off with their baby in it, that is not the case,
because once your thumb is off the lever, it slows
right down to a stop.
Speaker 6 (31:40):
Right absolutely, as soon as you take your thumb off,
the power is no longer to the motor and it
will stop.
Speaker 2 (31:47):
Who would you say it's for exactly? And does it
look like other baby strollers? John?
Speaker 6 (31:52):
Absolutely, the Egazelle basically is the same as the Gazelle
stroller looks the same, functions, the same folds, the same.
The only differences are you have the you know, the
trigger assists at the top, and then you have a
lithium ion battery that's in the basket area, and then
you know, everything's the same and it only weighs four
pounds more than the non electric version. To your question
(32:13):
of you know, like who who is the best suited for?
As I mentioned earlier, you know, because it has so
many different configurations, it's difficult really to just pick one
specific consumer because there are so many different options. I
would say that it's best suited again for customers that
live in areas with hills, customers that like to go
a little bit off road on nature trails and parks,
and then lastly, again as I mentioned, for consumers that
(32:35):
have two children and they really just want help pushing
you know that eighty two hundred pounds around on flat ground.
Absolutely don't forget that consumer that really just loves that
rocking feature because it's so cool.
Speaker 2 (32:46):
Indeed, more about the Gazelle s E stroller from Cybex
when we return on Tech it Out. I'm your host,
Mark Saltzman. If you want to reach out on social
media to say hi. If you have got tech questions
for me or suggestions for upcoming guests, you can hit
me up on x, Facebook, Instagram, Blue Sky, threads, LinkedIn, YouTube,
(33:07):
and TikTok. We'll be right back with more. Check it out,
Stay with us.
Speaker 1 (33:11):
Follow Mark Saltzman on Facebook, on Twitter, on Instagram. Listen
to check it out whenever you want.
Speaker 2 (33:27):
We are chatting with John Maguire. He's vice president of
product management for Cybex North America. That's cyb e X.
This is the company behind the e Gazelle S E stroller,
an electric stroller. Just like there's electric cars, there's also
e bikes and e scooters that assist you with transportation.
Now you've got something for baby, and how do you
(33:49):
charge it up? Is it like your phone? We're just
plugging into the wall.
Speaker 6 (33:52):
Yeah, it comes with an included charger, you know, just
like any other electronic device plugging into the wall. It
takes about three and a half hours to get a
full charge on the battery. If you're using the stroller
a lot in power mode, you can purchase an additional
battery as an accessory. The battery has a life range
and it's really based on the conditions of how you're
using it, such as you know, hills, the terrain it's on.
(34:13):
You know, how much weight are you pushing in the stroller,
and then again how often are you actually using that feature?
In a worst case scenario, it's got about a five
mile range. In normal conditions, it's twelve miles plus, so
it really you know, it can last for a long time.
Speaker 2 (34:27):
Devil's Advocate question, You're out for a walk with your
baby and the battery dies because you forgot to charge
it up for a while. Can you push it like
a regular manual stroller?
Speaker 6 (34:37):
Absolutely, if the battery dies, or if you just choose to, like,
you know, not turn the power on. It operates exactly
the same as the standard Gazelle stroller. No difference in
how it pushes. And again, as I said, it functions,
you know, folds, rolls, everything's exactly the same.
Speaker 2 (34:53):
Great, all right, so let's talk how much the e
Gazels costs and where can we learn more?
Speaker 8 (35:00):
Yeah?
Speaker 6 (35:01):
So, the egazls is available in the United States with
the retail of ten ninety nine and in Canada with
the retail of sixteen ninety nine. Do you want to
learn more about the product? You can go to cybex
dash online dot com.
Speaker 2 (35:13):
All right again, see why b xdash online dot com.
Do you have retail support? We do.
Speaker 6 (35:19):
You can find the Egazel across many retailers in the
United States, such as Nordstroms and a specialty store called
Bamby Baby. In Canada, you can find it at West
Coast Kids as well as another specialty retailer called Snuggle Books.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Thank you so much, John, great to chat with you
and congrats on the launch of the egos LS. I
hope it does well for you. And again, I saw
it for the first time yesterday and I thought it
was wonderful. My wife was with me. We had three
kids in two years. It's one of those things where
we're like, geez, we wish we had this when our
kids were young. They're now in their twenties. All the best,
Thank you very much. Hey, not all storage solutions are
(35:52):
created equal. Let me elaborate. The new sand Disk Creator
Series is a line of storage solutions does signed specifically
for content creators, the driving force behind the content that
we consume online, from videos and blog posts to podcasts
and social media updates. These external sand disc SSDs and
other flash based products help to streamline the creative workflow
(36:15):
from start to finish. There are five main features of
the sand Disk Creator Series. Number one, high speeds plug
and play solutions that offer fast read and write speeds,
ensuring smooth workflows and quick transfers of large files. Number
two durability. These products are designed to withstand the rigors
of on the go use with features like drop protection
(36:37):
and resistance to water and dust. Number three portability. This
SanDisk series includes several portable SSDs and other flash drives,
making it easy to take your storage with you wherever
you go. Number four compatibility. These sand disk products are
designed to work with a range of devices, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, desktops,
(36:57):
cameras and more. And number five high comp There's no
longer a trade off between the durability of solid state
drives and capacity for those who need a lot of storage,
as you can have it all now with drives that
can store several terabytes of data. More info is at
SanDisk dot com slash creator. That's SanDisk dot com slash creator.
(37:19):
I also wanted to give a shout out one last
time to both Norton and Visa, companies devoted to protecting
you and your financial health in different ways. It's been
awesome to partner with those companies as well as sand
Disc on Tech it Out. Next week, We're going to
have a bunch of new interviews on the program, so
I've been queuing them up for you I'm excited to
(37:40):
share them. And of course this time of year, now
that we're getting into November, we are of course going
to look at some gadget gift guides ahead of Black
Friday and Cyber Monday later on in the month, right
after Thanksgiving heading into the holiday season, So there's going
to be a lot of suggestions covering a wide range
of prices and various needs. So we're going to look
(38:00):
at everything from eReaders and tablets to smart home tech,
laptops and desktops, gaming gear, smart TVs, mobile phones and accessories,
audio equipment, so lots of stuff to get to. And again,
if you have any questions for me, you can hit
me up on social media. It's Mark Saltsman, Mark with
the C, Saltsman with the Z. Or if you prefer
(38:22):
old fashioned email, you can head over to my website
Mark Saltsman dot com and send me an email from
there and be sure to let me know where you're
tuning into tech it Out from. I always get a
kick out of that, whether you're listening on your favorite
local talk radio station or you're tuning in online podcast form.
I always love learning about that. Recently, i've heard from
(38:43):
listeners as far as South Africa and Northern Alaska. The
Gentleman in South Africa tunes in via a Seattle radio
station that streams in online and in Northern Alaska, it
is his local talk radio station, super Cool. Anyhow, have
a great rest of your day and I look forward
to chatting with you next time for another new episode
of Tack It Out. Bye bye for now.
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the ever changing world
of technology? Check it Out can help make some sense
of it all. Breaking down GeekSpeak into street speak. Technology columnist, author,
and TV personality Mark Saltzman covers consumer technology each week
for every listener, Mark tackles the latest news, reviews, and
how toos to help you understand what's hot, what's not
(00:22):
and why.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Hey, everyone, welcome to tack it Out. This is episode
four eighteen for those who are keeping track and wanted
to thank you for tuning into the program, whether you're
doing so on your favorite local talk radio station or
in podcast form. Tack it Out welcomes Norton as a
new partner on this program along with Visa. Both companies
(00:46):
in fact, committed to protecting you from fraud in different ways,
but we're going to get to that in due time.
Let me tell you what's on top for today, because
we have three great guests lined up for you. We're
going to start off chatting with Asurian. They're the folks
behind you break I fix those stores that repair your devices.
After that, a claw machine for your home. Yep, you
(01:07):
don't have to go to your local fair anymore. Carnivals
you can enjoy this with your friends and family in
your home. And finally, we're going to learn about an
e stroller for new or expectant parents who want some
help pushing their baby around town. This is pretty wild stuff,
so some very cool innovations on this week's Check it Out.
All right, let's officially kick things off with our first interview.
(01:30):
When it comes to consumer electronics, you may have heard
the trend towards repair ability, or the right to repair,
as it's often referred to, letting users fix rather than
replace their own tech, often with a third party professional
service helping out. And Google recently held an event at
its flagship Chelsea, New York location along with You Break,
(01:50):
I Fix by Asurian and I Fix It, which offers
free repair guides for virtually everything. Joining us to discuss
this trend of repair ability, We're joined on the line
by Trip Grant, he's senior director of Partnerships at You Break,
I Fix. Welcome to the show, Trip, Good to chat
with you.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Yeah, hey, good afternoon.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
Before we talk about repair ability, tell us a bit
about a Sure in which is the company that owns
you Break I Fixed stores.
Speaker 4 (02:16):
Yeah that's right, so yeah, sure you On. It's a
global tech care company, big company. They're best known for
cell phone protection plans, but they actually partnered with all
kinds of companies to provide tech care services real. They
across full life cycle for device, from setup an onboard,
and everything from troubleshooting to trade in.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
They have all sorts of programs.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
But yeah, several years ago they acquired You Break I Fix,
and you Break I Fix is kind of retail repair
arm of a Surrey on the network of nearly seven
hundred tech repair stores across the US, and we say
we could fix anything with a power button. A lot
of people associate us with mobility repair, but it's it's
really more to it than that. You know, we fix
(02:55):
a ton of phones, we take, We fixed computers, tablets,
game consoles, but we all kinds of devices, everything from
like light up Santa clauses to anything.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I actually got a Walkman fixed at a break.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
I fixed, Wow, Sony Walkman. That's correct, that's great class.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
But today, I.
Speaker 4 (03:12):
Mean today we've prepared over twenty four million devices and
we still repair about three and a quarter million a year.
So yeah, it's it's very robust repair focused business.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Wow. So yeah, congrats that's really impressive. And I've had
your CEO of view break I Fixed on the show
before Dave Barbudo to chat about the company, and it's
really impressive how much you've grown, all right, Trip. So
Google recently hosted an event about repair ability. What is
this trend here that they're addressing.
Speaker 4 (03:40):
Yeah, repair ability is really important really across the particularly
of the mobile device industry, and it is a trend,
but it's something that I would say has really been
developing over the last several years since smartphones obviously became mainstream.
When it was first go to market, it was really
about launching device since they had really robust capabilities, right,
(04:02):
that's what would drive you know, user experience, use satisfaction,
and things of that nature. But you know, over time,
what OEMs like such as Google have come to learn
is that a big part of consumer's experience with the
device is the sustainability of that device and how long
that device will last. Repairing for durability is you know,
(04:24):
first and foremost, because you don't want the device to break,
but accidents happen, things can occur, and when the device breaks,
a user really wants to feel confident that they can
do something about that that this is an expensive device,
and obviously it become more and more expensive.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
Yeah, time, you would think these big companies like Google
and Apple, and not to pick on just them, but
they want you to just buy a new device, right.
I mean there's this whole you know, conspiracy about quote
unquote planned obs lescence. You know, where your phone or
other devices just doesn't work as well as it used to.
We should have the right to be able to repair it.
It's also good for the environment, let's consider that too.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
Yeah, I mean I think that you know, it's true
that there's definitely objectives in terms of selling devices, but
at the end of the day, a customer whose device
breaks down and earlier than they anticipated may not buy
the same device for their next device. And so having
that durability and repair ability is really an important aspect.
And again Google obviously hosting an event about this, but
(05:25):
it's really universal across the OEMs. They've all made improvements
on these on the repair ability this factor, and we've
seen that really and really with each new product that
they introduce. First version of a device may have more
challenges when it comes to repair ability, but as they
come out with new versions they've really addressed certain problems,
Okay along the way, and.
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Just to bring everyone up to speed, OEM is original
equipment manufacturer, so it just means brands like Google or Samsung.
Speaker 3 (05:52):
That's correct.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Okay, thank you for that. Yeah, so this isn't just
for folks at home to take a stab at it, right,
like a DIY approach. We're there with the little screwdriver
and we're trying to replace, you know, a screen or something.
But again, this is where you break. Our fix comes in, right.
We want to be able to bring it to a
third party and have someone fix it even while we wait.
In some instances, that's correct.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
Yeah, I think that right to repair it has a lot.
Speaker 4 (06:17):
To do with enabling the end users themselves to repair
their devices themselves if they so wish. But just like
your car, I'm able to change my own oil on
my car. I know how to do that, but it's tedious,
and you know, sometimes I don't have full confidence when
I put it all back together that it's going to
(06:37):
be on as tight as it needs to be, and
so I like professionals to do that. Mobile devices are
even more so in that way, in the sense that
there's a higher level of comfort and getting a professional
to take care of that and bring you know, all
their expertise into that repair and really getting it up
(06:58):
and running to you know, it's peak ability. So that
that's you know, to me, where you break I Fixed
or you know, a repair company is going to bring
a higher peace of mind and greater level of success
to a degree on the repair.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Is it less expensive generally to bring it to a
store like a you break I Fix in a strip
plaza or in the mall than going to directly to Apple,
Samsung and the like. Ituld probably faster when it.
Speaker 3 (07:26):
Comes to cost. I mean, it can be less expensive,
but it may not be transparently. Okay that being said,
it you know will't there.
Speaker 4 (07:34):
Sometimes you get what you pay for, right, and so
the level of professionalism and experience that you can get
from a professional repair shop will often exceed that you
can get elsewhere. Also, when it comes to you break
I Fix specifically, we're committed to using almost entirely ohem,
original parts, So parts originate from the manufacturer themselves, right.
Speaker 3 (07:56):
Got it?
Speaker 4 (07:56):
So you come to you Break I Fixed store to
get a Google Pixel repaired, We're going to be using
a Google Pixel Park stands true for across multiple manufacturers
that we have contractual relationships and commitments to doing so. Yeah, great,
and so that I think brings a high level of
confidence as well. It'll be a high quality part, high
quality repair using OEM tools, software testing, all that type
(08:21):
of stuff that we that we have available to us
in the stores.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
And there's a warranty or a guarantee after the work's done.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
Yeah, it's almost all work that we do.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
Almost all the repairs that we do have a one
year warranty after that, so any recurring issues that should
have been taken care of in the repair can be
repaired under that warranty.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
We are chatting with Trip Grant, Senior director of Partnerships.
That you break, I fix by Assurian or I like
how you say it better a shore yad? Is that right?
How do you say it?
Speaker 3 (08:50):
Honestly? I don't know.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
I like it better the way I've bed say it.
Speaker 4 (08:53):
I mean that I say it wrong, but I don't
know if or to be honest, I've worked here for
almost ten years.
Speaker 2 (08:59):
But it's their name on your paycheck, so whatever you're doing,
you're doing it right. But I thought it was a
Sureian but a Surrey on it sounds more high tech
the way you say it before we wrap up trip
is Google's push for repair ability a big deal.
Speaker 4 (09:12):
I think that Google is really doing great work to
continue to progress this again across the industry that is
already focused on it. It's about raising the bar right,
It's about continuing to look at what makes a person
more confident when they open up this device that they
are going to complete what they set out to do.
(09:34):
So for Google, they're putting a lot of focus on
reducing the adhesives that are used, of reducing this the
variety of screws that are used, all these different types
of things. They go a long way again just in
giving confidence to the person performing their repair, whether somebody
doing it at home or a professional that's done the
same repair twenty times before.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
That it's really important.
Speaker 4 (09:58):
That when you design the product, it's not just about
designing it for functionality, it's about designing it for repair,
knowing that repair is probable at some point in the
life cycle of that device. So so yeah, it's really
good work that they're doing. The watch that they've just
recently launched is a great example of that. Having no
adhesives involved, and I think that's a bit of a
(10:18):
snapshot into the future of progress that we've already made
and yet more progress that will be made for mobile
devices across the board.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Great. And then finally, where can we learn more about
you break I Fix by Assurian.
Speaker 4 (10:31):
You can get more information about you break I fix
services on store locations, different partnerships that we have say things.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
About nature at youbreakifix dot com.
Speaker 4 (10:40):
If you're interested in following the repair ability journey and
how we play a role in that. On our website,
you can click over to our newsroom and that's where
we share a lot of details about any events like
the one that we did with Google last week.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
All that information's there, so it's a great resource.
Speaker 4 (10:57):
And again we're really proud about the role that we
play in this industry and there's more information available there.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Great. Thanks trip. So that's you break I Fixed. That's
the letter you break and then the letter I Fix.
Thank you so much for your time, Thanks so much.
When we return on teck it out a claw machine
for your home, yep, not in an arcade, not at
your local fair or carnival. We're going to hear what's
new from Arcade one up the company. When we return
on tech it Out, stay with.
Speaker 5 (11:23):
Us listen to check it out whenever you want to
find the check it Out podcast, did I Too, or
wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Welcome back to check it Out. Before we learn about
a claw machine for your home, I wanted to spend
a moment talking about Norton three point sixty with LifeLock,
your comprehensive solution that bundles device security and identity theft protection.
Tech it Out has proudly partnered with Norton as they
protect your PC, MAC and mobile devices from viruses, ransomware,
(12:02):
and malware, and LifeLock takes it a step further, constantly
monitoring for the fraudulent use of your personal info, whether
it's your social insurance number or bank accounts. If a
threat is detected, you receive an alert. If the worst
happens and your identity is stolen, a dedicated US based
identity restoration specialist will be there to personally help fix it. Plus,
(12:23):
with the million dollar protection package, you get coverage for
stolen funds and expenses. Norton three sixty with LifeLock gives
you the power to defend your entire digital life, Stop
patching together, protection, get all in one piece of mind
with Norton three sixty with LifeLock. Visit Norton dot com today. Hey,
if you like claw machines, you know the ones you'd
(12:44):
find at a carnival or a Chuck E Cheese and
in movies like Toy Story a Dynastic, then you're gonna
love what Arcade one up has just released with a
home yep, a claw machine to test your skill and
picking up prizes using those little levers and such. Joining
us on the line to grab our attention is Arcade
one Up's Cyrus Rosenberg. He's senior vice president of Licensing
(13:07):
and business Development. Welcome to the show, Cyrus, good to
chat with you.
Speaker 6 (13:10):
Thank you.
Speaker 7 (13:10):
I'm super excited to be here.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Hope you didn't mind the bad dad putting off the
top of grabbing our attention. But yes, before we talk
about the Arcade one up claw machine, tell us a
bit about the company. I guess Arcade one up is
best known for your arcade machines that many a man
cave and she shed has no doubt and digital pinball
as well.
Speaker 7 (13:31):
Absolutely, yeah, glad to and we got to find a
term that encompasses the whole family. But I love man Cave,
and she said back in twenty eighteen. Arcade one Up
was founded based on the idea of a white space
of coming from a toy background. We have so many
people who employed their company who are just true fans,
fans of pop culture, fans of family entertainment, and fans
(13:53):
of the IP that we work with, and through that fandom,
we kind of made an interesting discovery, which is there
is a pleas there is a mountain of top quality,
amazing video game experiences that do not exist on their
original hardware. Coupled with the fact that given the time
that has gone by since the original Arcade boom, there
are so many technological enhancements that the right company could
(14:18):
make if given the time, and we really set out
on that mission to create the best, most authentic version
of these classic arcade games for at home consumer use.
Through that, we kind of went on a little adventure
of our own, constantly improving our products by adding features
like Wi Fi, multiple games per unit, allowing them to
(14:39):
be assembled so they can be flat packed, and all
sorts of other great enhancements. But was really exciting for
us is that the original item became kind of the
line which became ultimately a category, and we as fans
ourselves saw this brand grow and we saw lots of
different people build out there at home game rooms using
our product, which allowed us the creative freedom to kind
(15:02):
of expand. And that's where you get these additional products,
like what comes after arcade machines, We should make a
pinball unit, what would people put on the wall? Maybe
an at home photo booth, which we launched last year,
And of course the item we're talking about today, which
is our at home claw machine and personally one of
my favorite items, honestly.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
All right, So without further ado, let's get to that.
As the name suggests, it looks like and operates like
a claw machine that you would find at a carnival.
Speaker 8 (15:30):
Is that fair?
Speaker 7 (15:31):
Yes, absolutely, And like all of our machines, authenticity is
kind of the foundation of how we build out our products.
So it does have all of the kind of features
one would expect with a claw machine, such as different
difficulty settings, but also what I'm most excited about, which
is a real commercial grade claw inside of there, so
(15:53):
it is grabbing to the efficacy of other claw machines
you might find in a commercial arcade, but of course
made for at home use for you and the family.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
All right, So for those who haven't played with one
of these things before, and correct me if I'm wrong,
it's usually two levers. There's one that moves the claw
left and right and forward and back. There's usually a
glass cabinet that has the prizes inside, whether it's stuffed
animals or candy inside of a ball or something like that.
And then the other lever or it's a button that
(16:23):
you press for the claw to then descend down into
the mountain of stuff, and your goal is to try
to pick it up without it slipping, and then you
get to keep it it falls into a little receptacle
and then you can take it out. The front is
yours pretty much the same idea at its core.
Speaker 7 (16:39):
Absolutely, I honestly don't think I could have said it
better myself. This is actually a fully featured, authentic claw
machine experience, just simply designed for at home use. So yes,
it is a fully featured control deck in which you
are in control of the claw and the actual drop,
with the ultimate goal being to win a prize from
our machine. But what makes this so great for at
(17:00):
home use is that our machine is refillable at the
consumer level, so we actually include twelve capsules alongside that
are perfectly fitted for the claw to be able to
pick up depending on your challenge mode, so you can
fill it with all walks of different prizes that you yourself
thought of or that are readily available. So it really
is a customizable consumer version, all right, And.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
I'm going to ask you more about the difficulty settings
in a moment and a few other features that I
know our audience is going to want to learn about.
We are chatting about the Arcade one up Claw machine
that you can put in your home. Great for birthday
parties or when you're having some friends over a sports game,
you know, loaded up with some snacks or some fun
branded merch as the grand prize to your favorite team.
(17:44):
There's so much you can do with it. I love
the idea. Arcade one Up, of course, is best known
for replicating those classic eighties and nineties arcade games and
even pinball machines for the home. So we are going
to continue chatting in a moment with Arcade one Up
to learn more about the Claw machine. Want to reach
out on social media to say hi, it's Mark Saltzman,
Mark with the C, Saltsman with the Z. You can
(18:06):
find me on all the major platforms. Let me know
what you think of Tech it out and if you
have any tech questions or check it out. Coming right
up after this short break, want.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
To follow Mark Google, Mark with a C and Saltzman
with a Z breaking down geeks peak into street speak.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
This is check it out to check it out.
Speaker 1 (18:35):
With technology columnist, author and TV personality Mark Saltzman.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Welcome back to check it out. We're chatting with Cyrus Rosenberg.
He's SVP of Licensing and Business Development at Arcade one Up.
This is a company best known for its three quarter
sized arcade units from MS pac Man to Golden Tea Golf.
They also have a digital pinball solution where you can
swap between different boards digitally. There's also a games table
(19:04):
called Infinity that has digital versions of classic board games.
But now the company has released the Arcade one Up
claw machine, just like the one that you'd find at
your local fare in your city, a carnival, or at
a Chuck e Cheese, but it's in your own home
and we're learning all about it all right, and I'm
going to ask you more about the difficulty settings in
a moment, so you're responsible for filling it up again.
(19:25):
I mentioned stuffed animals earlier, but you can put whatever
you want inside of those things. So if you've got
a kid's birthday party that's a particular theme, then as
a parent, you can fill it up and have the
kids play and collect something that's relevant to the day.
Or if it's Christmas, you may have some stalking stuffers
in there. Does it have to fit in the capsules
(19:45):
that you provide those little plastic balls if you will,
or can you pick up a stuffy if you don't
want to use those balls?
Speaker 7 (19:52):
Absolutely, so I can explain that a little bit more so.
We actually do a lot of product testing, which I
say testing, but it really means off in the office
love to play these products. But it picks up all
sorts of different items. In our office alone, we filled
it with different kind of trinkets, action figures. We even
put a mini skateboard in there at one point. The
(20:13):
capsules are designed to be if you will, kind of
an adapter. I can guarantee the claw will pick it
up if you put it in a capsule, But we
are very pro experimentation at our cab one up and
we love seeing fans come up with the items that
we haven't even ourselves thought of, so we wanted to
leave that open possibility. So there's lots of different items
that can be picked up with the claw.
Speaker 2 (20:34):
You mentioned difficulty settings. I think at the pain point
for many people who have ever tried to use a
claw machine is that the claw itself is very loose,
and you know, you think you've grabbed that object that
you want, you're hoisting it up and you think it's
yours and then it falls through. So is that something
that you can tweak?
Speaker 7 (20:51):
Absolutely, And let me give you a little industry reveal here.
Speaker 2 (20:54):
Please let's get this scoop.
Speaker 7 (20:57):
But of course, you know, the very first thing when
we come up with any product line is really authenticity.
And there's a certain level of responsibility with our products
because they're so nostalgia based. They are based on a
memory someone might have, so with that requires a lot
of research before even beginning development. And in researching how
the commercial claw machine industry actually works is it's actually
(21:19):
a system of odds. So what a difficulty setting is
representative of of and the commercial level is the odds
that the claw will actually pick up the item, and
let's say maybe one out of three hundred times, one
out of five hundred times. The actual claw operator sets
those odds behind the scene. However, we wanted to make
(21:40):
sure our claw machine was consumer friendly and fun for
the whole family. So while it is a system of odds,
we have easy mode, normal mode, and scam mode, and well,
I'm not going to reveal exactly the odds those represent.
I'm very excited for our consumers to kind of play
around with it and figure it out. But yeah, we
wanted to make it adjustable because again it's a family product,
(22:03):
and you know, family takes many different shapes and forms.
But we wanted a young person to be able to
experience it and have as much fun as somebody in
retirement and everything in between.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Love it and tell us a bit more about the
way it looks and sounds. Does it have like a
light up marquee? Are there any sound effects?
Speaker 7 (22:20):
Absolutely so. There are lights actually on the control deck
as well as the marquee itself, and there's very different
tunes and songs and sound effects to really enhance the experience,
as well as adjustable volume, so if you are throwing
a claw machining party in which this is meant to
be your centerpiece. It has all of the effects to
draw a crowd in. If this is something to distract
(22:41):
someone in the household, or something that you might want
a little quieter, we've of course accommodated that. So again,
customization is very important to us, because because while we
are basing these machines, whether it be claw or arcade machine,
on an original idea, we want to adapt these to
the needs of the modern consumer.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
Great, and I know you offer a volume control and
all that on your arcade machines too, which is very handy,
something that you did not find in the eighties with
the coin op arcade machines. The Galagha that you played
could not change the volume all right? And then finally,
who would you say this is for exactly? I mean,
I love the versatility of you being in control of
difficulty and the prizes and all that. Is it for kids?
(23:19):
Can you put adult toys in there? If it's like
a bachelorette party? Tells who you think the target audience is.
Speaker 7 (23:25):
We design our products for what we call families, but
what we mean by that is we design it for
all age groups. And you can really see that by
the consumers who have already taken to the internet to
kind of praise this claw Machine. Of we really believe
in bringing in person entertainment together, so we definitely want
(23:46):
kids to be able to play it, but all age
groups can have fun with the claw Machine due to
the customizable features. I've seen college kids buy and enjoy
our claw Machine. I have also seen kids under preschool
have the best time with it and kind of everything
in between. I actually just got my parents one and
they love it as well. So you know, we really
(24:07):
intend for everybody to kind of find a meeting point
with our products.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
Awesome. And then with that in mind, how much does
the Arcade one up claw Machine cost? Where can we
buy it? I don't know if you have retail support
or if it's through your website, and is there a
place where we can learn more?
Speaker 7 (24:22):
Absolutely so, the claw Machine is four ninety nine and
the best place for up to date product information would
be Arcade one up dot com.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
All right, arkad one up dot com. The one is
number one. Cyrus, great to chat with you. Congrats on
the launch of the claw Machine. I can't wait to
try it out myself. Thanks again, thank you and thank
you for having me. I mentioned earlier that Norton is
a new partner on Tech it Out, and they join Visa,
a long term partner on this program as well. We
(24:51):
cover cybersecurity a lot on this program and how you
can best protect yourself in the digital age, even if
you're not super tech savvy. One part of the solution
is securely shopping online, and so I'm thrilled about my
partnership with Visa on Tech it Out, as they've made
some significant investments in fraud prevention over the past five years,
as much as ten billion dollars yes that's billion with
(25:14):
a bee to support Visa's brand promise to protect the
financial information of individuals and businesses. Zero liability means peace
of mind when you shop online using your Visa card.
There can be no half measures when it comes to cybersecurity,
which is why the company takes an aggressive and multi
layered approach to combating the rising threat of malicious software
(25:34):
and other threats by well funded and global criminal enterprises.
Read more about Visa and how securing the world's payments
is priority one at Visa dot Com slash security. That's
Visa dot Com slash security. When we return on tech
it Out, We're going to talk with a company called
Cybex to learn about its electric stroller yep for babies
(25:56):
and small toddlers. It's called the Gazelle family of e
strollers or electric strollers. Boy, have times changed. My twins
are now twenty three and my youngest is twenty one,
so we did not have anything like this to say
the least. So yes, the Cybex Gazelle S stroller. We're
going to learn all about this new product line when
we return on teck it Out after this short break, stay.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
With us breaking down geeksbeak into street speak Check it
Out hosted by Mark Saltzman.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
Welcome back everyone, you're listening to Teck it Out. Fun fact,
baby strollers have been around since the seventeen hundreds, when
William Kent, a landscape architect, designed a shelf shaped basket
on wheels, but the carriage was initially designed to be
pulled by ponies or dogs or even goats and not pushed.
(26:56):
The prams that you push came in the mid nineteenth century. Okay,
so fast forward to the two thousands and hey, now
we have electric strollers, e strollers and we're now going
to hear about one with John McGuire. He's VP of
Product Management for Cybex North America. These are the folks
behind the E Gazel S as it's called, which I
just saw for the first time yesterday. Welcome to the show, John,
(27:18):
good to chat with you.
Speaker 8 (27:19):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Why don't we jump right in? Tell us please about
the E gazell S stroller.
Speaker 8 (27:25):
Sure?
Speaker 6 (27:25):
So, the E S stroller is based off of our
Gazelle stroller that was launched in twenty twenty And basically,
the Egazel is a stroller that provides innovation and basically
has a power assist mode that's incorporated into the stroller.
If you think about it in today's world of e
bikes and e scooters, it's similar technology where you have
(27:48):
power either on demand or selectable that is rechargeable with
lithium ion battery. Again, just trying to make the consumer
experience with the product easier and it's very adaptable, all right.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
So with that in mind, it's been said good technology
solves a problem. What's wrong with regular strollers? How do
you make parents' lives easier?
Speaker 6 (28:06):
Yeah, So, the E Gazel because it has so many
different configurations the Egazel can actually go from a single
to a double stroller, so really, depending on your lifestyle,
it can really solve a lot of different problems. I'll
give you a couple examples of that. First one being
if you live in an area with lots of hills,
the Egazell provides power to go uphill, but it also
has power breaking to go downhill and really does that
(28:28):
with the breeze. You can also use the stroller to
stroll on uneven surfaces. So say, for example, you're a
consumer that likes to go for walks in a park
on a nature trail. If you're using the stroller in snow,
potential or even sand, it allows the stroller to operate
much better and provides assistance in those environments as well.
(28:49):
And then lastly, if you're using the stroller with two children,
so in the case of using it as a double stroller,
you could potentially be pushing around eighty to one hundred
pounds with the stroller. So consumers with two children may
choose to use the power feature even on flat services
or using it all the time.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
All right, So if I can unpack your answer here,
the two main advantages to the egaz l s stroller.
Is that A. It's electric, so you push a small
lever if I remember correctly, and it assists you to
push it, and that really is helpful when you've got
a couple of kids, and I have twins, so I
can relate up a hill and on uneven surfaces as
(29:26):
you said, or in snow or sand and that kind
of thing at the beach. And B is that it's modular.
You hint it at multiple configurations, right, So you can
you can add a basket, remove one, you can put
in a car seat that's compatible. You can have a
little like grocery area in the back that I saw yesterday,
that kind of thing.
Speaker 8 (29:43):
Right.
Speaker 2 (29:43):
It's so you can add more or remove parts over
time to the same core device.
Speaker 6 (29:48):
That's correct. Yeah, there's over twenty two different configurations that
you can create with a stroller. As you mentioned, you
can use it with a stroller seat, you can use
it with an infant car seat, which we would then
call it a travel system. Yeah, and you can also
use it with a basinette. So because of the different configurations,
that really has an option that can work for any lifestyle.
Speaker 2 (30:07):
What's so cool is something called a rocking mode that's
something that normal stroller can't do.
Speaker 1 (30:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (30:12):
Absolutely, And this is actually one of my favorite features
and we get a lot of positive feedback from consumers.
The Egazel has a feature called the Rocking Mode that
basically you can set to three different intervals. You basically
set the brake, you power it on, you hit a button,
and it goes into this automatic rocky mode to basically
help soothe your child. It'll run for twenty minutes and
(30:33):
then it'll automatically turn off. And for anybody that's ever
taken a stroller to a coffeehouse or out to dinner
and you're having to sit there and use your hand
or your foot to rock the stroller, you're really going
to appreciate that feature.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
Now, look, I'm not a tall guy. Can I climb
in there? Because that sounds like something I could take
advantage of for a little nap. There is a weight limit,
but maybe it might fit fair enough. And just going
back to the way it works John before we move on.
So it is a small lever that is near your
right thumb if that's fair and it's under the handle.
Speaker 8 (31:03):
It's intuitively placed. You just press it correct. It's selectable.
So basically it's very ergonomic. You use your thumb for
going forward, You just press with your thumb and then
depending on how hard you press, that will affect the
speed of the stroller. And then when you're going into
a downhill mode or a breaking mode, use your index
finger and there's another lever, very ergonomic again that you
(31:25):
just press in reverse and that operates as a break.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
Okay, And speaking of which, if any listeners are concerned
that they think the stroller is just going to take
off with their baby in it, that is not the case,
because once your thumb is off the lever, it slows
right down to a stop.
Speaker 6 (31:40):
Right absolutely, as soon as you take your thumb off,
the power is no longer to the motor and it
will stop.
Speaker 2 (31:47):
Who would you say it's for exactly? And does it
look like other baby strollers? John?
Speaker 6 (31:52):
Absolutely, the Egazelle basically is the same as the Gazelle
stroller looks the same, functions, the same folds, the same.
The only differences are you have the you know, the
trigger assists at the top, and then you have a
lithium ion battery that's in the basket area, and then
you know, everything's the same and it only weighs four
pounds more than the non electric version. To your question
(32:13):
of you know, like who who is the best suited for?
As I mentioned earlier, you know, because it has so
many different configurations, it's difficult really to just pick one
specific consumer because there are so many different options. I
would say that it's best suited again for customers that
live in areas with hills, customers that like to go
a little bit off road on nature trails and parks,
and then lastly, again as I mentioned, for consumers that
(32:35):
have two children and they really just want help pushing
you know that eighty two hundred pounds around on flat ground.
Absolutely don't forget that consumer that really just loves that
rocking feature because it's so cool.
Speaker 2 (32:46):
Indeed, more about the Gazelle s E stroller from Cybex
when we return on Tech it Out. I'm your host,
Mark Saltzman. If you want to reach out on social
media to say hi. If you have got tech questions
for me or suggestions for upcoming guests, you can hit
me up on x, Facebook, Instagram, Blue Sky, threads, LinkedIn, YouTube,
(33:07):
and TikTok. We'll be right back with more. Check it out,
Stay with us.
Speaker 1 (33:11):
Follow Mark Saltzman on Facebook, on Twitter, on Instagram. Listen
to check it out whenever you want.
Speaker 2 (33:27):
We are chatting with John Maguire. He's vice president of
product management for Cybex North America. That's cyb e X.
This is the company behind the e Gazelle S E stroller,
an electric stroller. Just like there's electric cars, there's also
e bikes and e scooters that assist you with transportation.
Now you've got something for baby, and how do you
(33:49):
charge it up? Is it like your phone? We're just
plugging into the wall.
Speaker 6 (33:52):
Yeah, it comes with an included charger, you know, just
like any other electronic device plugging into the wall. It
takes about three and a half hours to get a
full charge on the battery. If you're using the stroller
a lot in power mode, you can purchase an additional
battery as an accessory. The battery has a life range
and it's really based on the conditions of how you're
using it, such as you know, hills, the terrain it's on.
(34:13):
You know, how much weight are you pushing in the stroller,
and then again how often are you actually using that feature?
In a worst case scenario, it's got about a five
mile range. In normal conditions, it's twelve miles plus, so
it really you know, it can last for a long time.
Speaker 2 (34:27):
Devil's Advocate question, You're out for a walk with your
baby and the battery dies because you forgot to charge
it up for a while. Can you push it like
a regular manual stroller?
Speaker 6 (34:37):
Absolutely, if the battery dies, or if you just choose to, like,
you know, not turn the power on. It operates exactly
the same as the standard Gazelle stroller. No difference in
how it pushes. And again, as I said, it functions,
you know, folds, rolls, everything's exactly the same.
Speaker 2 (34:53):
Great, all right, so let's talk how much the e
Gazels costs and where can we learn more?
Speaker 8 (35:00):
Yeah?
Speaker 6 (35:01):
So, the egazls is available in the United States with
the retail of ten ninety nine and in Canada with
the retail of sixteen ninety nine. Do you want to
learn more about the product? You can go to cybex
dash online dot com.
Speaker 2 (35:13):
All right again, see why b xdash online dot com.
Do you have retail support? We do.
Speaker 6 (35:19):
You can find the Egazel across many retailers in the
United States, such as Nordstroms and a specialty store called
Bamby Baby. In Canada, you can find it at West
Coast Kids as well as another specialty retailer called Snuggle Books.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Thank you so much, John, great to chat with you
and congrats on the launch of the egos LS. I
hope it does well for you. And again, I saw
it for the first time yesterday and I thought it
was wonderful. My wife was with me. We had three
kids in two years. It's one of those things where
we're like, geez, we wish we had this when our
kids were young. They're now in their twenties. All the best,
Thank you very much. Hey, not all storage solutions are
(35:52):
created equal. Let me elaborate. The new sand Disk Creator
Series is a line of storage solutions does signed specifically
for content creators, the driving force behind the content that
we consume online, from videos and blog posts to podcasts
and social media updates. These external sand disc SSDs and
other flash based products help to streamline the creative workflow
(36:15):
from start to finish. There are five main features of
the sand Disk Creator Series. Number one, high speeds plug
and play solutions that offer fast read and write speeds,
ensuring smooth workflows and quick transfers of large files. Number
two durability. These products are designed to withstand the rigors
of on the go use with features like drop protection
(36:37):
and resistance to water and dust. Number three portability. This
SanDisk series includes several portable SSDs and other flash drives,
making it easy to take your storage with you wherever
you go. Number four compatibility. These sand disk products are
designed to work with a range of devices, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, desktops,
(36:57):
cameras and more. And number five high comp There's no
longer a trade off between the durability of solid state
drives and capacity for those who need a lot of storage,
as you can have it all now with drives that
can store several terabytes of data. More info is at
SanDisk dot com slash creator. That's SanDisk dot com slash creator.
(37:19):
I also wanted to give a shout out one last
time to both Norton and Visa, companies devoted to protecting
you and your financial health in different ways. It's been
awesome to partner with those companies as well as sand
Disc on Tech it Out. Next week, We're going to
have a bunch of new interviews on the program, so
I've been queuing them up for you I'm excited to
(37:40):
share them. And of course this time of year, now
that we're getting into November, we are of course going
to look at some gadget gift guides ahead of Black
Friday and Cyber Monday later on in the month, right
after Thanksgiving heading into the holiday season, So there's going
to be a lot of suggestions covering a wide range
of prices and various needs. So we're going to look
(38:00):
at everything from eReaders and tablets to smart home tech,
laptops and desktops, gaming gear, smart TVs, mobile phones and accessories,
audio equipment, so lots of stuff to get to. And again,
if you have any questions for me, you can hit
me up on social media. It's Mark Saltsman, Mark with
the C, Saltsman with the Z. Or if you prefer
(38:22):
old fashioned email, you can head over to my website
Mark Saltsman dot com and send me an email from
there and be sure to let me know where you're
tuning into tech it Out from. I always get a
kick out of that, whether you're listening on your favorite
local talk radio station or you're tuning in online podcast form.
I always love learning about that. Recently, i've heard from
(38:43):
listeners as far as South Africa and Northern Alaska. The
Gentleman in South Africa tunes in via a Seattle radio
station that streams in online and in Northern Alaska, it
is his local talk radio station, super Cool. Anyhow, have
a great rest of your day and I look forward
to chatting with you next time for another new episode
of Tack It Out. Bye bye for now.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Betrayal: Weekly
Betrayal Weekly is back for a brand new season. Every Thursday, Betrayal Weekly shares first-hand accounts of broken trust, shocking deceptions, and the trail of destruction they leave behind. Hosted by Andrea Gunning, this weekly ongoing series digs into real-life stories of betrayal and the aftermath. From stories of double lives to dark discoveries, these are cautionary tales and accounts of resilience against all odds. From the producers of the critically acclaimed Betrayal series, Betrayal Weekly drops new episodes every Thursday. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack. And make sure to check out Seasons 1-4 of Betrayal, along with Betrayal Weekly Season 1.