Could this Android-powered 1080p webcam replace your Roku, Apple TV?

By Caleb Denison Published June 1, 2014

All the Haginas brothers wanted to do was create a device that would let health and wellness professionals work remotely with their clients; in their own living rooms, through video conferencing. But as the two Miami Beach, Florida fitness buffs soon learned, their brainchild was going to need more high-power hardware than either of them had originally estimated. What was first born as the Reshape project, soon morphed into the TVPRO, a full-on, Android-powered smart TV system, built into a 1080p HD webcam, and armed with enough processing power to make your tablet jealous.

Imagine having the power to watch movies and TV shows from Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Instant, and VUDU, stream music from your favorite Internet music services like Pandora and Spotify, and make video calls to friends and family, all through a high-definition webcam placed on or near your television – that’s the TVPRO in a nutshell.

Recommended Videos

The device is equipped with a quad-core processor for speedy navigation and app loading, dual noise-cancelling microphones, and a couple of speakers for autonomous video calls with displays that may not have their own built-in speakers. Control is leveraged through an “air mouse” with a full QWERTY keyboard for easier text entry and web browsing. Apps? Take your pick from the Google Play store.

Sounds pretty cool, right? Here’s the catch, though: The TVPRO is just a Kickstarter project at the moment and it needs quite a bit more funding before it will become a reality. At the time of this writing, the project still needs $121,000 with just 26 days left to go. If this looks like the kind of device you’d like to see in your bonus room or home gym, you’ll need to crack open your wallet. $140 will secure you one of the first TVPROs available, though smaller and larger donations are accepted.

Culture

10 cigar myths the internet won’t let die

The cigar 'facts' shared in every lounge that are actually complete BS

two men enjoying cigars

The internet has been such an asset to the cigar world. It allows us to look up obscure brands, communicate with fellow fans across the globe, and access a greater amount of information than ever before. There's a downside, though: rumors catch on like wildfire, and once they're out there, they're nearly impossible to get rid of.Visit any cigar lounge or read online forums, and you'll find the same tired myths that have been making the rounds for decades. While a few are harmless pieces of folklore, others are robbing you of your hard-earned cash, ruining your smoking experience, or just flat-out lying to you about health hazards.Let's burn down those stubborn misconceptions once and for all.

Myth #1: Darker (Maduro) cigars are always more powerful

Culture

Cigar etiquette 101: Dos, don’ts, and modern manners

Please don't be that guy. Here are the cigar etiquette mistakes that scream 'amateur'

well-dressed guy smoking on a couch in the dark

Walking into a cigar lounge for the first time feels like crashing somebody's secret club. They've got this unspoken language, weird rituals, and enough unwritten rules to make your head spin! But here’s the thing—cigar etiquette is not some gatekeeping nonsense to try to make you look dumb. It's about respecting the process, the experience, and not being the person who ruins everyone else's vibe.Whether you're new to this or have been faking for years, this guide will sort you out because there's nothing more likely to ruin a good smoke than someone who clearly has no idea what they're doing.

The basics: Respecting the ritual

Culture

The first movie from Materialists director Celine Song just found a new streaming home

The movie is a brilliant look at the roads not taken.

The cast of Past Lives

Few directors have a debut feature that's as splashy as Celine Song's. The director, who now has Materialists in theaters, had a breakout hit at Sundance called Past Lives that took her all the way to the Oscars. Now that Materialists is in theaters and doing quite well, you might want to catch up with Past Lives, which was one of the best movies of 2023.

The film stars Greta Lee and is told in episodes that span more than 20 years. It starts in South Korea, and follows two Korean children who are clearly close friends and may even have a romantic spark as one of them prepares to move to Canada. Then, we follow their story over decades as they come into and out of each other's lives until they're both in their mid-30s and they reunite for a day in New York City.