FritzInventors continue to tinker with robots and Laser Tag technology. These two inherently cool creations appeal to kids of all ages. What if they built a robot that played Laser Tag with you? That would be awesome. Sadly, they don’t exist. In the meantime, check out these new Kickstarter projects that aim to change what it means to play Laser Tag or build a robot.

Next generation Laser Tag
They’re calling it “laser tag for James Bond, not RoboCop.” It’s a lightweight, innovative take on the popular digital tag game that eliminates clunky targets and plastic guns. Instead, the targets are small enough o fit into a shirt pocket and the guns aren’t really guns. You can hide them in a boot, up a sleeve or deploy them as traps.

It may sound like Laser Tag for Hippies, but the reimagined hardware opens up new gameplay scenarios that go beyond death matches. Stephen Foster, a computer science Ph.D. student at UC San Diego, created the project. The Kickstarter campaign aims to build

Knuckleball on DVD & Blu-RayJust last week Major League Baseball came back in swing, as it were, which is one of Mother Nature's annual signs of spring. So why not celebrate the warmer weather and budding flowers by staying in and spending quality time with your home theater system?

The documentary Knuckleball, new to DVD and digital download, is a fascinating film for even casual fans of America's Pastime. Veteran documentarians Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg (Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work) explore the history of baseball's weirdest pitch by profiling MLB knuckleballers Tim Wakefield and R.A. Dickey during the 2011 baseball season. They also dig deep into baseball's past with former players including Charlie Hough, Wilbur Wood, Jim Bouton, Tom Candiotti and Hall of Famer Phil Niekro.

For the uninitiated, the knuckleball is the rarest pitch in baseball. Unlike other pitches – the fastball, the curve, the slider – the knuckleball doesn't rely on spin and velocity to overwhelm the hitter. Instead, the ball is thrown

If you’re itching to treat yourself to a tablet this spring -- but don’t have $500 for an iPad or even $200 for a Kindle Fire HD – you can now pick up a 7-inch Kobo Vox tablet for $100.

Yes, this is last year’s model opposed to the newer Kobo Arc, but at half the cost there’s a lot of bang for the buck, here – plus you’ve got full access to the Google Play store and its more than 800,000 apps.

At its core, the Kobo Vox is a 7-inch color e-book reader, capable of wirelessly downloading and displaying books, magazines and newspapers. The FFS+ backlit LCD screen (1,024 x 600) is optimized for reading outdoors. You’ve got access to the Kobo Store, with nearly 3 million books, in total -- one-third of which are free classics. While reading, you can select from one of seven font styles and 42 available sizes.

A social media feature called Kobo Pulse lets you connect with other readers, such as seeing how many people are reading what you’re reading, what others think of the passage you just

Yahoo!In 1995, a Seattle company named Amazon started selling books online. Bookstores large and small were terrified. Their days were numbered. Little did we know that Amazon would reach beyond selling books and start selling almost everything. As the company got bigger, America’s trepidation about shopping online got smaller. Now we do it every day.

Advances in technology have armed consumers and put retailers on defense. Smartphones and tablets have facilitated the rise of “showrooming.” Consumers go to a brick and mortar store to check out merchandise only to buy it cheaper online. Some retailers are trying to shut down showrooming, others are embracing it as inevitable. The winner here is the consumer. The technology makes it easy to compare prices and check for deals, but the number one advantage to online shopping is free shipping.

According to statista.com, U.S. e-commerce sales reached $289 billion in 2012, up from $256 billion in 2011. “Simultaneously, the number of U.S. digital

With all the high-profile hacks, data breaches and malware (“malicious software”) in the news these days, you might be afraid to spend time online.

But as long as you exercise a little common sense and follow a few simple steps, your computer -- and more importantly, the data that resides on it -- can be protected from various Internet threats.

And no, you don’t need to be a computer engineer to bump up your online security.

The following are five suggestions to help you get started.

1. Use antimalware software

Now that security software is bundled in Windows 8, not to mention many free versions available at C|Net’s Download.com, there really isn’t an excuse for not having an antimalware solution installed on your computer, which includes antivirus, antispyware, a firewall, and more.

Free services are better than none at all, of course, but there are much more robust online security solutions for about $40 a year – such as those offered by Symantec, McAfee and Kaspersky – that can

Spring is finally here -- but just because you'll be spending more time in the Great Outdoors doesn't mean there aren't great gadgets to help keep you entertained, productive and in touch with family and friends.

Many are designed for those on-the-go – while others are designed for use in or around the home.

The following is a look at a half-dozen recommendations.

Sony Action Cam AS15

Sony has launched two teeny “action cams,” designed to capture the world around you, in stunning Full HD, while strapped to your bike, ATV, body or helmet.

Slightly bigger than a pack of Tic Tacs, both the AS10 ($199) and AS15 ($269) can shoot up to 120 frames per second for ultra-fluid video capture and snap 16-megapixel stills. Both models include a microSD slot and includes a fitted waterproof case and various mounts.

The AS15, however, includes integrated Wi-Fi, therefore you can wirelessly send those captured images to a nearby Apple or Android smartphone tablet.

Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga

Spring is a

Spring has officially sprung, which means spending more time in the Great Outdoors, traveling and capturing all of your memories with friends, family, pets or nature.

Whether you use a smartphone, point-and-shoot camera or interchangeable lens model, you can take better shots this spring by taking heed to these following ten tips, provided by Jason Thomson, curator of Frame One Photo, a blog and Facebook site designed to demystify photography for the masses.

Thomson is also the father of six – yes, six – children, which has nothing to do with this article other than he takes a LOT of photos of them.

1. Look for color

Color gives every shot some personality.

“After months of white ground over, gardens are bursting with greens, reds, purples and more,” says Thomson. “Put some color in your shot -- whether it's kids holding bouquets of flowers or birds sitting on your back fence.”

2. Get dreamy shots -- with aperture

Thomson says the best advice he ever received was "shoot how it feels,

What’s that? You heard Apple is readying its fifth-generation iPad, but you just bought its new iPad with Retina display in November?

Just great, you’re thinking.

And of course the new and improved model will likely be faster, lighter and thinner, and with other bells and whistles.

But such is life in the fast lane, where tech companies can't afford to stand idle for long. The tablet space is a perfect example of this fact, given there are many dozens of rivals bringing new products to market – including Apple’s no. 1 competitor, Samsung.

Unless you thrive on being the first on your block with the latest and greatest gadgets, it often pays to wait when new tech toys debut.

In fact, here are a few reasons why it doesn't always pay to be an early adopter.

Get the bugs out

It's been said an engineer, programmer and video game designer are never "done" their job on a product – they're just told when to stop. While in development, there's a checklist of hardware and software kinks that