Launching actions through NFC tags

So, I have a new phone! Galaxy note 3, and I love it has so many great features, pretty much all of them make sense, IR blaster is great, remote control the tv, camera, sky box etc. However the one bit I didnt quite click with straight away being NFC, up until now I have found limited use for it. Until I discovered NFC Stickers! Couple of quid on ebay, link at the bottom of the post enable NFC on your phone. Then you need an app to trigger the action you want. I think I have tried every single app available to get it to do what I wanted, which initially is quite simple Tag 1 - On my desk in my flat when I am working in London, sets the phone to vibrate, and enables the wifi hotspot automatically so my laptop can connect. Tag 2 - Centre console of the car where the phone goes when driving, set up to switch to drive mode(reads texts), volume to high, and switch bluetooth on for my car kit. The App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jwsoft.nfcactionlauncher&hl=en The tags I bought, although there are loads out there: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/370936397013?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 Simple to use set up the actions you want, based on the initial trigger mechanism, then write those actions to a tag, and you done. I will do a youtube vid showing it in action soon! I welcome suggestions on where and what to use more of these for.

Waterproof iPhone 5!!!!!!!!

I understand there has been a bit of a commotion recently with some confusion around the internet as to whether ios7 really made your phone waterproof.  If anyone tried this, more fool you and you deserve a broken phone.

4G switchover

Just migrated my account with orange to ee, largely due to working in london soon, and need a reasonable internet connection to tether my ipad and mac.  Have taken speed test readings prior to the switchover, will post the results of real world tests.

Quadcopter progress.....

So following my post a while ago regarding my intention build a quadcopter, and largely due to my brother getting off his ass and finishing his, I have ordered all the parts required to finish my build in one foul swoop!

So I bought a cheap 450mm frame off ebay, one of the very popular white and red fiberglass ones. I sat with the frame on the bookcase for ages, and then got a kick up the ass to finish it, so a quick order to hobbyking for this:

Cheap Quadcopter build

Stage one of my quadcopter build, will be a slow build as I am buying a few parts every month. My intention is to build it as cheap as possible, I won't be spending £000's like some of the builds. So I ordered a 450mm quad frame from china, for the princely sum of £10, arrived the other day, and I cannot fault the quality for the price.

Measuring Solar Panel Performance

Under a scheme in the UK, we are able to have solar panels for electricity generation for free, the basics of the scheme is that you can use as much electricity as you can generate and the remaining generated electricity that goes back into the grid gets paid to the company who supply the Solar PV System.

So we have had one fitted, and obviously I was very keen to see the benefits of having the system, so I bought an OWL CM160 to try and monitor the electric usage.  

The software that comes with the OWL is ok, however doesn't really have much functionality other than displaying historic/realtime usage.

So my intention is to, output the data collected from the OWL to a file that can be read/visualised by external sources, then use this to remotely monitor the data, ideally from my iphone, android phone, or my ipad via apps that I will build.

I intend to hook up another OWL monitor to measure Solar generated power against the house consumption so I can compare the 2.

I will break this up into stages as I go through the project.

LED Doorlock indicators

Check out this write up by my dad on his doorlock status lights!!

Really cool project, with some real world uses

http://grizzly-grizzlysblog.blogspot.com/2011/10/door-lock-indicators-first-project-to.html