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· Alexa built-in devices let you instantly connect to Alexa to play music, control your smart home, get
information, news, weather, and more using just your voice.
· Item dimension: 22 x 45 x 38 cm

In my view this equipment was badly marketed – at a tech savvy audience who probably have a tablet or a
smart phone with all the attributes to communicate via video links. This is what you find on various YouTube
evaluations. It is also quite expensive for what it offers.

So where does it sit?

David purchased the unit to allow his mother who was resident in a local care home, the ability to communi-
cate with her family. David set up the equipment with a Facebook account and his own smart phone and after
installing a WIFI booster locally, his mother was able to see and talk to friends and family. The Portal has a
15.6” HD display, built in microphone and speakers.

I can’t help wondering if the company’s marketing team had looked a bit more laterally than at the current
tech market, they may well have had a winner – who knows.

The item was looking for a new home and hopefully found one with another nursing home resident who will
be able to have meaningful video communication with friends and family.

Dave Robb

This Month

This month we want to take a look at your favourite websites so if you have a website that you find useful or
just interesting please bring the details along and we can share it with everyone else. It can cover any topic
whether it is related buying something, travel information, technical information or just something of general
information. I am sure everyone will find something of interest to them.

DPReview

Those of you who are into photography will probably come across this website a long time ago and realalised
how useful it is but the end of the road for it is approaching.

Amazon will be shutting down DPReview, the trusted and comprehensive camera reviews website, as part of
the 18,000 job cuts it announced in January. According to an announcement posted on the site, the DPReview
team will continue publishing reviews and other content until April 10th, after which “the site will be locked,
with no further updates made.”

The site, started in 1998, has become a cornerstone of camera journalism through thorough and thoughtful
reviews. If you ever researched DSLRs, mirrorless cameras, or lenses, you’ve almost certainly come across its