Buzz Aldrin, who inspired the name of Toy Story's Buzz Lightyear, has an Apple connection. He spoke at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference about three years ago. Now, with the 45th anniversary of his walk on the moon, with fellow astronaut Neil Armstrong, he's back in the news. Most recently, Buzz Aldrin offered up his own "Space Selfie," the first ever, taken back in 1966.
From Ellen Degeneres' Oscar selfie to Webster's adding it to their official dictionary, clearly, this is the year of the selfie. But most selfies are poorly taken because the user's arm is in the picture and it's hard to line up the shot. Even the most beautiful people in Hollywood can look odd. Fortunately, there are some tools to help a user out.
HISY ($24.99) is a compact Bluetooth gadget, about the size of a few quarters, that you can keep in your pocket and use as necessary. It's small and unobtrusive but does the job. The HISY is available in assorted colors, so you can personalize yours and tell it apart from your friends'HISY. You still have to launch the camera app, and select between photo or video, but once that's done, the HISY can act as a shutter release.
Not only can this result in better photos, because the user doesn't need their arm in the picture, but the rear camera can be used to deliver much better photos, as long as the shot is lined up first. This can be good for sports too, as a user can setup a skateboard move, or ski jump, etc., and get the image or video they want.
Instead of keeping the HISY in your pocket, the HISY can plug into the headphone jack, so you know where it is, and won't lose it easily. The HISY is for Apple only and comes in most of the colors the iPhone 5c does. Android users, don't worry, they have a version called HALO that works on Android and iOS, but it requires a special app and is only sold in black.
The HISY requires iOS 7.0, and leverages Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy. This allows the HISY to use a single CR2032 battery that the company claims will last two years. It's a pleasure not to have another device to remember to charge! If you do take (and post) a lot of selfies, $25 is a small price to pay for better photos and the ability to take them more easily.
