tailgating

Smart stadium TV: NFL FanVision, hands-on

Sports fans can easily find the live stadium experience to be paradoxically out of touch compared with the instant stats, superior commentary, and HD replays available to home viewers. DVRs, HDTVs, and smartphones can't follow you to the live game. At stadiums, it's hard to get any smartphone to work properly. Streaming radio apps black out live game broadcasts, unless you're using Sirius. As for video, unless you've got some portable TV with an HDTV antenna converter box, you're out of luck.

This is the promise that NFL FanVision offers to a seasoned fan. At first glance, the device--a dedicated ruggedized handheld with a 4.3-inch screen formerly used at Nascar events--looks like a castoff from the early '00s, some idea of a personal media player from the early age of iPods. Purportedly waterproof (though we didn't test it) and boasting a 6-hour battery life for streaming, it's a bit too big to pocket and hangs from a lanyard around one's neck. Sure, it's not nearly as elegant as an iPhone. What it does, however, bears consideration. A live TV feed of the current game (plus audio commentary), multiple viewing angles, instant multi-angle replay after every play, plus live video of other games around the league, the NFL Red Zone channel, and stats...it's compelling for a hard-core fan.

How it works Others might ask, why not just watch the real live game in front of you? That's a valid point, but not for me. I'm a New York Jets fan, and my dad has been one for 45 years. We know the players, and we like to know what's happening down to the fine details. FanVision's audio commentary and stats offer more than what's given via the minimalist PA system and the infrequently updated HD megascreens. And instant replay, the killer app for the home user, is offered up at the press of a button.

Even better, FanVision seems to be set up to be overload-proof. FanVision works via a dedicated local UHF channel that's licensed to broadcast in the stadium and the parking lot area. The device is really a higher-tech TV, one that can receive up to 10 channels of digitally compressed video and stat data and cache highlight videos for replays. Once booted up via a small power button, the device locates the nearby broadcast tower and downloads team-specific data and channel programming. After a few minutes of initialization, the device is up and running. By avoiding Wi-Fi or 3G, FanVision's broadcast concept shouldn't suffer from slowdown.

It all sounds great on paper, but we wanted to test it for ourselves.… Read more

Portable bars combine marketing, tailgating

There are perhaps only a few places and times when really great ideas are born into existence. While doing the dishes, in the shower, perhaps at the beach while watching the waves endlessly cycle through their inspiring rhythms. Or maybe the truly good ones are saved for another activity surrounding a liquid: Drinking beer in a parking lot with some buddies. Which is exactly how Event Hog got its start.

The team at Event Hog brainstormed their line of BrandStands as a central gathering spot at entertainment events. The theory stemmed from a simple idea of creating a familiar environment--a … Read more

Camping, grilling in style

Tired of the same old marshmallow on a stick routine when you're camping in the woods? Had it with yet another frozen burger off of yet another one of those ubiquitous squat little grills? Well, next time try cooking up a treat with a portable flattop grill. With its retro look, this line from Evo might just be onto something new.

Some people just aren't any good at outdoor cooking. When camping their marshmallow falls into the fire every time. Or you take them to a tailgate and the shish kabob they brought slips through the grate and … Read more

'Tailgating Trailer' for the ultimate gamer

With football season in full swing we're witnessing the annual migration of that heartiest of parking-lot breeds, the tailgaters. Little did we know, however, that their work has been elevated to an art form.

While amateurs toil with such tools as MP3 coolers and barbecues, an elite corps will be rolling out the "Tailgating Trailer"--a self-contained portable party apparatus that includes "a 27-inch LCD TV, satellite, DVD, generator, propane grill, hand-washing sink with running water, beer on tap and even a toilet," according to BornRich. (Microwave is optional.)

As much as we admire its … Read more

Take your cooler for a spin

We hate to sound snide here at Crave (OK, that's a lie), but the "Motorized Cruzin Cooler" is just begging for it.

It's a made-to-order personal vehicle with a Subaru engine and a removable 54-quart ice chest that doubles as the driver's seat. All for only $1,995, according to Red Ferret. At that price, we could have stuck a Styrofoam chest on a motorized scooter and still had plenty of money left over for beer. But if you're looking to give your neighborhood ice cream man the gift of a lifetime, you'd … Read more