Back from China!

do that. It's just you know, anecdotal funny things stories, business stories, and you know, yes, I did review technology and cars, talked a lot about sports, and that was Monday through Friday show while I also still had the weekend High Tech Texan show. And at some point I'm like, you know what, it's this this Monday through Friday thing. It's at the end of the day, the ROI it's

not worth it, so I stopped it. But the name still resonates, and you know, I should do my own podcast, a different one than this one called the World according to Garf, and I bring it up is because this indeed is the world. And over the years, I've done this twenty three years in the radio, along with some television and now social media, and thanks to iHeart, the show is heard around the world, almost everywhere around the world. I've done the show from so many places around the world.

I have been to four or five different spots in Mexico, I have been to Amsterdam and Iceland, and I've done the show in London and everywhere from California to Florida. Just it goes on and on and on. And I just returned from a place that I didn't think I ever would be in my life. I am at the point of my life where listen, the kids are grown, they're out, I don't have any pets. I could just travel, travel, travel,

and it's kind of bye opening right now. And if you've been following and listening, you know exactly where I have been, and now it is time to do a really in depth, deep dive recap, not only about my trip. And this is not an old look at me. I guess where I you know, I went. This was this was a business trip people. I mean I didn't wear a suit and tie, but this is a business trip because I explored, I talk with companies, I discovered new products.

I've met some new friends and counterparts when I visited China. That is right. I am back from a whirlwind worldwide trip to China, and I've been, you know, kind of counting it down here on the show, looking forward to it. Maybe a little trepidation, you know, you hear about China. I grew up in the era where China's like, we don't know really what's what's going on over in China. I mean, they allegedly blocked the Western world from media. You can't get communication in or out. I mean I

didn't know what to expect. I didn't know it. You know, it's it's is it overpopulated? Is what's the climate? Do they? Like Americans right now? Didn't know? And so we will give you the play by play over the next two hours of of what happened. But one of the things that one of the many things that we're going to talk about today, we're going to talk about some of

the companies, the culture that I saw. Why is China one of, if not the worldwide leader when it comes to R and D creating and producing products, technology products, automobiles, and so many other things that make them in some ways so far ahead of every other country. I'm going to stop right now, and I'm gonna give you an asterisk. And before I get phone calls, before I get emails, I'm gonna say this, hand to God, hand my mouth microphone right now. MY name is Michael Garfield. I am

an American. I always will be an American. I bleed red, white, blue, and burnt orange from my University of Texas. I don't think there is a better country than the United States of America. Okay, I'll say that up from I'm not shilling for any other country ever, certainly during this show.

But what I am I am not afraid to actually give you my thoughts that go right down the line, all right, a bipartisan thing that listen, I am not afraid to say this product is better than this, this company is better than this, this team is better than this, whatsoever. Sometimes I'm embarrassed about it. Sometimes I think competition only drives up excellence, and so these are gonna be my thoughts. So I don't want to hear the oh man, did Chinese pay you to talk about this? Now? No, Sadly,

I didn't make one freaking penny. Sadly, I sat on an airplane twenty two thousand miles. My nickname to the other people, the other journalists who were on the trip with me, was Magellan. Now I know my initials are MG, but I also have an Imgella Magellan. I literally left from Houston, stopped in San Francisco, San Francisco, directed a Hong Kong, took a ferry right across to the southernmost

point of China. That was that's gonna be a that's gonna be a ten minute segment alone stand by for that was in Shinzhen, China, four and a half days or so, A lot of great meetings, a lot of introductions and the culture and everything. I then leave from China. You think I would come back east, Oh no, no, no, the way they booked me, I continue to go west I went from China to Qatar in the Middle East.

It's only a nine hour flight, go to the Qatar Doha Airport, one of the nicest airports in the world. I then get on a sixteen hour flight west again direct Doha, Qatar to Houston. The circumference of the Earth, I believe is roughly around twenty four thousand miles. I traveled twenty two thousand miles in freaking economy. That was That was one of the low lights of the trip. But I do think United and I mean maybe Katar.

I don't know. I'll give you thoughts to that. Listen if you have questions, and I know you do, I'm going to give you the number. It's three four to six twenty nine texts and we're going to have really interesting breakdown of play by play that does include tariffs. I was able to sit down and speak with the heads of Chinese based companies on their candid thoughts on what they think in the short term and the long term of the potential tariffs that keep on moving on

a regular basis. It seems of how it's going to affect their company and how they ship will they ship products to the United States based on the cost of tariffs and how at the end of the day it is going to affect you, my dear Lestern. We've got that. We've got news that Amazon has now launched some satellites that actually can help communication around the world. National Password Day was this week. We're going to get some password information and anything else that you want to hear. Michael

at high Tech textan dot Com. I've done it for almost a quarter century right now. It's great to be able. It's an honor to be able to talk to you over the air Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, all across the state of Texas, and I will tell you for you for the length of my show. I've always said that the this is a worldwide radio show, and I can't maybe not. I may not be able to say worldwide because from what I understood, China does not elect allow

Western media, including iHeartRadio, into their country. When we come back, I will answer the question can my show be heard in China? And the answer may shop get is Michael Garfield the High Tech Texting Show. Only two thousand miles later, I have returned to the United States after a long, long trip, not actually a lot of time in China. Is it still called the People's Republic of China? Canse some we checked that it's every time they're in the Olympics,

they call themselves something it. So I was in shin Zin, China, which and the reason I was there it was a fact finding business trip that I went with probably about fifteen other I'm gonna call myself a journalist that covered the technology industry because shin Zen, which is the southernmost point of China, I mean so southern. Then there's water, and then there's Hong Kong. All right, it's the Silicon Valley of China. It's I didn't know what to expect.

I did not know because I've I have gone to South Korea. I went to South Korea two years ago, which is the furthest I've ever been west. You say that's in Asia, this is even further west. So I flew into Hong Kong and then I popped over to to China. And I think of China, and you think of China. I don't know, maybe, and I'm not trying to seriously, I'm not trying to do anything stereotypical, but I've been to chinatowns in the United States, I've been

in San Francisco. I love Chinatown in San Francisco. I've been in Chinatown in New York. There's a Chinatown in Houston, where I'm based. There's a lot of China. When you go, there may be a little bit kitchy. There's you know, the umbrellas, there's the Chinese, the mand in writing and the signs, and you look in the store windows and the restaurants and there's hanging chickens and HIGs feed and what facts. Man, I'm not making I'm not trying to

make fun. There's inexpensive items and chowshky's that you'll never need. It's very narrow streets, and I'm thinking, that's what I'm gonna see. Ay. Shenzen is one of the newer cities in the country of China, so much so that has really been built up over the past only and I say, only sixty or seventy years now. You think about Beijing, which has been around what ten thousand years, Shanghai that

which is up north, right, I was down south. If you blindfolded me in this city and you put me on a city street in Shenzen, you didn't tell me where I was and I didn't happen to see the Chinese street signs that are written to dead or that hadre written a foreign language. I could have told Joe was in Manhattan. I was in the heart of New York. New York Hall buildings. Everybody lives in these high rise apartments, big boulevards, cars, motorbike, scooters, parks, trees, people just walking.

It wasn't overcrowded and overpopulated like I thought China was, at least not where I was in downtown or this business district of Shen's in China. I thought I stayed at a Western hotel. I stay at a Marriott hotel. It's like forty The lobby was like on the forty third floor, overlooking these massive buildings. I look south, I'm looking directly at Hong Kong. I mean it was cool. It was It was this Texas boy. It's like, man, what am I doing over here? And then there's the culture.

But let me start with this. What did I miss? What did I miss? The last week of April? Well, from what I gathered, Hope died, Shannon Sharp got canceled or something shed where Sanders fell in the NFL draft bill Belichick had a week, didn't he. You know what else I missed? I missed me some text Max. Oh my goodness. You know I'm not I am not a foodie, you know, I'm I'm I'm a picky dude, I really really am. I mean, I don't eat pork and I don't eat a lot of red meat. I'm a fish

chicken guy. But there, it's funny there. There was there was KFC outlets. There, there was a dairy queen there, Uh, Starbucks everywhere. I don't drink coffee, but it's very There was a lot of americanized type of food, which we never ate at because I was the part of this tour and they wanted to show us traditional you know,

Chinese meals and things. Chinese are big on food. They have these massive round tables with lazy susan, you know, those big kind of movable roundtables, and they just bring out food and they just spin it and spin it and then they bring out more food. And the problem is, I have no clue what the hell is in the in those dishes. And I had and and I needed a translator, and luckily we had people who spoke, you know,

Chinese Mandarin and you know, obviously English. It's like at some point and day three it's like garf, don't even ask, don't even ask? Did those are worms on skewers? Not a stereotype, I kid you not. I went to a restaurant they served barbecued worms. I got a video. But dude from London who I met eating one of these things not happening. And I don't care if it tastes like chicken, and I don't care how many grams of protein. It's just not happened. I think I lost weight on

this trip. I think I lost weight on this trip. So the culture was kind of crazy. The airline travel listen United was a United Airlines. I went there on United. Very cool, you know, coming into dinner. Continental Airport I was there. I left so early that I've never done this. I did not know that Bush Intercontinental Airport they're closed. They don't open until four in the morning. I guess assumed airports were open twenty four hours. I literally had to wait till the gate and TSA were open to

let me in at four am. I had a five a m flight, but I met a number of people from the United communications team. I just wanted to say hi. They showed me around. They could not have been nicer. Yeah, I guess they could have. I guess they could have upgraded me to a lay flat seat, which, by the way, I love travel. I love traveling overseas, but in my age and just there's no way I can travel that far again without in those one of those beds is just just not happening. So I got there. It was

a long flight, long layover in San Francisco. Luckily I was in a United Club. United clubs fairy comfy, highly recommend cocktails, relax a little, and then I was on a very very long flight get there. I must say, Sin's in in terms of the climate, very much like Houston. It was starting to get a little humid. Wasn't too overpowering, overbearing. The funny thing is, obviously I'm based in Houston. I know what humidity is. There are a lot of people

from London. There was someone from Pakistan, there was some dude from Carolina, someone from New York, and they warned me. They were like, oh my god, the humidity is going to be so bad. I'm like, bro, let me help you out. I'm from Houston and I get there. It's like, this is nothing. This is like winter to me. They thought it was, Oh, it's so hard human, I'm like,

shut up. You know, may have been high seventies, low eighties. Yes, there was a smidge of humid in the air, but come on, yeah, my hair did get a little poofy and humidity curly. But I could dig it. I could dig it. But other than that that, people were very nice. Massive shopping malls, galleria type of things in one section, and I did, and I'll talk about this later in the show. There are I was looking for some cheap stuff because I also heard that China has got some

really inexpensive products. I mean, you can get some cheap watches, some cheap clothing, some cheap technology. You can. However, buyer beware, buyer beware, because a lot of this stuff you have to look closely. They are knockoffs. It's Rolexes ninety dollars. B I know. I work with US coins and jewelry here in Uston. I know the price of a Rolex. Ain't nobody selling a real Rolex for ninety dollars. I

saw a triple I sold. I saw I saw some phones that are not sold the United States because technically they can't be sold in the United States. Companies like wah Wi Uhawei very controversial obviously because it's a Chinese based company. I think the I think Trump in his first term he had said no, no, no, no, Wahwei products can be sold here in the United States because they could have spyware or whatever. There's Huawei stores on every street corner. And the technology is amazing, it really is.

They have You've seen foldable phones, flip phones, fold off phones. They have a trifold phone. They have a phone that I saw. I saw and I didn't get to touch it, and I'll tell you what. That folds out one, two, three times it becomes a tablet. Technology is amazing. I say this because I went to a technology based I went to a tech mall. We just were just exploring where they were selling, you know, stuff like you know,

ten cents in the dollar. There was this trifold phone sitting in a glass case and we asked how much it was, and it was normally these things easily are two thousand and three thousand dollars if you could find them right, and I think there were some of these things for six hundred dollars. I say, cool, can you bring it out of the case. Let me touch it. I just want to see it, hold it. They would not even let me touch it. No, And I'm like, you want people to buy this phone for six hundred

and seven hundred, maybe one thousand US dollars. I don't know what it was selling for. You won't let people touch it you want me. It's like sight unseen, touch unseen. It's kind of a negative. It doesn't work that way. But one of the other things that blew me away are the cars, the cars, automobile situation. And now I'm gonna talk extensively about that. You know, I do dig the cars. I'm an auto reviewer. Some of the cars

over there unbelievable. A lot of electric vehicles, a lot of brands and models I have never heard of, and a lot cheaper than you could ever imagine. Certainly nothing that you ever fight in the United States. Listen, I got that so much more coming up, don't go anywhere bottom in the first hour it is Michael Barfield high

Tech Dutch three are back at It. Michael is the name Michael garfielding long running high tech text in show Back in the USA, still haven't caught up on my sleep from my around the world trip to China, which we have been talking about. Without a doubt, it was an eye opening experience for me to see another part

of the world, another culture. And I'll tell you what, China is a different that's a different cat man, that is a different country when it comes to everything that we've been talking about, including the food, which I could do an entire two hour segment on the food. But you know, one of the things that I that I noticed and I knew I was going to notice as I was walking around and driving around the city, specifically the city of Shinsen where I was was the car,

was the automobile situation in the vehicles. And I just know that that Chinese they really really adore their evs or electric vehicles, and that's that's a big part of what's going on in the world right now in terms of tariffs. You know, I know for a fact that Chinese made cars. They can be made very very inexpensive. As it is a compared her to the United States, it's almost unheard of when you convert the price, and some of the ones I actually went into a dealership

or two not my eyes. We're just we're bugging out, freaking out. How can this be? And you know, why can't they be shipped to the US If they can, well, they're going to be just as expensive, if not more than the cars we have in the US. And so I wanted to kind of have a little discussion about that, kind of comparing Chinese vehicles, American vehicles and everything else. And with that I go to the experts. I'm the semi experts, but that we have people who really know

the insight information. With that, I bring in Daniel Cohan. Daniel is a professor of environmental engineering at Rece University. I say, Rice Universe. You know he's brilliant. First off, right there, he joins me. Daniel, you have been to China and this is your bag. You study everything when it comes to the environment, in electricity, not just in cars, but in homes. The disparage between the countries. What goes on in America and almost so many other countries around

the world. How do you read that and why are we do? I say America is so far behind other countries? Is that a fair as a statement? Yeah?

I actually got to sit into some. They are absolutely futuristic and everything from the accrupiments that the large infotainment screens and how nice and the leather seats are. And they recline and then I ask how much they are and they tell me the price in you know, yin or no. I'm sitting in there converting at my calculator and I'm like, no, way, yes, yes, yes way. I'm like, can I get this in my suitcase and bring it back to America? And they sit here laughing at me,

going there's no way, that way possible. Daniel. How is it that you could make all these electric vehicles. There's a lot of electric vehicles that are made and trying to be sold in America. Americas just start buying them at the rate that the Chinese are. Is there a mandate in China is why are the Chinese just so Yep, we're gonna make them and we're gonna buy them too. I mean, what is the incentive?

of money. For example, as you're on the roads in China, you might have noticed that there are some blue license plates and green license plates.

of buying a polluting car. If you want a green license plate for an electric car that's going to be free or just a negligible cost, and so the government is net making money and yet pushing the market towards electric cars. They do exempt electric car buyers from some taxes, but they don't give anywhere near the subsidies that the US gives to our electric car buyers, and it's just become a self sustaining industry. The other thing that's really

been key is on the technology side. They've gone all in and on automation. I went to Byde's headquarters when I was in Tenshin and they had a mock up of their factories, and nearly all of their processes are automated. You have robots lifting up the battery to drill it in, and then robots lifting up the car to bring it

through to be spray painted. And so there's far more efficient, far more automated, far more robotics oriented manufacturing processes, and that means that they can produce cars more cheaply than almost anywhere else in the world.

green electric plate is free. I mean, that's the biggest decent of incentive I've ever heard. I'm no wonder the eed sales took off. That's actually a very very intelligent way to do things right.

and it was unbelievable. I mean, this is considered incredibly luxury here in the United States, which I think the equivalent would be anywhere between eighty ninety thousand dollars US American if they were American made cars. I mean, they've got this system. I want to go to the battery infrastructure because to me, this is the hindrance that we have here. I think in the United States or it's a big issue, but I think China has slowly figured

this thing out. I don't have anything against electric cars, and my longtime listeners know I like electric cars. I test drive one probably once a month. They are super speedy, they are super fast, They indeed are sexy. The problem is the infrastructure of charging batteries here in the United States. Daniel, you've known me all my life. I have adhd like waiting for anything, all right, And if I get in the car to go from Dallas, it's to go from

Houston up to Dallas and I forty five. At some point I'm gonna have to stop somewhere and find a battery charger. I'm gonna have to cross my fingers maybe somewhere in Centerville that there is a level three battery charger. I'm gonna have to cross my fingers that of the four different charging pods. All four of them are working at their proper level of level three. I'm gonna have to cross my fingers that none of those pods are

currently in use by another car. If so, I have to wait, I then have to put my car in that stall and wait forty five minutes to an hour to charge it up, hopefully to one hundred percent. There is an hour and a half two hours of my time. We don't do that in the United States, I mean, and that's my issue right now. But I think China, and specifically byd which is that major major manufacturer there, they're coming up with it with processes or technology to

speed up that battery charging process. Is that right?

It might take fifteen minutes, might take thirty minutes. Now they're introducing new technologies that a couple of the car models can charge upmpletely in five minutes time, something that you just can't do in the United States for most of the rest of the world. So they're designing cars for all purposes. They're designing plug in hybrids for people

who still want that gasoline for certain purposes. They're designing very very long range cars, cars that go over four hundred miles to a charge, and they're designing a few that get very very quickly charging. So there's something for everybody in the electric car market there because they have a couple hundred different models of cars available for sale.

you've got to get an electric vehicle. It's the charging infrastruct You tell me five minutes, that's almost a green light. And is that something? And it's great to hear there's technology like that. Do you ever see this coming? If and when to America.

technologies are going to be shared with other countries. A lot of these Chinese companies are setting up joint ventures with American companies, with European companies, and so you're going to start seeing them in other parts of the world byd is exporting a lot of their cars and setting up factories in other countries.

mention the word tariffs without a doubt. I did have a number of different discussions with the heads of Chinese companies what is going on or getting their current take, even though no one knows what the future is about the tariffs, the Chinese America tariff trade war for lack of a better term, when many other countries obviously what that can do to affect cars and so many other

pieces of technology that I saw. What are your general thoughts of how this is going to shake out in the short term and in the long term.

Even made in the USA cars or cars rolling off of American assembly lines aren't going to be competitive on the global stage if they're paying huge tariffs on these parts. No country is completely self sufficient. Every country needs to import and export some of its parts, and our manufacturers or a disadvantage if they can't access or pay huge tariffs on on parts that they need for their operations.

the High Tech Texans Show. Appreciate Professor Daniel Cohan from a Rice University joining me for a few minutes. It just it just adds a little air of omph, like you know, we've got some stuff going on in this show. It's not just idiot me talking. Man. I get I get Rice University professors talking about smart things. I appreciate that phone number here is seven one three two one two five nine five oh up against the top of

the hour. Here in a few minutes, uh next hour, I want to talk about the tariffs of what I discovered by talking to a lot of heads of Chinese companies while I visited in China, of what they thought of what the US is doing potentially doing backtracking, how are they looking at things in the short term and the long term. And it's also I just had some anecdotal conversations with people who who found out I'm from Texas,

and it's really fun. They find out I'm from Texas and the first and they find out her from I live in Houston right now. And the first thing. A lot of these Chinese people think I'm not kidding. I say Houston. They go, Yao Ming, unbelievable. How Yao Ming who has not played in the NBA or for the Houston Rockets in ten years? Maybe how Yao Ming is associated with Houston and the Houston Rockets, which is great.

I mean the NBA, I mean sports are the American sports are That's one export that we are the kings of in the NBA is going to continued a good job. But China and the Houston Rockets are so all attached. I'm like, oh, yeah, we're tight, you know whatever. I thought that was fun. More Sports World. One of the things I missed is the NFL draft. The I know cam Ward went number one, which was not the story.

The interesting and the sad part of the story was Shudoor Sanders, who was allegedly supposed to be drafted relatively high. He fell all the way to day three and the fifth round, and then that that's not the biggest story is that the Shudoor Sanders that this is not even funny that he got cranked called. If you haven't heard about this, the Atlanta Falcons coach, the defensive coordinator, his son got a hold of Shador Sanders. Frank called him.

find me one hundred thousand dollars. It's been eating me up for a few days and I wanted to get into the bottom of this. Joining me right now is the youngest of my three sons, Adam Garfield, joining me, What is what is the worst thing that you ever did? And what punishment did I give you? Can you think of anything like that.

I don't know, I don't even know how to do a Mickey Loomis impersonation like he did.

Michael garfiel howerd Number one is OVA. On the other side, we will talk about how these traps could affect you. Amazon Prime Day coming up by that time. What's gonna happen with prices? Amazon also launching satellites, National Password Day, your calls and everything else. This is how we do it on the Old Law high Tech Texting.

in China. That's what I wasn't a good will. I was on a peaceful mission. My first time to China.

It was an interesting ship. It was a business trip without a doubt, and a bunch of journalists went over there to talk to Chinese company, meet with Chinese companies, find out how how can China and other countries for that matter, produce goods some of them high quality, some may not, some up but it's so inexpensive compared to America in other countries, and what's going to happen with the volatile marketplace, with the tariffs that are going up

and down and up and down. And you can see some of the photos on my silver and social media social media accounts. Check it out, high tech text and hi gh t e h T e x a N. That is how you're going to get to me. The talk about the food. I lost some weight over there. The food in China was I mean it's certainly it's edible. I mean they've got more people over there than I think the other country per capita or whatever it is, Uh, just maybe not for me. First of all, I'm a

picky dude. I'm a very picky eater. If you know me, you know how interesting before I put something in my pie hole. I don't eat pork. Just because I don't eat pork. I'm not a big red meat guy. I love fish and chicken. Uh, there's rice and noodles over there the U. I saw some stuff. I saw worms. We were at a dinner and they served I guess they were barbecued worms and a skewer. Everything was served there. On one meal. We were at this Chinese barbecue family place.

It was skewer screw. They had skewed corn kernels. They hate somebody, I guess at a restaurant to take and peel corn kernels off a cob and then put them on a skewer and then they they grill them. I am not kidding you. And then there's chicken legs and duck. There's duck tongue. What is duck tongue? I'll making fun of anything. I am giving you fact facts, man, just don't do it. At least I stayed at a nice hotel.

I stayed at a Marriott hotel where they had a nice Western style, Oh you can eat breakfast, and even then, you know, they had eggs and whatever. But they I mean they still had like dim sum hot pot some bread. It was. It was okay, but I every time I travel I certainly internationally, I think I'd lose weight, to which I should I actually should do that more. Phone number here seven one three two one two five nine five. Oh,

I am not taking prank calls. Just if you just listened to the last segment last hour, uh story that one of the Atlanta Falcons coaches sons did a very infamous now prank call to Shader Sanders, who was finally drafted in the NFL. But he frank called him, pretending to be another team saying he would is going to be drafted, and that was just that's very bad to do, very bad to do. But anyway, the dad, the assistant coach, was fined one hundred thousand dollars. I dialed up my

son about ten minutes ago. You can go listen to that on the podcast. When we're done, Callum Reid. He's gonna put this on our podcast at iHeart Radio. Listen to it and you can hear my son's thoughts of what I would have done to him if he cost me one hundred thousand dollars for doing something stupid. The speaking of Worldwide, I found it interesting. Let me give you a little play by play of how China works. China, I think notoriously they of all the countries I traveled to.

I mean last year, I went to Berlin, I went to London, and I'm not country dropping. I'm just telling you again facts, facts of where I travel around the world. You travel in the world, and I give you tips on how to stay connected. Do you light up your international calling plan? Do you just find Wi Fi? Do you go out and find a Do you get a SIM card or an e SIM card for the country tree you're in, you get a hot spot that works in the country. There's a lot of different ways to

do it. It's a little bit more difficult than China they are. I did download an e simcard before I went, and it wasn't that much. I didn't get a lot of gigs. I knew I was going to be in Wi Fi, so when I got over there, I turned my you know, my cell data plan off and I used my e simcard for China. I was in Wi Fi a lot.

But also it's not just okay good. I'm on Wi Fi in China, which means I could go to some websites China really don't like out of country or American websites like ESPN dot com blocked, NBC news dot com block, high tech text in dot com block. They don't like things, and so what's the way around it, Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the Great Firewall of China. That is right. I was told smartly so that you need

to download a VPN virtual Private network. It's software that you can put generally on your desktop computer, your laptop computer, your tablet. And oh, by the way, yes, you could download a VPN on your phone. And what a VPN is at the highest rudimentary level that I'm gonna explain because this is how I do it. It disguises where you physically are, because where you physically are on the Internet, it goes out and it connects to a server, usually

a very nearby server physically of where you are. If you're in Houston, if you're in Dallas, here, in Austin, wherever you are, it's going to go find a server generally near that city. So if I'm in China and I don't have a VPN, it's going to assume it's going to know that I'm in China and China blocks all these other countries out of there. So you put a VPN, and if you pay for a nice VPN,

which you probably should, they're freebe VPNs. I do recommend paying for a VPN because you're guaranteed now I'm not well almost guaranteed, not to get a lot of spiderware. You can actually say I want a server in the United States, I want a server in Canada. I want a server in Switzerland. It disguises where you actually are, pretends that you're in the United States, which means you're allowed to actually get United States websites. So for the longest time, I was told that I Heart Radio, the

app and everything doesn't work in China. So every time I say, hey, my show is worldwide because you can listen to iHeartRadio anywhere, well you really can't, legally, as the Chinese defined, legally listen to it in China. Aha, mister, workaround. I was able to get iHeartRadio in China. I could say this now that I'm back in the United States, right am I okay? And no one's listened to this

show anyway. I downloaded a VPN on my phone. It thought I was in Texas and I was able to listen to iHeartRadio, iway was listened to a number of my favorite other radio stations in podcasts and I just to confirm I was listening to my radio show. Actually I was. I was doing my radio show when you go to China, and again, not listen anybody. Every government can have their own rules, be whatever you are, but

thanks to technology, there are generally ways around things. I would recommend getting a VPN everywhere you travel, even when you don't travel. If you are here in America and you are in a public Wi Fi space and you're in a grocery store, you're in a library, you're in a coffee shop, and you think you're going to do some banking, and if you think you're going to send a private information baby doll, just download a VPN, a virtual private network, and your set. The one I use

was Express VPN. I mean, this is not an endorsement. I can't. I mean, I guess if you use my name to sign up, I think you can get thirty three days. If you want me to send you that link, Hey, send me an email Michael at high Tech textan dot com. Not a big deal, but there's a lot of them on the market out there. Use a VPN. Be careful. I was able to get out of China where no one confiscated my phone, and as of right now, the only issue that I have is my time lag that

I'm still trying to catch up on time. When we come back, we're going to take a break right now here on the Michael Garfield Show. I am going to talk about tariffs and taxes and what a lot of the Chinese companies said their thoughts, what they were doing, and you may want to hear this, especially if you're about ready to hoard some products because you don't.

in China and I see Jack Daniels. I'm like, why in the why would I who lives in the greatest country in the world of America, where in this case Jack Daniels has made buy a bottle of Jack Daniels, which obviously had to be shipped from the United States all the way to China for me a the bottle, which, as I converted the dollars, was no cheaper than I can get it at total line here and then slep it back to the United States. The point is, it's said a lot of Singh Tao and whatever. Just what's

over there? I did not see any carbock either. When you need to talk to my buddy Blake robertson they getting carbok over in China, I don't know. I'm sure they tear if that thing too, be like, I don't know, twenty dollars for a pint. As we continued the Guard Show, I did talk about tariffs and taxes a lot on a very serious note. One of the reasons that I went over there with a number of other knowledgy being journalists who covered the tech industry is what these companies

thoughts were when it comes to their companies. I mean, are they going to have to charge more to make more? Are they going to make as much money? Or are they going to halt all of these products that they're not going to be able to ship over here? I mean, if you think about it, Amazon Prime Day, it's coming in a few months again, it's in July, the twenty twenty five edition of the big two to three day

summer shopping event. The looming price hikes due to tariffs, it could impact of how much of a saving shoppers can't expect and prices on everything electronics they're expected to rise as a result of Trump's sweeping tariffs that originally announced on April second. Now, he did quickly follow up with a ninety day pause for most of the tariffs, but he did leave triple digit tariffs in place for China and a ten percent baseline tariff for goods imported

from other countries. They're trying to make deals and figure it out, but if the ninety day tariff pause is lifted before agreements can be reached, they would take effect in July. Oh by the way the same month as Amazon's Prime Day event. But if retailers passed along the full cost of the tariffs would mean will be paying double or more for products that are manufactured in other countries.

I mean, you look at bargain sites right now, like Timu and Shine, they've already seen prices skyrocket as much as three hundred and seventy five percent or so ahead of the tariffs. It's a tough situation, so I try to get to the bottom of it. We were able to visit with a number of different companies, in one of which we took a tour about an hour north of Shinzen, which is the Silicon Valley of China, to Lexar.

Lexar is a company that makes the memory and storage devices and SSD cards and all that for so many products that are found in almost every electronic product around the world, cameras, phones, computers, and laptops. And it was just amazing to see the production facility and it was a great access and kudos to the folks at the Global Connect conference who who put this thing together that we got to spend time with a CEO himself of Lexar. His name is Ryan Lee Li. Relatively young man, gentleman,

very well spoken, and I sat down here. He took all of this. I don't know, fifteen or so journalists got to have lunch in his executive dining room and just one on one and asked him questions, and I put a microphone in his face, and he was very agreeable. You know that you didn't have pr people around him.

And I quite simply asked him, Ryan Lee, the president of Lexar Worldwide Company, what his thoughts were on the short range and long term ramifications of the potential tariffs that are coming down with the United States.

a benefit. It may be an opportunity for Lexa because more demand is coming coming up because we know that some consumer they maybe they afraid of cannot buy or have to pay higher price in in the in the in next month or in the next three months.

cannot predict. Maybe trumpetwell changes his mind again. So what we can do is how to satisfy the requirement the demand right now and how we can keep more inventory for the future of sales in the States.

But the uncertainty is there. He was. It was very willing and fourth right when I asked him that question point blank and listen, he took two solid minutes, look at me right in the eye, said that that was an unaltered clip and he said all the right things, not trying to upset or incent any more trade war. But at the end of the day, he doesn't know.

He assumes that in the short term it could actually benefit the company because right now, before prices skyrocket, he thinks there's going to be demand of companies that are gonna want his his products. But in three months, who knows what's going on. And this, in the sense, is what I got from all these other companies that I met with, and I met no less than a dozen other companies that are based in shins In or near sins in China. They're fueling the same way. It's interesting

because they didn't they didn't seem mad. And again this is they know I'm based in America, and they know I have a big microphone. And this is I'm also using that clip the video for the TV segments that I do on Channel eleven in Houston and Fox and Austin too. They're not gonna, you know, kick me off, which obviously is gonna you know, that could go viral. It was a well thought out answer, but it's looming that on his mind and to his company and to

his workers. And I don't know if it's a public company, his shareholders. I don't know if the government owns it. But this is what we're going through right now. It is. It is weird in odd times, but there seems to be a calm. And as I said before, not one time during my entire six day visit in China did people look at me and point fingers, going on matter again, we don't like you get out of our country. Didn't say that at all. I never once heard the word Trump.

I never No one talks about politics over there, which is one of the reasons I kind of dig China. I like it. I don't. I rarely talk politics. I don't want to talk politics, but politics right now, it's there is an intersection of what I do and politics because I talk about electronics and devices in cars, which are directly affected. So more discussions. If you've got questions, thoughts, answers, or you know, even want some of my other you know, opinions,

you know what I anecdotally saw. I am here for you the phone number seven one three two one two five nine five os. We continue to the high tech text and show host. One of our partners here, the radio network US Coins and Jewelry based in Houston. You do not need to be in h town to uh take advantage of everything they have when it comes to coins. I mean for two generations, Kenny and Matthew Duncan started, their father started, who still is a part of the company.

But they continue just to uh just kick it. I mean they just if if you're into coin collecting, a new mismatist, if you collect sportspremmbilia, this is the place to be. It is on the Katie Freeway just outside of Loop six to ten in Houston, but also online. And you absolutely can trust this family and trust this company that's been around for two generations. US Coins and Jewelry dot com. It's it's funny. I hang out at US Coins and Jelry, and this is in all honesty.

You know, if I represent and I speak for a company, I know the company top to bottom. I know the owners, and so I hang out there probably at least once every other week or so, and I you know, and I'm learning a lot about coins, but also about Jewelry too, about Rolexes, for example, because they have just an unbelievable uh just it's just a collection of rolexes, which, by the way, we are just days away from Mother's Day.

Mom a gift us goings and jewelry. They got Rolexes, they got a lot of great joy of how to spot reeal jewelry, Rolexes, watches, whatever, But how to do the fake ones. That I say this is because when I was in China last week and I was in Shinzen, I went to a market in a kind of the outskirts of town, the hustle bustle, you know, kind of marketing.

And this thing must have been four or five, six, seven floors of just little tiny booths, ten foot twelve foot boosts of people selling everything from and again I'm using I'm gonna use brand names. I saw iPhones, I saw air pods, I saw Rolexes, I saw Samsungs, I saw you name it, and they were just everywhere, by the thousands and thousands of thousands. And I'm looking at the prices, I'm like, how can this iPhone be two hundred dollars US? How can this role ninety one hundred

dollars US? But then I learned what my guys at US coins and Julie taught me of what to look at and how the movement of the second hand goes and I'm like, ah, not so fast, not so fast, So buyer beware wherever you are in the world. I mean, I listen, I'm not ragging on China. Listen. I remember going to Turkey. I was on a cruise fifty seven seventeen years ago. We went to Turkey and we and we were on a cruise. We got off the ship and I saw this beautiful Panorai, which is a one

of my favorite watch brands. And I've always wanted a Panorai. And I know how panori is cost as much as a car. I mean, if you find a really nice you know, legit. One found a beautiful Panorai, brown leather wrist a strap. I got him down to one hundred dollars, and I'm just saying to myself, I know this ain't real. So you know what I did. You know what I did, A man who stands on principles whipped out one hundred

dollars as fast as I can. And to this day, seventeen year later, I still have this fake Panorai and not one person knows the difference because I don't let people take a close look at it. But from a par from afar. People look at my wrist going garf nice PANORAI. Well, thank you, I appreciate it. You know I worked hard, I built my brand. I would never do that again. Only shop at the best, Only go to US coins and Jewelry dot com. And you tell

Michael Garfield sent you a happy Mother's Day too. If you act UHA have any Mother's Day questions about what you should get mom, I am here for you. Let me give you even an updated phone number three four six twenty nine. Text in three four six two nine t e x A N. If we don't answer the phone and you go to voicemail, leave a voicemail. Be sweet. We have the right to replay this on the radio and we can answer questions. Hey, speaking of taking callers

and questions, we have got one over here. This is Brian. Brian, how you doing to Michael Garfield? You are on the High Tech Texan Shit. Hey, Michael, it's Brian love your show. Without dropping my phone in the toilet, how can I tell what the waterproof rating is? I see IPX, I don't really understand what that means. I yes, the old IP rating that you see on so many products. Brian, I appreciate that call. If anybody has ever spilled a little beer, a little water, or in Brian's case, maybe

drop your phone into the toilet. You know the importance of water resistance. I mean it can mean the difference between a quick wipe with a cloth or a very expensive trip to buy a brand new phone or a product. Waterproofing used to be something found only on big, rubber sealed phones designed for construction workers or mountain bikers, but water resistance has become pretty much the norm in everything, including phones iPhone sixteen, the Pro, the Pixels, the Galaxy

S twenty five's, whatever it is. I will say this, not all phones can withstand and a dunk in water, and they shouldn't be near liquids at all. Almost no phone should be taken in a swimming pool, ocean swimming, no sir, salt water, unless you're using a water tight case of some kind. But if you shop for a phone recently, you've probably come across the terms like water resistant. But also you're going to see some ratings in some numbers in letters. IP sixty seven, IP sixty eight, IP

x eight. What does it mean? IP stands for ingress protection. It's an International Protection rating ingress protection and it's their standard set by the International Electro Technical Commission. Look at that all right. So the first number in the rating code represents the amount that protection provided against entry of foreign solid objects like sand or dust, and that protection level it ranges from a low of zero to a

high of six. So when you see something that says IP sixty eight, well six first number, that's the highest it does prevent sand and dust from getting in there. The second number represents the degree of production against moisture or liquids, with a range from a low of zero to a high of eight. Again, let's go back to IP sixty eight. Now we have topped out at both the sand and the dust with the number six, and we have topped it out at the eight rating, the

highest level number for moisture and liquid. Now, sometimes you're going to see an IP rating with a number replaced by an X the letter X, such as ip X eight. Well, this instance, a company hasn't provided testing details, so the rating number is replaced by racer X. The masked racer unknown to speed it's his older brother. So an ip X eight rated device it can survive being submerged in water, but it really hasn't been rated for any other protection

from dust and other particles. Let me throw you out some good examples. The iPhone sixteen Pro IP sixty eight, right, Galaxy S twenty five Ultra iPhone that I use IP sixty eight. They're water resistant. Maybe maybe not, And that's where it gets confusing. For an eight on the IP rating this IEC council, they demand the device with stand being submerged in at least one meter of water for thirty minutes, and beyond that, well, it's up to the manufacturer.

So the S twenty five Ultra it could be submerged in about three feet of water for thirty minutes, while Apple says the iPhone sixteen Pro is safe and about twelve feet of water fro up to thirty minutes. So while any phone with an IP six' eight rating well had to have that one meter or three feet thirty minute, threshold it is important to check the fine print to see exactly what your phone. Offers bottom, Line brian and everybody, else don't go swimming with your. Phone just just don't put.

IT i don't even. Care. LISTEN ip tests are done using fresh water your pool generally does not have fresh, Water your pool has, chemicals, chlorine, salt. Whatever and if your phone doesn't have AN ip, rating can't it get? Wet sure can get. Wet can't guarantee it's gonna. Work use a case for people who are around the water a. Lot if you live, here for my listeners who lived Near.

Galveston if you're on a boat a. Lot summertime is coming, up you're going to go to the, beach your watch is you can get a cover of, protection a little rubber cover for your. Watch, absolutely get a cover for your. Phone you've seen these cases that Will it's kind of like a zip block bag that hang around your. Neck if you're going on a cruise or. Something it in. There it's worth. It So, brian thank you very much

for that. Call if anybody wants to get in phone number here three four six two NINE T E X A. N when we come, back it Was national Password. Day, Password Alan, Ludden, OH i just dated myself right. There no one has a clue hardly What i'm talking About national Password. Day why haven't we ditched this crackable technology that we call? PASSWORDS i may have some answers about, that and also a few More Mother's day gifts for the last minute things that you need to Get Yo.

Mama right here on the High Ta textant.

One the, culture the, crazy with all due, respect food and the companies THAT i, met and the information THAT i, received the rammications about the tariffs and the tax. Is who knows how that is going to play. Out i'm not going to give out the phone number because we're almost. DONE i will talk ABOUT i want one more. Time Thank Howbo bob's for being a longtime partner of this. SHOW a true. STORY i get back From, china AND i got back on A saturday, afternoon and My son

picked me up at the. Airport he Bushed Intercontinental. AIRPORT i get off the. PLANE i, WAS i traveled AND i am not. Lying from the TIME i left the hotel In shin's In, china two flights stopping In, qatar he get To Intercontinental houston to get to. Home hotel to home was fifty hours five. Zero now, LISTEN i got to The china airport five hours early to make SURE i can get out of the. Country there was a layover In, qatar but a nine hour, flight then

a sixteen hour. Flight the whole. Thing it was freaking. Crazy point IS i get. Back son picks me. Up we're almost. Home first PLACE i Stopped Albo bob's missed me some text mix people damn straight, man AND i didn't you KNOW i didn't need a ton In china got me absolutely Chips kso you got Ak. CITY i don't even go for The casey is the best go. Check it has four locations In. Houston Arnold, LAURIE i told, you AND i TOLD i Told Bob don you need to.

Open i'm more than happy to help franchise some of Those Cobbo bobs In. CHINA i think they'd go over. WELL i think it would go over pretty well In. China there was some KFC's and there was some dairy queens And. Starbucks but they need To Cobo bob's over In. China SO i think for them for their, partnership thanks also To Total. WIRELESS i come back AND i See Total. Wireless they signed a deal with who was it? Wrestling

M m A. Ufc look at. This of Course i'm the spokesperson here For Total, wireless and now they do a deal With Dana white and IN. Ufc don't leave me, Here Total. Wireless check out all The Victor Total wireless, stores not only in my home audience here In, houston but also all my listening areas Of, Dallas San, antonio it's all across the state Of. Texas just go in because it. Is it's gonna save you a lot of. Money AND i do talk about saving money when it

comes to your cell, bill your data. Bill there's no reason to pay these exorbitant. Prices you can get all you can eat monthly fees potentially as low as twenty five. Dollars put them on family. Plans they've got to bring your own. Device just walk into a, store go To Total wireless dot com and you've got it. Down SO i do appreciate all my hot news over. There and one of the things THAT i was back, home but the Last wednesday or, so it Was National Password, Day

World Password. Day i've done this show twenty three. YEARS i remember my first TIME i ever was doing. THIS i was actually on a channel to THE nbc affiliate In, houston AND i was on an early morning show right before they go to The today's, show and it was going nothing but. Nets Michael garfield AND i was talking about everything internet and. Whatever AND i think one of the first thing, is, oh how to create a good. Password let me give you a tip on how to

get a good. Password and this is two thousand and, one all, right and actually was two, THOUSAND i think twenty five years. Ago create a long. Password make sure it's maybe sixteen. Characters use random. Characters don't just use letters in. Numbers use an asterisk or parentheses or hyphens or dashes or THE at. Symbol change it on a regular. Basis log out of your shared, device you know. DEVICES i mean this is before social. Media, NOW i say

keep your details off social. Media don't tell people what your favorite what your first concert, was or any of your other privates becau odds are that's in your. Password there was no such thing as two factor authentication back. Then, nowadays always use two factor. Authentication that's the second layer of. Protection call it multi factor, authentication whatever it. IS i know it can be a little, pain but the fact

is do. It which means when you log into something, once it's going to text you or email you something that, says, hey was this really you trying to get into your? Account, WELL i want you to enter this six digit code or click this link just to make sure it's. USED i know it's an extra, step but you know what It's it is generally. Worse but how about a password manager or pass? KEYS i just want to, know we've been doing this for so. Long it's. Crackable we can

actually steal. Passwords there are new and better technology out, there but passwords they're just not going. Away there's sometimes a pain to remember every time you log into one to connected devices and, accounts they could be. Cracked but there are password, managers it's software pass. KEYS i, mean they can go a long way towards reducing the need for passwords in your daily. Life BUT i just don't think they've caught on with a lot of companies or.

Consumers AND i think it's a comfort. Level so many people have grown up with. Passwords they're easy to. Implement so it Was may, ONE i guess it was this The, THURSDAY i guess.

got a free plan which is good for your. BUDGET i actually haven't used, Bitwardens so don't take my. ADVICE i mean you. COULD i want you to take my, advice but you could take that. Suggestion they offer premium plans To but this is a good, time especially when you're, traveling especially it's summer's coming up and you're logging. In i've already talked about VPNs when your travel certainly international e sim cards a way to connect or hotspots or.

Whatever and AND i think have passwords and using password managers may be the thing to, do because your password the least of which the least of which do not use these same password on every single one of your. Accounts change at least a. Letter say you're using, something say you're using your the combination of your kids' names for everything will do me a. Favor if you're Using Wells, fargo use all your kids' names and then at the

INPUT Wf Wells. Fargo and if you're using another, bank A Chase, bank use your kids' names in the LETTER c or just type In. Chase if you're logging onto your, school use or you, know if you're a Good Hears county's Or Lamar Lamar High, school use all your kids' Names Lamar High. School at least use something that's that you're gonna, remember and then when you're on that particular, site use the. SITE i, mean just use a trick like, that and hopefully you're gonna be. SAFE i know you're

safe with me because you have been for a quarter of. Century, hey it's time to wind.

Tech texting Dot, com high Tech texting On, instagram On. Facebook, Nice i've blocked, you just go check it. OUT i do think you following me for everybody who's been a part of the, show because everybody From Callum read And will And Brian, ericson Mark, Erman Paul, Lamberg Keddie linkennythiol From iHeartRadio, network thank you for keeping around for this

lawn Happy Mother's. Day we'll talk about that next. Week Go Kentucky, derby go easy on the bourbon happy sink a. Demayo just make sure you get a responsible it doesn't. Move my name Is garth and right now my shown is Oh bah