April 2009

Unboxing the Vertu Ascent Ti

It’s not every day that I get to unbox an $8000 mobile phone…oh heck, who am I trying to kid?! Up until a few days ago, I could honestly say that I had never unboxed any device that cost so much. But through a twisting series of events, starting with my friend (and fellow gadget magpie) Drew purchasing a Vertu Ascent Ti at full retail price last summer (and eventually moving on from it), I now have one in my possession. Needless to say, the Vertu Ascent Ti a pretty big upgrade from the other two Vertus I have written about…


Tiger Woods PGA Tour for iPhone/iPod Touch Review

I like sports games.  I’ve tried the most of the current golf games currently available in the iTunes App. Store.  Of them “Let’s Golf” is my favorite.  However that all could change now that EA Sports has just released the next in their line up of much anticipated titles, Tiger Woods PGA Tour for the iPhone and iPod Touch.  EA calls the Tiger Woods series of the world’s number one selling golf franchise game.  Does the game live up to the hype?  Read on to find out.


Shape Service’s Mobiola xPlayer Review

I tend to think of myself as an “on the go” type of guy with a sedentary lifestyle…not sure if that makes any sense to you but it does to me.  I have some travel for work, coach high school baseball, volunteer with the local Board of Education, and have a 15-month old that we are always taking to the zoo.  But as you can see from those activities a lot of my time is spent sitting around….enter Shape Service’s Mobiola xPlayer for the Blackberry Curve 83XX series.


Spb Mobile Shell 3 Review

[Note: This is a three-way, multi-site review.  Chris Spera (italics), Clinton Fitch (bold), and Doug Goldring (plain text)have all teamed up to review Mobile Shell 3 together.  It is being simultaneously posted on Gear Diary, and Just Another Mobile Monday.] It is hard to believe that it has been only a little over two years (February 2007) since Spb Software House revolutionized the way we use our Windows Mobile devices.  Since that time, dozens of other software developers and OEMs such as HTC, Samsung, and Sony-Ericsson have adopted this same technique of replacing the user interface entirely.  Through all of…


Dell Remote Access Review

At first glance Dell Remote Access looks like any other remote access product on the market. You open a portal Page, my.dellremoteaccess.com, login and you will see a list of the devices on the same network as the computer running Dell Remote Access.


First drive: 2010 Chevy Camaro SS

The wait is over. The trilogy, complete. Chevy Camaro is back – and back in a big way. After a seven-year hiatus, the new Chevrolet Camaro has (finally) returned to dealer showrooms, and thanks to the good folks over at Freedom Chevrolet in Southwest Dallas, I was able to spend some quality time with the new musclecar sporting the regal bowtie.


Two Cases from TrendyDigital for Amazon Kindle2 Review

I suspect it comes as no surprise that those of us on GD who have an Amazon Kindle2 are big fans. At last count there were five of us from the site who have, use and rave about them. We love the portability, the exceptional battery life, the Whispernet for immediately downloading books and other materials, the Whispersync to keep various devices working together (since I also have an iPhone and a Touch this comes in very handy all the time), and we love the fact that the book selection and prices are excellent. As with any device, however, no…


Diino Online Backup and Storage Review

Over a year ago, whilst working feverishly on an overdue college paper, I spilled a large glass of water over my laptop. Cue panic attack as the MacBook Pro sizzled. I had a backup of that document on my Fujitsu tablet, but it was several days old, and so was the previous SuperDuper backup of the MacBook. Fortunately, the MacBook was fine after several hours by a heater (with the battery out, of course). I got round to looking at online backup services after that. I evaluated SugarSync (pricey), Diino (no Mac client) and settled on Mozy. After the initial…


Weber EP-310 Gas Grill Review

In a former life, I was a classically trained chef.  I went to culinary school, worked in the restaurant business for a number of years and lived and breathed all things food and cooking.  Although that seems like a lifetime away (I’ve since moved on to another career) I still enjoy cooking and do it often.  I do a lot of my cooking on a grill.  I use my grill all year long.  Winter, spring, summer and fall.  I’ve been known to grill in the snow or under an umbrella in the rain.  My last grill wasn’t the latest or…


Twitter Desktop Clients for Mac, Dual Review

By now most of us are aware of Twitter.  If you’re not Twitter is a “service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?” Twitter is popular.  The service doubled its user base in March alone (See this link).  And as a result, there is no shortage of desktop Twitter clients out there available to download.  In this comparison review Larry (Nambu and Tweetie) and Wayne (TweetDeck and Seesmic) take a look at four of the more popular Twitter desktop clients available for the…


Speck Candy Shell Case for iPhone 3G Review

Speck has been making accessories for handheld devices since 2001. One of their latest products is the Candy Shell case for the iPhone 3G.  The Candy Shell features the protection of a hard exterior, but has the cushioning of a softer interior to help buffer the iPhone if it’s dropped – hence, the “candy shell” name.


Livescribe Pulse Smartpen Review

I ordered a Livescribe Pulse Smartpen a few weeks ago after seeing an ad for it. Having now used it for a few weeks, I can honestly say that, other than my various Apple products, this may well be my favorite technology purchase ever. It certainly has all of the qualities necessary to stand out as a tech “home run.” It certainly has the “cool gadget dimension handled. Likewise, it has the “technology that makes your life easier and you more efficient” market covered. And to think, I sat looking at the sealed box for two days after it arrived…


ACME MADE Courier Notebook Bag – Redux

About a week ago I realized that I needed to get organized. My desk is a mess and my notebook bag… well let’s just say my cables have cables. It was so overstuffed and under-organized that I couldn’t find anything. I sent the following cry for help to the Gear Diary Team. There are two different gear patterns for me these days when I leave the house. One has me only bringing my iPhone. Simple. The other has me with way too much stuff- notebook, charger, iPhone, extra battery, pulsepen, bluetooth headset etc. So much little crap that throwing it…


Watching Local Jobs Disappear

I usually keep my thoughts of economic doom and gloom to myself, but John Starkweather posted a link to this on Facebook, and I had to share. Chris Wilson of Slate has posted an interactive map of where jobs have been gained and lost across the country since January 2006. The map’s dates start with January 2007, and when each button is pressed they show respective losses or gains for each month throughout the previous year. Only counties with a gain or loss of 250+ are represented by a red or blue dot. Using the Labor Department’s local area unemployment…


Hot Pursuit for Windows Mobile Review

Games for devices such as PalmOS and Windows Mobile PDA’s have typically gotten much less attention than those for consoles and handhelds by big names such as Sony and Nintendo. What that has meant is that it is harder for game producers to get their games into the hands of those who might enjoy them: so-called ‘hardcore’ gamers would know about the games but be typically looking for a more serious and involved experience, while the more ‘casual’ gamer would be less likely to visit the online stores to get the games. The Apple iPhone changed that with the tight…


Proporta Beach Buoy Review

The summer travel season is fast coming upon us.  In fact, here in Columbus we have a day in the 80’s predicted already! While it’s still not warm enough to go swimming, when you do finally take the plunge you may want to take this with you.


Review – OtterBox Armor Case for 4th Generation iPod Nano

I briefly had a new iPod Shuffle when it was released last month. I loved the size and the voiceover feature, but ended up returning it. Why? The inability to use any headset other than the stock Apple buds didn’t work for me. I have, and use, a number of relatively high end headsets with my iPhone, and I just couldn’t get used to the stock buds. So back it went! Still however, I wanted a small iPod to use when I didn’t want to carry something larger and/or put my iPhone or iPod Touch at risk. As a result,…


Gin & Titonic add a splash to any party

Sink one of these 4 ocean liners and 4 icebergs into your drink and watch the party start. That’s assuming your guests can identify the ships as Titanic replicas and the tiny ice balls as icebergs. Simply fill these 8 molds with water, place in your refrigerator and in a few hours you’ll have a nifty set of ice ships for your guest’s glasses. Gin & Titonic – $7.49


Dodge Charger still making tracks

Large, rear-wheel-drive American sedans still hold a place in consumer’s hearts judging by how many times I am asked my opinions on cars such as the Dodge Charger. I find quite a few folks, especially those with families, with the Charger on their list of possibilities when researching a new automobile.



Grand Theft Auto Chinatown Wars for Nintendo DS Review

I remember reading a New York Times article that was calling the recently released entry in the Grand Theft Auto franchise of video games ‘one of the most important’ video games released in recent years. The article talks about how by bringing a fully fleshed out entry of the M-rated series to a platform generally associated with under-18 children, it signals an important milestone in the history and maturation of the video game industry. That is an awful lot to heap on a game that is barely larger than a SD card, so I will take a look and see…