News

Random Cool Image: US Terrorist Identification Chart

OK, so I admit I have been a bit on the serious front with my concerns about the erosion of freedoms in our country. I do think it is important, and too easy to just let our freedoms disappear in the name of ‘security’. However, sometimes it is funny to look at something that is at once satirical and in some ways hits a bit close to the truth. Enjoy the image! The quote from the bottom of the image is worth sharing: “The illusion of freedom will continue as long as it’s profitable to continue the illusion. At the…

Events, News

Line2 Taking the iPad to New Heights

I tried Line2 when it first came out and didn’t continue after my trial period. Then Line2 came out with a fantastic iPad app and I tried it again. This time I immediately signed up for the upper lever service for a year. Ever since I have been using it to turn my iPad into a speaker phone. It works great and is one of those apps I use daily. I had a chance to stop by the Line2 table and meet one of their representatives. She asked if I wanted a trial and I explained that I was already…

eBooks, News

Barnes & Noble Offers Free and Reduced NOOKS with Subscriptions!

Big news from B&N today! They’re looking to push down the price of the NOOK and drive more subscription services, so they’ve combined the two! You can get a free NOOK Simple Touch or a $99 NOOKcolor with a subscription to the New York Times through B&N ($19.99/month). Alternately, if you are more of the entertainment news type, there’s always a $199 NOOK Tablet with a subscription to People! This is potentially huge for the ebook industry. It turns the reader hardware into a commodity, not the main show. It also pushes prices down while also lining up ongoing cash…

News

Slacker Radio… It May be Their Name but That’s as Far as it Goes

I’m a big fan of Slacker radio and love the fact that they are continually adding features and stations. Last night I got one of my favorite emails from them. It began with “This is the first of our announcements this week.” That is music to my ears although this announcement has nothing to do with music.

Events, News

Case-Mate Phantom for iPhone 4S: Just What Carly Was Looking For?

And the first bit of swag from CES 2011 goes to… Carly. Let me explain. The other day Carly was asking for recommendations for iPhone cases to protect both Sarah and her new iPhones when they go on vacation next month. Yes, our own Carly Z is all grown up and has a real smartphone now. (That was a totally gratuitous iOS-fanboy comment… I apologize but I’m on CES sleep deprivation already. That’s my explanation and I’nm sticking to it.) 🙂 Carly got a lot of excellent suggestions that included OtterBox cases (the classics when it comes to tough protection)…

News

AirPlay on the Go? That’s what kivi one Promises

AirPlay is pretty amazing and does a great job of streaming music through a home or office but it relies on a wifi connection in order to work. Now kivi one is promising the ability to bring AirPlay with you. They say “We need more entertainment while driving, Right now!” (Some would argue we need drivers more focused on driving but who am I to say since I rejected leasing one possible car because it did not include BlueTooth audio streaming from my iPhone.) the kivic one transfers media from your iPhone or other smartphone and then wirelessly streams it…

Events, News

Garmin’s CES News for Android Users, Golfers, Drivers and … You?

Garmin, who seem to be going like gangbusters lately (including the addition of Navigon to their lineup last year) have released a preview of what they are showing at CES this week. In their press release they are announcing some new and update products including: – Garmin Smartphone Link is the first Android app that provides live services to a PND utilizing the smartphone’s data connection. – The new nüvi® 3500 series: Garmin’s newest flagship personal navigation devices and the company’s first GPS navigators that combine the ultra-thin form factor with a large, 5-inch glass display. – Garmin® Approach™ G6…

Events, News

New Alienware Gaming Laptop Cases Unveiled by Mobile Edge

Even if you don’t have one of those super-powerful Alienware M18x, M17x, M14x, or M11x gaming laptops, you can still carry your all of your gear in style. Mobile Edge has released two new Alienware branded bags, the Orion Messenger and the Tactical Backpack … For the M11x, there are two durable cases offered. The sleek M11x Neoprene Sleeve has easy access carrying handles and an outside zippered compartment for accessories. The semi-rigid M11x Portfolio is ideal for travel with a unique design that allows you to use the laptop while still inside the case. The all new M14x has three case options which…

Events, News, Travel

GearDiaryGo Tip: Don’t Travel Without TripIt

We’ve mentioned this numerous times in the past but it’s worth reiterating, TripIt is probably one of the best travel companions you can have. The service and accompanying smartphone and tablet applications make it easy to arrange your trip, track your plans, and get notified when there are changes. And if you are traveling with a group that is coming from various locations you can link one itinerary with another so you can see where they are and what their plans will be. Ever since Judie introduced me to it two years ago I’ve been a huge fan. In fact,…

Events, News

SolarKindle Cover Lets You Charge Your Kindle without an Outlet!

Ordinarily, I am skeptical of “solar-powered chargers”, as they seem more gimmick than useful gear, but a solar-powered Kindle charger is a stroke of genius! Kindles don’t require charging more often than once a month or so, meaning finding sunlight to charge isn’t an inconvenience. Plus a Kindle is one of the few devices that might get used regularly on the beach, or camping, or other places where outlets aren’t available, but sunlight is free and plentiful! The specifications on the SolarKindle cover sound very impressive! From the press release: Makes Unplugged E-Reading Come True The first practical solar gadget…

Events, News

Magellan Gets in the GPS Fitness Watch Business!

The GPS watch market has been dominated heavily by Garmin. Ask a runner, “Do you have a Garmin” and they aren’t going to wax poetic about their Nuvi…they’ll know you mean a Forerunner watch. But Magellan is looking for a piece of that pie, and they’ll be debuting two new watches, the “Switch” series, designed to appeal to runners as well as “crossover sports” (triathletes, bikers, and swimmers, presumably). Based on the press release, it sounds like the Switch will have very similar features to the competition, including the ability to race against a specific pace, mark laps and miles,…

News

Android’s New Holo Theme to Help Speed Updates; Potential to End Themes?

According to Droid Life and the Android developers blog the Holo theme included in Android 4.0 is a requirement on a devices that ship the Android Marketplace with 4.0. This promises to fix is the amount of time it takes manufacturers to produce updates to the OS. They do this by making Holo a requirement and allowing a DeviceDefault skin as well. Adam Powell of Google says: Formally separating these theme families will also make future merges easier for manufacturers updating to a new platform version, helping more devices update more quickly. Also, developers can specify DeviceDefault or Holo. Since…

Events, News, Vehicles & Gear

Dodge to Debut ‘Beats by Dr. Dre’ Audio System at CES and NAIAS

Dodge has chosen the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to introduce its new expansion of Beats by Dr. Dre Audio System that will be coming soon to 2012 Charger models. “Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine have built their careers on revolutionary and forward thinking decisions that formulate trends in music, popular culture and technology,” Reid Bigland, President and CEO – Dodge Brand. “Our goal in partnering with Beats by Dr. Dre is to integrate their recording-studio quality audio experience for our Charger enthusiasts to feel and hear their favorite music as it was intended – all while heightening the…

News

Awesome Video of the Day- iPad Drops Over 100,000 feet and Still Works

Seriously, you have to see this. An iPad went up over 100,000 feet in a balloon and then was allowed to free fall back to earth. AND it survived. It was accomplished thanks to G-Form, a company well known for delivering the most extreme electronics cases and athletic pads. The iPad went up only protected by the company’s 6oz Extreme Edge case and it survived. Check it out! “As far as we know, this is the first iPad ever in space,” said G-Form’s VP innovations, Thom Cafaro, “And definitely it’s the first iPad that’s ever free-fallen from space and survived…

News

10 Important Desktop Open Source Projects for 2012

In the spirit of Joe ‘Zonker’ Brockmeier’s post over on Linux.com, I thought I would craft my list of 10 important open source desktop applications of the last year. Now I know that not every Gear Diary reader is a huge Open Source fan or follower, but these are projects to watch in the coming year. Some of this software works on Windows and Mac OS X as well so you may want to check them out if going full bore into Linux isn’t in the cards right now. Most of this software is software I use on Linux every…

News

ClockworkMod Provides Root-Free Tethering for Android!

The ability to use your phone’s 3G internet connection as a source of on-the-go connectivity for laptops, called tethering, has long been a desire for mobile warriors. Yet each solution has significant drawbacks – official methods cost $, or you need to root your phone, or otherwise work around carrier limitations. Now Android hacker Koushik Dutta has come up with a way that is reportedly undetectable to carriers and doesn’t require you to ‘root’ your phone! Fron his Google+ page: Over the last month, I’ve been working on a new app. Tether Alpha is a USB[2] tether solution for Mac,…

Music Diary, News, Reviews

Music Diary Review: Dave Chisholm – Calligraphy

Dave Chisholm – Calligraphy I reviewed Dave Chisholm’s ‘Radioactive’ nearly a year and a half ago, noting: The thing I love about the ‘new big band’ music like Chisholm’s is that it combines small ensemble open-ness and intercommunication and large group harmonic structure and depth of composition. The title track is a great example – The opening uses the full effect of the large group to build the dramatic effect then breaks out to allow a nice collaborative improvisation until the main theme takes over. In fact, regardless of the size of my portable iTunes Library (I was restricting myself…

eBooks, News

Evernote Essentials Extra: Car Parts

So you got a new phone, tablet or computer and you are ready to get to work. You will want to check out Evernote. Evernote will let you save pictures, documents and other forms of information in a single place and then access them from virtually any and all devices. And if you are going to use Evernote you are going to want to check out Brett Kelly’s Evernote Essentials: The Definitive Getting Started Guide for Evernote. Evernote Essentials is a PDF book with some great tips that will get you up and running with Evernote in no time. As Brett…

News

Someone at Apple Was a Ghostbusters Fan…

I love “Ghostbusters”. It’s one of my favorite movies of all time. In fact, I had a plastic Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man decorating more than one of my apartments post-college. How can you not love it? It’s pretty much the perfect movie. And according to The Verge, back in the ’80s someone at Apple felt the same way, and made an anti-IBM/pro-Apple video called “Blue Busters”. It’s funny, though honestly, I think the joke goes on for about a minute longer than necessary. Still, for the one-two punch of nostalgia and surrealism, it’s worth watching the whole thing! Then maybe pop in…

News

Get Games Serious Sam 3: BFE for $11.99 – Activates Through Steam!

The Serious Sam games are some of my favorite shooters of the last decade, offering awesome mindless fun and constant all-out action with insane amounts of enemies and great weapons. While the two parts of the original game remain my favorites, even Serious Sam II brought loads of fun to shooter fans back in 2005. The latest entry, Serious Sam 3: BFE, was released on November 22nd to solid if unspectacular reviews. Here are some of the features: • Frantic Arcade-Style Action – The calling card of the Serious Sam series, hold down the trigger and lay waste to a…

Music Diary, News

RIP Free-Jazz Legend Sam Rivers at 88

Today we learned of another sad passing in the music world, of a musician and bandleader who was one of the most reknowned free jazz artists, Sam Rivers. Though he is not known outside of the relatively small creative jazz community, he made a large impact on the music of the last half-century. He is best known for a brief stint with the Miles Davis quintet after George Coleman left but before the ‘great second quintet’ was completed by the addition of Wayne Shorter in 1964. That produced the excellent live recording ‘Miles in Tokyo’ recording which was excellently remastered…

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