Laptop Gear

The Beyzacases MacBook Air 11″ Zero Series Case Review

Please allow me to gush for a moment, because it is not something I’m usually inclined to do … I truly enjoy using my little 11″ MacBook Air; it is the computer that I grab when I don’t want to be tied to a desk. I use it on the couch, I use it outside on our deck, and sometimes I use it “just because” … and when it’s time to travel, I typically toss my Air inside whatever bag I happen to be carrying. The 11″ Air is the most totable (while remaining usable) laptop that I have ever…

Reviews

Macbook Air Gear Review: ACME Made Skinny Sleeve Stretch Shell

If you have one of the sexy 2010 or 2011 MacBook Airs, then it makes absolutely no sense to cover that svelte beauty in a big fat laptop case. ACME Made has got perhaps one of the thinnest and most minimalistic sleeves that I have seen, so whether you prefer to carry your Air in a laptop bag or not, the Skinny Sleeve Stretch Shell may be its perfect protector. I was sent a review sample in black, but there is also a purple version; the Skinny Sleeve is available for both the 11″ and 13″ MacBook Airs. Composed of…

Reviews

Laptop Gear Review: USB 2.0 Port Replicator with Digital Video

My computer usage has undergone a radical change over the last year. Actually, that is not entirely true. The fact is, my computer usage has undergone a series of radical changes over the last year as I have experimented with a number of different device arrangements. At this time a year ago I had a 27″ iMac and a 13″ MacBook Pro. In the fall I got rid of the 27″ iMac and went to using the 13″ MacBook Pro full-time. The MacBook Pro was replaced by a 13″ MacBook Air as soon as the updated version became available. Then…

News

Skooba Design Introduces the Cable Stable Mini; a Place for Everything, and Everything in Its Place!

If you are still tucking all of your loose cables and supplies into the bottomless pit that makes up your favorite bag, then you seriously ought to take a look at the new Skooba Design Cable Stable Mini. Smaller sibling to the Cable Stable DX, the Cable Stable Mini is designed “to carry a basic assortment of power cords, adapters and other small accessories, and zips shut into a compact, (9 x 5.5 x 1.5 inch) “book” that slips easily into a laptop case, messenger bag, backpack or suitcase.” You won’t be able to help yourself from becoming more organized,…

News

Coming Soon: Lenovo’s Video Docking Station with DisplayLink Technology

After a brief flirtation with using a Mac Mini desktop system in addition to my 13″ MacBook Air, I’m back to “laptop-only living”; it works well thanks to high-resolution screens, great battery life and enough power to handle just about anything that is thrown at it. One of the things that make laptop-only living easier is a good docking station that makes it possible to connect and disconnect peripherals with ease. This is especially the case with laptops like the MBA which only have two USB ports. Well, we got word that Lenovo is once again employing DisplayLink’s technology, and…

Reviews

The CleanDr LCD/Plasma Screen Cleaning Kit and More Review

It’s been a while since I have heard from Digital Innovations. They have since released many updates to their cleaning products I have previously reviewed so they sent me a box of goodies to share here on Gear Diary. Let’s see if they are any better than the 2009 versions. First up is their 2 new products made for cleaning both high-definition TV’s as well as LCD’s of all types from desktops to laptops, along with a product line for mobile devices. Both of these are similar, but the mobile device screen cleaner is sized smaller. They both do an…

Reviews

iPhone Accessory Review: WOW-keys Keyboard for Mac, PC, iPhone and iPod touch

For the last few months my MacBook Air has been my main computer. It works quite well for me and, thanks to the large solid-state drive and the ability to connect it to a larger monitor, it serves as a desktop computing platform quite well. When I do connect it to a larger monitor, I like to have a separate keyboard and mouse so that I don’t have to worry about the placement of the laptop itself. Until now that is meant using a magic mouse and Apple’s Bluetooth keyboard. I’ve been trying out something new, however, and it’s a…

Gear Bits, News

Unruly Cables and Cords? Take Two Apple(cores) and Call Me In the Morning

Cords are a pain. Seriously. They are a royal pain. You got your headphone cords. You got your sync cords. You got your power cords. You got your… Never mind, you get the idea. The list goes on and on. Well here is one solution that is inexpensive, effective and a lot of fun too. The Applecore is a simple system for getting your cords in line. They come in small, medium and large so that headphones, sync and computer cables and power cords can all be effectively tamed. Better still they comes in a variety of colors. AND, and…

Reviews

Review: Samson Meteor Mic

About two weeks ago Thomas mentioned a brand-new microphone that was about to be released, the Sampson Meteor Mic. He told me that it not only had a great look to it but that all reports indicated it worked beautifully. It was small, easily transportable thanks to its fold up design, and it looked pretty cool. Most importantly it apparently offered excellent sound quality. I told him I’d have to look into it. I was fortunate enough to have a review unit waiting for me just two days later. I’ve been using it ever since and have been incredibly impressed…

News

Cool MacBook Accessories: Silva Bamboo MacBook Case

This Silva Bamboo MacBook Case looks pretty darn awesome. It is super slim and, as a result, doesn’t seem to add too much size to your MacBook. In fact it pretty much looks like what a bamboo MacBook would look like. The case is handmade of raw bamboo that is milled-out To make room for the laptop. The result is a case that is apparently a perfectly fit for the Mac. Oh, and if you are worried about the wood scratching the computer don’t! The inside is lined with soft wool felt. The case is finished off with a leather…

Reviews

Computer Accessory Review: Field Monitor Pro with DisplayLink Technology

This is my 13″ MacBook Air. I love it. Especially now that Apple fixed it after my clumsiness a few weeks ago (when I dumped a drink on top of it). With 4 GB of RAM and 256 GB of solid-state storage, the laptop doesn’t feel like a compromise in any way shape or form. It is super-fast, and super quiet. Add in the fact that the 13″ screen has the same resolution as the 15″ MacBook Pro that I was eying a few months ago, and you have what has become, by far, my favorite laptop ever. No, actually,…

Gear Bits

I Reviewed It and I Still Use It: The “Thank You Ergotron” Edition

I reviewed the Ergotron Sit–Stand Desk last September. This work-station modification allows you to work at your desk in either a sitting or standing position merely by lifting the entire assemblage up or down. It is truly an impressive piece of equipment, and at close to $400 certainly not inexpensive. My review concluded with: So do I like this? YES! If I had not been sent a review unit would I be buying one? YES again. Having the option to work either sitting or standing and to quickly move between the two is great. Having a unit as well-built and…

Reviews

Review: Seagate GoFlex Slim Performance Drive

Judie’s and my first meeting at CES 2011 was with Seagate. (We posted about it here.) Toward the end of the visit we came upon a hard drive that was as stylish as it was function. At the time all we were allowed to write about it was this: Concept drive – We also saw a drive that is not yet named but will be out late spring (pictured above). The concept drive is super thin and will be $99.99 for 320. Black for PC. Silver for Mac. Also has premium backup for data security. This is an image of…

Reviews

The Sabrent Display Adapter Saves the Day Review

A bittersweet air fills the room as I type these characters into this document. The item I am reviewing is also the latest Gear Diary will give away in partnership with the sponsoring company. But for an A/V geek like myself, I will say goodbye to it with a tear in my eye. Sabrent, – tagline “Connecting Differently” – sent me its latest USB external video/graphics adapter, the USB-DH88, for review and giveaway. I first came across an e-mail sent us by the company’s PR firm touting Sabrent’s solutions to A/V presentation problems. This got my attention because recently I…

Reviews

The Mili Power King P18 External Battery Review

Word spread yesterday that Apple might be looking to radically change the makeup of the batteries they use and, if this rumor bears fruit, have batteries in their devices that last much much longer. Just imagine how great it would be to have an iPhone that gets a few DAYS of runtime!? Unfortunately it is just a rumor. Moreover, while such advances would be great they do nothing for us as we sit her using the current devices available to us. For that we need external batteries and, as the saying goes, bigger is better. We’ve looked at a few…

Events

CES: Meeting with Timbuk2

At CES we met with one of our favorite gadget bag companies, Timbuk2. While with them, we got to see some of the bags and accessories they’ll be introducing this year. Not surprisingly, we were impressed with the continuing evolution and utility of their designs. We have reviewed several of Timbuk2’s bags over the years, and we were impressed anew by the design and quality of the bags being shown. Among the bags they will have coming out this year is the upcoming Command ($130, shown above). The Command won a CES Innovation award, and it is TSA-compliant so that…

Events, News

CES: SanDisk Meeting

By now you have likely seen that at CES, SanDisk announced their amazing new 128GB Compact Flash Card, a size that still boggles my mind. Available later this quarter for a MSRP of $1499.99, this card isn’t for the feint-hearted. But when you consider that it wasn’t too long ago that a 5GB PCMCIA card retailed for $500 plus, the realization is staggering that this amount of memory is available in something so small. While meeting with SanDisk, I had the opportunity to take a look at their new CRUZER Slider which along with other features also has “error-proof insertion”,…

Reviews

Gear Gadget Review: Veebeam Set-Top Box Lets You Stream Content from Computer to TV

Imagine if you could simply tap a button and both the audio and the video loaded on your laptop or desktop could be sent to your large HDTV? Sure, Apple’s AirPlay has brought us partly there. In fact, just the other night I wanted to watch a movie I had rented on my iPad and decided to view it on my large Samsung TV instead. I started the movie on my iPad, tapped the AirPlay button and, within a few seconds, it was being streamed from my iPad to my Apple TV to my HDTV. It works seamlessly. The only…

Reviews

Review: Everki Agile Slim Laptop Bag

I recently found my first laptop bag. The bag is from an era when laptops were big, bulky and weighed a ton. Simply being able to carry them made them mobile. The bag was huge, heavy and had no features. Today, mobile computing keeps getting smaller. Full screen laptops are much thinner and netbooks and MacBook Airs seem to be the best way to be on the move. As our devices shrink, so should the bags we carry them in. Thinner and lighter have become a must for my gear. Some of my favorite gear bags come from Everki. They…

News

Speck Product’s A-Line Bag for Netbooks May Be the Best Looking Gear Bag Yet!

This is going to sound jaded and awful, but I am going to say it anyway: One of the absolute best things about being a product reviewer is that sometimes companies surprise you with packages containing items you didn’t know existed and you certainly didn’t expect to receive … and that you can’t wait to try out. But on the other hand, one of the absolute worst things about being a product reviewer is that sometimes companies surprise you with packages containing items you didn’t know existed and you certainly didn’t expect to receive … and you don’t necessarily even…

Reviews

Gear Review: Sewell Minideck USB to DVI/VGA Display Adapter

I work with some awesome people day in and day out. They are smart, creative, dedicated to their community and a great team with whom to work. They are also, for the most part, tech-phobic or, to be gentler, not the most technically savvy crew around. For example, when I moved my entire staff over to Gmail from Outlook a few years ago, you would have thought I was repeatedly poking them in the eye with a sharp object. The kicking and screaming that went on was painful. Then, one day … bam! … I heard the words “I actually…

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