2009

iFrogz Timbre Review

Reviews

iFrogz Timbre Review

iFrogz has quickly become one of the leaders in cutting edge accessories for Apple product, Mp3 players and other electronics devices. Their Ear Pollution line of headphones is one of the most popular headphone available on the market. iFrogz recently released a new item in the Ear Pollution line, the iFrogz Timbre. Available with or without an inline microphone the noise isolating ear buds are made with natural wood. I was recently sent a pair by iFrogz to review.  Do the Tibre’s perform as good as they look? Read on to find out.

Jelly Lens 6 Image Mirage Maker

Reviews

Jelly Lens 6 Image Mirage Maker

Here’s another quick look at a fun gadget from BudgetGadgets.com The Jelly Lens 6 Mirage Maker gently sticks to the lens of your cell phone or digital camera. Once on your phone you can turn regular old photographs into morphed 6 headed images with ease.

Teaching an Old Dog New Tricks: Week One into the Rosetta Stone TOTALe Program

Reviews

Teaching an Old Dog New Tricks: Week One into the Rosetta Stone TOTALe Program

Today marks one week since I began learning Spanish with the Rosetta Stone TOTALe program, and here comes the part that you all have been waiting for – where I smugly tell you that I am now completely fluent in all things Spanish, that I am totally confident in my foreign language speaking ability, and that I am ready to go to Mexico and take up with the locals…right? Okay, obviously I’m not. And it would be completely ridiculous for anyone to expect that. But I am three full lessons closer to being fluent than I was when I started.

Coveroo Custom Cases Review

Reviews

Coveroo Custom Cases Review

Do you want your phone to have its own identity? Then perhaps it needs a Coveroo case. Coveroo offers over 2,000 designs that it laser engraves onto the back of your cases.  Or choose a color design and it’ll be applied with a special process that makes it both durable and wear resistant. You can also choose to truly customize your case by having Coveroo apply your own personal logo or picture to your case. The Coveroo cases are available for most major cell phones including BlackBerry, iPhone, Motorola, Samsung, Nokia, HTC, Palm, and more! I recently ordered a couple…

"Have a Coke and a....." telephone call?

Reviews

“Have a Coke and a…..” telephone call?

Budget Gadgets.com is a web site devoted to electronics, gadgets and other fun gizmos all sold at very affordable prices. The company recent sent me a few items to review. The first being their Coca Cola style telephone. Not only does the phone look incredibly realistic but it actually works as a real phone.

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 29: Express Stocks

Reviews

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 29: Express Stocks

I have to admit that I have never been one to dabble to deep in the stock market.  Most of my money is in IRAs or index based funds.  Plus, I rarely want to have the values too close, because looking at how much money I am constantly losing can get a bit depressing these days.  Nonetheless, for those of you who do like to have your net worth in the palm of your hand at all times, there is a fantastic app called Express Stocks.

Trine for PC Review

Reviews

Trine for PC Review

When I heard FrozenByte – the guys who made the games Shadowgrounds and Shadowgrounds: Survivor – was making a new game I was thrilled and knew I’d want to play it. When I heard it was a fantasy side-scrolling platform action game that required using three players in harmony to solve challenges, I was curious about what it would be like … and if I would still be thrilled when I was done!

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 28: Word Ace

Reviews

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 28: Word Ace

Let’s just get this out of the way quickly.  Word Ace is my new favorite game, and is the best game currently available for the Palm Pre.  OK…I know saying that any game is better than other games on the Palm Pre may not be much of a compliment…but this really is a fantastic game.

HTC Touch Diamond2 Review

Reviews

HTC Touch Diamond2 Review

Anyone who read my review of the original Touch Diamond will know I wasn’t all that big a fan. In my experience it was slow, cheaply made and its battery life was appalling. The great thing about HTC is they keep trying and seem to learn from past mistakes, which made me all the more interested in testing the Diamond2. Off the bat I’d like to talk about looks, since that was one of the big selling points of the original. Whilst the Diamond was wrapped in a consumer-style glossy plastic shell, that upon closer inspection felt cheap, the Diamond2…

Precision HSD Holster For iPhone 3G and 3GS - Review

Reviews

Precision HSD Holster For iPhone 3G and 3GS – Review

After a time most iPhone cases start looking alike. There are, in fact, a relatively small number of styles from which to choose and all cases take a different approach to one style or the other. Precision HSD Holster For iPhone 3G and 3GS falls into the belt-holster style but definitely brings its own unique aspects to it. Let’s take a look and see if this is the next case you should grab.

Joby Gorillapod and Gorillamobile Review

Reviews

Joby Gorillapod and Gorillamobile Review

Kids, don’t try this at home. No, not because the awesome, amazing super-useful Gorillamobile might release and send you precious iPhone crashing to the ground, odds are it won’t, but you never know when you didn’t tighten the suction cup on the back of the case just right. But isn’t it fun to know you COULD hang your iPhone upside down? The folks at Joby have been kind enough to let me take a close look at both their Gorillamobile and Gorillapod mobile device stands, and I’m impressed. Both the Gorillapod and the Gorillamobile are device stands that, unlike traditional…

Review: CaseCrown Slim Pocket Case for 10" Netbooks

Reviews

Review: CaseCrown Slim Pocket Case for 10″ Netbooks

Buying a laptop case has always been a challenge for a very simple reason: very few laptops share the same external dimensions. This is a problem that goes back to my first two portables – the Compaq LTE and Mac Portable, which were vastly different in size and configuration. As a result, many of us who have depended on laptops for years have an odd collection of ill-fitting bags scattered in our storage areas. Some were included with laptops, others we bought to fit whatever laptop seemed like it would be the center of our lives for years to some….

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 27: Mileage Monitor

Reviews

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 27: Mileage Monitor

This is a pretty simple app, but one which could be quite useful to those folks who spend a lot of time in their cars, whether that means travelling long distances, or commuting into town each morning.  This app lets you use your Palm Pre to track how many miles you are getting per gallon of gas, and how much money you are spending on gas. To begin, just create a new account with the name of your car.  Enter the current odometer reading and you are good to go.  For the most accurate results, you should start with a…

SplashID 5.0 for Desktop Review

Reviews

SplashID 5.0 for Desktop Review

SplashData has been creating software for the mobile market since 2000.  Over the past 9 years, their products have expanded from the Palm OS to also include RIM, Windows Mobile, Series 60, and iPhone/iPod Touch handhelds.  SplashID, a secure wallet / password protection program, was one of their earliest offerings and continues to be a strong part of their product line. Gear Diary has taken a look at SplashID a few times in the past.  You can read our earlier comments here and here, and Doug recently looked at SplashID for the Palm Pre. I’ve used SplashID for a number of…

Getting to Locations from the iPhone Calendar

How to Do It Yourself!

Getting to Locations from the iPhone Calendar

One of the things that I found odd on the iPhone was the inability to use Google Maps to plot a route to a locations directly from the calendar. Consider how easy Apple have made almost everything else on the iPhone, it seemed to be a rather odd omission. You can easily navigate to an address or dial a number out of an email, but why not the calendar? This evening however I found a rather neat trick that manages to get around this problem with almost no fuss whatsoever. Take this calendar item I have for tomorrow (well, today…

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 26: Connect 4.

Reviews

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 26: Connect 4.

Yes…I do mean THAT Connect 4.  The one you loved as a kid.  sliding checkers into a plastic frame, trying to make four in a row.  This is one of my son’s favorite games, and I love the fact that he is so interested in a game from my own childhood.  And thanks to the folks at Hasbro and EA Games, you can now enjoy this classic game on your Palm Pre (10 times before you will have to pay for it).

iGo My Way 2009 (North America) Review

Reviews

iGo My Way 2009 (North America) Review

Over my writing career, I got to review a lot of different navigation programs. They were especially popular on the Windows Mobile platform. Among them, one of my all-time favorites was iGo (released in North America as OnCourse Navigator). Now iGo is available on the iPhone. It’s been modified a little, keeping in line with their “My Way” PNA (personal navigation appliance/assistant) devices. It’s grown a little, changed a little and been fitted to take advantage of some of the iPhone’s features and characteristics. Although it’s been largely ignored by a lot of reviewers, especially in North America (where the…

BBScanner for BlackBerry Tour 9630 Review

Reviews

BBScanner for BlackBerry Tour 9630 Review

Roger that…10-4! OK, so my wife and I can sit for hours and watch cop shows…The First 48, Crime 360, Cops, Lockup, etc…and when I say hours I really mean all day! We spend a lot of time in Columbus, Ohio and like to know whats going on, mainly where is that police cruiser headed running lights and sirens! I guess we are nosy like that, but BBScanner fuels our need for busy body information.

Volvo gives drivers a "brake" with all-new 2010 XC60

Vehicles & Gear

Volvo gives drivers a “brake” with all-new 2010 XC60

Volvo, that Swedish car company whose memorable commercials included stacking car on top of car, etc., is expanding its crossover utility line with a smaller version of its venerable XC90. The new cute ute, dubbed XC60, offers up everything big brother 90 does while allowing the automaker an appearance into the quickly expanding small premium utility segment that features standouts such as the BMW X3, Acura RDX and Mercury Mariner.

ABContacts for iPhone Review

Reviews

ABContacts for iPhone Review

Mail and SMS are sent using the built-in apps. We are sorry but with the current iPhone software development kit it’s not possible to send sms to more than one contact. We all have the same situation.  Here is mine:  I coach three varsity sports.  Believe it or not, coaches are in constant contact.  Whether it be scheduling or getting a scouting reports, I need groups for the coaches I contact in each sport.  Also, with today’s technology, we always have numbers and emails for all of our athletes.  Changes in practice times or games are now as simple as…

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 25: Today Show

Reviews

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 25: Today Show

Let’s have a show of hands.  How many of you watch the Today Show in the morning.  It is pretty hard to miss, since it is about five hours long, yet I manage to do so since I leave the house before 6:00 each morning.  So, I rarely get to watch the show upon which this app is based.