2009 | Gear Diary

BlackBerry EasyDialer brings relief (and unlimited calling) to some Google Voice users

My Grandcentral account was finally updated to Google Voice and I’ve spent some time notifying people who I regularly communicate with that they need to use a new number to reach me. I think the change to a Google Voice number will be worthwhile for a couple reasons. First, I have three cell phones and people were constantly guessing which number they should call me on. With Google Voice I get to specify which phones ring and my friends and family only need to know one number. Plus Google Voice now manages text messages by forwarding any sent to my…

Gear Bits

Iri5’s Ghost in the Machine Series

Over the past couple of weeks, the internet has been abuzz with posts about the artist Erika Simmons’ iri5 “Ghost in the Machine” creations. These pieces of art, which are made from old cassette tapes and other media, feature musicians and film stars. I first learned about her work on Neatorama, and when I checked the artist’s Flickr, I was hooked; I wanted to own one! Bob Dylan

Reviews

The Good Nite Lite Review

I know that this has to have happened to you; see if you can picture the scene: You’re laying in bed, and you wake up absolutely positive that it is time to get up, but in reality it’s just the middle of the night. It’s not too big of a deal when this happens to us adults, because we’ll simply look at the alarm clock and immediately realize that we still have some quality sleeping time left before we have to get up. We gratefully roll over, and we go back to bed, right? Young kids on the other hand,…

Reviews

Modern Gaming Like It’s 1993!

I usually put into context how long I’ve been a gamer by saying that I was anticipating the release of Wolfenstein 3D in 1993 and was already a fan of the franchise. Huh? You didn’t realize there was a Castle Wolfenstein franchise before the release of the seminal first person shooter (FPS)? And wait, how does this all relate to the ‘modern gaming’ promised in the title? Don’t worry … I’ll get there!

Reviews

Waterfield Netbook Sleeve for HP 2140 Review

Although it runs Windows, and I happen to be a Mac guy, I have been very happy with my HP 2140. It’s incredibly light, remarkably sturdy (thanks to its aluminum body), and it actually gets decent run time with the three cell battery and even better with the six cell. Since I swapped out the hard drive in favor of an SSD drive, the diminutive notebook has no moving parts and requires less care than most other notebooks. (Despite this I still tend to be exceptionally careful with my devices.) One of the problems with the HP Mini note is…

Reviews

The Otterbox Defender – It might just save the life of your phone

There are a lot of cases out there for the iPhone 3G. Some are stylish, some functional, others appeal to different age groups, some are minimalistic while others big and bulky. There isn’t one perfect case for all of us, and that’s a good thing. This individuality has allowed an influx of case manufacturers to come to market with a variety of choices. Those of of who can’t decide on just one case are able to own wide array of “outfits” for our phone. One thing is undeniable though. No case out there offers the amount of protection that the…

Reviews

Swingline 67 Electric Stapler Review

One of the items taken for granted on a office desk is the manual stapler. Besides the pencil cup, ruler, paper clips and a tape dispenser, the manual stapler is a necessity for clerical workers to keep important papers organized. With the advances in in-office printing equipment, from fax machines and mimeograph machines to multicopy printing of 100 copies plus demand more stapling. Medical research indicate repetive motion of fastening multiple copies, particularly in large businesses producing TPS reports can actually be hazardous with low morale, stress disorders and anger management. Fortunately, there is a solution at hand.

Reviews

Pocket Informant 1.0 for iPhone Review

I’ve always been a planner kind of girl. When I was in school, my day planner was always bursting at the seams with dates to remember, assignments, lists, post-its, and notes. I really liked having a central place for all the important “stuff” in my life that I needed to keep track of. However, as technology advanced into the 21st century, I turned to digital organization…and I discovered Pocket Informant. Over the years, I have used Pocket Informant on almost every mobile device I’ve owned, from my Casio EM-500 to my Dell Axim to my i-mate JAQ3 (won in a…

News & Features

Squeeze Bacon — finally my prayers are answered

Here’s a cool idea that I can see a use for in my house. Every morning when I get the kids up for school they’re asking for breakfast food and often that includes some begging for bacon (their favorite). Now I know it’s not that healthy – so I try to limit it to only a couple times a month. Lately I’ve been avoiding making it at all because the mess and cleanup is such a hassle. Will finally! Looks like someone took the concept that was only recently applied to ketchup and applied it to bacon! Instead of messy…

Reviews

Motorola Bag Phone 2900 Gold Series

Are you tired of using the heavy brick type phones? While useful to those who can afford them – such as executives on the go, Motorola has taken the promise of cell phone technology to consumers in rural localities. Ideal for ranchers, truckers and others outside of major cities, the promise of affordability and portability in the eighties has finally arrived in 1992. The Motorola Bag Phone 2900 Gold Series is targeting to a large consumer base – mainly sales persons – accustomed to office phones and pay phones.

Reviews

Review: USBFever 3-in-1 USB Adapter for HTC Phones

I was perusing USBFever.com for some G1 accessories, and I came across this dongle that can work with my G1 or any HTC phone. This adapter lets you use your regular or HTC headphones while charging your phone from the Mini-B USB charger.

eBooks, Reviews

Email Etiquette

As a communication medium – email has had rapid adoption has become a communication standard. Statistics, extrapolations and counting by Radicati Group from August 2008 estimate the number of emails sent per day (in 2008) to be around 210 billion. 183 billion messages per day means more than 2 million emails are sent every second. About 70% to 72% of them might be spam and viruses. The genuine emails are sent by around 1.3 billion email users. Since we all use email, you would think we could all practice a little etiquette in our email. After all, we don’t let…

Reviews

First Look… eSlick eReader

I had pre-ordered an eSlick eBook reader a few months ago. When the Kindle 2 was announced I jumped on it, but decided to keep the eSlick in order to do a comparison. Well it shipped last week, and after the slooooowest journey from the West Coast, it arrived yesterday. First impression- I like the small light feel, I love the black color compared to the Kindle 2, but I am so(!) appreciating the simplicity of the Kindle’s Whispernet and WhisperSync technology. A few pictures after the jump, and I’ll some additional thoughts soon…after using it for a bit.

Reviews

Review: USB Fever Super Travel A/C USB Wall Chargers

When I came across the Super Travel A/C USB Wall Chargers from USBFever.com, I thought they were a great idea! So I asked USB Fever to send a set to me, I received it yesterday, and I like it even more than I thought I would. This charger is going to save me from carting 3-4 charger adapters along, plus it will also save precious power outlets in my hotel room when I go to DC in a week.

Reviews

IM+ offers Facebook chat for BlackBerry users

Are you a BlackBerry user addicted to instant messaging but hate that mobile chat eats batteries for breakfast? Constantly watching in the background for incoming chat requests tends to cause these programs to use battery power like crazy. Shape Services IM+ All-in-One Mobile Messenger is the answer for instant messaging users — Push instant messaging. The way it works is when your BlackBerry chat closes Shape’s servers keep you logged in and send an email message whenever someone tries to chat. This prevents your BlackBerry from having to constantly poll the servers. They’ve also just added Facebook chat which so…

Reviews

Using the AT&T Pantech Matrix Pro

Julie and I have been using the AT&T Pantech Matrix Pro for a while, and it is time to share our experiences with this Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard Edition smartphone. This review will be appearing on Gear Diary and The Gadgeteer; before reading further, you might want to start with my First Impressions of the AT&T Pantech Matrix Pro. My comments are in black, Julie’s are in blue italics. The Pantech Matrix Pro is a chunky little brick measuring 4.17″ tall x 2.0″ wide x 0.85″ thick and 5.34 ounces, but I have to say that it is so nicely…

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

2009 Jaguar XKR convertible

Last year I wrote about the Jaguar XKR convertible as one of the cars I love the most on – appropriately – Valentine’s Day. This year I find folks green with envy as I enjoy the 2009 model on (wait for it) St. Patrick’s Day, as well as the first day of Spring.

News & Features, Reviews

Why eReader for BlackBerry is a fail

I had really high hopes for the eReader (beta) for BlackBerry which I have been testing on my BlackBerry Bold. At first glance the layout is decent and I had no trouble scrolling around and reading the text. The smaller display screen isn’t going to give paper books or the larger screen Kindle a run for their money any time soon – but I was hopeful that I’d at least have a decent backup book reader for when I didn’t have a paper book or the Kindle. Unfortunately ignoring the eReader’s many annoyances – starting with the price of books…

Reviews

Kensington Hands-Free Visor Car Kit REVIEW

When I’m barreling down the highway meeting and greeting folks, it can be a challenge (but NOT always safe) to call whoever is deserving of a return call at that moment. I have an iPhone that allows my fingers to flip through the spinning wheel of contacts, but dialing and driving are frowned upon. Some places even have laws against such behavior. The other time tested alternative is to wear a Bluetooth earpiece. I have a favorite reviewed here, but in some places there are fashion laws displaying such behavior. So what’s a road warrior to do? Kensington has introduced…

News & Features

A cautionary note about Google’s “number for life”

To be fair, I guess Grandcentral ,when they advertised “one number for life”, didn’t specify whose life. After waiting impatiently nearly two weeks for my Grandcentral account to upgrade to Google Voice – I was a bit surprised to wake up to an email advising me that if I wanted to keep my old Grandcentral number that I’d have to forgo any SMS forwarding features (the MAJOR new feature of Google Voice). Say what? I thought I had my Grandcentral number “for life”?

Reviews

Proporta Leather Case for BlackBerry Storm

Proporta just released a leather case for the BlackBerry Storm. The case includes an inner aluminum screen saver to protect against crushing and impacts. Instead of crowding the front of the case with a leather sleeve – the Storm clips into the front of the case. Since my sister Lynn has a BlackBerry Storm – I’ve asked her to give us a look.