My friend David just pointed me toward some of the best proof of just how deeply tablets have already penetrated. (Or should I say… TABLET… singular) Take a look at this shot form the New York Times homepage… see something funny? Yes, as David pointed out the text says TAP not CLICK. TAP as in on an iPad… TAP as in TAP using the Livescribe Paper Tablet. TAP as in… I don’t need no stinking mouse…
It’s pretty easy to find rubber, plastic and lesser-grade leather cases for most phones, but when looking for an accessory that makes a statement, one that would make a fantastic gift for yourself or a loved one, the choices immediately narrow. While searching for a unique leather belt, I stumbled across Abernathy Road, a Nashville Tennessee business which offers items “for the Road Less Traveled. Ranch, Range, and Roughwear for those looking to find their own way, pave their own path, follow their own direction.” While I have indeed found the belt that I’m going to purchase, I have also found…
Word came last night that the 16GB WiFi iPad would be available in limited quantities at TJ Maxx and Marshalls. At first many of us assumed it would be a refurb. Even still, $399 would be a full $50 less than Apple sells refurbs so it would be an awesome deal. Now it seems that the units coming to the stores are new. New iPads for $100 less than they cost at Apple? or Best Buy? How can that be? Seth Weintraub over on 9 to 5 Mac Apple Intelligence has an interesting post on why this might be. Among…
… or maybe it just proves that you will need to be to wear them. 😉 What do you get when you mix a little bit of Paul Smith with a pinch of United Colors of Benetton and add just a dash of The Very Hungry Caterpillar? Why, you get the technicolor limited edition Urbanears Tanto headphones, of course. Priced at $47, so that the kids and young-at-heart who will covet them might actually be able to afford them, the Tantos are available today at the “exclusive Wired Pop Up Store event in NYC” (on 692 Broadway), or at WiredStore.com….
If you have never heard of British singer/songwriter Nick Drake, it is because he maintained a very low profile, releasing three albums before dying at the young age of 26. Yet over the last 35 years his amazing talent has been realized more and more and he is now seen as one of the most influential British singer-songwriters of the last half century. I have always been a vocal supporter of the Jason Parker Quartet, and not just because I like their music! Jason Parker uses technology in a very intelligent and cooperative way to work with his audience and…
I love Mophie’s products. Their batteries are among the best designed and most useful I have found. Last year at CES, the Mopie juicepack air saved us over and over and over when our iPhone batteries wore down as they searched for a signal on AT&T’s network. Now Mophie has extended their line to include their first ever case… the Mophie workbook. I’ve had one here for the last couple of weeks and really like the design. It takes all of the best features of other portfolio-style iPad cases and adds its own twist that makes the workbook unique. Here’s a…
Image courtesy of Notion Ink Time after time our hearts have been broken by empty promises for a newer better tablet. We all know NOTHING has even come close to comparing to the mighty iPad in terms of tablets and slates. The Samsung Galaxy Tab recently was released, and it is probably the only tablet in existence that someone could even compare to Apple’s offering. But as an Android enthusiast I can agree its refinement (so far) has proven less than worthy. We still have a few weeks yet to go this year and a whole bunch of promises to…
A major update to iOS always means new goodies at the core of the iPhone, iPod touch or iPad. It also means lots and lots and lots of app updates. Sure, sometimes the updates just make the app optimized to take advantage of the new OS’s functionality but for many it is also seen as an opportunity for developers to bump up features. Here are just a few of the many that showed up on our iPads. First up is BlogPress. A recent update to version 2.0 made this universal app (it works great on all three iOS devices) a…
It seems like the role of the internet ‘mob mind’ as political force has been everywhere lately, from Carly’s brilliant post on the power of the social internet, to the follow-up on TechCrunch showing the likely death of Cooks Source, to the pressure mounted on the TSA scanning systems (aka: Door 1: porn scanner, Door 2: sexual assault, Door 3: exit from airport) showing up as protests over the systems have ‘gone viral’ and entered into congressional hearings. I am not going anywhere so serious with this … This image is not from some Tea Party web site, not from…
Speck has been releasing some great cases for the current generation of iOS devices. Their latest creation is the CandyShell Grip. The CandyShell Grip is “the first case that seamlessly integrates comfortable, finger-friendly gaming grips into the sleek protection and style of the award-winning hard shell, soft center CandyShell case”. As Bryan Hynecek, Lead Designer at Speck explains, “Anyone can make a big bulky gaming case, but we set out to create a case ideal for people that love gaming that would also look and work just as well as their everyday case. The new iPod touch is amazingly thin,…
If you have a child who has had music lessons over the last decade, then chances are at some point or other you have paid for something from Music Forte – either yourself or through your school or music instructor. The process is simple – you find what you need, order it and get the high quality print sent to you. Over the same time, many internet sites have sprung up that allow you to buy sheet music and download it immediately in PDF or other forms. Some of these sites are great, while others you are pretty sure are…
Our love of ioSafe‘s fire proof and water proof external hard drives is no secret. I mean how can one not love something that’s able to survive this, or this? I’d been using ioSafe’s original product, their Solo model, since I first tested it back in August of last year (they sent me a replacement after I’d burned the original up in the car.) So when they asked if I was interested in being upgraded to one of their newer Pro models I happily accepted. The SoloPRO is available with either eSATA/USB 2.0 or USB 3.0 connectivity and you can…
Recently, I have reviewed many apps for guitarists. From tuners, chord libraries, effects, to tableture. IOS devices have proven to be an exciting platform for musicians. Virtually any guitar related activity has been available on my devices except a way to improve my playing. How about I use my iPad and or iPhone to tune up, find my chords, plug in my guitar to get the right sound and then receive lessons?!?! Agile Partners, developers of several of my favorite musician apps, has just released Lick Of The Day in partnership with Guitar World Magazine. Through in app purchases,…
When it comes to protecting your precious gadgets you can’t beat simple, beautiful, well-constructed leather-goods. That’s exactly what AUTUM is offering with the Straight Jacket, their new line of premium leather sleeves for the iPad and the MacBook Air. As the company web site explains, We found ourselves searching for a leather sleeve deserving of the content it would be holding. Our relentless journey through the interwebs proved fruitless and we took it upon ourselves to build a sleek, minimal alternative to the plethora of cases out there. Custom fitted for iPad & Macbook Air. The Straight Jacket features- Domestically…
Lost sales are a tough thing to measure. It’s easy to track what’s actually sold, but when someone opts NOT to purchase something it’s much harder to measure. Retail stores can approximate this by measuring foot traffic in and out against sales, but how do you measure this if you’re selling online? It’s become a huge point of contention in ebooks, where the agency model and battles over digital rights means there is a critical mass of angry readers with no way to express their displeasure…until now! LostBookSales is a simple website with a fantastic premise: you submit a book…
I’ve been subscribing to Hulu Plus during its closed preview period for the last few months. I first received an invitation and signed up only to let the subscription expire a few weeks later. I re-upped shortly there-after because I really loved the way the service let me access many of my favorite shows on the iPad. At the time the service ran $9.99 per month. It seemed reasonable for the amount of content I was getting although I did dislike having to watch commercials AND pay for the subscription. Well Hulu Plus has just opened its gates to anyone who wants…
I think those of us Gear Diary writers who own the iPhone 4 have been pretty impressed with its battery life. Unlike the iPhone 3G or 3Gs, on most days we’re able to make it through an entire day without a recharge. However, on days when we’re out and about for extended periods of time or just really relying on our phones recharging sometime during the day becomes a necessity. And for us specifically CES is fast approaching and that’s one week where an extra battery, or two, or three, for your phone becomes a must have. Case-Mate recently released…
If you follow reviews here on Gear Diary, then you have noticed an exciting new trend for guitarists. A ton of apps have been developed to use while playing the guitar. Tuners, metronomes, tablature, chord diagrams, effects. You name it, it can be found on various mobile devices. As an iPhone user, I have reviewed and been an active user of many of the IOS guitar applications. Here is the one problem I have found with this new genre of apps: Where do I hold my iPhone?!?! I have tried balancing on my knee and setting it on a table…
Talk ebook readers, and everyone thinks Kindle or NOOK. But there’s a whole subset of hardware out there for people who aren’t interested in connected readers, and just want a simple device that handles multiple formats. That’s where an ebook reader like the Aluratek Libre comes in handy. The Libre is physically very similar to the Jetbook Lite we looked at last spring. It has the same slider along the left side for page turns, along with page turn buttons on the bottom. There are d-pad and navigation buttons along the right side, plus a T-9 keyboard along the right…
It now seems oddly prescient that just last week I walked through the Beatles catalog, as today we find the meaning of the teaser announcement “Tomorrow is just another day. That you’ll never forget.” The question is … do we care? In terms of what is there, you can get all of the 12 original recordings, the 1973 collections ‘1962-1966’ and ‘1967-1970’, as well as the more recent ‘Past Masters Vol 1 & 2’. All are basically the same 2009 remasters I reviewed, in ‘high quality’ iTunes AAC format. There is also a ‘complete collection’, which has everything except the…
Lexus has a new hybrid vehicle being readied for market and let me begin by saying I wish them more luck with this CT200h hybrid sportwagon than they saw with the HS250h hybrid sedan that debuted last year. Lexus’ last sporty wagon was on the inaugural IS300 platform and was dubbed SportCross. I was assured the CT200h is not intended to be the next SportCross but the two do share bloodlines and driving dynamics. We spent some time with Lexus and the new CT200h in New Orleans recently and I was left with the impression that the CT should see…