2012

New ‘Active Gaming’ Doesn’t Change Reality of Couch-Bound Stereotype; also, ‘Brain Games’ Doesn’t Work

There are a number of stereotypes surrounding gamers: such as that of the male anti-social, under-hygenic basement dweller toiling away the hours on Dungeons & Dragons fantasy games; or the ultraviolent shooter player who is a bit ‘off’, also an outsider, one round of Doom/Halo/Call of Duty from wiping out his high school/college/post office; and even in the more enlightened recent years there is the image of a few somewhat unkempt and overweight friends on a couch (or couches in different locations connected by the internet) playing a bunch of games. If you look at the LAST console generation –…

Editorials

If It Arrives, the iPad Mini Won’t Be $199

We have gone on record that we don’t do rumor and innuendo here in Gear Diary. How then is it possible that we are writing a post about our opinion that Apple’s supposed upcoming miniature iPad will not cost $199? Simple, this post is not based on any of the rumors swirling about, nor is it based on any supposedly special information we heard from our second cousin’s neighbor’s dry cleaner. No, this post is purely speculation on our part, and we are okay with that. In fact we are so okay with that, that we are going to put our…

Gear Bits

The Nexus 7 Challenge, a Gear Diary Video Chat

iPad-junkies Mike and Dan both purchased 8GB Nexus 7s. Mike took one for the team. He put away his iPad and is in the midst of a week-long Nexus Challenge. In other words, he is going full in with the Nexus 7 for a few more days. Dan also got a Nexus 7 so the two jumped on video to talk about the tablet, Mike’s challenge and how two devoted iPad-users are finding the newest Android tablet. As mentioned, this was the third attempt to get our first video-podcast put together, and as such there were a few things that…

News & Features

At SemiCon Technical Conference, 450mm Silicon Gets REAL!

If you have never worked in the semiconductor industry, much of what goes on seems like intentionally obfuscated jargon and black magic. And for many years it was – or at least it seemed to be – as empirical knowledge outstripped theoretical understanding, and yields were more a factor of skilled process engineers at the knobs than of robust and thoroughly understood processes running in statistical control. When I got involved in the semiconductor industry, wafer size was 100mm (4 inches) with a ‘flat’ along one or both edges, and a rather ‘generous’ edge exclusion area and ‘kerf’ between device…

Editorials, News & Features, Travel

Full Body Scans, the TSA and the Law: The Legal Maneuvers Continue

I used to travel a lot — basically once a week. I had a job in California, but my family lives in Austin. (it was 2008–I took whatever I could find.) So I spent a lot of time in airports, eating, pulling luggage, searching for power outlets, unlacing and relacing my shoes, and getting scanned. Over that period, airports were transitioning from X-Ray-only to those “strip you naked” full-body scanners. To say that I am dubious about these devices, their use, the lack of privacy, and so on would be a massive understatement. The makers of the most popular machines…

Vehicles & Gear

2012 Hyundai Genesis 5.0 R-Spec a True Competitor

Dictionary.com defines the word “Genesis” as a coming into being, an origin or a creation. Hyundai defines Genesis as “a vehicle crafted to rival the world’s premier sport sedans.” When Hyundai introduced its new Genesis sedan lineup to the media a few years back, I wrote, “I define Genesis as the next big thing. Get ready because you are going to be seeing a lot of these cars on the road soon.” Hyundai has basically taken the design elements of the world’s leading luxury sport sedans and combined that with performance parameters of the top rear-wheel-drive models on the road…

How to Do It Yourself!

Building a Simple Ham Radio Antenna without Soldering

One of the first things you might want to do after getting your Ham Radio License is talk on the radio. However, there are many things you may have to do to get that done depending on what kind of radio you purchase. If you purchase a handheld radio, you likely already have an antenna included in the box. These radios typically will have 2 m and 70 cm bands on them so the antenna is small enough that they usually include one right in the box. Even my Yaesu VX-7R included an antenna that works on the 6 m…

Events, Gear Bits

GearFest Gear Chat Part 4, Google Apps – Yay or Nay?

This was a sweet thought, a search mega-player committed to doing things in a kind, open and customer-friendly manner. But we all know it isn’t the case. No, Google is just a money-making machine and just as Health Insurance Companies make their money by saying “No” to sick people and reimbursing physicians at a rate of pennies on the dollar, Google makes the bulk of their cash by giving you seemingly free services and then using the personally data they rake in to make money. (Yes, I know, the video below is hosted on YouTube… what are you going to…

Events, Gear Bits

GearFest GearChat Part 3, iPad Apps, Judie’s Question and More…

In part 3 of our GearFest Gear Chat Judie asks “What is your one favorite iPad app?” A ridiculous question? Yup. But she wasn’t going to be satisfied until she got an answer from each of us. We then took a look at how many apps we currently have on our iPads. And, how many books, how many songs etc. In all, during this chat we dug a bit more deeply into exactly how we each use our iPads. And, yeah, the bickering got a bit more intense this time through. 🙂

Editorials

It’s the Apps, Stupid…

Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) surveyed more than 1,000 consumers who purchased iPads between the end of 2011 and first quarter of 2012. The survey showed that 21 percent of them replied that they would, or do, use the device for business. That’s especially interesting for a device that was initially panned as being “just a big iPod touch”. The blogosphere has picked up on the research and done its typical “blog-thing”- repeating the same argument and information over and over again. For example, a post on AllThingsDigital attributes it to the same two factors mentioned in the CIRP report…

Reviews

USBFever Magnetic Lenses for the iPhone 4S (and other Smartphones) Review

I recently upgraded my camera to a Canon T3i from a Canon G11. The move from a point and shoot, albeit a good one, to a DSLR has been a long time coming and I am loving the process of learning how to use it. (Okay, to be honest, I’m also loving the opportunity to gather new accessories to use with it… that’s another series of posts.) In the past, I would use the G11 for product pictures and even for some video while my iPhone served as my “always with me” point and shoot. I briefly considered keeping the…

News & Features

New Line of Harman Kardon Headphones “Bring Superior Sound, Comfort and Audio Innovation”

In Harman Kardon’s new line of headphones “modern design meets sophisticated acoustic performance”. And while we cannot vouch for the sound (yet!), the look and specs of the lineup are impressive. The collection includes a pair of in-ear headphones that cost under $100 and a soon-to-be-released pair of noise-canceling Bluetooth headphones at the top of the pricing structure. Here’s a rundown of the collection. At the low-end of the pricing structure are the in-ear NI headphones. At just $99.95 these headphones feature 9mm drivers. Ultra-light for comfort, the headphones have a rectangular black housing that is “shaped like the back…

Gear Bits

Google Buys Sparrow and… No, Actually That’s The Entire Thing

Google bought Sparrow, the Mac and iOS mail app that had gained a loyal and growing following. I used Sparrow at first launch and was finding myself turning to it with increasing frequency on my Mac. I even went back to using it on my iPhone the other day. Now Google has purchased the company. Go to download the app and you will see all the enhancements planned for it in the future. Oh. Wait. Yes, that’s right, Google is killing off Sparrow. Here’s why I’m a bit peeved. I used Sparrow for Mac in Beta. I purchased the iOS…

Outdoors

Getting Fit with Gear Diary!

(image courtesy indulgy) There’s more to life than just electronics, at least some of the time. And here at Gear Diary, we live to serve, so we’re pulling together a new weekly series focused around health, fitness, and the world outside the glowing screens. This week we’re looking at cool running gear, body image, superhuman races, and healthy snacks. Ready? Read on for more! Earlier in the week we showed you how to enter the Badwater Ultramarathon, and now that the race is winding down, here’s an idea of how the competition did: Mike Morton won in 22:52:55! That is…

Reviews

2012 Kia Optima Hybrid Review

“Wow, nice car! “Whoa, what car is this?” “Holy crap, THIS is a Kia?” These are the questions I have gotten repeatedly over the last week, because I have had a Kia Optima Hybrid to review. To say this is a nice car is an understatement. It’s an amazing car. The Optima was a pleasure to drive, and had every feature and luxury you could ever imagine or want in a high-end sedan. What made it such a standout vehicle? Read on to find out! First, let’s talk aesthetics. The Optima is a gorgeous car. It has some very sporty…

Reviews

Able Planet PS400B Stereo Headphones Review

I tend to prefer in-ear buds over on-ear or over-the-ear headphones. To me they just seem more… comfortable, at least when I am wearing them for an extended time. Still, there are times when I do like the on-ear or over-ear style, especially when the headphones sound good and are comfortable to wear. Most of the time, though, the headphones that have those qualities are rather pricey. Not so with Abel Planet’s new PS400B headphones. These over-the-ear cans have a detachable cable, come with a decent carry bag, are quite comfortable and, best of all, they sound good. Surprisingly, they…

Events, Reviews

Dark Knight Rises Film Review

This conclusion to Christopher Nolan’s film trilogy gives audiences an amazing swan song for the Caped Crusader that features constant surprises, character reveals, and compelling closure all set in the tumultuous city of Gotham.

Reviews

SongPop For iPhone Review

I have a habit of playing name that tune and artist with my wife when we are listening to music. She hates it because she never learns who artists are, just listens to music. Music plays a huge role in my life and I have always been one of those people who always know who is playing the song on the radio for certain genres. In fact, I always wanted to compete on Rock and Roll Jeopardy when it was on VH1. I recently saw a former high school classmate posting information from SongPop on Facebook and thought it looked…

How to Do It Yourself!

How to get Amazon Prime Streaming Media and Flash Content to Play on your Nexus 7

Amazon Prime Streaming “Ronin” on Nexus 7 Flash is dead…or is it? Although Adobe Flash is no longer support on the latest version of Android 4.1 (Jellybean), that does not mean you can’t enjoy the benefits of Flash content and movies. The move from flash-based content to HTML5 has been long underway but the truth is that the internet is still riddled with flash content including the one of the “King’s of Media”, Amazon Prime. Without Flash it is simply impossible to stream Amazon content to your new Nexus 7 tablet. When you go to the Play Store and…

News & Features

AT&T Joins the Shared Data Game

So I’m working though my latest summer sinus headache and I see the news – AT&T has finally announced (as expected) that they are going to follow Verizon in offering shared data plans. And, like Verizon’s offering, the plans all include unlimited voice and texting plus a fixed amount of data. The primary difference you notice between the AT&T and Verizon offerings is that Verizon charges a fixed $40 per smartphone and AT&T lowers the per smartphone cost as you increase the amount of data you purchase. But Verizon’s “base” charges tend to be lower (per GB) as you get…

News & Features

Total ArKade Software Conjures Up Major Update for AbraWordabrA for iOS and Android

Back in the dim, dark past of the latter portion of the last century, learning math was a laborious, tedious job for me. It likely wasn’t all that exciting to my friends and classmates back in the day either. Improving our math skills consisted largely of poring over printed material and flash cards, with an occasional rare foray into a few educational programs on TV. For the most part, learning math was often BORING. The upshot is that we got to inhale the sweet odor of the blue mimeographed quiz/test papers, part of the educational rites of a bygone era….

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