March 2013

Mailbox App Review – Is Email Conquered for Good?

It has been a little over a week since I started using the Mailbox app as my main email organizer, and I have finally settled into a rhythm and have a handle on how it works. It’s incredibly easy to grasp once you get it set up, and I am still as smitten with it as I was last week in my first impressions post. But here are the real question: is it worth the long wait to gain access? And is all the hype that’s surrounded it since before its launch justified? Read on for my take! First, let’s…

Reviews

Trina Turk iPad Cover Review – Promises Pretty Protection

I recently reviewed the Trina Turk by M-Edge Macbook Case and iPhone 5 case; this Trina Turk iPad Cover rounds out the trio of accessories currently offered. The Trina Turk iPad case appears to be built on an M-Edge Revolve 360 Case chassis, which is smart because the Revolve 360 is a great case. As the name implies, the Revolve 360° allows you to rotate your iPad 360° when it is in the case, thanks to the unique plastic holster design that securely holds the iPad while protecting its corners. The iPad clicks into the four corner brackets, and once properly installed…

Reviews, Yum Log

Starbucks Blond Roast Veranda Blend Is Yummy

I love coffee. When I used to eat ice-cream, coffee was my favorite flavor; by that I mean the coffee ice-cream that really tasted like coffee, not that subtle flavored stuff some brands offer. And when I used to eat cake I loved anything with mocha. And each morning I still brew a pot of coffee in my Cuisinart coffeepot and polish it off before starting my day. In addition to liking coffee, I also happen to like convenience; that’s where my Keurig coffee maker comes in. Lately, I’ve been enjoying Starbucks Blond Roast Veranda Blend in it. It has…

Game Diary, Reviews

Spirit Walkers Curse of the Cypress Witch for Mac Review

Type of app: Hidden Object Puzzle Adventure (HOPA) game Platform/where to buy: iPad; available in the Mac App Store Developer: Orchid Games / G5 Entertainment Despite weekly releases of hidden object, strategy and adventure games G5 continues to put out amazing quality games as well as a great quantity.When I reviewed Spirit Walkers Curse of the Cypress Witch for the iPad, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Now they have ported it to the Mac, and it looks to be a great translation of this significant and interesting plot wrapped around a hidden object adventure. Let’s take a look! Description: Here are…

Reviews

Globalgig Now Offers Inexpensive International Data in More Countries

When it comes to connectivity I’m spoiled. I spend the vast majority of my time either at home or the office and both are locations have high-speed Internet. And when I am out I usually have decent connectivity and relatively good speed. That means I’m able to get the information I want pretty much where and when I want it. This holds true during my annual week in Aruba, where my first stop each year is at a kiosk when I load my hotspot with 5 GB of data; that means I even have connectivity on the beach. The past…

Reviews

Toast Natural Wood Cover and Wraps for iPhone 5 Review

Carly reviewed the Toast Cover for the iPhone 4S (read the review), and I followed up with a review of the Toast protective back for the iPad mini (read the review); I even showed it on camera (check out the video)! This time out we are looking at the Toast Natural Wood Cover and Wraps for the iPhone 5. Like the other Toast products we have reviewed, the Toast Natural Wood Cover and Wraps are made from real wood; they have a terrific look and feel that adds both class and protection to Apple’s current iPhone. As you can see, the…

Reviews

Hitcase for iPhone 4S Review

I am a big fan of cases that let you take your iPhone into extreme situations, because the iPhone has an excellent camera and tons of great apps for the outdoors, but it is a bit delicate. You don’t want to send your iPhone flying while riding your bike, or while on a trail run. But the quasi-permanent cases can be bulky when you aren’t out tramping around nature, and that’s where cases like the Hitcase fit the bill. When you’re heading out for a rough and tumble day, your iPhone is safely tucked inside, protected from water and dirt….

News, Outdoors

TrackingPoint Releases Precision Guided Firearm iOS Simulator App

We first broke news of TrackingPoint and their Precision Guided Firearm system during this year’s CES. The system is a custom-built rifle and scope combination that makes long-range shooting much more accurate. Using the XactSystem, shooters tag, track and hit their target with pinpoint accuracy. TrackingPoint has just released Precision Hunter Lite which allows iOS users to experience their revolutionary technology. The free application is basically a first person shooter that replicates the Precision Guided Firearm experience. Using the head’s up display, users practice utilizing the XactSystem to successfully make ethical shots at extreme distances. Users choose their quarry then…

News

Early Thoughts on Ubuntu Touch

At lunch today I was able to load up a version of Ubuntu’s touch based OS on my Asus EeePad Transformer, because I had come across a post on the infamous XDA forums from a hacker who has actually gotten this to work. Well … it works in that it boots! 🙂 So I decided to try it, just to get an idea of how good or bad it might be. I am actually a little surprised at how much of Ubuntu Touch works, but I’m even more surprised by how much of it doesn’t. Keep in mind that it’s a developer…

Game Diary

Tomb Raider Interview with Darrell Gallagher and Noah Hughes

I recently discussed the new Tomb Raider video game (releasing today, March 5) with Darrell Gallagher (Crystal Dynamics Studio Head) and Noah Hughes (Crystal Dynamics Creative Director). Crystal Dynamics developed this recently released reboot featuring the female adventurer hero Lara Croft, as well as the previous four Tomb Raider games. Publisher Square Enix purchased Eidos and took over this popular 16-year-old game franchise recognized as the “Most Successful Human Virtual Game Heroine” by the Guinness Book of World Records. The character development and gameplay elements expand in this installment along with a new multiplayer mode. Tomb Raider is also the…

Editorials

Unlocking Cell Phones and the White House Petition

It used to be that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) had an exception which allowed unlocking cellphones (i.e., unlocking the phone from carrier exclusivity through the use of an unlock code — purchased from a third-party or obtained directly from the carrier). However, in October of 2012, the Librarian of Congress decided that this exception was no longer valid, and so unlocking cellphones would now be illegal and subject to prosecution, fines, and all the other fun stuff that illegality brings. Not too long thereafter, Sina Khanifar decided that this was unfair, unreasonable, and shouldn’t be the case, so Sinfa…

News

Ham Radio to be Featured in Tim Allen’s Last Man Standing on ABC

I’ve watched Last Man Standing all season this year and am really enjoying the series in its second year. One of the reasons I was attracted to it was that the character Tim Allen plays, Mike Baxter, is an Amateur Radio Operator. He has been given the tongue in cheek call sign KA0XTT. The “XTT” stands for Ex Tim Taylor. Icom America has provided radios for his shack at his workplace, a fictional store called Outdoor Man which is styled very much like outdoor stores like Cabela’s. So far, the radios have only been props at Outdoor Man but that is about to change. In…

Vehicles & Gear

2014 Corvette Stingray Convertible and LaFerrari Dream Cars Unveiled at Geneva Motor Show

Two world debuts thrilling the automotive world this week at the 83rd International Motor Show in Geneva are the 2014 Corvette Stingray Convertible and the Ferrari Enzo successor dubbed LaFerrari. Chevrolet said it chose the Geneva show to introduce the new Corvette convertible as it will offer the sports car in global markets beginning in late 2013, all of them in left-hand-drive fashion. As with the coupe that was debuted in Detroit earlier this year, the convertible features the all-new aluminum frame structure that is some 57 percent stiffer (and 99 lbs. lighter) than the steel grid it replaces. All…

Nokia and MakerBot 3D Printed Lumia 520 Case

Events

Nokia and MakerBot Replicator 2 Shells for the Lumia 820 at MWC

One of the coolest things I saw while at Mobile World Congress was the MakerBot Replicator 2 3D printer printing out a plastic shell for the just announced Nokia Lumia 820 (and soon the also just announced Lumia 520). I had never seen a 3D printer in action, and I found the process fascinating (and mildly hypnotic). When the MakerBot Replicator 2 is in action, it uses a natural PLA filament to “print”, and it follows a schematic to print row after row of the special plastic compound until the 3D image of the desired object has been replicated. It’s like the object…

Health and Fitness

The Importance of Setting Goals – The Monday Mile

Way back around the start of the New Year, I commented that we should be setting goals, not making resolutions. The reasoning was that resolutions tend to be soft and vague, whereas goals have a number of elements that fall in line with the SMART system – specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-based. If you are hoping to do something, the importance of setting goals cannot be overstated. So let’s take a look at how you can do it, and some results you might expect. 1. Pick a goal: It can be to qualify for the Boston Marathon, to compete…

News, Vehicles & Gear

US Postal Service Delivers Muscle Cars Forever

The US Postal Service recently announced the release of a new set of commemorative Forever stamps celebrating five iconic muscle cars from America’s motoring past. The five vehicles being honored – 1966 Pontiac GTO, 1967 Shelby GT-500, 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona, 1970 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda, and 1970 Chevelle SS – all represent America’s adventurous spirit of the muscle car era as these vehicles rumbled and roared their way into the hearts and minds of driving enthusiasts. Artwork for the stamps was created by Tom Fritz, who said he based his work on photographs of the iconic cars, using bright-colored oil…

Reviews

Toshiba Portege Z930 Review

I vastly prefer lightweight computing options. If I am travelling, I grab my iPad and that’s it. For two years I reached for my original Chromebook almost exclusively when I needed a computer. It’s a mix of light-weight and simple design that makes me like my computers more streamlined. But get too streamlined, and you encounter compromises when it comes to photo editing, games, and anything else that needs a bit more power behind it. Power plus a lightweight design pretty much defines Ultrabooks, so I was very excited to get the opportunity to review the Toshiba Portege Z930 Ultrabook….

Reviews

Spigen SGP Saturn Case for iPhone 5 Review

The new Spigen SGP Saturn case for iPhone 5 is a slim, minimalist case for those of us who love our iPhone 5’s and want to protect them without adding significant weight or bulk. The case is primarily polycarbonate. In that regard it looks much like the company’s Ultra Thin Air. (Read our review.) The Spigen SGP Saturn differs in that it has a real aluminum back. That addition makes a huge difference in te look and feel of the case. What is amazing to me is that the case is under $20 but has a quality look and feel that…

Events

HTC One Was the Best Android Handset at MWC

The HTC One was the best Android Handset at Mobile World Congress — according to the GSMA 18th Annual Mobile Awards, anyway! Their judges considered the HTC One to be “the device that holds the most promise for success in the market this year, providing game-changing features, design and functionality”, and they awarded it the “Best New Mobile Handset, Device or Tablet at Mobile World Congress 2013”. Pretty impressive, right? We covered the HTC One on its announcement day, and I was able to spend a little bit of time fondling one while at Mobile World Congress. I found it to be…

Gear Bits

Apple Lightning Connector Broken Inside iPad Mini Port – Eeek!

Have you wondered how well the new Apple Lightning connector might hold up over time? I’ll admit not giving too much thought to it, because I chose to focus on the fact that I could plug the Apple Lightning Connector in from either side — a welcome new convenience from the old 30-pin. So far, I haven’t had any issues with my iPad mini or my iPhone 5, but when I came home from Mobile World Congress, I got a shock. Kev’s youngest daughter had plugged the Lightning connector into her iPad mini, and the tip of the charger had…

News

Polaris eBike Makes You Go WHOOSH!

I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of commuting by bike. It’s not practical for my job, unfortunately, but it just sounds very appealing to combine exercise with commuting — plus it’s far cheaper than using a car. I have a few issues with using a bike as a main vehicle, though: One, I would constantly worry about being sweaty, and two, I am a very poky bike rider. Even on a fully tuned up bike, there are children on tricycles who would zip past me! If I were in a position to seriously try biking every day work, though,…

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