November 2013

Star Wars: Tiny Death Star Puts You in Charge of an 8-Bit Death Star in this Tiny Tower Remake

Developer NimbleBit has teamed up with Disney and LucasArts to bring you Star Wars: Tiny Death Star, where you take the helm of the Death Star in order to build, develop, and prepare the planet-sized Death Star. The gameplay is extremely similar to NimbleBit’s Tiny Tower. It’s available for free on the App Store, Google Play, and Windows Store. You hire outer space “bitizens” in order to build the commercial and residential floors of the Death Star. Like many freemium games, Star Wars: Tiny Death Star employs the use of premium currency that help speed up certain in-game actions. On…

Gear Bits

Protect and Serve Your iPad or MacBook Air With the Booq Viper Hardcase

If you need a stylish way to carry and protect your MacBook air or iPad look no further than the new Booq Viper hardcase. It offers fitted protection for your tablet or laptop plus room for key accessories. Best of all prices start at just $39.99. The Booq Viper Hardcase is a stylish way to protect without extra bulk.

Gear Bits

Can You Spot the New Colors of the Soundfreaq Sound Spot?

Both the sound and the design of the Soundfreaq SoundStep Lightning impressed us. Now Soundfreaq is looking to take the audio market by storm with new colors of their Sound Spot Available in ten new color combinations, the $69 Sound Spot is just 5″ square. Use it at home or on the go, the Sound Spot even charges your phone.

Gear Bits

IK Multimedia iLoud – Hands-On First Impressions

Earlier today I posted about IK Multimedia’s new iLoud Bluetooth speaker system. This is their entry into the portable speaker market, but with a twist – rather than just releasing yet-another Bluetooth speaker, they designed an audio system with musicians in mind. I have had a chance for a first look, and it is awesome. Check out my first-impressions video!

Gear Bits

Contort Power Solves Two Powerful Travel Dilemmas

It seems like all the hotels I’ve stayed at in the past few months have only had one free electrical outlet near the bed. That would be fine if I didn’t have a phone, iPad, and sometimes a laptop that all needed to be charged from the same plug. The $24.99 Contort Power from Quirky might just be my solution.

Music Diary, News

IK Multimedia Launches iLoud Speaker – the Ideal Portable Speaker for Musicians and Audiophiles

Over the last few years the Bluetooth speaker market has gone from non-existent to absolutely amazing. At GearFest we listened to a number of speakers that were loud, paired easily, and sounded great. Today IK Multimedia released iLoud, another of the cool products revealed at CES. iLoud brings the musician’s sensibilities and needs to the world of Bluetooth speakers. Here are some of the features: Loud and Clear The iLoud speaker is indeed very loud. In fact, it’s 2 to 3 times louder than comparable size speakers — a blasting 40W RMS of power. But iLoud is extremely clear at…

Editorials

First Steps to Getting Google Glass and Being a Part of Phase Two of the Explorer Program

Joe Stirt, an original Glass Explorer program participant, recently received three invitations he could share; he gave me one. That invite entitled me to purchase a second generation Google Glass device for $1500. Is the tech compelling enough for me to pay to be a beta tester for an unfinished product? I sure hope so — because I mine arrived tonight!

Game Diary, Reviews

Puzzle Retreat Coming to Amazon Appstore, Is Already Awesome on iOS

I got an email from The Voxel Agents about their game Puzzle Retreat coming to the Kindle Fire, and as I looked at their site and the trailer I noticed it was already on iOS and Android, so I gave it a shot. Guess what? It is breezy, engaging, and loads of fun. Check it out!

Reviews

The STM Cape Helps the 2013 Nexus 7 Stand Up and Stay Slim

Since the 2013 Nexus 7 has been out for a while, cases for it have started to become easier to find. I have been using the Waterfield Slip Case; one issue with that is how the device is naked when you remove it from the case to use it. The STM Cape does not have this issue, and it has a stand!

Vehicles & Gear

Toyota Avalon Finally Gets a Personality

Over the past couple of years there has been a great deal of news coming from the Toyota/Lexus camp, but one headline that may have gone unnoticed was the complete makeover of the flagship sedan Avalon. Not only is this the best (and most “American”) Avalon to date, but Toyota now offers a hybrid variant to consumers as well.

Reviews

Duracell Powermat and PowerSnap Kit Review – Charging your Phone from the Future

Ever since I learned about the magic of wireless charging back when the Palm Pre and Touchstone charging device came out, I’ve wanted to try it out for myself. Although the inductive charging experience with the Duracell Powermat isn’t perfect, it’s a pleasure to use. The Duracell Powermat retails for $49.99 and the Powermat PowerSnap Kit retails for $99.99.

Reviews

Lowepro Streamline 250 Lets You Take “Just Enough”

If you want to travel light, but still need to carry your compact camera, 10″ tablet, smartphone and a few accessories, then you might want to check out the Lowepro StreamLine 250. It’s an everyday bag from one of the leaders in camera bags and backpacks. Light and inexpensive, the $44.99 bag carries a surprising amount of gear!

Gear Bits

Happy Hour Timepieces Has New Watches to Insure You Never Miss First or Last Call

Everyone knows the cliché joke about how “it’s 5 o’clock somewhere”! But what if your watch was ONLY clear when it was 5 o’clock? And it could open your drinks when you hit that magic time? Enter the new watches from Happy Hour Timepieces!

Gear Bits

Doxie Flip Is a New Battery Powered Mobile Scanner That Can Scan Anything and Everything

I’ve mentioned my genealogy hobby before, but what I haven’t mentioned is how often I’ve had to try to scan photos that couldn’t be removed from the album they were glued into. My solution is usually to snap a sometimes odd-angled photo with my phone; Doxie Flip looks like a much better way. Battery driven, totally portable, and only $149.

Gear Bits

Pelican ProGear Protector Series Will Toughen Up Your Samsung Galaxy S4

If you want serious protection for your Samsung Galaxy S4, then you’ll want to check out the upcoming Pelican ProGear Protector Galaxy S4 case. This $39.95 case offers serious protection thanks to a tough chamfer design on the outside and a soft elastomeric lining on the inside. It meets military testing specs to survive a six-foot drop!

eBooks, News

Amazon Offers Indie Bookstores a Small Cut to Sell eBooks, But Will Anyone Bite?

It’s no secret that “Amazon” is a dirty word among independent booksellers. They’ve fought against carrying Amazon-published books, railed against Kindles, and fought Amazon’s no-internet-sales-tax stance. But Amazon really wants to win over the indie booksellers, so they’ve rolled out Amazon Source, an affiliate Kindle program for indie booksellers. Because when someone hates you, they’ll totally sell your competing product…

Gear Bits

Sandisk’s Cruzer Fit and Cruzer Force Will Bulk Up Your Laptop Storage Without a Lot of Bulk

My MacBook Pro has 512GB of flash storage. That may sound like a lot, but once you begin editing videos and loading up essential files the space gets consumed rather quickly. SanDisks new Cruzer Fit and Cruzer Force are a great way to add up to 64GB of storage on the go. Capacities top out at 64GB!

Gear Bits

Cyclone Spiral Hot Dog Slicer for Frank Aficianados

Do you score your wieners before grilling them? I didn’t even realize that doing so was a “thing”, but it helps your dogs cook evenly while creating nooks that keep your garnishes from sliding off your frank and onto your shirt. That’s kind of cool, right? And it’s easy to do with the Cyclone Spiral Hotdog Slicer, $11.99 from Quirky.

Outdoors, Yum Log

Take Your Party Outdoors with These Products from GSI and Sachi

As the college and pro football seasons hit the home stretch, it’s prime tailgating time. Getting your drinks safely to the stadium is a key component of any outdoor party, so check out these handy beverage transport tools, the Mountainsmith Cooler Cube, Sachi Vino Wine Tote and GSI Outdoors Wine set.

Gear Bits

Twelve South’s BookBook Travel Journal Is a Briefcase for Your iPad Air

Twelve South’s BookBook Travel Journal may look like a vintage book, but it’s actually a leather case for an iPad and a few essential accessories. The $99 case has over a dozen organizing pockets and straps for your iPad, headphones, adapters, chargers, batteries, stylus, and cables. Find details and order your here.

Reviews

iLuv FlightFit Props and Protects the GALAXY Note 3

The Samsung GALAXY Note 3 is an engineering marvel. Packed with features, its stylus is more than a mere gimmick. Still, like far too many Samsung products, it feels cheap. That’s where the iLuv FlightFit comes in. For under $30 it promises to protect your Note 3 even as it props it up for easy viewing. Pre-order yours.

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