Articles by Dan Cohen

The Stump Stand Review – Sometimes Simplicity Is Best

Sometimes the simplest accessories are the best accessories. That’s right, something it doesn’t need to be complicated for it to be remarkably useful. That’s the case with this new tablet/eReader stand The Stump. The Stump is what it claims to be – it is a stump of rubber. It looks like a tree trunk that’s been cut down at an angle. It’s simple. It’s not exciting. Best of all, it does the job. Here’s a quick look and a chance to win one. Truth be told, there isn’t a whole lot to say about this accessory. Let’s let the company explained…

News

Big News From Evernote: Purchases Skitch, New Apps and More…

Evernote is in the midst of their “first-ever Evernote Trunk Conference” and had some big news to share. Skitch As the above “Skitched” image indicates Evernote bought the image app/service Skitch and is making the app completely free. As they explain We love Skitch so much that we decided to buy the company. Skitch is an amazing Mac application that’s changed the way people capture, annotate and share images. Chief Skitchers, Cris Pearson and Keith Lang are moving from Australia and joining Evernote to lead a significantly expanded Skitch team focused on supercharging the product. Evernote goes on to explain:…

Editorials

Adventures in Customer Service: Apple = Awesome

Only a card-carrying fanboy would entitle a post something like this right? Maybe, but read the post, and tell me how many companies would have done what I witnessed a short time ago. I just had to make an emergency stop at my local Apple store. I did something stupid with my iPhone (no I won’t go in to detail), and despite it being out of warranty they immediately fixed it for nothing. They had every right to charge me but they didn’t. Love Apple! That, however, isn’t the reason for this post. This is! While I was waiting, there…

Gear Bits

Slix – You Get What You Pay for Even with Underwear

I just spent more than I ever imagined to get a week’s worth of Slix socks, undershirts and briefs and I’m glad I did. They are, by far, the most comfortable undergarments I have ever worn and are worth every penny. Let me back up a bit and explain. Last January I was getting ready for my SCOTTEVEST No Baggage Challenge for Charity to benefit the Haiti Plunge. I knew I needed things that would be super comfortable, wash easily and dry fast since I was only bringing one change of clothing for the entire week. I hunted around…

Reviews

iPhone 4 Power Gear Review: PhoneSuit Elite Battery + Case

I’m a big fan of iPhone battery cases that combine protection and extra battery life into a single package. Since the release of the original iPhone, we have looked at a number of these hybrid case-batteries, and today we’ll take a look at PhoneSuit’s latest offering: the PhoneSuit Elite iPhone Case. The company is not stranger to this kind of battery case, and their experience shows in both the Elite’s design and its functionality. From PhoneSuit: The PhoneSuit Elite iPhone Case extends the battery life of the iPhone by more than doubling its power capacity. Users can now experience up to two…

Gear Bits

Living under a Rock? Nope, under a Bubble

At times I’ve been told I live under a rock. Maybe I do sometimes but its nice and quiet there. 🙂 And it sure beats living in a bubble doesn’t it? Well maybe not. Check out this bubble hut, the Crystalbubble. Its shape …was voluntarily designed with the goal to offer a dreamy space without disturbing the nature and the environment. The hut and its walls were reduced at their minimum. Cristalbubble hut is both suited to spend an unusual night in the nature and taking advantage of a multifunction life space all year long, even at the bottom of…

Editorials

Apple Moving into HDTV Market? Here’s a Great First Step

Last night I was a bit under the weather. I went in search of something to watch and came upon the new Starz/BBC series Strike Back on my iPad’s browser. A few taps of the screen and it was playing on my large Samsung HDTV. It was just another reminder of the way in which Apple’s technology can create a seamless ecosystem for work and entertainment. Then today Cult of Mac published a post entitled Could Apple Enter Sub-$1K Premium TV Market With A Real iTV? In it they write News that high-end TVs are nearing the sub $1,000 range…

Reviews

Review: Griffin Beacon Universal Remote for iOS

It looks funny. It does exactly what it promises. And, at least for me, it is in the running for “iOS Accessory of the Year”. Okay, I’m exaggerating a bit but I’m pretty serious about how cool I think this iOS hardware/app combination is. The Griffin Beacon is the universal remote on steroids. With this odd piece of plastic powered by four AA batteries and a free download from the App Store I have taken my Samsung HDTV remote, my TiVo remote AND my Apple TV remote and put them away. Now all I need is one of my iOS…

Yum Log

Yum Log: Avion Tequila the Tastiest Product Placement Ever

In what has to be one of the best pieces of product placement, Avion Tequila had a key role in the last season of HBO’s Entourage and has made a few cameo appearances during this year’s final season of the hit show. Thing is, according to CNBC they didn’t pay a penny for it. Tequila sales overall have been on the rise in recent years and Avion has joined with the likes of Patron and Cabo Wabo as a tequila you’ll want to order this way: You: “I’ll have a margarita. Hold the salt. Hold the lime. Hold the Triple Sec.”…

Reviews

Review: Sena Folio for iPad 2

One of the first high-end leather cases I had the opportunity to review for the original iPad was the Sena Folio. It was made from gorgeous leather, was beautifully crafted and actually looked better as it “wore in”. Sena offers two different Folio cases for the iPad 2 in addition to the Florence that we have reviewed recently. One of the Folio offerings, the Sena Folio Classic, maintains the same style as the original but adds the magnetic sleep/awake functionality. The additional design goes by the simple name “Folio”. It offers three different positions thanks to two built-in stands but…

Reviews

Able Planet SI350 Sport Earphones Review

Headphones… We’ve check out a bunch. Some have impressed us. Some… Not so much. So when a new pair of headphones come on the market we want to check them out. And when they come from a company we know we are even more interest. That’s the case here with the new offerings from Able Planet. Judie introduced Able Planet to Gear Diary readers in this post way back in 2008. Mike looked at pair of their gaming headphones in this post. And Judie checked out a pair of their headphones with active noise cancellation here. I met with the…

Reviews

Review: Vonage Time to Call App for iOS

I used Vonage as my main home phone service for a bit of time a number of years ago. I’ve since moved on to other solutions (Ooma), but I took note when the company released their new iOS app the other day. I know what you are thinking, “Another phone app for iOS? Who needs it?” Well think again, because I just made a call to Coach using my iPod touch and a headset, and here is what he had to say: “Sounds better than when my wife calls me on her iPhone and you are using an iPod touch….

Editorials

Nightly Quiz….

So we are having dinner tonight and Elana, my NPR and talk radio-junkie wife, gives us one of the tidbits she learned while listening to NPR today. The question- “How many different languages are in use in the world at this moment.” I made my guess and my father-in-law thought I was way too high. (“You’re nuts.” were his exact works.) Well I wasn’t that far off. So I ask you… How many languages (not dialects but LANGUAGES) are in use today world wide? Don’t be lame and cheat by Googling it. JUST GUESS…

News

Bongiovi Acoustics DPS (Digital Power Station) for iOS Rocks Your World

Want richer bass, higher clarity and an all around enhanced audio experience? Bongiovi Acoustics: Bongiovi DPS (Digital Power Station) technology has it. The technology is currently available in iHome dock stations and select Toyota models and, for the first time, Bongiovi’s technology is available as an iOS app. The technology “re-masters your compressed digital audio files at the source and then, using device specific profiles, optimizes the output for your listening device (headphone, speaker, earbud, etc).” I tried the iOS app and was rather impressed with the enhanced audio pumped out by my iPod touch and my iPad. As the company…

Reviews

Review: The Joy Factory Zip USB Touch-n-go Multi-Charging Station with ZipTail Receivers

Charging cables and cords… they’re everywhere. Literally everywhere. Have an iPhone? You need a 5W wall adapter and a USB cable. An iPad? You need a 10W wall adapter and a USB cable. Using a Samsung Galaxy Tab? You’ll need one of their proprietary chargers. Have a Blackberry or Android phone? Most likely you need a microUSB adapter connected to a wall charger. And the list goes on and on. I hate the mess of cords. That’s why I’ve been so interested in the various conductive charging systems that have been coming to market for the past few years. The…

Yum Log

Yum Log: So Tasty We Had to Share: Trader Joe’s Smoked Sea Salt

There’s more to life than gadgets and gear — hard to believe I know — but true!! For example there are things like… food and drink. And with so many great flavors and food experiences out there, we just had to start bringing you some of our favorites. That’s where the Yum Log comes in. The Yum Log is all about the food and drink experiences you just want to have. And the first Yum Log entry is… Trader Joe’s Naturally Smoked Sea Salt Elana brought this home the other day and it is just YUM. It is smokey and…

Reviews

Review: AViiQ Portable Charging Station

The promise of converged devices like the iPhone was, among other things, the ability to travel light. Instead of needing to bring a phone, an address book, a music player, a note pad, a camera, etc., smartphones promised to replace all of that and be the only thing you needed to bring with you. Funny but, at least for many of us, that hasn’t happened. Sure, my iPhone DOES replace all those aforementioned items, but along with my iPhone I now carry an iPad, a Bluetooth headset and, at times, a second phone. And in order to keep them all…

News

Bye-Bye, Spotify

When Spotify finally came to the US I was quick to jump on it. I like using streaming, subscription music services a great deal. I like the flexibility. I love being able to download and listen to pretty much whatever I choose for a small fee each month. Sure, I already have a huge music collection but there’s a ton of music I want to hear that isn’t part of it and there are enough tunes that it would cost me a small fortune to purchase all of them. I tried Rhapsody for a while and while I got hooked…

Reviews

Review: BlueAnt EMBRACE Wired On-Ear Headphones

photos by Kevin In recent years we have seen a proliferation of on-ear and over-the-ear headphones priced in the $200-$300 range. There are, of course, the Beats by Dr Dre. They are joined by the likes of the Denon AH-D 1100 headphones (reviewed here), the Bowers & Wilkins (B&W) P5 Mobile Hi-Fi Headphones (reviewed here), the V-Moda Crossfades (reviewed here) and many more. Is there room for yet another pair of headphones in the mix, let alone from a company that is known for its Bluetooth devices rather than wired-audio? That’s the question faced by BlueAnt with the release of…

Reviews

Review: Bluetrek SPEAKY Bluetooth Speakerphone: “The most friendly car kit”

I thought I had seen it all until the SPEAKY showed up at my door. SPEAKY looks like a little Kewpie Doll, albeit without hair and not quite as cute but has some interesting hidden features. Yes, SPEAKY is a full-service Bluetooth speakerphone. I took a look at one and we’re giving it away so… read on. From BLUETREK: A cute, interesting speakerphone developed for those who need a good audio quality as well as ease of control. Speaky is the first Bluetooth carkit in market which enable automatic switch on/off functions. Speaky is equipped with the best in class…

News

iPad 2 Case Review: Hammerhead iPad 2 Hard Shell Case

We’ve looked at a number of different iPad 2 cases from a host of familiar companies. Today we’ll take a video look at the Hard shell case from Hammerhead, a company new to us here on Gear Diary. The case offers complete protection to the iPad’s front and back, includes the sleep/awake functionality and serves as a stand. Let’s take a closer look and see if this $39.99 case might be right for you. From Hammerhead: Hammerhead Hard Shell Case for iPad 2 – Black Hard shell polymer case protects both the front and back and automatically wakes and sleeps…

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