Articles by Judie Lipsett Stanford

SailorBags Has Tech Bags for Those with Sailing on the Brain

If your free time is spent taking your sailboat out on the lake, or if you’re serious enough about your sailing to be part of a regatta, then you’ve no doubt heard of SailorBags. Their sailcloth bags are water-resistant, tough, and — as you’d expect — nautically colored; they also now have a Laptop bag and an iPad sleeve.



Velvetwire Powerslayer Kit Review: Beautiful and Smart Charging Solution

I’ve got a tendency to leave my phone plugged in when home, and while that isn’t necessarily bad for today’s Li-Ion batteries, it’s kind of wasteful to use a charger that is trying to continuously supply power to a battery that has already been topped off. I was recently sent a Velvetwire Powerslayer Kit, and it solves the problem beautifully.


Armorz Stealth Extreme Lite Glass Screen Protector for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus

Have you got a new iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus? If you do, then I can’t recommend immediately putting a screen protector on it highly enough. All that Gorilla Glass; sure it’s stronger than glass, but you can still scratch it or crack surprisingly easily. How can a glass screen protector like the Armorz Stealth Extreme Lite help? Well, do you keep your phone in a pocket or bag with your keys? Do you ever have sand, dirt, or grit in your pockets? Gorilla Glass is fantastic, but it isn’t scratch-proof; unfortunately I’ve seen that first-hand. Covering your display with a glass…


Goal Zero Torch 250 USB Power Hub and Flashlight Review: A Smarter Light

I seem to have been on a disaster-prep kick lately, and that’s a good thing considering that unforeseen events can happen at any time. It’s smart to plan ahead, be prepared, and keep gear that can power itself and other devices ready for when it’s needed. The latest tool in my arsenal is the Goal Zero Torch 250 Flashlight.


TP-LINK 10400mAh Power Bank External Battery Review

If you have a mobile phone, then power management is something that just goes with the territory. Even the new iPhones and Sony Xperias with their larger batteries will still have their moments of inexplicable drains; it’s better to be safe than sorry, so just plan ahead and carry an extended battery pack like the TP-LINK 10400mAh Power Bank.



Orbino Pantera for iPhone 6 Plus in Stingray; Pretty Fabulous!

I recently received my Orbino Pantera for iPhone 6 Plus order, and it is without a doubt one of the most beautiful cases I’ve ever used. Mine is the special edition stingray with black Tuscan leather sides; I opted not to go with the snake skin sides it usually comes with. It’s pretty fabulous!


Track Your Domino’s Pizza Order from Your Pebble Watch

So you’ve placed your dinner order from your mobile device’s Domino’s Pizza app, but picking your phone or tablet up to check the status every few minutes is just so hard. No worries; leave your device lying there, and look at the Pebble Watch on your wrist, instead. Because you can. A good looking watch with an even better looking display. Mmm. Introducing Domino’s Tracker® for Pebble Watch. A photo posted by Domino’s Pizza (@dominos) on Nov 11, 2014 at 11:20am PST


VisionTek USB 3.0 120GB Solid State Drive Review: Portable Convenience

My otherwise excellent 500GB MacBook Pro r serves as my desktop computer, but I wish it had a larger SSD. To compensate, I’ve perfected the art of juggling media around via a collection of external SSD devices of various shapes, sizes, and purposes; the VisionTek USB 3.0 120GB solid state drive (SSD) is the latest tool in my arsenal.


So You Think You Can Dance, but Can You Attract a Mate?

According to a group of evolutionary biologists at Northumbria University, there are the dance movements that will catch a woman’s eye; in other words, these are the movements that will attract a mate. Can you do them? If not, you’d better get busy. If you nail the moves, we’d love to see your videos. 😉 The biggest difference I see is that the “good” dancer has his head up and he is working his legs and torso; such confidence! Obviously he is an excellent hunter-gatherer who will provide for his prospective spouse and his future family. The “bad” dancer is stuck in…


Samsung Gear VR Innovator Edition Coming in December!

Have you heard about the Oculus Rift? Over the past 12 months the virtual reality company has been collaborating with Samsung, and the result is the new Samsung Gear VR Innovator Edition which creates a virtual reality experience driven by the Galaxy Note 4, and it will be ready in early December. Why should you care?


Magnetic Organizational System (MOS) Review: Fab Cables That Stay in Place

I’ve made no bones about my disdain for OEM Apple cables, but I’ll reiterate: they are cheaply made, they fray, they fail, and they are not inexpensive. That’s why I love quality aftermarket cables, and right now I am really digging the Magnetic Organizational System (MOS) I was recently sent. Their quality is outstanding, and the work perfectly.


7″ Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition Tablet: Not Ready for Prime Time

When the Amazon Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition Tablet was announced, I was intrigued by the “Everything Kids love. Everything Parents Want.” tagline, and I immediately preordered. These 6″ and 7″ HD Fire tablets come with a 2-Year Guarantee, a kid-proof protective case, and the setup seemed perfect for a child’s first tablet.  After fiddling with one, I’m not convinced.


You’ll Never Run Out of Memory Again If You Have the Leef iBRIDGE

I thought upgrading to a 128GB iPhone 6 Plus from a 64GB iPhone 5S would solve my constant struggle to balance music, photos, and apps with my device’s available memory, yet I’ve managed to hit a wall. I’ve actually seen the dreaded out of memory warning already; once I get the Leef iBRIDGE, it will no longer be a problem.


Dell Venue 8 7000 – A Most Intriguing Android Tablet

At 6mm, the new Dell Venue 8 7000 is being billed as the world’s thinnest Android tablet, but it’s size isn’t the only attractive feature; it also has an incredible 2560 x 1600 OLED display and “the first RealSense depth camera integrated into such a small form factor.” Have you even heard about it? Well, let me tell you…


No More SIM Swapping with KnowRoaming!

If you travel internationally, then you know that one of the best tricks is to buy a local SIM and swap it out with your home SIM in your unlocked smartphone; then you can enjoy data and local calls at a reasonable rate. Buying a local SIM and making the swap can be a hassle; that’s where KnowRoaming comes in. I met with Gregory Gundelfinger, the CEO of KnowRoaming, at Mobile World Congress this year; that’s where I first learned about this service and how it works. KnowRoaming is coming off of a successful 12 month pre-launch and beta period, and now you can get your money-saving kit for…


Get Your Samsung Galaxy Note Edge on November 14th!

One of the coolest new devices I saw while at IFA was undoubtedly the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge. It had a beveled edge on the right side of the main screen which displayed received messages, email, calendar, and other notifications. The Note Edge takes the best qualities of the new Galaxy Note 4, but adds an extra wow feature! The beveled screen will display scrollable messages, “extending the screen with room to do and see more. The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge screen gives access to email, Internet, apps, notifications, news and more without interrupting the content on the main screen.” Users will be able to…


The Samsung Gear S Will Be Available Soon; Do You Want One?

Word has just come out that the Samsung Gear S smartwatch, which we have previously covered is soon to be available from all major US carriers beginning next Friday, November 7th. We know that at Sprint, “well-qualified buyers can purchase Gear S with $0 down (plus tax) and 24 monthly payments of $16 (SRP: $384; excluding taxes; service plan required).”


The Hashtag Cube: A Long Overdue Kickstarter Project That Finally Delivered

In late 2012, along with 3400+ other people I backed a Kickstarter project called Instacube (which has since been renamed Hashtag Cube, or #Cube). The premise was simple: it was to be a stand-alone Android-based device that would wirelessly stream and display Instagram photos, when you could only view Instagram photos on iOS or Android devices.  I backed at the early adopter $99 level, and the wait began.