Samsung is intent on claiming your pockets and your wrist. The original Galaxy Gear watch, designed as a smart watch companion to the Galaxy phones, received a mixed response. Now only a few months later, Samsung is announcing two new watches, the Galaxy Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo!
If you’ve heard of or use Kobo Books regularly, there’s a good shot you are not alone. Kobo has come a long way in a few short years, from starting as Shortcovers in 2009 to being purchased by Rakuten in 2012. Now they have some truly brag-worthy news-according to The Digital Reader, revenues are up 44%!
There’s no doubt that Nokia makes amazing phones. You may not like the operating system, but Nokia does a great job of bringing everything together into a very polished package. Their newest accessory is another “little thing” that makes Lumias better; the “Treasure Tag”, an NFC and Bluetooth-enabled accessory to insure you never lose your keys again.
We have had an unusually high amount of snow in my area this winter. It means I’ve spent what felt like hours cleaning off our cars, but hopefully cleaning off our vehicles will be a bit easier with our newest purchase — a Sno Brum!
Civil rights and courage go hand in hand. It takes courage to stand up and say “I am a gay man and I play football” like Michael Sam did just last week. He’s taking a risk with his career, challenging the internalized homophobia of professional sports, and he’s getting help from an unlikely source: Dallas sports anchor Dale Hansen.
I’ve overall been quite pleased with my Lumia 928 Windows Phone. In fact, almost all of my complaints are hardware and not software related (the screen is far too fragile, and the phone has some earpiece issues). What I like about the software is that it’s constantly improving, and the new Nokia Black/Microsoft GDR3 update brings some excellent new features!
One of the hardest things about quitting my job in a bookstore was giving up on easy access to and an employee discount on books … lots and lots of books. I love to read, and I’ve deeply embraced eBooks. So I was very excited to try Oyster Books, the so-called “Netflix of eBooks”, with a similar all-you-can-read flat rate concept.
Earlier this week, we reviewed the 2014 Kia Soul; if you looked at that car and thought “it needs to be electric”, then you’re in luck! Kia has announced an all-electric Soul, with a range of 80-100 miles between charges. This is in line with other electric vehicles, but the Soul makes being an EV look good.
A coworker came to me recently for advice about buying a tablet for his family, one that he and his wife could use and share with his toddler. Specifically, he wanted a way to create timed parental controls, and he wanted to make sure he was right in believing the Kindle Fire was a better fit than the iPad.
(Image courtesy NJ.com) Are you sick of winter yet? Have you been stuck inside for days? Does the sight of your snow shovel make you do a full body shudder? Cheer up with this hilarious video highlighting the dangers and pratfalls of all things wintry, snowy and icy! Hat tip to Severe NJ Weather for sharing this video instead of more bad snow news.
Two years ago I reviewed the Kia Rio, and I was pleasantly surprised. Later that year I reviewed the Kia Optima Hybrid, and I was impressed. This past week I’ve had the chance to review the 2014 Kia Soul, and I think I am in love. It was hard to say goodbye to our review car!
Ah Valentines Day. That heartwarming day filled with love, chocolate, over-priced cards and, of course, terrible gifts that far too often backfire on the giver. Sure, you can get the love of your life a Lexus tied in a red bow, but what will you do the following year? Here are a few gifts we really don’t recommend you giving.
We received a marketing email from Case-Mate this morning that’s left me scratching my head. No, it’s not that they’re still pushing overpriced bedazzled cases, nor is it that they think the ultimate Valentine’s Day gift is an iPhone case; it’s that they imply case choices are very clearly gendered: men need rugged cases, but women want sparkly ones.
Gear Diary’s own Dan Cohen headed to the North American International Auto Show earlier this month to check out Ford’s 2014 lineup. He shared some of his thoughts on the week as a guest on the Green Divas Radio Show. Be sure to head to the podcast and listen up! You can find the podcast here.
Jurassic Park is one of my favorite movies. I remember seeing it as a kid, and I was gleefully scared out of my mind in the first moments when the unseen raptor attacked the worker transferring her to a new cage. Really into Jurassic Park? Head to eBay, and you can own the very cage and raptor from the movie!
Identity theft is a very real concern these days. We try to use common sense, like regularly monitoring our bank accounts and shredding personal documents, but I keep breaking our shredders. “You get what you pay for” is definitely a good motto when it comes to motorized paper chomping machines, so we sprang for a decently equipped Amazon Basics Shredder.
iSwimband is a simple device with a lofty purpose. It’s a simple band that connects via Bluetooth to a companion app, and its sole purpose is to monitor how long someone is underwater, or if a non-swimmer is in the water. While you might think your own two eyes are enough, you’re wrong, and that’s why iSwimband matters.
I love roller coasters, but have never been as enthused about waterslides. There’s something comforting (false or not) about being securely strapped in, as opposed to a thin bathing suit being my only protection against plummeting straight down. Needless to say, I won’tt be riding the Verrückt at Schlitterbahn Kansas City … will you? Watch the video and share below!
Samsung is an absolute powerhouse in the technology world. But aside from a rather disastrous Windows Mobile phone a few years ago, I’ve never experienced firsthand what makes Samsung stand out from the crowd. After spending a few weeks working with the Samsung Series 7 Ultrabook though, I’m starting to see why they succeed — this Ultrabook is sleek, stylish and powerful!
I really like my Nokia Lumia 928, but it has a hardware bug that’s giving me more than a bit of a wandering eye. There’s an issue with the earpiece affecting at least some users where the sound cuts out during calls. Speakerphone, Bluetooth, and the headphones all work fine — just the earpiece fails. Worst of all, it comes and goes!
When my son was born, he was pretty portable. When we went out, he slept in his infant car seat. At home, he could hang out in his rock ‘n play. Unfortunately, he quickly outgrew many of these, and when traveling for the holidays we needed someplace safe and portable. Luckily, I stumbled across the Kidco GoPod!