Travis Ehrlich | Gear Diary

WordStorm for iPhone/Touch/iPad Review

The other night, my wife said she needed a new game to play on her iPhone. Being the Blue Plate Special guy, I started spouting off a list of free or cheap games we already owned. Of course, she said thanks and walked off to find her own application. I finally noticed that she had been silent for a long while and was affixed on her phone. She explained that she found a new game that was addicting and challenging and that I could use it in my Blue Plate thingy. I am a sucker for puzzle style games, especially…

Reviews

Review: Everki Agile Slim Laptop Bag

I recently found my first laptop bag. The bag is from an era when laptops were big, bulky and weighed a ton. Simply being able to carry them made them mobile. The bag was huge, heavy and had no features. Today, mobile computing keeps getting smaller. Full screen laptops are much thinner and netbooks and MacBook Airs seem to be the best way to be on the move. As our devices shrink, so should the bags we carry them in. Thinner and lighter have become a must for my gear. Some of my favorite gear bags come from Everki. They…

Reviews

Guitar World Lick of the Day for iPhone/Touch/iPad Review

Recently, I have reviewed many apps for guitarists. From tuners, chord libraries, effects, to tableture. IOS devices have proven to be an exciting platform for musicians. Virtually any guitar related activity has been available on my devices except a way to improve my playing. How about I use my iPad and or iPhone to tune up, find my chords, plug in my guitar to get the right sound and then receive lessons?!?! Agile Partners, developers of several of my favorite musician apps, has just released Lick Of The Day in partnership with Guitar World Magazine. Through in app purchases,…

Reviews

Review: Guitar Sidekick For Mobile Devices

If you follow reviews here on Gear Diary, then you have noticed an exciting new trend for guitarists. A ton of apps have been developed to use while playing the guitar. Tuners, metronomes, tablature, chord diagrams, effects. You name it, it can be found on various mobile devices. As an iPhone user, I have reviewed and been an active user of many of the IOS guitar applications. Here is the one problem I have found with this new genre of apps: Where do I hold my iPhone?!?! I have tried balancing on my knee and setting it on a table…

Reviews

Review: Charge All Of Your Devices At Once With Arctic C2 USB Charger

I do not know about you, but I have collected quite the array of USB devices. From iPhones and iPads to battery chargers, it seems that my life is constantly filled with charging via a USB cable. For a while I did have a wall adapter with a USB port that I could use to charge some devices, but only one at a time, which was not working. One day, my wife said, “look at all this junk we have sitting here waiting to charge, and you only have one plug?” After explaining that none of it was junk, I…

Reviews

Mobile Phone Gear Review: iPazzPort Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard

One reason people tell me they do not choose to use an iPhone is that they would rather have a phone with a hardware keyboard. Apple, among other companies, have produced Bluetooth keyboards that can be used with iPhones and iPads, but they are almost all full-sized offerings. EFO Gadget Shop recently sent me the iPazzPort Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard to review with my IOS devices. Lets take a look. The iPazzPort is a Mini Bluetooth wireless keyboard for iPad, iPhone and a host of smartphones including Windows Mobile and Nokia operating systems. Unfortunately Android is not compatible with this device. …

News & Features

iPad Bluetooth Keyboard With Folding Leather Protective Case Released

I love my iPad, but have yet to use it for heavy work, including writing my Gear Diary posts. Typing on the MacBook is just so much faster because of its full-size keyboard. Later today I will post a review for a credit card size Bluetooth keyboard that works with the iPhone and iPad. Although that keyboard works really well, I have a hard time using a phone sized qwerty keyboard. The same company, EFO has recently released an iPad case that contains a full size Bluetooth keyboard. Now, you can easily carry your iPad, flip it open and type…

Game Diary, Reviews

Fruit Ninja for iPhone/Touch Review

I have developed a few preferences while gaming on my iPhone. First, the games have to obviously be fun, but also something I can play in short spurts. My life has become much too busy to sit around and work through levels and play for long periods of time. About all the time available now is a minute here or two minutes there. The IOS as a gaming platform is perfect for these types of games. Another preference is that the games utilize Game Center. A group of my football players have began competing pretty heavily with our Game Center…

News & Features

Release: i-tab Portable Guitar Tab Player Updated

Technology has been wonderful for musicians, especially guitarists. I know purists think using guitar tableture is cheating, but those of us who are without formal training, tabs are how we learn new songs. Many years ago when we were poor college students, my wife found a huge folder of tabs I had printed and put them by category in a big binder for me so I could easily find any songs I wanted to play. Many devices, including the iPhone and iPad, allow players to read tabs, but sometimes it is difficult to read them or scroll through the song. …

Reviews

Review: Arctic K381 Slim Keyboard For Windows

Our school finally recently replaced the teacher workstation computers with updated machines running Windows 7. One thing they did not replace was the old keyboards. I am not sure how old the keyboard I had was, but it was enormous. I remember a few years ago when keyboard seemed to have the bigger is better phase and this was a remnant from that era. The keyboard was so high that I had to use a wrist pad to raise my hands up to even use it. I was not a fan of the large spring-loaded keys either. (I know some…

Game Diary, Reviews

Catapult Madness for iPhone/Touch Review

A strange thing often happens with IOS games. Sometimes a simple, seemingly boring game can become completely addicting bringing joy, frustration and waste lots of time. I recently found Catapult Madness at the top of the games list and it was on sale for free so I thought I would give it a try. I was mildly amused at first, but kept wanting to extend the distance I threw the peasants so I kept playing. That mild amusement turned into straight addiction as I kept upgrading and getting further and further. The addition of GameCenter compatibility has created more of…

Reviews

Review: Duracell myGrid Charging Pad

Our world seems to become continually more mobile. With all of these mobile gadgets comes a need to charge and charge often. Unfortunately, devices have not adopted a standard for charger connectors so that leaves many of us with a ton of plugs throughout the house. We have a vase on the kitchen counter near a set of wall plugs that holds all of the various charging cords while keeping them hidden. Basically, I throw the rats next of wires in the vase so my wife does not kill me due to the mess. Duracell has released an interesting product…

Reviews

Review: Philips CushionSpeaker Laptop Stand

So I am sitting in my recliner with my 13″ MacBook Pro in my lap. The laptop is a bit warm and the show I am watching sounds terrible through the stock speakers. My only choice to fix these problems is to dig out a laptop cooler then find some external speakers. How about having all of this in one cool product? Luckily, Philips brings the CushionSpeaker to combine comfort and sound into one device. Let’s take a look. The Philips CushionSpeaker combines a laptop stand with a USB speaker device to bring a stylish all in one product. The…

Reviews

Halloween Edition, GhostCamPro for iPhone Review

We are all feeling the financial pinch! Blue Plate Special is a weekly review of bargain apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Nothing over $.99. With Halloween quickly approaching, I decided it would be appropriate to find a spooky app for this week’s Blue Plate. There are many applications with a Halloween theme, but some of my favorites utilize the camera. We have had loads of fun with Haunted Face which Dan showed here last week so I was looking to add to my camera arsenal. GhostCamPro will make any picture into a creepy experience by adding a ghostly…

Reviews

Trainyard for iPhone/Touch Review

We are all feeling the financial pinch! Blue Plate Special is a weekly review of bargain apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Nothing over $.99. Yes, I am a sucker for puzzle games on my IOS devices and love to find new games that fit the Blue Plate Special price. Trainyard is currently on sale for $.99 so jump on this one quickly. It is always interesting to see the many ways developers can create a puzzler. I have a soft spot in my heart as a train lover for this one. My dad loves to watch trains and…

Reviews

Flick Fishing for iPhone/Touch Review

I recently took my oldest son fishing with a buddy and his daughter. This was not his first time fishing, but it was definitely our most fruitful adventure. The kids were catching perch and bass as fast as we could get the bait wet and they were having a blast. Luckily, we hooked onto a couple of larger bass and Peyton had to learn to fight and real a fish that could really fight. Being the geek that I have made him, he asked if there was a fishing game on the iPhone on our way home. We decided to…

News & Features

App Update Alert: TabToolkit For iPhone/Touch/iPad

One of my favorite and most used guitar apps is TabToolkit from Agile Partners. I love the ability to search, download and read guitar tabs on my iPhone and iPad. The application actually knows when a tab is available on the page and will download and store it with a simple tap. As great as this app is, a huge update just went live in the app store. This is a considerable update to an already amazing app. Click here to read a full review of TabToolkit. Some of the new features: Guitar Pro 6 file format: Many TabToolkit customers…

Reviews

Review: Philips Notebook SoundBar

Like many of you, I rely heavily on my laptop. Even with an iPad, I use my MacBook Pro all day and every evening. As much as I love this computer, one thing that totally annoys me is the speakers. It is not that I expect theater sound and booming bass, but half of the time I just cannot hear. When I am watching Hulu or Netflix I want to know what is being said and not strain to be able to pay attention. I have tried many laptop speaker solutions, but the Philips Notebook SoundBar is a clever and…

Reviews

Ace Flashcards for iPhone/Touch Review

As an educator and parent of a kindergarten student, flashcards are always a part of my life. Many of my students make them for each test for a variety of subjects. Coincidentally, the students who put the time in to make the cards seem to always make above average grades. My son is learning to read and has a couple of sight words added each week. We have two sets of flashcards at home and constantly quiz him on his words. In Texas, students must pass a standardized test called the TAKS test which includes social studies in the 10th…

News & Features

Guitar + iPhone = CASTIV’s Guitar Sidekick

The iPhone and iPad have spawned hundreds of apps for guitar players. It has been truly exciting seeing the genre build and develop over the past year. I have actually reviewed several of these apps and use them regularly while I jam at my house. PocketAmp AmpKit Amplitube Tab ToolKit Guitar ToolKit The only problem I have found with these apps is where to place my iPhone. I usually balance it on my leg or leave it on the couch. Either way, I end up in an awkward posture which is a terrible habit to form as a guitar player. …

Reviews

Rocketeer for iPhone/Touch Review

The last two weeks, I reviewed apps that were kind of off beat and different from the usual Blue Plate Special choices. As I searched and scraped apps this week, I ended up returning to a familiar genre. I have the biggest game of our season to date so things are a little stressed. Getting a minute to escape is important to keep my insanity, so I was continually drawn to finding more games. I stumbled across an interesting game that is currently on sale for free! I recommend picking it up quickly if you plan on trying it out. …

Articles by Travis Ehrlich