Reviews

The Beyzacases Downtown Series Folio Case for iPad 2

Reviews December 20, 2011

The Beyzacases Downtown Series Folio Case for iPad 2

I’ve always thought there was a certain “something” about a leather folio that made its carrier appear to be smartly pulled together. Maybe it’s that a folio limits its owner to only the absolutely essential “stuff” — all organized and safely zippered up.   Whether it’s true or not, folios create an appearance of maximum efficiency with minimal clutter; I like that.  And now that our documents, presentations, pictures, music, movies, receipts — and just about every other thing possibly imagined — can be carried digitally, my image of the pulled together professional has become even more narrow. Ask me which person…

Give Your Amazon Kindle Touch a BodyGuard

Reviews December 20, 2011

Give Your Amazon Kindle Touch a BodyGuard

A few weeks ago we took a look at the BodyGuardz Armor Carbon Fiber for iPad 2 and iPhone 4S. While it doesn’t guard from drops or bumps, the Armor does protect the entire back of my iPad from scratches. I like that and now use my iPad sans case more often than ever. On Cyber Monday the company offered some steep discounts on other products so I ordered a few, including a pre-order for protecting the Amazon Kindle touch. It came in the other day and I just put it on my Kindle. Here’s quick look. From Boduguardz: BodyGuardz…

HTC EVO Design 4G for Sprint Review

Reviews December 19, 2011

HTC EVO Design 4G for Sprint Review

As smartphones continue their march into the mainstream the challenge of choosing the right phone for you grows ever-more challenging. This challenge is compounded by the fact that so many of HTC’s phones seems to be a slight variation on the same theme over and over and over again. (The same holds true for Samsung’s phones which all offer slight changes in screen size, features etc while remaining largely the same.) As Judie wrote in her review of the HTC Rhyme a few weeks ago, I like items that have their own personality and that aren’t similar to every one else’s, but…

Native Union MM 03i Bluetooth iPhone Accessory Review

Reviews December 18, 2011

Native Union MM 03i Bluetooth iPhone Accessory Review

Point 1: As much as I love my iPhone using it as a phone isn’t all that comfortable. As a result, even when I’m not on the go, I will often use a headset, wired or Bluetooth, when using my iPhone for a call. In other words, if I use my iPhone a headset is a must. Point 2: iOS 5 .0 isn’t giving me the battery life that I am used to and need. That may change with the next iOS update but for the time being it is an issue with which I need to deal. That means…

Shredder Guitar Synthesizer for iPad Review

Reviews December 18, 2011

Shredder Guitar Synthesizer for iPad Review

I remember seeing my first guitar synthesizer vividly – it was the late 70’s in Junior High and the instrument was a fragile and finicky Arp Avatar that allowed a special pickup on a standard guitar to play through the synth. Later I had the chance to actually play with an early Roland GR-300 that Pat Metheny famously used on his Offramp album. Of course, now that the iPad houses full-on studios more powerful than those recording most pop music in the 80’s, it makes sense we now have a guitar synth app! Let’s take a quick look! The Hype:…

iOS Apps for Hanukkah

Reviews December 17, 2011

iOS Apps for Hanukkah

Hanukkah, the Jewish Festical of Lights, begins next week. In preparation for this I put together a roundup of Hanukkah apps for our local New Jersey Jewish News. A version of what follows was published today… History of Hanukkah If you are looking for an iPhone app that explains what Hanukkah is and why we celebrate, this is for you. The text itself is drawn from Wikipedia but the app does a nice job of gathering the information, organizing it and adding some nice images as well. I especially appreciate the fact that it is clear about the origins of…

Gear Games Retrospective: Gothic 3 (RPG, 2006)

Game Diary, Reviews December 17, 2011

Gear Games Retrospective: Gothic 3 (RPG, 2006)

I am an admitted fanboy of the Gothic franchise, with Gothic 2 listing near the very top of my ‘all time favorites’ list of games. It had been a while since I replayed Gothic 3 to any extent, so when Good Old Games added it to their lineup a couple of weeks ago, I couldn’t help but buy it … for the fourth time! I have the DVD version sitting somewhere, and have bought it on both Steam and Direct2Drive to get the full Gothic Collection digitally (at the time each only had a subset). Gothic 3 is a game…

Music Diary Review: Ochion Jewell - First Suite For Quartet

Music Diary, Reviews December 17, 2011

Music Diary Review: Ochion Jewell – First Suite For Quartet

Ochion Jewell – First Suite for Quartet As I have stated again and again, one thing I love about doing music reviews for Gear Diary is that it allows me to listen to and share great music by artists you might not hear about otherwise – but who really deserve the attention. Early this spring I specifically highlighted several of these recordings, including a release by bassist Sam Trapchak. So then Sam Trapchak tells a friend of his who has released a new CD to get in touch with me. As is always the case, I check out his website…

The Orb Audio Mini-T Amplifier (and Much More!) Review

Reviews December 16, 2011

The Orb Audio Mini-T Amplifier (and Much More!) Review

In terms of audio systems for small spaces, home users are not too demanding: they simply want something that sounds fantastic, looks great, is incredibly small, and is affordable. That might sound like a simple enough goal, but the subset of companies able to meet all of those requirements is incredibly small. Orb Audio recently launched the Mini-T Amplifier as well as compact systems that provide complete solutions for desktop or home speaker systems. Do they make the grade? Read on and find out! The Hype: The Mini-T is based on legendary T-Class amplifier technology, known for its audiophile sound…

SCOTTEVEST Camp Shirt Review

Reviews December 15, 2011

SCOTTEVEST Camp Shirt Review

When I was getting ready for last week’s vacation, I knew I needed a few more shirts to lounge around in. T-shirts are great, but when you are going out to dinner or stopping by a local hotspot for fried fish, french fries, fried plantains and beer (seriously the place was AWESOME), you want something a little nicer. I have had my eye on the new SCOTTEVEST Camp Shirt for some time, so before our recent trip to Aruba I went ahead and ordered myself two of them. I have a new favorite warm-weather shirt! The SeV Hype: You’ll be cool,…

Youda Survivor iPad Game Review

Game Diary, Reviews December 15, 2011

Youda Survivor iPad Game Review

The trend of bringing more and more PC and Mac adventure and casual strategy games to the iPad is a great one in my opinion – they work well with the touchscreen interface, present more than a trivial experience, and are still playable in small time increments. Games like Civilization Revolution, Jack of All Tribes and Tiny Token Empires are examples of this … and now we have Youda Survivor! Let’s take a look! The Hype: For all real fans of time management games – the most frenzied adventure yet! Can you survive on a mysterious island as well as…

Pelican i1075 HardBack Case for iPad and iPad 2 Review

Reviews December 14, 2011

Pelican i1075 HardBack Case for iPad and iPad 2 Review

Some reports suggest that the vast majority of iPads and other assorted tablets spend the majority of time at home. That may be the case for some, even many, iPads but it is certainly not true for mine. No, my iPad goes pretty much everywhere these days, and that means I need a good way to carry it. And when I am going on a trip I need a good way to protect the iPad AND carry some assorted accessories such as the charger, headphones and, at times, a wireless keyboard. That is why I was so curious about Pelican’s…

iMenorah iOS App Review

Reviews December 13, 2011

iMenorah iOS App Review

When the iTunes App Store first opened I owned and ran one of, if not the, first iPhone app review sites. It was a fun gig although, I must admit, being here on Gear Diary with Judie and the rest of the crew far surpasses that experience. In December of 2008 I reviewed a number of apps that would be good for Hanukkah. This year I did a similar roundup for a local newspaper. (I’ll be sharing it as soon as the article is published later this week.) One of the apps I reviewed in 2008 was iMenorah, which is a…

The Gear Diary Kindle Fire Tablet Review

eBooks, Reviews December 8, 2011

The Gear Diary Kindle Fire Tablet Review

November 15th saw the release of what will quickly become the #2 selling tablet of all time: the Amazon Kindle Fire. Since then we have seen plenty of ‘race to be first’ reviews, but my goal was to spend some time integrating the Fire into my life before completing my review. This week we also saw the usability study that looked at the issues around the 7″ screen specifically with the Fire but related to mid-sized tablets in general. Dan and I each got one that arrived on the 15th: Dan’s has already gone back to Amazon, while I have…

Kammock Roo, a Kickstarter Project Quick Look

Reviews December 7, 2011

Kammock Roo, a Kickstarter Project Quick Look

Gear Diary is a big fan of Kickstarter, and we have supported a number of different projects in the last year or so. One of them was the Kammock Roo, a new take on the hammock. The project was fully funded and our “rewards” came a few weeks ago. Judie is waiting to give the two she bought as gifts, but I brought mine with me on vacation. Here’s a quick video overview and some pictures. Here’s Judie and her ever-present Diet Coke… a video look follows after the break. The Kammock Roo is great for both sitting and laying…

Fooducate for iOS Review

Reviews December 7, 2011

Fooducate for iOS Review

I love almonds. If we are what we eat, I’m a Hershey’s Kiss and a handful of shredded coconut away from becoming an Almond Joy bar. When we’re grocery shopping, Sarah is always trying to find which nuts are on sale and keep us well-stocked. We do try to compare the labels and make sure we’re not getting nuts with tons of additives, but it isn’t always easy to make the right call when they all sound the same. That’s where Fooducate is an incredibly useful shopping tool! Fooducate scans barcodes and gives you a breakdown of the ingredients and…

The Amplicom Induction Neckloop (NL100) Review

Reviews December 6, 2011

The Amplicom Induction Neckloop (NL100) Review

photos by Kevin My mother has sensorineural hearing loss, and she has worn hearing aids in each ear ever since she was 36. My husband has hearing loss from working with loud machinery, and although he doesn’t wear hearing aids, he misses some tones and quiet speech is sometimes garbled. My friend Angie’s daughter caught a virus several years ago that wasn’t treated quickly enough; the result was that she went profoundly deaf in both ears and has since been fitted with two Cochlear Implants. My point is that hearing loss and forms of deafness are much more common than…

Oberon Design Celtic Hounds Kindle Fire Cover Review

Reviews December 6, 2011

Oberon Design Celtic Hounds Kindle Fire Cover Review

How much do I love my Oberon Design cover for my Nook Touch? Enough that I was looking forward to a new cover for my Kindle Fire almost as much as I was looking forward to the device itself! From the moment it arrived, I had it the Fire in my large Oberon sleeve waiting for the release of the new cover. It is here now … so does it live up to my expectations? Read on and find out!