Reviews

Sherpa for Android OS Review

One of the most touted apps on the new T-Mobile myTouch 3G is Sherpa.  Sherpa gives you a unique way to discover things near your current location.  Geodelic, the company behind Sherpa has put a lot of work into its interface, and it’s a very beautiful app for Android based phones.  It is also now available on the Android Marketplace, so I installed it on my G1 and gave it a spin.


Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 10: Sudoku!

I think it is no secret around here that I am a pretty big fan of Sudoku.  I have explored many Sudoku options for various mobile platforms, and even a number of alternate variations on the theme.  For those of you who are new here, Sudoku is a classic Japanese puzzle game, in which you are faced with a grid of 81 squares arranged in nine rows of nine blocks each.  Scattered across the grid are numbers from 1-9.  Your job is to fill in the remainder of the grid by placing each number, 1-9, into each row, column, and…


Quick App – Short Hand

If you send a lot of emails from your iPhone or iPod touch this app is for you. Short Hand is a small utility that let’s you create and use macros in the same way that you with an application such as TextExpander on a Mac. While it takes a bit of time to set it up the time is well worth it considering the time and effort it can save. Let’s take a quick look…


Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 9: Tweed

Do you Twitter?  Are you a Twit with your Tweets?  I’ll be honest here and tell you that I really don’t Twitter.  Sure, I have an account, and have tried to understand it, but it just never did much for me.  That being said, I do understand that millions of people out there send what must be billions and billions (sorry, Carl Sagan) of Tweets on Twitter every day (does this make anyone else think of a little yellow canary from Looney Tunes?)


Protect Your Gear With BodyGuardz: iPhone 3GS Review

Unlike our Gear Diary friend Larry Greenberg, I only have one case for my iPhone 3GS, and am not sure how much I like carrying it with a case.  The case for me has been primarily for protection.  Yes, I found a case that I think looks cool, but I do not care for the added size of my phone.  There are many cheap clear films to protect your gadget, but few work very well.  I carry my iPhone in my front pocket and love to use it in the size and shape in which it was produced.  I recently…


Palm Pre App Catalog: 30 Apps in 30 Days. Part 8: Flixster

Yesterday, we started our two part look at movie listing apps on the Palm Pre with Fandango.  Today, we will wrap that up with a look at Flixster.  To be honest, Flixster and Fandango are pretty similar apps, with one giant difference.  With Fandango, you can actually purchase tickets straight from your phone.  Flixster does not have that option, it only allows you to view information about the movies and listings.


CASECROWN Classic Slim Case Review

CASECROWN is a southern California based company founded by self described gadget lovers. They make some of the most affordable cases around, and they were kind enough to send me one of their Classic Slim Cases for laptops to review. Here’s a quick overview of the case from the CASECROWN web site: – Perfect Fit For Your Notebooks – Premium Quality Shock-Absorbing Double Memory Foam Interior – Water & Wear Resistant; Zipper Scratch-Free Exterior Material – Light & Thin Compact Design – Internal Supporting Bands To Secure Your Gadgets How does this laptop case match up?  Read on to find…


CASECROWN iPhone Polycarbonate Slim Case Review

CASECROWN is a southern California based company founded by self described gadget lovers. They were kind enough to send me one of their polycarbonate cases for the iPhone 3G/3gS to review. An extremely simplistic case, the polycarbonate slim case is one of the most affordable snap on back covers I’ve seen.


Bluebird Pidion BM-150R from SDG Systems Review

It has been a while since I have heard from SDG Systems.  Brian Fuller from SDG Systems contacted me about the Bluebird line and offered to send me one to give the once over.  I chose the BM-150R which is the closest to what Gear Diary readers may want to carry. Let me say this up front: the Bluebird line from SDG is all targeted at enterprise users.  They are not your typical consumer device.


Belkin Headphone Adapter for iPod Shuffle

When Apple first released its current generation iPod shuffle, I complained about the impact of its design on the ability to use third-party earbuds. Sure, the shuffle has a sleek design and the voiceover feature is really neat, but the fact that it lacks physical controls ties the user to the stock earbuds.  After using high quality buds such as those from Etymotic it was a bitter pill… too bitter in fact and I initially returned my shuffle to Apple. Well it’s a few months later and Belkin has released an adapter that lets you use any headphones with the…


Twitterena+ Pro for iPhone OS Review

If there’s one thing the iTunes App Store is not short on it’s Twitter applications. Anyone who knows me knows I’m a huge Twitter user.  I’ve tried at least ten different Twitter apps on my iPhone and usually end up returning to three or so of the apps I call the “big guys.” Software developer Andrew Weeks has just recently released his newest Twitter client for the iPhone Twiterena+ Pro. Is there a new contender for top iPhone Twitter app? Read on to find out.


Local Concerts for iPhone Review

As summer has come to a close and football has begun, I find myself without a day off until December.  For those of you who might have some time off and a spare evening, live music might be your choice of spending an evening.  Local Concerts provides a one stop resource to find who will be playing in your area.  The app is developed by a huge social music engine called iLike.It does not matter your taste or style, you can definitely find something worth going to see! Live Concerts uses your GPS to determine location, then downloads many weeks…


Could your hard drive survive this? If it’s an ioSafe, yep.

As a firefighter I guess I was the obvious choice to review the ioSafe hard drive which sells itself as the first and only external hard drive that is both water and fire proof. The company includes a one time, no questions asked recovery process.  If you are unable to recover the data off the drive after a disaster you send it back to them.  If their experts are not able to recover the data they send it out to a third party recover service.  Finally, if that service is unable to recover your data ioSafe will spend up to $1000…


Sygic Mobile Maps 2009 North America Review

A few weeks ago, I took a first look at this title from Sygic.  They have since released a small update and fixed a few bugs, so lets take a closer look at Sygic Mobil Maps 2009 – one of the crop of full navigation apps now appearing on the iPhone…


Fun Booth for iPhone Review

I recently reviewed a fun new application for the Mac OS called Fun Booth 2. The application allows you to snap pictures of yourself and then add fun props to the picture.  You can also use the props while video chatting or e-mail/upload finished images to your friends and family. Spoonjuice, the developer of Fun Booth 2 for the Mac, recently submitted a version of the application to the iTunes App Store for approval and allowed me to test it out before it gets released.


My Squares! Here & Now! for iPhone Review

Puzzle games are perfect for handhelds – I have already gushed enough about Peggle on the iPhone! My Squares! Here & Now! is – as the iTunes App Store listing says – a strategy board game with puzzles. The premise is simple – you want to change as many squares on the board to your color while preventing other players from doing the same.


Astraware Casino for iPhone/iPod Touch Review

The folks at Astraware have done it again and released another premier game for the iPhone OS. Astraware Casino features 11 casino style games all under one title. Included are:  Texas Hold ‘Em  No Limit Poker, Roulette, Baccarat, Video Derby, Texas Hold ‘Em Limit Poker, Blackjack, Video Keno, Craps, 3 Card Poker, Slots and Video Poker. Read on for my full review of this fun filled game from what I consider to be one of the best iPhone OS application developers.


Bluetooth Wrist Band

Everything goes better with Bluetooth… or so you would think with the proliferation of Bluetooth enabled devices. One of the more innovative uses of the technology isn’t a headset but it does extend your cell phone.  . Here’s the scenario- you don’t have your phone in your pocket and can’t be seen holding it in your important meeting. Unfortunately you also are expecting an important phone call. What are you to do? Well, with the Bluetooth Bracelet from LM Technologies you can slip on the bracelet and, so long as you are no more than 30 feet from your phone, you will…


Match 3D Flick Puzzle iPhone Review

The iPhone has grown to become a great gaming platform.  While many of the new games are ports from console games, puzzle games have always been great for the phone.  One reason I have found puzzle games to be great is the casual nature of the games.  Sitting in a waiting room, riding a bus, bored with five minutes to kill… Many reasons casual games are well suited for iPhone users.  Match 3D Flick Puzzle takes this very full genre and adds a refreshing twist.


Fun Booth 2 for Mac Review

Fun Booth 2, from Spoonjuice software is an application for the Mac which lets you snap pictures or take video of yourself wearing all sorts of silly props. You can then e-mail the photos to friends or family, upload them to iPhoto, Twitter, Flickr, or burn them if they really embarrass you.  🙂 The application uses advanced face detection software to move the props into the right position no matter where you position yourself on the screen. If you’re really crazy you can even chat with your friends in iChat while wearing the props too.


SplashID – A Second Look

A while back I took a look at two electronic wallet programs that are available for the iPhone. Both  are applications I used on Windows mobile. Both come from reputable, long time, mobile application manufacturers. Both offer the flexibility to organize and protect a wide-range of information. Both protect your data with a high level of encryption.  Both cost the same. And both have been revised a number of times since their initial release. The two applications are SplashData’s SplashID and ilium Software’s eWallet. As I wrote in my initial post — With so much in common “Sounds like a toss-up…