News & Features

New HTC One Becomes HTC’s Flagship Android Device

This morning, HTC introduced its latest flagship device, the New HTC One. This is not to be confused with the HTC One that was introduced at Mobile World Congress last year, as this is the New New HTC One. All kidding aside, the New HTC One looks to be an impressive bit of kit. It will have a 4.7” 1080p screen, a zero-gap aluminum unibody, and new HTC innovations including BlinkFeed, HTC Zoe and HTC BoomSound. The New HTC One will have a 1.7GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 600, quad-core processor, 2GB RAM and either 32GB or 64GB ROM; it will run Android Jelly Bean. The capper is…

News & Features

MoviePass Android App Available

Movie fans get their own golden reward as the Academy Awards (a.k.a. Oscars) quickly approach. A special service called MoviePass has expanded to Android mobile device users. This theatrical movie subscription service, which began as an iOS app, offers unlimited tickets at nationwide movie theaters (2D shows only) beginning at $30 a month. The MoviePass Android app is free and represents part of the MoviePass membership. There are no blackout dates for theater viewings. The single monthly MoviePass membership price ranges from $29.99 to $34.99 depending on location. You may not be able to try this service before the Oscars…

News & Features

Waterfield’s Ultimate SleeveCase Keeps Your Microsoft Surface Safe

If you have jumped into the Microsoft Surface’s world of computing you’ll want to check out Waterfield SFBag’s Ultimate SleeveCase. Waterfield’s Ultimate SleeveCase will keeps your Microsoft Surface Safe. I’m a long-time fan of Waterfield’s various sleeves and have used them on pretty much ever device I have owned in the past few years. (And if you read the site you know that is a fairly large number!) I haven’t taken the leap into MicroSoft’s latest pool but Chris G has. You can read his most recent post on the MS Surface here. If, like Chris, you have a Surface…

News & Features

The Sonos PLAYBAR Soundbar Brings Big Sound to Your Home Theater

As expected, Sonos has just introduced their new Playbar Soundbar and, yes, as a huge Sonos fan I ordered one. You might recall that I first ordered my Sonos system a mere hours after receiving a loaner review sample. I hooked up the Sonos system, downloaded the iOS app, turned it on and was blown away. I loved the sound. I loved the convenience. I loved the ability to control each speaker and stream pretty much any music I wanted to it. I was bit by the Sonos bug and ordered two Plat:5s. Since then my ‘collection” of Sonos components…

Music Diary, News & Features

iTunes Music Store Has Sold 25 Billion Songs in 10 Years

The thought that the iTunes Music Store Has Sold 25 Billion Songs in 10 Years is stunning. For many it is hard to remember the music industry landscape as iTunes started selling music a decade ago. The CD had peaked in popularity at the start of the new millennium, topping off an amazing decade of music sales. Yet the decade closed and broadband speeds became more pervasive, it seemed that ‘file sharing’ sites such as Napster and Limewire were going to completely devalue music by making downloading as easy as doing an AltaVista search. But in April of 2003 Steve…

News & Features

Wreck-It Ralph Early Digital Release

Why wait until March to see Wreck-It Ralph? Today Walt Disney Animation Studios begins the early release of Wreck-It Ralph on HD Digital and HD Digital 3D. The 4-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack, 2-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD, SD Digital and On-Demand will release on March 5, 2013. Bonus features on the physical home video versions will include four alternate/deleted scenes and easter eggs. The Oscar nominated animated short Paperman will also be included on the versions releasing on March 5. The home video landscape continues to change with early release from various services. Several media companies are testing the waters…

Crowdfunding, News & Features

Sonar Linux Aims to Make Linux Accessible to All

Over the years that I have worked in an IT support role, I have often had the experience of talking to people who didn’t have perfect eyesight or who might have other disabilities. What might be easy for you or me to do on a computer might be extremely difficult for someone who doesn’t have perfect vision, hearing, motor control, or other disabilities. I have had friends who were completely thrown for a loop when their interface changed — not just because it looked different, but because their screen reader would no longer work or because the interface looked fuzzy…

Game Diary, News & Features

Super Stickman Golf 2 – Gear Diary’s Sneak Preview

What does Super Stickman Golf 2 and The Godfather: Part II have in common? If you guessed that they’re both sequels, well yes, that’s true, but there’s something even better! They are both sequels that are greater than their predecessors. Is it a little too early to call, since SSG2 is only in beta testing? Probably, however the game is already so polished that you can tell how well it’s going to do. There are many great additions to the original gameplay that it still feels like the same game you loved, yet it also feels like a sequel. Noodlecake…

News & Features

Getting a BlackBerry Z10? Case-Mate is Ready to Help You Protect It

I am shocked (SHOCKED!!) by how much I am liking the new BlackBerry Z10 tht I was given at the BlackBerry Experience this past Wednesday. It feels great in the hand, is fast and the BlackBerry Hub integrates all my messaging in a way that is surprisingly convenient. Honestly, except for the lack of a few key apps, I have not yet found anything specific that I actually do not like. In addition to my positive first impressions of the BlackBerry 10 OS and the actual hardware, I am impressed that BlackBerry isn’t being cheap when it comes to accessories….

Game Diary, Gear Bits, News & Features

Get Ready for the Next Chapter with the Star Trek Into Darkness App for iOS or Android

Are you excited for the Star Trek: Into Darkness film opening on May 17th of this year? The teaser trailers have been intriguing and suggested an intensity beyond what the first ‘reboot’ showed us a few years ago. To help fans get ready, a new app for the movie is available for iOS or Android, boasting interactivity with content and a constant release of new material as the movie gets closer to release. In fact, the first ‘surprise’ will unlock during the second quarter of the ‘big game’ (since they can’t say Super Bowl) on Sunday February 3rd. Here are…

Events, News & Features

PlayStation February 20 Announcement for PS4?

There is nothing like a frenzy filled Friday. I received an email from PlayStation Network titled “Be the first to know” this morning sent just after midnight. The email lists an announcement on February 20, 2013 at 6 p.m. EST. as while as links to “Learn More” and their official Twitter and Facebook. Based on current general PlayStation knowledge, the most exciting would be a new console (e.g. “PlayStation 4”). Looks like Sony might not be waiting until June’s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) to make the initial announcement. Sony, a Japanese based company, also has information on their official blog….

Music Diary, News & Features, Reviews

Joe Lovano Us Five ‘Cross Culture’ Music Review

I have a huge library of jazz music stretching back nearly a century, and including representation from nearly every major (and most minor) figures of the art form. But like any other genre fan, there are artists I am ‘supposed’ to like that I have never connected with. I am also a rock music fan since my childhood, but never connected with much of the Rolling Stones (except for a few years in the late 60s) and Led Zepplin. In terms of recent jazz history, two leading instrumentalists are Joe Lovano and Brad Mehldau – and I have never really…

News & Features

SurfacePad for iPhone is TwelveSouth’s Newest Offering

TwelveSouth has just introduced their latest offering, an iPhone case that is “not a case”. The SurfacePad for iPhone is a thin, book-style case that they describe as the very first iPhone accessory that is designed for people who want a case but prefer to use no case. The SurfacePad is made from super-thin Napa leather. It weighs under an ounce. The company makes it clear that this is not a case for the person who is looking for serious drop protection or water sports. (If that is what you want consider getting a LifeProof case.) The TwelveSouth SurfacePad is, however,…

Game Diary, News & Features

Zombie Road Trip Released Yesterday and Super Stickman Golf 2 Coming Soon

Noodlecake Studios, the guys who brought you the original Super Stickman Golf, released Spokko‘s new project, Zombie Road Trip to the App Store and Google Play store yesterday. Zombie Road Trip is very similar to the endless driving game Extreme Road Trip and Extreme Road Trip 2, except that it adds a whole new layer of awesome on top of the existing genre. I was a big fan of the Extreme Road Trip games, so I was happy to take Zombie Road Trip for a test drive. You find yourself driving, pedal to the metal, in order to escape a…

News & Features

30 Rock Ends This Thursday; Top Ten Reasons I’ll Miss It!

There are very few sitcoms that can pull off that razor edge of satire and surrealism without teetering into live action cartoon territory. Even fewer can make characters both ridiculous and relatable all at once, but for seven seasons “30 Rock” has managed to nail the satire and the characters. And Thursday, January 31, is, sadly, the series finale. If you’ve never watched 30 Rock, head over to Netflix immediately to rectify that. Need more motivation than just “It’s that great show with Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin”? Here are my top ten reasons why you’re missing out if you…

Gear Bits, News & Features

PowerCup Car Charger Handles Your Devices on the Road

As our mobile environments are becoming more and more connected these days we struggle to accommodate the plethora of devices some of us carry with us and even use while on the road or stuck in traffic. Enter the PowerCup Car Charger and Tablet holder from USBFever.com. Here is a device that anchors in a center console cupholder and expands power functionality inside the vehicle by offering two cigarette lighter-style sockets and two 5V USB ports for charging mobile devices. A short flexible stalk leads to an expandable holder for your Apple iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tab. Of course, neither…

Events, News & Features

RIM Unveils Their Blackberry 10 at the Blackberry Experience in NYC

It is RIM’s last hope to stay afloat. After hyping the BlackBerry Playbook and banking on its success RIM has continued to stumble. Even hardcore BB-user like Elana and her brother have left their BlackBerries and moved to other platforms. And as for the Playbook not being a hit, when the company that made their chops on messaging releases a tablet without a native email client, how could it possibly succeed? So RIM has developed and entirely new operating system and is formally showing off the OS and the devices to run it. I’m in Manhattan for the Blackberry Experience…

Gear Bits, News & Features

Apple Introduces 128GB iPad 4, Pricing as You Would Expect

For the past couple of years everyone has wondered when Apple would come out with a 128GB iPhone or iPad, and last fall I think that many were genuinely surprised that the iPad 4 didn’t up the capacity. Well, now we have our answer … and it comes in the form of the 128GB iPad 4. The announcement came today, and the new version of the iPad 4 is going to be available starting Tuesday, February 5. According to a press release from Apple, the main focus is a sort of ‘Pro’ version of the iPad for the Enterprise –…

Events, Music Diary, News & Features

Prophet 12 Synthesizer by Dave Smith Introduced at NAMM 2013

One of the first synths I did serious work on was the Prophet 5. That synth was introduced by Sequential Circuits in 1978 as one of the first polyphonic instruments, but the reason it is still popular is the amazing sounds. The Prophet 5 was the brain-child of Sequential Circuits founder Dave Smith. If that name sounds familiar it is because Smith is also known as the ‘Father of MIDI’, and I recently wrote about the 30th anniversary of MIDI. After Yamaha bought Sequential Circuits in 1987, Smith went on to head up the new US research lab for Korg…

Gear Bits, News & Features

Apple Releases iOS 6.1 with iTunes Match Song Downloads and More

Have you ever just wanted to download ONE song from an album on iTunes Match so you can listen on the go? It simply didn’t happen … until now! Today Apple released iOS 6.1 with a number of improvements (and likely even more unannounced improvements). These include support for 36 additional LTE carriers for iPhone (23 for iPad), individual song downloads, Siri interaction with Fandango, and more. One unstated improvement in iOS 6.1 is found in Passbook. Previously, when you started the app for the first time an introduction was displayed. You were then sent to the iTunes App Store…

News & Features

Windows 8 Pro $40 Upgrade Sale Ends 1/31/13

Microsoft’s sale of Windows 8 Pro for only $40 ends on Thursday. If you haven’t taken advantage of the sale, time is quickly running out! If you’ve purchased a Windows 8 (Sadly, not Windows RT) tablet, ultrabook or other computer and you attempt to upgrade directly through the “Add Features To Windows” function, you do not get this discount, and the Pro upgrade price is $70. However, if you have a, XP, Vista or Windows 7 computer that you can run the Windows Upgrade Assistant on, you can purchase the upgrade from your computer, and then STOP and not download the Windows…

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