News & Features | Gear Diary

RIP Ambient and Electronic Music Pioneer Pete Namlook

This week we learned of the passing of electronic music giant Pete Namlook. His real last name is Kuhlmann, with Namlook being the sound of that name pronouced backwards. He was 51. I am often amazed at how I come to listen to certain artists – it is like a game of ‘Six Degrees of Separation’ at times. Pete Namlook is one of those. As my musical horizons began to expand in the late 70’s and into the 80’s I discovered a great number of musicians, and as a bassist I was directed to Bill Laswell. Laswell released a solo…

Music Diary, News & Features

IK Multimedia Releases iPhone 5-Friendly AmpliTube 2.7!

More and more apps are being released that take advantage of the new iPhone 5 (and iPod Touch) screen, and it is great to see that they are actually taking advantage of the screen rather than just filling out the space. Today IK Multimedia announced that their popular AmpliTube app for iOS has been updated to take advantage of the larger screen. Here are the details from the press release: AmpliTube 2.7 takes advantage of the extra screen size and the Retina Display to deliver stunning graphics, which accompany IK’s industry-standard sounds and features. The app comes with 24 gear…

News & Features

Waterfield’s New Indy Is Just the Right Size for the iPad mini

Judie reviewed the Waterfield Indy bag for the iPad when it was first released. (Read the review.) I then stole it from her and, ever since, it has been my favorite bag when I want to travel light. I like how thin and light it is and, with Raiders being my all time favorite movie, it kinda sorta appeals to me in a geeky way. (Come one, admit it, the opening scene with the big rolling ball is only outdone by the Nazi’s face melting.) I love the Indy, but now that’s am carrying the iPad mini as my daily…

News & Features

Assassin Nuns and Body-mulchers Rule as Conan Takes on HitMan Absolution

My favorite movie genre? Zombie flicks. My favorite gaming genre? Shooters. My favorite game franchise? The Hitman series. I’m not kidding. The newest game in the Hitman series has all the elements needed for success. It’s funny, violent and definitely not for kids. Add in assassin nuns and body-mulchers and you’ve for the formula for success. Check out this episode of Conan the Clueless Gamer for a closer look… and a laugh. Hey, if a game can get Conan to scream “I’m a scarecrow in a cornfield mother$%^%er”, it can’t lose right? Conan’s final thought… “We’ve rated numerous games and Hitman…

Game Diary, News & Features

Check Out the Legend of Dungeon Teaser Trailer

I have to confess that when I heard the name ‘Legend of Dungeon’ I rolled my eyes. Then I checked out the trailer and smiled … now THIS looks fun! A classic, lo-fi dungeon-crawling, rogue-like, real-time, beat-em-up, co-op romp that doesn’t take itself too seriously? Sign me up! Sadly the game isn’t done yet and there isn’t an announced release date or price, but the trailer should help keep your interest. Check out the none-too-serious trailer: For more info and to keep up-to-date on Legend of Dungeon’s progress: Robot Loves Kitty’s dev blog Robot Loves Kitty’s main site Robot Loves…

News & Features

Evernote 5 for Mac Adds 100 New Features to My Must-Have Productivity Tool

Evernote 5 for Mac has arrived, and it is ready to take rings to the next level. This is a major redesign that includes: A new left panel for easier than ever access to shortcuts (new!), recent notes, notebooks, atlas and more Major search improvements, including type ahead search Easier sharing with better notebook integrations and improved activity stream Improved note editing, such as plain text options and new framing And much more. Here’s the company’s walk-through. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=_9tHtxOCvy4 According to the Evernote blog, The Evernote desktop experience has evolved significantly over the years. We’ve changed things in response to new…

News & Features

Lightning Strikes with Two JBL Speakers Sporting Apple’s New Lightning Connector

Accessories equipped with Apple’s new, smaller Lightning Connectors are finally beginning to roll out. The other day we brought news of Belkin’s lightning-equipped car charger. Today we get word that JBL has announced two new speakers that also work with the iPhone 5, iPad mini and other current generation iOS devices. Priced at $99 and $199, one of the speakers is great on the go, while the other will happily take up residence in your kitchen or next to your bed. Both feature the updated connection; here’s a look. The JBL OnBeat Micro is …an ultra-portable, acoustically sophisticated speaker that…

News & Features

Verizon Snags the HTC DROID DNA

Just in case you had any illusions that phones weren’t headed solidly into phablet territory, here comes the latest fully loaded 5″ device to challenge your phone-carrying pockets. note the spiffy red racing strip on the DNA’s side Today the DROID DNA by HTC was announced, and it will be available before the end of the month. The DROID DNA by HTC features a vibrant 5-inch Full HD 1080p super LCD 3 screen that rivals traditional HDTV’s. At 440 PPI, the screen packs the highest pixel density available on a smartphone. Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core 1.5GHz processor…

Events, News & Features

Libratone Zipp Named a CES Innovations 2013 Design and Engineering Award Honoree

The Libratone Zipp a CES Innovations 2013 Design and Engineering Award Honoree In that arena of “cool gear”, one of the biggest surprises for me this year has been the Libratone Zipp. When it arrived, I was struck by its unusual appearance; it is a cylindrical column. I was also taken by its design flexibility thanks to the interchangeable wool covers. Yes, the Zipp can be “dressed” to match pretty much any decor. But it wasn’t until I went to listen to the Zipp, that I was blown away. The speaker is rather small, but it pumps out huge, excellent…

Events, News & Features

Ten One Design Pogo Connect is a CES Innovations 2013 Design and Engineering Award Honoree

Ten One Design Named CES Innovations 2013 Design and Engineering Award Honoree For Pogo Connect If a product adds functionality to my iPad I’m interested. That’s exactly what Ten One Design’s Pogo Connect promises. It is …the world’s first pressure-sensitive Bluetooth 4.0 stylus for the new iPad. Currently supported by numerous compatible apps, Pogo Connect offers full pressure sensitivity, palm rejection capabilities and more. The stylus’s Crescendo Sensor technology makes the tip highly responsive to pressure, recognizes even the slightest touch and works at any angle. While I’m not all too interested in the pressure-sensitive aspect of this pen —…

News & Features

How Memory Prices Have Changed Through the Years

When Dan and I were discussing the iPad Mini, one item of contention for both of us was that while others (Amazon Kindle Fire HD, for example) have moved to a $50 differential from 16GB to 32GB, Apple has held steady with the $100 increment. I stated that my understanding was that at $50 Amazon was getting at least $28 (probably more like $38) … meaning that for Apple there is at least $78 more profit in the 32GB version and $156 more profit in the 64GB version. Dan asked me what changes have happened in memory pricing since the…

News & Features

Blue’s Spark Digital Now Available

As I have quickly learned while trying to shoot videos for the site and record audio for an interactive iBook I am creating, having a high quality microphone can make all the difference. Blue’s Spark Digital is “the world’s first studio-grade condenser microphone to offer both USB and iPad connectivity”. We’ve reviewed a number of the company’s various microphone offerings but none have been quite as impressive as this one. As the company explains, Expanding on the professional and sound of Blue’s Spark XLR studio microphone, Spark Digital features the same studio-grade condenser capsule and hand-tuned components for high-fidelity recording…

Gear Bits, News & Features

Check Out the Intense Trailer for World War Z!

Have you read Max Brooks’ excellent ‘point of view’ zombie book ‘World War Z:An Oral History of the Zombie War’? If so then perhaps you – like me – have been concerned that the movie version would be a mediocre ‘reimagining’ sort of like the butchering of Asimov’s ‘I, Robot’. But based on the new trailer, it looks like the way that the book has been adapted will bring much of what made it good to the screen, but in a way that serves the need for a hero-based narrative. Plus, the zombie hordes look thrilling! Here is the plot…

News & Features

Angry Birds Star Wars is EVERYWHERE!!!

In case you didn’t hear, Angry Birds Star Wars releases today. For many who are tired of BOTH Angry Birds and Star Wars this represents a black hole of interest. But for everyone else, Rovio has made sure that they have made the game as widely available as possible to maximize sales while people are interested. Versions are out for iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets, Kindle Fire HD specific versions, Mac, PC and Windows Phone 8 (WP7.5 support coming later). Angry Birds Star Wars for iPhone and iPod Touch (Apple, $0.99) Angry Birds Star Wars HD for iPad (Apple,…

News & Features

Evernote 5 Arrives for All iOS Devices

Evernote just released version 5.0 of its iOS app. It takes one of the most important productivity apps on my iPhone and iPad and makes it even better. What does the new version offer? Entirely new home screen, divided into ‘Quick Note’ buttons at the top for easy note creation and a stack of ‘Views’ below to navigate Notebooks, Notes, Tags and Places with one tap Notes View allows you to easily visualize and browse note contents Notebooks View brings all your Notebooks, personal or shared, to one single list Tags View sorts your tags alphabetically or by note count…

Music Diary, News & Features

Green Day Streams Second New Album of 2012, ‘¡Dos!’ in Advance of November 13th Release

Back in September Green Day streamed their ‘first of three’ albums ‘¡Uno!’ on Facebook for a week before retail release. Now that ¡Dos! is coming out next week … they are streaming THAT as well. You can check it out on the Rolling Stone website. The band also pulled the release of ¡Tre! from 2013 into December 11th as a gesture to fans after recently deciding to postpone all tour dates through February based on the rehab situation for singer Billie Joe Armstrong, as noted at Guitar World: ¡Dos! is slated for a November 13 release, with its follow-up, ¡Tre! recently…

News & Features

Flipside Wallet Introduces the STRATA, the World’s Most Secure Minimalist Wallet

My Wallet of choice is the Flipside 2X from Flipside Wallet. It doesn’t look like a traditional wallet, and that’s a good thing. No, this wallet is made from a rigid Reinforced Polycarbonate. It looks like this… It gets strange looks when I pull it out but I love my Flipside 2X and have used it daily since first writing my review of it back in October of 2010. Read the review. I like the fact that it is RFID shielded so thief’s can’t scan it and love the fact that, thanks to its rigidity, it forces me to keep my…

News & Features

AT&T Will Have the Nokia Lumia 920 for $99.00 and the 820 for $49.99; Preorders Begin November 7th

After attending the Windows Phone launch event last Monday, I came away with an idea of which new devices I would most enjoy using, and my first choice was the Nokia Lumia 920. I’ve got an HTC 8X in hand (review coming soon), and now we have solid availability information from AT&T. Today, Nokia has announced that the “highly anticipated Lumia 920 flagship Windows Phone 8 smartphone will be available exclusively through AT&T at a price of $99.99 with a new two-year contract, available on November 9th with preorders beginning November 7th. For a limited time and while supplies last, AT&T…

News & Features

Slacker App for Windows 8 Launched and Will Livestream ABC Election 2012 Coverage

For those individuals like me who have just started using the latest Microsoft OS incarnation that is Windows 8 on their PCs, Slacker announced the official launch of their music service supporting Windows 8. The free Slacker app is designed such that it takes advantage of the new tiling and UI aspects of Windows 8, multitasking, and even the Share charm feature. In Windows 8, apps like Slacker don’t flip to the “old” Windows 7-style desktop but are integrated into the Windows 8 UI, providing a fluid, seamless experience, particularly if you’ve set up Windows 8 with a Microsoft Live…

News & Features

Deciphering the Real from the Fake: Hurricane Sandy Edition

If you watched some of the Hurricane coverage, you’d think the world had come to an end in New Jersey, New York and other areas affected by Hurricane Sandy. While there are a lot of people that have lost homes, and some areas were severely damaged, if you’d look at some of the images from this post on Buzzfeed proclaiming to be of the New York area during Hurricane Sandy, they depict the worst case scenario. I won’t repost a lot them here, as people posted them all over social media during the storm. None of them are real. Many…

Gear Bits, News & Features

Has iOS 6 (and 6.0.1) Wrecked Your WiFi Connectivity? These Steps Might Help

One of the big issues I noticed immediately with iOS 6 and particularly with the iPad Mini was maintaining connectivity to WiFi at home and at work. The basic issue is this – when the iPad sleeps the WiFi turns off (to maintain better battery life), but it happens very quickly and doesn’t automatically re-connect. My first inkling of an issue was that during my ‘iPad Only’ quest I have been consuming data MUCH faster than before, but not really doing more ‘data heavy’ stuff on a cellular connection. At home I am always on WiFi and at work I…