News & Features

Navigon Updates Navigation App for Android

News & Features March 14, 2012

Navigon Updates Navigation App for Android

I’m a fan of navigation apps for mobile devices.  I’ve been talking about navigation applications for a lot of years now and Navigon has been one of the more interesting players for a long time.  They have history going back to the Windows Mobile days, consistently offering one of the nicest looking apps in the field.  Now Navigon, a part of Garmin, is releasing a new version of their navigation app for Android.  According to their press release, this version contains a number of interesting new features: NAVIGON Widget: Users can add the new NAVIGON Widget to their phone’s home…

FoxFi Android WiFi Hotspot App Now Available on Google Play!

News & Features March 13, 2012

FoxFi Android WiFi Hotspot App Now Available on Google Play!

It is very frustrating to be sitting with a WiFi-only device, a smartphone with loads of monthly data remaining and the capability to act as a hotspot, only to be thwarted for using the capability because your carrier wants you to sign up for a $20 monthly fee to use the hotspot … and you don’t want to pay. There have been numerous solutions to both tethering and hotspot creation, but most hotspot apps have required users to root their device, something which can have other unwanted effects (such as having to root in the first place).

FREE Readability Android App Launches on Amazon AppStore

News & Features March 13, 2012

FREE Readability Android App Launches on Amazon AppStore

Readability was a small app that hoped to make browsing the web better by making it a more simple and streamlined reading experience, but ended up gaining notoriety for publicly taking Apple to task for the in-app purchase revenue sharing system. Now the app has finally arrived on Android, and is launching exclusively on the Amazon AppStore for Android, and for FREE! The app has gotten solid early reviews, and is definitely worth checking out. Here is the overview: Read on Your Terms Readability turns any Web page into a clean view for reading now or later on your computer…

Stream Esperanza Spalding's New Album 'Radio Music Society' on NPR Before Next Week's Release!

Music Diary, News & Features March 13, 2012

Stream Esperanza Spalding’s New Album ‘Radio Music Society’ on NPR Before Next Week’s Release!

With a ‘Best New Artist’ Grammy and the immensely critically and commercially successful (by jazz standards) ‘Chamber Music Society’ recording behind her, Esperanza Spalding faced the daunting task of producing a follow up. When I heard last year that the title would be ‘Radio Music Society’, I knew that she was shifting her focus from the ‘chamber jazz’ feel of much of her last outing to something more funky and pop-oriented. Of course, that direction can be a dangerous path – you can succeed, but you can just as easily alienate existing fans without making new ones. Fortunately, based on…

Lenovo Recalls Many of Their M70z and M90z Think Centre All-in-One Computers

News & Features March 13, 2012

Lenovo Recalls Many of Their M70z and M90z Think Centre All-in-One Computers

Did you purchase a Lenovo ThinkCentre M70z or M90z All-in-One Computer? Or did you win one of the three that we gave away here on Gear Diary? If so, then you’ll want to pay attention to this recall notice. There are 16,000 M70z and M90z units affected, and the recall is focusing on the power supplies specifically because they can overheat and become a fire hazard! There have been two (world-wide) reports of this happening, and Lenovo is asking that people immediately stop using their desktops until they know for sure whether or not it is one of the affected…

Facebook Launches Timeline App Platform: Viddy launches Facebook App at SXSW!

Events, News & Features March 12, 2012

Facebook Launches Timeline App Platform: Viddy launches Facebook App at SXSW!

Now that Facebook’s new Timeline feature has rolled out to the general public, companies are looking to find innovative ways to use it to provide services to users. Today at SXSW, Viddy in conjunction with Facebook’s launch of the Timeline App Platform is bringing their popular video app to Facebook. With Viddy for Facebook, users can share video content directly to Facebook, and Viddy videos can now appear on a person’s timeline, News Feed and ticker. As noted in the press release: “Watching videos with friends is inherently social,” said Justin Osofsky, Director of Platform Partnerships at Facebook. Viddy is…

You and Your iPad Can Travel Light with BlueLounge's Bonobo Series iPad Sling

News & Features March 12, 2012

You and Your iPad Can Travel Light with BlueLounge’s Bonobo Series iPad Sling

BlueLounge’s new Bonobo Series iPad Sling looks like a great way for you and your iPad to travel light. As the company explains, Our new iPad Sling stylishly accommodates your everyday necessities. Ultra-light, modern, and sleek the iPad Sling features a padded main compartment, a zippered exterior pocket, easy-snap magnetic closures, and a comfortable cross-body fit. It’s the ideal accessory for commuting to the office, or simply to the coffee shop. For all iPads.

Really Cool Time Lapse Pregnancy Video Shows 9 Months in Under 2 Minutes!

News & Features March 12, 2012

Really Cool Time Lapse Pregnancy Video Shows 9 Months in Under 2 Minutes!

I am really happy that I made my wife let me snap a couple of shots of her while pregnant with both of our kids. A couple of weeks ago when our ‘baby’ turned 14 we were flipping through and it was a sort of time lapse as we looked at my wife as she progressed and then the baby and our son as he grew. But this cool video shows the entire pregnancy from start to finish, one week at a time. It is amazing to watch the personal changes, the move from smaller to bigger space, and so…

Stream Vijay Iyer's New Album 'Accelerando' on NPR Before Next Week's Release!

Music Diary, News & Features March 10, 2012

Stream Vijay Iyer’s New Album ‘Accelerando’ on NPR Before Next Week’s Release!

While the collaborative recording Tithra didn’t quite make my ‘tops of 2011’ list, Vijay Iyer’s Historyicity remains one of the best recordings of the last five years and a personal favorite. So when I heard that Vijay Iyer’s trio was releasing a new album in early 2012 I got excited … and when I discovered that NPR was hosting the full record for streaming I was REALLY excited. And after listening … I am ecstatic!

Free Album 'Electronic Encounters – The Special Edition'

Music Diary, News & Features March 9, 2012

Free Album ‘Electronic Encounters – The Special Edition’

Electronic music can get rather ‘spacey’ or ‘sci-fi’ at times, but this takes it to new levels! Electronic Encounters – The Special Edition is a compilation of electronica tracks inspired by the classic film, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, and the collection is available for FREE! Head here to check out the song ‘Believe’ by Logan 5: Here is the synopsis of the inspiration: Back in June 2001, I went searching on the internet for anything relating to Close Encounters of the Third Kind. What little I did find was not very impressive. It was then that I decided…

A 'Once in a Lifetime' Duet Actually Worth Seeing

Music Diary, News & Features March 9, 2012

A ‘Once in a Lifetime’ Duet Actually Worth Seeing

At the recent Grammy Awards the producers were constantly talking about artists they were throwing together for ‘once in a lifetime’ performances you ‘won’t want to miss’. But in reality the Coldplay / Rihanna medley was the perfect example of how lousy they were – she sang her song, they sang their song, and in between they sang a duet song about 10 feet apart with Rihanna never really acknowledging Chris Martin and the whole thing reminding you that just because two artists appear on a song together doesn’t mean they have ever met.

Save Big for 72 Hours on Skooba Designs V.3 Collection

News & Features March 9, 2012

Save Big for 72 Hours on Skooba Designs V.3 Collection

Back in November we reviewed Skooba Designs’ new V.3 Tablet Messenger. I liked it a lot and wrote this: What I Like: Small and light; lots of well-organized pockets; Special slot for your tablet; Grab and go handle; interior tablet access without opening the flap; Funky closure method for the flap What Needs Improvement: The blue highlights make it a bit less professional-looking You can read the full review here and find out more details here on the product page. That’s not the reason for this post however. No, the reason for this post is that Skooba Designs is running…

Tom Bihn Updates Their Ristretto Bag

News & Features March 8, 2012

Tom Bihn Updates Their Ristretto Bag

I love when a company has a really good product but looks for ways to make it even better, and that’s exactly what Tom Bihn did with their Ristretto bag. We’ve reviewed the bag in a number of different sizes. You can read our review of the Ristretto, the Ristretto for iPad, and the review of the Ristretto for MacBook Air. The new Ristretto has a number of key improvements. We have a review sample on the way, but I wanted to run down the key changes in advance of that.

Google + Is Now Almost HALF as Popular as MySpace (Yes, It Still Exists)

Editorials, News & Features March 5, 2012

Google + Is Now Almost HALF as Popular as MySpace (Yes, It Still Exists)

Quick – if you want to just blast out how awesome the new Mary Halvorson CD is, where do you go? Most likely to Twitter. And if you want to see what sorts of pictures have emerged from the weekend event your kids attended? Head to Facebook. Once on Twitter you will likely check out a few feeds, click around for a minute or two before exiting. On Facebook, your engagement will turn from seconds to minutes to hours as you check out friends and photos and chat with folks and so on. For many teens and young adults, Facebook…

Alfred Music Releases 'The Rock Guitar Songbook, Volumes 1 and 2'

Music Diary, News & Features March 5, 2012

Alfred Music Releases ‘The Rock Guitar Songbook, Volumes 1 and 2’

One of the first things most kids looking to pick up the guitar do is imitate the lines from a popular rock or pop song. Rock music is rife with simple hooks that are guitar-centric and easy to play (Smoke on the Water, Baba O’Reilly, and so on). But beyond a single line is a fully composed song – and after learning the line you will find you want more! Alfred Music has just released a two-volume set of classic rock songs from the 1950s through the 2000s! The first volume looks at the 50s-70s, and the second volume looks…

Apple Hits 25 Billion App Downloads, is the Most Admired Company

News & Features March 4, 2012

Apple Hits 25 Billion App Downloads, is the Most Admired Company

To say that Apple is on a roll seems a bit superfluous, as the company has spent much of the last dozen years as one of the most reported on and profitable companies in the world. And yet it seems like every time we turn around there is something new and amazing to discuss. First off, last week Fortune magazine reported that Apple was the most admired company in the world. This just after a number of reports tried to single out Apple as the singular cause of poor working conditions in China. Other reports noted that tech companies like…

Batman, the Joker, and Moral Philosophy: Perfect Together!

News & Features March 3, 2012

Batman, the Joker, and Moral Philosophy: Perfect Together!

Much to my family’s chagrin, I majored in Philosophy in college. I chose philosophy because I loved everything about it, especially the thought experiments. Basically, we’d look at a situation or an example, and debate the underlying moral/metaphysical/ethical/political themes until we either came to a conclusion or talked ourselves in circles. Philosophy taught me the importance of standing behind my beliefs, of expressing myself in a clear fashion, and of making sure any argument I laid out could be defended (often in front of the rest of my class, and while my professor tore into me until I gave in or…

Newly Discovered Wes Montgomery Tracks Hit Retail Next Week!

Music Diary, News & Features, Vehicles & Gear March 3, 2012

Newly Discovered Wes Montgomery Tracks Hit Retail Next Week!

One of the most important figures in jazz and greatest guitarists in any genre was Wes Montgomery. He died in 1968 at age 45 of a heart attack and cut short an amazing career. Despite getting started in the late 1940’s with th eLionel Hampton orchestra, he left the band and returned home to Indianapolis to start a family, and recorded only once between 1950 and 1957, making his first recordings as a leader in 1959 … or so it was thought! Next week we get a look at never before released recordings that Montgomery made in 1957 and 1958…