Reviews

Review: Guitar Sidekick For Mobile Devices

Reviews

Review: Guitar Sidekick For Mobile Devices

If you follow reviews here on Gear Diary, then you have noticed an exciting new trend for guitarists.  A ton of apps have been developed to use while playing the guitar.  Tuners, metronomes, tablature, chord diagrams, effects.  You name it, it can be found on various mobile devices.  As an iPhone user, I have reviewed and been an active user of many of the IOS guitar applications.  Here is the one problem I have found with this new genre of apps:  Where do I hold my iPhone?!?!  I have tried balancing on my knee and setting it on a table…

The Aluratek Libre Review

eBooks, Reviews

The Aluratek Libre Review

Talk ebook readers, and everyone thinks Kindle or NOOK. But there’s a whole subset of hardware out there for people who aren’t interested in connected readers, and just want a simple device that handles multiple formats. That’s where an ebook reader like the Aluratek Libre comes in handy. The Libre is physically very similar to the Jetbook Lite we looked at last spring. It has the same slider along the left side for page turns, along with page turn buttons on the bottom. There are d-pad and navigation buttons along the right side, plus a T-9 keyboard along the right…

Lexus CT200h Sporty New Hybrid CrossTourer

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

Lexus CT200h Sporty New Hybrid CrossTourer

Lexus has a new hybrid vehicle being readied for market and let me begin by saying I wish them more luck with this CT200h hybrid sportwagon than they saw with the HS250h hybrid sedan that debuted last year. Lexus’ last sporty wagon was on the inaugural IS300 platform and was dubbed SportCross. I was assured the CT200h is not intended to be the next SportCross but the two do share bloodlines and driving dynamics. We spent some time with Lexus and the new CT200h in New Orleans recently and I was left with the impression that the CT should see…

Review: Charge All Of Your Devices At Once With Arctic C2 USB Charger

Reviews

Review: Charge All Of Your Devices At Once With Arctic C2 USB Charger

I do not know about you, but I have collected quite the array of USB devices.  From iPhones and iPads to battery chargers, it seems that my life is constantly filled with charging via a USB cable.  For a while I did have a wall adapter with a USB port that I could use to charge some devices, but only one at a time, which was not working.  One day, my wife said, “look at all this junk we have sitting here waiting to charge, and you only have one plug?”  After explaining that none of it was junk, I…

iPhone 4 Jazzin' Up Photography

How to Do It Yourself!, Reviews

iPhone 4 Jazzin’ Up Photography

All images by author I finally upgraded to the iPhone 4 from Apple and my “hand-me-down” 3GS went to my new bride Tish. When Apple first began to release details of its latest phone I was eager to test the higher resolution 5 megapixel camera (versus 3ish of the previous phone). And with the last iOS update this new device now has the capability of HDR or High Dynamic Range photography. What a pleasant surprise. What is HDR? An easy explanation would be to think of it as “high-def” photography as the range of colors and tones displayed is greater….

Review: Cgear Sand-Free Multimat for Camping

Reviews

Review: Cgear Sand-Free Multimat for Camping

Let’s face it: The outdoors can be dirty and dusty.  You go to the beach and try to lay a towel out and end up getting sand all over it.  You go for a swim and then get sand in your eyes when you dry off.  Not fun.  How do you cure this?  Cgear’s Sand-Free Multimat!  That’s how! The Multimat is made from a special technological material similar to what the military uses a to keep dust down when landing helicopters in dusty environments.  This also works wonderfully to keep the sand and dust on the ground where it belongs…

Apolis Global Citizen Transit Issue Smartphone Wallet iPhone 4 Case Review

Reviews

Apolis Global Citizen Transit Issue Smartphone Wallet iPhone 4 Case Review

Companies like Apolis don’t come around very often.  After I had agreed to review their latest offering, a wallet style case for the iPhone 4, I went to read up and learn more about the brand.  What I read really made me stand up and take notice.  Work conditions at the Chinese factory that produces the iPhone have been all over the news of late and details on the numerous suicides by the Chinese workers are shocking.  We’ve all read the stories about the less than stellar work conditions in factories that product sneakers and other brand named clothing too….

SCOTTEVEST SeV Travel Boxers Review

Reviews

SCOTTEVEST SeV Travel Boxers Review

I know this is going to come as a shock to those of who you frequent the site but… I love SCOTTEVEST clothing. I wear one of their jackets pretty much every day, I love my SeV hoodie and, recently, I got some of their Q-Zip and performance t-shirts which I pretty much live in when I’m not in a suit. So it should be no huge surprise that I was intrigued when they pulled the curtain back on their latest product- the SeV Travel Boxers. Well, I’m not a boxer kinda guy (yeah, yeah… TMI…) but these just might change…

Mobile Phone Gear Review: iPazzPort Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard

Reviews

Mobile Phone Gear Review: iPazzPort Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard

One reason people tell me they do not choose to use an iPhone is that they would rather have a phone with a hardware keyboard.  Apple, among other companies, have produced Bluetooth keyboards that can be used with iPhones and iPads, but they are almost all full-sized offerings.  EFO Gadget Shop recently sent me the iPazzPort Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard to review with my IOS devices. Lets take a look. The iPazzPort is a Mini Bluetooth wireless keyboard for iPad, iPhone and a host of smartphones including Windows Mobile and Nokia operating systems.  Unfortunately Android is not compatible with this device. …

iPod touch Case Review: Fitted for 4th Generation iPod touch

Reviews

iPod touch Case Review: Fitted for 4th Generation iPod touch

When the 4th generation iPod touch came out I broke one of my cardinal rules… I began using it before a case was released for it. I NEVER do that. Ever. Keeping my iDevices pristine is too important for me and the shiny metal back of the touch scratches far too easily. Unfortunately cases for the new iPod touch were a few weeks off. I immediately began using my touch and… as expected… within a few days the back was a bit scratched up. It is too late for me to keep my touch in perfect shape but if you…

Casio Edifice Watch Review: Yep, I Said Casio

Reviews

Casio Edifice Watch Review: Yep, I Said Casio

I have a pretty extensive watch collection which includes time pieces that range in price from very low to very high. While I do posses several “high-end” watches I find that I wear a digital watch most often. Part of the reason is my line of work – I just am too hard on anything I wear to worry about a pricey wrist accessory and part of it is the functionality a digital watch offers. A few weeks ago I took off my trusty Casio G-Shock while at the mall and gave it to my wife to hold. When we…

Gear Review- MOBiLE CLOTH High Tech Split Microfiber Cleaning Cloth

Reviews

Gear Review- MOBiLE CLOTH High Tech Split Microfiber Cleaning Cloth

Touchscreens are awesome but they are also fingerprint magnets. As the above image shows, try as I might, I can’t seem to keep my screen pristine. And that’s just the aesthetic issue. Recent studies have shown that touchscreens tend to collect lots and lots of germs. That’s especially problematic now that it is flu season. Seriously… it is gross to think about what is squirming around on this screen. Yuck! That’s why I was intrigued when we received an e-mail from a new company, MOBiLE CLOTH. They wrote to tell us about their product which is specially designed to remove…

Fruit Ninja for iPhone/Touch Review

Game Diary, Reviews

Fruit Ninja for iPhone/Touch Review

I have developed a few preferences while gaming on my iPhone.  First, the games have to obviously be fun, but also something I can play in short spurts.  My life has become much too busy to sit around and work through levels and play for long periods of time.  About all the time available now is a minute here or two minutes there.  The IOS as a gaming platform is perfect for these types of games.  Another preference is that the games utilize Game Center.  A group of my football players have began competing pretty heavily with our Game Center…

Speck Pixel Skin HD iPod Touch 4G Case Review

Reviews

Speck Pixel Skin HD iPod Touch 4G Case Review

TPU and silicone style cases for the iPod Touch and the iPhone are a dime a dozen. If you’re going to impress me with a soft case you’ve got to stand out from the crowd. And that’s exactly what the Pixel Skin HD from Speck Products does. This TPU style case features 6 DPI of high-definition grip in four stylish colors. The Pixel Skin HD is offered in Black, Yellow, Bright Red and Purple. The case doesn’t come with a screen shield. Speck isn’t offering their ShieldView for the 4th generation Touch just yet, so if you need a screen…

Music Diary Retrospective: A Magical Mystery Tour of the Beatles Catalog

Music Diary, Reviews

Music Diary Retrospective: A Magical Mystery Tour of the Beatles Catalog

It is hard to believe (well, for me anyway), but we are fast approaching the 30th anniversary of the assassination of John Lennon, after just recently passing the 70th anniversary of his birth. We are also 40 years since the break-up of the Beatles, so in honor of all of these anniversaries going on I decided to take a walk through the Beatles official release catalog. The entire set was released just over a year ago fully remastered, and it is those versions I will revisit. This means that my brother’s copy of Meet the Beatles will be left unaddressed….

Gear Review: Sewell Minideck USB to DVI/VGA Display Adapter

Reviews

Gear Review: Sewell Minideck USB to DVI/VGA Display Adapter

I work with some awesome people day in and day out. They are smart, creative, dedicated to their community and a great team with whom to work. They are also, for the most part, tech-phobic or, to be gentler, not the most technically savvy crew around. For example, when I moved my entire staff over to Gmail from Outlook a few years ago, you would have thought I was repeatedly poking them in the eye with a sharp object. The kicking and screaming that went on was painful. Then, one day … bam! … I heard the words “I actually…

Internet Radio Review- Allegro Wi-Fi Radio Portable Wireless Radio & Streamer

Reviews

Internet Radio Review- Allegro Wi-Fi Radio Portable Wireless Radio & Streamer

I HATE Elana’s transistor radio. It has the most annoying crackle when AM radio is on and even FM radio sounds terrible. I’ve tried to throw it out and replace it with a WiFi radio or an iPod touch numerous times. But like a bad penny it keeps coming back. Yup, none of the solutions I offered to Elana as replacements for her radio were good enough for her. She kept going back to that THING. Until now! Grace Audio was kind enough to send me a review unit of their Allegro Wi-Fi Radio Portable Wireless Radio & Streamer. I…

iPod Accessory Review: H2O Audio Capture Waterproof Case

Reviews

iPod Accessory Review: H2O Audio Capture Waterproof Case

The last generation iPod nano was a rather impressive device. It was small, held a good amount of music, let you watch video AND it had a video camera built-in. No, it was anything but a high-definition camera, but, in a pinch, it did get the job of capturing memories done. Sadly, Apple discontinued the design after just a year and replaced it with an awesome, but stripped-down, smaller version with a touchscreen. Still, there are lots of the iPod nano video out there and you can pick a refurbished one up on Apple’s site for a nice discount. If…

Speck Candy Shell iPod Touch 4G Case Review

Reviews

Speck Candy Shell iPod Touch 4G Case Review

It’s no secret. I’m a big fan of the cases Speck Products had been churning out for the entire iDevice lineup. One of their newest offerings, The Candy Shell for the iPod Touch 4G recently arrived on my door step and I was happy to welcome it. I’ve owned the Candy Shell for both the iPhone 3G/3Gs and the iPhone 4 and have come to appreciate the hybrid style hard case for all it has to offer. How does the iPod Touch 4G version of this case fare? Read on to find out. Speck was kind enough to send me…

The Primary Case Company Offers A Case For Your Case

Reviews

The Primary Case Company Offers A Case For Your Case

Most iPhone users choose to protect their device with a case. A case not only offers a barrier between your phone and the outside elements but allows you to add your own personal design tastes to your mobile device. For me a protective case is only half of the equation though. How I carry my iPhone is just as important. I often choose to carry my phone in my front pants pocket but this can be uncomfortable. I’ve tested a few case/holster combinations but haven’t been particularly thrilled with any of them. The Primary Case Company recently released an entire…