Reviews

Thief: Deadly Shadows (2004, FPStealth): The Netbook Gamer

One of the great things about doing the Netbook Gamer is revisiting games and memories from years past. The Thief franchise of first-person stealth-action games touches a couple of memories. I was given the first game as a Christmas gift when it came out in late 1998, at a time when having two children under two years old was pretty much all consuming and left scant time for computer games, most of which I spent on first person shooters. So a stealth game like Thief demanded me to change my basic approach to gaming.



The UrbanTrim Squidarella Color Changing Umbrella Review

Although I live in Eldorado, which sits only a few counties away from the ever-creeping-towards-us edge of the Chihuahuan Desert, we have been enjoying the El Niño effect this year, which means a wetter spring than usual. In celebration of our recent (and hopefully continuing) monsoons, I’ve been sporting one of the most unique umbrellas ever seen in Texas or anywhere — the UrbanTrim Squidarella Color Changing Umbrella.


PDF Reader from Kdan Mobile Software for iPhone and iPod Touch

This past week I did a review of Documents to Go Premium. I really like that product – it does a wonderful job of working with MS Office documents. But a lot but my main use of it is as a PDF reader – really a secondary function of that program. So when I saw a new stand-alone PDF reader program for only 99 cents I decided I had to take a look so I bought a copy and started playing. So how did it do? Let’s take a look!


Mobile Edge Women’s Netbook Bag Review

The tough part of trying to look professional is finding the right bag. It’s especially difficult if you are a woman; do you carry a purse AND a briefcase? If you choose briefcase, do you grab a bag small enough to double as a purse, or do you keep a small bag in your desk for lunchtime errands? Personally, I hate purses, small bags, etc. My pants came with pockets for a reason! Sadly, they don’t make cargo pants for women’s suits. That’s where bags like the Mobile Edge Netbook Bag come in…


The Documents to Go Premium 3.1 for iPhone Review

The last few weeks have been interesting. We saw the release of a lot of new products during CES earlier this year.  One of those products was the version 3.x of Documents to Go Premium from DataVis.  Now, quickly on the heels of that, they have release version 3.1 which adds even more improvements including Google Docs support! On a personal note – my own life has been a crazy roller coaster with my day job sending me all over the place and then getting seriously ill, all of it ramping up to this past week where I had to rush…


Rad Blaster Review: Don’t Always Believe the Hype

As bloggers we’re all guilty of it.  We see some really cool gadget over the internet, or we’re sent a random press release on what’s described as the next, greatest widget to hit since the invention of the cell phone.  Usually we spot some fancy press release picture along with it which only serves to further peak our interest. So what do we do?  We post about it.  Sometimes we even offer our opinion on how “cool” the thing looks.  Or the fact that we’d love to have one.  But guess what?  We’ve never even held it once, never tested…


NeatDesk Review

From The Neat Company….. “The NeatDesk is a high-speed desktop scanner and digital filing system that will quickly turn all the paper on your desk into organized, digital files. More than just a great scanner, NeatDesk also includes patented NeatWorks software to identify and extract key information from your paper files, then automatically organizes it in the easy to use database.” I’ve tried a bunch of systems to manage my receipts, business cards and paper but I just can’t seem to find one that works the way I want it to.  Previously I was using Evernote to manage my business cards but that meant…


Cops and Robbers for iPhone/Touch App Review

This week’s Blue Plate is time sensitive, so read quickly and get to downloading.  Most of the games featured in the weekly column have been puzzle type games.  Cops and Robbers is going to break this streak with a 3D scroller that is sure to provide an entertaining diversion.  The game is usually $2.99 but is free for the time being, so if this one looks interesting you better jump on it; I think you will not be disappointed. Details after the break…


The Wilson Electronics MobilePro Wireless Cellular/PCS Dual-Band 800/1900 MHz Amplifier Review

Many of you know that I live in the country, several miles outside of the thriving metropolis of Eldorado, Texas — population much less than 2000. We have fairly decent EDGE wireless coverage here, but there are areas where the signal typically dips to one bar — and it seems like many of those places are either on the highway between San Angelo and Eldorado or in various spots on the ranch where we typically drive. I took care of our low signal issues at home when I installed the Wi-Ex zBoost, but signal strength in our vehicles has continued…


Final Fantasy iPhone Game Review

What does it say when Final Fantasy VII is released on the PSN Store as a downloadable game for the PSP & PS3 for $9.99 and everyone rejoices, yet when the original Final Fantasy comes along for the iPhone for $8.99 and there is a general sense of being over-charged? Perhaps it is the reality that all business models aren’t created equal. I will talk about the business model in a bit, but for now … let’s explore the iPhone release of the original Final Fantasy!


The Hillcrest Loop Pointer Review: a Mouse for Your TV

It never failed that when someone would visit while I was testing the Hillcrest Loop pointer, they would invariably pick it up and wear it like it was an over-sized bangle — because at first glance, that is exactly what it resembles. But the Loop is much more than just a piece of giant plastic jewelry. The Loop pointer actually got its start as an “iconic concept product to showcase Hillcrest Lab’s Freespace technology and HoME system solutions.” People who saw it liked it, and they wanted one; so Hillcrest, whose primary focus remains “licensing interactive media systems software for…


Larry G. returns to Review the Tucker & Bloom East to West

Tucker and Bloom has been in the business of making bags for over thirty years.  Their products focus on organizing your gear while maintaining a clean and stylized design.  Their design philosophy comes straight to the point.  “Tucker and Bloom designs aim to organize people with a need to look professional while providing an alternative to the norm.” When Judie described the bag she was sending me for review as the “hairy bag”, I was nothing if not curious at seeing it up close and in person. The East to West Messenger Bag is a classic bike style messenger bag…


2010 Nissan 370Z Roadster

For some strange reason (dumb luck I suppose), my time behind the wheel of the new 370Z from Nissan has been met with frustrating limitations. When first released in coupe form last year, I found myself only getting to spend an afternoon with the vehicle and most of that during rush hour. More recently, Nissan sent me the roadster version of their little sports car, and this occurred during the freak snowstorm around Valentine’s Day. Needless to say it was stuck in my driveway for several days, and I only got to drop the top once (OK, twice, but the…


Review: Arctic Sound E352 Earphones

Arctic Cooling has recently entered the noise isolating earphone market.  I reviewed the Arctic Sound E361 earphones which proved to be a great solution that I carry daily in my away game bag.  The E352 earphones match the E361 in build and quality and add a touch of style with an attractive wooden chassis.  The E352 do not include a microphone, so these will have to be used for audio only, no iPhone for me. Click through the break to see how the Arctic Sound E352 earphones stack up.


Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300 – Review

A number of years ago I wanted to begin moving toward having a “paperless” life. I was tired of being swamped by piles of paper. It was getting out of control. The first step in my trying to unclutter my life (it is still “in process”) was to purchase a high-speed scanner. I did a good deal of research and eventually ended up with one of Fujitsu’s products, a ScanSnap scanner. It blew me away. It had the ability to handle up to 40-50 pages at a time. It did two-sided scans. It scanned fast, Created high quality scans and…


Return to Castle Wolfenstein (2001, FPS): The Netbook Gamer

Every now and then we come across something that brings us back to the origins of our love for a hobby. For me and computer games, my first real love was Castle Wolfenstein for the Apple ][ in 1981. I have related that story more than once now, since I have reviewed the iPhone version of Wolf 3D, the iPhone game Wolfenstein RPG, and last fall’s franchise reboot Wolfenstein for PC, X360 and PS3. In between all of that, Activision released Return to Castle Wolfenstein in late 2001. In this episode of The Netbook Gamer I see how the game…


StarHunt for iPhone OS Review

I play a lot of hunt and find type games on my iPhone 3Gs.  Many of them look and run the same.  You use the pinch and zoom function of the iPhone OS to move around the screen searching for a items in a list.  While this can be incredibly fun it can be difficult to find the sometimes tiny items amongst the various screens. StarHunt takes the point and click adventure genre to a whole different level with stunning 3-D graphics, quick rendering and over 1,000 detailed still frame images. You task is to explore a house which contains…


Finger Physics Free for iPhone/Touch App Review

The number of puzzle games in the App Store is staggering. I have played or reviewed a fair amount of them myself. Many of the games are very similar with their own different twist. Once in a while we run across a puzzle game that is unique. Finger Physics Free is one such game. Find out what it is after the break.


JAVOedge Cherry Blossom and Cork Nook Cases Review

Now that the Nook has been around for a little while, some really great cases have started coming out to protect it in style.  When I saw the new lines of cases coming out from JAVOedge, I was immediately intrigued and couldn’t wait to get my hands on them!  Judie’s recent review of the new Croc cases for Kindle 2 only made me more eager to review the Nook cases. JAVOedge was kind enough to send me two cases from their Cherry Blossom Collection to review and keep for my Nook–the Flip Style Case in Twilight Purple, and the Book…


The Amazing Miniot iWood Cobra iPhone Case

When Larry posted about the Case-Mate Mohogany Wood Case, I was smitten — there’s no other way to put it. I loved the look of the rich red wood on the iPhone, and I was thrilled when he sent it to me after the review was complete. I used the heck out of that case, even though it added quite a bit of bulk to my iPhone, and even though it had a flaw which turned out to be fatal. It wasn’t evident from the beginning that the lack of a cutout might be a problem, but because the bottom…