Reviews

Nook Touch Cover Review: Oberon Design Large and Small Sleeves

Reviews

Nook Touch Cover Review: Oberon Design Large and Small Sleeves

The Hype: For those that like to use their E Reader without a cover, we’ve designed the Oberon E Reader Sleeve with extreme portability in mind. Lighter and thinner than our E Reader Corner Cover, our sleeve fits easily into a purse, backpack or briefcase. Our sleeve is leather lined and our magnet closure ensures the security of your device. We designed our sleeve so that the magnetized strap is on the front of the cover and our signature Britannia pewter strap attachment is on the back to avoid any potential scratching of the E Reader screen. All of our…

Fiat's New 500c Cabrio: Now THAT'S Italian!

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

Fiat’s New 500c Cabrio: Now THAT’S Italian!

Move over MINI, we got the real Italian Job right here… Fiat is taking the ‘New World’ by storm and the hottest thing since the Vespa scooter has landed in America – the Fiat 500c Cabrio. The first “Nuova Cinquecento” debuted in the summer of 1957 as a cabriolet model and offered a distinctive canvas roof that opened right down the middle to the rear of the vehicle. Fast forward 54 years and Fiat builds on the brand’s spirit of building world-class small cars that ignite a “spirit of the times through simple design.” Sporting unique but modern Italian styling,…

Nook Touch Cover Review: Oberon Design 'Tree of Life'

Reviews

Nook Touch Cover Review: Oberon Design ‘Tree of Life’

I had written about my nifty new Nook Touch a couple of months ago, and it has really become my constant companion for ebook reading. My family got me a basic cover from Barnes & Noble that clips in the device and closes with a magnetic strip. It gets the job done, but not nearly as stylishly as the cover my wife and son have on their Nooks. So when I had the chance to check out the new covers specifically for the Nook Touch by Oberon Design, I jumped at the chance! Let’s see how the new cover in…

iPad and iPad2 Accessory Review: Aligata Premium Leather Sleeve

Reviews

iPad and iPad2 Accessory Review: Aligata Premium Leather Sleeve

Our friend Tom from Aligata leather goods has done a great job of expanding his line of leather cases for the iPhone, iPad and other assorted devices. We took a look at his first iPad case well over a year ago. We also reviewed his Leather Envelope for the iPad. After that it was his iPhone sleeve that we focused on. Then, back in March, we took a quick look at some of the items that would be expanding the Aligata line. This is the first of a few of the new Aligata items we’ll be looking at; the Premium…

The Skooba Design Cable Stable Mini Review

Reviews

The Skooba Design Cable Stable Mini Review

Even with so many devices going toward the microUSB “standard”, I can’t help but travel with a minimum of three different types of cables — and sometimes more than that. My phone uses microUSB, my iPad has its own Apple connector, and my camera is miniUSB. When packing, I also need to bring along the battery chargers for my camera and MacBook Air, along with a few other miscellaneous doo-dads. You may recall that I reviewed the Skooba Design Cable Stable DLX early last year; while I have found it to be an excellent solution when I need to bring…

Audio PlayerReview: The JLab Wave Waterproof mp3 Player

Reviews

Audio PlayerReview: The JLab Wave Waterproof mp3 Player

A few weeks ago we took a look at the Monster Cable iSport waterproof headphones. They are pricey but sound great and are, in fact, truly waterproof. They are machine washable!! If you don’t need the same level of audio quality but still want waterproof headphones JLab’s Wave headset is worth a look. While the Wave is not machine washable it IS waterproof and has the huge advantage of not requiring a separate mp3 player. You see, the Wave IS the mp3 player. It MAY look like a pair of in-ear headphones connected by a ridged neck wire but the…

Seeing Greater Things for New FishEyes Smarter Rod and Reel with Underwater Video Camera

Reviews

Seeing Greater Things for New FishEyes Smarter Rod and Reel with Underwater Video Camera

I have to admit that many items I review do not receive much thought after I post their story, but after spending a short time with this new FishEyes Rod and Reel With Underwater Video Camera I realized here was an item with much broader usage. Sure, this is a unique product that every father needs to bring along on a fishing trip with the kids to enhance their experience while you do your best Bill Dance or Jimmy Houston impression, but I began seeing other opportunities for FishEyes. While it really only looks in one direction (down) as I…

Mac/PC Game Review: Din's Curse: Demon War (PC/Mac RPG, 2011)

Game Diary, Reviews

Mac/PC Game Review: Din’s Curse: Demon War (PC/Mac RPG, 2011)

Nearly a year ago I reviewed Din’s Curse, praising it for offering loads of fun and tons of gameplay. I summed up as follows: Soldak has once again created a great RPG that encompasses many familiar things but brings us something new and challenging that lends itself to a fun and fresh gaming experience. The core of the game is wrapped around a dynamic world loaded with quests, and that in itself will be enough to keep you coming back for more. Now they are back with an expansion to Din’s Curse called ‘Demon War’. To put it simply, it…

360 Panorama for iPhone/Touch/iPad2 (Splurge Edition)

Reviews

360 Panorama for iPhone/Touch/iPad2 (Splurge Edition)

Anyone who follows the Blue Plate Special knows I love camera apps. There are so many good apps for the iPhone camera it is difficult to keep up with them; I actually forget about some of mine since they fill three folders. There are several apps I have that make panoramic type photos or that stitch photos together, but I recently found a really cool panoramic app that allows you to share an actual interactive 360 degree view quickly and easily straight from your device, called 360 Panorama. Let’s take a look. You will not be disappointed and will love…

Earbud Accessory Review: Acoustibuds and Acoustigrips

Reviews

Earbud Accessory Review: Acoustibuds and Acoustigrips

(Editorial note: Try as I might to get useful images of these products for some reason it just wasn’t happening. Therefore you will see mostly stock images in this review but they ARE representative of the actual products.) We’ve been looking at a lot of different earbud and headphone offerings lately. A number of them, like the YurBuds, the Monster Cable iSports, SkullCandy FIX earphones and the AblePlanet SI350 headphones are targeted toward use during active sports and exercise. We learned of two offerings from Burton Technology, Acoustibuds and Acoustigrips, that, while not audio products in and of themselves, seek to…

The Stump Stand Review - Sometimes Simplicity Is Best

Reviews

The Stump Stand Review – Sometimes Simplicity Is Best

Sometimes the simplest accessories are the best accessories. That’s right, something it doesn’t need to be complicated for it to be remarkably useful. That’s the case with this new tablet/eReader stand The Stump. The Stump is what it claims to be – it is a stump of rubber. It looks like a tree trunk that’s been cut down at an angle. It’s simple. It’s not exciting. Best of all, it does the job. Here’s a quick look and a chance to win one. Truth be told, there isn’t a whole lot to say about this accessory. Let’s let the company explained…

Stylish New Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Lacks Finesse, but So Did All the Others At First

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

Stylish New Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Lacks Finesse, but So Did All the Others At First

The Korean automakers have gotten into the hybrid game finally and the first models to market from Kia and Hyundai are on the shared midsize sedan platform of Sonata and Optima. Recently I spent some time with the former sporting what Hyundai has dubbed its Hybrid Blue Drive system. During the time I had the vehicle I was noticing some blogs reporting steering issues and a technical bulletin issued by the manufacturer addressing some torque-steer issues with certain Sonata and Optima sedans. I found this interesting as no sooner than I headed out the driveway I found myself pulling over…

Gear Games Review: Rude GameWare Fierce 3500 Wireless Gaming Mouse

Game Diary, Reviews

Gear Games Review: Rude GameWare Fierce 3500 Wireless Gaming Mouse

A few months ago I reviewed the Rude GameWare Fierce Gaming Mouse 2, declaring “It is perfectly weighted and balanced without feeling so game-specific to be useless in a business setting.” Now Rude GameWare is back with a wireless version called the Fierce 3500 Wireless Gaming Mouse. I will give a quick highlight of features, a summary of whether or not I liked it, but mostly focus on a video review. The Hype: Free yourself from the chains of wired gaming mice forever! The Fierce 3500 Wireless Gaming Mouse gives you the performance and features you demand without being tied…

The SanDisk Ultra 8GB USB Flash Drive Review

Reviews

The SanDisk Ultra 8GB USB Flash Drive Review

I collect thumb drives.  At least it seems that way, as I have a whole bag of them.  One of these days I’d like to replace all of the smaller ones with one larger one or a few larger ones.  This 8 GB SanDisk Ultra flash drive is my second 8 GB flash drive and one of my favorites.  Let’s take a look at its features. Speedy – Faster file transfer speeds Stylish – Attractive slider design houses your data in style Secure – Store your private files in a password-protected and encrypted vault on the USB flash drive Added Protection…

iPhone 4 Power Gear Review: PhoneSuit Elite Battery + Case

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iPhone 4 Power Gear Review: PhoneSuit Elite Battery + Case

I’m a big fan of iPhone battery cases that combine protection and extra battery life into a single package. Since the release of the original iPhone, we have looked at a number of these hybrid case-batteries, and today we’ll take a look at PhoneSuit’s latest offering: the PhoneSuit Elite iPhone Case. The company is not stranger to this kind of battery case, and their experience shows in both the Elite’s design and its functionality. From PhoneSuit: The PhoneSuit Elite iPhone Case extends the battery life of the iPhone by more than doubling its power capacity. Users can now experience up to two…

Gear Games News: Star Wars Jedi Knight II Comes to the Mac App Store

Game Diary, News & Features, Reviews

Gear Games News: Star Wars Jedi Knight II Comes to the Mac App Store

It has been just about a year and a half since I did a retrospective review on Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, concluding: Jedi Knight II has aged very well. The graphics scale nicely on new systems, but it also performs as you would expect an 8 year old game to run – flawlessly. The gameplay is missing some of the new mechanics such as sprinting that have become commonplace, but otherwise retains a tight and modern feel. The melee combat feeling Raven software developed has yet to be surpassed in any game in any genre since. For…

Review: Griffin Beacon Universal Remote for iOS

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Review: Griffin Beacon Universal Remote for iOS

It looks funny. It does exactly what it promises. And, at least for me, it is in the running for “iOS Accessory of the Year”. Okay, I’m exaggerating a bit but I’m pretty serious about how cool I think this iOS hardware/app combination is. The Griffin Beacon is the universal remote on steroids. With this odd piece of plastic powered by four AA batteries and a free download from the App Store I have taken my Samsung HDTV remote, my TiVo remote AND my Apple TV remote and put them away. Now all I need is one of my iOS…

Review: Sena Folio for iPad 2

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Review: Sena Folio for iPad 2

One of the first high-end leather cases I had the opportunity to review for the original iPad was the Sena Folio. It was made from gorgeous leather, was beautifully crafted and actually looked better as it “wore in”. Sena offers two different Folio cases for the iPad 2 in addition to the Florence that we have reviewed recently. One of the Folio offerings, the Sena Folio Classic, maintains the same style as the original but adds the magnetic sleep/awake functionality. The additional design goes by the simple name “Folio”. It offers three different positions thanks to two built-in stands but…

Able Planet SI350 Sport Earphones Review

Reviews

Able Planet SI350 Sport Earphones Review

Headphones… We’ve check out a bunch. Some have impressed us. Some… Not so much. So when a new pair of headphones come on the market we want to check them out. And when they come from a company we know we are even more interest. That’s the case here with the new offerings from Able Planet. Judie introduced Able Planet to Gear Diary readers in this post way back in 2008. Mike looked at pair of their gaming headphones in this post. And Judie checked out a pair of their headphones with active noise cancellation here. I met with the…