Gear vs Gear- Incipio Pearl Metal feather and the Incase Clear Snap Case for iPhone 4

Let me start off by saying, I usually love to carry my iPhone naked. (well always with a skin/screen protector on it…old habit from the stylus driven Windows Mobile and Pocket PC days). To me, one of the main reasons for getting the iPhone (any version) is that it is light, small, compact, awesome looking and feels great in the hand. Why would I want to hide all of Apple’s hard design work behind a case? Well I work outside quite a bit, and I get dirty … so sometimes I like to keep my phone protected. So to keep…

Reviews

Review: BodyGuardz Premium Scratch-Proof Transparent Film For iPhone 4

You placed an order and patiently waited. Now that iPhone 4 is in your hands, you are scared to actually use it and risk scratching the beautiful screen or the cool new glass back. Adding a case will help, but it will also cover up some of that gorgeous Apple design and make the device larger than intended. Even with the case, the precious screen is still vulnerable. Luckily, BodyGuardz have a scratch-proof film to protect virtually any device. So what is BodyGuardz? BodyGuardz are transparent skins custom designed to perfectly fit many devices. The material is used on automobiles…

Editorials

An Open Letter to Dell Regarding Their Undercooked Streak

Dear Dell, Can I ask you a question? Seriously, I promise it’ll just be between you and me. Here’s what I want to know and, please be honest with me… What were you thinking? Seriously Dell, what were you thinking releasing your reentry into the smartphone/tablet market with Android 1.6? How can you take high-end hardware, put old firmware on it and expect people to actually like this device? I mean, you put Android FRIGGIN’ 1.6 on the thing when phones are being released with Android 2.2. 1.6???? That’s just crazy! I love my iPhone, but I really want to…

eBooks, Editorials

Are e-textbooks the Next Big Market?

There’s no doubt that ebooks are taking market share from regular books, and the marketplace is getting very crowded with companies attempting to grab a slice of the action. e-Textbooks, on the other hand, have been a much tougher sell. The Kindle famously flamed out in various university trials, and it’s too early to tell if the iPad will be a success for studying. Still, it hasn’t stopped several companies from rolling out strategies to break into the textbook market. B&N has nookStudy, Macmillan has DynamicBooks, and now Engadget is reporting that Entourage (of the infamous dual-screened ebook reader) has…

Editorials

Droid X Gets the Lockdown: Does it Matter?

There’s been a bunch of stuff going around the web about the Droid X and the fact that it likely will not be able to run custom ROMS and may even be hard to root. I’ll try to describe, in layman’s terms, what this may mean to a prospective Droid X buyer. What is this root and custom rom thing? First, having root is like having the Administrator user password on a Windows machine or the root password on a Mac OS X machine or Linux machine. It essentially gives you the right to modify anything on the phone. You…

Editorials

Adventures in Customer Service FAIL … Jott Edition

A few months ago I canceled my subscription to Jott. Between Reqall’s powerful voice-to-text memory system and Dragon Dictation I found that I wasn’t using it all that much. After a time however, I found that I missed being able to Jott new appointments to my Google Calendar and new tasks to Toodledo so I signed back up. This time I opted for the plan that lets you record just 15 seconds. It is much cheaper and would work fine since I only planned to use Jott for quick tasks and appointments only. But there was a problem… Jott stopped…

News

Need Help Finding The Right Father’s Day Gift For Your Music-loving Dad? How About These…

Does dad love music? Do you love dad? Well Father’s Day is coming up, and if dad likes to get his groove on here are a few items you might want to consider getting him (or yourself for that matter…) Dad’s not wicked (we hope), but these noise isolating ear-buds from Wicked Audio are… Wicked Audio’s Wicked Little Buds are Design-forward, noise isolating earbuds that provide an edgy look and great sound. They are available at: EmpireBrandsInc.com, Amazon.com, Fry’s Electronics, Airport Wireless, and other select international retailers MSRP: $29.99 If you music-loving dad has discovered the Internet, let him…

Reviews

The Newer Technology NuGuard Leather Hard Shell for iPad Review

One of the first things I did after getting my iPad was purchase a screen protector, but it wasn’t long after that before I started thinking about whether I might need a case or not. On the one hand, a case would mean better corner and screen protection in the event of a fall; on the other hand, it would also mean extra weight and bulk added to my otherwise almost perfectly sized device. I liked the idea of a protective layer between the back of my iPad and any surface that I might lay it upon, which is why…

Reviews

ZAGG InvisibleSHIELD for iPad Review

When getting a new device, I always like to protect it from scratches, both front and back. Screens have become a lot more durable on high-priced devices, but even so, I get nervous. Further, some of these devices have high-gloss screens that can be hard to read because they are highly reflective and show fingerprints and smudges easily. ZAGG has been in the business of protecting mobile devices for several years now and have released a new version of their well-known InvisibleSHIELD for the iPad. The InvisibleSHIELD is available in two versions: front (screen) protection only and all-body protection. ZAGG…

Editorials

Is the ‘Netbook Era’ Drawing to a Close?

According to a report from CNET, an IDC report this week will show that sales of Intel’s Atom processor – which is dominant force in the netbook space – represent a smaller overall share of the company’s mobile processor space. The implication in the article is that since the Atom powers most netbooks, netbooks themselves are on the demise. The obvious question is … what does it all mean? Here are the basic details: In the first quarter of this year, Atom processors as a percentage of Intel mobile processors fell to 20.3 percent, compared with 24.3 percent in the…

Reviews

ReaddleDocs For iPad Review

There are a number of different ways to get PDF documents onto the iPad and then view them wherever you are. One of the best is ReaddleDocs. The developer describe the application adds, “a revolutionary PDF reader, file manager, and attachment savor for iPad. Let’s take a look. From the company, This is a revolutionary document viewer, file manager and attachment saver for the iPad. You can catch documents from any source you can imagine: PC or Mac computers, websites, e-mail, attachments, iDisk, Dropbox and any other online file storages, even iPhones. All files are saved to your iPad locally…

Reviews

Keyport Review: Good Things Come To Those Who Wait

The saga that is the Keyport key fob has finally come to a conclusion; and yes, it’s a successful conclusion at that. After months — years, actually — of waiting, several revisions, updated philosophy and updated direction, Keyport launched its brand new web site today, and most importantly is ready to begin accepting orders for their key fob. If you need some back story on what Keyport’s gone through over the last 3 years to get to where they are today, head here. I’ve been lucky enough to be part of a select group of individuals who were included in…

Editorials

The Approval of Readdle’s Scanner Pro 2.0 Raises Questions…

Scanner Pro is a powerful iPhone app that “transforms the device into portable scanner”. Just updated to version 2.0, the app adds GoogleDocs integration, camera stabilization, automatic edge detection and passcode protection. It costs $6.99 in the App Store but is a free update to existing users. With Scanner Pro 2.0 comes in handy when a hard copy document should be scanned and there is no scanner nearby. It lets people scan multipage documents, email them and even upload to Dropbox, Evernote, MobileMe iDisk or any other WebDAV enabled server. The application incorporates special algorithms to enhance image quality and…

News

HTC Answers Apple: “We will continue to embrace competition through our own innovation”

photo credit: recompose I know I wasn’t the only person who watched in bemused disbelief when news came out early this month that Apple was suing HTC, arguably one of the world’s most innovative smartphone hardware manufacturers, for infringing upon 20 of their patents. Almost immediately, Engadget had a list of every claim where Apple was crying foul, and they were kind enough to translate the jargon-filled legal lingo so that those of us without law degrees could understand that Apple was suing over items ranging from HTC’s use of “List Scrolling And Document Translation, Scaling, And Rotation On A…

Reviews

Ten Things We Like About the HTC Google Nexus One, and Five Things We Don’t

Judie: When Dan, Larry, and I attended Digital Experience, a product showcase at CES, there was one particular device that caught our immediate attention. Unlike all of the other gadgets and electronic items we saw on display and which were currently available for purchase, the HTC Google Nexus One was the one that we gathered around, drooled over, and all immediately made plans to order. Dan and I purchased ours as soon as we got back to our rooms that evening to be delivered FedEx overnight to my hotel in Las Vegas by Friday afternoon. Our experience would later become…

Reviews

PDAir’s Aluminum Case Increases the Droid’s Geek Factor Review

After several years of mobile device designs trending toward smooth, curving lines and symmetrical shapes, the Motorola Droid stands out. Sure, you’ll see lots of non-geeks carrying it, but from the angular design of the device itself to the style of the commercials Verizon developed to sell it, it’s clear that the Droid is intended to appeal to the technologically inclined. So, how does one take a geeky device like the Droid and amp the geek factor? You slap a metal case on it, that’s how.

Reviews

The AT&T LG eXpo Windows Phone with Pico Projector Review

This is a joint review between Jason and Judie. Jason’s comments will be in black; Judie’s will be in blue italics. I recently got to spend a few days with the AT&T LG eXpo. Quite honestly, the main attraction for wanting to use this Windows Mobile 6.5 packin’ phone is its ability to be used with a Pico Projector add-on for presentations, demos, or home movies. As misfortune would have it, the demo unit I was sent shipped without the Pico Projector. Arggggghhhhh! : -( I received the LG eXpo a little over a month ago. Just like Jason, I…

Reviews

Diving Into the Nokia N900

One of the devices that I most enjoyed seeing demonstrated at CES was the Nokia N900. This pocket computer’s impressive specifications, its solid build, its multitasking capabilities, a web browser that looked like it could take on the iPhone’s, and yes, I’ll admit it — the cool little widgets on its personalized desktops had me intrigued. But what I really wanted was to spend a bit of time getting to know one on my own. My contact at Nokia promised that she would send a review unit, and two days ago “mine” arrived. There was a bit of a FedEx…

Reviews

PDAir’s New Motorola Droid Cases Reviewed

PDAir makes cases and accessories for a wide range of mobile devices. Their products are typically well made and reasonably priced. We’ve reviewed PDAir cases on Gear Diary before, recently reviewing a couple of their iPhone 3G/3GS cases. So, when PDAir offered to provide Gear Diary with a couple of their new Motorola Droid cases to review, we said yes. As a still relatively new device, there is a fairly limited range of cases available for the Droid. Sure, you can pick up snap-on covers for the Droid at the Verizon store, but they don’t offer much protection for the…

Reviews

Otterbox BlackBerry Bold 9700 Defender Case – Review

This is a joint review from Thomas and Dan. Dan’s comments are in black, and Thomas’ are in blue italics. Dan – Thomas was kind enough to send me his Blackberry Bold 9700 a few weeks ago. I have an AT&T branded version of the phone. His phone, however, had one distinct advantage over mine — because it is on T-Mobile it has a truly inexpensive international calling and data plan available. So I brought it to Las Vegas with me for CES and then carried it with me to the wedding I attended in Cabo. Because the connecting flights…

How to Do It Yourself!

Having Problems Connecting to 3G on Your Nexus One? Here’s A Possible Fix!

So you’ve just gotten your shiny new Nexus One, but you’ve been plagued by some of the problems that quite a few other proud owners of the smartphone have run into over the past few weeks? If you’re using T-Mobile’s network, maybe you’ve been frustrated by frequent 3G connectivity drops (if you’re able to get full 3G speeds at all). Kevin Tofel found a workaround that may get you surfing at full mobile broadband speeds. The best part? It’s not a complicated “hack” or OS update. It’s merely a few simple changes to your Nexus One settings that could make…

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