State of the eBook: The Winter Freeze

(if you’d like to vote, head to Gatekeeper’s Post now!) Welcome to another State of the eBook! Hopefully, you’ve had some good books to keep you warm this winter (and not in the book-burning way). Despite the quiet hardware cycle, we’ve had some big developments behind the scenes. What started as a sleepy winter may lead into a fairly explosive spring! Why is that? Read on to find out! Android: This is a bit of a mixed bag right now. On the upside, it’s looking like the Xoom will be hitting stores by the end of February, not to mention…

Editorials

Seriously People, You Want Something for Nothing??

The most exciting thing I saw at CES was the Motorola Atrix. Taken on its own it is a nice Android handset that, running a dual-core processor, screams. Taken in the context of all its accessories, from the laptop dock to the media cradle, it is an amazing piece of technology. With the Atrix and its accessories your phone can effectively become the brain for ALL your computing. What was not clear at the time was when the handset would be released and what it would cost. Well the word is out and, once again, the response proves that there…

Gear Bits

GD Quickie: Torture Your Cat? There’s an App for That!

photo credit: Trish Hamme Off&On/FlickringSlowly/ThankYou When my Siamese cat Shika was alive I would often play with her by shining a small flashlight on the wall in a dark room. Shika, always on the prowl, would then try to swat what she thought was a fly. I thought it was hilarious… My spouse found it less so. Well fast forward to A.i. (after iPad) and there is a whole new way to “play” with your cat. And we aren’t just talking house cats. No we’re talking king of the jungle cats.

Reviews

iPad Accessory Review: DigiPower Coffee Clutch Carrying Case and Stand

Are all iPad cases starting to look the same to you? If so fear not, the DigiPower’s Coffee Clutch will break you out of your “iPad-case-alike doldrums” with ease. The case/stand takes an unusual approach to protecting the iPad while adding an ever-present stand and a great “grab and go” handle. Let’s take a look. From DigiPower: The Coffee Clutch is both a versatile carry case and a lightweight portable stand. Its unique and fun style makes it a must-have accessory for the iPad. Among the features: Easy to use on your desktop or on your lap Grab and go;…

Reviews

Bluetooth Vibrating Bracelet Buzzband MB20 Review

Sometimes you might have your phone in a pocket or in your gear bag. That’s not too bad if you have the phone’s ringer on, but what if you forgot to turn it on? That’s where the Buzzband MB20 comes in. The Buzzband MB20 looks like a fairly simple device that can help you keep that ringer off but still be notified when you get a call. To get started, the first thing you have to do is pair it up. To do that, all you have to do is press the only button on the band until its LED…

Gear Bits

GD Quickie: The Continuum of Caring

I just heard someone say ‘I could care less’ … and for some reason it drives me insane! So, as a public service I am putting this up as a reminder: ‘I could care less’ means that you could, in fact care less. I couldn’t care less, on the other hand … The image is one I always have at hand since I found it a long time ago … sort of like ‘Captain Obvious’ and the tin-foil hat ‘conspiracy’ guy.

Reviews

TrueHDR for iPhone Review

I have been a fan of HDR photography for a few years. One of my first projects when I purchased a DSLR was to learn the basics of taking these kinds of photos. High dynamic range photos are a combination of a range of different exposures to make the entire photo look as if it is lit properly. With my camera, I take three photos. One that is under exposed, one is over exposed or blown out and a third that is the normal photo the camera would take. The photos are then sent to a computer application that combines…

Gear Bits, Reviews

GD Quickie Review- Atomic9 RumbleBuds

When I was asked if I would take a look at the Atomic9 RumbleBuds I was intrigued. I’ve had the opportunity to check out a wide range of different kinds of earbuds but these were the first that claimed to be “gaming” earbuds that give you a “totally immersive, deep-reaching soundscape you love about your games and music.” Let’s take a look GD Quickie-style… From the Company- Just because you’re on the go doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice that totally immersive, deep-reaching soundscape you love about your games and music. Feel the good vibrations of subwoofer-style bass wherever you…

eBooks, Gear Bits

Anne Frank’s Life As a Graphic Novel? Yes, Please

all photos courtesy of Smithsonian Magazine When I was growing up, one of my most beloved books was a translation of Anne Frank‘s Diary. Then and now, the story of her life before her family went into hiding and what happened after they were betrayed evoked feelings that are impossible to describe. In 2007, my daughter Sarah and I visited the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam. If you are ever in Amsterdam, you must go … simply must. Ernie Colón and Sid Jacobson, the duo behind The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation, again teamed together and accepted the “challenge of…

Reviews

The Notion Ink Adam Unboxing and Initial Hands-On

So the day has finally come for the Notion Ink Adam to become a reality. On pre-order day I ordered myself a Pixel Qi WiFi model and my brother a LCD WiFi model. Unfortunately due to some broken hardware reported during initial shipping, mine has yet to even post a ship date. Today the LCD model arrived on our doorstep and so far I can tell you it was worth the wait. After all the bad mojo Notion Ink was experiencing, I think the tablet was well worth the wait and heartbreak, well at least as far as I can…

Music Diary, Reviews

Music Diary Notes: For the Love of Drumming – Bill Bruford Autobiography

I have been reading drummer Bill Bruford’s autobiography lately after reading an article announcing it at AllAboutJazz. I had thought about doing an actual review, but the WAY in which I read the book told me I should do it differently. This is a true autobiography – not like one of those unattributed, ghost-written Sarah Palin books. The style varies between academic, allegorical, conversational, formal and casual. The writing won’t have you shelving your James Joyce (I had actually just finished re-reading Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man … so there was a bit of a difference). But…

News

Turn Your iPhone/iPad Into a Grandfather Clock; SBSH Launches Cuckoo for iOS

SBSH Mobile Software has released Cuckoo. Cuckoo has been available for S60 phones and now it is available for iOS devices. In fact, in the first few months it was available on the S60 platform it was downloaded by more than half a million people. The idea of Cuckoo is rather simple – it gets your iPhone/iPad to chime hourly. It runs in the background and, like a grandfather clock, lets you know when another hour has passed. Here’s the App Store description… Keep track of time with Cuckoo! Turn your iPhone or iPad into a grandfather clock or electronic…

Reviews

iPad Case Review: iSkin Aura for iPad

I have a new favorite case and it comes from iSkin. It has the familiar (and personally favored) folio styling. It looks good and feels great in the hand. Its styling is conservative enough for using the iPad in a business setting yet stylish enough that it is anything but boring. And, despite its seemingly simple design, it offers tremendous flexibility with regard to use. Yes, iSkin’s aura for iPad has it all… Including a high price tag. So is it worth it? Read on and decide for yourself. Bear in mind however; “I have a new favorite case and…

Game Diary, Reviews

EA SPORTS Active NFL Training Camp Wii Game Review

Fitness fans can experience physical football all year long by tackling this Wii exclusive game with friends, online alone, or try the NFL Combine 60 Day Challenge.

Gear Bits

GD Quickie: Politics and the Power of Image Cropping

What is going on in Egypt is powerful and scary stuff, and I don’t seek to demean it in any way. Nor do I seek to diminish or trivialize anything that happened or is currently happening in Iraq. However this contrast of images is simply stunning. The image above is a split of top down pictures of supposed ‘democratic revolutions’, one in Egypt right now, the other from 2003 in Iraq. In the upper left of the lower image we see the focus on the toppling of the statue of Saddam Hussein – this was the widely shown image at…

Gear Bits, Vehicles & Gear

Scion and XLR8R Update City Guide App

Here is a bit of info Gear Diary received recently regarding a Scion-related app update. It is not a Scion owner-specific app, rather it’s one that seeks to enhance the lifestyle of the Scion demographic. The City Guide app now offers more than 15 locales in the database, but Dallas/Fort Worth, who is hosting the big game this weekend, is not among them. I did check out the Austin guide as I was visiting the capital city recently, but the place we had dinner and drinks at (The Highball) was not listed. It was a cool restaurant/bar/nightclub/bowling alley complete with…

Gear Bits

GD Quickie: Can You Guess Who Is Buying Google’s Priorities?

When I first heard that Google wasn’t going to auto-complete searches for Bit-torrents and other file sharing methods I was pleased. But then it became clear that it was less a matter of taking an anti-piracy stance, and more about satisfying the corporate interests of those who feed Google loads of cash. So this image was very telling – and it also shows where the priorities are at Google … if you have the cash, you get to set the moral compass. Source: Techi via Buzzfeed

Gear Bits

GD Quickie: Yeah, it IS That Kind of Day!

For a large part of the country, this image pretty much sums things up. It is from the stretch of I-93 on the New Hampshire side – 93 runs from Southern NH straight into downtown Boston and is one of those infamously clogged highways. For more images, check out page at BuzzFeed!

News

Guns Don’t Save Lives; Skin Guns Save Lives

Now THIS is an amazing use of technology for good. Did you know that the current method of helping burn victims through skin grafts takes weeks or months to heal but that can be brought down to literally an hour? It’s true and a National Geographic program will focus on the innovation that makes it possible. The “Skin Gun” takes stem cells from a burn victim’s healthy skin (not the controversial kind) and mixes them with a solution that then allows doctors to literally spray new skin on. Apparently it is LITERALLY like spray painting but with a far more…

Reviews

Arctic Gear Review Pt 1: P531 USB Powered 5.1 Surround Sound Headset

I’m pretty particular when picking out my PC gaming gear. I have been through a pretty good amount of hardware over the years and keep up my life cycle of gaming gear. Arctic sent us out some gear to check out and review a few weeks ago. I had a chance to check it all out and see how it fared on a few solid hours of Call of Duty Black Ops for the PC. I had a chance to check out some gaming oriented hardware including 2 headsets, a mouse, and a standard slim profile keyboard. Arctic offers some…

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