About MY Gear


Greg’s Gear- Devices I Use Daily

Here at GearDiary, a lot of us writers test out new products all the time. But with all of the awesome items we see & review, I figured I’d throw out a few of my favorite daily drivers that I use the most.


Software Defined Radios Are the Future

Software defined radios are radios that are defined, primarily, with software. What does this mean? That means instead of needing a circuit to do the job, a portion of what the radio normally would do has been replaced by software. Want a different mode or even a frequency? Update the software. This has forever changed how radios are built.


Is Your iPhone 5 Screen Lifting Up and Away?

Due to a problem with my billing address and the popularity of the iPhone 6+, I have to wait another month to get my phone. That isn’t a huge problem in the grand scheme of things, except I have an issue with my iPhone 5 screen lifting! The top side of my screen is literally lifting away from the phone. 


Things We Used to Care About: the Graphing Calculators Edition

When I started college in 1989, I was going to school to get my Bachelor’s Degree in Electronics Engineering Technology. Graphing calculators were brand new; before that, we had Texas Instrument calculators as well as Casios, and my first weapon of choice for busting out math problems was an HP 28S. Do you remember?



100,000 Miles of Memories in My Prius

My Toyota Prius and I hit a major milestone last night-100,000 miles! I have been counting down excitedly for months, and it hit me this morning why this means so much to me. It’s not about the mileage, but about the memories and amazing life changes that so many of those miles mean.


TravelTeq Mirjam Leather Shopper Laptop Bag Review

It’s easy to find structured, businesslike leather laptop bags, but when you want something a bit more casual and feminine — yet still made of leather and stylish — options become limited. That’s why it was love at first site when I found TravelTeq Mirjam Leather Shopper, a handmade brown leather laptop bag that can double as an everyday tote.





Seagate Backup Plus Fast Portable Drive Lets You Take 4TB On the Go

I love my 15″ MacBook Pro with Retina display. Judie loves her 15″ MacBook Pro with Retina display, too. We both hate the fact that the drive capacity is just 500GB. It is a constant frustration. Seagate’s new 4TB Backup Plus Fast Portable Drive is an amazing way to take 4TB with you; I wish I got this years ago.




What is the Oldest Piece of Tech That You Still Use?

You’d think we’d use nothing old with the pace that new technology moves, which got me thinking: What is the oldest piece of tech that you regularly use? Mine is my Azden PCS-6000 2m mobile amateur radio, which I use at home; it was released in 1989. There’s no reason to replace as it still works well! How about you?  




HP Omnibook 300 at 20: A Retro Tech Look-Back

As we look forward to new technology, sometimes it is instructive to look back to our favorites. I recently looked at the Iomega Zip Drive, but now I want to highlight one of my all-time favorite laptops: the HP Omnibook 300. This laptop was built by the calculator division rather than the PC division and remains one of the best.


Think Those Pricey Glass Screen Protectors Are a Ripoff? Think Again

Numerous companies now offer tempered glass screen protectors to protect your smartphone or tablet; they’re quite pricey — some may think too pricey. If you are one of them, you may want to reconsider your conclusions after I share my experience. You see, as I went to grab a jacket yesterday afternoon I dropped my iPhone. I NEVER do that …


A Request for Reader Input and Advice Regarding My Gear

Here on Gear Diary we often review new products and, sometimes directly and at other times indirectly, we offer recommendations. This time out, I’m turning to all of you for guidance and input: which laptop I should use on a series of upcoming trips. Here’s background on where things currently stand and what kind of input I am seeking.


Give My Yad a Hand – Technology Meets Tradition

That great source of Jewish knowledge Wikipedia describes a yad (literally “hand”) as “a Jewish ritual pointer, popularly known as a Torah pointer, used by the reader to follow the text during the Torah reading from the parchment Torah scrolls. Yads can be made from silver, wood or any material. Mine, however, is something Moses could never have imagined. Since the Hebrew of the Torah has no vowels or punctuation, the yad allows the reader to track from line to line more easily. In addition, the yad prevents the reader from touching the parchment while reading. This is important since…