Have you ever dropped a PDA or cellphone and had the screen crack? Have you had it up to here with Windows Mobile’s quirks? Well maybe, just maybe, this PDA is for you. What PDA can withstand drops and use in the rain? What PDA doesn’t run Windows Mobile or Palm OS anymore?? The Recon 400X. Now you might say hey I thought this PDA ran Windows Mobile. Well, it does. However, now, via SDG Systems, you can get a Recon 400X that runs Linux!
One thing I hate about Christmas morning is fighting the industrial strength “blister pack” around my kids’ toys. Hate it. Hate it. Hate it. (Did I mention I don’t like it?). If I use a razor to open this industrial strength substance, I risk amputation of fingers. Since I have twins, the fun is doubled and somehow the kids don’t understand “it will take Dad a minute to get this open”. They want the toy opened (a) Now! and (b) Fast. Enter the Open-It! – a safer way to open almost any type of packaging known to mankind.
The Almighty Wallet: Homers since the 14th century has used wallets to carry all kinds of stuff. Granted, back then they were called knapsacks (we call them laptop bags these days). With the invention of paper currency in the 1600’s, billfolds became popular. With the insatiable appetite for wads of currency preferable in rolled form, consumers embraced credit cards in a convenient stackable form. Wallets have become a staple for holiday gift giving and have changed little over the years, with the notable exception of the velcro wallet. The nice folks at ALL-ETT have designed a clever way to handle…
When I was a kid, computerized math tutoring came in the form of the Little Professor, an educational device made by Texas Instruments. While it was a fabulously geeky toy for my elementary school self, the Little Professor did have its shortcomings – all “he” could basically help with was addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Today, kids have it made. Companies like LeapFrog have made educational electronic toys available and accessible – even to toddlers. I am going to tell you about their new FLY Fusion Pentop Computer, which is marked as appropriate for ages 8 and up. Due to…
You know how there are certain gadgets that you just don’t think you’ll ever need until someone shows you theirs? And then you catch yourself going, “hmm…that’s pretty cool!” Well, you’ll find that tonight’s review falls into that category. Think about all the times you’ve bought a DVD, and while unwrapping the clear outer plastic you wondered to yourself why, in addition to the outer wrapper, there had to be a heavy plastic sticker across the top and front of the DVD. I’ve gotten in a hurry before and accidentally broken fingernails while trying to peel back these heavy stickers;…
I have always wondered about these devices and wanted to give one a try. Personally I have no need for something like this, but I can see where such a portable scanner could come in very handy. This is the Planon DocuPen RC800 Portable Scanner. DocuPen RC800 Features: – Rechargeable lithium-Ion Batteries – The DocuPen RC800 uses rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that allows it to remain perpetually charged without utilizing a separate charging unit. Once a user plugs the DocuPen RC800 into a computer’s USB port to download the scanned information, the scanner’s batteries are automatically recharged – Expandable MicroSD memory…
Sometimes the best definition of a gadget is something cool that you never knew existed. But once you find out about it, you have to have it. Even though you don’t need it at all. Mood Wrapz are that kind if product. Known as “a mood ring for your iPod, MP3 player, or cell phone,” Mood Wrapz are a great flashback to the 70’s for those of us caught between the LP and iPod generations. Besides a some minimal scratch protection, they are just the sort of fun accessory that serve absolutely no purpose other than to draw attention to…
Well, here I go again…tripping merrily into “Too Much Information” land, so that I can tell you all about a product which most females over 21 wouldn’t want to admit needing, much less using. It’s okay though, I don’t embarrass easily. So the deal is that I occasionally get painful pimples which can best be described as “cystic”. They aren’t whiteheads because they don’t get that distinctive white tip common to that type acne, and they aren’t blackheads either. They consist of a raised red bump which is tender when touched; and if I were to be so impulsive as…
[Judie’s note: This article is also currently running on Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com!, and it can be viewed in the original format (with even larger pictures) there. If you haven’t already checked out the many Windows Mobile software reviews on Clinton’s site, then be sure to visit soon.] If you read my biographical information on the Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com! Staff page, then you will see that I’ve been writing reviews of some type since the late 1990s. Likewise, if you read my blog entry over at Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine last month, then you read about how I…
He rocks in the tree top all a day long Hoppin’ and a-boppin’ and a-singin’ the song All the little birds on J-Bird Street Love to hear the robin goin’ tweet tweet tweet – Rockin’ Robin (Bobby Day) Here is a fun device that will open up a whole new world of nature?s best ? the symphony of birds singing in the morning. Vavolo sent along a Nature Observing Recording & Playback Device.
It never fails at the airport… I always observe some frantic person with their cell phone on life support status ? the familiar beep ? beep ? beep of a dying battery. While not as frustrasting as a dead battery in a car, having power to spare is a good thing. Of course there are disposable battery boosters conveniently for sale at a healthy markup (regularly $7.00 for $19.95) at the airport gift shop! Tekkeon has a solution for those in dire straits ? the myPower Go MP1500. Using four AA batteries, the MP1500 provides the emergency power needed for…
What smells like a vitamin supplement, sticks to you like glue, and may just keep you from becoming a human feast this summer? Well, the Don’t Bug Me Insect Repellent Patch – of course! 😉 According to their press release, the Don’t Bug Me Patch is “now available at major retailers nationwide, the effective and waterproof patch protects against bites from pesky, disease-carrying mosquitoes, gnats, ticks, chiggers, sand fleas and no seeums. The patch doesn’t contain DEET so it’s safe for children too.”
I wanted to share about my affection for a different set of gear… now we all love wireless stuff, cell phones, tablets, etc, etc. but I’m here to testify having POWER TOOLS are heaven-sent! One day, I’ll have a big workshop with table saws, compound miter saws, routers, cordless drills, jigsaws and all of the accessories like clamps, drill and router bits to build furniture to house all the gadgets acquired over the years! When we were remodeling our kitchen, there was quite of pile of construction materials and demolition scrap left over ready to haul to the local dump….
Here at GearDiary, Judie and the team simply love using and conversing with you as our participants, about the technology that we are blessed to come in contact with. We enjoy listening to our music to go, GPS that help us navigate over the roads and through the woods when we’re geo-caching, cameras and camcorders that capture our “WOW” moments that we can share on Flickr and You Tube, cell phones and smart phones that pull down our emails and allow us to tap into WiFi hotspots, laptops that are light and portable and don’t forget the DVD players and…
Spring is here and if you’re lucky to have a cubicle space that has a window view with authentic sunlight streaming in, it may still be frigid inside with the air conditioner running full blast. On such a nice day! Then again, I once worked at a start-up tech company where there was no heat during my winter of discontent. There were many nights of wearing my layered clothing under a down jacket. Although the old computer that was assigned to me was a wood-burning model, it emitted no heat to warm my freezing fingers. And we all know productivity…
We all love our gear – MP3 players, cell phones, portable gaming consoles, PDA’s, cameras, laptops, which all demand the use of electricity accompanied by the associated wires, cords and chargers that supply the lifeline needed to power our gear. When I go to a concert and see miles of cable strung across the stage, it’s a wonder musicians don’t trip over them. Unfortunately, seeing a miniature version of cluttered wires strung out across my work surfaces and hanging over the backside of my desk like some ugly artsy waterfall of wires mentally trips me out. Digital Innovations has come…
Fingerprints and face grease are a fact of life when using a mobile phone; and unless you are a fan of cloudy screens, you probably spend quite a bit of time wiping yours with a shirt tail or microfiber cloth. As well as that may usually work, nothing can really take the place of a good cleaning. But what’s the best way to clean an electronic device that has an inherent dislike for water?? Well according to Digital Innovations, it’s with a cleanDR Refresh Wipes for Electronics. I guess it was only a matter of time before an electronics cleaner…
The Energizer “Energi To Go” emergency charger for mobile devices and cellular phones is a gadget falls into the “When I need it, I really need it!” category. The premise is simple: Load the device with two AA batteries (Energizer recommends their Lithium batteries, but it works with any type of AA), plug in their cable, then attach to your mobile phone or PDA, and voila! The LED lights up, and you’re charging. (The speed and quantity of power charging will depend on the type of AA battery used.)
Dear Frustrated Windows User, Want to make my blood boil? Just tell me that someday, in the not-too-distant future, my refrigerator will include a computer that alerts me when I’m low on milk. Just tell me that someday my microwave oven will feature a computer that “senses” what’s inside and cooks it accordingly. Just tell me that someday my car will include a computer that lets it repair itself by “downloading” some kind of software off the Internet. The crazy thing is that there are scientists and engineers actually working on these kinds of pie-in-the-sky ideas. Don’t these eggheads know…
In my day job as a computer technician… one of the things I work with is computer data, moving files from one place to another. Depending on the situation, there is more than one way to move said data.? It could involve using, USB flash drives, making DVD-R’s, USB external hard drives, taking apart the computer and removing the hard drive to connect to another computer as a secondary hard drive. All these methods vary in length of time needed to complete the transfer. And as always, a direct A to B is the quickest way to get it done….
With apologies to Bob Dylan, have you ever felt like you were stuck in PowerPoint prison with the presentation blues again?* Most us have seen the overabundance of slides, with 9 point type, variable mix of fonts, sound effects and motivational video clips to fly like an eagle? Then again, for every 100 misuses of PowerPoint, there is that one person who understands their audience and is all about conveying their PowerPoint message in a clear, concise and compelling manner. These presentation warriors in the old days (post Kodak Carousel slide tray era) used to trudge through airports carrying the…