Misc Gear

Has Technology Made Us Obnoxious or ‘Fun’?

The roll of smartphone users is increasing exponentially, and perhaps not surprisingly the amount of people ignoring what used to be common courtesy has also increased. What I DO find intriguing is that it is extremely likely that many folks who complained about people speaking loudly on cell phones years ago are now doing exactly that themselves! From a Yahoo report of a Reuters survey: “The poll of 2,000 adults revealed that most U.S. adults wished people practised better mobile etiquette and found the lack of cellphone manners extremely annoying, even though about 20 percent admitted to poor etiquette themselves….


The Phosphor Appear Watch Combines Retro Bling with Cool Tech

I’ve been trying to wrap my head around how a watch that “[miniaturizes] the “flip-dot” technology found in bus signs and train depots” works, because it just seems so fantastically futuristic and yet so retro at the same time. What I do know is that Phosphor, the company behind the intriguing eInk watches we previously reviewed, has just released a big, bold and more than a little bit blingy watch that appeals to me on several levels. I like watching the crystals flip over to show the time, the seconds, or nothing at all in these .gif’s, so I can…


In the Sea of Sameness- Sony Seeks to Swim to the Top

The consumer electronics world is a “sea of sameness”, and that’s not a good thing if you are an electronics company. “Sea of sameness” is the term that was used numerous times during a private briefing with the number of Sony’s executives. The issue is this: You walk into a box store such as Best Buy, and you go to the back of the store. There on the wall you find high-definition television, after high-definition television, after high-definition television. They all look pretty much the same, and they all pretty much have the same price points. Some are a little…


The Swingline Stack-and-Shred Has Arrived!

Not that you needed any further proof that I was a dork, I mean geek, but I found myself unnaturally excited when FedEx dropped off this package earlier today. Inside is the SwingLine Stack & Shred, a crosscut shredder that allows you to feed up to 100 sheets of paper at a time by lifting the lid on the front and laying the items to shred inside the tray. Stack, Shut and Go. The Swingline Stack-and-Shred technology is built for busy executives, small and home office users and anyone who wants an easy and efficient way to personally shred. It…


SPICE: 40 Years of Open-Source, Circuit Simulation Goodness

If you ever designed a circuit you used SPICE … or you never really designed a circuit. When we think ‘open source’ we think Linux or Android or some other recent operating system endeavors. But imagine for a second that not just these systems but the hardware used to run them is all derived from circuits designed and analysed using an open source program created as a student project back in 1969! Here is a quick summary showing why SPICE is so important to electrical engineers, which is inscribed on a plaque at UC Berkeley’s Corey Hall which was dedicated…


The Keurig Mini Plus Personal Brewer Review

Given the long hours I spend editing and writing, there are a few things that I need to have available at all times: a good desktop or laptop computer, a decent camera for taking pictures, a comfortable chair, and an ever flowing source of caffeine. The refrigerator behind me takes care of my Diet Cokes, I have a canister of dark-chocolate covered coffee beans on the counter, and lately I’ve been using the Keurig Mini Plus Personal Brewer system to handle my coffee and tea requirements. As the company explains: · The Keurig brewing system offers a coffee house quality…


Deal With SWAGG for Deals, Gifts and a Lighter Wallet

Sometime ago I moved most of my credit cards over to an application that is stored on my iPhone and my iPad. The application is highly secured and encrypted, and it allows me to have all of my credit card information with me all the time without having to carry the credit cards themselves. I love using the app, and I see myself doing this more and more. This thing is, my credit cards aren’t the only cards that I carry. I also carry an assortment of different store cards and gift cards. For example, I was recently given a…


Check Out Larry Greenberg’s New RunAroundTech Site!

One of the great things about writing for a site like Gear Diary is the crew – I love reading all of the different insights and viewpoints and interests. Former editor Larry Greenberg contributed some really cool things – his Apple on TV, Smash or Trash, YouTube reviews, destructive reviews, and other fun things have always been a blast to watch & read! Larry has maintained his active YouTube site, and now Larry has a new tech site of his own Here is his welcome: Welcome to Run Around Tech. We’ve been chasing down the technology you crave behind the…


Swingline Introduces the Stack-and-Shred, So You Can Keep Your Secrets Hidden

Are you one of those people who sticks your insurance finalization forms in the trash? The kind who tosses bank receipts, deposit slips, paid utility and credit card bills in the bin? Do you make jokes about filing important documents away in “drawer #13”, but you really mean the overflowing bucket under your desk? If so, then you are also the type of person who is simply begging for their identity to be stolen. Yes, really. The solution is to shred those documents as they leave your hand, before they make their way into the garbage. Don’t even let them…


Announcing the Winner of the Amplicom Alarm Clock

Congratulations to SLNew, the winner of the Amplicom Alarm Clock! His winning entry: I would love this for my father. At 84 his hearing is failing and he complains that standard alarm clocks don’t wake him any longer. Check your email for more details, and I hope your father enjoys the alarm clock! Remember, for everyone who didn’t win you can purchase your own Amplicom Alarm Clock here.


GD Quickie: Pay No Attention to the ’60 Minutes’ On Your Flip Mino HD

I love my Flip Mino HD, I really do. Since getting it I have used it extensively, capturing tons of our kids’ activities and so on easily and without any fuss. There are no accessible settings – you just record and use the digital zoom. But until last week I never really pushed it. Sure I have had it run out of time on me, but that is after capturing a bunch of different clips, usually during the holiday school concert season. But last week both of my kids had lead roles in the middle school play. Based on last…


SCOTTEVEST Women’s Trench Review

When done correctly, a woman’s trench coat is the perfect jacket. A trench keeps its wearer warm, but it isn’t too heavy; trench coats are belted, so the woman wearing one gains an instant hourglass figure — whether she has one or not! The right trench coat can add instant sophistication to even the most basic outfit; but best of all, a well-cut trench coat can hide a multitude of figure flaws while taking an outfit from day to night. Scott Jordan let us know last October that SCOTTEVEST would be coming out with a women’s trench coat, and the…


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…


Valentine’s Day Gift Idea: Stylish Flip Video CamCorder

Even in a sea of sea of HD-recording smartphones the Flip line of video cameras still reigns supreme as the easy-to-use, affordable pocket camcorder. The cameras shoot high quality video, make editing easy and, perhaps best of all, let you capture memories without running down your phone’s battery. Over the last few years the Flip line of cameras has added something else: STYLE. You can now get the cameras with a variety of designs… All of which makes them a great gift for the person you love this coming Valentines Day. It gets even better though. You can now give…


CES: Oakley 3D Glasses

CES Day 1: Dan to Judie “3D TV is one of the big things this year… I just don’t get it.” Judie to Dan “I KNOW, me either…” Kevin (thinks, but does not say) “Phew, one less new gadget this year…” CES Day 2, Morning: Judie, Dan and Kevin spend time with Oakley to learn about, and experience 3D TV using their passive 3D glasses. CES Day 2, Afternoon: Dan to Judie “WOW, I take back what I said about 3D TV yesterday.” Judie to Dan  “I was JUST saying the same thing to Kev… I WANT!” Kevin (thinks but…


The BulletTrain Express Keyboard Platform; Thankfully Someone Was Listening

I have been using a Mac laptop of some kind for a relatively short amount of time — only since March 2008, but since then there has always been a MacBook nearby, whether it was the 15″ MacBook Pro, a first generation MacBook Air, a second generation MacBook Air, a 17″ MacBook Pro, or more recently an 11″ MacBook Air. I’ve been pretty vocal stating my opinion that Mac makes some of the best hardware available, even if I am pretty agnostic about whether their operating system is better than Windows or not. Beyond the all metal bodies and slimmer…


TikTok Creates an Evolved “iPod nano as Watch”

The TikTok Multi-Touch Watch Band that took-off on Kickstarter.com is now shipping. The goal was to raise $15,00 in pre-production pledges and, in the end, they raised over $940,000. With that kind of money and press it would have been kinda rotten if the actual product was … well, rotten. Well mine came today and it is anything but. This band actually makes the iPod nano look and feel LIKE a watch. It is easy to pop the mp3 player in, and it doesn’t feel all that bulky. The actual watch band is sturdy but soft and the hardware is…


CES Snippets: Jadu iPad Stand

I did a full review of the Skadoosh iPad stand from Jadu Industries a short while ago. At $69.99 it is on the pricey side for an iPad stand but the build quality, ease of use and awesome industrial design make it one of the most desirable iPad stands I have seen. It is, in fact, the stand I personally use at home now. While we were at CES I passed by the Jadu Industries booth and stopped to chat with the owners/reps for a bit. They are some great people who are committed to bringing thoughtful quality products to…


CES: Meeting with Timbuk2

At CES we met with one of our favorite gadget bag companies, Timbuk2. While with them, we got to see some of the bags and accessories they’ll be introducing this year. Not surprisingly, we were impressed with the continuing evolution and utility of their designs. We have reviewed several of Timbuk2’s bags over the years, and we were impressed anew by the design and quality of the bags being shown. Among the bags they will have coming out this year is the upcoming Command ($130, shown above). The Command won a CES Innovation award, and it is TSA-compliant so that…


CES: SanDisk Meeting

By now you have likely seen that at CES, SanDisk announced their amazing new 128GB Compact Flash Card, a size that still boggles my mind. Available later this quarter for a MSRP of $1499.99, this card isn’t for the feint-hearted. But when you consider that it wasn’t too long ago that a 5GB PCMCIA card retailed for $500 plus, the realization is staggering that this amount of memory is available in something so small. While meeting with SanDisk, I had the opportunity to take a look at their new CRUZER Slider which along with other features also has “error-proof insertion”,…


IoSafe Has Got My Back; Do They Have Yours?

Freshly arrived back from CES, I found waiting for me an IoSafe 1TB fireproof, waterproof, and — as has been demonstrated multiple times by this site (and many others) — a virtually indestructible SoloPRO Desktop External Hard Drive. I’m looking forward to setting up this beast and putting it to work protecting my data. Knowing that any files, pictures, movies and music stored on it will be kept safe — even if something unimaginable and catastrophic should happen to Kev’s and my home — gives me a peace of mind that is hard to describe. Check out the IoSafe site,…