Interesting quote of the day from BlackBerry CEO John Chen, who is quoted as implying that apps don’t matter, that BlackBerry could be the Porsche of smartphones. Does history teach people anything? Perhaps I’ve been dozing the past two years as BlackBerry market share has completely nose-dived – largely due to a lack of applications.
If you’re a BlackBerry Messenger (aka BBM) user on iOS or Android, then the newest update – version 2.0 – is going to bring some welcome enhancements. Beginning today you can participate in BBM voice calling, BBM Channels, location sharing (powered by Glympse), pictures, voice notes, attachments and even DropBox. BBM groups can now be up to 50 people in total size. More info – BBM
I’ve overall been quite pleased with my Lumia 928 Windows Phone. In fact, almost all of my complaints are hardware and not software related (the screen is far too fragile, and the phone has some earpiece issues). What I like about the software is that it’s constantly improving, and the new Nokia Black/Microsoft GDR3 update brings some excellent new features!
A coworker came to me recently for advice about buying a tablet for his family, one that he and his wife could use and share with his toddler. Specifically, he wanted a way to create timed parental controls, and he wanted to make sure he was right in believing the Kindle Fire was a better fit than the iPad.
Thorstein Heins is the recently ousted CEO picked from the internal ranks of executives in January 2012 to succeed BlackBerry company founders Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis as president and CEO of BlackBerry. Heins’ tenure might be considered a failure because he followed the business plan of the failed prior executives.
The UE BOOM from Logitech is one of the standout portable Bluetooth speakers we have had the chance to review. The $199.99 speaker looks great, is tough as nails and, best of all, sounds awesome. Check out our review here and update news here. Just in time for Valentines Day you can customize the speaker.
Today we got confirmation that Google sold its money-losing Motorola handset business for about $3 billion to Lenovo. Google bought Motorola for $12.5 billion a couple of years ago, then sold off the set-top box unit and now the handset division. With the sale Google retains many of the valuable Motorola patents it sought initially.
Dan likes to tease me that when we’re together working, he never sees me wearing headphones; he says he just doesn’t see me as the type person to wear them. Well Dan, I may use them differently than you do, but I most definitely do wear headphones. These days the Harman Kardon Soho headphones are my favorites; here’s why …
With much of the country in the grip of some of the coldest weather we have experienced in years I thought of one thing: Do you have to go in to work? With current technologies allowing you to work almost anywhere with no issues are snow days a thing of the past? For myself and many like me that is the case.
It seems everyone who reviews Windows Phone 8 loves it, they just “aren’t in love with it”. And Nokia Q4 2013 sales figures show a product category limping so badly it couldn’t eek out a sales gain during the recent holiday quarter. No doubt Microsoft will keep pushing Windows Phone, but is that enough?
Back in October, word began to spread that Samsung was looking at integrating some type of authenticity recognition chip into all official accessories. Without this chip some advanced functions such as wireless charging, sleep/wake functions may not work on third-party accessories.
I really like my Nokia Lumia 928, but it has a hardware bug that’s giving me more than a bit of a wandering eye. There’s an issue with the earpiece affecting at least some users where the sound cuts out during calls. Speakerphone, Bluetooth, and the headphones all work fine — just the earpiece fails. Worst of all, it comes and goes!
We’re not sure if the earjax Echo by BodyGuardz intentionally look like large salt and pepper shakers, but they do indeed look like something you might see at a diner. Rather than add flavor to your food however, these shakers are all about music taste. $79.99 each, the earwax Echo pack some interesting features into a small footprint.
Look at the Skooba Design website, and you’ll see an assortment of high-quality east-west bags — meaning they are wider than they are high, and they hold laptops in landscape orientation. The north-south Skooba Design iPad/Tablet Courier V.3 is a departure from tradition, and it’s an impressive addition to the Skooba lineup; we’ve been using one and we’re impressed.
If you are looking for a speaker that offers big, bold, impressive sound… Stop reading and move to the next article here on Gear Diary. If, however, you want something simple, inexpensive and easy to use, the Nude Audio Move S Wired portable wired speaker may be the perfect speaker or speakers for you.
We recently took a look at the SanDisk Connect Wireless Flash Drive. It is a great accessory but one that is not without its flaws. The good news is that its big brother, the SanDisk Connect Wireless Media Drive, answers many of those shortcomings. It is a simple way to add 32 or 64GB of storage on the go!
I recently purchased a new case with a bluetooth keyboard for my Nexus 7. After a while, I really started to like using the keyboard. There will be a full review of the case coming but I wondered: Could I use it to write posts here on Gear Diary? The answer is yes! However, it does have some quirks.
One of the things I love about CES is that it gives me an opportunity to wander aisles filled with products from companies that I might never have discovered otherwise. Tucked in an out of the way area that we almost didn’t explore, Dan and I found iFace; they make some of the best-looking protective cases available.
Technology Predictions for 2014 are here and it’s a predictable theme – new ways to offer the most popular tech. We put a lot of value in technology and media, so we don’t feel important unless we’re doing something with it…and quickly. Here are some predictions for tech trends in 2014.
Judie and I have long been fans of Element Case and their various offerings. After our visit with them during CES 2014, that is more true than ever. Their cases are gorgeous, their offerings are expanding, and their philosophy permeates every aspect of their brand. Here are some images and videos from our time at the booth.
During CES 2014 Parrot introduced the MiniDrone. The small, less-expensive app-powered drone makes an immediate impression and looks like a ton of fun! Connect it to a smartphone or a tablet with Bluetooth Smart and watch it take flight. I asked the “pilot” to use Judie as a landing zone for the MiniDrone. They were happy to comply.