Why should the Palm Pre have all the fun when it comes to cordless charging? Well now, thanks to Powermat USA, just about any device can charge without being directly plugged into a power socket. And if you have an iPhone, iPod touch or Blackberry device, all you have to do to charge them is… well nothing, you just put them on the table. Here’s a look at this innovative system…… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Welcome back to the GearGames weekly video game release feature here at Gear Diary! Last week was strong … but this week is just crazy! Some highlights include Borderlands, a hybrid FPS / RPG / Co-op / open world / post-apocalyptic shooter that hits PS3 & XBOX360 this week and PC next week. Also huge this week – albeit with a younger audience – is Bakugan Battle Brawlers, the first game based on the very popular ‘catch em all’ style game featuring magnetic balls that transform into monsters.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I’ve carried smartphones for years, starting with the Palm Treo 650. While it has never been for business, nor has it been a dealbreaker if I couldn’t use one, I’ve always liked the convenience of having what amounts to a small computer in my pocket. Yesterday, I discovered just how helpful having one can be when plans change on the fly.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Dan recently posted about two neat additions to the iPhone UI. Here’s another! iDashboard for the iPhone is now available in Cydia. iDashboard mimics the Mac OS’s Dashboard application.  Dashboard allows the user to set up custom widgets for weather, clock, converting, etc.  There are thousands of Mac OS Dashboard widgets available. Currently the application only supports a clock and a calculator widget but more widgets will be available in the future. The application is still in beta but is available for testing via Cydia now. For more information check out this page over on modmyi.com. Via iPhonedesignz Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Autograph from Ten One Design is one of those Mac applications that you definitely don’t need but at just $6.95 it is definitely worth a look. For just a few dollars it adds some unique functionality to your MacBook Pro. Simply put, Autograph is a signature capture application for MacBook Pros and a variety of Waacom tablets. With it you can add a signature using one of the company’s Pogo Stylus or Sketch devices. While a finger will work, the Pogo “pens” allow you to actually add your initials or even a signature with a fair degree of accuracy. Let’s take a look…… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I know this may be a bit of heresy that might draw some major criticism, but I’m starting to think the iPhone interface is growing a bit long in the tooth. I mean, it was one thing when you had a page of stock apps and a second page of website shortcuts, but when you now have five, six, seven or even more pages of apps, flicking through page after page after page after page after page after page every time you want an app on that last page is more than a bit annoying. With other platforms offering different, and often better, user interfaces coming on strong, the iPhone and iPod touch interface starts to feel **gasp** old. Fortunately there are some good alternative options for navigating the iPhone available that can potentially take the experience of using an iPhone to new heights. Most, however, require you to be jailbroken. Here is a quick look at three.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I’ve oft heard the term “roll-out” used to discuss increased availability of various connectivity options such as 3G and WiFi but this was something new to me. I was driving home from a morning meeting earlier today when I stopped at a light. Looking down at my iPhone I saw this WiFi notification…… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Last night, Verizon started airing an ad on major TV networks with a new campaign, iDon’t, for the announcement of the new Verizon  Droid. The Verizon Droid is a highly anticipated Android device, rumored to be manufactured by Motorola and code-named as Sholes/Tao.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We all know how great the iPhone 3GS is. It is fast. It takes decent pictures and video. It has a gazillion apps. It has a huge amount of storage. IT. IS. AWESOME. But this surprised even me. TUAW is reporting that MONTHS after its release, shortages are still widely expected. This is mainly the case in the international markets where “there just aren’t enough iPhones to go around”. That is pretty darn impressive. And when you consider how many new phones have been introduced since the 3GS was released it becomes even more mind-boggling. Clearly the iPhone 3GS remains the one to beat, and so far, no one is coming close… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Larry was all excited to post about EyeTV’s easter egg that enabled streaming video from your Mac to your iPhone over 3G. Unlike Yelp which required the user to shake and shake and shake their iPhone to unlock the hidden augmented reality goodness, the EyeTV bonus was available by simply tapping the screen differently when warned about the lack of connectivity. It was neat. It was awesome. And it was something that, we all knew it was too good to be true… at least for very long. As Larry wrote in the post… I don’t expect this version to stay in the iTunes App Store for very long so if you’re thinking of picking up an EyeTV I’d grab the application here now while you still can. So last night Larry IMed me- “What do you think is the over/under on Apple pulling the EyeTV app?” I wrote, “Three days” He wrote, “I’ll take over… and if I win you send me the new iMac you are ordering on Tuesday when Apple tries to do an end-run on Microsoft.” Me- “And I get?” Larry, “Oops, gotta run…” Nicely played Greenberg! Well, it wasn’t three days. It wasn’t two days. … [...]

One of the advantages of having soft or virtual keyboards is that they can change depending on a given context. While Android has had this ability since virtual keyboards were introduced in the operating system in early 2009, it was improved with the Android 1.5 release released in mid-2009.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Cyber Clean is a cleaning solution that works like putty. You stretch it and apply it to dirty areas. Then pull back and the dirt comes along with the Cyber Clean. What happens next seems odd but the directions claim it’s safe to roll the Cyber Clean so that the dirt is absorbed. No word on how many times you can do this before you create the worlds largest ball of dirty putty. For cleaning tough spots like hair dryers or screens I could totally see this. Cyber Clean Continue reading on Gear Diary …

In talking with people that send text messages (SMS), one of the most frequent things I hear is that they wish they could save some of their SMS messages. Many of them have lost their messages forever if their phone is damaged/replaced/upgraded, or they run out of room and are forced to delete them. There is a very useful application for Android called SMS Backup that helps you save your SMS messages to Gmail so you can keep them forever.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Here’s a gamer Geardeal that will be of interest to any Xbox fans looking to upgrade. Pre-order a Limited Edition Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite 250GB Modern Warfare 2 Console for $399.99 – 10% off coupon code: 10%OFFMSSTORE (expires 10/21) = $359.99 + $4.99 shipping. Included in this preorder is an Xbox 360 Elite with 250 GB storage, two wireless controllers, wired headset, standard edition copy of Modern Warfare 2. Preorders ship on or about November 10, 2009. Xbox 360 Modern Warfare 2 Limited Edition via GearSponsor Logicbuy Continue reading on Gear Diary …

On the newly announced Accessibility at Google site, there was a blog post highlighting the application Talking RSS Reader for Android. Talking RSS Reader for Android is an application which reads your Google Reader articles to you.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …