Amazon, it’s time to release a Kindle for Android app. Maybe you’re working on one in secret, but why not let people know? You had a coming soon sign hung for the Blackberry and Mac apps for months before those appeared, but not a peep about Android support. And Amazon MP3 is heavily featured on many Android phones, so it’s not like you’re fighting with Google. This is a subject I’ve ranted on before, but in light of the ebook market changing with the entry of the iPad it bears a second view. What really perplexes me is that you’re just leaving money on the table. The HTC Evo, Nexus One, Moto Droid, HTC… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

SPB has had their SPB TV product out for WIndows Mobile devices for a long time, and it’s always been considered an excellent app.  Recently they released it for the iPhone – something many people were eagerly anticipating.  Let’s take a quick look at this latest release for the iPhone!… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

If you use Twitter, chances are you’re familiar with the tradition that is #Follow Friday. For those of you who aren’t, every Friday Twitter users compose a Tweet to their followers which consists of a list of the “cool” people they follow, and it serves to suggest that they follow them too. While I do like the concept it, can become taxing to compose these weekly Tweets, trying to remember who you shouted out the week before, who did for you, etc. The Follow Friday application, available in the iTunes App Store for 99 cents takes all the guess-work out of #Follow Friday. The concept is super-easy… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I ranted a few weeks ago about Audible’s lack of Android support. While there’s not much I can do about that, there is another option the next time we are heading on a big road trip: Simply Audiobooks. This service bills themselves as being the “Netflix of Audiobooks”, and it sounds pretty cool. They also offer a download service if you’ve sworn off CDs forever. eBooks are usually my beat, but I’ll be testing out Simply Audiobooks service and reviewing it here. For all you audiobook fans out there: Is there anything I should be testing or looking for in this service? Share any questions or thoughts in the comments, and I’ll address them… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

As a gamer, gadget-hound and someone who has been a reviewer of games on a variety of platforms for nearly a decade, I frequently get questions about games and gaming systems. These range from ‘what system should I buy my kids’ to ‘how do I get by this boss’. But yesterday I got one that really stopped me in my tracks. Here are the basics: So my next problem is, I went to go play my psp for the first time in a few months and I could not find the charger. I can find the usb wire so I was wondering if I could charge my psp through the usb drive. If so, can I Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Looks like it has been a busy week for Spring Design! Not only are they finally shipping the Alex Reader, it’s gone international! They have announced a partnership with a Spanish company named Grammata to sell the Alex with Spanish language titles. It’s a fortuitous turn for Spring Design that the same day they are announcing and committing to an international Alex Reader, Apple is delaying the international iPad launch! Grammata to Distribute Alex eReader, Create Online Bookstore for Spanish Speaking Markets Worldwide Grammata to Offer Spanish eBooks and Alex eReader, the first dual screen multimedia eReader based on the Android OS Alex eReader now available for Spanish Speaking Markets Alex eReader from Spring Design Continue reading on Gear Diary …

IK Multimedia, the folks who bring you various flavors of the Groovemaker mixing software for the iPhone, are currently offering a free version of Groovemaker for the iPad.  IK Multimedia sez of this software GrooveMaker for the new iPad offers the exact same smart functionality and streamlined workflow as the iPhone/iPod Touch version, for making music with loops, extending it to a whole new level thanks to the larger multi-touch surface – which is like using GrooveMaker with an advanced integrated controller. Right now, in addition to their various paid apps, IK Multimedia is offering a free version of Groovemaker for your iPad.  So if you’re a music mixmaster type, maybe it’s time to… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Image courtesy of Wikipedia OK, so maybe by the title revealed my opinion is, but why would anyone want to go from what is one of the most beloved and highly regarded games as 1994′s X-COM UFO Defense: And change it up – ‘re-imagine’ is the in-vogue term – into an action-shooter like this: Here is the description from the web site: XCOM is the re-imagining of the classic tale of humanity’s struggle against an unknown enemy that puts players directly into the shoes of an FBI Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I love internet radio. I love the simplicity and the variety. And I love the wide range of options that are now available for accessing streams. The newest is Grace Digital Audio’s Allegro Portable Wireless Radio & Streamer. And it looks great if you are in the market for an  internet radio. The Allegro provides a superior sound quality with easy access to thousands of radio stations, on-demand programs, and podcasts around the world. It features an 8 watt digital amplifier and a triple power option that lets you use an AC adapter, 6 regular AA batteries or rechargeable batteries. More importantly, it provides access to over 17,000 radio stations, 20,000 plus on-demand programs, and… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

For those of you who haven’t given up on the Kindle and switched to the iPad for reading eBooks Speck has brought out some interesting cases for the Kindle 2 First is the Dust Jacket.  This one has a plush interior so it won’t scratch your Kindle and an integrated stand.  Available in Black Leatherette and Red. Second is the Fitted for Kindle case.  This case is a hard shell case that is form fitted perfectly to your Kindle 2.  It looks like you can leave your Kindle in this 24/7 since it has openings for every control… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Apple released new MacBook Pros yesterday that finally include Quad Core processors. I suspect HP yawned and said, “Heck, we’ve had them for months.” Then they saw the price and laughed. You see, the 13″ didn’t get the option of a Quad Core and the lowest price on the 15″ is $1799. And that is for an Intel Core i5! The lowest priced notebook with a Core i7 is $2199.00. HP, on the other hand, offers their Core i7 sporting HP dv6t for $1149.99. But it gets even better since our Gear Sponsor has found a deal that gets… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

If you have spent any time on a project team in a corporation of any size, you have likely used tools such as decision analysis (or DA in Kepner-Tregoe speak), fault-tree, DMAIC, and so on … now you can apply some of those tools to figuring out whether to eat that cupcake that just fell on the floor. Of course, those of you with kids, pets or both know that there are multiple dynamics involved – more than are captured on this diagram, so that perhaps using a PPA (Potential Problem Analysis) or doing a ’5 Whys’ exercise or filling out an Ishikawa (fishbone) diagram for analysis might be necessary … or you could just let… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Sorry for the delay, I know that some of you have been on pins and needles. So let’s get started … As of today, the final package consists of the iPad on its own, valued at $599 plus tax; four Astraware titles – OddBlob, Solitaire, Sudoku and the soon to be released Casino; a Hard Candy Bubble Sleeve For iPad; an e.ez LA robe iPad Allure; a Skooba Design Cable Stable DLX, $500 in SCOTTEVEST dollars, and a Clear Coat for iPad. The combined total for all items in this package is $1200+. Continue reading on Gear Diary …

One of the things that is clear about Evernote is that they never stand still. Like clockwork there is one update or another pretty much every week. Evernote for Mac sees some sort of update on a regular basis and, more often than not, it is a notable improvement, the same goes for the iPhone app. And the iPad app that was available at the launch of the device… Awesome. It is really quite impressive. Better still is the fact that it saw a meaningful update earlier today. Less frequent are the updates to the actual service itself but when they do happen they are significant. For… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Inside this bag resides the key to peaceful car trips with the kids. Seriously. If you’ve ever crammed the family into your personal vehicle and driven hundreds of miles you know that the addition of an in-car entertainment system makes all the difference.  Something about watching a DVD makes kids able to sit, comfortably.  But unless your kids have headphones with which to listen to their movie, you, the driver, is forced to endure hours upon hours of High School Musical, One, Two and yes, even Three. Travis recently reviewed the Kidz Gear Wired Headphones.  Kidz Gear was kind enough to send along both a pair of their wired headphones as well as… Continue reading on Gear Diary …