… In 2 minutes … and in LEGOS! While for many May 4th is ‘Star Wars Day’ (because of the ‘May the fourth’ pun), for me it is a celebration that lands on the release dates of the original films. It might be hard for younger folks to get their mind around, but in 1977 seeing a film on the opening weekend wasn’t such a big deal as it is now. Sure you wanted to see cool movies soon after release for the usual social reasons, but my dozen or so viewings of the original Star Wars release were spread out over the year the film spent in theaters for its initial run. When… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I had speculated earlier that it would only be a matter of time until Puzzle Quest 2 would come to the PC and the iTunes App Store, but that it was being held back a bit to maximize profits by releasing it for the XBOX360 and Nintendo DS first. Turns out I was right based on a new press released from Namco. Here is the text of the release: The Sequel to the Award-Winning Puzzle Quest Fights Back with New Adventures and Features SAN JOSE, Calif.–Namco Networks, a leading publisher and developer of mobile, iPhone and PC games for mass-market casual gamers, will launch the PC version of Puzzle Quest™ 2 in North Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Dan and I had the pleasure of meeting Seesmic’s developer Loic Le Meur back in January at CES.  We both tried the Twitter client on the desktop and on our Nexus Ones running Android and we were impressed. As promised then Seesmic is now available for the iPhone OS and it’s a nice effort at creating an iPhone Twitter client.  It runs smooth and quickly and offers additional Facebook and Ping.fm integration (the company bought Ping.fm earlier this year) as well. Seesmic for iPhone also lets you save important messages and updates by storing them to Evernote in one tap.  I haven’t seen this in other Twitter clients and it’s a nice… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It has been a week of notebook deals from our GearSponsor so… why stop now… The HP Pavilion dm4t is just 1″ thin and weighing only 4.4 pounds yet it packs a Core i5 processor and much more. As it explains over on the LogicBUY site- the HP dm4 is the perfect balance between power and mobility. Its new design is wrapped in a brushed aluminum chassis with cool etched patterns. Battery life is expected to last up to 6.5 hours. Also features chiclet keyboard, Dolby Audio/Altec Lansing speakers, integrated DVD player/burner and TruVision Webcam. Optional upgrades include ATI discrete graphics, GPS, Bluetooth, Mobile Broadband and more. The base configuration of the notebooks specs… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

My search for the perfect iPad case came to an abrupt halt last week when I realized that, more than with any other device i have used, the “right” case for the iPad is going to depend on how you use the device and what you are doing with it at that moment. For example, if I am watching a movie on the iPad I want a case with an integrated stand. If I am on the go with it I want a case with built in screen protection while if I am leaving it on the coffee table I will likely want something that leaves the screen open and accessible. There is no “perfect” iPad… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

(All photos courtesy Mazda) As I look at the new front fascia for the 2010 model year MAZDA3 I wonder if designers found a little inspiration from CGI artists working on the latest Alice in Wonderland movie. Perhaps the two parties share a favorite pub and the latter left some napkin sketches lying around as carelessly as an Apple employee? Grinning from ear to ear like the Cheshire Cat, the new MAZDA3s still embody that all familiar “zoom-zoom” marketing philosophy while offering value, quality and a truly nice driving experience for the segment. Love it or hate it though, Mazda says the new bold design was intentionally polarizing and was achieved through a new design philosophy of “Nagare” or flow. And this car flows. Since going to the single digits for its vehicle designations, Mazda proves it is capable of delivering automobiles worthy of the consumer dollar. On a grand scale, MAZDA3, in both four-door sedan and five-door hatchback versions, delivers. Big time.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Skyfire already turned smartphones on their sides when they created a browser that played flash video. Even on a tiny screen, being able to watch full episodes of tv shows and other flash based video is a big convenience when you are on the go. But if you don’t want to use Skyfire’s browser, or your device doesn’t support Skyfire, you’re stuck. Not for long, though, if Skyfire has anything to say about it. They are working on a product that will let manufacturers use the best parts of Skyfire, like the video capabilities, but overlayed on a device’s native browser. No word on if they have anyone signed up yet, but this sounds like a great… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

With three young girls I’ve been subjected to countless viewings of the Disney Princess movies, been to Disney World multiple times where I waited in line after line to see the fairytale characters up close, even had breakfast, lunch and dinner with them while there.  Hey I’m not complaining about it, as long as my girls enjoyed it that’s all that matters to me. That being said if Disney had used artist’s J. Scott Campbell’s drawings for the basis of their characters they probably could have tapped into a whole new market and made me happier too.  At the very least all those adults waiting in line around Disney’s parks, watching the movies etc. would be just… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

(image courtesy TechCrunch) I received this email from a Gear Diary reader, and unfortunately I don’t currently have a Windows Mobile phone. If anyone can help him out, please offer suggestions in the comments! Hi Carly, I always check out your posts on Gear Diary and find your perspective refreshing and honest. Since you are so involved with researching different techie toys and have a lot more background information than I, I was wondering if with your post on Mobile 6.0-6.1 Marketplace, if you found or encountered stories of this not loading and allowing one to buy apps. I have a T-Mobile Wing (antique I know) and I have had no success loading and Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I am REALLY enjoying Soldak Entertainment’s Din’s Curse, the recently released game I mentioned here and here. Now Jay Barnson (aka Rampant Coyote of Rampant Games) notes in his blog that a thread at the Soldak forums notes a Din’s Curse ‘Mini Tournament’. Here are the details: Ok, let’s start our first mini tournament. Today we are playing Gilbert a Trickster / Ice Mage who is currently trying to save the town Chullu. Din has left Gilbert a mortal. When he dies he really dies, so be careful. The goal of this tournament is to see how high of a level everyone can get this character to and of Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I really enjoy the TV show “Eureka“.  It’s light and fun (for the most part), and it feeds into that love that I have (along with a lot of geeks, if personal experience is anything to go by) of aliens-have-come-and-the-government-is-covering-things-up conspiracy theories.  The most recent episode I watched had the bowling team challenging Our Heroes, for example. Well, now there’s an iPhone app to feed that desire, being offered for an MSRP or $2.99 on iTunes from Apalon.  This app provides info and updates on aliens and UFOs from various sources.  I haven’t tested it myself, but if you’re a UFO kinda person, you might want to check it out. Full… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Remember the iWatch?  The design received a ton of press over the internet when it was shown a few weeks ago.  ADR Studio, an Italian design house, posted a great render of what an Apple iWatch might look like. Now the designers are back with an official iWatch commercial. See the video below. This just makes me want it even more.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It is small. It is thin. It is light. It gets up to 12 hours of runtime. And it’s not an iPad. No the Lenovo ThinkPad x201 is anything but an iPad and if you want a full laptop (rather than an anemic netbook) but don’t want the weight and bulk of one the X201 may be just the thing. It weighs in at under 3 pounds, runs either a Core i5 or i7 processor and can run for up to 12 hours with the optional 9-cell battery. It is one small… but impressive… machine. The base specs for ThinkPad X201 include- Core i5-520M 2.4GHz; 12.1″ WXGA LED Panel; Wireless Broadband upgradeable Intel HD Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It was a part of every single episode of the HBO series “Sex And the City.”  No not a steamy Kim Cattrall sex scene, okay most had those to, but I’m  talking about Carrie Bradshaw’s Mac laptop computer. The laptop, with it’s iconic Apple logo, was featured in every episode of the show.  As a writer the Carrie Bradshaw character player by Sarah Jessica Parker uses her laptop to write during each episode.  One entire week was even devoted to a story line which focused on the laptop being wiped out and replaced with a new Mac Book. But Carrie has switched from Mac.  It seems HP has struck a deal, and… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It seems Twittering might have put Chicago chef Rick Bayless in trouble with the White House. Bayless, who is the Chef at Chicago’s Frontera Grill and Topolobampo, is in Washington, D.C. to prepare Wednesday night’s State Dinner to honor Mexican President Felipe Calderon.  Chef Bayless was so excited about the trip he started tweeting about it Monday. But the chef’s tweets abruptly stopped Tuesday after the White House reportedly put the kibosh on the news blasts, according to the Sun-Times’ Lynn Sweet. Sweet has since updated her story to reflect comments made by Bayless, saying he didn’t tweet from inside the White House. But it appears the on-message White House does have a moratorium on tweeting from inside the Pennsylvania Avenue kitchen. Staff Continue reading on Gear Diary …