I’ve always claimed a love for convergence devices but this one might be taking things a little too far. On the other hand maybe the folks at Y-Case are on to something here….. The company’s new iPhone stand, which is made from 100% silicone, is meant to hold the iPhone 4 in the proper angle for viewing movies and other multimedia content on your device while keeping your hands free for “other” activities.  I can’t however help but notice the similarity between it and a certain sex toy (link probably NSFW). If the new stand doesn’t take off this coming holiday season, then… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We start the week with a Gear Deal that can get you $150 web-use stackable coupon code for HP ENVY 15. The ENVY 15 is a 15.6″ LED Laptop that is just 1″ thick. At 5.18 pounds the laptop isn’t the lightest laptop around but it sure is powerful. It has Intel’s Core i5 processor, updated 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5830 discrete graphics, and up to 16GB DDR3 memory. (Yes, you read that right, up to 16GB of RAM.) The ENVY also has a Night Vision WebCamera, a 320GB 7200RPM Hard Drive, Wireless-N and is pre-loaded with Windows 7. And there is more… it even looks great. The laptop’s full metal case features a… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I’m currently testing the Lenovo ThinkCentre M90z, an all-in-one desktop computer. It has a generously sized 23″ monitor which also happens to be on the first non-Tablet PC touchscreen computer I’ve ever used. I’ve found so many reasons to like this computer, but there has been one caveat … it didn’t ship with a wireless keyboard and mouse. That won’t be an issue for anyone who takes a look at the ThinkCentre M90z specsheet (696 KB .pdf file) and likes what they see, however. If you order a Lenovo M90z and mention the coupon code M90ZGEARDIARY, on top of the currently running web specials, you’ll get… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We reviewed the ElementCase Joule iPad stand. We reviewed Lapwork’s iPad Space Dock. They look quite similar so it’s time for another episode of… Gear vs Gear. There is no question that the two stands derive from the same design concept. Both are a metal bar with a channel carved in the top to accept the iPad. Both have a metal leg that extends from it for holding the iPad stably in both landscape and portrait. Both have felt lining the channel… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

A few weeks ago I made a really dumb mistake. One of those, “I have been a geek for far too long to forget this” kind of mistakes. The easy to avoid, harder to fix kind…what happened? Read on and find out. It all started during a discussion in the “back room” here at Gear Diary, regarding Linux on netbooks and whether the OS really matters anymore.  Joel and Doug were arguing OS is less important these days, while Michael and I were of the opinion the learning curve and unfamiliar quirks would drive users into the loving arms of Windows 7 (and Mac OS X). Being the adventurous sort, I figured I’d install Ubuntu on my… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Welcome back to the GearGames weekly video game release feature here at Gear Diary! There are some big releases, but the obvious 800-pound gorilla choice for the week is the XBOX360 exclusive game Halo: Reach. I actually considered not featuring it just to be funny – you’ll be hard pressed to avoid it by mid-week – but I didn’t think everyone would get the joke! Many other high-profile releases have been shifted around to not conflict with Halo: Reach, but one that didn’t since it attracts an entirely different audience is Professor Layton and the Unwound Future for the DS. My wife commented that she hasn’t finished the last one yet! The other… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? According to this classic TV ad, it’s three. How many steps does it take to walk around the larger of the two lakes up here in Pennsylvania? Thanks to the a nifty but under-appreciated feature of the new iPod nano, I now know it is… … 4802. That’s how many of my steps it took while walking, according to the built-in pedometer on the nano. Sure the new nano is stripped down compared to its predecessor, but the more I use… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

A few months back I had reported that the popular (but fading) Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) Lord of the Rings Online was changing to the ‘Free to Play’ model. Well, as of this morning, the site has gone live. Similar to Dungeons & Dragons Online, even if you had an existing account previously you can re-join as a free player, and generally everything you had done will be stored and transferred (unless it is now part of a different service tier). Here are some details about the different levels of service: If you already own the add-ons… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

This year marks the 75th anniversary of Jaguar, a luxury British automobile company that saw life when William Lyons was seeking a name for a new sports car he had built. In 1935, the SS 100 became the world’s first Jaguar. Since then the brand has become synonymous with a blend of grace, elegance, power and agility.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Acme Made makes some gorgeous bags and device accessories and have now rolled out a new line of cases and covers for the Kindle, the NOOK, the iPad and more that all… provide users with highly protective and well-designed solutions for the growing audience of compact eReader and tablet users seeking fashion-forward protection. Here’s a quick rundown and the company’s description of each. The Hardback Folio- The Acme Made Hardback Folio offers a perfect blend of style and protection with a Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Just the other day I was commenting how I didn’t see the Kindle heading to Best Buy for a head to head against the nook, but clearly I was wrong. According to MobileRead, Amazon and Best Buy have announced that the big yellow tag will be stocking Kindles for the holidays, so whether you’re shopping for a B&N fan or an Amazon acolyte you’re all set. Unless, of course, you’re Sony. Why is this such bad news for Sony? There’s a few reasons. One, look at Sony’s prices compared to the nook and the Kindle. You can buy a nook WiFi for $149, or a Kindle WiFi for $139. Sony doesn’t stock anything… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

MacUpdate calls these ’12 Top Mac Apps’, and while that might be debatable, the pricing is still killer! Here is a full list of the apps included in the deal, from MacRumors: A few times a year, MacRumors partners with MacUpdate to promote their Mac application bundle deal. Their latest bundle delivers at least 12 Mac applications for $49.99 (a $443 value if all purchased separately) including: Toast 10 Titanium ($99.99) – popular disc burning utility and media to iOS-friendly conversion Live Interior 3D Standard ($49.95) – powerful interior design app My Living Desktop ($34.95) – add a video desktop and screensaver to your Mac Espionage 2 ($34.95) – encrypt and password Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I now officially use my iPad for pretty much everything. I use it for reading. I use it for writing. I use it for gaming. I use it for email. I use if for calls (via Skype or the Ooma app). I use it in place of my MacBook Pro most of the time. I even used it to lead services and preach during Rosh Hashanah services and it worked beautifully. (If I were Conservative or Orthodox using electronics on the holiday would not be an option but I’m not, so it was. Being able to flick the screen instead of having to flip pages spared my wrists the normal pain they have encountered over the… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

“You can always trust your car to the man who wears the (On)Star…” OK, I took a little poetic license with the catchy marketing tune from decades ago but full service gas stations where a driver can simply pull into and find directions or get a quick check under the hood have long disappeared from the American motoring landscape. Filling some of that void over the past 15 years has been OnStar, the driver assistance technology included in most (and now all) new GM vehicles driven off the lot.… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I can hardly believe it has been nearly a year since I reviewed Vijay Iyer’s Historicity. I marked that recording high on my list of ‘best music of 2009′, so I was hotly anticipating his next release. I wasn’t alone in my praise – at his official site, the description calls it “one of the most acclaimed albums of the decade, Vijay Iyer’s debut on ACT Music is a trio album combining his searing originals with a surprising batch of covers.” As a result, the new release ‘Solo’ has gained plenty of attention already – but is it worth buying? Read on and find out! The Hype: By now, there can be no… Continue reading on Gear Diary …