I’ve had a fun time over the last few weeks reviewing all the items ingear was kind enough to send me. Today we’ll look at the last of the bunch- the Polarize Shell for the iPhone 4. This case combines full body protection with a slick-looking design that allows the Apple fan-boy in you to show off that Apple goodness logo. Like all the ingear cases I’ve reviewed this one also comes with a screen protection kit which includes one crystal clear screen shield, a small cleaning cloth and a card to help you install the shield.  Considering just how affordable all the ingear cases are this is truly awesome of… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

This will come as no surprise to anyone who has read the seemingly endless stream of Tower Defense genre reviews I have done in various places over the last couple of years, but when I had the chance to take a look at PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe for the PSP, I jumped at the chance! The game was already highly regarded from the PSN release for the PS3 in early 2008, so it seemed likely that the game would be a great fit on the PSP. The Hype: Be the defender of the forest and defend the pathway of your home base from an onslaught of various threatening monsters. In between waves… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

In the immortal words of “Master” from MasterBlaster, “Embargo lifted.” I hate press embargoes. Many who saw my initial feature last week on the 2011 Ford Explorer probably won’t even see this update, but for those that made their way back, thank you. I will now dive into my experience with and impressions of the “SUV of the 21st century.” (And I thank Ford Motor Company for giving me the opportunity to drive a V-6 version of its competition, the Jeep Grand Cherokee against the new Ford Explorer. My JGC review model last month was the HEMI version and I kept wondering what the new Pentastar powertrain would be like. Again, thanks.) Once… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

There have been loads of things released surrounding the 25th anniversary of the video game character Mario, including the cool looking special edition red Wii console, which I mentioned on a couple of occasions in terms of special deals! But largely I have let them pass by because they were simply press releases. But now something has come along that is sure to please anyone who has ever enjoyed playing a game containing the crazy plumber – Super Mario All-Stars Limited Edition! The Super Mario Bros games have been hugely successful for years across every platform Nintendo ever released, and now the classic NES origins of the game have been… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I have made no effort to contain my disdain and contempt for the Spike Video Game Awards.They are self-congratulatory attempts at making popular video games seem like movie events, to the point of being focused mostly around movie stars and other red-carpet mainstays rather than those who spend their lives making video games. However, perhaps due to the popularity of the show for the young male target audience, game publishers are starting to use the event as a sort of winter spring-board to announce new titles. This year we get a few big sequels: Mass Effect 3, Prototype 2, and Elder Scrolls: Skyrim. Let’s take a quick look at all three -… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

For the last few months, my Alienware laptop has been spending a lot of time attached to the HDMI cable of our big screen TV, as we have made great use of Hulu+ and streaming Netflix to provide entertainment on our own schedule, since the kids’ activities kill our ability to watch things when the networks air them. So as a ‘surprise’ I am getting a Roku as a Christmas present. As a result I was very interested to learn that Roku had just announced a new firmware update that will specifically target Hulu playback for optimization! Here is the list of changes according to a post on the Roku Forums: Here Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Like any good admitted fanboy, I often find myself looking for Apple products on TV. Lately I’ve been spotting more and more iDevices popping up on many of the shows I watch. So I’ve decided to start a new weekly segment entitled “Apple On TV.” The premise is simple. Whenever I spot an Apple product in one of the shows I watch (and I watch a lot of TV), I’ll take a screen shot of it and post it here, in a weekly recap, with a short description. But I need your help too! Although I watch a lot of TV I don’t watch everything. So if you come across an Apple product in one of… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

One of the things that’s made me crazy about the iPad is not what it can or can’t do, but rather the timidity that many book and magazine “adapters” have shown in utilizing the technology of the new platform.  For example, Wired trumpeted their iPad application, but it was a huge disappointment. But a few people are really trying to expand the reading “palette”, as it were–using the linking, multimedia, and other capabilities of a computer that are now available in a hand-held form in HD.  They NY Times has done a decent job in transferring their content to the iPad format.  Even better has been the app The Elements, which I found… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Last week Plantronics showed off their new Voyager Pro UC. I have used, reviewed and love the Voyager Pro headset and the upcoming new Voyager Pro UC intelligent headset with sensor technology takes it to the next level. The headset includes new sensors that bring with them some great new features. Among the new features that the headset will introduce thanks to the sensors are… Smart call routing The Voyager Pro UC knows if it’s on your ear and routes the call to the headset or handset as appropriate. As the company explains For example, you leave your headset in your backpack, get a call on your mobile, just pick up the Continue reading on Gear Diary …

A few weeks ago Thomas and I wrote about our ongoing debate regarding which MacBook Air to order. I started with a base 11″ MBA, moved to ordering a loaded 11″ version and then, after some back and forth with Thomas, ended up getting the 13″ MBA. He did too. It is an awesome machine and I thought I was done with my search. Then Judie had to get into the mix. She got an 11″ MBA and called it “my second best tech purchase ever… after the iPad.” Coming from Judie that is high praise and I realized that the 11″ just might deserve a second look. So right before we left… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I don’t know about you, but definitely one thing that gives me the warm fuzzies during the holiday season is helping other people less fortunate.  And this particular holiday season, there’s more of them than usual, thanks to high unemployment and the bad economy.  So as you’re plowing through the list of folks to give to, you might want to consider contributing to the Fresh Air Fund, which helps get kids out of the city and into (wait for it) fresh air. I know you’re probably getting a lot of solicitations for help this holiday season, but all we’re asking you to do is give the Fresh Air folks some consideration, too.  Thanks… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I love an All-In-One desktop. They look great, take up less space and can be used in a variety of different ways in numerous different settings. In fact, I even saw one at a hotel being used as the means for guests to checkout the other day. Lenovo’s high-end 23″ Lenovo IdeaCentre A700 All-in-one Desktop PC fits this bill perfectly. (In fact I think the one I saw the other day WAS from Lenovo.) The IdeaCentre A700 features an “ultra-thin stylish design with 23-inch 1080p display equipped with Webcamera”. It will come as no surprise that it is available in a number of different configurations so let’s look at two of them and the… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I think it was Mark Twain who said something like, “It’s a good thing cats don’t have hands.”  Well, this is the iOS gaming world, my friends, and it don’t matter if they do or not! In the new HD iOS game Cats Inc.,  you’ve got those perpetually hungry, always curious, never satisfied beasts to herd.  Your goal?  Getting sausages.  (And let’s face it:  it’s a lot less silly a goal than trying to, say, get Sonic to grab rings.  Heck, I had a cat who once stole an egg roll off my plate.  Once she had it she had no idea what to do with it, but you get the picture.)  30 levels… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

So my week’s vacation is coming to an end. The bags are packed, the flight confirmed and the skies have opened up and are pouring on the island where it never rains. My head is clearer save the all-you-can eat and drink Sunday brunch we just visited… Or is it fuzzier… And as a result I have the rare gift of… Perspective. This week gave me the chance to catch up with family, catch up on old Gear Diary posts that other members of the team have written and check out some of the comments that others have shared on the site. I’m impressed by the majority of the post comments… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Welcome back to the GearGames weekly video game release feature here at Gear Diary! You know how you threw out all of the Thanksgiving leftovers a couple of weeks ago when they started stinking up the fridge? That pretty much sums up this week’s releases! Not that everything is bad, but it is all small stuff, things delayed multiple times, or otherwise stuff no one cares about much. The big release this week is Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam arriving first for the PC, following up for the XBOX 360 and PS3 next week. This is not a full expansion, but a DLC. The main game is still very… Continue reading on Gear Diary …