It was rumored to be coming, Michael posted on it the other day and this morning Amazon sent a blast of emails to announce that the switch had been flipped on video streaming for its Amazon Prime members. The streaming service launches with just 5000 television shows and movies, but since it is absolutely free to Amazon Prime members I’m not complaining. For those who already pay for Amazon Prime service, it is a nice value-added feature. For those who do not have Amazon Prime, it is another reason to consider it. For those people who have a Netflix subscription primarily to have access to streamed media, there’s now a choice. I don’t think… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It will come as no surprise that the iPhone played central role on tonight’s episode of the Big Bang theory. In fact, an entire scene took place over Facetime! Yes, Apple had over 30% of the product placement in movies last year and that percentage is much higher on geek-centered sitcoms such BBT… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Last year I reviewed the Hewlett Packard (HP) Elitebook 8440w Mobile Workstation, declaring it one that I would love to be able to keep and use in my daily life, and as the best business laptop I’d ever used. Well, move over 8440w – because I have a new favorite, the svelte but ultra-powerful Elitebook 2540p! The Hype: Stay connected and productive on the go—without getting weighed down. Starting at just 3.38 lb, the durable HP EliteBook 2540p is HP’s smallest and lightest EliteBook, designed for maximum portability and uncompromised performance. Ultra-portable: • Compact, lightweight design with a 12.1-inch diagonal LED display starts at only 3.38 lb • Extensive wireless… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

One thing we love here at Gear Diary is our SeV gear.  You can travel around the world with no luggage using it.  Go to CES like our GD team did, and just pack everything in it.  Look really spectacular in a SCOTTEVEST trench coat while representing the geek world in Barcelona … But the one thing we love even more than that is when SCOTTEVEST has a sale.  Like now: 40% off.  But it ends tomorrow, so get your tuckus in gear and surf over there now!  All the information you need is below. Thank you very much Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Meet my cousin Jamie. (Okay, so that’s Jamie’s cat and not Jamie himself, but you get the idea.) Jamie loves his toys. Jamie also loves a deal. That’s what led Jamie to this MID running OS Android. Yes, Jaimie wanted an iPad but didn’t feel like dropping the coin he would have to spend on one so he went out and bought this Android Tablet instead. On one side of the box you find the word MID in block letters. There’s nothing… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

When I first heard that SCOTTEVEST was releasing a sport coat, I didn’t know what to think. I did, however, know that I wanted one. There’s no big surprise there, considering the fact that I wear something from the company pretty much each and every day. I’m grateful to SeV’s Scott Jordan for giving me the opportunity to review one of their new SeV sport coats! I have worn the review sample at various times for the last 2 1/2 weeks. I’ve worn it with jeans and boots one day and with dress pants and a tie another. I did this because I wanted to see if anyone would realize I… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

You, sir, are a nerd. I’m not saying that in a bad way.  By no means.  Many of my friends–my closest friends–are nerds.  World of Warcraft nerds.  D&D nerds.  (Actually, he’s more into variations of GURPS, but you get the idea.)  Straight-ahead computer nerds.  ”Petrol-head” car nerds (Hi, Jeff!).  And on and on.  This is not a bad thing.  I’ve hung around with nerds all my life.  Drama geeks, band geeks, sports geeks . . . you name it. Now, for you science nerds–you who watched every episode of ST:TNG (or even know what that acronym means!), or “Farscape”, or “Blakes-7″–there’s a watch.  A nerdy watch.  A watch that helps you let your nerd… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Yesterday I wrote about EA Mobile’s Deal of the Day, which today features Boggle for the iPad or iPhone for FREE. As if in direct answer to an unspoken challenge, Gameloft has responded by saying ‘ONE game’? How about we give you up to 80% off more than 20 games!?!? And that is exactly what they have done … so here is the list! N.O.V.A. 2 HD for 99 cents ($6 off): First-person shooter Assassin’s Creed Altaïr’s Chronicles HD for 99 cents ($6 off): Adventure game Star Battalion HD for 99 cents ($6 off): Multi-player shooter Hero of Sparta 2 HD for 99 cents ($6 off): Adventure sequel Real Soccer 2010 Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Truth be told, yes, I would much rather be writing about the new Nissan Juke or Leaf but the rep for the automaker only sent me a Murano, a crossover that has been in the Nissan lineup for a few years now. Murano was one of those vehicles that, at first glance, was polarizing – you either loved it or hated it. To be perfectly honest I was not a big fan of the original styling. But Nissan pushed forward and evolved Murano with tweaks and improvements here and there and the latest edition scores significantly higher points with me. The… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

There are conspiracy theories everywhere that describe nearly every major political and social event throughout history, but until recently most common sense people simply dismissed them while allowing the theorists the ability to hold their nonfalsifiable opinions. Now there are those who think that conspiracy might be replacing democracy as the primary motivation in some people’s minds – in other words, they see every choice as motivated by some secret undercurrent hidden to most people. Most of these conspiracies are harmless differential theories that have an alternate explanation to an event. However, there have always been certain ‘lunatic fringe’ elements who hold outlandish conspiratorial theories and promote means to deal with… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We are all feeling the financial pinch!  Blue Plate Special is a weekly review of bargain apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Nothing over $.99. Just the other day I was approached by a friend who just replaced all of their family’s flip phones with iPhones. The first question she asked was, “how do my daughters make their songs into ringtones?” This is a common request from people switching to the iPhone so I decided to find a way to do this. I came across Ringtones Maker which happened to be marked down from $19.99 to free… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

This isn’t a political ad or statement or anything else inflammatory … just one of those images that stops you in your tracks. In theory, I could be well suited as a (small ‘l’) libertarian – I’m a fiscal conservative and a social liberal. But as was shown years ago, that is pretty much the makeup of the majority of Americans who consider themselves ‘moderate’ and don’t strongly align with either major party (or the nut-jobs who front the (capital ‘L’) Libertarian Party). Back in Massachusetts at one point several years ago I met the two folks who have gone on to lead The Center For Small Government in that state, Carla… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

If you look at two of the biggest news items in gaming during the last several months, one would be the upcoming launch of the Nintendo 3DS, and the other would be the tremendous success of the Microsoft Kinect. So let’s look at both of those hot items! Nintendo 3DS Launch Details Yesterday Nintendo announced the first and third-party launch titles for the system, as well as some in development titles coming during the year. Here are the 18 launch titles: Pilotwings Resort Steel Diver nintendogs + cats Super Street Fighter® IV 3D Edition from CAPCOM The Sims™ 3 from EA Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Admit it: you’ve wasted a solid week or so getting 3-stars on Angry Birds. Maybe you’ve even tried to beat your best score time after time… But your favorite cartoon characters have a message for you: Stop the pig and bird massacre! Check out their PSA: See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor. Via eBooknewser Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Last year’s music sales were … um, dismal. And not to kick an already flailing music industry, but the numbers look even worse in context: when adjusted for inflation, with the former 45% decline in the last decade turning into a 64% tail-spin! While we’re at bad news, how about this one: only 1,215 albums sold more than 10,000 copies last year! That is a 20% decline in just TWO YEARS! Here are some details from the report: The incredibly-shrinking album is forcing everyone to adapt. But why can’t artists even sell 10,000 units anymore? Especially when top-line album sales are still in the billions? At New Music Continue reading on Gear Diary …