If you used a Pocket PC/Windows Mobile device, you probably were somewhat familiar with Microsoft Reader. It was Microsoft’s answer to the niche ebook market, though it was left behind as Mobipocket was purchased by Amazon, eReader by Fictionwise (and the combined entity by B&N) and of course the rise of dedicated ebook readers like the Kindle and NOOK. Still, it was one of the early ebook pioneers, and now Microsoft is putting it out of it’s misery. Before you wail and gnash your teeth, though, Microsoft is doing this in a very orderly fashion. They’re giving almost a full-year heads up, announcing the final shutdown on August 30, 2012. Once they turn off… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I’ve long been a fan of retro-looking devices that accomplished modern purposes, and it doesn’t get much more retro than the new Grace Audio Victoria Nostalgic Internet Radio. Looking every bit like a countertop radio from the 40s or 50s (well, except for the LCD on the front!), the Victoria Nostalgic is retro form that’s been fitted with modern function. The Victoria’s walnut exterior with birch inlay highlights 1940s charm while the Class D digital 16 watt RMS amplifier (50 watt peak) fills any living room, bedroom, office, or kitchen with a rich, warm, and detailed sound. The Victoria Internet Radio features a 4-line adjustable backlit display, five alarm settings, 110 station presets / folder Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I’m a big fan of iPhone battery cases that combine protection and extra battery life into a single package. Since the release of the original iPhone, we have looked at a number of these hybrid case-batteries, and today we’ll take a look at PhoneSuit’s latest offering: the PhoneSuit Elite iPhone Case. The company is not stranger to this kind of battery case, and their experience shows in both the Elite’s design and its functionality. From PhoneSuit: The PhoneSuit Elite iPhone Case extends the battery life of the iPhone by more than doubling its power capacity. Users can now experience up to Continue reading on Gear Diary …

(image courtesy Washington Savings) It’s that time of year again! If you’re a college student (or soon to be freshman!), you’re probably preparing to shop for your textbooks. Before you take out a loan the size of the federal debt, or pick up a third job, Gear Diary has a few reminders on cheaper ways to get your study materials! First, Barnes and Noble would like to remind everyone that they own many, many college bookstores. They also have a textbook rental program, used textbooks, and their new NOOKstudy e-textbook option. Basically, if B&N carries your textbook, there are multiple ways to buy it, which hopefully saves you some green, which leads to more beer money! (Only… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It has been just about a year and a half since I did a retrospective review on Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, concluding: Jedi Knight II has aged very well. The graphics scale nicely on new systems, but it also performs as you would expect an 8 year old game to run – flawlessly. The gameplay is missing some of the new mechanics such as sprinting that have become commonplace, but otherwise retains a tight and modern feel. The melee combat feeling Raven software developed has yet to be surpassed in any game in any genre since. For a game available for $10 on Steam or Direct2Drive that Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Yes, I’m childish; yes, I’ve never really grown up (inside) much past, say, the age 13 (which delights my 13 year-old son no end, I might add); yes, I take an absurd delight in silly puns and innuendos.  I admit it all. Be that as it may, I have to tell you all about the new game A Game with Balls, now available on iOS.  AGwB started on Android, and is now prepared to make you try to suppress your giggle instincts if you’re an iPhone or iPad user rather than a Droid owner.  Available for only $.99 from your local iTunes app store. Full information below. Balls rain from the sky. In a Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We are half way through our Vonage Time to Call iPad 2 giveaway. The contest ends Thursday the 18th so there is still time to enter …  But not much. Want a chance to win an iPad 2? Jump over to the initial post, read the rules and enter. It’s that simple. Click here and you’ll be on your way! Good luck to all!… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Okay, I know what you’re thinking:  just what I need, yet another way for the government to poke it’s nose into my life!  Isn’t enough that they’re stripping us naked (virtually) at airports, running weird telephone taps without permission, and everything else they’re doing in the name of the Global War on Terror? This isn’t that.  Really.  The new company Nixle is providing a way for folks like the police, fire departments, and such to make important information available to the public, and on a national and local level.  This isn’t intrusiveness; this is a helpful move in that whole “well-informed citizen” idea that Thomas Jefferson was so fond of.  So I’m thinking that, at the… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

At times I’ve been told I live under a rock. Maybe I do sometimes but its nice and quiet there. And it sure beats living in a bubble doesn’t it? Well maybe not. Check out this bubble hut, the Crystalbubble. Its shape …was voluntarily designed with the goal to offer a dreamy space without disturbing the nature and the environment. The hut and its walls were reduced at their minimum. Cristalbubble hut is both suited to spend an unusual night in the nature and taking advantage of a multifunction life space all year long, even at the bottom of your Continue reading on Gear Diary …

So hey, I’m ancient enough and geeky enough to have actually been online since–believe it if you can!–1982.  In Internet time, 30 years is basically an eternity.  The Web itself started to hit around 1994, and it didn’t really hit big until the late 90s at the very earliest.  (And newspaper and magazine sites are still struggling to come to grips with the whole “Web thing”, amazingly.  Geez, guys!) All this nostalgia is to note that any web site being around for a decade is not just an amazing thing; it means the founders and writers thereof grabbed onto the Web early and have been hanging on every since.  And to have been in it since… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Last night I was a bit under the weather. I went in search of something to watch and came upon the new Starz/BBC series Strike Back on my iPad’s browser. A few taps of the screen and it was playing on my large Samsung HDTV. It was just another reminder of the way in which Apple’s technology can create a seamless ecosystem for work and entertainment. Then today Cult of Mac published a post entitled Could Apple Enter Sub-$1K Premium TV Market With A Real iTV? In it they write News that high-end TVs are nearing the sub $1,000 Continue reading on Gear Diary …

In spite of the fact that I probably won’t get one meself, I love the concept of attaching a zoom lens to my iPhone camera lens.  It gives it kind of a steampunk flavor, it seems to me, and for me that’s a durn good thing.  And this week, that’s one of USBFever’s new items, a “super magnetically attaching wide angle lens”.  And of course, they’ve got a whole plethora of other new stuff; take a look. This week’s full list of USBFever releases: USB 3.0 to Micro SATA SSD adapter 1394 Firewire 6 pin Male to 1394 Firewire 6 pin Female Adapter Threaded (Screw On) Mini Glass 190° Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Back to School has entered full swing and we have some quick deals to share on Lenovo laptops. You can save up to 50% on the Lenovo T420. Check out the deals right here. You can get one of the Lenovo E420 laptops for as little as $494. See what configurations are available. The E420s starts as low as $629. Click here for details. Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It looks funny. It does exactly what it promises. And, at least for me, it is in the running for “iOS Accessory of the Year”. Okay, I’m exaggerating a bit but I’m pretty serious about how cool I think this iOS hardware/app combination is. The Griffin Beacon is the universal remote on steroids. With this odd piece of plastic powered by four AA batteries and a free download from the App Store I have taken my Samsung HDTV remote, my TiVo remote AND my Apple TV remote and put them away. Now all I need is one of my iOS devices and I have total control over the media in my den… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Way back in 1969 John Lennon and Yoko Ono held a ‘bed in’ for peace. I remember it more as snapshots and news clips, but apparently there was an entire movie made from it! In response to the riots and senseless violence and destruction in London, Yoko Ono is re-releasing the film that has been unavailable for so many years. Over at their ImaginePeace site, Yoko Ono announced that she has released the entire ‘Bed Peace’ film on YouTube for a limited time! Dear Friends, In 1969, John and I were so naïve to think that doing the Bed-In would help change the world. Well, it might have. But at the Continue reading on Gear Diary …