When I was a kid, Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band were huge on mainstream radio, with live and studio recordings proving very popular with kids and adults alike. By the time ‘Old Time Rock & Roll’ hit big in Risky Business, Seger was already slowing down in terms of both output and commercial success. But by then his reputation and legacy was made. Today in USAToday , Seger announces that he is bringing his music to iTunes: Just put those old records back on the shelf: Bob Seger is headed to iTunes. The rocker’s move into the digital music world starts Tuesday, when his two multiplatinum concert albums Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Smartphones and tablets are “category killers” that have decimated numerous standalone products. As I have written previously, from one perspective the iPhone and the iPad are like “Rorschach devices”. They are “blank slates” (pun totally intentional) that can take the form and function of a wide range of devices depending on whatever software they are currently running. That means that, with the right apps, they can double as a camera and do photo and video editing on the fly. The result has been the demise of the Flip camera and some serious “hurt” on the point-and-shoot camera market. (Once the iPhone 5 and its 8MP sensor is released watch out point-and-shoots!) Similarly, smartphones and… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

  It is hard to imagine a 40″ HDTV for less than $350 but that is the deal our Gear Sponsor has for us today. The Element ELGFT401 40″ HDTV offers 1080p resolution with an 8ms response, a 3000:1 contrast ratio, and more. Normally $498.98 you can save $150 on it. That brings the price down to just $349.98 and it will ship for free to your local Walmart store. (To ship to your home is just $19.97.) Details and ordering information can be found here. Gear Deal: Element ELGFT401 40″ 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV via LogicBUY Continue reading on Gear Diary …

In each of our lives there are events that are so powerful, for good or for bad, that they leave an indelible mark on us as individuals. The same holds true in our national memory. The assassination of President Kennedy, the Challenger disaster and now, the event that took place ten years ago today, are among the those moments when the question “Where were you when you first heard about or saw what was taking place?” is easily answered. I remember EXACTLY where I was, what I was doing and how I responded that morning and I suspect many of you do as well. We thought long and hard about how best to mark today… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

ZAGG makes some great accessories and I was intrigued when they released a keyboard folio case for the iPad 2. I was even more intrigued when I heard that they would be releasing the ZAGGkeys Solo, the keyboard folio minus the folio since it meant you could buy a standalone iPad keyboard that has specialized shortcuts just for the iPad AND a built-in stand. When I reached out to Zagg I was told the ZAGGkeys solo would ship in a short while OR I could take a closer look at the ZAGGfolio and just focus more on the keyboard since the two keyboards are largely the same, save for some additional shortcut… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

In the late 60′s and early 70′s there was an amazing creative burst of singer-songwriters who had previously written pop songs for others coming into their own. People like Neil Diamond, Joni Mitchell and Carole King found pop stardom on their own, and produced some of the greatest albums of all time along the way. This year marks the 40th anniversary of one of the best of these albums – Carole King’s Tapestry. And for this weekend you can grab the album for $2.99 through the artist’s website! This edition is remastered and has additional tracks not available on iTunes or Amazon! So head on over to Carole Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We have finally hit ‘back to school’ season across the country, and it seems that some of the big game deals lists have cooled off as well. But I am still restricting deals to 50% off or more, as there is still plenty of great stuff at that level. That actually meant some of my favorite sites – including Green Man Gaming, DotEMU and Get Games – had no listings this week! I am continuing my ‘top 5 weekend deals’ section where I grab my favorite 5 deals of the week and provide direct links! For these games I select based on how good the game is as well as how sweet the… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Over the past several months we have learned quite a bit about the Sony Playstation Vita, the upcoming successor to the PSP. Over the last few weeks we have learned a few more details … some good, some not so great. And even something new about … the PSP? For starters, that slot on your holiday wish-list you were saving for the PS Vita has officially been freed up. According to Yahoo! Tech News, the company has officially confirmed what was already expected – the Vita will not hit North America until Q1 of 2012. An exact date is unclear, but Sony still intends to release Vita in Japan in December of… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

The image above is from the movie Risky Business. Aside from launching the career of Tom Cruise, there was also a critical plot item: an expensive glass egg on the mantle. That egg was made by the artists of the Steuben Glassworks in Corning NY. This week the parent company Schottenstein announced that Steuben would be closing its doors forever: Glass art manufacturer Steuben Glass Company, which has been based in Corning, N.Y., 37 miles southwest of Ithaca, since 1903, will close in November, parent company Schottenstein Stores Corp. announced Aug. 31 in a press release. “The difficult economy, declining sales and high expenses continue to have a negative impact on the Company’s Continue reading on Gear Diary …

What were you doing on the web back in 1996? Do you remember how heinous the websites looked? Our friend Jennica Rhee has developed the infographic above to show some of the differences we have seen in the last 15 years. Check out her site for more info. To be honest, I think the version of the web in 1996 is too kind! The examples use a few major sites – GoDaddy, MapQuest and Travelocity. Yet when I think back, I think of massively embedded frames, ever site having an animated ‘under construction’ sign, loads of flashing GIFs and so on. Here is one of the most abysmal designs Continue reading on Gear Diary …

BLINDED BY THE BLING Wallis Simpson once said, “You can never be too rich, too thin or have too much Swarovski Crystal bling on your mobile device.” Ok, Simpson didn’t say that last part and for good reason- you CAN have too much Swarovski Crystal bling on your mobile device. We’ve got the proof! Seriously, look at this… Now I’m all for the cute concept of a handset that plugs into the 3.5mm headphone jack on your mobile device. It is silly, fun, an attention grabber and, oh yeah, it keeps your phone’s proximity sensor from acting wonky… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Have you ever put something in your mouth expecting one flavor and, instead, you get something totally different? Even if the actual flavor isn’t BAD the fact that you were expecting something else results in the taste being, at the minimum, jarring. Well Halloween isn’t THAT far off and these could be part of the fun this year. Here’s the deal with this delicious LOOKING bacon-flavored candy. These red and white striped hard candies look just like the ones that grandma used to put in her fancy candy dish for the holidays. But, my oh my, would grandma be in for a surprise if she popped one in her mouth! Instead of a standard candy flavor Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Well would you look at this… the BlackBerry PlayBook just got a whole lot more useful! YEAH!!! Evernote just announced the release of an Evernote app for the PlayBook. Rather than simply port the tablet app from iOS or Android the Evernote team thought about the PlayBook, its 7″ size and its overall form factor when designing the app. The result was a decision to use a two-column approach for notes with “a Snippet-filled note list along the left and the selected note on the right.” When selecting a note the user has a choice of either viewing it in the two-column view or going into full-screen mode with the simple tap of the screen… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Earlier this week PopCap gave the iPhone version of Plants vs. Zombies a massive update, with the following details: What’s New in Version 1.8 Hello again zombie-zappers! Crazy Dave has been hard at it again in his workshop and is now proud to present you with the next awesome update for Plants vs. Zombies! What’s new? A whole heap of fun, including: 9 (yes, NINE) new mini-games with loads of stuff to do. From unravelling the mystery of the star-shaped pattern in Seeing Stars, to crashing the zombie pogo party on your roof in Pogo Party, to keeping up to speed with the fast-paced Zombie Nimble Zombie Quick. Get Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Judie, forget about the Vertu you reviewed last June and are using as your daily-driver. Serously, THIS phone makes THAT phone look like… like… a Moto Razr. Behold the Æ+Y PHONE. With a price STARTING at $10,425 it is sure to impress and make pretty much every other phone feel inadequate. No, it doesn’t have the cool concierge service the Vertu offers but hey, with such fine materials, and handcrafted artistry they had to cut corners somewhere. The phone is on pre-order with a  gold option also available. As the site explains, Æsir is currently taking pre-orders for the first production Continue reading on Gear Diary …