The Kindle Fire is ready to take the world by storm when it is released next month. It is already SO popular that Amazon has reportedly upped the production numbers significantly. The interface looks great. The combination of 8GB of storage (with about 6GB available to the user) is enough for 80 apps, plus 10 movies or 800 songs or 6,000 books. That isn’t anything to sneeze at, but it is not a tremendous amount of storage, and the Fire doesn’t have an expansion slot. [I'm comparing it to the iPad, whose capacity STARTS at 16GB and goes up to a whopping 64GB!] Thankfully, Amazon is leveraging their Cloud Storage to compensate for the diminutive amount… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

One thing most of us can agree on – finding games on the iTunes App Store (or Android Market or Amazon Appstore or Microsoft Marketplace for that matter) can be a daunting task: if you know the exact name you will have no problem … but if not, you are in for quite a challenge! Hoping to help navigate at least their own corner of the App Store as well as Mac and PC games, G5 introduces the G5 Games Navigator. Let’s take a quick look! The Hype: Find quality casual games in the App Store! Stay updated on G5′s latest game releases, news, discounts, and giveaways with Games Navigator –… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Apparently it is becoming ‘a thing’ to not have your tracks available for streaming on Spotify and others. Several indie acts have pulled their content thus far, with Spotify repeating the same mantra about how much they have paid out. I am not judging either side as I have no clue about the internals. But what I DO know is that the big new music release this week from Coldplay won’t be available to stream. Period. Here is more form DMN: It’s not just death metal indies that aren’t playing ball with Spotify. Just this morning, C|Net found out that Coldplay will not be licensing its latest album Mylo Xyloto to Continue reading on Gear Diary …

So let’s see … I already reviewed the PC, Nintendo DS and iPad versions of Puzzle Quest 2 based on personal purchases … so is it any surprise that I had already installed Puzzle Quest 2 by the time I snapped the screen shot above? I concluded my iPad review (the last of the three) as follows: But minor criticisms aside, Puzzle Quest 2 is a worthy successor to the 2007 original game and allows us to forgive and forget the unfortunate Puzzle Quest: Galactrix. It has enough of a story to keep things engaging, enough cool combat and mini-games and side-quests to keep you going for hours, and Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Woot has a great deal on the NeatDesk Desktop Scanner and Digital Filing System. It is just $249.99 + $5 shipping. Sure it is a refurbished unit but the system is awesome and this is a great price. We reviewed it a few months back and love it. Judie liked my review so much that she even bought one at full price … You can grab the deal here on Woot. Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Are you dressing up as your favorite zombie-killing refugee from the show Walking Dead this Halloween? If so you really owe it to yourself to make your outfit as authentic as possible. This Gerber Gator Machete Pro will only run you $53. Add a little fake blood and you are good to go. In the process you will ensure that NO ONE will even think about messing with your candy. Even better, you won’t just win the best costume contest but you will also be ready for the coming zombie invasion in the process. via Werd Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Today’s Gear Deal bring us Panasonic’s 42-in VIERA TC-L42D30 1080p LED TV. The TV features a 1920×1080 resolution LED backlit display, 4 HDMI connections, 3 USB connections, D-Sub, component and composite ports, and a 120Hz refresh rate. Without a stand the dimensions are just 23.6 x 38.9 x 1.3″. Normally on sale for $944.95, our Gear Sponsor found it for just $649.95. Better still, it will even ship for free. Details and ordering can be found here. Gear Deal: Panasonic 42″ VIERA 1080p LED TV via LogicBUY Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Let’s just go ahead and get it out of the way: UGGs are ugly. They make your feet look huge, and they are sloppy. I’ve been told that there is nothing worse than seeing a woman wearing a pair of UGGs with a skirt or a pair of shorts; Kev grew up in the San Diego area, and he has issues with those combos, evidently. So there are plenty of reasons to dislike them, but I think the biggest reason boils down to the fact that they are ugly. Now that I have gone ahead and said it for all of the UGG haters out there, I’ll also take this opportunity to confess that I have a pair… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I love when applications continue to grow and update along with the maturity of the iPhone and iOS. With all of the location advances and search possibilities with Siri, those features have been front and center in today’s tech news. There are many options for such apps on the iPhone and one if my favorites that I use often is Loacalscope. I reviewed the initial version of the app here in March and have used it ever since. Localscope has gone through several updates with the most recent bringing integration with 11 popular GPS applications and the ability to speak 19 different languages. The fact that users do not have to depend exclusively… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

My MacBook Pro has two USB Ports, one of which I have jacked in to a powered 1-6 multiport adapter.  And it’s still not enough. Cords, cords everywhere.  If you’re desk is anything like mine, you’ve got a god-awful amount of different cords snaking all over the durn place.  Mini-USB.  Micro-USB.  The cords that connect my mini-Blu-ray to the MBP.  The charging cord for my headset.  On and on.  And then comes that ever-popular problem:  how the heck do I transport all these cords when I travel? Thank God that these days there are options.  Like the Cord Box from GreatUsefulStuff.com.  Nice box.  Labels for the different cord types.  Snaps shut for easy transport.  Boxy shape… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Image courtesy of Tokyoflash Fresh out of the Tokyoflash workshop comes the Kisai Seven. Yet another watch from their concept to reality blog, the Seven joins the limited edition club and launches at the low-cost of only $99 shipped. Breaking off slightly from the standard Kisai style and material, this “Tron” inspired watch has an “identity disc” like watch face that glows either white or blue depending on the model you purchase. New to this watch is a seamless polyurethane band and hard plastic encased face instead of the matte or polished bands we are used to seeing with other models. The large rings on darken in spots to show the hours and minutes… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

When people ask me for a suggestion on hard-core protective cases, OtterBox is usually the first company I name.  (I also mention iFrogz, which has developed a “rugged” line as well.)  Otterbox has been specializing in rugged cases for a number of years, and they almost always have cases that are both protective, and innovative. Their Reflex Series for the iPad 2 is a good example.  You can check it out yourself, of course, but it’s clear that they didn’t just chuck a lot of plastic at a mold, put some bumpers on and say, “Hey, good enough!”  They clearly gave some thought to use and usability, which I always appreciate in a case maker… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

The new Versa Sedan from Nissan offers some of the cheapest real estate on the market today. Completely redesigned for 2012, Nissan touts the new little four-door as “Small on the outside, big on the inside.” And actually it isn’t really that small on the outside. What is small is the pricetag as compared to the market today. For 2012, Versa Sedan rolls in at just under 11 grand. Yes, $10,990 will get you a brand new Nissan, if you can find one of those entry models on the dealer lot. Figure spending something more in the ballpark of 15-16 large for one with most of the necessities. Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Bad Meets Evil is a pseudo-duo including Royce da 5’9″ and Eminem, first heard on the song of the same name from The Slim Shady LP in 1999. The duo have recently gone back into the studio and popped out another EP, this one featuring Bruno Mars in a generic pop-rap-combo song that is all the rage these days. For other examples, see pretty much anything with Bruno Mars in a supporting role, anything at all with Pitbull, BoB and so on. The song that has gotten the greatest amount of attention is ‘Lighters’, which as I mention features Bruno Mars. My kids used to joke with her because she liked him – but… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

As a kid you don’t worry too much about how healthy your cereals are. I mean, I remember being a kid and having Cookie Crisp come out (in 1977, apparently), and thinking ‘OH YEAH’! Then there were some other faves like Crunch Berries, Count Chocula, Boo Berry and Franken Berry. They were all nice sugary junk-food breakfast cereals we all loved … and far more appealing than the healthy alternatives such as Shredded Wheat (not the frosted stuff), Grape Nuts – or at best ‘compromise’ cereals like Cheerios or Rice Krispies with generous help from the sugar bowl. Then – like now – it was up to parents… Continue reading on Gear Diary …