I have unabashedly declared my love for all versions of Spiderweb Software’s Avadon: The Black Fortress, saying in my PC review: Spiderweb took a chance this year – they left behind the established and well-loved worlds of Avernum and Geneforge and set out on a new adventure. Avadon: The Black Fortress is the start of a new franchise, and so far it is looking like we are in for a great series! Now we have word that Direct2Drive is having a mid-week 75% off sale on Avadon, making it $2.50! Here is the description: Spiderweb Software brings you Avadon: The Black Fortress, the first chapter in a new, epic fantasy Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Long-time Gear Diary fans may remember me from my stint a few years back as our resident “Stunt Reviewer.” Well, like a bad penny, I’ve turned up again and Judie and the gang have been nice enough to welcome me back to contribute the occasional review or announcement, specifically for the “Yum Log” section where we take a look at kitchen, food and cooking products and gadgets. In the couple years since I stopped writing here, I’ve been a full-time food blogger for the Nashville Scene in my home town and an occasional contributor to regional and national food magazines and blogs, so hopefully I’m at least as qualified to write about these topics as I was to test an anti-poison ivy cream. So what’s first in the new review queue? How about the Belkin Kitchen Cabinet Mount for iPads and other tablets? I do a lot of cooking at home, and despite the fact that I just turned in a cookbook I wrote to my publisher last month, I’m much more likely to use my iPad to source a recipe than any of the multitude of cookbooks that occupy so much shelf space in my kitchen. Of course that [...]

Stardock Games is a respected developer of excellent PC strategy games such as the classic Galactic Civilizations I & II, Sins of a Solar Empire, DemiGod and Elemental: War of Magic. Along the way they developed their own alternative to the Steam game service called ‘Impulse’. Impulse was started in 2008, quickly grew to host other publishers’ games and was sold off to GameStop early this year. This sale has created an opportunity for Stardock to branch out publication of their games. According to Stardock CEO Brad Wardell: “With the sale of our former PC digital download technology to GameStop earlier this year, we no longer have any conflicts of Continue reading on Gear Diary …

My experience with keyboards for the iPad has been rather mixed. Some keyboards and keyboard cases have worked fairly well but none have been comfortable enough and portable enough for me to carry all the time. Moreover, most of the keyboard cases I have tried have just been too bulky for daily use. After all, what is the point of having the super-thin iPad 2 if you are going to then toss it into a thick, bulky case? The keyboards that have come closest to my wanting to carry and use them each day have been the offerings from ZAGG. For example, while I didn’t love the case that comes with the ZAGGfolio I… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Whenever a wireless carrier discusses your private information, you can be sure of one thing: they are trying to squeeze more money out of you by leveraging your information, but know that if they don’t give you an opt-out they will have regulators breathing down their necks. So … this week we get an email from Verizon Wireless. What information are they storing? Mobile Usage Information: • Addresses of websites you visit when using our wireless service. These data strings (or URLs) may include search terms you have used • Location of your device (“Location Information”) • App and device feature usage Consumer Information: • Information about your use of Verizon products Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Last month I reviewed the TruConnect ‘pay as you go’ mobile broadband solution, saying: TruConnect absolutely delivers on their claims of a simple device, easy setup and configuration, and clear pricing of as little as $4.99 per month. Beyond that, every person needs to make their own value judgement in terms of the data fees. For light or occasional use, you can get 250MB for less than $15 a month, but once you break 1GB of monthly data you might be better off with a full access plan. The good news is that you have no contract and no termination fees – you own the MiFi (or USB access point), so you cancel Continue reading on Gear Diary …

From the Editorial Staff of Gear Diary: Is there someone in your life who loves to read? If so, here are five gifts with which you can’t go wrong. Kindle/NOOK: Either one, but this is a must for anyone who loves reading. And the entry-level prices make them an affordable tablet companion even if you already have an iPad. Kindle prices start at $79. nook touch is $119.99 in our Amazon Affiliate Store. eReaders are a bit delicate so you need a sleeve for protections. Carly’s favorite is the Timbuktu sleeve. It is lined in soft fabric… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

The phrase ‘these go to eleven’ is from the classic ‘mockumentary’ This is Spinal Tap, in which the groups amplifiers are described as somehow being louder than standard amps because the knob has a number 11 on it. It is a funny scene, but at its base is deception and clulessness. That in a nutshell sums up Google’s Music event. Earlier this year, Google threw out an embarrassment of a so-called ‘Music Service’ that had abysmal performance, no features, and existed for a single reason – to get SOMETHING out there before Apple’s announcement. It allowed Google to claim that they were competing in the Music space and their fanboys to shout… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I highlighted the issues with cross-compatibility between the Android and Amazon marketplaces on the Kindle Fire, and now we are seeing developers who previously just used the Android Market making their games available on the Amazon Appstore for Android – and making sure they work on the Kindle Fire. The first games they are bringing are The Mystery of the Crystal Portal, Mahjongg Artifacts, and Success Story. I reviewed the PSP Minis version of Mahjongg Artifacts here, and the iPad version of Mystery of the Crystal Portal here. Here is the information: G5 Entertainment offers a perfect treat for all the happy owners of the much-awaited Kindle Fire. San Francisco, California Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Today’s Gear Deal brings us the Lenovo IdeaPad U400 ultrathin laptop. The IdeaPad U400 is a premium, ultrathin laptop built with a one-piece aluminum shell only 0.89 inches thin. Its high end features include a glass touchpad, upgraded SRS sound, slot-loading DVD drive, USB 3.0, and more. It’s stylish, minimalist design will certainly turn heads. The U400 is powered by 2nd generation Core i3 and i5 Intel Core processors and has AMD Radeon HD 6470M 1GB graphics. The laptop is rated at 7 hours of runtime. Our Gear Sponsor is highlighting two deal on the U400. Deal 1: Core i3, 4GB RAM, 500GB 7200rpm HDD, AMD 6470M 1GB graphics. This configuration was $1,099 but… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Now that Amazon is shipping the Kindle Fire, I got to thinking: what if you gift the Fire or any other Kindle?  Well, if you do, make sure you do what Laptopmag.com says in their post and keep YOUR Kindle account safe.  After I read this, I did some more thinking: What if someone stole your shiny new Kindle off of your porch? If this happens, then that thief has access to ALL of your books and can purchase books on your account.  This is bad.  This is very bad.  Gear Diary’s own Michael Anderson and Dan Cohen are both trying out the Kindle Fire, and both commented in our Yammer on how easy the setup is.  However… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I’ve mentioned before that I’m not hella big on navigation software (and hardware).  I find that turn-by-turn, voice-activated stuff to simply be confusing, particularly when I’m driving around cities that I already know, but am just looking for a new address.  (Maybe I need something like Siri, where I can say, “Siri, what part of town is St. Michael’s High School in?”, and have Siri say, “St. Michael’s High School is over off of 360, near where it meets Bee Caves Road”, or something like that.) But I’m in the minority–the turn-by-turn navigation world is hugely helpful to a ton of people, no question.  Sami was extremely upset when our Honda’s GPS was down… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

HP has just announced a major new product in the ‘ultrabook’ class, and a platform revamp in the Envy and Pavilion lineups. All of these focus on delivering value, performance and attractive design to business users in a way that HP has been doing more and more over the last few years. HP Folio13 Ultrabook The HP Folio13 brings performance and sleek design to the ultra-thin laptop class. Here are some features: Measuring less than 18 millimeters thin and using an ultraslim 13.3-inch diagonal HD BrightView display, the HP Folio13 weighs just 3.3 pounds. It combines the cool industrial design found on consumer products with the security and usability business users Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It wasn’t long ago that we reviewed Phosphor’s eInk watch. It is a rather attractive timepiece that has the added geeky-goodness of an eInk screen. Now the company has announced their new World Time Sport watch. It is “sleek, modern and tech-savvy” and we have one on the way for review. As the company explains, The new World Time Sport debuts a state-of-the-art buttonless touch lens operation, allowing for a sleek, ultra-modern look, and the ability to change modes with simple finger swipe across the case. The new World Time Sport offers the ability to select from 24 time zones for one display mode, while optionally displaying a second time zone simultaneously . The dual Continue reading on Gear Diary …

If you look at the legendary figures in pop and rock music in the post-Beatle era, The Police and their frontman Sting have to be on your shortlist. After an amazing but short career with The Police, Sting struck out on his own with an ensemble populated by young jazz musicians playing a new kind of jazz-tinged pop-rock. Through the 25 years since, Sting has had some amazing highs and lows, but always worked to put his best music out to the people. Now we get a new app from the music legend – ‘Sting 25′ is the companion to his recently released music box set, and is free on the iTunes App… Continue reading on Gear Diary …