When you look at the classic arcade shooters from Japan and their long-term impact on gaming today, few games have a bigger reach than R-Type. Released in the late 80′s, the game was later ported to a variety of home consoles and handhelds, and was ported to the iPhone in 2010. Now it is on Android as well, and has just gone on sale on the Amazon Appstore for Android for $0.99! Here is the synopsis from Wikipedia: R-Type is set in the 22nd century, and the player flies a futuristic fighter craft called the R-9a “Arrowhead”, named for its shape, and because it is the ninth model in the ‘R’ Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I love the concept of the “bento box”.  I think the first time I saw it was in The Breakfast Club, where Claire (“the princess”) brought one as her lunch.  So Japanese, you know?  Several different items, all neatly compartmentalized and neatly laid out for your consumption.  So different from the “smoosh everything together in one metal lunchbox” style that I was used to.  Made the OCD part of me nearly jump for joy. Now, I don’t know how much FileMaker’s new Bento 4 Holiday Kit adheres to that type of thinking, but really, shouldn’t you judge for yourself?  Here’s what FileMaker says: The Bento Holiday Kit included 3 pre-designed library templates that help organize holiday Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Griffin Technology is a favorite among many of us here at Gear Diary for their selection of accessories for iPods, iPads, iPhones and many other of your mobile devices. A quick search of the Gear Diary archives shows a multitude of products that have already been featured and reviewed on the site, including the Beacon Universal Remote for iOS which Dan put in the running for “iOS Accessory of the Year”. The Beacon has dropped in price by $10 since Dan first reviewed it, and now there’s an even sweeter deal available for Gear Diary readers. Just use the promo code “THANKS20” when you check out to receive 20% off every product on the site until… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Are you a nerdy nerd who likes to work in dark rooms?  Do you have the color values on your screen reversed, so that it’s light letters on a dark background?  Do you curse the fact that Lenovo laptops have a down-light, but their keyboards aren’t lighted? Well, maybe the new Soyntec keyboard is something you’re looking for.  All its keys are backlit so that you can use it in the dark.  When you wake up in the middle of the night because your brain has finally solved that bug that’s been driving you crazy for the last three weeks, hey, your work area will be ready even if your eyes can’t handle you turning on… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Today’s Gear Deal brings us a great deal on the Droid RAZR. In true RAZR fashion this phone boasts the slimmest design for a 4G LTE phone yet still packs premium specs. And what are those specs? The phone features a 4.3″ Super AMOLED 540×960 display, a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, 1GB RAM, 16GB of built-in memory that is expandable up to 32GB via microSD, dual-facing cameras (8MP rear w/1080p, 1.3mp front), microHDMI, microUSB, WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, 4G LTE, Kevlar shielding and up to 12.5 hours talk time. All that and this Android 2.3 OS phone is just 7.1mm thick. The phone is just $0.01 at Amazon with a new two year contract ($299.99 at… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We reviewed Vogel’s: RingO Car Mount not long ago and were really impressed. (Read the full review here.) Here’s what the company has to say about it. The sleek and compact car mount is “perfect for person on the go”. The Car Mount is the safest and most secure way to let your passengers use their tablet The tablet with Holder is simply clicked into place for back seat travelers to enjoy all their content Tablets can be freely rotated 360 degrees to allow different ways of viewing Locking system ensures secure support/viewing when attached to the headrest No tools are needed to install RingO Car Mount The accessory package has… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I have to admit that it took a while for me to support the United Way. Back in Massachusetts we had a wonderful local group that my wife and I supported, and at work they transitioned from local charities to the United Way as the company that bought out the former ‘family business’ (with >700 employees) … and subsequently came to yell at us for making him look bad by not signing up for the United Way – something he remedied by removing the local choices … which meant simply didn’t sign up and kept my money local. And yes, I do know that the mission of the United Way IS to keep most… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

From the Editorial Staff of Gear Diary: There are two kinds of people; there are those who hate Bluetooth, and there are those who love Bluetooth. Okay actually, There are those who hate Bluetooth and there are those who put up with Bluetooth. If your loved one uses Bluetooth, then we have a few great gifts ideas … First up has to be the JawBone JamBox. This little Bluetooth speaker doubles as a speakerphone thanks to its microphone. It may be small, but it packs a punch. And the audio coming from it? It’s surprisingly good. Dan and his wife have one, and they love it. Just $169.99 in our Amazon Affiliate Store.  … Continue reading on Gear Diary …

There are a variety of ways to deal with out-of-control popularity: relish it and let it continue to bring attention to your inability to deal with the rush of fans … or the way Indie Royale is handling things! Reacting to the hours of difficulties right at the launch of the ‘Difficult 2nd Bundle’, the Indie Royale team has decided to allow ‘blind pre-orders’ and issued the following newsletter: Dear Indie Royale customer, First off, we’d like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your interest and passion in the first two Indie Royale bundles. When we first launched the service, we had no idea that we’d Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Like many of you, I use my phone for everything! One area I have had mixed results is in GPS turn by turn navigation. The apps tend to be on the pricey side, and they just usually do not have the same feature set found in a stand alone unit. I love my Garmin Nuvi and use it often, but there are times it is not with me and I need another option. I have tried several app options on my iPhone, but have not been satisfied with the lack of features and the terrible sounding voices. Dynavix promises to bring plenty of features and extras and even better voices to the iPhone with… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Have you ever looked at the amounts of money our government and large corporations toss around – billions or even trillions of dollars – and tried to break it down into something more ‘real’? Well, this week’s xkcd comic does just that. Much of it is just informative, making proportional chunks of blocks for how much an iPhone costs or dinner out at Outback Steakhouse. But there are images like the one above, showing that while for most people the standard of living has not improved in almost 45 years, for the average CEO things have improved by more than an order of magnitude. Here is the full map -… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Today we get the news of the passing of Paul Motian at age 80 (1931-2011), the legendary drummer forever linked with pianist Bill Evans and bassist Scott LaFaro in the definitive piano trio under Evans leadership. His output as a leader and sideman has been tremendous, as has his influence on drummers and music in general. As columnist James Hale remarks: I can’t begin to count the number of recordings I have that feature drummer Paul Motian, who died today at age 80, and I can’t think of a disappointing one among them. Not only did he have exceptional taste about who he played with, he lifted every recording by his touch Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Image courtesy HuffPo I grew up in a time when you respected authorities, but didn’t place blind trust in them. The government was still reeling from Watergate and Vietnam, which led many to instantly question anything said by those in power. The downside was that soldiers returning from Vietnam who were themselves victims of a draft were lumped in and treated poorly (my kids have a hard time connecting with the treatment of Rambo, but I remember it all too well from people in my town growing up). When Ronald Reagan took office, a new wave of pride and feeling of positivity in being an American replaced the so-called ‘malaise’ of the… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Skooba Design has just announced their Black Friday sale, during which time the sooner you act the more you’ll save. If you’re looking for a great gear bag, laptop bag or backpack, video & camera bag, Checkpoint Friendly laptop bag, or any of the other specialized carriers that they sell, then now is the time! Use the code EARLYBIRD to save 30% off today, but watch out — the savings drops to 25% off tomorrow, and then it is 20% from Thanksgiving through Monday, November 26th. In other words, this is a case where you should act fast to get the most savings! =) Skooba Design Continue reading on Gear Diary …

From the Editorial Staff of Gear Diary: Is there someone in your life who loves gaming? If so, here are five gifts with which you can’t go wrong. XBOX360 (or Playstation 3)- not an inexpensive gift, but more and more families are using consoles as a way of gaming, streaming video, and more! The Xbox 360 250GB Holiday bundle is just $299.99 in our Amazon Affiliate Store. The PlayStation 3 160GB System is just $249.96 in our Amazon Affiliate Store iPod Touch – As Mike wrote here, the DS and PSP are fading… Continue reading on Gear Diary …