At CES 2010, Steve Ballmer was showing off a variety of computers, including an HP Slate device. All that was said at the time was it would be available in 2010, and that it was an actual product. Read on for more information on the video.

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While at CES 2010 we spent a good deal of time hanging out in one of our favorite accessory manufacturers’ booth, Speck.  Okay truth be told they had free beer, but we would have been there regardless, that’s how much we like the stuff Speck has to offer.

One of their first cases for the iPhone, the Fitted Case, started out with only two designs but has since been blown out with all new styles.

We had the chance to preview some of the new designs and Speck was kind enough to send us home with some samples to review as well.

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While at CES, Dan and I had an opportunity to meet with Kensington for a look at some of their new products. A few of the items launched may seem pretty basic at first glance, but all are intended bring a level of convenience that might otherwise be missing.

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Call me an Evernote evangelist if you like. It’s actually rather accurate. Evernote is probably the single most important productivity tool that I use. Looking back over my “relationship” with the service I realized that I’ve been involved with Evernote from early on. I joined the beta program within days of that initially rolling out. And I became one of their premium users every day it became available. There isn’t a single day that goes by that I don’t actually use Evernote numerous times and I never miss an opportunity to tell others about service and to encourage them to give it a try.

That’s why it was such a pleasure for me to spend an hour meeting with Evernote CEO Phil Libin during CES last week. The conversation gave me some insight into where the company was, where it’s going and why, under his leadership, it has been so successful so quickly. Continue Reading

Photo courtesy of Lenovo on Flickr

Lenovo took some serious recognition from CES this year winning CNET’s Best of Show this year with the Hybrid U1 laptop/slate. Looks like the beginning of a Hybrid type legacy with the new shots of the Lephone Lenovo Smartphone. This super slick new phone snaps in to the keyboard/dock to give you the option of touchscreen only or full QWERTY flip. The phone takes some resemblance of a few other models out from HTC & Motorola with the slim body and oval looking case. The keyboards circular pattern is the first I have  seen like it with a center mounted D-pad style layout.

This could be the answer to those currently on the fence of getting a phone with QWERTY or not. You can have the best of both worlds and decide if you want to run with the keyboard or not. This is not the first phone to give you option, but is the best looking layout in my opinion to date. It looks like Lenovo will be sporting a skin overtop Android’s OS to the likes of Lenovo’s Skylite that they are putting on other various models.

The real mystery to me though is the connection to the keyboard. I see no pins or connector and the bottom of the phone shows only a small round port. Are the keyboard and phone only connected via Bluetooth? Is it just the renderings that leaves out the connection so we sit and wonder until someone gets their grubby hands on one?

If it is connected physically, one can only imagine what other goodness is packed in the keyboard dock. Hopefully the dock adds some additional battery life and maybe some other outputs or ports for convenience. The dock also may eliminate the need for a snap on cover or case as the screen is protected when folded down and looks to have a clear plastic base covering the back of the phone when its attached. I have yet to see any pricing or availability for the LePhone, but hopefully Lenovo deems it fit for US shores unlike the earlier Ophone.

Via Slashgear, Flickr

Surviving marathon sessions working on your computer is all about comfort.  Putting yourself in the proper viewing and reaching position goes along way towards keeping your body feeling good. Ergonomics!

According to Griffin Technology, Healthycomputing.com, the premier source for office ergonomics, recommends positioning the top of your screen level with your eyes and sitting at least an arm’s length distance from the screen. Both of these key ergonomic standards are made possible using The Griffin Elevator with an external keyboard.

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CES 2010 has wrapped up. Both Larry and Judie flew out this morning. I have one more evening here before I head out to meet Elana and attend a friend’s wedding. Everything went more than smoothly here despite the huge number of people and the hectic pace. There was, however, one thing that was a complete and utter fail. It reinforced the fact that Internet shopping can’t rely entirely on technology. It needs to have at least one place where there can be immediate human interaction if it hopes to truly succeed in providing excellent customer service.

Here’s what happened — and why Judie and I were, unfortunately, not able to review the Google Nexus One while still here in Las Vegas together.

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My time at CES is winding down.  I just finished walking the floor for what will probably be the last time this trip.  I brought my video camera along and tried to quickly cover all four halls of the show capturing some of my favorite things.

Seen in the video below are:

Speck Products – New Fitted Case for iPhone, New See-Thru Satin for iPhone, New Satin See Thru for Mac Book.

OtterBox – New Tandem Case for Palm Pre.

Blue Microphone – New Blue Mickey for iPhone.

iFrogz – New Kindle Cases, New Soft Gloss Case for iPhone, New Lean Case for iPhone, New Blackberry Cases.

Hyper Mac – New iPhone and iPod Touch Batteries.

Band Shell – iPhone Acoustic Amplifying Case.

Phonesuit – MiLi iPhone Projector.

Dexim – Solar Powered P-Flip for iPhone and iPod Touch.

Switch Easy – Reptile and Nude cases for iPhone.

Case-Mate – Wireless Charging Solution for iPhone.

While here at CES, I have been running around like the proverbial chicken with my head cut off.  There is so much to do, but worse, there is so much to remember to do once I get back home.  Geez.  How in the world are you supposed to keep track of it all?

Well, one of the writers over at Notebooks.com introduced me to my savior application– gTasks for Android.  I use the Google Tasks in my Gmail all the time.  Its my note taker, along with Evernote.  But, the issue was that I couldn’t sync the Google Tasks to anything.  Not good for me who sometimes has a memory like a steel sieve.  Well, with gTasks, now I can.

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[image courtesy of FutureNet]

One of the trends at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show was furthering the convergence of the Web with home entertainment.  Manufacturers will be rolling out more products that integrate internet access and rich web content without the need for secondary set top boxes to bring the services and applications you want directly to your television.

One such company is Oregan Networks, who showed off their embedded television web browser and Onyx Widgetry that will customizable applications such  Twitter, weather, sports, and news along with  a mix of free and paid content to bring all of your home entertainment needs to your living room.

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If you need maximum protection for your gadgets Pelican has you covered.  I had the chance to preview their 2010 offerings today at CES.

Their i1015 iPhone/iPod Touch case features full protection from shock, dirt, dust and water and features an audio in jack which allows you to plug in your device.  There’s a headphone jack on the outside so you can listen to your music while your device is safely tucked inside.  Perfect for sitting on your towel in the sand on the beach while listening to your tunes.

The case is available at Fry’s Electronics, REI and select Best Buy stores at the price point of $37.

Expect a full review of the i1015 soon.

Learn more by visiting the Pelican web site here.

I swear by my Swiss Army Knives. I started carrying them after college, when I worked in retail and could never find a switchblade to open boxes, or a screwdriver to tighten fixtures, etc. So I’m a big fan of Victorinox and their products, and I’m really excited to see their new packaging.

Sounds weird, I know. But think about it this way: I’ve bought Swiss Army Knives that have come nicely packaged in boxes, etc, but I’ve also bought them from stores where they were packaged in what seemed like indestructible plastic. There’s an irony to breaking your old knife, requiring you to buy a new knife, and then discovering you desperately need the old knife to tear open the packaging for the new knife. Still with me?

Victorinox is going to be using packaging that is not only easier to open, it’s also from a company using sustainable techniques, reducing the amount of plastic! Very exciting, and it’s good to see more companies jumping on the “green” bandwagon in a proactive and practical manner; not only are they doing something great for the environment, they’re also making life easier for their customers! Check out the press release below, and look for their new packaging soon! Hope more companies choose to go a route like this!

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As I’ve written numerous times here on the site, I am a huge user of voice recognition software. I’m blown away by Dragon Dictation on the iPhone, use Dragon NaturallySpeaking on my Windows 7 machine, and I have MacSpeech Dictate on both my iMac and my MacBook Pro.

When I upgraded to the current version of MacSpeech Dictate I discovered that it isn’t configured to allow you to use the built-in microphone for dictation. Turns out there is a reason for this for as good as the microphone is, it isn’t ideal for voice recording. Without a proper headset, there will be more errors than normal. That isn’t good for the company making the voice recognition software since, if people go to use the software and it doesn’t offer the proper accuracy, they will blame the software… even if the lack of a proper microphone is at fault. The company knew there would be a loss of accuracy without a headset and therefore made sure that the software would require one.

Fortunately there is a workaround that I have been using that lets me use my MacBook Pro without a headset. I have found the accuracy to be “good enough”, but after last night I now realize the wisdom of MacSpeech’s ways. A proper microphone makes ALL the difference in the world. Thats where the Plantronics .Audio 467 DSP headset comes into play.

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I had a chance to see the current and future lineup from Viliv. Since their diminutive S5 pc was released I have gone back and forth about ordering it or the X70 (a larger slate tablet). I never ended up ordering one but, having seen both in the flesh, I just might. They are remarkably well built, run quite well (especially considering that they are only sporting an Atom processor) and now come preloaded with Windows 7. I also got to see S7 convertible tablet. In pictures it always struck me as a bit cheap-looking. In person I didn’t find this to be the case whatsoever. In the flesh all three they impressed.

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(photo courtesy Skiff)

Yet another new player hit the eBook market this week, but this one is a bit different than the “e-ink, 6in screen, supports x, y, z file types” lather rinse repeat. Skiff has announced a monstrous 11.5in screen reader, designed for reading magazines and newspapers. Not only does it have a huge screen, it also plays back audio. This is NOT just another eBook reader!

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