Today we are introducing a new series entitled “It’s The Next Best Thing To Being There”. In it we’ll share stories of ways in which tech lets of make and maintain connections with one another.

After reading Dan’s post yesterday, I wanted to share my own tech moment with everyone.

My grandparents are in their mid-80s.  Traveling isn’t exactly the easiest thing in the world for them to do anymore. Neither one of them can sit in a car for hours on end.  And airplane travel?  This is not even an option for my grandmother. Her health issues simply won’t allow for it and her doctor has pretty much forbidden her to do it.

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Just how protective of your gadgets are you?  Do you let strangers fondle your phone?  Do you let friends or family borrow your Mp3 player?  Or does your device of choice never leave your side for fear that whoever you lend it to won’t treat it with the same respect you do?

Have you even been in a situation where someone asked to see or use your most prized gadget and you had to stop and think for a moment as to whether you trusted the person enough to do so?

Before you read this entire story be sure to answer the above question.  Then read on for an even more challenging situation at the end.

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I like the Android platform a great deal. I find it relatively easy to use and quite powerful. The ability to run a number of applications in the background makes a tremendous difference in usability of the device. This continues to be one of the main shortcomings of the Apple iPhone. Add to that the tremendous integration of the device with Google’s various applications and you have a winning combination. Or so I thought.

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I love SCOTTEVEST Clothing. I love the design. I love the functionality. I love how GREAT the clothing is every day, but especially while traveling.

Over the years the SEV design technology has gotten better and better. The current features are amazing. Clear touch fabric that allows a traveler to see and control their iPod and cell phones through the fabric, SeV’s patented Personal Area Network (PAN) to manage wires and earbuds, magnetic pocket closures so your devices don’t fall out and weight Management Systems to balance the weight from these added devices.

Well SCOTTEVEST have become fully aware that it isn’t just geeks like us who love their clothing. No, their stuff is awesome for anyone who might be traveling. In fact, my father-in-law Mark took my old, beat up SEV vest with him on a recent safari in Africa and found it to be remarkably useful. As a result, they have introduced a new line of Travel Clothing with TONS of Pockets and Features that will make moving from place to place easier than ever. As they explain-

If you’re like most travelers, the new airline luggage fees are an issue of annoyance. SCOTTEVEST/SeV, licensed by TEC-Technology Enabled Clothing, provides clothing that helps eliminate that extra carry-on. Each piece is designed to carry a multitude of electronic devices and other travel items – all contained in a hidden, interior pockets.

Their newest item? The Pack Windbreaker. (pictured above) It has 17 hidden pockets and packs into itself for ease of travel. Available in five colors it has an MSRP of $75 and can be ordered here.

More details on SEV’s new focus after the jump.

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Honestly? It’s not like I was going anywhere. I mean, my entire life seems to be managed by Google these days, and it only seemed right to upgrade and support a company that usually treats me so nicely …well, except when their Exchange ActiveSync isn’t working properly, but sheesh! It’s free! How can I complain without seeming completely ungrateful?

Anyway. This was waiting in my inbox this afternoon, and it was a pleasant surprise. Thank you Google, you are pretty darn cool.

For almost two and a half years I have been using my iPhone each and every day. The improvements from the first generation iPhone with OS iPhone 1.0 until now, when my iPhone 3GS runs iPhone OS 3.0 has been significant. But it has also been gradual enough that it is easy to take the incredible functionality it offers for granted. I mean, who can even remember using an iPhone that was entirely dependent on **gasp** web apps??

Yes, using my iPhone for everything from browsing the web to writing posts on the go has become as natural as putting on my shoes in the morning. Yet every now and then there is some small thing that happens where my iPhone is so useful that I am reminded just how amazing this device is. In fact, just today I was twice reminded that…

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I’ve carried smartphones for years, starting with the Palm Treo 650. While it has never been for business, nor has it been a dealbreaker if I couldn’t use one, I’ve always liked the convenience of having what amounts to a small computer in my pocket. Yesterday, I discovered just how helpful having one can be when plans change on the fly. Continue Reading

Welcome to another edition of “How it’s changed over the years.”

The firefighter’s SCBA (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus) is as important a piece of equipment as his/her helmet.  The device, which consists today of a high pressure tank, face mask and pressure regulator allows firefighters to breath air in the hostile environments they face.

So how has the SCBA changed over the years?

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I’m cross-platform in my smartphone use and… later today… I will be cross-platform in my notebook use too.

Here’s why…

I do a good deal of writing using voice recognition, in fact the ability to use Jott and Vlingo to respond to individual emails by voice was a big reason I began using a Blackberry. I find it fast and convenient. In addition, I struggle with Rheumatoid Arthritis, and on bad days the pain in my hands and wrists can become a big problem. Using voice recognition to write a first draft of something and then manually clean it up saves a lot of wear and tear on already aching/painful joints.

As much as MacSpeech 1.5 is an improvement over the original version, thanks to the decision to begin using the Dragon NaturallySpeaking’s voice recognition engine, it still falls far behind Dragon’s Version 10 Windows software. This has been a particularly rough few weeks, and I have been relying more on speech recognition than usual; MacSpeech just wasn’t cutting it.

That got me looking for a small, light, portable Windows machine that would, primarily, be used for writing and for responding to email by voice. So began my search. Little did I know it would bring me back to the current version of one of my favorite Tablet PCs. Continue Reading

If you see a friend with a gadget fetish carrying something different, chances are it is something new and trendy. Gadget-heads are seen as fickle and trendy, and bitterly loyal … for about 30 seconds until the next bright & shiny object comes along. But I have typically held on to the stuff I loved the most, and recently I’ve been alternating between 4 PDA/handhelds – my Axim x51v, iPod Touch, Psion Revo and HP200LX. Made me wonder – what sorts of ‘old school’ stuff does the rest of the Gear Diary staff use?

So I asked the question – and looked for them not to talk about stuff like the old Kitchen Aid, the ancient clock in the spare bedroom, or even something like my ancient HP Omnibook I use perhaps three times a year. I was talking about regular use. Read on to find out what they had to say! Continue Reading

Day in, day out, Gear Diary writers scour the web tirelessly, bringing you the latest and greatest technologies and gadgets. With all of the new gadgets that come out and are reviewed, there is always temptation to stay on the cutting edge. Want to know what the writers carry with them daily to work (at least today)? Read on to find out. You’ll be surprised at what some of us carry.

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Growing up my family was somewhat religious.  We celebrated all of the Jewish holidays, went to temple, I became Bar Mitzvah and was Confirmed.  We did most of the things a typical Jewish American family does.

Like many young adults, I suspect, once I moved away from home I became less observant. I didn’t belong to a synagogue and lived far enough away from my parents that coming home for the holidays wasn’t always possible.

Once I got married and started a family of my own though, my wife and I decided it would be important for both ourselves and our children to reconnect.  We joined a local synagogue and began to bring it back into our lives.

My kids started in Sunday school and we began going to services as a family.

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There is a new kind of switcher on the rise these days, and whiles its numbers are limited, they are nonetheless notable. No, we aren’t talking about people who make the move from Windows to Mac; we are talking about people who dropped one device for the iPhone, but now find themselves making the move back again- most of the time to a Blackberry it seems.

The latest victim to succumb to this switcher-mania is CNET’s Adam Richardson. Continue Reading

I’ve been greatly enjoying the HP dv6 that I recently upgraded to Windows 7, and that got me wondering about Snow Leopard (OSX 10.6). Dan was evil kind enough to send me a link to the latest Apple refurb sales last week, and I couldn’t help myself…after perusing the wares, I bit.

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all pictures are thumbnails; click them to enlarge

Right before I finished up the HP Pavilion dv2 laptop review, I was sent a couple of boxes containing an HP Pavilion dv6z-1299lx and an HP Mini 110-1036NR. Even though I knew the purpose of the experiment which was about to happen, I couldn’t help but wonder why anyone in the world would need two laptops?

The answer to that question is actually quite simple…

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