The Q-i-sound Bluetooth speakers from Qmadix leave the square, boring speakers that are so common in the dust. Available in black or white, they have an unusual shape that is sure to grab attention. Each speaker has its own rechargeable lithium polymer battery that charges in 3 ½ hours and gives up to eight hours of playtime. Standby time is up to 10 days. As the company puts it

Ultra portable speakers offer music lovers a great listening experience, as well as microphones for clear phone communication

It is also worth nothing that, once paired the speakers can be separated by up to 15 feet. A… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

The JawBone JamBox was released in November of 2010. Yes, that’s almost a year and half ago… ancient by today’s tech standards. So you might be wondering why we’re covering it NOW. The reason is simple: although it was released almost a year and a half ago the JamBox is still the best portable Bluetooth speaker on the market and, thanks to updates and additional apps for it the speaker just keeps getting better and better. Thomas was quick to buy one when it was first released but I held back and only got one a few months ago. I wish I hadn’t waited because it really is an incredible little device. I like it so much in fact that I purchased one for Elana to use when she is training clients.

Oh, and there is another reason we shot the video now… it was the first time since I got JamBox-ified that Thomas and I were together. So here’s a quick video of Thomas and me talking about the device and why it’s become one of our favorite gadgets. Yes November of 2010 was quite a while ago but this is one piece of gear that isn’t even close to becoming long in the tooth.… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Last year Travis reviewed Sena’s Keyboard Folio for the original iPad. (You can read it here.) Here’s what he found:

The keyboard is not the best, but it is fully functional and simple to use. Having a keyboard does make it far easier to write long posts, articles or homework assignments on the iPad.

There are people who have resisted jumping into the iPad world simply because they need to enter large amounts of text and find the onscreen keyboard too limiting. The Sena Keyboard Folio for iPad solves that issue and brings that functionality to the iPad in a sleek, elegant package. If you are a fan of fine leather and

The JawBone JamBox is one impressive device. It is a Bluetooth speaker, a speakerphone and one of the best gadgets of 2011! At $199 it isn’t inexpensive but it is a quality device that is well worth the money.

Spar’s Zephyr line of speakers looks to step into the fray with the JamBox and one up it by including a backup battery that can charge your device on the go.

They even got Wired to run a piece entitled “Like a JamBox, Only More Generous” despite the author never having heard one.

So… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Point 1: As much as I love my iPhone using it as a phone isn’t all that comfortable. As a result, even when I’m not on the go, I will often use a headset, wired or Bluetooth, when using my iPhone for a call. In other words, if I use my iPhone a headset is a must.

Point 2: iOS 5 .0 isn’t giving me the battery life that I am used to and need. That may change with the next iOS update but for the time being it is an issue with which I need to deal. That means I need to charge my phone more often than ever. In other words, if… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I love the JawBone Jambox that I purchased a few weeks ago. It came on vacation with me and was quite handy to have around. I like it even more now that I discovered Jawbone’s MyTalk portal. It let me set up the button on the device to activate Siri, and it also let me change the voice used for notifications on the device. Here’s a look at some of the options …

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 ...

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 ...

You know, it’s kind of funny that I just did a post on Madden NFL a while ago, because one of John Madden’s signature lines keeps coming to me as I look at this particular new product:  BOOM!
In the never-ending office wars, sometimes you have to blow off a little steam.  One of my favorite memories of my management days was when it was time for performance reviews and deciding who got the highest ratings, and my director brought into the staff meeting a bunch of multi-shot rubber-band guns.  What a great boss!  (Hi, Roger!)

Dream Cheeky, the guys who make lots of insane stuff like that, have come up… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

One of the best purchases I’ve made in recent months is the JawBone JamBox. Thomas got one over a year ago and almost convinced me to join him at the time. I didn’t and now know that I should have trusted him. The device is small, well-made, sounds great and has the added benefit of a built-in microphone so you can use it as a speakerphone too. I love it!

So how could a competitor try to one up the device? We got word today on one such attempts and, truth be told, it looks great. The device, devices actually, come from SPAR (www.SPAR.com) and is called the ZEPHYR. The ZEPHYR comes… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

A few weeks ago we brought word that Sound iD was coming out with their newest Bluetooth headset the Sound iD SIX. We have reviewed the company’s previous headsets, so I was anxious to get my hands on the SIX. Unlike those headsets, they were entirely black, the SIX has an attractive carbon fiber look to it.

So it looks nice, but how does it sound?

From Sound ID:

The power of EarPrint™ for iPhone®, Blackberry® & Android® smart phones. Patented VoiceMenu technology is Sound ID’s answer to Voice Recognition. Unlike voice recognition, Voice Menu is discrete

I have been teaching for the past few years and have found that recording my lectures is helpful for students that are sick or that need assistance due to attention deficit issues. Many of the programs to record lectures are costly, so I set out to see if I could use my MacBook and a Bluetooth headset to accomplish the task. I found that not only can I, but that it works remarkably well.

The Bluetooth Device: The Bluetooth device I opted for is the Jabra BT3030 Bluetooth Stereo Headset [affiliate link]. Not only is it a good headset, but it can… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I have been using one specific Bluetooth headset in my car for the past year or so, but I lost it a few weeks back. Okay, I didn’t exactly “lose” it but, rather, my wife Elana took it. I was thrilled to have her take the headset because:

A. She’s my wife, and I like her to have stuff she wants

B. She’s my wife, and I wanted her to have and use a headset so she would be safer on the road

C. I knew I had a headset on the way that would be just as comfortable and sound just as good one she took

It recently… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

One of the standout piece of consumer electronics I have discovered over the past few years is the Ooma phone system. The system brings an unusual business model to the business of phone service. Instead of charging a monthly fee Ooma sells the hardware that connects to your high-speed internet service and then lets you have your phone service for free. Sure they sell a number of useful accessories and there are some value-adding services to which you can subscribe (Ooma Premier is one of them and is totally worth the price) but you don’t HAVE to do so to get the value out of an Ooma system. Here’s our review of the Ooma

Smartphones and tablets are “category killers” that have decimated numerous standalone products. As I have written previously, from one perspective the iPhone and the iPad are like “Rorschach devices”. They are “blank slates” (pun totally intentional) that can take the form and function of a wide range of devices depending on whatever software they are currently running. That means that, with the right apps, they can double as a camera and do photo and video editing on the fly. The result has been the demise of the Flip camera and some serious “hurt” on the point-and-shoot camera market. (Once the iPhone 5 and its 8MP sensor is released watch out point-and-shoots!)

Similarly, smartphones and… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...