Posted by Joel McLaughlin in Reviews
Bluetooth stereo headphones are really starting to proliferate. Not all headsets are created equal, that much is certain. While I do like my standby headphones, the Insignia Bluetooth headphones, sometimes I wish I had a lighter set for when I am working out; this set fits the bill nicely.
Posted by Joel McLaughlin in Diary Entries
The iPhone is probably the single most beautiful phone I have ever seen. However, under all that beauty lie some real issues.
I share many of the opinions “johns” posted on the Free Software Foundation blog.
So to save you some time, and so I can write about each reason he lists, here are the 5 reasons he lists after the jump. Continue Reading
Posted by Joel McLaughlin in Reviews
I have a confession to make: I am a iPod owner who dislikes his iPod. I don’t hate the iPod; quite the contrary, I really like it but am frustrated by it’s caretaker, Apple. For everything Apple has done right, there’s lots of things that it has done wrong. For example, if you look at the files on the iPod itself you’ll see undecipherable file names for each of your music files. Plus there’s Apple’s Love/Hate relationship with DRM. Then there’s codec limitations. You can listen to MP3, AAC,Protected AAC, Apple Lossless, Audible, WAV and AIFF, but what about open codecs like Ogg Vorbis?? To Apple, there’s no such thing.
So I went in search of something more and thought I found it with the Insignia Pilot, and it’s mostly true. Come along with me as we explore Best Buy’s Insignia Pilot 8GB MP3 Player…
Posted by Joel McLaughlin in Reviews
Are you the type of person who always asks what time it is? Do you have a clock on your desk even though you have a clock staring you right in the face every time you look at your computer?  Do you always wonder why your office is so darn cold? Do you need a USB hub? Well if all of these apply, then the USB Fever USB 4-Port Hub with Thermometer and Clock is for you!

Posted by Joel McLaughlin in Diary Entries
Have you ever been sitting at brink of buying a new device and been totally perplexed as to what device to buy? I am sitting at this point.
The ultra low cost machines are the ones that really excite me at this point. You can buy so much power for less than what I paid for many Pocket PC’s and Palms. Never have there been so many choices.
Posted by Judie Lipsett in Reviews
Many of you by now will recognize the name HTC as the abbreviation for the Taiwanese based company High Tech Computer. They are the world’s largest manufacturer of Pocket PC and Smartphone OS based PDAs, and as such they are responsible for many of the more recognizable devices which are rebranded by companies including Hewlett Packard, i-mate, Audiovox, and Dopod - to name a few.
The device we’ll be looking at today is known by several names including the O2 XDA Trion, the MDA Vario II, Orange SPV M3100, and the Dopod 838Pro. This review will specifically cover the HTC Hermes branded as the Dopod 838Pro; while some of its included software may differ from other branded versions, the general hardware specifications should be about the same.
Similar to the HTC Apache / Sprint PPC-6700 which I reviewed last year, the Hermes features a compact touch-screen PDA form factor with a left-sliding keyboard which only appears when needed. The Hermes is intended to function not only as the user’s mobile phone, but also as a fully functional PDA, an email and text messaging center, and a compact means to wirelessly surf the internet.
