I’m a big fan of Slacker radio and love the fact that they are continually adding features and stations. Last night I got one of my favorite emails from them. It began with “This is the first of our announcements this week.” That is music to my ears although this announcement has nothing to do with music. … Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Let’s face it:  it’s not every day that you get a cardboard box in the mail, open it, remove all the wrapping paper and bubble wrap to reveal . . . another cardboard box.  But that’s what happened to your intrepid reporter, friends.  Yup; it’s the review of the Convenient Gadgets Cardboard Radio!  What did I think of it?  Well, read on, read on!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Today’s Gear Deal is nothing short of impressive. This 46″ Sony Internet TV is powered by Google TV, comes with a wireless keyboard, has built-in 802.11n wireless and includes Gigabit Ethernet connectivity. It is even compatible with most smartphones. Normally $1,399.99 it is on sale for $400 less AND, thanks to a coupon code our Gear Sponsor found, you can save an additional $200. That brings the price down to an amazingly low $799.99 with no tax in most states. $799.99 for an internet connected 46″ HDTV from Sony… now THAT’S a deal!

Gear Deal: Sony 46″ Internet LED HDTV (powered by Google TV) via LogicBUY

I’ve long been a fan of retro-looking devices that accomplished modern purposes, and it doesn’t get much more retro than the new Grace Audio Victoria Nostalgic Internet Radio. Looking every bit like a countertop radio from the 40s or 50s (well, except for the LCD on the front!), the Victoria Nostalgic is retro form that’s been fitted with modern function.

The Victoria’s walnut exterior with birch inlay highlights 1940s charm while the Class D digital 16 watt RMS amplifier (50 watt peak) fills any living room, bedroom, office, or kitchen with a rich, warm, and detailed sound. The Victoria Internet Radio features a 4-line adjustable backlit display, five alarm settings, 110 station presets / folder

We have had a fair bit of coverage of the Sonos Wireless Hi-Fi System over the past few weeks. As I noted in my initial review of the system, I only had the review units in my home for 23 hours before I went and ordered my own. I was impressed by the ease of use, the overall sound quality, and the vast amount of music that was available to me through the Sonos eco-system. It was by no means an inexpensive purchase but I have not had a single moment of buyer’s remorse. At this point I am a Sonos evangelist and have gotten at least two other homes… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Update: The giveaway is now closed, and the winner is darktweak! We appreciate everyone who entered, and we’d like to remind you to keep an eye out for many more great Gear Diary giveaways! =)

It’s time to start thinking about the supplies you are going to send your kids back to school with, and we are here to help! We’ve gathered together a collection of goodies that any student would like, and while there are plenty of practical items, we didn’t forget the gear that helps makes time off from studying even better. Whether you are on a limited budget or the sky is the limit, there is something here for everyone … including an… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

If you read the site regularly you know that I am a Sonos convert and am telling everyone I can about the wireless home audio system. I love it. In fact, I had the review system in my home for just a day before I went and bought my own system. This past weekend I had a chance to show it to Judie and Carly and they were likewise impressed. It is truly one of the best tech expenses I have made in recent history.

On Monday I had a chance to meet with Sonos and get an early look at their latest release the Sonos PLAY:3. The PLAY:3 is being announced and released… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I’m a huge fan of Slacker Radio but I have to admit, it has been a little long in the tooth lately. I mean, they still haven’t got an iPad app which means you need to use the Slacker iPhone app at 2X resolution on your iPad. Ugly!! Moreover, services like RDIO have made selective music streaming seamlessly ease while Slacker has kept to their same old model.

Well, Slacker is hitting a milestone today with the release of a new iPad app AND Slacker Premium, a service for selectively streaming the music you want when you want it!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

LG’s 42LE5400 LED LCD Internet Connected HDTV

Let’s face it, 3D TV is a cute gimmick that might come of age at some point but, for now, it is still a gimmick. Internet-connected TVs however, now that’s an entirely different story. LG has a 42″ Full HD 1080p TV that is Broadband-enabled and super thin. As they explain,

There’s no better LCD display technology than LED and the LE5400 delivers that along with a whole lot more. You can tap directly into instant movies and entertainment with NetCast and cut free of your cable box and messy wires with Wireless 1080p.

Technologies: The bright, crisp picture quality of LED backlighting and access to

We had a buncho’ subscriptions to Slacker Radio Plus. For just $4.99 month (or $3.99 if you sign up for a year) Slacker Radio Plus removes the Audio and Banner Ads that are part of Slacker free, gets you full song lyrics when available, allows you to cache mobile stations and, if you like, you can get news from ABC radio. There is one other feature of Slacker Radio Plus that puts it over the top and, in my opinion, blows away Pandora. With Slacker Radio Plus you get Unlimited Song Skips. UNLIMITED. As in, “skip all the songs you want in order to find the right one for the moment”. Try that on Pandora… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I’ve always been kind of interested in the Sony Dash Personal Internet Viewer. The $200 Dash uses Chumby’s technology to deliver a host of web content. Through a variety of different apps (there are up to 1500 different free apps available) the device serves up a seemingly endless variety of Internet radio, social media, video and more. Between the apps and its 7″ touch screen the Dash always struck me as being “the bedside alarm clock evolved”. Yes, I’ve always been interested in the Sony Dash, but I’ve never been “$200-interested”.

Today’s Weekend Gear Deal has the Sony Dash on sale for half off. That means the normally priced $199.99 “Personal Internet Viewer” is available for… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Aluratek has brought out a cool little boom box that might just come in handy on your next camping trip.  Aluratek sent me one so I could play with it and see what makes it tick.

Initially when I opened the box, I was expecting their AWS01F which includes a wireless speaker as well.  However when I opened it, the instruction book indicated it was the AMS01F.  The only difference between the two packages is the wireless speaker.  Otherwise the rest of it is the same.

The first thing you have to do is charge the radio… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I’ve had a chance to check out more than a few Internet radios in the past year or so and I am impressed with the growing feature-set and fidelity we are beginning to see. I have been checking out Aluratek’s current offering and can safely say that while it doesn’t stand out from an increasingly competitive market it does have some compelling features and a price point that make it a worthy contender.

Here’s a closer look…

From Aluratek:

Aluratek’s new Internet Radio Alarm Clock with Built in WiFi allows you to easily access more than 11,000 radio stations

Roku was in Manhattan at Pepcom last night showing off their new players and talking Hulu. And… wouldn’t you know it… true to their word Roku sent out an email this morning announcing that Hulu Plus is now available on Roku. Better still, they are offering a free month of Hulu Plus with the purchase of any new Roku player. That means you can buy a Roku player for $59.99, save $7.99 on Hulu Plus the first month and watch all the TV you want.

Sounds like a great deal to me! There are also running a contest that could win you a Roku player AND a full year of Hulu Plus. You can check

I HATE Elana’s transistor radio. It has the most annoying crackle when AM radio is on and even FM radio sounds terrible. I’ve tried to throw it out and replace it with a WiFi radio or an iPod touch numerous times.

But like a bad penny it keeps coming back. Yup, none of the solutions I offered to Elana as replacements for her radio were good enough for her. She kept going back to that THING. Until now! Grace Audio was kind enough to send me a review unit of their Allegro Wi-Fi Radio Portable Wireless Radio & Streamer. I like… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...