Clinton has been salivating over the Celio REDFLY for a while, and we hope to satisfy his gadget lust with a Gear Diary review unit soon; but in the meantime, he and the rest of us can live vicariously through Jack Cook.

Jack received “his” REDFLY before leaving for the Microsoft MVP Summit, and he used that trip as the perfect opportunity to put the device through its paces. Now just in case you are drawing a blank at all my REDFLY references, here’s the scoop:

The REDFLY Mobile Companion is a sleek clamshell design that includes an 8″ display, a full function keyboard, and a touchpad mouse. Measuring just 1×6x9 inches and only 2 pounds, the REDFLY Mobile Companion offers over 8 hours of battery life and boots instantly! It also adds three new features - instant VGA output, access to USB flash drives, and the ability to charge your smartphone via USB.

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Congratulations are in order! Proporta is celebrating their 12th birthday today, but you get the gift.

Here are all the deets…

It’s party time…
Happy 12th Birthday Proporta

Everyone at Proporta HQ is in a party mood this week – not only because they’re generally just happy to be part of the great Proporta circle of life, but especially because this Wednesday 23rd April sees Proporta celebrate it’s 12 birthday. Yippeeee :o)

And as a way of saying a great big thank you for coming to see them over the years, Proporta have decided to offer their lovely customers a 15% discount on all Proporta branded hardware products for just one day only.

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In their infinite wisdom Samsung decided to make pretty much all the accessories for the original BlackJack incompatible with the BlackJack II. The data port is a different size and configuration, so headphones, USB cables and chargers don’t work, and while the original BlackJack battery will power the BJII, it is the wrong size.

But after reading Judie’s review of the Vaja iPhone case, it gave me an idea: maybe the Vaja case I reviewed for the BlackJack last year will fit the new model!

Since the case was for the BlackJack with extended battery it works great!

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I just missed posting this review in time for Texas’ Spring Break, but it should still be timely for everyone who plans on traveling this summer. I’ll warn you now though, in order to use this product you’ll need to give up one of your vehicle’s cup-holders.

Why would I ask for something so uncivilized?

Because by giving up a cup-holder you might just gain the means to charge up to three devices at the same time, all from a single cigar lighter or power port.

Intrigued? I was, which is how I came to be in possession of the Targus 100W Auto Power Inverter.

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One of most laptop’s main limitations is their battery life, which can usually only be relied upon for a few hours. This hindrance is never more evident that when traveling, because finding a place to recharge in airports and train stations can be a major challenge. On January 1, 2008, carrying extended batteries will become a little bit trickier when traveling by plane, but it can still be done as long as the extra battery is packed in your carry-on luggage (versus in your checked luggage) and it is under a certain size.

Copied verbatim from the US Government’s Safe Travel site:

The following quantity limits apply to both your spare and installed batteries. The limits are expressed in grams of “equivalent lithium content.” 8 grams of equivalent lithium content is approximately 100 watt-hours. 25 grams is approximately 300 watt-hours.

Debating the effectiveness of the new rules is a discussion best left for another day, but in the meantime the Proporta Portable Laptop Battery can be combined with other electronic devices carried while keeping the owner in compliance with these new rules (it holds 66.6Wh). Let’s see if carrying one would be worth the bother…

Look at those smudges! I swear it only looks like this under my photography lamps!

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I never thought I would be one of those people that used a hand strap, but at some point over the last year, I decided that I really like having one. I’ve been using a little freebie strap that came with a PQI flash drive, but the WirelessGround USB Leather Hand Strap I was sent convinced me to try something new.

Why would I want to add a 7.5″ long x 0.3″ wide leather strap with a 0.6″ square near its end to my Mogul? Well…check it out!

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For years I have seen Judie review many a Vaja case for many a device. I have always wanted one of my own, to smell the leather, see the fit, and have the experience that is Vaja. I was delighted when they sent me a case for my BlackJack. I received a honey yellow case designed to fit the extended battery.

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I’m not sure what the problem is, but for the last month, my Sprint cellular signal strength has dramatically dropped when I am inside my home. This wouldn’t be that big of a deal, except for the fact that my mobile phone is also my home phone and my business phone as well; in other words it simply has to work. Conveniently enough, I had a product waiting in my queue which promises to “Increase Your Cell Phone Reception 8 Times!”, “Eliminate Dropped Calls and Dead Spots”, and “Enhance Voice Clarity”. If it can really deliver upon its promises, then sign me up for two, because nothing makes me madder than being in the middle of a call and either hearing static or losing the connection altogether.

The product I will be looking at today is not one of those glorified circuit board stickers that you stick to the mobile phone’s battery door, it is the ARC Wireless Solutions Freedom Antenna, an actual piece of hardware that connects to the external antenna jack on this list of compatible phones. If your phone isn’t on the list, don’t fret; you can also purchase various adapters for other phones.

I was sent two Freedom Antennas and a Palm Treo adapter. Here’s the front of the box…

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Hearing about companies�that give�back to their communities always gives me a warm fuzzy feeling, and this story is no exception. What makes it different though, is that the direct beneficiaries of the philanthropy in question are the otters at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, California.

OtterBox, the popular ruggesdized PDA and laptop case company,�is supporting the Aquarium’s�latest exhibit, Wild About Otters, by “giving away 200 complimentary tickets to Wild About Otters as well as donating sale proceeds to the aquarium during the year. The company plans to give away cases to visitors on �World Ocean Day,� June 9, as well as attend and donate cases during �Otter Days,� September 22 and 23. ”

How can you say no to this face?

Have you ever been to the Monterey Bay Aquarium? We went last year, and I can tell you that it’s awesome. Just for fun, I’ve included some pictures from the trip. The press release also follows after the jump…

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On the short list of accessories that Windows Mobile device owners need is a case. Cases not only protect your device but often put that device in a convenient and easy-to-access location (like your hip). In the not-to-distant past, most devices shipped with, at a minimum, a neoprene or vinyl slip case of some type. Unfortunately this has changed in recent years and now is more of an exception than a rule.

A relative newcomer to providing cases for Windows Mobile devices is BeyzaCASES. The company, based in Istanbul, Turkey, provides a wide range of leather cases designed to custom fit a variety of Windows Mobile devices. They have been making cases for other companies to rebrand and sell for years, but in 2004 began selling cases under their own marquee. A few weeks ago BeyzaCASES sent me two cases to review, both designed for my O2 XDA Zinc. While these cases are technically universal cases - they will fit a variety of similarly sized devices - I have to say I am quite impressed with the cases. Not only do they fit nicely around my device but they look stylish and elegant.

As Judie will attest, I am a huge Louis Vuitton fan (yeah, I’m a guy… got a problem with that?) so anytime I get something that comes with a dustcover my interest is already peaked! That is exactly what you get when you open up the box of your BeyzaCASES case. Inside the box is a small drawstring dustcover which contains your leather case. Open up the dustcover and you’ll find the case is a supple, smooth leather with a rich aroma.

Figure 1: The BeyzaCASES Box

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