gadgetbloggin

Technology Saves the Day

2012-07-24T13:44:00.001-04:00

Problem

After dropping my sister off at the airport at 4:40 AM I returned home to realize my girlfriend, who was in the condo sleeping had my key. I was locked out. We live in a 1-bedroom condo so it isn’t big but after 10 minutes of knocking I realized it was useless since she was in the bedroom sleeping with the air conditioner on and the door closed. Her phone was also on silent. Before heading to the car to try and grab some sleep before work I gave it one last-ditch effort. Armed only with my iPhone, wallet and non-condo door keys, how could I wake her up to let me in?

Solution

I knew I had to make a loud noise to wake her, but how? I quickly thought about the Find My iPhone app. While this app is made for finding your lost phone or sending messages to the person who finds your phone, it worked perfect in this situation. I logged into the app with her Apple ID and sent a sound and a message of “I’m locked out” to her iPhone and iPad, which were both in the bedroom. The door opened seconds later and I was met by a bewildered girlfriend, “How the hell did you do that?” she kept asking. I was back in bed and sleeping in no time. Man, I love technology.

Podcast App Review

2012-07-18T10:05:00.003-04:00

The way Podcasts are handled in iOS has never been optimal. While you could subscribe to a Podcast via iTunes on your computer and sync that with your phone over WiFi, there was never a way to subscribe to a Podcast directly on your phone. I listen to multiple Podcasts daily and have to go in and search for new episodes and download them manually every day. Although it only took a few seconds of my day it was an annoyance none the less, an an annoyance that could easily be fixed. A few weeks back Apple released it’s Podcast app and with it my problems were solved, or so I thought.

Likes

This app is a great idea. It contains all the features you’d want if you were an avid Podcast listener such as myself. It allows you to subscribe to Podcasts, automatically download new episodes, search for top rated Podcasts by categories, skip ahead 30 seconds, skip back 10 seconds, listen at double speed and half speed, and all while looking awesome. That’s where my “likes” end.

Dislikes

This app is the worst Apple product I have ever used. The number 1 thing I love about Apple products is they work, they work well and they work smoothly, well this app bucks that trend. In one word the performance of this app is horrific. The few times that it worked I loved it, but unfortunately the big emphasis there is on “few”. More than half of the time this app crashes on startup, the other half of the time it freezes before I can get to one of my Podcasts. The subscribe feature does work and it displays your Podcasts nicely in list or tile format, but the auto download features is sporadic at best.The only reason I kept this app on my phone for as long as I did was because of the greatness it promised, but like a great story you can’t remember, this app is useless.

Rating

This had all the promise of a 5 star app. I haven't been this excited when finding out about an app in a long time and consequently I’ve never been so disappointed by an app. I’m holding out hope that some major fixes will come very soon, but until then this will be the lowest rating gadgetbloggin has ever given.

Key Apps: iPhone Update

2012-06-19T14:44:00.000-04:00

In December 2011 gadgetbloggin released its first iPhone Key Apps list, 6 months later, here is an updated list with the new additions in orange.

Apps make the phone what it is. Without apps you've got a phone with internet, good stuff, but sorely missing some fun and some utility. With over 500,000 Apps available in the app store where do you even start? Well this list of course. Here are gadgetbloggin's Key Apps:

Entertainment

Netflix- If you have a limit on your data this app can be dangerous, but if you're lucky enough to have unlimited data or are in range of wifi this app is awesome. You can stream any of the movies or shows available on Netflix streaming package wherever and whenever you want. If you start a movie on your computer or TV you can pause it and resume it later on your phone, and visa versa. Available in the App Store for Free.

Shazam- A simply genius app, if you're listing to a song and are wondering what it's called or who sings it, open up Shazam, press the big Shazam logo and after a few seconds you'll have all the info you could ever want, including options to email or text the name of that song or buy it directly from iTunes. It works remarkably well, even picking up songs in loud bars and restaurants. Available in the App Store for Free.

IMDB- Everyone knows IMDB as the ultimate source for movie and TV show info, this app brings all of that information to your phone. Available in the App Store for Free.

News360- Simply a great news app. It'll show you what's going on in the world in a nice clean layout. The app will alert you with updates on breaking news so you're always up to date with the latest news. Available in the App Store for Free.

Kindle- If you have a Kindle this app is essential. I already discussed why eBooks are better than real books, and this is one of the big reasons. Unlike your books, you always have your phone on you, and although you might not think you’d read a lot on your phone, 5 minutes here and there add up to a lot of reading time. The app syncs your books and progress in those books across all of your Kindle devices. Barnes and Noble also has a similar app for the Nook and Apple has iBooks for the iPhone and iPad. Available in the App Store for Free.

HBO GO- If you have HBO, or you can borrow one of your friend’s logins, this app is awesome. You can watch any episode of any HBO show ever and you can also choose from a pretty good selection of movies. Available in the App Store for Free.

Flixster- This all encompassing movie app allows you to look up showtimes, search for movies, buy DVDs, buy movie tickets, add movies to your Netflix queue, read reviews, rate movies, view Rotten Tomato scores and more. Available in the App Store for Free.

Fandango- The Flixter app allows you to buy tickets to most theaters, but some, like the theater near me are only on Fandango. Aside from viewing showtimes and buying tickets, this app lets you view trailers, read reviews and review the movie yourself. It also rates each movie with a simple Go, Don’t Go, Must Watch, etc. rating from both critics and fans. Available in the App Store for Free.

Pandora Radio- Everyone has heard of Pandora by now, it’s a music streaming website where you can make your own “channel” by typing in some artists or genres that you like. Based on your likes and dislikes of songs Pandora keeps customizing your channel as you listen to more and more music. This app is a great extension to the website, allowing you to bring free streaming tunes on the go. Available in the App Store for Free.

Social

Facebook- The official Facebook app allows you to do everything you can do on the regular Facebook site. The only issue with this app is the alerts are a little sluggish, and don't always sync up to the alerts you've already viewed on your computer, but if you have facebook you need this app. Available in the App Store for Free.

Twitter- If you don't use Twitter, you should, it's quite possibly the greatest information sharing system ever. The official Twitter app works great for reading and writing tweets. It's integrated into iOS5 so that you can Tweet any picture without even opening the Twitter app. Available in the App Store for Free.

Games

Hanging with Friends- If you like playing hangman with your friends, this app is for you. You can lookup your friends via Facebook and get your game going. The game, like hangman drawn out on paper is very simple and easy to follow. Available in the App Store for Free.

Words with Friends- Simply put, it's online Scrabble. This app works so well that it is far more popular than the official Scrabble app. Like Hanging with Friends you can find your friends via Facebook and get spelling. Available in the App Store for Free.

Cut the Rope- There's a hungry frog like creature called a Nom Nom and it wants to eat the candy. You're job is to cut the rope, catching the stars on the way to Nom Nom's mouth. Sound confusing? Well it's not, the physics of this game are perfect and it'll bring you hours and hours of fun. Available in the App Store for .99 cents.

Jetpack Joyride- A fun jetpack game. You're in control of a guy on a jetpack trying to get as far through the level is possible. There are fun vehicles and bonuses that you can unlock along the way and as you score more coins you can purchase new clothes, jetpacks, helmets and more. Available in the App Store for Free.

High Noon- You're an old fashioned gun slinger and your iPhone is your pistol (or rifle). You go through the game fighting real opponents, gaining money as you win which you use to progress through levels and unlock new clothes, facial expressions, hair cuts and guns. Find someone you like playing or know someone that plays? Add them to your Shit list to locate them easily. The controls in this game are super easy and progressing and adding new guns and gear to your repertoire is a lot of fun. Available in the App Store for Free.

Fruit Ninja: Puss in Boots Edition- If you've ever played Fruit Ninja you know its a simple game, slice the fruit that flies across the screen while avoiding slicing the bombs. The Puss in Boots edition brings this game to the next level. Not only can you play the regular style Fruit Ninja, but you can go through Bandito mode which you go through 3 levels, each containing 4 different games, this game proves the old adage that there's more than 1 way to slice a fruit. Available in the App Store for .99 cents.

NBA Jam- Based on my favorite videogame of all time, this iteration of NBA Jam isn't as good as the ol' NES version, but it's a lot of fun and there's no cartridge to blow on. The graphics in this game are surprisingly really good and the gameplay is very smooth and the controls are fairly easy to get used to. The only problem I have with the game is the jump in difficulty between Rookie and Veteran is a HUGE difference and if you push it to the limit in Legendary, it's pretty much impossible. Still a fun time and well worth the money. Available in the App Store for .99 cents.

Draw Something- I’ve come to prefer this game over other similar games like Words or Hanging with Friends. It’s a combo of pictionary and word jumble which you can play against any of your friend that also have the game. The more you play, the more colors you can unlock and the more in depth you can make your drawings. Available in the App Store for Free.

Temple Run- You’re controlling some guy running away from a herd of monkey like creatures and there are plenty of obstacles to duck under and jump over. This game is a lot of fun, and the controls are really simple, turning your phone makes the guy turn, a flick of the finger upward makes him jump and down makes him slide. Different challenges will pop up as you go along and you can link it up with GameCenter to challenge your friends. Available in the App Store for Free.

Utilities

Keeper- Store all of your passwords for all of your different logins right in this password protected app. Available in the App Store for Free.

Flashlight- The problem with flashlights are they never seem to be there when you need them, what good is a flashlight if it's buried in the drawer when the power goes out? Well with this app you don't have to worry about that. The flashlight is on your phone and is always there when you need it, and surprisingly strong. Available in the App Store for Free.

Nightstand- I covered this in an earlier post here. Open up this app and it'll display the time and the weather all night through. Available in the App Store for Free.

The Weather Channel- This app is a great replacement to the stock weather app that is included with the iPhone. It’s nicer looking and gives you a lot more information about the weather. You can get the free version which includes an advertisement banner on the top, or the paid version for a steep $3.99. Available in the App Store for Free.

Dropbox- I covered the glory of the cloud and Dropbox earlier. This app extends that glory to your phone, dump whatever files you want in your Dropbox and they’ll be available right on your iPhone almost instantly. Available in the App Store for Free.

Sports

ScoreCenter- ESPN's information app. Set your favorite teams and your favorite sports and this app will keep you up to date. The most useful thing in this app is turning on the alerts. Based on your settings, this app will alert you on scores for your favorite teams and league, sport and team based news stories. It's the best way to get your up to the second sports information. Available in the App Store for Free.

NFL Mobile- The all encompassing NFL App. NFL Mobile will keep you abreast of all the NFL scores and news. The best feature is this app shows you all of the highlights for all of the games and even allows you to watch NFL Redzone right on your phone (for a monthly fee, except for a few weeks a year when they give you a free trial). Available for Verizon customers only in the App Store for Free.

MLB At Bat- Your one stop shop for all things MLB. You can check scores, stats, standings and more. You can also listen to all of the MLB games for Free and even watch their “Free Game of the Night”. If you have MLB.tv you can use this app to watch any baseball game all season long, as long as you’re not in that teams territory, eg. Red Sox games are blacked out in Mass/RI/NH/Maine. Available in the App Store for $15, and less as the season goes along.

NBA Gametime- Your one stop shop for all things NBA. See the MLB At Bat writeup. The only difference is there are no Free Game of the Night and Audio isn't available for free either. Available in the App Store for Free.

WatchESPN- This app doesn’t even seem like it should be legal, as you might have guessed by the name, you can Watch ESPN on your phone! As long as your cable provider allows (most do now), you just login and all of the ESPN prime time games/shows and more are right at your fingertips. Why didn’t think have this for car trips when I was a kid? Available in the App Store for Free.

Travel

Kyak- You've probably seen the commercials on TV, Kyak searches through all of the travel sites to find you the best rates. You can use this app to search for Hotels, Flights and Cars. You can even set price alerts to let you know when the flight or hotel or car you're looking for gets to the price you want it to get to. Available in the App Store for Free.

TripIt- A super key app. Whenever you book anything for a trip, flight, hotel, tours, etc. Simply forward your confirmation email to plans@tripit.com and this app will organize all of your travel data into an itinerary for you. It'll keep track of all of your confirmation numbers, times and everything you need. Available in the App Store for Free.

Shopping

eBay- This app is all things eBay. You can search, bid, even post an item on eBay right from the phone. The most useful thing is the alerts. The app will alert you as soon as someone places a bid on one of your items, if you are outbid on an item, or if you receive a message. Available in the App Store for Free.

Amazon-Much like the eBay app this lets you fully utilize all of Amazon's greatness. You have access to your full Amazon account, even down to tracking packages. Available in the App Store for Free.

Uncrate- Put simply, this app shows you cool stuff to buy for guys. Everything from shoes to chainsaws to beer, this app covers it all with updates every day. Available in the App Store for Free.

Photography

Instagram- If you don't know what Instagram is you've probably seen photos that came out of it. Instagram is the app that lets you put "cool" filters on your photos. You can follow your friends and check out their photos and share your photos, not only on Instagram, but also on Facebook and Twitter. Available in the App Store for Free.

Photosynth- The best panoramic photo app I've used. Simply start your photo on one end and slowly pan your phone around. The app will keep taking photos and stich them together to make one large panoramic picture. Available in the App Store for Free.

Cards- I've covered this in a full app review before, but the Cards app allows you to create a custom card and send it right from your phone, all for $2.99. Available in the App Store for Free.

Postcards on the Run- Pretty much the same app as Cards, except it creates Postcards as opposed to their bi-fold cousins. I covered it in a full app review, it’s a nice easy way to send a customized hello from your vacation. Available in the App Store for Free.

Fatbooth/Baldbooth/Oldbooth/etc.- All of these apps are a lot of fun. Take a picture of your friend’s face (or use a current photo you have in your phone), line up their ears, eyebrows, chin, etc. and this app will make them look fat/bald/old/etc. Lot’s of fun. Available in the App Store for .99 cents.

Facebook Camera- iOS6 will have facebook integrated into it, but until then this is the easiest way to upload your pictures to facebook. It pulls thumbnails of all the picture in your phone and you simply click on them and click post. It also gives you the option of croping or enhancing your photo with instagram like filters. Facebook Camera also give you a “newsfeed” of all pictures which is laid out nicely and fun to go through, pretty much it’s Instagram with way more pictures to look through. Available in the App Store for Free.

Photoshop Express- A super stripped down version of Adobe Photoshop, this app lets you crop, adjust the exposure, color, balance, focus, etc. of your photos. It also give you a ton of filter and frame options. It’s pretty much a more robust Instagram. Available in the App Store for Free.

Restaurants

Yelp- Wanna know a good place to grab a beer near you? In the mood for Chinese food and looking for a good spot? Yelp it. This app will tell you the best places near you for nearly any category. Find places, read reviews and even get directions right from Yelp. Available in the App Store for Free.

Open Table- This app allows you to make reservations at most restaurants right from your phone (without using it as an actual phone). Search for the restaurant you're looking for and find out which reservations are available and book it. Simple as that. Available in the App Store for Free.

LevelUp- This app enables you to pay for your meals at various restaurants. The app will show you restaurants near you that accept LevelUp and the credits that they give you, which are usually a few bucks off your meal or a free side dish. When you get to the restaurant you open the app to show them your barcode and they scan it which pays for the meal, factoring in the credit as a discount and charges the purchase to the credit card you pre-program. Sounds kind of confusing but it’s super simple and a nice way to save a few bucks. Available in the App Store for Free.

seamless- When you’re looking for takeout, seamless is the app for you. Open it up and it can find you pretty much any takeout restaurant near you. You order and pay straight through the app. It takes a little longer to get your food than if you called the restaurant directly, but it cuts the hassle out of paying and it’s just fun to press a few buttons on an app and have food at your door in a half hour. Available in the App Store for Free.

Car

iCar- If you're like me and you live in a city, you probably park in a different place every night, waking up and finding your car in the morning can be a challenge. This app helps with that. "Tag" your car's location when you park and this app will provide a map with directions to your car's location. It even has a timer built in to keep an eye on the parking meter for you. Available in the App Store for Free.

Waze- I covered this app earlier in a full app review, but it's simply the best GPS for your iPhone (until Apple Maps puts it out of business in iOS6). Available in the App Store for Free.

Removed from previous list

Mapquest- Waze is better looking, has a 3D map view, better POI search and live traffic/police/hazard updates from other Waze users, it’s simply a better app.

Facebook Messenger- FB’s regular app’s message service improved enough where this app isn’t necessary anymore.

Trailers- Flickster wins out with it’s Netflix access and Rotten Tomato integration.

Have a key app that should be on this list? Tell me about it in the comments section!

gadgetbloggin Battle: Apple TV vs Roku

2012-06-13T15:05:00.002-04:00

With Netflix streaming, HBO GO, Hulu and numerous other web based video streaming services available today, having a way to get that content from computer to TV is a must. There are many ways to stream video content to your television, but arguably the two best and most popular are Apple TV and Roku. Both of these small square boxes connect to your internet via Wi-Fi (or ethernet if you’d like), connect to your TV via HDMI and stream content that was previously limited to your computer. They both carry out the same main function but are two very different devices, so which one should you get? Time for the inaugural gadgetbloggin battle!

Content

Content is king as they say and Roku is king of the content. The Roku “Channel Store” gives you access to a bevy of channels which run the gamut from HBO Go to MLB.tv to a channel called Menorah. Roku has the big 3 in subscription content- Netflix, Hulu Plus and HBO GO, and also includes channels that will give you free content such as Crackle for movies. These channels are all free, however some of the content on them may not be.

Like all Apple products, Apple TV’s lineup is set by Apple and they don’t want you messing with it. The apps on Apple TV include Netflix, Youtube, MLB.tv, NBA TV, and access to iTunes for movie rentals/purchases. You cannot watch Hulu, HBO Go, Amazon Prime or any of the other content carriers you may be subscribing to on your Apple TV. While the lack of content is a huge blow to Apple’s chances in this battle, it’s not out of the fight just yet.

Interface

When picking a streaming device interface may not be your first concern, but if the look and feel of the device are important to you, Apple TV wins this category (not a surprise). Like all things Apple, it’s sleek, easy to use and intuitive. The new “tiled” layout has caught some flack from tech bloggers, but I think it’s a nice look. Anything you want to do on your Apple TV is easily accessible and the bonus features such as slide shows as your screen saver are a nice touch.

There is nothing wrong with Roku’s interface, it’s just tough to keep up with Apple in this department. Roku has many levels of menus and the “Channel Store” can be slightly confusing. Roku loses this round on the strength of Apple rather than it’s own weakness.

Extras

This is where Apple makes a huge comeback in this fight (for some). Apple TV can mirror your iOS devices, such as your iPhone or iPad. This means that once you turn mirroring on, wherever you do on your phone or tablet is up on the TV. Showing your friends your photos you took on your phone is much more effective on a 50 inch screen than a 3.5 inch screen and the advantages don’t stop there. You can play your music, watch videos, anything you can do on your iPad or iPhone will show through to your TV (except the HBO Go app, too bad).

The Apple TV also includes apps for Photo Stream, iTunes in the Cloud and Music which pull content from your iTunes account and play them right on your television. Pretty cool.

Roku has some games like Angry Birds, Pac Man and Blackjack. It also has a Facebook app, although I’m not sure why you’d want to browse FB on your TV. Other than that Roku solely streams content via the channels you download.

Also unlike Apple TV, Roku is available in 4 varieties. The cheapest Roku sells for $49 and the most expensive for $99, the different models each have different capabilities, but they all can at least stream video content over Wi-Fi

Result

So after all of that what should you get? Well it depends on what’s important to you, Roku has the leg up on channels, especially with HBO GO, Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime, but if you don’t subscribe to any of those then that advantage is lost on you. Apple TV has some great features integrating your other Apple devices, but if you don’t have an iPhone or iPad, then those features don’t matter.

Overall when it comes down to it, Apple TV is better for people that are immersed in the Apple ecosystem, people who buy movies through iTunes, want to stream their iPhone’s photos and don’t need to watch HBO GO on their TV. Roku is better for people that care about content and content alone because if it’s out there, Roku’s got it. I have ‘em both.

Apple TV $99

Roku $49-$99

iPhone 4s: 6 Months Later

2012-06-02T16:38:00.000-04:00

I wrote my iPhone 4s review a few weeks after swapping my Android (HTC Thunderbolt) for a iPhone last November. Now that I've had the phone for 6 months and really been able to use it for all it's worth, I thought it'd be a good time to go back and see how my initial thoughts held up. Let's take a look:

Likes

The new feature in the 4s that I liked the most was the camera, and that's still true to this day. This is a great cell phone camera. I've completely forgotten about my point and shoot camera and when I go on vacation, or just out for the night I don't even think twice about brining an actual camera along. In good light these pictures are spectacular, in low light they're still pretty good. The flash is hit or miss, sometimes giving the pictures a hazy look, but that's to be expected when your flash is just a LED light.

Pairing the great camera with PhotoStream is awesome. I have never connected my phone to the computer to transfer pictures, and the days of me looking for the right cord for my digital camera seem as far gone as the eeeeeeeeeerrrrrrr of my dial up modem.

I was a fan of iOS5 off the bat and continue to be. When compared to the Android OS, smoother is the word that comes to mind. Everything just seems to work better and make more sense. In the 6 months I've had the 4s it has not froze once, where as my Android has problems with that on occasion. iCloud is useful, especially for photos as I just mentioned.

Siri was Apple's big selling point with the 4s, and they continue to hit it hard in the advertisements today. My initial thought on Siri was that it'd be fun to show people at parties, but wouldn't be something that useful, then after using it I thought it was life changing, now I'm back to the former. Don't get me wrong, it is useful. I use it every time I cook and have to set a timer, or adding something to my grocery list, and for the occasional phone call, but other than that it doesn't get much use. It's big problem is it's buggy as hell. Unlike any other Apple product I've ever owned it feels unfinished (which it is with it's Beta name tag). I'd say it understands what I'm trying to say the first time I say it maybe 60% of the time, so getting what I want sometime takes 2 or 3 tries. Where as Siri was a huge selling point for me 6 months ago, today it wouldn't be a detractor since you could just not use it, but it's not on my top 10 of reasons to get this phone.

The battery wasn't something I covered originally, but it's tough to talk about a phone without factoring in the battery. The 4s's battery is good. It'll get you through the day, unless you're using it a ton of course. The awful battery on my Thunderbolt is what got me looking at other phones, and I haven't been disappointed with how the iPhone's battery has held up.

Dislikes

My complaints with the iPhone 4s 6 months ago were it's screen size and lack of a real good turn by turn GPS app built in. Well free GPS apps such as Waze have solved that problem, but the lack of screen size still remains. It's less of an issue than I thought it'd be and I do enjoy the small factor when I throw it in my pocket, but I think a slightly larger screen could do the iPhone good.

Rating

Six month's into having my iPhone 4s I still think it's a the best phone on the market. Siri (in it's current state) is NOT a game changer like I previously thought, but this phone has so much going for it that it doesn't matter. I'm excited to see what new surprises Apple has to offer when the new iPhone comes out in a few months.

Waze: A Social GPS

2012-06-02T15:54:00.002-04:00

Waze is a free social GPS app available for iPhone, Android, Windows Phone and Blackberry. It handles the GPS well and the social aspect is a nice added bonus.

Likes

The first thing you'll notice when you start up the Waze app is that it looks great. There is a large 3D view of the road and 2 buttons, one which brings up your settings and one which brings up your "Report" options. When you're looking at something while you're driving simplicity is key and Waze hit it on the head.

Waze is a social GPS app, the social aspect is twofold. First in a more passive way, if you are using Waze while driving, your speed and the like are kept track of so if you're in traffic, other Waze user's GPS's will rout them different, faster ways. The other social aspect of Waze comes with the previously mentioned "Reports". When you're on the road and happen to be in a traffic jam, or see a cop, hazard you can report those to the other Waze users out there. Reporting those will show a little logo on other users maps when they're driving. It's a real good idea in theory, but not knowing how long those reports stay up for I don't know how useful they'll be in reality.

When driving the map looks great and is very easy to follow, you can choose from 11 different color themes, all of which look great.

Searching for a location on Waze is very simple as well, two taps of the screen brings you to "Navigate" where you type in where you want to go. You can type out an address, a name of a place or the name of one of your contacts. If you type in the name of a place or even a subject such as "Gas" you'll be able to choose where you'd like to see the results from: Google, Bing, Waze, 4Square or Yelp. The multiple options are a nice way of getting the most out of your search and the Yelp options even show ratings and allow you to view their Yelp pages.

Dislikes

Waze is pretty solid all around and there isn't much to dislike. If you're someone who is paranoid about Big Brother watching you then you probably won't be a fan of an app that monitors where you go and at what speed, but for me it's not an issue.

There have been a few instances where the map loaded up slowly and I was just driving in what looked like nothingness. This could have been an issue with the network as much as the app, but either way it fixed itself in less than a minute so the issue was a small one.

Rating

Waze is solid all around. The GPS is looks great, it has good POI search and the social aspect is a nice touch. If you're using an iPhone it's better than other free GPS apps that I've used like Mapquest, but if you have an Android phone there's no reason to use anything other than the Google Maps Navigation.

Google Drive

2012-05-01T14:04:00.001-04:00

You may notice an invite to Google Drive hitting your Gmail inbox pretty soon, if you haven't already. This may have you wondering, what is this Google Drive, should I use it? Well those are valid questions, so let’s take a look and answer them.

What is Google Drive?

Google Drive is a cloud based storage system, aka it’s a DropBox under a different name. It’s a place where you can store, share and edit documents, along with any other type of file you have, and you can access those files on any computer or Android or iOS device (iOS app coming soon).

Google Drive gives you up to 5 GB of storage completely free, and allows you to purchase more GB’s for a small monthly fee. Many of the features/benefits of Google Drive are the same as the ones I covered in my writeup on DropBox. But on top of those features intrinsic to a cloud based drive, Google Drive has a few advantages over the competition, namely Google Docs and Gmail.

Google Docs have been around for years now, it’s Google’s cloud based document system in which you can create/save/share/edit documents from any computer. I love Google Docs, in fact I’m writing this article in a Google Doc. What Google has done with Drive is incorporate the docs right into it. In fact, Google Docs is no longer, they now fall under the Google Drive header. You can still store Word documents or Excel sheets in Google Drive without them becoming Google Docs, but the fact that you don’t need a computer with the Office package to edit your documents is a nice feature.

One of Google’s biggest leg up on the competition is Google Drive is run through Gmail. Google wants Gmail to be your one stop shop, they integrated pictures with what was Picasso, music with Play, social media with G+ and now your cloud storage with Drive. Rather than going through the hassle (albeit minimal) of setting up a dropbox account, you just sign in with your Gmail info and your Drive is up and running.

Should you use it?

If you don’t already use Dropbox or another cloud based storage system, you’re really missing out and should hop on this ASAP. It’ll change the way you move files from computer to computer and adds a safety layer to your storage, where if your computer is thrown into a lake, but you had your important stuff on the cloud, you’ll still have your important stuff.

If you’re already using another cloud system, get on the Drive ASAP. Why? 5 GB OF FREE STORAGE. Combined with my Dropbox, I now have 7 GB of free storage floating on a cloud.

Google Drive is free, convenient and easy to use. Get on it and start storing.

What's new in the new iPad?

2012-03-08T14:17:00.000-05:00

The much anticipated “new iPad” was unveiled yesterday at Apple’s event, causing a lot of people to ask, what’s different? Here you go:

Retna Display
Using the same technology as the iPhone 4s’s screen, the new iPad squeezes a ton of pixels into a tiny screen. This leads to a ridiculously clear picture. To explain it simply, any display (TV, Monitor, iPad) is made up of tons of little pixels. If your whole screen was covered by only 100 or 1000 pixels you’d be able to see every pixel, but it’s made up of so many pixels that they blend together. True HD is 1920x1280 pixels, the new iPad is 2048x1536, so that 9.7 inch screen has more pixel density than your 50 inch TV, making the picture super sharp.

4G LTE

Most people probably won’t use this feature as you’ll have to get a data plan for your iPad, but if you do have a data plan, this is a big deal. It mean’s you’ll get internet speeds that are just as fast if not faster than a Wifi connection wherever you go. 4G LTE does use a lot of data quickly so be careful.

A5X Chip

The iPad 2 had the A4 chip, the iPhone 4s has the A5 chip, the new iPad has the A5X chip. Basically it’s a faster processor and has a quad core graphics processor, so games will look great.

1080p HD Video

I could imagine it’d be awkward using a big iPad as a video camera, but now you can do it in full HD. They included an image stabilizer and video noise canceling so it’ll perform well in low light.

5 Mega Pixel iSight Camera

While it isn't as good as the 8MP camera in the iPhone 4S, it’s a HUGE upgrade from the .7MP camera the iPad 2 had.

Dictation

Most people (myself included) were expecting to see Siri in the new iPad which didn’t happen. While Siri itself isn't included, dictation is, so you’ll be able to talk to text in any text box with this iPad.

While there aren’t any groundbreaking changes in the new iPad, the changes they did make really add up. It’s a faster, better looking device that can do more, and do more better.

All these new specs lead to the inevitable question, is it worth spending the extra $100 over the iPad 2?

It depends on the person. If you’re not into technology at all and just want to browse the web on your lap, then save the money and get the iPad2 (or a Kindle Fire for that matter), but for most people, yes it’s worth the extra $100. My philosophy with electronics is, no matter what you get it’ll be outdated soon enough, so get the best one at the time. You’re going to be spending a good amount of money on something you’re going to have for at least a few years and get a lot of use out of, you might as well throw an extra $100 down and get the latest and greatest.

Voxer: A Walkie Talkie App

2012-03-06T13:50:00.003-05:00

Voxer is a messaging app available for iPhone, Android, iPad and iPod. Like every messenger app it allows you to send text messages to your friends, but what makes Voxer unique is it’s Walkie Talkie feature.

Likes

The reason to download Voxer is its Walkie Talkie feature. It’s pretty much an audio text message, you hold down the talk button say your peace and let go, the audio is instantly sent to your friends phone (unfortunately without the walkie talkie crackling sound effect). When you receive a walkie talkie message you’re alerted just like you would be with a normal text message so you don't have to worry about your friend chirping in during a meetings.

If you’re one of the few people with a smartphone and a limited amount of texts, this app could be a money saver for you. The text/voice messages are all in the Voxer world so they don’t count against your monthly limit, Vox away!

Voxer is integrated with Facebook, so in order to start Voxing you don’t even need to create an account, you can simply sign in with your Facebook account. It’ll also alert you when one of your Facebook friends has joined Voxer.

Dislikes

If you are thinking Voxer will replace text messaging for you completely, think again, as with any messaging app, you can only use Voxer with the people that have Voxer. Unlike text messaging where you can text anyone with a mobile phone, here you’re limited to the Voxer world, which is growing quickly, but still small in comparison to the texting world.

As I said early, if you’re signed in with Facebook, Voxer alerts you every time a Facebook friend joins Voxer. This is great, except you can’t clear those alerts (at least I can’t figure out how). This causes your message list to be full of people who you’ll probably never talk to.

Rating

In a world of wanting to talk to people without actual interaction, the walkie talkie is key. It’s just like a text message but you can “safely” do it while driving and your inflection doesn't get lost in the text. It’s not a app that you’ll probably use to replace your phone’s text or phone features, but it’s definitely worth the download.

Postcard on the Run

2012-02-09T12:42:00.000-05:00

Much like Apple's Cards app, Postcard on the Run for iPhone uses technology to reach your friends and family the old fashioned way.

Likes

This app is as simple as they come, you open it up, pick a picture for the front of the postcard, write your message for the back, sign your name with your finger, choose your recipient and click send. For a mere $1.49 your custom postcard will be delivered anywhere in the US (rates to other countries may vary).

The quality of the postcards is impressive. It's a solidly built glossy postcard that looks professionally done. You have the option to add a map of where you are which is a nice feature for vacations. As I mentioned, you can sign your name with your finger (or just include it in your message) so you can have some fun with that (or make the recipient think you're 4 years old due to your poor finger writing skills like I did).

Dislikes

For an extra 50 cents you can add a scent to the postcard. There are a ton of scents to choose from to match every location, season and occasion. I wasn't expecting great results from a 50 cent scratch and sniff on a postcard and my expectations were met. I scratched the scratch and sniff stamp many times and I smelt....paper, not the ocean breeze that I ordered.

The postcard took almost 2 weeks to get to my house. I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt to the app with this one as all the reviews I've read said they deliver quickly. I got notification that my card was shipped less than a day after I placed my order, but after a week and a half of waiting I figured it got lost in the mail until I received it a few days later.

Much like the Cards app it's simplicity is a pro and a con. A pro in that its super easy to figure out and anyone can send out a custom postcard quickly and a con in that it lacks in customization. It'd be nice if you could add a title on the front, or even a few different templates so you could put multiple pictures on a card.

Rating

This app gives you a quality custom postcard cheaply and quickly. It runs you the price of a traditional postcard and stamp and is a heck of a lot easier to coordinate.

Why eBooks are better than Books

2012-01-26T12:00:00.000-05:00

Even though I've always been a "tech guy" there are some gadgets that I thought I'd never use, eBooks being one. I always liked reading a real book and thought there was no point in buying a Kindle or a Nook. Then the Kindle Fire came along, I bought it so I could have a nice tablet for $199 and used it as such for a few months. Then one day I was playing around with it and found myself in the Kindle Book store. After some light browsing I saw that I could borrow a book I wanted to read for free since I'm a Prime member, so I gave it a whirl. Within a week I had returned the physical books I had received for Christmas and bought them as Kindle Books and I don't ever plan on going back. Here are some reasons why:

They're everywhere
The big 3 eReaders (Kindle, Nook, iBooks) all have phone apps. You might think, yeah who cares, when am I going to read my book on my phone? How about all the time. Throughout the day there are many 5-15 minute periods where you're waiting for something or have a few spare minutes where you might like to squeeze in some book reading. Well you're not gonna carry all 650 pages of Steve Job's biography around with you at all time, but if it's on your phone you can sneak a few pages in here and there.

You know exactly where you stand
I'm a big stats guy and the percentage at the bottom of the page in my Kindle just makes me want to keep reading. Sure you can figure out how far you are by doing some page math, or doing the ol' pinch test, but knowing exactly how far along you are is pretty nice.

They're not a pain in your...
Back/arms/ you name it. Your carry-on bag for your trip gets heavy pretty quick with a couple of hard cover books in there, and how annoying is reading a 500+ page hard cover book while you're lying on your back at the beach? eReaders weigh less than a Dr. Seus book, and they take up a lot less real-estate in your bag.

They're their own reading light
This doesn't cover all eBooks, but the Kinle Fire, Nook Tablet/Color and iPad all provide their own light. No more straining your eyes to see the pages at night, or keeping your roommate or significant other up with your lamp, the "book" is the light.

Sure eBooks run out of battery, can have some glear (Kindle Fire, Nook Tablet, iPad) and aren't as easy to clean up if they got wet or sandy at the beach, but the positives way out weigh the negatives in my eyes, so clear up some room on your bookshelves and start filling up your virtual book shelves.

Splashtop Remote Desktop

2012-01-24T12:00:00.000-05:00

You might have heard a comercial or two hundred for GoToMyPC, a remote desktop app for your iPhone, iPad or Android device that allows you to access your home computer from anywhere. Sounds awesome right? It is, but it'll run you at least $9.95 a month. If you're planning on doing a lot of remote access for business or even personal use, then the $10 is well worth it. That is unless you'd rather just pay a $4.99 one time only fee. If that sounds a little better to your wallet's ears then you need to check out Splashtop Remote Desktop.

I came across Splashtop as a "Free App of the Day" in the Amazon app store a few weeks back. I downloaded it on my Kindle Fire and took it for a spin.

Likes

Splashtop made my Kindle Fire way more useful then it already was. I now could use it to access anything on my computer at home, and it's not limited to the Kindle, it's available for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Nook, Android Devices, Blackberry Playbook, and HP Touchpad.

It's very easy to set up, you download the app on your device and download the Streamer on the computer and go from there. If you're on the same network the remote is very quick and there is almost no delay in what you do on your mobile device and what happens on the computer.

If you're on a different network (which is obviously when an app like this is most useful), the connection is set up through your gmail account. You log in and connect to your computer. There reaction time is still very good, but it will all rely on the internet connection of both your computer and the mobile device.

Dislikes

The controls for this app are just ok. I found myself tapping things multiple times to get them to open and scrolling wasn't as easy as it said it was in the tutorial. Overall I got done what I needed to but the task was more difficult then I'd hoped, especially when on a different network.

Rating

I got this app for free, so I can't complain at all. It get's the job done, you get access to your computer remotely and it works pretty good. When you stack it up against a competitor like GoToMyPC and it's $9.95 monthly fee, the $4.99 cost for Splashtop is an extremely good deal. Download it in your devices app store or check it out online here.

Settings Icons on your iPhone

2012-01-10T12:30:00.000-05:00

There are a few things iOS does better than Android and a few things Android does better than iOS, one of the latter would be customization. You can set your Android phone up however works best for you with shortcuts and large widgets for nearly any app or shortcut. When I sold my HTC Thunderbolt and got the iPhone 4s I was sorely disappointed that every time I wanted to toggle Bluetooth on and off, or Turn on Wifi I had to go through 2-3 clicks in the settings menu. This was particularly annoying for Bluetooth because I'm usually turning that on while I'm driving.

Well a fellow named Jeff Broderick fixed that problem. By going to brdrck.me/settings on your iPhone or iPad, click on the shortcut you want, follow the steps and you'll be 1 click away from whatever you're looking for in no time. The icon's look nice and get the job done very nicely. Best of all it's completely Free! If you feel guilty about taking something so great for free, he does accept donations. Here' s a list of all the settings you can have a shortcut to:

Bluetooth
WiFi
Brightness
Airplane
Hotspot
Notifications
Location
VPN
Sync
EQ
iCloud
Network
Sounds
Backup
About
Safari (Settings)
Auto-Lock
Siri
Usage
Cellular
Wallpaper

Give it a try and save yourself some time next time you want to adjust your settings.

Key Apps: Android

2012-01-04T12:00:00.000-05:00

Apps make the phone what it is. Without apps you've got a phone with internet, good stuff, but sorely missing some fun and some utility. With almost 400,000 Apps available in the Android Market where do you even start? Well this list of course. Here are gadgetbloggin's Key Apps: Android.

Entertainment

Netflix- If you have a limit on your data this app can be dangerous, but if you're lucky enough to have unlimited data or are in range of wifi this app is awesome. You can stream any of the movies or shows available on Netflix streaming package wherever and whenever you want. If you start a movie on your computer or TV you can pause it and resume it later on your phone, and visa versa. Available in the Android Market for Free. (must have a Netflix streaming account)

Shazam- A simply genius app, if you're listing to a song and are wondering what its called or who sings it, open up Shazam, press the big Shazam logo and after a few seconds you'll have all the info you could ever want, including options to email or text the name of that song or buy it directly from AmazonMP3. It works remarkably well, even picking up songs in loud bars and restaurants. Available in the Android Market for Free.

IMDB- Everyone knows IMDB as the ultimate source for movie and TV show info, this app brings all the power of the International Movie Data Base to your phone. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Movies- This apply named app is all things movies. From trailers of upcoming movies to the current listings, Rotten tomato ratings, purchasing tickets, managing your Netflix queue and more, you can do it all from this one app. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Amazon MP3- What iTunes is to the iPhone, Amazon MP3 is to Android. This app gives you direct access to Amazon's MP3 store, allows you to stream music from your Amazon cloud drive and has access to all of the songs located on your phone. Google Music is getting going with a competitor for this app, but right now, as far as music on the Android is concerned, Amazon MP3 reigns supreme. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Beyond Podcast Manager- If you're an avid podcast fan like myself you'll be looking for an app that'll let you download/play podcasts. This is the best one. Google Listen gets a lot of run for being a good podcast app but it doesn't allow you to download them. Beyond Podcast let's you download and listen to any podcast you'd like to (and isnt hampered by the 20MB download limit like the iPhone) so you can download your podcasts anytime, anywhere. The Free version lets you do almost anything you'd like, but the pay version adds some nice extras (multiple downloads at once, automatic downloads). Available in the Android Market for Free.

Social

Facebook- The official Facebook app allows you to do everything you can do on the regular Facebook site. The newest update now allows you utilize the new timeline feature right from your phone. The only issue with this app is the alerts are a little sluggish, which leads to the next app on the list. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Facebook Messanger- I thought this would be a pretty useless app. I don't ever utilize Facebook's IM feature, so I figured this app would be pretty much the same. I was wrong, Facebook Messanger is the quickest way to get your messages on your phone. Unlike the Facebook app which is sluggish with its updates, Facebook Messanger, like its logo updates you lighting quick whenever you receive a new message. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Twitter- If you don't use Twitter, you should, its quite possibly the greatest information sharing system ever. The official Twitter app works great for reading and writing tweets. And well Twitter intergration was a big new feature in iOS5, it's been engrained in Android for years. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Games

Hanging with Friends- If you like playing hangman with your friends, this app is for you. You can lookup your friends via Facebook and get your game going. The game, like hangman drawn out on paper is very simple and easy to follow. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Words with Friends- Simply put, it's online Scrabble. This app works so well that it is far more popular than the official Scrabble app. Like Hanging with Friends you can find your friends via Facebook and get spelling. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Cut the Rope- There's a hungry frog like creature called a Nom Nom and it wants to eat the candy. You're job is to cut the rope, catching the stars on the way to Nom Nom's mouth. Sound confusing? Well it's not, the physics of this game are perfect and it'll bring you hours and hours of fun. Available in the Android Market for $.99.

Plants vs Zombies- How would you stop Zombies from crossing your yard to get to your house? Well with plants and flowers of course! This super fun game pits you against a group of Zombies, with 1 goal, Don't let them reach your house. As you progress through the game you unlock more powerful plants and flowers (and more powerful zombies). Available in the Amazon App store for $1.99.

Fruit Ninja: Puss in Boots Edition- If you've ever played Fruit Ninja you know its a simple game, slice the fruit that flys across the screen while avoiding slicing the bombs. The Puss in Boots edition brings this game to the next level. Not only can you play the regular style Fruit Ninja, but you can go through Bandito mode which you go through 3 levels, each containing 4 different games, this game proves the old adage that there's more than 1 way to slice a fruit. Available in the Amazon App Store for .99 cents.

Utilities

Evernote- A note taking app that harnesses the power of the cloud. Create or edit a note on your phone and it's available instantly at Evernote's website and on any device which you have Evernote installed. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Secrets for Android- Store all of your passwords for all of your different logins right in this password protected app. It also syncs with your gmail account so it'll carry your secrets over with you to whatever new Android phone you get. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Google Docs- If you don't use Google docs, you should start right now. If you do use Google docs, this app is super key. You'll have access to read and edit all of your Google docs right on your phone. This app also has a cool new feature which allows you to take a photo of text on a paper or wherever and it'll break it down to editable text (it's not prefect but pretty good). Available in the Android Market for Free.

Astrid Tasks- The ultimate To Do List app for Android. Astrid will keep you on top of your tasks with reminders. This app gets "cute" and uses the Astrid mascot to guilt you into completing your tasks with quotes such as "You said you'd get this done!" and "Come on get this one out of the way." It'll do whatever it can to help you get your tasks done on time. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Astro File Manager- When you download something on your computer it goes into your download folder, or wherever you tell it to, but where does something go when you download it on your phone? Good question. Astro File Manager allows you to not only see where your downloads are at (and delete the ones you don't need), but it lets you search through all of the folders on your phone to find whatever you're looking for. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Nightstand BOLD- I covered the benefits of a Nightstand App in an earlier post here. Open up this app and it'll display the time all night through. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Sports

ScoreCenter- ESPN's information app. Set your favorite teams and your favorite sports and this app will keep you up to date. The most useful thing in this app is turning on the alerts. Based on your settings, this app will alert you on scores for your favorite teams and league, sport and team based news stories. It's the best way to get your up to the second sports information. Available in the Android Market for Free.

NFL Mobile- The all encompassing NFL App. NFL Mobile will keep you abreast of all the NFL scores and news. The best feature is this app shows you all of the highlights for all of the games and even allows you to watch NFL Redzone right on your phone (free for all 4G phones). Available for Verizon customers only in the Android Market for Free.

Travel

Kyak- You've probably seen the commercials on TV, Kyak searches through all of the travel sites to find you the best rates. You can use this app to search for Hotels, Flights and Cars. You can even set price alerts to let you know when the flight or hotel or car your looking for gets to the price you want it to get to. Available in the Android Market for Free.

TripIt- A super key app. Whenever you book anything for a trip, flight, hotel, tours, etc. Simply forward your confirmation email to plans@tripit.com and this app will organize all of your travel data into an itinerary for you. It'll keep track of all of your confirmation numbers, times and everything you need. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Shopping

eBay- This app is all things eBay. You can search, bid, even post an item on eBay right from the phone. The most useful thing is the alerts. The app will alert you as soon as someone places a bid on one of your items, if you are outbid on an item, or if you receive a message. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Amazon- Much like the eBay app this lets you fully utilize all of Amazon's greatness. You have access to your full Amazon account, even down to tracking packages. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Amazon App Store- While it doesn't have nearly as many apps as the Android Market, the Amazon App Store does run a great daily free app program, which alone makes it worth the free download.

Photography

Pano- This award winning app guides you through a panoramic picture. Take the first shot and it'll help you line up the others from there on out by showing you the edge of your last picture transparently, by lining up the transparent picture to the live shot it makes capturing the sequence a synch. When you're done Pano will stich it all together for you automatically and the results are pretty damn good. Available in the Android Market for $3.06.

Restaurants

Yelp- Wanna know a good place to grab a beer near you? In the mood for Chinese food and looking for a good spot? Yelp it. This app will tell you the best places near you for nearly any category. Find places, read reviews and even get directions right from Yelp. The app even includes a real cool "monocle mode" which shows you the hot spots on the street that you are on through your phones camera. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Open Table- This app allows you to make reservations at most restaurants right from your phone (without using it as an actual phone). Search for the restaurant you're looking for and find out which reservations are available and book it. Simple as that. Available in the Android Market for Free.

Key Apps: iPhone

2011-12-29T13:35:00.000-05:00

Apps make the phone what it is. Without apps you've got a phone with internet, good stuff, but sorely missing some fun and some utility. With over 500,000 Apps available in the app store where do you even start? Well this list of course. Here are gadgetbloggin's Key Apps:

Entertainment

Netflix- If you have a limit on your data this app can be dangerous, but if you're lucky enough to have unlimited data or are in range of wifi this app is awesome. You can stream any of the movies or shows available on Netflix streaming package wherever and whenever you want. If you start a movie on your computer or TV you can pause it and resume it later on your phone, and visa versa. Available in the App Store for Free (must have a Netflix streaming account)

Shazam- A simply genius app, if you're listing to a song and are wondering what its called or who sings it, open up Shazam, press the big Shazam logo and after a few seconds you'll have all the info you could ever want, including options to email or text the name of that song or buy it directly from iTunes. It works remarkably well, even picking up songs in loud bars and restaurants. Available in the App Store for Free.

IMDB- Everyone knows IMDB as the ultimate source for movie and TV show info, this app brings all of that information to your phone. Available in the App Store for Free.

Trailers- Apple's somewhat confusingly named "Trailers" app does a lot more than let you watch Trailers. You can see what movies are coming out and when, which ones are currently at the top of the box office charts, Rotten tomato ratings, showtimes and theater locations around you and it'll even allow you to buy movie tickets right from your phone. Available in the App Store for Free.

News360- Simply a great news app. It'll show you whats going on in the world in a nice clean layout. The app will alert you with updates on breaking news so you're always up to date with the latest news. Available in the App Store for Free.

Social

Facebook- The official Facebook app allows you to do everything you can do on the regular Facebook site. The newest update now allows you utilize the new timeline feature right from your phone. The only issue with this app is the alerts are a little sluggish, which leads to the next app on the list. Available in the App Store for Free.

Twitter- If you don't use Twitter, you should, its quite possibly the greatest information sharing system ever. The official Twitter app works great for reading and writing tweets. It's integrated into iOS5 so that you can Tweet any picture without even opening the Twitter app. Available in the App Store for Free.

Games

Jetpack Joyride- A fun jetpack game. You're in control of a guy on a jetpack trying to get as far through the level is possible. There are fun vehicles and bonuses that you can unlock along the way and as you score more coins you can purchase new clothes, jetpacks, helmets and more. Available in the App Store for Free.

High Noon- You're an old fashioned gun slinger and your iPhone is your pistol (or rifle). You go through the game fighting real opponents, gaining money as you win which you use to progress through levels and unlock new clothes, facial expressions, hair cuts and guns. Find someone you like playing or know someone that plays? Add them to your Shit list to locate them easily. The controls in this game are super easy and progressing and adding new guns and gear to your repertoire is a lot of fun. Available in the App Store for Free.

NBA Jam- Based on my favorite video game of all time, this iteration of NBA Jam isn't as good as the ol' NES version, but it's a lot of fun and it's on your phone. The graphics in this game are surprisingly really good and the game play is very smooth and the controls are fairly easy to get used to. The only problem I have with the game is the jump in difficulty between Rookie and Veteran is a HUGE difference and if you push it to the limit in Legendary, it's pretty much impossible. Still a fun time and well worth the money. Available in the App Store for .99 cents.

Utilities

Keeper- Store all of your passwords for all of your different logins right in this password protected app. Available in the App Store for Free.

Flashlight- The problem with flashlights are they never seem to be there when you need them, what good is a flashlight if it's buried in the drawer when the power goes out? Well with this app you dont have to worry about that. The flashlight is on your phone and is always there when you need it, and surprisingly strong. Available in the App Store for Free.

Nightstand- I covered this in an earlier post here. Open up this app and it'll display the time and the weather all night through. Available in the App Store for Free.

Sports

NFL Mobile- The all encompassing NFL App. NFL Mobile will keep you abreast of all the NFL scores and news. The best feature is this app shows you all of the highlights for all of the games and even allows you to watch NFL Redzone right on your phone (for a monthly fee, except for a few weeks a year when they give you a free trial). Available for Verizon customers only in the App Store for Free.

Travel

Shopping

Amazon-Much like the eBay app this lets you fully utilize all of Amazon's greatness. You have access to your full Amazon account, even down to tracking packages. Available in the App Store for Free.

Uncrate- Put simply, this app shows you cool stuff to buy for guys. Everything from shoes to chainsaws to beer, this app covers it all with updates every day. Available in the App Store for Free.

Photography

Instagram- If you don't know what Instagram is you've probably seen photos that came out of it. Instagram is the app that lets you put cool filters on your photos. You can follow your friends and check out their photos and share your photos, not only on Instagram, but also on Facebook and Twitter. Available in the App Store for Free.

Photosynth- The best panoramic photo app I've used. Simply start your photo on one end and slowly pan your phone around. The app will keep taking photos and stich them together to make one large panoramic picture. Available in the App Store for Free.

Cards- I've covered this in a full app review before, but the Cards app allows you to create a custom card and send it right from your phone, all for $2.99. Available in the App Store for Free.

Restaurants

Car

iCar- If you're like me and you live in a city, you probably park in a different place every night, waking up and finding your car in the morning can be a challenge. This app helps with that. "Tag" your car's location when you park and this app will provide a map with directions to your car's location. It even has a timer built in to keep an eye on the parking meter for you. Available in the App Store for Free.

Mapquest- I covered this app earlier in a full app review, but it's simply a very good GPS for your phone. Available in the App Store for Free.

Galaxy Nexus Review

2011-12-21T14:31:00.001-05:00

The highly anticipated Samsung Galaxy Nexus finally came out for Verizon last week. The fact that it is Google's flagship phone and the first phone to run Android's new operating system, Ice Cream Sandwich brought about great expectations. If you want to compare iPhones and Androids, the Nexus' are the fairest comparison, they're a straight up Google phone, no skins from other manufactures and they are released on a similar schedule to iPhone. Other Android phones are made by manufactures whom Google allows to use their Android OS, it'd be like if Apple let HTC make a phone and use their iOS (which would never happen). Anyways, enough background, let's get to the review.

Likes

This phone feels nice, its relatively light and thin, especially considering it boasts a 4.65 in screen. The back has a nice bevel to it and a pattern which feels nice in the hand, but like every other phone I've ever held, it still falls short of the Droid Razr in terms of feel. There are no physical buttons outside of the volume and power controls which I thought would be odd, but the "virtual buttons" stay at the bottom of the screen pretty much all the time so you don't really even notice the difference.

The Nexus has impressive specs, 32 GB built in memory, a 1.2 ghz dual core processor and 1 gig of Ram which lead to real fast performance. The camera is only 5 MP but still takes some real nice looking pictures.

They keyboard on this phone is awesome (more of a ICS feature rather phone specific). I typed out 3 sentences as fast as I could, which was pretty dang fast and there were zero mistakes. The key sensitivity combined with the auto correct was wonderful, better than the iPhone's keyboard which I still constantly make mistakes with.

I was really impressed overall with Ice Cream Sandwich, it was much smoother and more visually appealing than the Gingerbread OS and from all of the reviews I've read, everyone is really eating it up. Bada bing!

One new feature in ICE is the People section that replaced "Contacts", its nice and bright and clean and easy to navigate, the pictures of your contacts are big and its very graphically pleasing. Another new feature in ICS is the face unlock. Rather than typing in your password to unlock your phone you can simply look at it, it's super cool. I tried it out 5 times and it worked flawlessly every time, even when I wasn't facing the phone directly. I'm sure it'd struggle in the dark, but you have the option of putting in your numerical or pattern password instead.

Dislikes

Just like every 4G phone out there today, the battery of the Galaxy has faced a lot of scrutiny. They packed a 1,850 mAh battery into the phone which is a beast, but still can't contain the drain of the 4G network. Much like I did with my T-bolt (1,400 mAh battery) your best bet is to turn 4G off for most of the day and only use it when you really need it, which kind of defeats the purpose of it anyway right? If you really want your 4G on and your phone to survive a full day, you can always add some girth and weight to your phone and completely ruin the look of it with an extended battery.

Rating

This phone is nice, real nice. It's my favorite Android phone out there, mainly due to the fact that it runs ICS. Aside from ICS, specs and usage wise it's not much different than the other top of the line Android phones, so it'll be interesting to see how this phone does once the others get their upgrade, but none the less if you're getting an Android phone right now, this is the one to grab.

Dropbox and "the Cloud"

2011-12-15T12:00:00.000-05:00

Every time you see an add or read any tech related article these days, all you hear about is the cloud. What is this cloud everyone's talking about? How can it help you out? Continue reading and you'll find out.

The could is just a cool name for a externally based file storage system. How it works is you upload something, a file, a song, a document, to a cloud based system, and that system stores that file for you. What's the point? Well the cloud help you out in many ways: since your files are stored elsewhere they're not taking up space on your computer/phone/tablet's hard drive, these files not being on your hard drive also make them accessible in more places that just your computer and since they're stored externally, if your computer crashes or gets ruined in a flood, you're files don't die with it. It's very handy.

There are many systems and programs that use the cloud in many ways, such as iCloud for your Apple based gadgets, Amazon cloud drive for your music and files, and the thousands of other applications of the cloud, but what I want to focus on in this article is DropBox.

DropBox is a handy cloud based tool. They provide you a free 2GB of storage on their cloud (upgradable to 50GB for $9.99 a month and more GB for more money) and have created an interface that is super easy to use.

You simply go to Dropbox.com, create your account and download the Dropbox folder. This folder goes into your file system with the other folders on your computer, but this folder is different. Place a file in this folder and after it is done syncing, you'll be able to access your file from any computer with an internet connect via Dropbox's website. You can also download the Dropbox app on your phone, or install a Dropbox folder on any of your different computers. No matter where you go that file is there.

By uploading a file to your Dropbox, you can also share these files with other people. Email servers, such as gmail or yahoo only let you send files up to a certain size, usually 25 MB, but what if you want to send a HD video to someone? Or a high res photo? Put it in your Dropbox public folder and share it with them. Dropbox provides a web link for any of the files in your public folder which you can send to whoever you want.

If you're like me and like to have some files available at home and at work, or have some important documents that you don't want to risk loosing if your computer crashes, or want to share a large file with someone, Dropbox is a terrific free tool that you should be using.

Check it out Dropbox

App Review: MapQuest

2011-12-13T12:00:00.000-05:00

When I switched from my Android phone to the iPhone, the thing I was most worried about giving up was the Google Maps Navigation. The built in Google Maps GPS on Android is a great GPS, so much so that I sold my actual GPS unit. The built in Maps app on the iPhone is good for maps, but just ok for turn by turn directions, so Where do you turn from there? Well the free Mapquest app is a good direction to go (puns intended).

Likes

There are plenty of paid GPS apps for the iPhone out there that work very well, but for a free app, I’m very impressed with Mapquest. It straight up works. You tell it where you want to go and you’ll get there. You can type in the destination you’d like to go to, or look one up in your address book. Once you click start, the GPS finds your location very quickly and you’re good to go.

Not only will you get turn by turn directions written out on the screen while your car icon is moving along the route, the directions will also be voiced to you. If you’re listening to music or a podcast while you’re driving, it’ll fade the volume down, bark out the instructions, then bring the volume back up. The voice will alert you at least twice before every turn, so unless you’re really not paying attention you won’t miss anything.

The app has a good list of POI’s- Hotels, Restaurants, Shopping, Gas, Coffee, Post offices, Parking, Grocery Stores, Schools and more that can be added on. The POI’s are overlaid on the map and show a good variety. It also features a traffic view option, but I don’t think it’s too accurate.

A fun feature of the Mapquest app is the icon selection. You’re not limited to the simple car app. You can have anything from a robot, to a footprint to a battleship. And if they don’t have one you like you can use a photo of whatever you want.

Dislikes

The Mapquest app works very well, but it’s looks leave something to be desired. It’s very Windows 95 looking. The other problem I have with the look of the Mapquest app is it only allows for a 2D overhead view. The 3D view from the car that all stand alone GPS’s (and Google Maps for Android)have as their default view isn't an option. While the 2D view is easy to read, its not as easy as appealing as the 3D view.

Like any non Apple app, Mapquest can’t be accessed by Siri. This is more of a Siri/OS5 beef, but it’d be nice if this app could be selected as the default GPS, so when you asked Siri, “How do I get home from here?” It’d be able to pull up the directions in Mapquest rather than the Maps app.

Rating

While the looks leave something to be desired, the Mapquest app works, and works well. For a free GPS app this is a great option for anyone whose looking to use their phone as their main directional device.

*rating system retooled for simplicity

HTC Rezound Review

2011-12-08T12:00:00.000-05:00

The HTC Rezound for Verizon is a 4G phone aimed to appeal to the music enthusiast. It's the first American phone to integrate the "Beats by Dr. Dre" audio package. The Rezound comes packed with an impressive specs list. It has a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and a 8 mega pixel, 1080p (full HD) video camera on the back with a 2 MP front-facing camera, 16 GB of internal storage and a 16 GB microSD card installed. It runs off of Android's Gingerbread Operating System with HTC's Sense 3.5's skin. What does this all mean? It's a phone packed with top notch hardware, but how does it fare? Let's see...

Likes

The Screen is the first and only (until the Nexus comes out shortly) 720p HD display on a phone. It's bright, vibrant and looks very nice.

Thanks to it's partnership with Beats by Dr. Dre audio, this phone includes the best "free" headphones I've ever seen with a phone. The audio quality of these earbuds are great and they're very comfortable, putting the iPhone's earbuds to shame. The built in speaker is also better than other HTC speakers, like the Thunderbolt's which for the size of it doesn't come close to stacking up with the Rezound's.

The 8 mega pixel camera takes some very nice photos, I'd put it right behind the iPhone 4s's in terms of quality. It comes with a bunch of features including different filters, HDVR and a panoramic mode. The 1080p video has tested out very well and it's quality can be compared to the iPhone 4s's.

I've always been a fan of HTC's skins. Their sense 3.5 is nice. One of the coolest features is the lock screen image. You can select between- weather, photo album, friend stream, stocks, clock or just regular wallpaper and each has their own unique animation that looks 3D and very appealing. You're also able to chose 4 apps as quick shortcuts which can be opened right from the lock screen. This would be handy to take a quick picture or shoot out a text.

Dislikes

Although the rounded design and rubberized back look pretty good (like a big brother to the Droid Incredible 2), it's hefty. This phone is just about twice as thick as the Razr and weighs a considerable amount more. It's size/weight is very similar to the HTC Thunderbolt, and after using the Razr, this phone just feels like a fat rock.

The problem with every 4G phone a big screen and dual core processor is the battery. And like all the others this phone will chug through it.

This phones runs on the Gingerbread OS, with the first Ice Cream Sandwich equipped phone (the newest Android OS, drawing rave reviews) right around the corner (Nexus) it would have been nice to see ICS running on the Rezound. It should eventually get an upgrade to ICS, but that's still probably at least a few months away.

Rating

The Rezound is chock full of specs, but specs don't tell the whole story. It runs off a soon to be outdated OS, chugs through the battery and is a far cry from the Razr in terms of design. Don't get me wrong, this is a quality phone, a real quality one at that, but a nice screen and comfy headphones aren't enough to make you want to run out and buy it. Unlike the Razr, when I was using it there was nothing about it that blew me away, nothing that really separated it from being just another Android phone. Wait a few weeks and check out the much hyped Nexus before buying either.

*rating system retooled for simplicity

Re-Defining Speaker Phone

2011-12-06T12:00:00.000-05:00

MOTOROLA T505 Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone with Digital FM Transmitter

The Motorola T505 is a godsend for anyone who spends any significant time in their car. This gadget hooks onto your car’s sun visor and wirelessly connects your phone audio to your speakers.

How does it work?

The T505 connects to your phone via bluetooth and then connects to the radio with a FM transmitter. Unlike most FM transmitter which have you searching through your radio stations, looking for some static, the T505 does that work for you. By simply pressing a button on the back of the device it finds the “best” radio station for you to use and tells you which station it is, change your radio to that station and you’re good to go. I put “best” in quotes because it’s not always perfect on its choices, sometimes it tries to takeover stations that signals are strong and you get some fuzz, but by pressing the button again it’ll find another channel for you quickly.

The device also has a microphone built into it so you can speak during phone calls without using your phone. There’s also a noise canceling device so even when the windows are down while you’re driving, the person on the other end of the phone can hear you clearly.

The front of the device has a phone button and play button for picking up/ending phone calls, and playing/pausing music. The phone button doubles up as the home button on the iPhone and can be used to summon Siri. During incoming calls, T505 reads the phone number back to you so you know who’s calling without even looking at your phone.

The battery life is impressive, I use it for at least an hour every day and only charge it a few times a month, tops. It charges via mini usb and comes with a car charger included.

This transmitter is a must have for anyone with any type of commute. I use it every time I drive anywhere. Combined with Siri I can fully use my phone without ever having to take it out of my pocket and it frees your hands up for other stuff, like driving.

Newegg.com had it on sale for $39.99, but it’s now out of stock. It’s available on Amazon.com for $51.99 and worth every penny of it.

Nook Tablet Review

2011-12-02T12:00:00.000-05:00

The Barnes and Noble Nook Tablet is B&N's answer to the Kindle Fire (which I'll mention a lot in this article, for my Kindle Fire review, click here). Like the Kindle Fire it plays music, movies and apps, and is an e-reader for your favorite books and magazines. The Nook Tablet runs off an Android OS tailored to their tablet. The Nook Tablet retails for $249.99.

Likes

Call me old fashioned but I like a few physical buttons. The Nook Tablet has 3- power, home and volume. The volume buttons come in handy and the home button has many uses throughout the tablet's screens. The screen is bright and vibrant and responds very well to touch. The tablet is pretty light and is easy to hold in one hand. The weight well distributed and makes typing on the keyboard with 2 hands comfortable (one of my gripes with the Kindle Fire). The keyboard looks nice and works great. There are spaces between each key which makes for easy typing even when you're going pretty fast.

The Nook Tablet has access to the Nook Market for Apps, books and Magazines, and has a good selection of all 3. Hulu plus and Netflix are both integrated into the tablet to handle your movie needs and Pandora and other radio apps are available for music (you can also store your own music on the tablet's hard drive). The OS runs smooth and books/magazines load up rather quickly.

Dislikes

The screen on the Nook Tablet is surrounded by a rubberized plastic which includes the Nook's "iconic" hole in the corner. I don't like it, it looks super cheap. I like the rubberized plastic on the back which provides a non slip texture for when you put the tablet down, but putting it on the front looks and feels cheap.

The Operating System, although smooth, is semi confusing. There are too many ways to get to each screen, which while it's nice to have options, will end up confusing people. Unlike the Kinde Fire's re-skinned Android OS, this one feels very Android-y, and not in a good way.

The web browser on the Nook Tablet couldn't handle video streaming too well (I was on Barnes and Noble's Wifi network which probably played into it a bit). I tried to play the Nook Tablet intro video from the browser's home page and I got through about 45 seconds of choppy video before I called it quits during the 5th or 6th pause to catch up. This browser pales in comparison to the Silk browser of the Kindle Fire.

Although I was a fan of the physical volume buttons, even turning the volume to full blast didn't produce much sound. The speaker is on the back of the tablet, so the audio is shooting away from you and sounds distant.

The Nook Tablet has Netflix and Hulu built in and can stream Pandora, but unlike the Fire with access to Amazon's Prime video service and Amazon MP3 for music, the multimedia options are lacking.

Rating

For a tablet that is suposed to compete with the Kindle Fire, the Nook Tablet falls short. It's $50 more expensive, but looks $100 cheaper. The tablet does have a few bright spots in it's keyboard, weight and screen, but the negatives far outweigh the positives. If the Kindle Fire wasn't an option this would be a pretty good low cost tablet, unfortunately for Barns and for Noble that isn't the case. Save yourself $50 and get a better tablet with the Kindle Fire.

*what do these ratings mean? For more of an explanation, click here.

App Review: Cards

2011-11-30T11:00:00.000-05:00

Likes

Apple announced the Cards app during their iPhone 4s announcement. I thought they must be grasping at straws for some new splash with this phone if one of their key points is an app that makes cards, but it's actually pretty useful.

Like anything Apple, this app is easy to use, super easy to use. To create a card, you select your template, drop a picture in from your phone, edit the text on the inside and select a recipient from your address book, or simply type in their address. Click buy, the $2.99 is charged to your iTunes account and your recipient will have a fully personalized card in a matter of days (and you'll get alerted when it's about to be delivered).

Aside from being cheap and easy, the best part about Cards is the personal touch of its product. In the here and now instant world we live in, unless it's our birthday, rarely do we get a card in the mail. Even then you get 100 "Happy Birthday's" on your Facebook wall for each card you receive. Sending a Facebook message or an email is so much easier than going to the store, picking out a card, finding a stamp and writing everything out. Well with this app you can send a card as easily as you send an email, and it's much more permanent and personal.

Dislikes

I said this app is easy to use, super easy, but one of the reasons it is so easy is it's own limitations. The app has 6 themes: Thank you, Holiday, Baby, Birthday, Love and Travel. There are numerous variations of each theme, but you're stuck to those six. Want a Halloween or Thanksgiving look? You're out of luck. Like the front of a card, but want to change the font style? Sorry, can't do that. Some of the templates are vague enough that you can use them for most occasions, but it'd be nice to have more theme options and creative options where you could create a fully customized card. It's a very basic program, very easy to use, but lacking in true customization.

Rating

For me this app won't replace buying a birthday card for my dad or a Christmas card for my girlfriend, but being so cheap and easy to use, it'll easily replace post cards, and lead to me sending much more than I would otherwise.

By snapping a quick picture and typing a few words you can let someone else in on your vacation experience in real time (plus a few days for shipping) or you can include the far away family members at your Thanksgiving dinner table. It's not a perfect app, the templates and customizations are limited, but it does what it does do very well. For $2.99 you get a custom card designed, printed and mailed and that's pretty awesome.

*what do these ratings mean? For more of an explanation, click here.

Amazon Kindle Fire Review

2011-11-25T10:00:00.000-05:00

When I hear the name Kindle, I immediately think of an electronic book with a black and white e-reader ink screen, something that's pretty cool, but I'd never need one. Then came the Kindle Fire. I pre-ordered it the second Jeff Bezos was finished unveiling it at Amazon's Kindle event in September. It came out in mid November and after a couple of weeks of using it, I'm giving it a big thumbs up.

Likes

At 7 inches the Kindle fire is a nice in-between size, its much bigger than a phone but not as big as an iPad. It can easily be held in 1 hand and its screen is big enough to watch a movie or TV show comfortably. The tablet is a little heavy for its size, but with a rubber backing for no slip and a gorilla glass front it feels solid as a rock.

The Kindle Fire runs on an Android OS (operating system) that was re-skinned by Amazon, and it's nice. Its SUPER simple. The "home screen" is a bookshelf that displays all of your recent apps/programs used on the top shelf, with your "favorite" apps on the lower shelves. The very top of the screen has a notification bar and a shortcut to settings. Right underneath that is a search bar and a shortcut to your Books, Music, Apps, etc. The OS runs smoothly and is something that anyone at any level of technical skills could pick up very quickly. The Fire syncs with your Amazon cloud drive and your Amazon.com Account so as soon as you turn it on for the first time, all of your music and videos are available to you.

The Web browser on the Kindle Fire, Amazon Silk is a revolutionary new type of browser. When you open a web page, instead of the whole page loading up on your tablet, the Silk browser loads up most of the page's data on their servers via the cloud. What does this all mean? It means they don't need to put as much RAM and processing power into the tablet (keeping the cost down), but the pages load up just as fast (if not faster). The Fire's web experience is great, it's quick and includes flash (unlike the iPad) so you get the full experience of each website.

Dislikes

The keyboard on the Fire is just OK. It works, but sometimes when you press one letter and slide your finger down towards another letter it will think you meant to type the 2nd letter. As great as the size of the fire is, it's weight makes typing a little difficult, by placing your 2 hands at the bottom of the screen to type it's slightly difficult to hold due to the weight. But after all it's a tablet so you're not going to be typing your thesis on it, the keyboard is good enough to type out web addresses and update your facebook status.

One of the best parts about the Kindle Fire is that it only costs $199. In order to keep costs down Amazon had to skimp on some of the hardware that you'd be accustomed to with a tablet. One of the areas that they held back on is storage. The Fire has 8GB of internal memory (about 6 GB can be used for user content). For the most part this isn't an issue due to free access to the Amazon Drive, but in instances where you don't have Wifi, there isn't much room to store your videos/pictures/songs on the actual device.

The Fire utilizes the Amazon app store and has no access to the Android Market. While the Amazon app store is growing, it doesn't stack up to the Android Market in terms of the amount of apps. I was able to get most of the apps I wanted on the Fire- Netflix, Score center, IMDB, and a few games, but there were a few I couldn't get, namely HBO Go.

Rating

This is the perfect tablet for me personally. I don't need a tablet to replace my computer, I don't need a tablet that has a camera and I wouldn't buy a cell plan for a tablet. I want something that I can surf the web on and bring with my on vacations and weekend trips. The Kindle Fire is just that, and it's $199. If you want a tablet that you're going to replace your laptop with or a tablet that you're going to use a lot for work, get an iPad. If you want a tablet to have a tablet, save yourself at least $400 and get the Kindle Fire. It's a great product, and for the price, you really can't go wrong.

Thanksgiving Technology

2011-11-23T14:53:00.001-05:00

The day after Thanksgiving, "Black Friday" is probably the bigest tech day of the year. But before you dress up the turkey on Thursday, here are some gadgets that will take your turkey day from Plymouth Rock to present day.

The iGrill

Sure you can get a meat thermometer for a lot cheaper than $100, but will you be able to show that one off to you family all morning while the turkey is roasting? I didn't think so. The iGrill is a meat thermometer that syncs with your iPhone over bluetooth. Simply put the prods into your turkey, set the "finished" temperature you'd like and throw it in the oven. The sensor will communicate with your phone and give you up the up to the minute temperature. When it's done the phone will alarm and it's time to eat! iGrill $100 Amazon.com

Tablet Cabinet Mount

Did you ditch the family cookbook for a recipe app on your iPad or tablet? The unending amount of delicious recipes available online and through apps can make for a tasty Thanksgiving, but where are you gonna put your tablet so it doesnt get all gunky? And what happens when you need to move it out of the way, but you're hands were just inside a turkey? The Belkin cabinet mount solves this problem. Just put it in the cabinet, throw your tablet on top and vowlah! After you're done, take it down and it folds up to fit in your drawer. Belkin Under Cabinet Mount for iPad and Tablets $35.94 Amazon.com

Digital Measuring Cup and Scale

Not only does this measuring cups show you how many cups of flour or oil you've got in it, it'll show you its weight in ounces too. So don't worry about tricky conversions, let this measuring cup take care of it for you. Taylor Digital Measuring Cup and Scale $19.52 Amazon.com

Slingbox

Personally, I'm not a fan of parades, but a lot of people can't start their Turkey day without watching Snoopy floating through NYC. If you're the one stuck slaving away in the kitchen while the rest of the family is enjoying the pageantry in the family room, pick up a Slingbox. Slingbox is a small box that you hook up to your cable box and internet that allows you to watch your television on any mobile device. Sure using it to watch TV in the next room might not be what the Slingbox inventors had in mind, but why not? Put your laptop on the counter (or your iPad in it's cabinet mount) and watch Santa sleigh down the street as you're finishing up the stuffing. Slingbox $156.38 Amazon.com

USB Heated Blanket

When you finally throw in the napkin, loosen up the belt and step away from the dinner table it's time for the greatest nap of the year. How can you make that glorious reprieve even better? Well with a heated blanket of course, and not just any heated blanket. This heated blanket powers itself via USB so you don't even need to be next to an outlet to enjoy a warm siesta, just keep your laptop somewhere near by and plug it in, 1 plug for low heat, 2 for high. USB Heated Blanket ThinkGeek.com $24.99

Vacuum Sealer

You've got enough leftovers to last you till Christmas, and you'll be sick of turkey and mashed potatoes by Saturday, so what do you do with all the leftovers? Vacuum seal them and they'll stay fresh for later, much, much later. SousVide Supreme Vacuum Sealer $129.95 Sur La Table

From Phone to Bedside clock for $3

2011-11-23T11:00:00.000-05:00

Like most people I use my phone for everything, including my alarm clock. This has allowed me to simplify my bedside table by axing the traditional alarm clock. While the phone is a more than adequate replacement for the alarm, it isn't quite as good as a clock. Waking up in the middle of the night and and trying to find the time, is no longer as easy as a quick glance at the bedside table, you actually have to move your arm, pick up the phone and see what time it is, and at that point you're pretty much awake. What you need is a dock.

You can buy an official iPhone dock at the Mac Store for $29, or get a knockoff on eBay for $8-$15, but they dont always fit if your phone has a case and having to take your case off every night isn't something anyone wants to do. Well $3 and a trip to Staples can solve that.

A simple $3 business card holder props your phone up properly and with a free night stand app turns turns your phone into a great bedside clock.