In the latest round of tablet rumors, it appears that publication DigiTimes is kindling rumors that Amazon will be going big with its next release in the Kindle Fire product line. While it’s been long speculated that Amazon will add a larger Kindle Fire slate to its 7-inch tablet on the market, there was continuing debate if that model will be an 8.9-inch or a 10-inch slate. However, now DigiTimes is claiming that Amazon has suspended plans for its 8.9-inch slate and is favoring the larger 10-inch tablet model in a move that would put the Kindle Fire 10-inch in direct competition with Apple’s market-leading iPad tablet.

Amazon apparently plans to simplify its product lineup to focus its competition against Apple’s iPad, according to industry sources, who also added that the planned 8.9-inch model was originally to take on Samsung’s Galaxy Note tablets.

Apple, meanwhile, isn’t sitting still. While the iOS slate manufacturer has in the past dismissed smaller tablets as not being ideal to a good user experience, it saw the Kindle Fire’s inexpensive $200 price tag and 7-inch form factor to rise to the top of the Android crop and take second place in market share for tablets. Apple is now rumored to be releasing with a smaller iPad, dubbed the iPad Mini, to compete against inexpensive and smaller Android slates.

Amazon has a better chance of succeeding in the low-cost tablet space compared to other Android tablet-manufacturers as it does not need to rely on Google’s ecosystem for digital content. Amazon has storefronts for apps, music, books, magazines, movies, and TV shows. With sales of these content, Amazon can make a small percentage revenue and this allows it to sell its hardware at a loss.

Tablet Rumors: Amazon Goes Big While Apple Shoots Small is a post by Chuong Nguyen from Gotta Be Mobile.

It looks like in under a year since Nokia had debuted the Lumia series of Windows Phone devices, the Lumia brand is now gaining mind share against more stablished product lines, such as Motorola Mobility’s Droid series based on Google’s Android operating system. According to the latest Google search statistics, it appears that the search term ‘Lumia’ has now overtaken ‘Droid’ on the Internet giant’s search service, reports WMPU.

The Lumia brand’s growing popularity is not surprising considering the huge investment behind the product line by Nokia and Microsoft. And last month, editor Josh Smith from GottaBeMobile suggested that Lumia could do for Windows Phone what Droid did for Android. Prior to the Droid franchise and Verizon’s and Motorola’s huge marketing push, Android did not have much momentum and suffered from low market share numbers. In comparison, market share for Windows Phone is still low, but it appears that Microsoft and Nokia are gaining mind share and that could potentially explode into large market share gains in the future akin to what happened with the Droid brand.

And it looks like Lumia’s competitors are being very cautious of Nokia’s efforts and aren’t dismissing Lumia right now according to WMPU. Verizon, which had backed Android heavily with the Droid campaign and is now a heavy iOS player, recently bought the Lumia keyword search on Twitter. When users search Lumia on Twitter, Verizon Wireless would pop up. Similarly, Samsung, which is most well known for its Android efforts in the U.S., had done the same thing and when users search Lumia, Samsung Mobile would appear.

And according to PhoneArena, even when compared against newer Android franchises, like Samsung’s Galaxy S III, the Nexus, Galaxy Nexus, and others, Lumia is faring competitively well in Google search.

And like how Verizon is a heavy backer of Droid and Android in the early days, Microsoft has a strong carrier proponent in the U.S. in the form of wireless carrier AT&T. However, given AT&T is also heavily pushing Samsung’s Galaxy Note and Apple’s iPhone in the U.S., it’s unclear how committed the carrier is to Windows Phone.

Lumia Now Overtakes Droid On Google Search is a post by Chuong Nguyen from Gotta Be Mobile.

Given that the Google flagship Galaxy Nexus smartphone–a phone that’s geared towards the Android purist as no additional UIs or skins have been overlaid on top of the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS–launched on Canadian carrier Telus just at the beginning of the year, it’s surprising to hear that the phone has now been discontinued by the carrier less than half a year later. Telus has thus far not given any reason why it’s no longer carrying the Google’s Galaxy Nexus, which is made by Samsung, but there is speculation that Telus’ decision may be due to the fact that the carrier is expecting to stock Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S III smartphone.

The move may make sense as Samsung’s Nexus phones have led to slightly improved, but heavily skinned Galaxy flagships. The Nexus S paved way for the Galaxy S II and it would make sense that the Galaxy S III will be Samsung’s improved product from the Galaxy Nexus smartphone, and one that would bear its signature with custom software and the company’s TouchWiz UX.

At least in the U.S., Google has had a hard time gaining mainstream adoption of its Nexus product. The Nexus One by HTC was sold direct through Google and found limited adoption on carriers AT&T and T-Mobile USA. When the Nexus S by Samsung came around, wireless carrier Sprint was added to the mix. And then the Galaxy Nexus debuted initially on Verizon and then was brought over to Sprint. For GSM carriers AT&T and T-Mobile USA, Google is offering a 16 GB version of the phone direct to consumers for $400.

Also on the list of discontinued devices that was obtained by Mobile Syrup are Apple’s iPhone 4 in 16 GB capacity as well as the magenta color of the Nokia Lumia 800.

Canadian Carrier Telus Already Discontinuing Galaxy Nexus Ahead of Galaxy S III Launch is a post by Chuong Nguyen from Gotta Be Mobile.

There are now conflicting news on the status of the HTC import ban in the U.S. as part of the HTC-Apple patent disagreement. News of the initial import ban suggests that only the AT&T HTC One X and the Sprint HTC EVO 4G LTE were affected by the ban, but now there are news that other devices may also be subjected to the ban at U.S. customs.

According to blog TmoNews, it appears that T-Mobile USA’s HTC Amaze 4G is also subject to the ban. Customers who are attempting to order the HTC Amaze 4G are told that the the device is not currently available due to ‘unforeseen issue with receiving the product from the manufacturer.’ T-Mobile is currently suggesting that customers order instead the Samsung Blaze 4G smartphone rather than the HTC Amaze 4G because of that unforeseen issue.

From: Orders <Orders5@t-mobile.com>

Date: Fri, May 18, 2012 at 12:08 PM

Subject: Your T-Mobile order

To:

Dear T-Mobile Customer,

Thank you for your recent order.  We wanted to let you know that your order for the HTC Amaze has been delayed due to an unforeseen issue with receiving the product from the manufacturer.  At this time, we do not have an estimate as to when the product will be available. Because we don’t know when the product will be available, we recommend that you choose an alternate device.  Please call us at 1-800-672-5390 if you wish to do this and one of our agents will be happy to assist you with finding another device that will meet your needs.  If you do not select another device, the Amaze will ship to you as soon as product becomes available.

We recommend the Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G as a replacement.  This device is free for you with no rebate required. Click for more information on the Blaze

If you selected overnight shipping, you will not be charged.

You can track the status of your order at www.t-mobile.com/orderstatus

We sincerely apologize for the delay.  Thank you for being a T-Mobile customer.  We truly appreciate your business.

Thank you,

T-Mobile Customer Care

Please do not reply to this email.  For assistance please call 1-800-672-5390

Neither Samsung nor HTC have commented on the status of the HTC Amaze 4G at this time.

In other news, Engadget is reporting that some HTC handsets are now leaving U.S. customs en route to their carriers for deliveries. It’s unclear which handsets those would be and so hopefully the delays won’t be much longer for Sprint and AT&T customers.

Each imported HTC model must be reviewed by Customs and will be released once Customs officials have completed the inspection. Some models have gone through inspection and been released to our carriers customers. We don’t have the status of each specific device model at this time, but we are working closely with Customs. We remain confident that this issue will be resolved soon.

HTC Import Ban Now Affecting More Devices While Relief Coming to Some is a post by Chuong Nguyen from Gotta Be Mobile.

It looks like Samsung’s promise of launching its third-generation Android flagship Galaxy S III smartphone this summer in the U.S. market is getting a bit closer as AT&T and T-Mobile variants of the phone are now registered. Though Samsung still has not confirmed what carriers the Galaxy S III will be available with in the U.S., the phones are now registered and approved with the Bluetooth regulatory agency Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). The Galaxy S III for AT&T appears under the model number SGH-I747M while the T-Mobile USA version appears under the model number SGH-T999V.

Details released by the Bluetooth SIG were scarce, except to mention that these Android handsets will be approved for the Bluetooth 4.0 specification. Unwired View’s report shows that generic placeholders for the international edition of the carbon blue version of the Galaxy S III were found for both model listings.

At this point, it’s unclear if the U.S. variants of the Galaxy S III will keep the same overall design as the international variant. In the past, Samsung had made minor cosmetic changes that affect the design and functionality of the Galaxy S I and Galaxy S II smartphones for the U.S. market. For example, the prior two generations of Galaxy flagships eschewed the home button found on the international variant in favor of a row of four capacitive touch Android navigation buttons, which includes the search button that’s so often missing on international devices.

Given Android has migrated to a different design for Ice Cream Sandwich to now encompass just home, back, and multitasking keys for the Android navigation buttons, with the menu button and the search button brought onto the display, chances are the Galaxy S III may utilize the same design and form factor in the U.S. as it does internationally.

Additionally, the AT&T edition of the Galaxy S III will likely include 4G LTE networking capabilities and may eschew the quad-core Samsung Exynos processor for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S4 chip for better network compatibility. It’s unclear if these models will have the same 2 GB RAM that was found on the recent Japanese version.

Galaxy S III Confirmed for AT&T, T-Mobile is a post by Chuong Nguyen from Gotta Be Mobile.

Following HTC’s import bans on high profile Android handsets such as the HTC One X and the Sprint HTC EVO 4G LTE as a result of HTC’s ongoing patent dispute with Apple, the latest Android manufacturer to face an import ban is Motorola Mobility as a result of disputes over intellectual property with Microsoft.

According to Reuters, the issue at hand deals with how meetings are handled on select Motorola handsets:

The patented technology at issue makes it possible for users to generate meeting requests and schedule gatherings using their mobile devices.

News of the Motorola Mobility import ban comes on the heels of China’s approval of Google’s acquisition of the Android licensee and hardware manufacturer in a deal that could wrap up over the next few days; China was the last hurdle surrounding the deal as the U.S. and other countries had already approved of Google’s acquisition.

Given the Google acquisition, any decision that the new Google-owned Motorola makes would have repercussions for other Android licensees as well.

Though the U.S. International Trade Commission did not specify which Motorola handsets were subject to the import ban, Microsoft had requested these handsets to be barred from entering the country: Atrix, Backflip, Bravo, Charm, Cliq, Cliq 2, Cliq XT, Defy, Devour, Droid 2, Droid 2 Global, Droid Pro, Droid X, Droid X2, Flipout, Flipside, Spice and the Xoom tablet. The list that is presented by Microsoft represents older Motorola handsets and newer devices such as the Droid RAZR, Droid RAZR Maxx, Droid 4, Atrix 2, and others are not included on the list.

Motorola could either remove the infringing feature, change the feature so that it no longer infringes on Microsoft’s claimed patents, or license the technology from Microsoft as other Android handset manufacturers have in the past. It is speculated that Microsoft makes between $5 and $15 in patent licensing fee to Android manufacturers such as HTC, Samsung, Huawei, LG, and others over technology that Android is claimed to have infringed upon.

Motorola at one point was rumored to be a Windows Phone 7 licensee. The company had worked with Microsoft in the past in the Windows Mobile era and released the high profile Motorola Q for Verizon Wireless, which took on a BlackBerry form factor. At one point, the original Motorola Droid was rumored to have been designed for Windows Phone 7, but it is said that Microsoft did not have the OS ready in time and Motorola refused to wait and went with Google’s Android OS instead.

Motorola Latest Android Manufacturer Facing Ban in U.S. is a post by Chuong Nguyen from Gotta Be Mobile.

Figuring out how much to tip and how to split a bill between friends is a pain, but thanks to Siri it’s simple.

With the iPhone 4S, you don’t need one of the million tip calculator apps, just ask Siri.

Siri can figure out the tip on a bill, and go even further rounding the total up or down so you don’t have to do math on a full stomach.

While Siri is usually pretty good at figuring out what you want in natural language, I’ve found that you need to be very precise when asking her to help you figure out a tip or how to split a bill.

How to Calculate a Tip with Siri

Hold the home button until Siri activates.

Say, ” What is a 15% tip on $51.76.”

Obviously, this is where you use the tip you want to leave and the amount of your bill. Don’t get hung up on the tip amount as Siri and Wolfram Alpha will show you tips in a variety of ranges.

Siri will show the rounded up or rounded down amounts for a variety of common tip percentages and if you scroll down, you can even see the complete breakdown of the tip.

How to Split a Bill With Siri

The tip trick can also be used to split a bill, including the tip, between a group of friends.

Just add “for six people.”, or however many are in your party to the end of your question.

Not only will Siri calculate the tip, but it will also tell you how much of a tip each person needs to leave and the total each individual needs to leave to cover the bill.

–

What’s your favorite way to use Siri while out for dinner?

How to Calculate and Split Tips with Siri is a post by Josh Smith from Gotta Be Mobile.

It’s tough to stand out in the crowded iPhone 4S case market, but these new Musubo cases do just that thanks to unique looks and style.

In addition to the Musubo Retro iPhone 4S case and the Musubo Sneaker iPhone 4S case, there are a number of interesting looking cases for the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4.

Based on my experience with the other Musubo cases, I’m confident that these unique looking iPhone cases will look as good in person and protect your iPhone.

Read: Top 10 iPhone 4S Cases

Matchbook Case

This interesting case looks like nothing I’ve seen before. The MatchBook Pro case has a pop out stand that looks like matches.

The stand only works in landscape mode. The tips of the matches come with a non-skid silicon. The case name plays on the MacBook Pro name. You can but one at Amazon for $34.95.

Rubberband Case

The Rubber Band case looks like someone wrapped your iPhone in rubber bands. The silicon material gives you some grip as you hold the phone. It has a loop so you can add a wrist wrap or hang if off a lanyard around your neck. You can get one at Amazon for $29.99.

The Eden Case

The Eden case, which sells for $34.95 at Amazon anc domes with a two-tone design. They get the name saying it offers the “genuine beauty that can only be found in the Eden Garden.” You can get one in one of the following combinations:

• blue and white
• black and white
• pink and white
• purple and black
• green and white
• orange and white
• yellow and black

The Sexy Case

The Sexy case also sells at Amazon for $24.95 and it looks like a pair of torn up nylon stockings. You can, like a pair of torn up nylon stockings, ge tthe case in blue, black, magenta, purple, red and white.

Ripple Case

The Ripple case looks like you dropped a rock in the lake and Musubo made a case from the ripples it created. The ridges center on the iPhone 4 camera hole. It comes in a rainbow of colors from Amazon for $29.95.

Double X Case

Musubo’s Double X case looks like it has a pair of X’s on the back. It comes in red, blue and black for $34.95 from Amazon.

Foldable Stand

Each of these cases comes with the foldable stand, except the Matchbook case which doesn’t need it. In my review of the Retro and Sneaker cases, I said I didn’t care much for the stand.

Great Packaging

I did like the excellent packaging that came with these cases. I don’t normally comment on packaging, but the Musubo packaging comes with hard plastic box and a silicone gasket around the case. Companies that pay attention to their packaging usually make great products. That’s the case with Musubo.

You can get each of these cases now at the links above or directly from Musubo.

Musubo iPhone 4S Cases Deliver Unique Style is a post by Kevin Purcell from Gotta Be Mobile.

Ballistic Cases compete with companies like Otterbox to offer more protection than a typical iPad case.

The Ballistic Tough Jacket iPad Case for the New iPad and iPad 2 shields your iPad from accidents at a a better price than Otterbox.

The Ballistic Tough Jacket uses three layers of shielding on the back, extra absorption on the corners and a plastic cover over the screen to protect the iPad. The screen cover functions as a stand when open.

Design and Functionality

The corners of the Ballistic Tough Jacket hug the iPad and protect it from impacts like drops or banging the iPad into a desk or wall as you carry it. The case comes with an inner lining made of silicone that’s thicker at the corners giving you extra impact absorption.The plastic back, available in white black and red attaches to the silicon lining for added protection.

Watch a demo video for the Ballistic Tough Jacket iPad case:

The black plastic front cover protects the screen from damage when carrying the iPad, and should provide decent protection if the iPad is dropped face down as long as the cover is fastened.

Along with protection, the front cover gives you some extra functionality. The outside of the screen cover includes a kickstand that pulls out to give you multiple viewing angles in landscape mode.

Compared to Otterbox

I’m not a big fan of thick bulky iPad cases even if they do offer extra peach of mind. However, if you need that added insurance, the Ballistic case does a good job at a lower cost than Otterbox, but it isn’t a perfect case. If Otterbox cases offer more protection than you need, the Ballistic Tough Jacket is a good option.

Unlike the Otterbox case, Ballistic cases don’t offer constant screen protection. The cover that protects the display comes off while you use it. Otterbox cases cover the screen all the time with a thin clear film over the screen that stays on all the time. If you don’t need that, why pay $20 more for a bigger name? Other than the screen protector, Ballistic works just as well as Otterbox.

Weaknesses

Like a lot of soft silicon skins, the Ballistic Tough Jacket collects dust. The glossy black plastic cover collects fingerprints as bad as the iPad itself. The cover attaches to the short edges of the iPad and holds on well when covering the screen. Put it on the back and it feels like it doesn’t hold very well.

To use the cover as a stand you have to carefully attach it to the back. When attached just right it functions fine, but it doesn’t always work the first time.

Recommendation and Price

Users who need more protection than the average iPad case provides, but don’t want or need a full-time screen protector should consider the Ballistic Tough Jacket iPad case over the Otterbox Defender

Ballistic Tough Jacket iPad case isn’t perfect, but it looks sharp and delivers serious protection at an affordable price.

The Ballistic Tough Jacket iPad case is available for $33.48 on Amazon with the option for black, red and white backs.

You can get one from Ballistic directly for $69.99 or $33.48 at Amazon. The silicon comes in black and your choice between three colors for the outer case – black, red and white.

Ballistic Tough Jacket iPad Case Review: Serious Protection at a Bargain is a post by Kevin Purcell from Gotta Be Mobile.

The iPhone 4S jailbreak for iOS 5.1.1 is almost ready for release.

According to pod2g, progress has been made on the iPhone 4S Jailbreak for iOS 5.1.1 untethered, enough that the team plans a release in days.

The new timeline lines up well with our prediction of an iPhone 4S jailbreak release date of May 26th at the Hack in the Box conference in Amsterdam.

In an update to Twitter on Sunday May 20th, pod2g thanked fellow community members for their assistance in testing and work on the iPhone 4S jailbreak.

“Thanks to awesome work of @planetbeing and @pimskeks, we’re near ready for a release. Now it’s a matter of days.”

iPhone 4S Jailbreak Status

The new iPhone 4S jailbreak tool will jailbreak the iPhone 4S as well as most Apple devices. The current jailbreak is compatible with the following Apple devices,

• iPhone 4
• iPhone 4S
• iPad 1
• iPad 2 Wifi
• iPad 3 Wifi
• iPad 3 CDMA
• iPod 3G
• iPod 4G

You can see the jailbreak running on a new iPad in the video below.

The jailbreak tool is still in testing with other Apple devices not listed.

What is iPhone Jailbreaking?

Users choose to jailbreak the iPhone 4S to run software Apple doesn’t allow in the app store. These apps and hacks offer faster access to settings, better integration with services like Google Voice an added visual flair. IntelliscreenX is a popular app that changes how the Notification Center and Lock Screen work.

Check out a demo of IntelliscreenX below to see one of the reasons people jailbreak the iPhone 4S.

Jailbreaking the iPhone 4S isn’t for everyone. Users who don’t have time to troubleshoot issues or need a perfectly stable iPhone for work may want to skip the jailbreak as it can cause stability issues like crashing and bad battery life.

The iPhone 4S jailbreak also voids the Apple iPhone warranty, but users can un-jailbreak the iPhone 4S before most trips to the Apple store.

Stay tuned for what you. We’d to do to prepare for the iPhone. 4S jailbreak, an a detailed iPhone 4S jailbreak guide as soon as the tool is released.

iPhone 4S Jailbreak Release in ‘a Matter of Days’ is a post by Josh Smith from Gotta Be Mobile.

The ADT Pulse app is a rare iPhone app in that it actively protects families and property. The ADT Pulse app is reason enough for anyone considering an alarm system to take a look at ADT.

The ADT Pulse system allows its users to manage their home security system from any web browser or smartphone. The system wireless ties together security sensors, wireless cameras, smoke detectors and other electronics. The Pulse systems are more expensive than the free systems that are widely advertised and the monthly subscriptions starts at $50.

I had a basic ADT Pulse system installed in my house after an intruder broke into our home. Luckily, my wife alerted me to the noise at 5:45am and I was able to arm myself and run downstairs. . After clearing part of the house with a 12-gauge on my own, I stood guard over my wife and one-year-old son. Six police officers cleared the rest of the house when they arrived 10 minutes later. Fortunately all that was missing was my bike, which was recovered a week later.

We live in a very safe neighborhood where longtime residents insist ‘nothing ever happens.’ Police suspect a drug addict broke into at least three gates on our block while he knew residents were home that Saturday morning.

I would have loved to be able to look down at my iPhone in the midst of the break-in and known which doors and windows were open before I headed out of our bedroom.  I did a bit of research and ran across the ADT Pulse system.

Fast forward a week and I had an ADT contractor installing motion detectors, smoke detectors, door sensors and panels. The security panel has a SIM card that connects to AT&T’s network to communicate with ADT’s home office and cloud services. The panel also wirelessly connects to the sensors and peripherals. Pretty fancy stuff.

When the installation was complete I installed the ADT Pulse app on my iPhone. I am now able to check the status of my alarm system on my iPhone from anywhere.

The app is pretty straight forward. Launching the app brings up a status screen with the ADT logo and an option to arm or disarm the system. Clicking ‘Arm’ brings up an option to arm doors and windows or to arm everything, including motion sensors. Clicking the ADT button brings up a lot more detail.

At the top of the screen is a list of any doors and windows that are open, followed by a list of secured sensors.  At the bottom of the page is a timeline that show when each door and window was opened and closed. This is useful even when the alarm isn’t activated as I used to double guess whether or not I closed the garage door before running out for a quick errand without my family. Now I can just look at the app to put my mind at rest.

The ADT Pulse app displays status alerts when the alarm system is tripped. ADT customers can also request SMS alerts. Both kinds of alerts include information on which sensor is in question, which would’ve been exactly what I needed during the burglary at our house.

When the alarm goes off, ADT calls to make sure we’re ok and if police are needed. If we don’t respond, they place an emergency call to police dispatch. Needless to say, the alarm system and app give us some peace of mind.

Those with fancier ADT Pulse systems can use the Pulse app to view security camera footage in near real-time. Those systems were too rich for my blood and the touchscreen display is overkill for our needs.The Pulse system is expandable should we choose to add more sensors or features down the line.

Overall the ADT Pulse app is easy to use and has a clean appearance. I’ve run into two issues so far however. When the app has trouble connecting to the Internet a ‘No Cellular Connection’ alert appears. It does not indicate whether the cellular connection problem is on the iPhone’s end or if the alarm panel is not communicating with ADT’s servers. Seeing as both ends are cellular, ADT should clarify where the fault lies.

Another issue is that the ADT Pulse app caches the recent alarm and sensor statuses. This means sensor and armed statuses are sometimes out of date and display old info if its unable to reconnect to the ADT servers right away. This caused a minor panic when I was out of town. I checked the alarm status on the app and placed my phone down on the table. Unbeknownst to me, my wife and in-laws were packing up the car in the driveway and had the garage door open for a few minutes. The app apparently got the message that the door was open, then lost its connection at my hotel. When I looked at the app an hour later it appeared my the door was left open. I called home and my wife wasn’t there. I checked in on my wife with the Find my Friends app and saw that she was about 40 miles away from home. I had my parents stop by to check in on the house and the garage door was thankfully closed. ADT really needs to force the app to give a clear notification that it’s unable to access the Internet rather than displaying outdated information.

Now that I understand these issues and limitations I’ve settled into using the app on a daily basis. I disarm the alarm before getting out of my car when I arrive home, which means I don’t have to rush to key in a code before the alarm sounds.

I strongly recommend getting the ADT Pulse system if you’re in the market for an alarm system and have a smartphone. I also recommend upgrading to a Pulse system if you have one of ADT’s standard alarm packages.

ADT Pulse for iPhone Review is a post by Xavier Lanier from Gotta Be Mobile.

The SCOTTEVEST Hidden Cargo pants may just be the perfect pants for geeks. They look pretty similar to khakis sold by mainstream brands, but have 10 pockets and compartments, which means you can pack several mobile devices without having to endure the indignity of wearing a man purse.

I’ve worn SCOTTEVEST gear for the past five years or so, but most of the jackets, vests and cargo pants have a decidedly outdoorsy appearance. There’s nothing wrong with that look, but they can look out-of-place in professional and semi-formal social situations. A quick path to a scolding from my wife would be to wear my SCOTTEVEST ultimate cargo pants/shorts to a nice dinner out.

In the above video I’m wearing the SCOTTEVEST Hidden Cargo Pants ($60) and the Front Snap Shirt ($80).  The $60 price tag is more than fair.

Enter the Hidden Cargo Pants. Scott Jordan, the founder of SCOTTEVEST, sent over a few of the company’s newer items for me to try out while my wife was on a business trip. I wore the Hidden Cargo pants when I picked her up from the airport and she complemented my new khakis. She didn’t believe me when I told her they were by SCOTTEVEST until I pulled out a bunch of items from one pocket. If these pants can fool my fashion-conscious wife, they can fool anyone.

The secret to the Hidden Cargo Pants is layered front pockets. The pocket closest to your leg is about twice as deep as pockets on most of my pants. A second pocket is hidden above the first pocket and is held closed by magnets. The second pocket layer is much deeper, extending to about six inches above my knee.  The second layer has two compartments at the bottom, which means gear can be distributed to avoid bulges. The left-front pocket has an additional hidden zippered pocket that leads towards the middle of the garment.

I’ve held off on buying some of the mainstream-looking SCOTTEVEST garments because I didn’t think they’d offer significantly more cargo capacity than my everyday jeans and khakis. I was pleasantly surprised at home many phones and gadgets I could stuff in the Hidden Cargo Pants.

Here’s a photo of all the gear I stuffed in the shirt and pants. I don’t carry this exact set of gadgets around, but I often carry a pair of phones, a couple of cameras and a bunch of accessories. When I fly I often cram a bunch of stuff into SCOTTEVEST clothes to avoid checking bags filled with expensive gadgets and camera equipment.

• iPhone 4S
• Samsung Galaxy Nexus
• LG Viper
• Olympus PEN EP-3
• 14-42mm zoom lens
• 20mm prime lens (attached)
• Canon Powershot S100
• Amazon Kindle Fire
• Seagate FreeAgent Go Portable drive
• iPod Nano
• Joby Gorilla Pod
• Leatherman Juice C2 multi-tool
• hand sanitizer
• medication
• leather wallet
• Plantronics Voyager headset
• 2x headphones w/microphones
• lens cleaner
• laptop screen cleaner
• 2x batteries for Nikon D700
• 2x SD memory cards
• 4x AAA batteries

The pants are designed to stay clean and wrinkle free, which is great for travelers or guys that don’t doing laundry or ironing. I’ve spilled small amounts of my son’s milk and water on them and the liquid rolls right off.

As with everything in gadgetland, there are some things I don’t like about the Hidden Cargo Pants. I’ve accidentally pocket dialed a couple of times with these pants when I forgot to lock my iPhone before slipping it in one of the pockets. The pocket lining is pretty thin, which means skin can activate touchscreens. Another problem I’ve run into is not being able to find my iPhone when it rings since the pockets are layered. Sure, I can feel it ringing in my front right pocket, but there’s a lot of ground to cover. I’ve trained myself to only place my phone in the shallow front pocket.

The SCOTTEVEST Hidden Cargo Pants are a great buy for those that carry multiple gadgets. Gadgets as large as a 7″ Kindle Fire will slip right into the pockets with plenty of room to spare.

SCOTTEVEST Hidden Cargo Pants Review is a post by Xavier Lanier from Gotta Be Mobile.

A wonderful cloud service called If This Then That promises to “Put the Internet to work for you.” The service uses your various cloud-based services to help you do certain tasks more quickly and efficiently.

I started using If This Then That about a month ago to let me know via email when Netflix added new movies to their streaming collection. After seeing how well it work I went nuts looking for awesome “recipes” to do useful tasks for me. If This Then That, or ifttt as its more commonly called, is awesome, most of the time. On occasion you’ll find a recipe that doesn’t work.

Let me show you a few of the things it can do for you, like giving you a wake up call or storing content in your Dropbox or Evernote account.

Setting Up Tasks

First, sign up for an ifttt account and then look at some of the cool Recipes already provided. For example, you can get a weather report via text message every  morning or save your Instagram pictures to Dropbox. Search for your favorite cloud-based services like Instapaper, Google Reader or Delicious and I’ll bet there’s a Recipe that works with it. As an example, lets set up the Instagram to DropBox recipe that I use. Search for Instagram and Dropbox.

You’ll see over 20 pages of results. Look through them and see which one looks like it will work best for you. Some will save your pictures and others will save pictures you liked. One even saves all photos, which I’m sure will fill up your Dropbox account soon.

I picked the one from user “dmnsk” which promises to save the new photos that I post on Instagram to a folder in my Dropbox account.

To make it work, you will need to activate the two services. Control+Click (for Windows) or Command+Click (on Mac) on the Channels tab at the top of the ifttt.com page once you sign into the service. This will open a new tab with the Channels page. That way you don’t lose the recipe you picked to set up. Find the Instagram channel and then click on it. Follow the instructions for activating it. Do the same for Dropbox.

Once you finish setting up your channel, you’ll see a bunch of popular recipes using that channel. With both channels set up, return to the page with the recipe for Instagram to Dropbox. Reload the page and it should automatically populate the entry boxes with the correct information.

If you want to customize the recipe, then click in the entry boxes and you’ll see a drop down box with options to add from the Instagram channel. For example, you can add the Photo Caption you posted with the picture, the Instagram URL, the Image Source URL (the default item in the box) and the Created Date. You only need the Source URL to make this recipe work.

Click on Create task and then post a picture on Instagram to test it out. The first time I set this one up I had to hit the Check Now button at the top of the new task page. The recipe found my photos posted on Instagram  and sent them to my Dropbox account. Be sure to add an Instagram folder to your Dropbox Photos folder before you post photos on Instagram or it won’t work.

Here’s the picture I posted in Instagram:

And here’s the photo in my Dropbox account’s slide show feature.

Here’s a list of the tasks I’m using now.

• Instagram to Dropbox – the above recipe
• A wake up call – ifttt calls me at a set time on my home phone
• Google+ to Twitter – this one should post my Google+ feed to my Twitter feed but it doesn’t work
• Text me the Weather – sends a text with a short weather report of temperature and expected conditions
• Starred Google Reader feed to my Gmail account – when I star something in my Google Reader account it emails me the link

Notice above that the Google+ to Twitter recipe doesn’t work. That happens when services make changes and the recipe doesn’t get an update. I suspect that’s what happened with the Google+ to Twitter recipe.

If you ever want to see what tasks you set up in ifttt, then click not the Tasks tab at the top of the page after you log into the service. You can delete them, change them or check them to see if they’re working. You can also temporarily turn them off using the icon that looks like a computer power button.

If you don’t see a task using one of your services, then you can make one of your own. Click on your username and then choose Create a task button on the Dashboard. The service will walk you through the steps starting with the “This” part of the If This Then That equation.

To hear my wake up call from ifttt, watch the video below:

Let us know if you use the service and what your favorite recipes do for you in the comments below.

How to Use ifttt to Put the Internet to Work is a post by Kevin Purcell from Gotta Be Mobile.

The Musubo Sneaker case for the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S delivers protection with the flair of a sneaker tread design on the back.

If you chase new Nike’s for a hobby, this is an iPhone 4S case you need to check out.

If you prefer a different look, check out the Musubo Retro Case, with an exoskeleton or old car grill look and the rest of the interesting Musubo cases.

The Musubo Sneaker Case looks like the tread on the bottom of your sneakers, hence the name. The thick rubber material offers a lot of grip as you hold the phone, so you’re less likely to drop it even if you’re working out or have clammy hands.

Each Sneaker case comes with a bumper and two “sole plates” meaning you can change out the back to match your mood or outfit. The case with black bumpers offer two optional colors pairs. You can get one with lime or purple or you can get backs in red or yellow. The rose bumper comes with pink and baby blue backs.

Put the back inside the bumper and then slide your phone into the case. It looks like you ripped up your old tennis shoes and made yourself an iPhone case. The rubber not only helps you grip the phone but cushions if you drop it.

You have to carefully insert your phone into the case so that all the button overlays fit perfectly. At first I couldn’t access the power button because it wasn’t lined up perfectly, but then I removed the case and reinserted the phone and got it right. I could easily turn my phone on/off after the second attempt.

I like the grip and the optional colors. It feels good and still has a cool look. You even get a size (8 1/2) imprinted on the back like you would on many brands of sneakers.

I use a special cable to connect my iPhone to the DC port and auxiliary input on my Honda for charging while listening over my car’s stereo system. The cable connects to the iPhone dock. The dock connector is thicker than most and doesn’t fit the dock connector cutout on the bottom of the Sneaker case. That’s more a failing of my cable than the case. If you use a thicker dock connector like I do, then you might want to avoid this case. The Musubo Retro fits fine.

The case includes a loop along the upper right corner that lets you put on a wrist wrap or hang it around your neck. I don’t like the idea of wrist wrap or a lanyard to hold my phone so the loop just annoyed me slightly.

Musubo provides a stand in the package. It lays flat when you’re not using it and folds up to hold the phone in either portrait or landscape. I don’t use the stand much because it doesn’t hold the phone still when tapped.

I like this case, except for the fact that it doesn’t fit my car dock connector and the annoying loop along the upper right corner.

If you love sneakers, the Musubo Sneaker iPhone 4S Case is a good fit, and you’ll love the ability to swap out colors to match your favorite kicks.

You can get your Sneaker Case from Musubo at Amazon where they’re $34.95.

Musubo Sneaker iPhone 4S Case Review: Perfect for Sneakerheads is a post by Kevin Purcell from Gotta Be Mobile.

The Musubo Retro iPhone 4S case protects the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S with a layer of silicon and a sci-fi looking exoskeleton that looks great.

Musubo makes a collection of interesting iPhone 4 & iPhone 4S cases, including the Musubo Sneaker Case.

In addition to looking good, the Retro case offers more protection than the average iPhone 4S case.

Of the two Musubo iPhone cases I tested, this one’s my favorite. Despite my sci-fi connection, the Retro name comes from the look of an old classic car grill.

The case includes a glossy polycarbonate outer frame which surrounds a softer silicon inner case that cushions your iPhone for when you drop it. The case doesn’t compare to a rugged case like the Otterbox, but it offers far more protection than the average snap on iPhone case.

The Retro comes in five colors – black, red, blue, silver and white. I love that they use real color names to describe them. The grill design looks great, whether it calls up retro or sci-fi feelings. The back of the case shows off the iPhone’s Apple logo with a circular cutout.

I really like this case. My son, who sees an iPhone case as a fashion accessory, more than a functional protection for his phone, fought me for this one and pouted when I told him I preferred it to the Musubo Sneaker Case.

Functionally, the case cutouts allow for easy connection to the dock connector, the mute switch and the headphone jack. The silicon inner lining covers the volume buttons and power switch. Some cases like this make it hard to use those buttons, but I had no problems at all.

Musubo provides a stand in the package. It lays flat when you’re not using it and folds up to hold the phone in either portrait or landscape. The stand doesn’t hold steady when tapping to select a song or pause a video, so I don’t use it much.

The packaging cries out quality. I don’t normally comment on packaging, but the Musubo packaging comes with hard plastic box and a silicone gasket around the case. Companies that pay attention to their packaging usually make great products. That’s the case with Musubo.

Unless you like the flair of the other Musubo cases, then I’d recommend this one. I like the way it looks and really appreciate the added safety from drops and bumps thanks to the inner lining and hard plastic exterior.

I really like the Musubo Retro case. If you want a quality protective case that cushions the iPhone and adds a little flair, then get one at Amazon for $34.95. The style and protection make it a great buy.

Musubo Retro iPhone 4S Case Review: Exoskeleton Protection is a post by Kevin Purcell from Gotta Be Mobile.

It’s easy to take good photos with the iPhone, but a few tips will help you take great iPhone photos.

Because the iPhone is almost always with us, it is the best camera for many users. With these tips, you can take photos that look like they came form a point-and-shoot, not a smartphone camera.

There’s no need to go buy iPhone photography cases and adapters. Changing the iPhone camera settings and photography basics, you can improve the quality of your iPhone photos.

Here’s how to make your iPhone photos standout on Facebook and suitable for framing.

Use the Grid Option

One of the easiest ways to take better photos is to use the grid option. The grid makes it easier to use the rule of thirds, where you line up the subject or elements along the lines for better looking pictures.

How to Turn On the iPhone Camera Grid

• Open up your Camera app from the home screen.
• Tap options in the middle of the top row.
• Slide Grid to the on position.
• Once you have moved the slider select Done, and your screen should have a grid on it like the screen shot above.

The grid appears on-screen, but not in your photos.

Pick The Right Flash Setting

Choosing whether or not to use flash can have a big impact on the outcome of your photos. By default the choice for your flash is set to Auto. Leaving the Flash set to Auto will work most of the time, but taking control of the flash can lead to better photos.

Follow these simple guidelines for when to use flash and when not to use flash to avoid photos ruined by a harsh flash.

When to use Flash

• In daylight to get rid of shadows on your subject.
• When it is totally dark.

When NOT to use Flash

• Large arenas, concerts, sporting events.
• Mirror photos or when shooting through a glass window.
• Any object that is not moving in general.
• On people as it has a very vampire like effect.

The flash on iPhone is only effective up to 15 feet, so if you are more than 15 feet form the subject, it’s best to tuen the flash off.

How to Control iPhone Flash Settings

• Open the Camera app.
• Tap the flash option in the top left corner.
• Toggle On, Off or Auto.

If you often take fast photos without looking at the Flash option, you may want to keep the flash set to Auto so you don’t miss a shot where you really need flash.

Turn on HDR

HDR stands for high dynamic range and it is an option that can make even the most average user seem like a professional photographer. Instead of taking a single photo, HDR mode takes three photos at different exposures and combines them to create a more natural looking photo.

Ex: With HDR On

Ex: With HDR turned off

As you can see the differences between the two photos are subtle but noticeable. HDR works best with outdoor photos and people.

• How to Turn on HDR
• Open the Camera app.
• Tap Options.
• Move the HDR toggle to On.

Master Focus and Exposure

The iPhone does a really good job of autofocusing but there are also more advanced ways to focus such as manual focusing. When you manually focus with an iPhone, you get to decide which part of the image is in focus, and which part is blurry. This is a great way to call attention to an object in your photo, even if it is in front of a noisy background.

To use tap to focus you tap on the part of your image where you would like the camera to focus. After doings this you should see the changes being made to the focus and then you can snap your picture.

An even more advanced method of tap to focus is auto exposure/auto focus lock. This is a handy way to keep your camera at the same settings for several different shots.

To enable autofocus/autoexposure you click on the screen just like autofocus, but you also hold the part of the screen that you want to focus on for about three seconds. Release to save the settings and look for the AE/AF Lock text on the bottom of your cameras screen, as shown in the screenshot above.

To clear the lock, tap the screen again, and the iPhone will auto focus again.

–

What are your favorite tips to take better iPhone photos?

How to Take Better iPhone Photos is a post by Troy Frommer from Gotta Be Mobile.

I have no doubt that the HTC One X is a pretty good smartphone. We gave it a favorable review, most sites think it’s one of the best smartphones of 2012 and my colleague Shawn Ingram originally bought the One X instead of an iPhone. (He has since replaced it with an iPhone.) Me? I’m not even interested and there are some reasons why you shouldn’t be either.

Sure, it has a gorgeous display. Yes, it has a fantastic camera that is on par with sensor found on the iPhone 4S. Indeed it has Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and Sense 4, which I can actually tolerate, out of the box. And it also boasts 4G LTE speeds and comes at an almost irresistible price.

Read: HTC One X Review | $199 AT&T 4G LTE.

Many of you will want to resist buying it though and here’s why.

Non-Removable Battery

When we reviewed the HTC One X, we found that it had pretty inadequate battery life. HTC itself has said that it values thinness over fantastic battery life and it looks like those values were instilled upon the One X.

But that’s not the problem here. The problem is, the HTC One X comes with a unibody design. And you know what that means? That means that you can’t remove the 1800mAh battery that’s inside of it.

I own the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, it has a similar battery, and it was so much of a joke that I bought the extended battery the day I bought the phone. That didn’t improve the battery life exponentially, but it did make it better.

With the HTC One X, you can’t do that so you’re stuck with mediocre battery life until it’s time to change phones.

That’s something to think about before you buy it.

No MicroSD Card Slot

I have the 32GB Samsung Galaxy Nexus. That’s proved to be plenty of space for an average smartphone user like me. I am able to comfortably store my music, my apps and any other files that I need right onto the phone. Good thing, because I couldn’t expand the memory on it, even if I wanted to.

That’s because the phone doesn’t have a microSD card slot for expandable memory.

The HTC One X doesn’t either but its situation is much worse. It only comes in 16GB form.

Let me be the first to tell you, that’s not a lot. I have a 16GB iPhone 3GS and I teeter close to the 16GB mark constantly. It’s not fun having to delete things off of your phone because you’re running out of room.

Locked Bootloader

The other two are bad but in my mind, this is the absolute worst. Currently, there is one AT&T Android phone that has an unlocked bootloader. That device? The absurdly overpriced HTC Jetstream tablet that maybe ten people bought.

Yes, the HTC One X is rootable which means users will be able to delete AT&T’s bloatware but without an unlocked bootloader, One X owners will be missing out on one of the best parts of Android.

Customization.

Without an unlocked bootloader, there is no way to flash most custom ROMs to the One X. And with AT&T showing no sign of relenting, it’s safe to assume that the bootloader will be locked down for quite some time, maybe even forever.

So, overall, while the One X may be a great phone, there is just too much limitation here for my tastes and maybe for yours as well.

Three Reasons Not to Buy the HTC One X is a post by Adam Mills from Gotta Be Mobile.

T-Mobile won’t be following in the footsteps of AT&T and Verizon when it comes to offering shared data plans.

In a blog post today, the carrier ruled out the idea of introducing shared data plans, at least for the time being. T-Mobile says that it doesn’t think consumers will benefit from a shared data plan.

The carrier acknowledges that while data and bandwith are both limited resources, it doesn’t believe that shared data plans are the answer to the problem like its competitors apparently do.

Instead, T-Mobile believes that data plans should be “affordable and flexible.”

Some of our competitors are backing away from simple, unlimited data and moving to family shared data plans. But would this approach actually deliver a better value to consumers?  Do families really want to keep track of each others’ data consumption? We don’t think so. Just imagine mom’s email is suddenly unavailable because her teenage son watched an HD movie on his phone, consuming the family’s data allotment.

Right now, it’s unclear just how much AT&T and Verizon plan to charge for their shared data plan. A $9.99 price tag per device has been rumored for Verizon although the carrier has yet to make anything official.

A shared data plan will let families pull from a bucket of data for multiple devices.

AT&T has said that it will be launching its shared data plan soon and Verizon says that it will be introducing its version of it by the middle of summer. Verizon has also outlined plans to stop offering unlimited data to those buying subsidized phones.

It will start enforcing that policy once it rolls out its shared data plan.

T-Mobile Rules Out Shared Data Plans is a post by Adam Mills from Gotta Be Mobile.

Earlier this year, Verizon said that the Motorola Droid 4 and the LG Spectrum would be getting global roaming capabilities later this year. Well, it looks like that might just happen in the near future and it seems that they might be joined by the Motorola Droid 4, Motorola Droid RAZR and the HTC Rezound.

According to a leaked flyer outed by Droid-Life, Verizon is gearing up to add global roaming capabilities to the HTC Rezound which will give it access to cellular networks in 185 countries around the world.

And while there is no physical evidence for the Droid RAZR, it appears that stores are getting the green light to print out flyers that advertise this feature for the Droid RAZR as well.

Read: HTC Rezound Review – Skip The Beats, Give Me The Phone.

It’s unclear exactly when Verizon is going to officially bless these phones with this feature but from the looks of things, it could be sooner rather than later.

As of right now, none of Verizon’s 4G LTE phones offer this type of feature, so this is exciting news for those that want to use their device while traveling around the globe on business or for pleasure.

Verizon told us at CES that it would be launching this feature on the Droid 4 and the LG Spectrum sometime this year and it said that it would likely take place during the first half of the year.

Rather surprisingly, it appears as though Verizon will keep its promise and push that feature out to users at some point soon.

We’ll let you know when we heard about an official release date for this global roaming feature.

HTC Rezound and Motorola Droid RAZR to Become Global Phones? is a post by Adam Mills from Gotta Be Mobile.

The Samsung Galaxy S III doesn’t hit the European market until May 29, but the hackers have already rooted the flagship smartphone.

According to SlashGear, hacker Chainfire posted his work on rooting the Galaxy S III on the xda-developers forum. Chainfire was able to root the phone thanks to an insider who supplied him with an “insecure” kernel for the device.

Chainfire claims that rooting the kernel was “trivial,” saying that “any serious dev” on the xda-developers forums could do it in about ten minutes. In the kernel provided, Samsung used the standard boot.img, making the root easy, unlike the Galaxy Note and Galaxy S II. Samsung also enabled the recovery partition, making it easy for devs to flash recoveries.

There is a chance that Samsung will change the kernel in the Galaxy S III when the phone launches, but Chainfire doubts it will change much. That means rooting the phone will likely be an easy process.

If the phone is as easy to root as Chainfire claims, that should mean we’ll likely see custom ROMs for the Galaxy S III shortly after its release. That’s good news for users that don’t like Samsung’s TouchWiz skin for Android. With any luck, we might even see some custom ROMs for the device before the U.S. release date, which Samsung has scheduled for June.

There is a chance that the U.S. Galaxy S III will be harder to unlock than the International version. We saw a similar situation with the HTC One X when it launched on AT&T before it was held up in Customs.

Samsung Galaxy S III Rooted Before Release is a post by Shawn Ingram from Gotta Be Mobile.