Review » Prank USB Stick Will Make Your Coworker’s Computer Go Nuts

Do you remember that gum that turned your friend’s mouth blue?  It was a harmless prank, which of course now looking back probably wasn’t all that harmless since it probably used a carcinogenic dye.  Fast forward 20 years later to the computer age and you’re working in a bored-to-tears 9 to 5 job.  So what’s one to do?  Exactly what you did years prior, prank the crap out of your co-worker.

The USB Computer Prankster plugs into any free USB port and plays havoc on your friend (or foes) computer.  You can set it to make the mouse go haywire, permanently engage the caps lock feature and make the keyboard go bananas.  It even features a time delay in the form of a volume wheel, which allows you plant, walk away and then set the attack in motion without being within close proximity to your target’s computer.

Review » Incase Headphones: Minimalism with Opulence

There aren’t too many companies that have minimalism nailed, Incase however is one of those.  Today the company, which largely makes cases (hence the name) announced a new line of headphones that are sleek, light weight and opulently simple.

The Capsules are an ear bud affair that sport an oval profile that is said to match the ear canal’s shape for better fit and sound isolation. Then there is the Pivot, which are very light weight on ear headphones with cups that rotate flat for portability.  They’re probably the most minimalist of them all. Next up are the Reflex phones, which are too an over the ear fit like the Pivots, but sport additional padding for greater comfort and a more refined look. Last up are the Sonics. Without a doubt these have to be the most expensive since they are Incase’s “high performance” headphones with titanium audio drivers and ear cups designed in a shape to fit comfortably over the ears.


As of now there is no word on price, but it’s safe to assume that the Pivots are the cheapest of the bunch and the Sonic the most expensive. Incase says they’ll be available for purchase this September.

REVIEW >> The Case-mate iPhone Case Costs $300; Why?

Is the recession not affecting you and have $300 to spend on an iPhone 4 case? Then Case-mate is for you! But wait, why does it cost that much?

Apparently, using titanium as the main material could be costly, even for an iPhone 4 case. That metal is known for its strength, light weight, and anti-corrosive features. I should know; I have a titanium frying pan that also doubles as a wok. That thing has been with us for almost 10 years now.

But then again, for an iPhone 4 case, I think you could be better off with the aircraft aluminum-made Vapor, which is way cheaper. Still absurdly priced at $80, but at least it ain’t $300.

But if you insist, the Case-mate will be up for sale beginning June 27.

Source: Mobile Crunch

REVIEW >> Logitech G400 Optical Gaming Mouse

PC gaming today now requires specialized accessories in order to have a better gameplay experience. Peripherals like a gaming mouse may now be considered a must for every serious PC gamer. The new Logitech G400 Optical Gaming Mouse aims to further enhance that gameplay experience.

The new Logitech G400 Optical Gaming Mouse is said to be the successor to the popular Logitech MX518 gaming mouse. Logitech took everything good out of the MX518 and used it on the G400 and added better features. One of them is upgrading to a 3,600 DPI sensor from the previous 1800 DPI. This allows users to make high speed turns without having to make wide hand sweeps. Another upgrade is the increased report rate from 125 to 1000 reports per second. This allows users to make movements and button clicks as close to real time as possible. The new Logitech G400 Optical Gaming Mouse will be available for US retailers by June 19 and for the rest of the world sometime in the middle of July. This new gaming mouse is expected to retail for US$50.

Image Source: Logitech

REVIEW >> Bounty Hunter Carabiner Multi Tool

Those metal carabiners have found another use other than as part of climbing gear. More and more people are using them now as utility keyholders that can easily be attached and detached for convenient use. But there can be more to carabiners than just a simple keyholder. This new Bounty Hunter BxH Carabiner also acts as a multi tool.

The Bounty Hunter BxH Carabiner Multi Tool comes with a built-in utility blade, nail file and scissor into the carabiner’s body. It provides an added utility to an increasingly popular fashion accessory of sorts. The Bounty Hunter BxH Carabiner Multi Tool is available at the Bounty Hunter site for 3,990 Japanese Yen or around US$50.

Image Source: Bounty Hunter

REVIEW >> Polk Audio Releases Performance Line Up Headphones

Polk Audio has recently introduced a new lineup of headphones for the audio quality discerning set. The Polk Audio Performance Line Up will be coming up with several headphone models that will fall under the UltraFit and the UltraFocus banners. They aim to cater to the certain differences that different people need and look for in headphones.

The Polk Audio UltraFit headphones will come in 4 different models available in a number of different colors. They are considered as sports headphones and will come in water resistant designs, iPhone or iPod controls as well as Kevlar-reinforced hinge points for added durability on areas considered as general weak points for headphones.

The Polk Audio UltraFocus headphones with come in a pair of different models, both coming with active noise cancellation features. This is the type of headphones for people who might wish to use it on noisy environments. The Polk Audio Performance Line Up Headphones will be made available to retailers by this Fall. No pricing data has yet been provided.

Image Source: PRNewswire

REVIEW >> Arriva LEO Wireless Headphones

Wireless headphones are becoming more convenient to use when going around. It would even be a better deal if they are also designed for use outdoors. The Arriva LEO Headphones fir the bill when it comes to outdoor wireless headphones.

The Arriva LEO Headphones makes use of Bluetooth wireless technology to allow a wire-free listening as well as hands free communication. It can be paired up with any Bluetooth enabled device to use while listening to music or taking calls on a mobile phone. It is designed to be worn with the volume control fitting snugly at the back of the head.

What makes it even a better wireless headphone is that it is sweat and water resistant, making it an ideal headphone to use outdoors, even in the rain. It can be charged via USB where a 100 minute charge translates into 8 hours of talk time or continuous music listening and 120 hours of standby time. The Arriva LEO Headphones is available at Arriva for US$90.

Image Source: Arriva

REVIEW >> Chill Innovation has presented a miniature wireless keyboard with built-in touchpad

The Danish company Chill Innovation announced the release of the keyboard KB-1BT. New gadget is positioned as device for universal means of controlling computers, tablets, smart phones, game consoles and all sorts of other devices that support Bluetooth.

The keyboard is very compact: the size and weight are: 155 x 61 x 12 mm and 102 grams respectively; it is not much bigger than a modern smartphone with large touch screen. For easier cursor control device developers equipped it with a 31 x 31 mm touch screen with 400 dpi resolution. They have also solved problem with typing in low light conditions by building in backlight. There are 71 keys plus the service keys. Not the most obvious, but quite useful feature of the keypad is LED flashlight, which can be changed a laser pointer if you wish.

KB-1BT keyboard is equipped with a built-in 850 mAh lithium-polymer battery. According to the developers, it is enough for 30 days of standby time. But there is no information on how long the battery life of KB-1BT keyboard is during normal operation. Working range is 10 meters which is standard for Bluetooth devices. It also features a wireless USB receiver.

REVIEW >> Extend Your Network With the Netgear WN3000RP Universal WiFi Range Extender

Not all of us are lucky enough to have a home that’s wired for Ethernet, and for many of us who have to depend on wireless for network access within the home, there are places where our wireless signal just doesn’t quite reach.  Wireless network extenders solve this problem, and are nothing new, but most of them require a fair amount of technical prowess to get configured and working properly.  Netgear’s WN3000RP Universal WiFi Range Extender  looks to be a solid attempt at making the task of propagating your wireless network throughout the house a much simpler undertaking.

LEDs on the face of the WN3000RP help you find the optimal location for extending your network, and the unit plugs directly into an outlet like a power brick, so it can go just about anywhere you have power.  It supports Wi-Fi Protected Setup for easy configuration, and supports all wireless security standards.  Further, the WN3000RP can also be used as a wireless bridge, if you just need to get a wired device onto your wireless network.

The WN3000RP Universal WiFi Range Extender is priced at $89.99, and is available now.

REVIEW >> The 1st Annual Craftsman Blogger Summit

 

I had the pleasure of representing The Gadgeteer at Craftsman’s Blogger Summit in Chicago recently.  This event brought together about a dozen bloggers from different specialties, to highlight the Craftsman name and promote the products through social media and the Internet.  We congregated at the Craftsman Experience facility to learn about some of their DIY tools and participated in building several simple projects.  These were all live streamed  from the facility and comments were taken  in real-time via social media sites.  The best part was that I got to use some really interesting power tools and still came home with all my appendages.  Believe me, for a person without a DIY gene, this was an accomplishment.

The Craftsman brand has been around as long as I can remember.  I recall that when I was a kid my father would buy his Craftsman tools at the Sears store.  The biggest selling point for him, was on the rare occasion when when of the tools would break, he would bring it back for a replacement with no questions asked.  Today Craftsman tools can be found in Sears, Kmart and Ace hardware stores.

All the activities took place at the Craftsman Experience facility in downtown Chicago.  This 8,000 sq ft space comprises five key product areas including Woodworking, Automotive, Lawn and Garden, Garage Storage and the Innovation Station. In the Woodworking, Automotive and Lawn and Garden areas, experts hold hands-on demos and clinics, which educate consumers on various DIY projects that they can complete at home.  The Innovation Station displays new products that can be handled by the consumer.

This first thing you see when you enter the Experience facility is this car.  For some reason they wouldn’t let us play with it.

For those people who don’t have the time to take a trip to Chicago,  streaming video of the events are available via the their Facebook page or can be watched at a later date on YouTube.  The space is setup to make it easy for video recording and there is an on-site control room to feed video and audio to the Internet.

The Blogger event involved all the participants in building various projects.  After a safety briefing, we were split off into groups and spent about an hour and half on each project.  At that point we switched to another and so on until all were completed.  Each project was instructed by a blogger that had expertise in the given area.  This was all live streamed.

Here I’m being guided by Timothy in building a saw horse.  These projects were selected to be simple and fast to complete.  Although not shown here, we had the opportunity to use many of the Nextec line of tools that are relatively new to the market.  They are light weight and affordable.

Our team made the one with the polka dots.

While we were working on the saw horse, another team was working on a different project.

Mike guided us in the making of a pizza peel.  What was unique about this peel is that it was tapered.  This was done by building a jig and using a router to bevel the wood.

The day finished with a contest between two instructors who had to build a mailbox that would be resistant to vandalism.  They were encouraged to use their imagination.  The results were hilarious and I hope the video is put online, because a still photo and explanation won’t do it justice.

Initially, I was somewhat sceptical that a non DIY guy like myself would benefit from this event.  This feeling was reinforced when I met the other participants.  Most of them had some link to crafts type activities.  I shouldn’t have worried.  Although you won’t find me on This Old House anytime soon, I did get to operate some really neat tools.  My favorite was the pneumatic nail gun.  Put it into bump mode and you can do some real damage :-)   Unfortunately,  my wife watched me on the live stream and thinks I know what I’m doing.  There’s no way I’m going to build a gazebo!

Why not give the Craftsman site a look.  It may kindle your interest to building something with your own hands.  This is especially relevant in today’s economic climate.  Click on the experience tab and you can watch the live stream or play videos of recorded projects.

REVIEW >> JayBird JF3 Freedom Bluetooth Earbuds Put Wireless Music In Your Ears

If there’s one thing I hate about exercising while wearing earbuds, it’s that it’s far too easy to accidentally snag the cable on something and yank one or both buds out of my ears.  Bluetooth headphones solve the cable problem, but most Bluetooth headphones are either circumaural or supra-aural, and thus too big and heavy to wear while exercising.

JayBird has brought together the best of both worlds with their JF3 Freedom Bluetooth earbuds.  Designed specifically for active users, the JF3 earbuds are lightweight and sweatproof, and come with a selection of ear tips and secure fit ear cushions to help keep the earbuds seated during your workout.  The right-side earbud features volume and playback controls for devices that support AVRCP, and a microphone so that you can make or receive phone calls without missing a beat.  JayBird claims that the JF3 battery will last for 6 hours of music playback or phone talk time, which should be enough for even the most hardcore fitness regimen.

The JF3 Freedom Bluetooth earbuds are available now for $99 at the JayBird online store.

REVIEW >> SATADIMM SSD - data transfer speed increased up to 520 MB/sec

 

Last summer, specialists from Viking Modular Solutions - a unit of Sanmina-SCI Corporation, presented SSD SATADIMM. SATADIMM modules have SATA 3 Gbps interface and look like standard DIMM modules.

In beginning of the second quarter of this year, the company has announced the second generation SATADIMM. Structurally, the data storage devices are like DDR3memory modules with height of 25 mm and 18.75 mm (VLP). However they feature new SATA 6 Gbps and SAS interfaces for even faster data transmission rates.

New drives demonstrate performance of 60,000 IOPS on random access read/write operations. Data transfer rate is up to 520 MB / sec. For comparison - first generation SATADIMM had speed of 260 MB/sec.

Manufacturer position their knowhow solution for blade-servers, rack servers sizes 1U, storage subsystems and boards AdvancedTCA (ATCA).

REVIEW: HTC Flyer Stylus to Cost US$79.99

 

The upcoming HTC Flyer tablet sets itself apart from other tabs in the bunch because of its pen input. And what better way to enjoy this feature but to come up with a stylus.

The HTC Flyer Stylus is not just any pointer, but rather a separate piece of electronics. Users can enjoy writing and drawing directly onto the tablet.

This stylus will cost you US$79.99 on Best Buy. Those who are planning to buy the HTC tablet will not have to worry about purchasing the stylus as it comes with the device, which is expected to cost around $500 once it is released.

Source: Unwired Reviews

REVIEW: Microsoft Wireless Desktop 2000 Keyboard And Mouse

Microsoft has recently introduced the Wireless Desktop 2000 keyboard and mouse. Although it might seem to look quite ordinary in terms of design and looks, but it does offer a feature that other keyboards and mice may not. For one, this set of wireless keyboard and mouse offers AES technology.

With many malware and viruses able to get personal information via keyloggers and recording anything you type, the Microsoft Wireless Desktop 2000 can provide some added security features to prevent this. The Advanced Encryption Standard 128-bit encryption provides the security needed for everything you type. The keyboard also comes with Taskbar Favorites for Widows 7 along with convenient shortcut keys. The mouse comes with Blue Track Technology that makes it work in virtually any surface. The Microsoft Wireless Desktop 2000 is available at Microsoft for US$40.

Image Source: Microsoft

Review: V-MODA for True Blood headphones

When it comes to the world of headphones, surely you yourself have heard of the V-MODA name – after all, it is the premier music lifestyle brand which pioneered the fashion headphone category. Well, V-MODA has partnered with HBO so that they can introduce a new line of headphones which are touted to embody “the spirit of the award-winning series, True Blood”.

Ready to hit store shelves later this summer, the “V-MODA for True Blood” collection will comprise of half a dozen models that range from ear buds to headphones, where it also includes a brand new style that was specially crafted for this range. The “Hearwear” was tailored to the tastes and sensibilities of the millions who are able to identify with True Blood’s alluring, sexy style.

V-MODA’s Chief Visionary Officer and DJ, Val Kolton, was the one who crafted the lifestyle brand which of course will find the alliance with True Blood a natural occurrence. After all, True Blood fans, music lovers, night-dwellers and artisans will all be drawn to the headphones’ almost immortal durability, thanks to V-MODA’s MaterialEDGE military-tough testing processes with more than four years of quality engineering thrown into the mix.

The product’s timeless materials used inside include metal plates, Kevlar-reinforced cables and luxurious fabrics, without sacrificing on functionality so that in a similar vein to True Blood’s vampires, it is able to work for years without showing any signs of deterioration. Even more important is the fact that each product has been masterfully tuned alongside legendary musicians, producers and DJs so that your ears will enjoy what they call, “supernatural” audio.

No word on pricing, but they are not going to be that cheap to begin with, considering the pedigree that the V-MODA brand name has. Well, you always have got to pay for quality, so we don’t see any reason not to go the other way around this time, too.


http://maxborgesagency.com/press/v-moda-and-hbo%C2%AE-partner-to-create-%E2%80%9Cv-moda-for-true-blood%E2%80%9D-line/

Review: iPad Flexible Arm Should be Called Lazy Arm

 

Japanese novelty gadget maker Thanko introduces its “iPad Flexible Arm,” which supposedly makes it easier for owners to use iPads while lying in bed. First question that pops into my head is, “Are we really that lazy?”

The arm can supposedly support the tablet both in vertical and horizontal positions. It is specifically designed for the iPad and iPad 2, but any tablet not thicker than 18mm will do.

The Thanko iPad Flexible Arm is now available on the company’s Japanese online store, costing about US$61.

Source: CrunchGear

Review: NZXT Avatar S Gaming Mouse

PC Gaming nowadays require some specialized gaming equipment in order to enjoy a better gaming experience. That is why there are now PC gaming mouse models that are designed for dedicated PC gaming use. One of the recent ones to come out is the NZXT Avatar S Gaming Mouse.


The NZXT Avatar S Gaming Mouse is the successor to the Avatar line of gaming mice from NZXT. It offers a simple yet precise and flexible system for better gaming control for avid gamers. It comes with Teflon feet to make it ideal for gliding action on any surface. It also comes with a tracking speed of 30 inches per second to match a user’s gaming speed.

The Avatar S Gaming Mouse is also follows an ambidextrous design that makes it ideal for both left and right handed gamers. It also has a 16kb onboard memory that stores the gamer’s ideal gaming mouse settings. Its 5 keys are programmable according to how the gamer may wish to use them. The new NZXT Avatar S Gaming Mouse is expected to come out any time soon. No pricing details have yet been provided.

Image Source: NZXT

Review: Next-gen TallyGenicom 6600 Matrix Printers

 

Printronix launched its new TallyGenicom by Printronix branded printers. The next generation TallyGenicom 6600 family of line matrix printers are ENERGY STAR® qualified and are fully compatible, direct replacements for earlier TallyGenicom printers. From banking to manufacturing, warehousing to shipping and distribution centers, the TallyGenicom 6600 series by Printronix includes the 6600Q Cabinet, 6600 Open Pedestal, 6600 Quiet Pedestal and 6600Z Zero Tear to provide users with better durability and great print quality. The 6600 printer family includes the PrintNet Suite™ of tools to help supply chain professionals manage their worldwide print operations remotely, and the WebPanel™ for single printer management needs.

Review: Doodle Customizable Speaker from Zazzle

 

OrigAudio’s Doodle speaker is mentioned as the world’s first customizable speaker. Featured on ABC’s hit television show “Shark Tank”, the Doodle speaker features: 2.5 x 5 inch speaker; 9.6 ounces; Light, durable plastic with fully customizable fabric front and kickstand for propping; Powered by 2 AAA batteries or with USB cord (included); Manufactured in 2-3 business days; Works with any standard 3.5mm headphone jack audio pro.

Review: Field Monitor Pro Mobile Monitor

 

 Field Monitor Pro Mobile Monitor

Generally available to business travelers, the Field Monitor Pro Mobile Monitor comes with an ultra-bright 15.4-inch backlit LED screen delivers 1280 x 800 pixels, and is adjustable to any angle. This lightweight display also features: Rugged, clamshell design protecting the screen; Large, Integrated keypad for fast data entry and spreadsheet work; Ideal for presentations to small groups; Simple USB connectivity; Intuitive multi-monitor software by DisplayLink; Ability to be used with up to six displays. Price: $289 MSRP.