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Latest Gear Live Videos
Unboxing The XShot
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Accessories, Smartphones, Misc. Tech, Movies, Product Reviews, Videos,
We just received an XShot, the cool little extension device that you attach to your still or video cam that allows you long and/or panoramic shots without the aid of an extra person. Its stainless steel shaft is indeed lightweight and extends 37-inches. The screw is a standard one used on tripods and it has the tilt capability of 180º. The company claims that it will fit in your pocket when closed (9-inches,) but those would have to be some pretty big jeans to accommodate it. It does, however, have a nice lanyard for carrying and a very comfortable rubber grip. Full review and demo after the jump.
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| XShot LLC
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The market for point and shoot digital cameras gets crowded. Casio’s Exilim EX-S880 is a standout. The EX-S880 comes in at a diminutive 2.4 x 3.7 x .7 inches and weighs 7 ounces, making it perfect to slip into a pocket or purse for the evening. Despite the small size, the EX-S880 packs 8.1 megapixels, 3x optical zoom and 4x digital zoom, H.264 MPEG 4 video capability, face detection and anti shake technology. Read on to get our full thoughts on the Exilim EX-S880.
Click to continue reading Casio Exilim EX-S880 Review
Gallery: Casio Exilim EX-S880 Review
Why I Love LG’s VX9400 Cellphone (aka the “TV Phone”): A Review
Posted by Lolita Beckwith Categories: Smartphones, Editorial, Features, Product Reviews,
In August, my contract with T-Mobile ended, and I was ready to upgrade my cell phone. Like most everyone else, I desperately wanted an iPhone, but the $500 price tag was too rich for my blood. I also considered the Sidekick, which would have allowed me to stay with T-Mobile (whose service I love). Then one day I wandered into a Verizon store to check out their “TV Phone”: LG’s VX9400. You’ve probably seen the commercials of people watching “The Daily Show” or “Spongebob” on their cellphone and wondered “Just how good is that thing?” Well, I was hooked instantly and purchased it the next day. Despite the phone’s drawbacks – and they are major—I’ve been in love with it ever since. Here’s why…
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Networkers Rejoice: Business Card Composer
Posted by Jenny Lewis Categories: Apple, Design, Product Reviews, Software,
There are some things that even the most advanced cell phone or laptop can’t replace. Tops on that list is the business card - it’s one of the easiest ways to represent yourself or your company while meeting someone new. Trying to find a card that will represent yourself or your company can be a huge challenge - the clip art and fonts available at your neighborhood office supply store or print shop don’t necessarily have the best reputation for being contemporary.
Enter BeLightSoft’s Business Card Composer. The software publishing house that brought the Mac community publication-driven titles like Art Text, Swift Publisher and Printfolio has supplied a fantastic alternative to chain store business cards.
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For the Ladies: Burton Women’s Day Hiker
Posted by Jenny Lewis Categories: Accessories, Product Reviews,
Laptop. iPod. Headphones. Camera. Phone. Wallet. Home keys. Car keys. Moleskine, writing implements, Bluetooth earpiece, DS, games, maybe a spiral notebook or two, possibly even a textbook. And this is all supposed to go into a messenger bag and arrive unharmed and somewhat organized at my destination?
Faced with this issue while packing my regular carryon for a trip last month, I realized something had to change - I needed a better receptacle for all of my junk. After shopping other messengers, slings, totes, and various other bag designs, the best solution was the Burton Women’s Day Hiker 12L. This bag has some serious pockets - plenty of organized space for my phone, various pens and pencils, a fleece-lined pocket for my camera, a clip for my keys, even a separate pocket for my iPod with a cutout to run the headphone cord through. There’s a shovel pocket on the inside of the bag that houses a 13” notebook (although it’s not the most protective pocket on Earth - a sleeve might be a good idea). Two outside board straps make schlepping your sporting board of choice a breeze. Most importantly, the shoulder straps - which are made for women - were comfortable while carrying a heavy load.
The Burton Women’s Day Hiker 12L is available in six colors, including basic black, and retails for $49.95. Just in case you guys get jealous, there’s a men’s version as well.
Gallery: For the Ladies: Burton Women’s Day Hiker
The definitive iTunes WiFi Music Store review
Posted by Sparky Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Internet, Music, Portable Audio / Video, Product Reviews, Software, Wireless / WiFi,
After a couple of frustrating days fighting with a flaw in password entry fields in the newly released iPhone software version 1.1.1, Gear Live has finally gotten the chance to probe the inner depths of the iTunes WiFi Music Store. The new WiFi Music Store brings mobile media impulse buys to the millions of iPhone users all packaged up in the typical Apple fashion: sexy, easy to use, and slick as glass. While my experiences with the WiFi Music Store were not 100% positive it’s definitely off to a stunning start and has great potential. Click through the jump to continue reading the review to learn more about the plusses and minuses of our adventuresome journey through Apple‘s mobile media e-commerce wonder.
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Skitch: review of OS X’s hottest new information sharing tool
Posted by Sparky Categories: Apple, Internet, Misc. Tech, Product Reviews, Software,
The concept of screen capture has been around almost as long as the graphical user interface, but only recently has it truly evolved. OS X has featured the Grab utility for a while which made capturing a screenshot, selection, or single window easy, but once you have the capture, what do you do with it? Plasq solves this problem with Skitch, the evolution (or perhaps revolution) of screen capture to the Mac. The program blew us away when we first got our hands on it, we even wrote a quick post of our Skitch impressions after five minutes of use. Now we have an in-depth review of the Skitch beta, and a chance for you to win one of two Skitch beta invites Gear Live has to offer.
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Read More | Skitch by Plasq
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The Starbucks iTunes WiFi music store reviewed
Posted by Sparky Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Internet, PC / Laptop, Portable Audio / Video, Product Reviews, Software, Wireless / WiFi,
As promised Apple and Starbucks started their rollout of the Starbucks WiFi Music Store in select cities. Gear Live is lucky enough to be in Seattle, the first city to get the special version of the iTunes Music Store in our Starbucks. The service allows laptops, iPhones, and the iPod Touch users to connect for free to the iTunes store while sipping lattes without having to pay for for a T-Mobile Hotspot account. Click through for our full impressions on Apple’s new partnership with the coffee mega-store Starbucks.
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iPhone password entry in software version 1.1.1: seriously flawed
Posted by Sparky Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Music, Portable Audio / Video, Product Reviews, Software, Wireless / WiFi,
In a previous post, Gear Live discovered that the new iTunes WiFi Music Store has a few bugs here and there. The bug I encountered prevents some users from authenticating easily to purchase tracks. With a little sleuth work I managed to track down the problem: the password fields in the new iPhone software version 1.1.1 don’t work well with capitol letters in passwords. Click through for a full run down of the problem, and how to fix it if it affects you.
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Vaja iVolution Top SP Flip Holster for the iPhone reviewed
Posted by Sparky Categories: Accessories, Apple, Smartphones, Design, Portable Audio / Video, Product Reviews,
Surrounding the release of Apple‘s iPhone there was a flurry excitement surrounding various cases to protect and showcase a consumer’s shiny new obsession. A number of cases including simple cloth slipcovers, protective rubber enclosures, and elaborate leather constructions flooded onto the market, each with different plusses and minuses.
Gear Live has previously reviewed several of the high-end leather cases by Argentinean case manufacturer Vaja, and given our extremely positive experiences in the past, we jumped at the opportunity to check out their new iVolution line of iPhone cases. The iVolution line has a number of different styles of cases and holsters, and we selected the fully-enclosed protection offered by the iVolution Top SP Holster. Click through the jump for the full in-depth review.
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Gallery: Vaja iVolution Top SP Flip Holster for the iPhone reviewed
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