Gadget Envy - Jake Ludington

Tom Bihn Bags - Made in Seattle

You can't have as many computers as I do and not care about how you transport them. I'm constantly on the look out for new bags I can use for various modes of transportation. I keep coming back to one company that's based here in Seattle, WA about a mile from my office. The quality is outstanding and the company is constantly innovating to make their bags just a little bit better with each cycle. I first discovered Tom Bihn around the time of the first Mind Camp in Seattle and have been a huge fan ever since. They were a sponsor of my trip to DEMO China in 2006 and provided bags for one of the frequent giveaways I do for newsletter subscribers. But the real reason I'm a fan is because they make fabulous bags. Read on for more details and a video demo....

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Back-to-School Laptops Lineup from HP

One of my more recent projects has been work on creating a series of videos for HP, providing education about key product features. In the first of these videos, I walk through features of their back-to-school lineup of notebook computers, including the Pavilion dv6, Pavilion dv2 and Mini 110 line. I do not currently own any of these units, although I do have a dv2 on loan from HP and love it. I spent enough time with each of the three notebooks to feel confident in recommending all three for a number of use cases as back-to-school options for college students. I have previously purchased Pavilion dv5 and HP Mini 1000 line computers and use both almost every day. Watch the video for a quick rundown of notebook features....

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Weekly Gadget Advisor

Mafia MoFo - Not Just Another Mafia Game

Recently, there has been a lot of activity with online mafia / mobster games, from the problems with Mafia Wars to the launch of Bulletproof, New Mafia, and more. You may be asking why you would care about yet another mafia game.

Gadget4All Roll-up All-in-One Mouse Pad with Speaker and USB Hub

Are your desktop and/or work area cluttered with adapters, wires, and all sorts of junk?

Google Earth Now Features Rome Reborn 2.0

How did people live thousands of years ago? The University of Virginia's Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities asked this exact same question.

Bulletproof MySpace Game Poised to Challenge Mafia Wars

A new MySpace game has recently surfaced that is poised to give Mafia Wars some stiff competition.

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Weekly Gadget Advisor

Windows 7 Features and Performance There's much anticipation for Microsoft's next operating system release, Windows 7. MvixBox 2-bay Ultra Performance NAS / Media Server The MvixBox 2-bay high performance NAS / media server is a 3-in-1 solution for storing media files, operating as a media server, and facilitating file transfer. Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 HD Webcam There was a time when having a webcam was only for the wealthy. Those days are long gone....

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Weekly Gadget Advisor

Lenovo ThinkPad X301

Earlier this year Lenovo released their ThinkPad X300, a great notebook for the business minded. Recently, the X300 has been updated to the ThinkPad X301 model. With many improvements from its already great predecessor, you can expect great things from the X301.

Google Chrome Extension Support

Still in beta, Google's "Chrome" has attracted less than 2% of the Internet browser market at its peak, but Google engineers are working to enhance the software to make it more appealing and useful to its users.

Zynga Causes Extreme Frustration for Myspace Mafia Wars Players

For those not familiar with the game, Mafia Wars is a Myspace game, produced by Zynga, that has garnered massive popularity since its inception.

ASUS G50V-A1 Gaming Notebook

The ASUS G50V-A1 is a new gaming notebook to hit the market this holiday season. The G50V-A1 is one of the best machines produced by ASUS performance-wise, but it has other issues that should be considered if your intention is to use the "gaming notebook" heavily for its intended purpose.

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Weekly Gadget Advisor

Super Talent 64GB and 128 GB MasterDrive LX Solid State Drive (SSD)

Solid state drives (SSDs) are becoming increasing popular, especially as prices drop. Super Talent now joins OCZ in leading the movement toward affordable solid state drives.

Logitech Z-500 Wireless Speakers

Most people use laptops to gain freedom from wires and portability. While it's true that everything is packed into a small, self-contained machine with a notebook, once you start connecting other devices, your battery life runs low, requiring the power cable, etc., sometimes it feels like we're back to square one. Logitech recently brought out its Z-500 speakers that help clear the clutter by providing wireless enhanced audio.

Lenovo Ideapad S10 10″ Netbook

Smaller laptops are increasingly popular, and Lenovo's great reputation for quality laptops makes the Ideapad of particular interest.

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Weekly Gadget Advisor

iKey BT-87-TP Bluetooth Keyboard with Built-in Touch Pad

The iKey BT-87-TP is a rugged bluetooth wireless keyboard with integrated touchpad that is fully sealed and industrial quality.

SanDisk ExtremeFFS Significantly Improves SSD Performance

Recently memory giant SanDisk unveiled a method that can be used to achieve a drastic improvement in reliability and performance for SSDs by using an advanced flash file system created solely for solid state drives, called ExtremeFFS.

IMOVIO iKIT Handtop (Mini-Netbook) Computer

We’ve all seen small laptops, and we’ve also seen mini-laptops now referred to as netbooks. Now let’s take a look at a mini-netbook!

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Before you buy a netbook or umpc...

Read the free UMPC Buyer's Guide 2008!

UMPCPortal.com was kind enough to compile a great PDF covering many of the common questions people have about buying small form-factor computers. Everything from the differences in mobile processors to what the various features are at different device sizes, to how battery life has evolved in the last several years is all covered here. It won't tell you which specific model to buy, but the UMPC Buyer's Guide 2008 will help you navigate all the jargon packed into the small form factor space. I'm still looking for the perfect solution that combines a sub-10-inch screen with a minimum of 1280x720 resolution, 12 hours of battery life, 100 GB of solid state hard disk space, and a multi-touch display, all for under $500. I know I'm dreaming for now, but it can't be far off. Additional details available

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HP Docking Station Offers Improved Ergonomics

I was recently hired to shoot and edit some videos for the new notebook computers in the HP fall lineup. At the time, I had no idea whether or not any of the stuff would be newsworthy or not, but there are a handful of new products that are definitely worth checking out. I got permission to post the videos to my Blip.tv account. Prior to this gig, I had already started looking at HP as my next notebook, because they seem to be incorporating the features I want in their product line. Seeing the HP xb4 Notebook Media Docking Station featured in the video here, I'm almost ready to go with HP for my next portable computer. The combination of an easy single connection point from any of the Pavilion notebooks, with a tray that raises the screen to eye level has me highly interested in this as a better desktop solution in places where I don't want to have a standalone monitor connected. The docking station also has built-in speakers, a slot for a Personal Media Drive, and plenty of extra ports. This seems like a handy way to get desktop convenience, the portability of a laptop, and a clean desk all in one package.

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Etymotic hf2 iPhone Hands-Free Headset

Etymotic hf2 iPhone hands-free headset With both California and Washington requiring some sort of hands-free device for all drivers as of July 1, 2008, a large percentage of iPhone owners need a viable hands-free solution. Many of the hands-free options are considerably cheaper than the Etymotic hf2, but all those options also sound awful. I dread talking to anyone using a Bluetooth speakerphone because there's always an unnecessary amount of repeating involved. Bluetooth wireless headsets are better, but they don't play to the iPhone also being an iPod. Etymotic gets it right, offering a wired headset with inline microphone, for stereo listening to music, or receiving and placing calls as they come in. When you're driving, simply remove the second ear bud and stay connected to safely answer phone calls. You'll shout less while wearing the hf2 headset because it blocks noise just like other Etymotic headphones. If you don't have an iPhone, the Etymotic hf2 headset works with any device with a 3.5mm plug.

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