Gear Patrol | Spirit of Adventure, Passion for Gear

King of the Android Hill (For Now)

After months of waiting, Samsung’s top-tier Android super phone is now available stateside, on Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile. The phone will apparently ship in slightly different variations to each network. At their core, all U.S. models will still feature Android 2.3, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 16GB of memory, an 8 MP rear camera and measure [...]

Kindle Killer?

In the era of the iPad, it’s hard to get jazzed about another dedicated e-reader. As big of technophiles as we are, though, we still think there’s room for a specialized reading device. Sony’s new Reader Wi-Fi ($149), more formally known as the PRS-T1, claims to hold the new record as the lightest 6-inch e-reader [...]

Everything You Need and Nothing You Don’t

Lotus has always built cars that are meant to be driven hard and not coddled. Small and lightweight, with surprisingly modest engines, the guiding principle of company founder, Colin Chapman, was to remove extraneous bits and bobs to tip the power to weight ratio in favor of the former. This principle was most evident in [...]

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Not quite dressy, but certainly not sloppy, this classic fitting 100% pima cotton polo is great thing to have on hand for fall weekends. Distinguished by mother-of-pearl buttons, cuff detailing, and shirting fabric lining on the collar, cuffs, and placket — it’s not just another long sleeve polo. $70 | CTShirts.co.uk

Vodka, With Flavor. Not Flavored Vodka.

In the world of vodka, there’s more parity than any other spirit category, and there’s seemingly a new vodka on the market each week. Given the competition, most resort to lifestyle claims for differentiation tactics – and to justify steep prices – rather than focusing on what’s in the bottle. Bucking that trend is Reyka [...]

Hog 'O Plenty

Nothing says love like a slab of sliced pork, but maybe it’s time you class up the gift of swine with a Di Bruno Bros. Bacon Basket ($150). Stuffed with all the wonderful bacon (bits) you’ve seen on the web, the basket is brimming with a drool-inducing list of provisions including: 1 lb of Loveless [...]

Ocean Twelve

The International Watch Company has always done things a little differently. First of all, the firm wasn’t founded by a venerable Swiss family in the remote mountains of the Jura or in the Vallée de Joux. Rather, it was an American entrepreneur from Boston, F.A. Jones, who set up shop on the banks of the [...]

Ahead Phones

Using planar magnetic technology, essentially a thin-film diaphragm housed between two magnetic structures, and an arsenal of knowledge pooled from a cache of industry sound engineers Audez’e (pronounced “odyssey”) has managed to create what might be the smoothest pair of headphones we’ve ever auditioned. Sure, the Audez’e LCD-2 Headphones ($945) may cost a pretty penny, [...]

Writing Off the Wall

Since 1883 Kaweco of Germany has been applying their company motto “small in the pocket, great in the hand” in their efforts to produce high end writing implements. Case in point: the AC Sport Carbon Fiber Fountain Pen ($112), which embodies the company motto right down the last dotted ‘I’ and crossed ‘T’. The pen is [...]

For decades screen writers have found excuses for characters to casually drop the name of the film in dialog. Don’t think that’s the case? Check out this compilation of clips from 110 movies and we think you’ll see the theme. Still don’t believe it? Then go back and watch Part I.

The D-ring collaboration from Free / Man and Wood & Faulk is comprised of 1.5″ thick, 10oz North American steer hide tanned in the English bridle fashion with solid brass or nickel plated brass rings. The end result is an extremely durable, yet flexible leather classic that will develop character with age. A collaborative logo [...]

Redefining Blow Torch

Cooking over charcoal can impart many excellent flavor characteristics to your meat of choice — lighter fluid just isn’t one of them. Swedish inventor Richard Looft created the Looftlighter ($80) to end charcoal-grilling man’s dependance on the explosive fluid once and for all, granted they have an electrical outlet close at hand. Looking like a [...]

You never know when you’re going to need some illumination

Whether you’re caught out after sunset on your bike, troubleshooting an uncooperative ’74 Beetle, plotting your pre-dawn summit bid, or finding a blown fuse in a dark basement, a good light source becomes invaluable. The problem is, you usually need different lights for different purposes and the one you need is rarely where you need [...]

Skewering the Competition

The first man to use a skewer while cooking food over a flame was the undisputed genius of his time. The fire cooked his catch, not him, and he could eat right off of the stick afterwards. Then someone invented plates and botched it all up. The price of progress in this case was mountains [...]