Gear Patrol

It’s no secret that the iPhone has changed the way we work, play and communicate. The plethora of apps is staggering and this smartphone can now do anything from find your car to perform surgery (not quite). Given its capabilities, it was only a matter of time before someone figured out how to turn an…

Apple’s new smart covers do a lot of cool things for the iPad 2, but protecting the shiny aluminum back isn’t one of them. The Xgearlive iPad 2 Smart Cover Enhancer ($35) lets you still use that $38 magnetic flap while providing added security against back-stabbing encounters. Made from vaguely described “polycarbonate material” covered with…

Were you lucky enough to get a hold of the most talked about tablet since the pair handed down from Sinai? Or perhaps you had the saintly patience to wait for one after pre-ordering from Apple. If so, picking up Minoit’s Real Wood iPad 2 Cover ($70) will guarantee your sleek new gadget doesn’t get…

Imagine walking into your favorite dive bar, opening an app, and viewing all of the photos you’ve taken within 150 ft of that location with your buddies over the years, along with shots snapped by other patrons who were willing to share. Now imagine if you could see that kind of photographic record everywhere you…

The idea of making a wireless phone wired is admittedly strange, but nostalgia for the familiar often drives people to do crazy things. The iFusion ($150) is essentially a Bluetooth speaker dock in traditional telephone clothing. Thanks to A2DP Bluetooth streaming, the iFusion can playback both call audio or music over its internal speakerphone. The…

Just like the original, but now for a secound round with the iPad 2, with or without those clever Smart Covers. The Killspencer iPad 2 Case ($189) continues the Pasadena based workshop’s awesome murdered out aesthete complete with premium black leather, soft covered neoprene lining, shoulder strap and RIRI Aquazip waterproof zippers. You’ll also find…

Now that the iPad 2 hysteria has passed — at least until launch day, it’s worth circling back to focus on its companion Smart Covers. Apparently Steve Jobs was upset that the old iPad case hid the beauty of the original iPad’s industrial design, so Apple went back to the drawing board to develop an…

Let the speculation cease. The iPad 2 ($499-$829) is official. Apple’s latest creation features a new A5 dual-core chip, that’s 2x faster than the original and 9x faster graphics performance. A front and rear video camera are now included too, with the latter being capable of recording 720p video at 30fps — implying HD video…

This week on Project Kickstarter we highlight Designer Don Lehman of Chicago, IL. His project’s premise is simple but incredibly helpful for anyone with a touchscreen enabled device, like the iPad. Centered around artists, designers and architects, the More/Real Stylus Cap takes an everyday object (like a Bic or Sharpie) and enables it for use…

Claiming any pair of headphones is tangle-free takes some cojones. Wires are wires after all, and the universe tends towards entropy (seriously: that’s the second law of thermodynamics people). Still, the Swedes are particularly talented at leveraging design, and in the case of the a-Jay Four ($75) ear buds, a unique a 5mm flat cable…

Sure, your iPad dock can play tunes. Maybe it even does so with gusto, but the Alesis iO Dock does far more. The dock enables the iPad to function with pro audio gear and instruments instantly transforming it into a portable production station for musicians, recording engineers and music producers. An abundance of inputs including…

Using two monitors helps you breeze through tasks on the computer, so why not bring the principle to the phone? That’s what Kyocera (yeah that budget handset brand) has done with the Echo, which features two 3.5-inch WVGA displays joined together via a nifty “pivot hinge”, enabling the screens to work both in tandem and…

The desire to use a land line-style phone handset as a replacement for talking on advanced devices like the iPhone may seem backwards in many ways. If you happen to use Skype on a regular basis or prefer to talk a bit more comfortably at home, though, then the Moshi Moshi 03i ($150) is a…

In this edition of Project Kickstarter, we bring you yet another accessory designed for an Apple product. This time it’s not the iPod Nano though, but its larger screened brother, the iPad. Designed by two Portland-based photographers, Nick Curteman and Tom Baker, the project aims to further the iPad’s multi-purpose potential by way of flexible…

Let’s be honest with ourselves. Wrapping headphones around a phone or iPod keeps them organized for exactly 4.26 seconds. Ok so we’re exaggerating — but you get the point. If you’d prefer not to waste another minute of your day untangling headphone cords, then dig into that coin collection and buy a pair of BudTrap…

Look familiar? Well, that’s because the same great (or not-so-great if you swing that way) iPhone 4 will be available on Verizon Wireless beginning February 10, after a purported 1 year of network testing. That means FaceTime video calling, the Retina Display, a 5 megapixel camera with HD video, and of course, the tidal wave…

Bridging the bluetooth functionality of your iPhone, iPod or iPad to the infrared inputs of your home entertainment center, the Mavis Griffin Beacon ($79) allows you to use your iOS device as a system-wide remote. Using the Dijit Universal Remote App the Beacon easily pairs with most TV, set-top box, receiver, media player or otherwise…

Wait, you can still get a great looking Sony Ericsson phone? Oh yes, and a sexy, wafer thin (8.7mm at its thinnest) one at that. Besides taking home the trophy as the best looking Android phone we’ve layed our gadget-hungry eyes upon, the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc also cradles an alluring 854×480 4.2″ Reality Display…

Touch screens may have revolutionized the way we interact with our phones, but they’ve also f’ed up our relationship with gloves. At least with the old phones, you could mash your way to answering or making a phone call. Plenty of glove makers have devised clever new products that help deal with this issue..but that…

Throughout history, the retail experience has gone through continual reinvention: barter to coin to paper to plastic – and soon, even cash registers may be considered obsolete. Square is the latest, brilliant, “there’s an app for that!” moment, designed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. It’s a postage stamp sized magnetic card reader that attaches to…

The savior of magazines the iPad may not be, but that doesn’t mean social magazines aren’t incredible or addicting. If you’ve had a chance to use the Flipboard or Flud apps then you’ll know what we’re talking about. Better late than never, Tweetmag ($5) is the creation of design and usability firm Teehan+Lax. As you’d…

The Beatles may have been recently re-released, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get in on your own vintage cassette-based recording, multi-touch style. Reinventing the Tascam Porta One, the Portastudio for iPad ($10) app allows you to mix four tracks to a virtual cassette in a similar fashion to the classic 4-track recorder. Designed to…

Somewhere at the crossroads of Americana and technology two very different companies based around Nashville decided to have a cup of coffee and brainstorm about the iPad. The result? A small collaboration of iPad cases by heirloom-grade leather goods maker Col. Littleton and popular gadget accessory brand Griffin Technologies. The iPad cases are signature Col….

Wait. Another better, more powerful Android phone has landed? Such are the pains of progress. Based off the Samsung Galaxy S, the new Google Nexus S ($529) comes armed with a curved glass 4″ AMOLED Contour Display, Android 2.3 Gingerbread pre-installed, Near Field Communications, 16GB of onboard storage, 512MB of RAM, 6.7 hours of talk…

Android users can continue to laugh at the whole situation, but for Apple fanboys, the recently launched Skyfire Web Browser ($2.99) is a partial bridge to getting the “full web experience” on your favorite pocket companion. Translation: using it will allow you to play some Flash video on your iPhone. We say some because according…

AT&T may be losing the iPhone 4 exclusivity, but who cares when there’s another phone coming with virtually 100% coverage on the continental US and doesn’t require a contract? Wait, did we just say complete coverage, no contract and AT&T in the same sentence? Surely we jest. Nope, the next time you find yourself a…

The recently announced BlackBerry Bold 9780 may not generate the buzz of other handsets considering it’s quite similar to the 9700, but for BlackBerry addicts in love with the portrait QWERTY form factor, the changes should still be welcomed. Aesthetically its pretty much par for the Bold series course, but internally its camera has been…

The iPad may not be a magical savior of magazines, but the fact that it’s the best-selling gadget of all time makes it an undeniable game changer that can’t be ignored. Esquire, known for embracing new technologies, has been curiously quiet (GQ has had an iPad app for a better part of this year) but…

One of the main crutches of all science fiction worlds is the ubiquitous wall-mounted screen. Ranging from the playful ones in the Jetsons, to the utilitarian ones in Star Wars, to the creepy 1984 model, it seems that interactive wall displays are the direction our society is going. Thanks to Steve Jobs though, owning a…

The Glif iPhone 4 tripod mount and stand ($20) is both simple and useful. Normally we try to steer clear of products that are still in the conceptual stage, but judging by the funds the idea has already raised on Kickstarter, it appears this product will soon be a reality. Created to maximize the potential…