Gear Patrol

Samsung Galaxy S4 with Stock Android Hardware fans prepared to be disappointed by the developer focus of Google’s 2013 I/O powwow received a welcomed surprise Wednesday. The search giant will be selling an unlocked version of the Samsung Galaxy S4 running stock Android for $649. They’re not officially calling it a “Nexus” yet, but it’s…

Victorinox Bike Tool It’s taken this long? Bikers are the perfect recipients of a Swiss Army tool. An L-wrench with 8 bits and a set of tire levers in one small form is perfectly in line with the biker mantra, “big bulges in our shorts, little bulges in our saddlebags”. $48 (★) Ballast Time Instruments…

SodaStream teams up with the Korean electronics giant to integrate their automatic sparkling water dispenser inside the Samsung RF31FMESBSR 36-inch Four-Door Refrigerator.

Originally designed to play music on only their own products, Apple’s AirPlay technology now allows users to stream multimedia from iPhones, iPads and computers to any enabled HDTV or speaker system via wi-fi. Because Apple now allows third parties to use their tech, myriad standalone speaker systems designed specifically for AirPlay are on the market: some are better than others, and they all span the price and design spectra. Here are our 10 picks for some of the best AirPlay speakers available.

If four times the number of pixels of the current Full HD standard can’t satisfy your lust for the bleeding edge, then the “unprecedented design” of the Samsung S9 UHD 4K TV should do the trick. The so-called “Timeless Gallery” frame mimics the look of an easel and allows the monstrous screen to rotate up…

Samsung’s crush on vacuum tube amplification started with the DA E750 Vacuum Tube AirPlay Dock announced at last year’s CES. Now it’s a full blown love affair — complete with rewards club memberships at the local Shag-a-Day Inn. According to the tech giant, the newly announced HW-F750 Vacuum Tube Soundbar and paired wireless subwoofer is…

To the inexperienced, the words “techie” and “guy” seem synonymous. Sure, most guys do like technology these days — but like does not true a techie make. So while this list can absolutely be applied to any modern man, its real target is the hardcore gadget nut. The one who scours the blogs and refreshes…

Brushing off the recent court ruling, Samsung introduces the latest update to their ground-breaking phablet with the Galaxy Note II. With a bigger Super AMOLED screen (5.5” vs 5.3”) at a lower resolution (1280×720 vs. 1280×800), the new smartphone takes style cues from the Galaxy S III. Intended to conserve battery life and reduce screen…

With each new improvement to smartphone cameras, the collective cries by pundits and consumers alike at the death of point and shoot cameras grow louder and clearer. Hoping to silence, or at the least quiet, dissenters, Samsung has announced the Galaxy Camera, a cloud-connected pocket blackmailer that offers all the bells and whistles that most…

Ultrabooks, tablets, and Andre the Giant-sized phones have already made the world of mobile computing a muddled mess, and the newly announced Samsung Series 5 and 7 Slate PCs aren’t here to help. The 11.6-inch hybrids are part of a new wave of Windows 8 powered franken-slates looking to blend the computing talents of laptops…

The original Samsung Galaxy Note created a band of skeptics right out of the starting blocks, thanks to its duplo-sized 5.3-inch screen and the inclusion of an S Pen stylus. While geeks were muttering the word “phablet” and questioning why the Note was needed, Samsung laughed all the way to bank, selling over 5 million…

The anticipation for Samsung’s lastest addition to their premier Galaxy line of mobile phones has been higher than any other Android device we can remember. Was it for good reason? Well, the revealed specs include a massive, 4.8-inch Super AMOLED display at 720p resolution, 16-64GB of internal storage with a microSD slot for expansion, Bluetooth…

Once 1080p televisions became ubiquitous, Smart TVs assumed the role as the next spec lure dangled in front of consumers for why they needed to upgrade. If you avoided biting on the marketing blabber back then (we’re looking at you Kuro owners), but would still like some of the web benefits of a cutting-edge set,…

We kicked off 2012 by visiting not-so-beautiful Las Vegas to attend CES, with the hope of getting a head start on the exciting new products that will launch over the coming year. While we’ll continue to highlight gadgets revealed there on a regular basis, one of the best parts about being on the ground at…

Samsung’s flagship TVs are always contenders for top honors in terms of picture quality and features each year. While their remarkable OLED TV garnered the lion’s share of the spotlight at this year’s CES, the company’s latest premier LED and plasma are still nothing to scoff at. The UNES8000 3D (shown above) is the new…

It doesn’t take a sleuth to see that the analog stereo bandwagon is growing beyond its fringe enthusiast roots into a mainstream consumer request. But unlike their positively eyegasmic flat screens, we can’t recall a time we’ve ever clamored for a piece of Samsung audio gear, much less an iPod dock, but the Samsung DA-E750…

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is the latest showcase device developed under Google’s close supervision, built for one purpose: to make Android’s latest incarnation look like the belle of the smartphone ball. Its 4.65-inch, curved contour glass, HD Super AMOLED display boasting a legitimate 1,280 x 720 (720p) resolution is just the start of a stellar…

The Samsung MV800′s ($315) killer feature stares every user right in the face — that is if they want it to. Its 3.0-inch touch screen display can rotate 180 degrees, allowing users to easily frame self portraits or other awkward shots we’d rather not know about. It’s a new convenience we’ve seen on mid-tier DSLRs…

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…

The name ChromeBook sounds like something Lil’ Wayne reads in bed, but it’s actually the brand Google has devised for a new breed of internet-addicted laptops. Built to be cheap and speedy, they won’t replace the MacBooks or Dell’s of this world, but Google clearly envisions a future where they’re the go to device for…

About a year ago, the Samsung Galaxy S created a stir on the Android block when it pranced out with its 4-inch Super AMOLED display. While there’s plenty of tech chatter surrounding its successor, the Samsung Galaxy S II, the Samsung Infuse 4G ($200) is essentially the same phone, and it’s coming to AT&T on…

2011 is the year of the tablet, no matter how hard we and our wallets squirm over having another gadget thrust into our lives. But why now? A discussion on that topic could take longer than the birther diatribe if explored in full, but the short answer is we have our smartphones addictions to thank….

As much as we love to wave the Apple flag, we have to admire Samsung’s focus on preventing Cupertino from letting the iPad do to tablets what the iPod did to mp3 players. Case in point, after seeing just how thin the iPad 2 was, Samsung publicly acknowledged their 10-inch Galaxy Tab simply wasn’t good…

If you watch any TV, you’ve probably seen some commercial touting how 3D technology will revolutionize the way you live. Most likely it also involved Dolphins or some other funny sea creature. When you put all of the marketing-laced messaging and cliché imagery aside, though, it is true that 3D can provide a captivating home…

As men, we’ll always be suckers for shiny things. There’s no point in fighting it. Particularly when they can help do things like battle our inbox(s), catch up on missed episodes of the shows we’re too busy to watch, or single-handedly sway the tide of battles using just our thumbs. This gift list is a…

We opted to wait on covering the most promising tablet device to arrive for Android until it hit shelves. Now the wait is over and you can pick up this 7″ 1024 by 600 multi-touch tablet from T Mobile or Sprint for $399 with a two-year contract. Alternatively you could pay $600 to own the…

Ever since the Panasonic LX3 stepped on to the scene, the camera world has been waiting for competing brands to follow suit by creating a compact oriented at professional who want a pocket friendly alternative to their DSLR. Samsung has answered the call with the EX1TL500 10MP Digital Camera ($450). So what exactly do you…

Samsung isn’t the first company to think that by tacking the word “super” to their products, it would enhance their appeal. Think “Super Nintendo”, “Super Soaker”, “Super bowl”…etc. Combine that with the word “Galaxy” in the name and you’ve got yourself a device that’s positioned to rock the world Segway Style, or at least that’s…

Looking for a Blu-ray player to pair up with your latest 3D TV acquisition? Then you can’t go wrong with the Samsung 3D BD-C6900. Standing at the top of Samsung’s new 2010 Blu-ray player line, it’s compatible with both standard displays and the company’s latest 3D sets, implying that you could still use it for…

The Pioneer Kuro Elite may still hold the title of best picture quality in our books despite its age, but after what’s been announced so far this year we’re not sure that title will hold for much longer. Showcased at CES 2010 early in January, the Samsung 9000 series is unquestionably one of the most…