A PCMag Joint

There are so many ways to copy/paste things from the web on your computer to your smartphone that it can be a little overwhelming. Evernote, Instapaper, and others are all good choices, but require an app on your smartphone to work. If you’re getting tired of flipping through a bunch of apps just to find the address of that new spot you want to try out, Hopper is the slick and simple web app that lets you get to your stuff quickly without the fuss of apps…

Read the entire story on AppScout.PCMag.com

Intro…

In my latest article in Uptown Magazine’s Dec/Jan issue, I feature some cool headphones to check out. I personally use the Bowers & Wilkins C5 earbuds and they sound awesome (take my word for it)

1st Verse…

Styling
The “looped” wires that securely tuck the earbuds in your ear and the Micro Porous Filter (looks like a bunch of teeny-tiny ball bearings) really make the headphones stand out in a crowd when they are in your ear as opposed to all the white or red cables that other brands use for differentiation. The color scheme matches my black iPhone 4S very nicely – Looks like they were made for each other.

2nd Verse…

Sound Quality
These headphones rock! The sound isolation does its job of cancelling out nearby noise. Turning off all device equalizer settings really let you hear how good they are. They come with a mic for making/recieving calls, and the call quality is clear there as well. The mic doesn’t send too much amibient noise to the person you’re talking to, but no headphone mic can cancel out all noise around you for the caller.

3rd Verse

Functionality
The C5′s come with volume & playback controls. They are no different than other headphones with music controls. Play/Pause/Phone options I can control pretty easily, volume up/down are a little more tricky to use – You have to hold the controls just right to use them. I assume the controls are so tight in order to prevent fast wear and tear…which i’ve had my fair share of experience of with other headphones (rhymes with “Deats by Bre”).The headphones fit very snug in your ear and the “looped” portion is adjustable for different size ears. After long periods of use, they can lightly bother your ears, but I’m talking six-hour, falling asleep while listening to music on an airplane long. My fix (which is pretty universal for all earbuds) is to not jamb the earbuds in my ear. I get the same sound quality if just place them in my ear and adjust the loop to ensure they are snug. Then I let the headphones do their job.

Outro…

Overall, I wanted to graduate from grabbing some headphones off a bin in the checkout line at the grocery store, to paying a bunch of money for headphones that only cost that much because of the brands they are associated with, to great sounding, lost-lasting, quality headphones made by a brand that specializes if music quality – Bowers & Wilkins C5 earbuds deliver on those points. Now, at $180 bucks, these jawns are not cheap, but i’m pretty particular when it comes to sound quality, so they were worth the investement.

Makes me want to eat something...now

A PCMag joint

I do love food but I’m not really a “foodie”. There are others swear by the title. I am a smartphone fan, so I feel it’s my duty to let all you mobile foodies know that Foodspotting, the premier app for discovering new cuisine, has released version 3.0 that claims to offer a whole new experience, in addition to adding a BlackBerry version to the fold.

The main focus of the new app is to create a personalized picture menu for every Foodspotting user, anytime, anywhere in addition to giving people smart dish recommendations based on personal preferences and friends’ recommendations.

Read the entire story on AppScout.PCMag.com

Ditch the native apps...wait

There are so many ways to copy/paste things from the web on your computer to your smartphone that it can be a little overwhelming. Evernote, Instapaper, and others are all good choices, but require an app on your smartphone to work. If you’re getting tired of flipping through a bunch of apps just to find the address of that new spot you want to try out, Hopper is the slick and simple web app that lets you get to your stuff quickly without the fuss of apps.

Read the rest over on AppScout.PCMag.com

Another reason to keep my iFinger clean at all times

First and foremost, let me tell you that I absolutely hate smartphone cases. I like to keep my phones sleek, sexy and naked (Can you tell I feel some kinda way?). I’m willing to gamble on the destruction of my device if it means I can stick my phone in my pants pockets without the bulge.

(Yes, that’s a smartphone in my pocket, and no, I am not happy to see you)

…and don’t get me started on those clips that hook your phone to your belt…Imma need you to step out of the 90′s and tuck that thing away somewhere.

But I do recognize that I need some sort of protection for my iPhone 4S that I paid full price for simply because I had to have it…contract or not. So I subscribe to taking the time to surgically apply those protective screens on my devices. Folks have been diggin’ my latest customized iPhone skin. So I might as well dish the dirt on how I created my own Skin with the help of a dope artist/designer (optional) and the ZAGG personalized gadget skins.

ZAGG has been known for making high-quality protective cases and screens for gadgets of all kinds. I have personally used them in the past on other devices. When I found out they offered the ability to upload images to personalize your skin, I had to give them another try. Now, I work with an awesome designer who does all my avatar, header work (if you’ve been following me for the past year or so on this blog and various social networking sites, you are familiar with his work). So in the process of doing a new header for my site (look up), I had him do a special version just for my iPhone skin.

The cool thing about the ZAGGskins service is that you now have the option upload images from your favorite social networks and image sites as well. So instead of being all special like me having a brand-spankin’ new image specifically for this purpose, you can save some time and effort by upload an image from Facebook, Flickr, Google+ or Picasa. If you don’t have the time to scour through the gobs of images you already own via the above services, you can browse Zagg’s library of images.

The process is pretty simple:

1. Select your device from the device library. Choose from iPods & .mp3 players, smartphones, tablets, laptops, etc.

2. Select your media – upload your own, browse the Zagg library or find an image from select social network am image sharing sites.

3. Adjust your image for the right fit. Change the size, orientation, opacity, etc. to get exactly the look you want.

4. Save your current design, design another gadget, and/or proceed to checkout (this is where you can also choose the front Zagg skin for all around protection…which I did).

Now all there is to do is wait for your skin to come in the mail and apply it to your device. The package comes with all you need to do a dry install on the customized back & side skin, and a wet intall on the front screen protector (if applicable). Just be careful and take your time, you should be good. It may look suspect right after you apply the front skin, but after a couple of days, the film will adhere to the screen and push the remaining bubbles away.

Now, according to Zagg, they say their “customized, patented flagship product is tough. Created from a resilient film that was first used to protect U.S. Military helicopter blades from high-speed damage…” Though you won’t catch me rubbing my iPhone up against a helicopter. But i’m sure I can stick my phone in the same pocket as my keys or some loose change and not worry about my beautiful iPhone 4S glass getting scratched up.

the operation of my device is smooth as a result of the front screen protector. Now, I will admit, it’s not as fluid as a naked screen, but i’m a techie, so I can notice a teeny-tiny bit of lag, but to your average user won’t notice. Additionally, I get compliments whenever I whip out my phone, so it was worth the investment…which added up to about $35 bucks to cover the entire device, shipped to my door in a couple of days.

I’m pretty sure you can customize a wide range of devices, so check them out and let me know what you think.

(shout out to my main man, @ChaosToon for the design work)

I mean, I do love gadgets...

I was talking to my brother today (I guess that would make him BrothER Tech), and he was thinking about getting another job to make some extra money.

The job he wants to learn more about sounded like a “get rich quick” gig that never really pans out for the majority of people who sign up. So I suggested that he should take some more time to find out what he really would like to go to work to do.

This is significant because this is EXACTLY what I am doing now, so I wanted to let him know that he wasn’t the only one going through a professional transition – Even big brother still hasn’t found his passion…and I front like I have it all together!

Our conversation couldn’t have come at a better time because I was just returning back to work from visiting a business where I thought “I could do this…but better!”

So for the entire ride back to work, all these ideas started popping up in my head. Of course, I had to put the brakes on because I’ve had this feeling before. The problem is I never really do anything with those ideas.

But what if this time is different? What if the combination of talking to BrothER Tech, my recent trip, along with my current “finding my passion” exercise all adds up to some sort of sign, nay…revelation?

I have a strange feeling that this time is different.

A PCMag joint

There are many different tactics you can choose to deploy when you think you’ve lost your phone. Some include forcing it to beep loudly, activating GPS tracking, or remotely wiping the device completely. Most ignore the most easiest method: Adding your contact information to the lock screen.

It may not protect your data, but contrary to popular belief, most people are good. If they happen upon your phone, how will they be able to contact you if your phone completely locks itself off from the rest of the world? Lost Phone Screen app for Windows Phone, simply lets you stamp your favorite lock screen wallpaper with your basic contact information.

…And it’s developed by my main man Scott Hanselman

Read the entire story over on AppScout

My Mistress

So I’ve finally decided to keep the “Mistress” for as long as I possibly can (2002 BMW 325i…or e46 for all you Bimmer fans)

I got her as a hand-me-down from Mrs. Tech (we bought it used back in ’05), and the ride I REALLY want is waaaay out of my price range (BMW X5M). So it’s time for me to put some TLC into my baby. First on the list is to replace some upholstery that’s been hanging from the interior and add some iPod/Bluetooth/USB multimedia action.

Honestly, as much of a car fan that I am, I’m surprised that I’ve gone this long with letting the upholstery just hang. It’s happening on all four pillars, but the worst ones were on the back-right and front-left pillars. I though about spraying on some adhesive and sticking it back up there, but I tried that a while ago on another piece…let’s just say that D.I.Y. didn’t turn out too hot.

So I sprang for some new pieces from my local euro auto shop and went to work on an early (and frosty) morning.

Before Rear-left C Pillar (Pulled it off before I took a pic, it’s on the right):

After:

Before Front-right A Pillar:

After:

I still have to do the opposite sides on the front and back, but they have a little while before they MUST be replaced.

While I was in D.I.Y. mode, I went ahead and installed one of the gifts Mrs. Tech Santa got me off of my Tech Christmas Wish-List. It was the Dice MediaBridge Multimedia Kit. Now I can stop disc-swapping and plug in my iPhone, iPod, or thumb drive, stream music via Bluetooth and make hands-free phone calls.

Quick Review of the Dice MediaBridge (MBR-1500-BMW)

Installation
The install was easy-ish. The hardest part was routing the cable from the trunk to the glove box. I did it this way so I have easy access to the unit, just in case I have to update the firmware, or if I have a passenger and they have some music on their .MP3 player or smartphone; I can just open the glovebox. As a result, I did have to pull out some of the trunk lining and my back seat to hide the cable. Other than that, it’s plug-and-play goodness. Since my car was CD Changer ready (l0cated behind the trunk lining), all I had to do was plug into that adapter and run the cable to the glove box.

The only other cable run was routing the supplied microphone (for bluetooth calling) from the glove box to the default microphone location (If I would have sprung for bluetooth in the first place, I could have skipped this part, oh well…). I ran it behind the right A-Pillar (since I was replacing it anyway (see above) this was a “kill two birds with one stone” deal). So now everything is located in the glove box. When I need to update the firmware, when a passenger has their own music, or when I get around to buying an iPod Classic to leave in the car, I have quick access to the unit.

Setup
What setup? I followed the instructions, and once the install was complete, there was nothing else to do but learn the functions.

Functionality
I very well could have popped out my factory radio and bought a head-unit with all this functionality and saved myself some trouble. But I like the OEM look of my dash, so I did what I had to do. The Dice MediaBridge does its best integrating the different head-unit modes: AM/FM, CD with the MediaBridge modes: USB, AUX, Bluetooth. Once you get to the MB modes, you have to press another button to toggle between them. Then, you have to choose (and remember) what play mode you are in: Playlist, Song, Album or Podcast. Forget what mode you’re in, and you may skip to another playlist when you really just wanted to skip to the next song.

After messing around with it for a while, I got the hang of it. Again, all you have to work with is a sigle-line display, so you have to do a considerable amount of toggling to get where you want to be (no touchscreen/wide-scree display). The only thing that bothers me is that you do have the option for a scrolling display that gives you more song information, but since I choose to route the cable from the trunk to the glove box, interference seeps into the cable and emits an ever-so-annoying “tick, tick, tick” while the display scrolls. So in the options, I turned off the scrolling, but only get what can be displayed without scrolling…which is about 16-18 characters (maybe two words of the track that’s playing).

Lastly, if you’re listening to music via iPod/USB and a call comes in, you have to manually toggle to Bluetooth mode to activate hands-free. In other words, seamless operation is not the word I would to describe using the MediaBridge, but the learning curve is pretty small, and the capabilities make up for it’s operation.

Sound Quality
Outside of the slight hum that comes from interference from other cables (which can only be heard when the volume is turned all the way down…which is NEVER in my ride), the sound quality is great – CD Quality. Playing music via iPod/USB cable sounds much better than streaming via bluetooth. A couple of tests with calls and I have no problem hearing people clearly and vice-versa when making/receiving calls via bluetooth.

Excuse the scruffy face…It was early, lol!

Overall, the Dice MediaBridge was a worth-while investment. Now that I have iPod/Bluetooth compatibility in my car, I feel like I’ve finally made it to the mid-late 2000′s with the rest of the world, lol!

Stay tuned as I start to post more about my Mistress and her transformation from just my “side-piece” into the “other woman” (there’s a difference in case you’re wondering)

(e46 Sedan S54 swap for all you Bimmer fans – Yeah, that’s gonna happen).

BoxShot for Dropbox...Say that three times fast

A PCMag joint

The clock is still ticking on services like Dropbox to offer an official app for Windows Phone. In my humble opinion, Dropbox is one of those “top 25″ apps that Microsoft needs to persuade developers (read: give them a serious kickback) to develop for Windows Phone so it can be more of a player in the smartphone market. Hate it or love it, “Apps are in” and consumers don’t want to wait around while devs decide whether or not to create for their platform of choice, while other platform users (read: iOS) get all of the spoils on day one.

But that’s another post for another day. In the meantime, BoxShot is a really nice alternative app to getting Dropbox on your Windows Phone. BoxShot takes advantage of the Metro UI look as well as its functionality:

Read the entire story over on AppScout

At least you can do something with your PlayBook

In other BlackBerry news…

The Remote Desktop app for BlackBerry is an all-in-one solution for accessing personal or enterprise computers via your BlackBerry Playbook – No third-party software to download on your computers needed.

From BlackBerry App World: “Use your full Windows applications such as Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Internet Explorer along with the plethora of other applications for the Windows platform without sacrificing functionality from anywhere.”

Read the entire story over on AppScout