Do you worry about how much energy your gadgets use?

After completing my review of the Kill-A-Watt Electricity Usage Monitor a few weeks ago, I’ve been much more interested in the how much power my gadgets and appliances use. That’s why I was interested in reading about the new VIA based computer from Systemax that only requires 20 Watts. Systemax is marketing the Venture VE […]

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Planet Waves Strobe-On-String Guitar Tuner

If you play guitar, either acoustic or electric, you probably own some type of tuner. Tuners come in several varieties. There are pitch pipe type tuners that make a sound for each guitar string. Your task is to then tighten or loosen the string until the sound it makes matches the reference note that the pitch pipe makes. Unless you have a really good ear, this is a very hard way to tune your instrument. Electronic tuners are much easier to use. These tuners have a microphone that picks up the sound a string makes when you pluck it. Then using a meter or some other method, it tells you if you need to loosen or tighten the string to bring it to the right pitch. The only problem with this type of tuner is that it requires a relatively quiet environment to work or if the guitar has a pick-up, you can connect the tuner using a cable. Today I’m going to tell you about a tuner that can work in the noisiest places, doesn’t need a cable and is tiny enough to fit in your pocket. It’s the Strobe-On-String Guitar Tuner from
Planet Waves.

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StarTech.com WiFi Detector with LCD (WIFIDETG)

Wi-Fi finders or detectors are nifty little gadgets to keep in your gear bag for those times when you want to scope out nearby hotspots, without booting up your laptop or traversing menus on your WiFi enabled phone / PDA. These finders are typically small pocket friendly devices, whose sole purpose is to report information regarding detectable hotspots. I have one today from StarTech.com that not only will help you find nearby access points (hotspots), but can turn your computer into one.

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NoviiRemote Deluxe – Palm OS Utility

In my house, I am the Master of the Five Remotes, Not Including the Universal Remote We Rarely Use or the TV Remote That We Don’t Need Because We Can Control It With the TiVo Remote Besides The Batteries In It Are Usually Dead. The massive responsibility lies heavily upon my kingly head. Just keeping track of all of the remotes is bad enough, but since I have kids, none of my remotes have battery covers. (If you have kids, you’ll understand. If you don’t, thank God your batteries are not always in danger of falling out.)

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Maxtor Shared Storage II NAS Device

“You can never be too skinny or have too much money.” Isn’t that the way the old saying goes? I would like to make an update and reword it to now say: “You can never too skinny or have too much disk storage”. With 10MP digital cameras, digital audio and video, file space can quickly become filled to capacity. I have four computers in my home, and they all have this issue. I also have an issue regarding backing each drive up. Right now I back up my primary computer, but not the others. This is definitely not a good practice. Lucky for me, I found a possible solution for both of these problems, with Maxtor’s Shared Storage II NAS (Network Attached Storage) device.

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Oral-B Triumph with SmartGuide ProfessionalCare 9910 Electric Toothbrush

I hate going to the dentist. I joke around and say that I’m still dealing with post traumatic stress from when I was a kid. It seemed like every time my sister and I went to the dentist, we had a cavity. The hygienist used to yell at us saying that if we didn’t open our mouthes wider, she’d have to start all over again. Yikes, I get goose bumps just thinking about it. These days you practically have to drag me to go to my annual cleanings. I usually make them biannual just because I don’t want to go. I must be doing something right though because I haven’t had a cavity since I was a teenager and my dentist never yells at me for waiting so long in between visits.

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Piano Wizard PREMIER Keystation 49e Package

As a kid, I remember sitting in front of my Mom’s vertical Baldwin piano, trying to learn to play Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 Ode To Joy. I never had real lessons, I just used the many lesson books that my Mom had used when she was a little girl. The piano bench was full of them and I loved paging through them, seeing the cartoon-like pictures for each new song. Once in awhile my Mom would sit down on the bench with me to give me pointers, but for the most part she never criticized my talent or lack there of. I just loved plunking those keys, making music. It didn’t matter if I was any good at it or not. Wow, I’m tearing up just writing this. I miss my mom…

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Dream Cheeky USB Roll-Up Drum Kit

Did you ever want a drum kit when you were a kid, but your parents vetoed the idea because you didn’t have the space and they didn’t want to deal with all of the crash boom bangs? What about now, do you still fancy yourself as the next Larry Mullen Jr. of U2? If so, I have a nifty little electronic drum pad from Dream Cheeky that just might start you down the path of stardom. Or not…

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VTech 6042 Two Handset Cordless Phone System

I’m sure you’ve all heard of 900MHz and 2.4GHz cordless phone systems. Maybe you’ve even heard of 5.8GHz phones, but have you heard of DECT 6.0 phones? I’ll admit that I hadn’t heard of them until VTech asked if I might like to review their model 6042 two handset cordless phone system. I then came to learn that DECT 6.0 is a newly available frequency band (WiFi-friendly 1.9GHz) that provides improved range without needing to boost the power. It also has better protection against eavesdropping, that the older frequency models do not.

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iSkin revo for iPhone

I don’t use cases for my mobile devices very often these days. I prefer to just put them in a pocket in my gear bag, or jeans. Same goes for my iPhone. I typically just put it in my right cargo pants pocket or back pocket when I’m walking around, and on my desk when I’m not. Even though I don’t use a case very often with my iPhone, I’m always up for testing one. As a result, my first iPhone case review is of iSkin’s revo.

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Mophie Bevy iPod shuffle Keychain and Bottle Opener

The Mophie Illuminator project started earlier this year at MacWorld 2007. Attendees doodled product ideas and submitted them for the community to vote on. The Bevy iPod shuffle case, keychain, bottle opener, is the first such product to come out of this project.

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