We recently had a contest where I asked everyone what they thought about me switching back to a blog style theme instead of the magazine grid theme that we’ve had for almost a year. There were a lot of comments with suggestions on how to improve things further. I’ve compiled a list which I’ve been […]
Julie’s gadget diary – Working on making the site more enjoyable Read More
I received an email from Verizon telling me that the New Moto X smartphone and Moto Maker rolled out today. If you’re not familiar with Moto Maker, it’s a special customization service for the Moto X Android smartphone. You use it to choose from a thousand combinations for the back, front and trim colors of the
Julie’s gadget diary – What features would your dream phone have? Read More
Unlike some people, I don’t coddle my smartphones. I almost never use a case and the same can be said for screen protection. I’ve been carrying my phone in the cargo pocket of my pants or my bag for years and have been lucky that I have not to have any mishaps involving drops. With Gorilla
Julie’s gadget diary – I have a new appreciation for screen protectors Read More
I love everything about my 2013 MINI Cooper except the stereo system which is pretty lame by most gadgeteer standards. When I ordered the car, I opted not to go full tech and buy the premium connected package because it was an expensive upgrade and the sales person at the dealership talked me out of it
Julie’s gadget diary – How I set up handsfree media control in my MINI Cooper Read More
I was at work the other day (Cummins, Inc), when someone walked up to my desk to ask for some help with his laptop. As I was talking to him, he happened to notice the Nexus 7 in the Zagg Auto-fit keyboard case next to me on my desk. He asked me which laptop it was
Julie’s gadget diary – Nexus 7 powered car mods Read More
We returned home from a one week epic road trip vacation at 1am Saturday morning. After some much needed sleep, Jeanne decided she wanted to unwind from the 1000+ mile trip with an afternoon of working in the garden. Yeah, I know, she’s weird. 😉 While she was out sweating in the sun and dirt,
Julie’s gadget diary – The great sneaker mystery Read More
This is a quick tip for all my fellow Android users. Have you noticed that your Android smartphone is always warm to the touch or that your battery life has taken a nose dive? When I was using the Samsung Galaxy S3 as my primary phone, it would often feel warm even when I had
Julie’s gadget diary – Is Gmail sucking the life out of your Android smartphone? Read More
A few weeks ago our 25 year old grandfather clock stopped running. We tried restarting it multiple times by swinging the pendulum and it would run for 30 minutes or longer, but would then stop at some point. We had a clock doctor come to the house to clean the clock 7 years ago and
Julie’s gadget diary – high tech solution for a low tech problem Read More
I recently switched over to a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 so that I could work on a review of the Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch (review coming soon). In the past when I had tried to use phablets like the Note 2 and 3 as my primary device, I quickly gave up due to their size.
Julie’s gadget diary – Hacking my Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Read More
Back in March of this year, I test drove a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 for a couple weeks to see if a phablet was the right device for me. If you’re not hip to the latest gadget lingo, the term phablet refers to smartphones that approach tablet dimensions. I came away with mixed feelings from my
Julie’s gadget diary – A week with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Read More
Last week I was down on Sanibel Island, Florida for vacation. I had the bright idea that I would leave my 13″ Macbook Air at home and use my shiny new Nexus 7 (2013) Android LTE tablet as a laptop replacement. For those of you who are regulars here, you may remember a similar scenario
Yesterday signaled the end of my 30 day self-imposed TV detox. During the whole month of September, we watched zero TV shows. When the TV was on, it was playing one of the DirecTV music channels. It was surprisingly easy and liberating. I didn’t miss it at all. However, according to one of my friends
I really tried to be excited about yesterday’s Apple iPhone 5C and 5S unveiling. As I watched the live stream, I kept telling myself maybe Apple will surprise me again. Maybe there will be “one more thing” to wow me. Maybe… But there wasn’t and it made me sad. Today I visited Apple’s site and
Julie’s gadget diary – Apple is boring and I miss Steve Read More
If you look up the term “couch potato” in the dictionary, you’ll probably see my picture. I’ve always loved TV and easily get hooked on shows which I’ll faithfully follow from the premier episode to its finale. I like sitcoms, movies, medical dramas, sci-fi, fantasy, talent shows, some reality shows, etc. At one point last
Julie’s gadget diary – 30 days without TV Read More
Although I enjoy using electronic gadgets and gizmos, I still love simpler products like journals, pens and pencils just as much. Earlier this week I finished up my latest journal – the 80 page Quo Vadis Habana 4 x 6 inch plain page notebook shown above. I really liked the soft cover and bright white 85-gram paper. Although
Julie’s gadget diary – it’s time to crack open a new journal Read More
How’s this for the ultimate “gear bag”? After years upon years of wanting one, I finally decided to just go for it and bought a 2013 MINI Cooper S Hardtop. I’ve been driving it for a little over a week now and I absolutely love it. I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed driving a car
Julie’s gadget diary – check out my new gadget transport system Read More
Two months have passed since my first article outlining all the gear I carry with me each day, so it’s time to see which items I’ve dropped and the new gear that I have added.
Julie’s Gadget Diary – Every day carry update Read More
A few weeks ago I published a gadget diary post sharing my experiences with trying to get Qi wireless charging working with my Verizon Samsung Galaxy S3. Long story short, I ordered a wireless charging patch (receiver) and a Nokia DT-900 Wireless Charging pad and it didn’t work. One of our frequent readers (Haesslich) left
Julie’s Gadget Diary – 2nd look at Qi wireless charging Read More
My first experience with inductive charging was way back in 2004 when I reviewed one of Microsoft’s SPOT watches. The watches themselves were kind of clunky, but I thought it was so cool that they could be charged just by being placing on a cradle. The fact that no cables had to be plugged directly into
Julie’s Gadget Diary – Qi inductive wireless charging, more trouble than it’s worth? Read More
How big is too big when it comes to the size of a smartphone? That’s the question I’ve been trying to answer for myself lately. I’ve been using a Samsung Galaxy S III for the past 6 months, but only recently I decided to try a Verizon Wireless Samsung Galaxy Note II. The Note II
Julie’s Gadget Diary – Is the Samsung Galaxy Note II too big? Read More