Category: Tech

Here Is The Galaxy Muse, Samsung’s Answer To The iPod Shuffle

First off, I know what you are thinking and no Samsung has not started making birth control holders.

This, in fact, is the company’s answer to Apple’s iPod Shuffle, the Galaxy Muse. The Muse comes with 4GB of storage and promises 6 hours of music playback. While not incredibly stylish in design it does have some cool features that could make this worth a purchase for Galaxy phone owners.

The big feature of this player is the Music Sync Android, which lets you sync your music from your phone to the player without the need of a PC. Simply plug in the Muse into your [amazon_link id=”B007VCRRNS” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Galaxy S3[/amazon_link] or [amazon_link id=”B0099LATZ2″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Galaxy Note 2[/amazon_link] through the headphone jack on the Muse to the USB port on your phone and bingo, your music is synced.

With Samsung making huge headway into Apple’s smartphone money with the Galaxy series this is the next logical step in their attempt to keep their brand strong. The Galaxy Muse is available now and only costs $60.

January 17, 2013
Marvel & DC iPhone Cases Go Big, Adorable

Big and bulky you say? How about insane and amazing? These iPhone cases are made by Huckleberry and feature a host of Marvel and DC characters. Hard shell in design and meant to take a beating, these will be available by March and run between $29 and $39. There is a Wonder Woman version also available and will be sold at certain retailers like Claire’s.

The cases will be made for the Iphone 4/4S and the iPhone 5. Take a look at all the cases below and let us know if they are your type of case.

January 14, 2013
Amazon AutoRip Gives You Free MP3’s Of Your CD Library Since 1998.

Amazon has just added a literal ton to my cloud player. Today they have announced their new service called AutoRip. The basics of it are that for every CD you buy on Amazon.com you will have a free MP3 copy sent instantly to your Amazon Cloud Player. This means that while waiting on your CD you can listen to an MP3 version of the album instantly and then transfer it to any of the Apple or Android phones or tablets you happen to own.

The real big deal of this new service is that Amazon has decided to reward longtime customers and give them MP3 versions of albums they have bought since the beginning of Amazon Music way back in 1998 for free. So for people, like me, that have had Amazon accounts for quite a while (2002 for me), you will now have every CD you have bought delivered to your cloud player for no charge. This is a great bit of fan service that amazon did not have yo do but I am very thankful they did. Go check out Amazon.com/AutoRip to see exactly how the service will work.

January 10, 2013
New Nyko Wii U Accessories Impress At CES

Nyko showed off some new [amazon_link id=”B009AGXH64″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Wii U[/amazon_link] accessories at the CES show this week and they look to be very good additions for any Wii U owner.

Above you see the Pro Commander controller which is their answer to Nintendo’s Pro Controller butthere is one big difference in that Nyko has staggered the sticks on the controller so now it is almost the perfect twin of an Xbox 360 controller. It is wireless and will hold a 25 hour charge with the battery which is well below the 80 hours that Nintendo’s controller carries. The real selling point should be the $34.99 price point which is $15 dollars cheaper than Nintendo.

Below is the Charge Station U, a dock that charges your Gamepad but also has two charging spots for Wii controllers as well as rechargeable battery packs for each. The Charge Station will also cost $34.99.

Finally, the UBoost may be the most needed accessory for Wii U owners who play for extended periods of time and need more than a few hours charge from their Gamepad. It will double the Gamepad’s battery life and also comes with a kickstand for when you sit your Gamepad down or for TV viewing. It will come in white or black and only retail for $19.99, which sounds completely reasonable.

We all know Nintendo systems are the king of peripherals but these new items from Nyko appear to be more useful than fluff.

January 9, 2013
Valve’s Steam Box Is Real, Codenamed ‘Piston’

Hey, remember how the rumor mill has been talking about Valve developing a supposed “Steam Box” for like three years? Here you go.

Guess we can chalk one up for the rumor mill.

Hardware maker Xi3 teamed with Valve and showed off a very early version of the Piston to CES. It will come with up to 1TB of storage and will be able to upgrade the CPU and RAM as well as have component updates. It will perform beyond the upcoming next generation consoles and is only about the size of a grapefruit.

No pricing was revealed but this is most likely where the differences with home consoles will be seen. Valve could just want this to be an extension of their PC market but if this is competitively priced, could they take a small chunk out of the Sony/Microsoft/Nintendo pie?

January 8, 2013
Introducing Project Shield, Nvidia’s Surprise Entry Into The Handheld Market

Nvidia surprised a lot of people at their press conference during CES 2013 by announcing their own handheld system, Project Shield. The Android device has a 5-inch 720p retinal touch display and houses Nvidia’s new Tegra chip which they showed off by giving a demonstration of the handheld using the Unreal 4 engine.

Project Shield can run in 4K through an HDMI port on the system for those 0.5% percent of TV owners that have a 4K television. You should be able to get 5-10 hours of gameplay or 24 hours of video playback. No price or release date was given.

Most things like this tend to fall by the wayside quickly but a handheld that is running Unreal Engine 4 and is open to developers should excite some gamers.

January 7, 2013
WatchESPN Finally Comes To Amazon Kindle Tablets

Better Late Than Never.

If you own any of the Amazon Kindle tablets ([amazon_link id=”B0083PWAPW” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Kindle Fire[/amazon_link], [amazon_link id=”B0083PWAPW” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Kindle Fire HD[/amazon_link], [amazon_link id=”B008GFRE5A” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Kindle Fire HD 8.9″[/amazon_link]) it is time to rejoice! No longer will you be tethered to that pesky TV because the WatchESPN app is now available on the Amazon App Store. The app has been available on all Android devices since 2011. So if you own a Kindle, Happy New Year!

January 2, 2013
Worx WG787 Cordless Electric Lawn Mower Review
The best mower I’ve ever used

After moving from an apartment into a house with a grassy yard, I headed up to Lowes for some lawn mower shopping with my son. We eventually chose the [amazon_link id=”B007AQZ9S0″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Worx WG787 Cordless Electric Lawn Mower[/amazon_link] for three reasons:

My favorite features:
1. No gas.
2. No cords.
3. Quiet Mode.
Other great features:
- Cuts up to 15,000 square feet on a single charge
- Up to 45 minutes of runtime
- 3-in-1 cutting for mulching, bagging, or rear discharge; push-button starting
- Adjustable mowing height from 1.5 to 3.5 inches; 17-inch cutting width
- IntelliCut mowing technology adds torque when you’re cutting tough grass
- Special mulching blade chops up clippings better than standard blades
Over the past few months I’ve put these features to the test during the fast-growing sub-tropical Alabama summer.

Smart Design

The Worx 787 proves to be a lightweight, but durable, grass-eating beast that’s easy to maneuver. A hefty 12-volt rechargeable/removable battery makes up the bulk of the mower’s weight. Its lightness makes it feel deceptively delicate, but it’s actually pretty tough. I’ve banged it around the front and back yard in bumpy muddy weed-heavy terrain without any problems.

The battery slides in and out of the mower body with ease. So easily in fact, if the mower tips over while in use the battery actually falls out, turning off the blade motor. At first I thought this was a flaw, but I realized it may be a safety feature since the blades are exposed if the mower is on its side. Even if it wasn’t an intentional decision by the industrial designers, I appreciate the feature while doing yard work with kids around.

And of course, the battery-powered device is free from the hassle managing cords.

I do wish the wheels were a bit larger, to help it cruise through deep overgrowth a bit better, but if you mow regularly, it’s not an issue.

Politely powerful

The Quiet Mode has a clever feature called Intellicut, which ramps up the power if you need it, but remains quieter than a hair dryer so you can mow at night without disturbing your neighbors. Not that you’d want to mow at night, but if you’re like me, you may want to get some yard work in while the kids are taking a nap.

Treat yourself to the best cordless electric mower around… or the bigger one.

Now that I’ve owned the Worx 787 for several months I have zero regret. Simple, clean, and surprisingly quiet, it dominates the lawn. [amazon_link id=”B007AQZ9S0″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Buy it on amazon.com[/amazon_link]

Or check it its big brother, the [amazon_link id=”B003BJE9WM” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]more powerful self-propelled model[/amazon_link].

Anybody else have a favorite mower?
October 17, 2012