Haiku Review: iPod nano (the second generation)

Audible support                                                                                          

a handy new search feature

new colors dazzle

The full-length free verse version of the 8GB iPod nano can be found at PCMag.com

At a Cingular-sponsored lunch at CTIA Wireless today, executives from the big orange carrier laid out a few of their plans for the rest of the year. The biggest news (other than the launch of the Cingular 3125 smartphone) was that Cingular will be getting a push-to-talk version of the new Blackberry Pearl (shown at right) in "four to eight weeks."

They also said we're going to see "quite a bit of improvement" in Cingular's high-speed phone options by the end of the year. Cingular's rollout of the high-speed HSDPA technology has seemed pretty glacial to me - though they now claim to have "87 cities," they still only cover about 20 metro areas; both Sprint and Verizon have much broader high-speed coverage.

You'll also see more Wi-Fi devices and Windows Mobile devices in the "near future," Cingular reps said. Come on, guys, the future is now!

Neoprene: we like to call it, "the material made for nerds". We roundup some of our favorite neoprene gear just for you.

First, we dressed up our software analyst, Davis Janowski, in a Billabong Solution Platinum wetsuit ($399)—decked out with a Billabong Soundwave waterproof MP3 player and earbuds—and made him parade around the office. PCMag Radio host, Robyn Peterson, tried covering up Davis's "lower region" with a laptop. I don't know whether he was embarassed, or embarassed for Davis! However, I think Davis enjoyed wearing the wetsuit all too much.

We would have told him to try out the wetsuit and Soundwave player while he was away on vacation in California, but the company didn't want us to get the suit wet. So for now, it's just for show. But, we can test the Billabong Soundwave waterproof MP3 player, and that's just what Davis is going to do. Expect a review of it soon on Gearlog.

Not going surfing anytime soon? Then check out Built NY's new Electric Line of Laptop Sleeves and Electric Pockets. I had the chance to try out these funky cases.

The Laptop Sleeves are made of neoprene and are lined with a soft fleece to protect your laptop from scratches when you throw it in your bag or backpack. I really like these sleeves because they're both durable and stylish. Each sleeve contains a Shark Gill Grips on the sides to easily grip the sleeves. I was sent a 15-inch sized sleeve to fit my Sony VAIO PCG-682L, but you can also get them in 12- or 17-inches. Choose from navy blue, black, or stripes.

The Laptop Sleeves sell for $29.99 to $39.99, depending on size/color.

The Electric Pockets allow you to store away your digital camera, BlackBerry, MP3 player, or other portable device in a safe place. What I thought was neat about these pockets is that you can attach them just like a luggage tag to your belt or bag via the hook. However, it can be a bit awkard to get the hook to wrap around things. While it was easy to attach it to my backpack's strap, it was difficult to get it around my belt buckle. I'd probably find a better use for the sleeves than these pockets. The pockets are also available in navy blue, black, and stripes in three different sizes.

The Electric Pockets sell for $17.99 to $22.99, depending on size/color.

Still not satisfied? How about a Neoprene Lunch Tote ($40), H2O Audio Neoprene SwimBelts ($40), Neoprene iPod Case ($12), Sportsuit Sensor+ pouch for Nike iPod Sport Kit ($10), or a Tinpod iPod Case ($16.95)

Today Microsoft announced a new group of desktop and laptop peripherals, which will ship at various times between now and next February. Too bad some of these won't be available in time for the holidays, but we appreciate that the company would rather get them right than ship hurried products. We had a sneak preview a few weeks back, and the products all looked great. We'll do some hands-on reviewing when we get samples in. Meanwhile, here's a list of what you can expect. (Disclosure: Some of the descriptions are cribbed from the press release.)

Sometime this month:

Wireless Laser Mouse 8000; $89.95 list. Microsoft's first rechargeable mouse, the Wireless Laser Mouse 8000 uses 2.4GHz Bluetooth technology, high definition laser technology, brushed aluminum casing and smart navigation features.

Wireless Laser Desktop 6000; $99.95 list (shown at left, click to enlarge). The Wireless Laser Desktop 6000 features a Comfort Curve Keyboard with a reversed-slope palm lift and new tools to enhance the Windows Vista and Windows Live experience.

October:

Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000; $99.95 list (shown at right). The first notebook mouse to serve as a four-in-one device: a Bluetooth laser notebook mouse, slide presenter, laser pointer and media remote. This one is really going to be in demand, I think.

LifeCam NX-6000; $99.95 list. The LifeCam NX-6000 wired notebook webcam offers high definition 2-megapixel video and, at 7.6 MPs, offers the highest still photography resolution of any webcam on the market.

January:

Wireless Entertainment Desktop 7000; $149.95 list. The Wireless Entertainment Desktop 7000, the ultimate Windows Vista companion, is paired with the new rechargeable Wireless Laser Mouse 8000 and loaded with features such as 2.4GHz Bluetooth technology.

Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 6000; $79.95 list. The Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 6000 combines breakthrough ergonomic benefits and unprecedented comfort with a host of productivity enhancing features, including Magnifier and Instant Viewer buttons and 4-way scrolling. We were told in our meeting that the design was inspired by a baseball. Whatever; it looks incredibly comfortable to use, to me, anyway. Everyone seems to have his own opinion about what's comfortable: like Robyn and his vertical keyboard, for example. (No pix yet.)
 

February:

Wireless Entertainment Desktop 8000; $249.95. The Wireless Entertainment Desktop 8000, which includes the industry's first wireless rechargeable and backlit keyboard and Microsoft's first rechargeable mouse, is loaded with deluxe features to meet consumer's media and entertainment needs.

A few days ago I wrote about the Pioneer Pink inno, some of the proceeds from which will go to the Susan G. Koman Breast Cancer Foundation. Now Seagate is jumping on the girly-gadget bandwagon with the Pink Pocket Hard Drive, available October 1 for $109 from Seagate, Amazon, and Buy.com. Ten percent of the price of the pearly-pink drive will be donated to the Susan G. Koman Foundation.

I've been using one of these drives for a long while, albeit in a more mundane, taupish hue. It's a nice, convenient form factor, and I do like the retractable, windable cord. The pink one is 6GB, has a USB 2.0 interface, and transfers data at up to 480 Mbps. It also comes preloaded with songs by sympathetic artists--including one by Joan Jett! "I love Seagate's cause, so put some money down on the hard drive, baby..." (My lyrics, not Joan's.)

Super-tough phones are no longer the exclusive provenance of Nextel. At UTStarcom's booth at CTIA this week, they were showing off the waterproof, ruggedized Casio GzOne, a monster of a tough-phone from Japan with a powerful speakerphone and 2-megapixel camera. The exciting part is that this was the GzOne "Type V" -- and V was seemingly for "Verizon Wireless," as the phone was running Verizon's customized user interface. UTStarcom, predictably, said nothing, but I'd like to see this phone appear on the Big V soon. It's like nothing else out there right now. See more shots of the GzOne in my photo blog at pcmag.com.

Black and brown and white, oh my! Today Sony unveiled the Vaio N Series notebooks, which will ship in October, in your choice of Wenge brown (left), black, or white. Taking a page out of Apple’s how-to guide for selling notebooks, Sony is aiming for your design eye and personality instead of emphasizing raw power. Sony believes the color options will “reflect different lifestyles and home decors.” That’s right everyone, better throw away that ugly furniture you've had since college! Your laptop will put it to shame.

 

Although Sony wanted to make me think it was all about the colors (shiny, I like shiny), they did release a (very) few specs: These machines will have an Intel Core Duo processor on the higher end models, wireless a/b/g and a 15.4-inch screen, two USB ports, and a DVD-RW drive. Yep, that’s it. Makes you wonder if the N Series will be more about pretty colors than dazzling performance, doesn’t it?  And with the oh-so-July Core Duo processor, you might want to pass when these beauties ships early next month for $1,000.

 

Post by Don Reisinger.

There were a lot of interesting new products at the Apple Expo in Paris, but these just cried out Gearlog: They're a range of iPod (and soon to be MacBook) covers from twin designers Lauren and Paulina Bibi (below). The iPod covers run from about $40 to $50, and are just as cute as can be. The MacBook cover is still under development, but it makes a real statement. Click here for pictures of the Bibi products. 

The booth itself was over the top, with a Bibi-style monster hanging from the ceiling and a patterned motif layered over everything. I hope these designers make it; they certainly offered a unique aspect to Apple Expo. (You can check out all the other cool stuff I found at Apple Expo by looking at the slideshow at PCMag.com.

If you want one of these iPod covers, the Bibis don't have a website yet, but you can e-mail them at laurenandpaulina@hotmail.fr.

Thanks to PC Magazine Editor-in-Chief Jim Louderback for this report!

In the first half of Gearlog Radio, we discuss our new Gearlog Radio theme song--created by the talented and British-wannabe lead camera analyst Terry Sullivan (shown here in his early years--photo by John Sullivan); Mike Kobrin joins us to explain Sansa's "Made for Sansa" program and a slew of Apple rumors. In the second half of the show, we bring Gearlogger Carol Mangis on to debate whether the U.S. is ready for RFID passports, and Sascha Segan comes back to tell us all about the BlackBerry Pearl. And don't miss our Weird Gear of the Week and Jen DeLeo reciting her Haiku review.

Posts discussed on this week's show:

• Gearlog Radio's new theme song
• New from SanDisk: Made for Sansa
• Apple's Latest Bite: New iPods, iTunes Movies
• Question of the Week: Are RFID Passports a Good Idea?
• Blackberry's Beautiful Pearl
• Haiku Review: BlackBerry Pearl
• A Robot with Good Taste

DOWNLOAD THE MP3 HERE.

Hosts: Dan Costa, Jen DeLeo

Panelists: Terry Sullivan, Mike Kobrin, Carol Mangis, Sascha Segan
Audio Engineer: Scott Bernstein

Subscribe Now:

-> Subscribe to the Gearlog Radio podcast in iTunes

-> Subscribe to the Gearlog Radio podcast via RSS

Some juicy news out of CTIA last night: Samsung told me they'll soon join Sony Ericsson and Nokia in selling their high-end phones directly to US consumers. That includes phones like the slim SGH-D900 3-megapixel slider cameraphone you see at left, and hopefully the powerful, super-thin X820 phone I reviewed on PCMag.com as well. You'll be able to buy these phones online straight from Samsung.

For years now, carriers have controlled which phones US consumers get to see, touch, and use. That's choked off a lot of attractive phones from the US market. I'm very encouraged by moves like Nokia's new stores, where N-series and E-series high-end phones have been flying off the shelves; if the carriers don't want to bother selling them, well, that's fine -- just don't stop anyone else from doing so! Samsung joining the direct-to-consumer crowd is a very good thing.

As with all direct sales phones, Samsung's models will work on Cingular, T-Mobile and other GSM carriers. The networks Sprint and Verizon run are much more locked down, so you can't use any phones you don't buy from Sprint or Verizon.

So how about it, Motorola?

If you live in Japan and purchase a cell phone from Softbank, you'll also get the new 2GB iPod nano which Apple just announced--for free! The company hopes that the iPod nano promotion will not only keep customers from cancelling their mobile service, but also help retain its 16-percent share in Japan's mobile market. However, the company wouldn't reveal the cell phone models or prices in order to get a free nano.

Softbank is trying to compete with its bigger rivals NTT DoCoMo Inc. and KDDI Corp. to "roll out new services and products before a rule change from October 24 that lets customers switch carrier while keeping their numbers."

Gee, I'd love for Sprint to give me a free iPod with my next cell phone purchase!

[via Yahoo! News]

The reason I haven't been Gearlogging much is that I've been posting gigantic photoblogs from the show floor here at CTIA Fall, a trade show positively riddled with new mobile phone discoveries. But since Gearlog readers have been so great with other mysteries, I wanted to pose this one to you. Yesterday, I saw a whole bunch of new T-Mobile phones, all of which had this odd logo on the back. I only know one thing: this logo represents a new service, debuting soon. Can anyone figure out what it is? One hint: it's not UMA, which merges cellular and Wi-Fi -- the logo is appearing on all kinds of phones, from low-end to high-end. Have at it, folks.

Ubergizmo, one of my fave gadget sites, discovered a unique cell phone accessory yesterday.

Mopods are characters that live in transparent domes and spin and flash when your cell phone receives a call or text message. Why would this come in handy? Well, if your phone isn't bluetooth-capable (like mine), or you're stuck in a noisy environment and can't hear your cell phone ring, just attach the Mopod to your cell phone to visually see your calls coming in.

These battery-powered Mopods come in six fun characters: Devil, Puppy, Kitten, Monster, Penguin, and Monkey. Each measures 6cm(H) x 2.3cm(W) x 2.3cm(D). According to Firebox.com, Mopods are already a hit in Japan.

Mopods sell for £4.95 ($9.30 USD) and are compatible with GSM networks including T Mobile, O2, Orange, Virgin, and Vodafone. Each has a response frequency range of 800 to 1600 MHz.