mophie juice pack plus for iPhone 4 review

21 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment

by John Virata in iPhone Tags: ,

mophie juice pack plus for iPhone 4

The mophie juice pack plus for iPhone 4 enables you to extend the battery life of your iPhone 4, without adding too much to the footprint of the iPhone 4. The juice pack plus is rated to double the battery life of the iPhone 4 battery and features a 2000mAh battery capacity giving you approximately 8 more hours of talk time on 3G, 16 hours on 2G, 7 hours of Internet browsing on 3G (11 on 2G), 44 hours of audio playback, and up to 11 hours of video playback. You can also charge and sync your iPhone with the iPhone still in the battery pack, just like the previous generation juice pack for iPhone 3G.

The mophie juice pack plus for iPhone 4 comes in various colors and (under certain conditions) doubles the battery life of the iPhone 4

The device features a toggle switch for standby and charging mode, enabling you to access the juice pack’s stored power when the battery built into your iPhone loses its charge. The juice pack Plus for iPhone 4 is a bit different from the juice pack for iPhone 3G. First, the case is rubberized, making it non slip. The case for iPhone 3G is not rubberized, and this gives it a slippery feel to it.  I feel the rubberized band around the battery case is a good thing, as it reduces the chance that you lose grip of the phone while using it. The juice pack plus also features built in sound enhancing technology to enhance the music playing off the device. It does sound a bit better than that of the previous iPhone 3 juice pack. What the mophie juice pack plus for iPhone 4  shares is the same proprietary USB cable with the previous juice pack for iPhone 3G. This is really the only drawback to the juice pack for iPhone 4 that I can find. It is such a hassle to rely on the proprietary cable to charge the juice pack plus, when a standard USB cable could probably do the same exact thing, and are more readily available. If you lose the cable that came with the juice pack, there is no means to charge the device. But that is nitpicking. Also, the previous generation juice pack is notorious for trapping dirt, gunk and other detritus that is in your pant pocket or in your purse,  causing scratches if you don’t remove the phone from the case and clean it often. After a week of use, the dirt build up with the juice pack plus for iPhone 4 seems to be less severe, but it will still catch dirt and other stuff that might line your pockets and purses. Just keep it clean and all should be ok. The iPhone is notorious for draining the battery life, especially given the device’s beautiful display coupled with all its multimedia capabilities. It is nice to not have to charge the phone every night, and the juice pack plus for iPhone 4 enables you to skip a day or two and not have to worry about charging the device. If you aren’t worried about how your phone looks, and more concerned about using it than staring at its beauty, the Made for iPhone mophie juice pack plus for iPhone 4, at just $99, is a great accessory for the iPhone 4.

mophie juice pack plus for iPhone 4
$99 MSRP
www.mophie.com

GorillaTorch for Christmas!

15 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment

by John Virata in flashlight

GorillaTorch for Christmas!

The GorillaTorch is a flashlight unlike any other. Housed on three fully adjustable legs (with magnets at the end) that enable you to attach it almost anywhere, the GorillaTorch is your friend when you need it most.

The device itself features flexible and wrappable legs and strong magnetic feet. The legs are rubberized for maximum grip and enable you to point the ultra bright CREE LED virtually anywhere you need super bright light. It also features a dimmer switch to adjust the brightness levels and is water resistant. It uses three AA batteries which gives the GorillaTorch a maximum 20 hours of light at the brightest capacity; 50 hours at optimum capacity; and 80 hours at the economy capacity. In addition, The GorillaTorch sports a flashing strobe as well as a red light function.

So how does it work?
The GorillaTorch works exactly as advertised. I had the chance to use it extensively when the radiator in my 2006 Toyota Tundra (50,000 mile failure) failed prematurely. The replacement radiator was shipped via UPS and came in as the sun was going down, but I needed the truck the next day. After removing the skid plate on the truck, I wrapped the GorillaTorch around a suspension part and aimed it where I needed the light. The GorillaTorch lit up the entire radiator area, enabling be to remove the trans cooler lights and the bottom radiator hose to complete the removal of the old radiator, install the new one and get the hoses back on. I used another light in the front, and didn’t have the need to reposition the GorillaTorch underneath the truck.

Verdict
The GorillaTorch is the latest new light source to give for Christmas. My wife usually gets bent around Christmas because I like to give out MagLites each year to various friends. They are cheap and work real well. The GorillaTorch is around the same cost ($29.99MSRP) and is more versatile. Super Like!

GorillaTorch
$29.99
http://joby.com/gorillatorch/original/features

HexBugs for the Holidays

10 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment

by John Virata in Uncategorized

Robotic little creatures provide fun for kids 3 and up.

HexBugs are little plastic robot-like toys that provide for short bursts of meaningless fun for children ages 3 and up. Really they are just a small battery wrapped in plastic and rubber to emulate various insects.

They actually work quite well for what they are. The HexBug nano even has its own little track in which you can play with them. They will run aimlessly around the little track and even go through a gate that you can open and close. The track can be further expanded with additional components for even more meaningless fun. Each nano is priced at $7.99 for the holidays, $2 off the regular price. You can also purchase other robotic creatures such as spiders, ants, crabs, and inchworms, as well as the original model. Each Robotic creature includes an internet code that, once upon registering, gives you access to various games on the hexBug website where you can earn points. Pricing varies, and bundles start at $79.

HexBug Nano

For more information, visit www.hexbugs.com

Canon offers $100 Mode Dial Lock “Upgrade” for existing Canon 7D and EOS 5D MARK II users

04 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment

by John Virata in DSLR, photography

Starting December 6, 2010, Canon will “upgrade”  the mode dial for owners of Canon EOS 5D MarkII and EOS 7D DSLR cameras to locking mode dials, a standard feature already found on cameras such as the Pentax K7, K5 and other DSLRs. The cost of this mode dial modification is pegged at $100 for U.S. customers.

When the modification is complete, users of these cameras will have to first press and hold down a lock release button to turn the Mode Dial. The lock release button is designed to prevent the dial from moving on its own. Other DSLR manufacturers already employ locking mode dials on select DSLRs.

For more information, visit
http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/slr_cameras/eos_7d?pageKeyCode=prdAdvDetail&docId=0901e02480245968

AviiQ Portable Laptop Stand

02 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment

by John Virata in Apple Macintosh, laptop accessories, notebook computers Tags: ,

Laptop computers are prized for their portability and power. And with that power comes one thing that we don’t want sitting in our lap, a hot laptop. With computer manufacturers using aluminum and other materials in their laptop bodies more readily, that heat can transfer quickly and turn that laptop into a very uncomfortable lap warmer. Enter the use of the AviiQ portable laptop stand. This laptop accessory, made of four super thin strips of aluminum and some rubber not only mitigate heat emanating from the laptop, but also serves as a stand that enables you to use the keyboard more easily.

The AviiQ Portable Laptop Stand

The AviiQ Portable Laptop Stand

The AviiQ Portable Laptop Stand is super thin at less than 1/4 inch thick

The AviiQ portable laptop stand is built to fold and stow away in its own microfiber bag when not in use. It is so light that you can stow it in your laptop bag without a second thought that its there. Get to your computing destination, pull out the AviiQ portable laptop stand and place it in your lap or the nearest hard surface and you are good to compute. One cool aspect of this laptop stand is that you can actually use it in your lap. The rubber feet that keep the stand stationary when on a flat surface, work just as good keeping your laptop from moving around in your lap while working on your laptop. It works especially well with the super slippery MacBook Pro aluminum laptop computers. The stand gives you a 12 degree lift to your keyboard, reducing stress on your wrists, and when not in use, folds up to around a quarter inch thick. It is so light you won’t even know its in your bag, save for the cool microfiber bag that stores the stand. And since laptops have more heat issues than their desktop counterparts, the AviiQ portable laptop stand retains a healthy gap between your notebook and the stand, and the stand and the surface, keeping laptop killing heat build up away from your laptop. And your lap.

AviiQ portable laptop stand
$79.99
www.aviiq.com

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