With Labor Day now long gone it’s time to put away those ghastly white jeans and face reality. Fall is here and school is back in session. While purchasing pens and pencils may be a good start, this year’s school supply list contains notebooks. No, not the ones filled with crisp-clean paper but laptops. Check out these great and surprisingly inexpensive laptops and other technology finds needed to help you or your child’s school year run a lot smoother.
The Gateway ID Series is especially designed for those who “live the mobile lifestyle.” Weighing about 5lbs, it’s light enough to carry from the dorm room to the classroom. It has a 14-inch HD display, an Intel Core i3 processor, 4GB of memory, and 500GB hard drive. It also includes Dolby home theater sound, a DVD burner and a web cam. It also includes a social networking tab that allows students to quickly access their social networks sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. For about a fraction of the price, and the size, check out the 2lb,10-inch Gateway LT Series netbook. It includes a webcam and digital microphone, 1GB of memory and 250GB hard drive. It’s the right size to throw into any backpack or messenger bag. $680; $350 respectively Gateway.com
Printer
The KODAK ESP 5250: All in one Printer is the perfect tool needed for any student boggled down with tons of term papers to print. It includes Wi-Fi connectivity, which allows you to print from anywhere: your room or you could even print directly from your phone if you install the proper application. Not to mention Kodak has some of the cheapest ink in the industry, only $10 to cartridges. $119; Kodak.com
E-Readers
Text books too heavy to carry around in a backpack? The Pandigital Novel is a color eReader that allows you to download tons of books and easily organize them into libraries. It provides a great reading experience with its high resolution screen. The Pandigital Novel runs on the Android operating system, which means students can surf the web and check their email. Comes in white or black. $179; pandigital.net
Phones
The HTC Evo 4G is one of the newest phones trying to give the iPhone a run for its money. With Wi-Fi accessibility, an HD camcorder and a massive 4.3-inch screen, it is the first 4G phone on the nation’s first 4G network— which just means you can upload, download and browse the web much faster. What makes this phone extra neat is its live -streaming video application which can instantaneously connect any student with someone across the country. $199 with contract; Sprint.com
Last month, I threw a geeky pizza party and announced the Tony’s Pizza $500 Tech Giveaway contest. While this blog participated in the $500 tech giveaway, I also had some leftover pizza coupons to give away.
Unfortunately, I don’t yet know who won the $500 tech prize because the contest sponsor chose that winner, so if you were notified that you won, please let us know so I can offer my congratulations. As for the pizza coupons, I got to select winners at random and I decided to choose four winners with the help of random.org. Each of the following winners will receive two coupons for free pizza.
- Jill H. (comment)
- Lisa (comment)
- MCJunkie on Twitter (tweet)
- Joi (comment)
We had a lot of entries in this contest and I want to thank each and every person who commented or tweeted to enter. You all rock and I’ll be looking for sponsors to hold another contest soon.
As 2009 is nearing its end I’ve been looking back and thinking about all the cool stuff I’ve come across in the last year. The stuff that sticks out the most is the tech videos showing new concepts and products or just cool new ways to use existing technology. I’ve put together ten of my favorites, but they are, by no means the ten best videos out there. If I missed anything, please feel free to share in the comments.
TED – Sixth Sense Technology
This is a great video showing real examples of new technology that puts information in front of you as you need it. Very cool stuff!
PlayStation 3 – High-Resolution Image Enlargement Technology
I was fascinated about this technology when I saw it used in The Rosetta Project months ago, and I’m still excited by it.
TED : Wireless Electricity
We’ve been getting closer and closer to the day when we can just come home and throw our cell phone on the table and it’ll just start charging without the need for all those cables.
Liquidware Illuminato X Machina
I love to see stuff like this where the machines become more aware of their state and are then able to interact appropriately with other machines near by.
‘Tron: Legacy’ Trailer HD (vfx test footage)
If you’re old enough to remember it, Tron was a great geeky movie well ahead of its time and the remake has techies like me anxious. Check out some visual FX test footage.
Augmented Reality Business Card
Since this video (and a little before it), a lot has happened with Augmented Reality and we’re even seeing it pop up in iPhone and Android apps now. Still, this is a great example of its use.
TweenBots
This was an interesting social experiment in which little robots were set free in New York and people helped them find their way.
TED: David Merrill Demos Siftables
First Flight of the Terrafugia Transition (flying car)
The blogosphere was abuzz when this video hit the web. It’s a car that converts into a plane to fly and then back into a car again.
ArcAttack performs the Dr. Who Theme on Twin Tesla Coils
I’m not a big Dr. Who geek, but I loved this anyway.
Most people have at least one friend or family member who ends up being the go-to guy or gal when the computer gets a virus or the iPod won’t boot up. Have you ever tried shopping for that person? My wife has gotten pretty good at it but can tell you it’s rough. Us geeks can be pretty particular about things other people just don’t get. For example, I’d rather have an old used IBM PS/2 keyboard under the tree than one of the fancy new ones. If you have a geek to shop for this Christmas, you’re in luck because I have a long list of gift ideas in varying price ranges. (please note that prices are approximate based on what I’ve found online)
Stocking Stuffers
iSkin Solo FX iPhone skins ($20 and up) I’ve been through a few skins and cases for my iPhones, but I really like this one. It’s got some extra flare to it and comes in some eye-catching colors. (read my review of this product)
Sling Back ($9) This is a simple little item that takes cords and untangles them. You put any (well any small) cord in it and it retracts like my travel mouse does. Pretty cool.
(note that this is a pre-sale item that may not be ready in time for Christmas)
Cordies ($9) This is a great little item that does a simple task. It keeps your cords from sliding off your desk. This happens to me all the time, so if anyone wants to put these in my stocking, I need two of them at least.
(note that this is a pre-sale item that may not be ready in time for Christmas, however it only needs a few more sales to hit production)
Kickster for iPod Nano ($13) The newer iPod Nanos look awesome and now capture and play back video, but this poses the problem of having to hold it steady both during recording and playback or while watching a video podcast. The Kickster is like a kickstand for the Nano and is a pretty cool addition to the Nano if you know someone who’s getting a Nano from Santa this year.
(note that this is a pre-sale item that may not be ready in time for Christmas)
Scratch ‘n’ Scroll ($15) Scratch ‘n’ Scroll is a mouse pad that you can write on. Remember those little pads you’d get as a kid where you could scratch in a design with a plastic stylus or even your fingernail and erase the design by just pulling the top layer away from its backing? This is the same concept built into a mouse pad.
Under $100
be.ez LEvertigo Netbook/MacBook Shoulder Bag ($60) Recently, I was able to review this bag and really liked it. It’s probably going to end up a present for a special someone on my list this Christmas. It’s a very compact bag that accommodates a 13 inch MacBook or a netbook, paperwork, cell phones or other small gadgets and a couple small devices or CDs. It’s durable and very stylish.
Eye-Fi SD Card with Wireless ($50 and up) One of the items I reviewed recently was this Eye-Fi card. You do a little simple setup with it and then throw it in your camera and take photos. Depending on your settings and proximity to your wireless connection, it can automatically upload photos as you take them or when you’re done, but either way, you never plug the camera into the computer again. Great for someone who takes lots of photos.
Joby Gorillapod Mobile ($40) Even the ever popular iPhone has room for improvement. For example, trying to take non-shaky video, or watching a movie on the iPhone can be a challenge because of the smoothly rounded edges, but Joby introduced this GorillaMobile tripod to help. It’s not something I’ll use every day, but it is useful. Even though it’s around $40, it could be a nice little stocking stuffer, too. (read more here)
Beamer ($38) If you own an iPhone or have even just seen the recent Droid commercials, I’m sure you’re aware of one of the missing iPhone camera features, a flash. Beamer is an iPhone case that has a build in light to work as a flash. Incredibly simple, yet the first product to solve this problem (that I’ve seen, anyway). It’s a great little gift for anyone who takes a lot of club or party photos with their iPhone.
Arduino Starter Kit ($70) If the geek on your Christmas list is like me, he or she either has this or wants it badly. Arduino is a popular electronics learning and prototyping platform for developing small devices. The kit has everything needed to jump in and start getting geeky. This is on my own wish list this year.
Peggy 2 Kit ($95) Last year, for Christmas, my wife got me a little home brew gaming kit called Meggy Jr. This kit comes from the same company and I’ve had my eye on it for a while. It’s a pegboard of LED lights that can be programmed by its maker and is a really cool electronics project.
$100 And Up
Amazon Kindle Reader ($259) I can think of at least one thing better than taking a book with you on vacation or a long trip, and that’s taking a bunch of books with you all crammed into a slim little device like the Kindle. Better still, you can get your JoeTech.com fix on the Kindle!
Droid or iPhone ($200 w/ contract -$600 without) It used to be that the G1 was the only solid competition for the iPhone. Don’t get me wrong, the G1 is an awesome phone, but I still prefer the iPhone and now Verizon has competition of its own with Droid in its corner. Currently on review loan from Verizon, my droid is shaping up to be a really nice phone and the iPhone has already proven itself as a great phone. Either would be the gift to make the geek in your life jump for joy.
Logic Wireless Bolt 1.5 ($475) Although it’s no iPhone or Droid, this is a phone that makes waves. More than just a phone, it has a projector in it. I got hands on with an original Bolt 1.0 unit a while back and loved it. The 1.5 looks sleeker than ever and I spoke with the CEO a couple weeks ago who promises even more good stuff coming up.
If you’ve recovered from Black Friday, it’s time to prepare for Cyber Monday and get that geek in your life the right gift. Don’t forget to share this list with friends and leave no geek with an unwanted gift.
