Review: Magellan RoadMate App and The Magellan Premium Car Kit for iPhone
Filed under: Hardware, Opinion, Product Reviews, iPhone, iPod Touch
One of the great selling points of the iPhone is its ability to take the place of many of the individual electronic gadgets that rule our lives, and consolidate them into one all-powerful gadget that we cannot live without. In addition to a phone, MP3 player, and digital still/video camera, starting with the iPhone 3G, the iPhone can also serve as a standalone car GPS replacement. There are now a fairly large assortment of GPS apps available for the iPhone, and surprisingly many of them are from big name GPS manufacturers such as Tom Tom and Magellan. It’s apparent that these companies can read the writing on the wall and have realized that the future of GPS is the cell phone, and their future as a company will rely more and more on providing the GPS software over the hardware they are used to producing.
That being said, it doesn’t mean the iPhone’s GPS receiver is quite up to the task of replacing a dedicated GPS unit yet, and Magellan has recognized the need for a more robust iPhone/GPS solution. Their answer to the problem is their Magellan RoadMate GPS app, and their Magellan Premium Car Kit for iPhone, a hardware docking cradle with its own GPS receiver to replace the sometimes flaky iPhone receiver. Read more
The “I still love my iPhone 3G/3G S Giveaway” Day 1 – MiLi Power Crystal
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Awesomeness, Free Stuff, Hardware, contests
With all this talk about the iPhone 4, it’s easy to forget there’s 10’s of millions of perfectly good iPhone 3G’s and 3G S’s out there still looking for some loving. And while we’re all about the iPhone 4 these days, we haven’t forgotten about all you “old-school” iPhone users, and we’re showing you some love with our new iPhone 3G accessory giveaway.
First up is a MiLi Power Crystal, the 2000mAh external power bank for digital products with key chain attachment. Key chain attachment NOT included. The MiLi Power Crystal comes with a retrackable USB cable and six connector tips for various digital devices. Available in 6 colors, one of these can be yours if you’re today’s lucky winner.
To Enter: Leave us a comment telling us How has your iPhone changed your life? Open to US and Canadian readers only, winner will be picked randomly. Contest ends 7 days from now. Good luck!
iPad-based Mantaray iTar is almost as weird as its inventor
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Awesomeness, Hardware, WTF, design, iPad
Actually, it’s not even close. Inventor FRANZ KELLER is much weirder. But still, “VJFranzK” does seem to believe in his product, and will actually sell any aspiring synth musician one of his brand new Mantaray iTar’s (iPad not included) for somewhere around $300.
Thanks to faithful Macenstein reader PJ for the tip!
FrankenPad is ugly, fears fire, and awesome!
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Awesomeness, Hardware, Mods, design, iPad
MacRumors member eTip has come up with a pretty interesting mod for his Jesus tablet that appears to have solved his iPad typing problems, albeit perhaps at the expense of the iPad’s portability and cool factor…
“So, I was sitting on the couch last night, trying to find a comfortable way to balance my iPad and BT keyboard while typing….. It’s possible, but not easy and not comfortable. Now, I COULD have a) walked into the other room to use my desktop, b) used my MacMini connected to my TV, c) pick up my hackintosh laptop sitting right next to me…..
….Nah – the iPad is my new toy so there must be a way…..
So, today (while the rest of you were Jailbreaking or working or both), I gutted an OLD, OLD, OLD laptop to make room for the iPad and BT keyboard and gave life to….FrankenPad. I primarily did this to amuse myself (I should really find a job soon), but I must admit it’s pretty usable. With a few more tweaks, I could see myself using it regularly….”
Forum reaction seems somewhat mixed, and I wouldn’t get it too close to fire, lest it go on a beserker rampage. However one unforeseen benefit to this mod is that sticking an iPad inside a 18 year old Windows laptop will likely stop anyone from stealing it. On the downside, eTip will now burn in hell for all eternity.
[via MacRumors]
Review: PhoneSuit’s Primo iPhone/iPod battery
Filed under: Hardware, Product Reviews, iPhone, iPod Touch
PhoneSuit’s been making a pretty decent name for itself in the “rechargeable external iPhone battery” game, and their latest offering, the Primo, is a welcome, if not pint-sized addition to the family.
Available in either black or white and costing $34.95 (PhoneSuit also offers a 3-pack bundle including 3 of PhoneSuit’s screen protectors as well for only : $89.95 – a savings of $15 over buying the batteries individually) the thumb-sized, “works with iPhone”-certified Primo contains an 800mAh battery, roughly enough power to get you up to a 55% charge from a dead iPhone in our tests. That’s enough for 3 hours of talk, or 45 hours of music.
Design-wise the Primo is pretty cool. It’s smooth, gum-sized form factor slips easily into pockets, and it’s small enough that you can attach it to your keychain with the included string loop. Being a man who fears things on his keychain, I’ve just been throwing them in my pocket. The top pops off to reveal a standard Dock connector which should charge just about any REAL iPod (obviously the shuffle doesn’t count) or iPhone. Read more
FINALLY! An iPhone stand you can kill someone with!
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Awesomeness, Hardware, design, iPhone
ForkedUpArt has finally given us an iPhone stand that not only looks cool, it can also be used to stab would-be iPhone thieves, or to eat spaghetti – your choice. Behold the Fork Head iPhone stand!
Also available is the somewhat Roswell-looking Spoon Head model.
Both items are $20, and come with the disclaimer that they “do not include iPhone or cable”, in case you are an idiot looking for a bargain.
[via iPhone Savior]
Holographic iPhone concept disappoints
I don’t know about you, but when I hear “hologram”, I think of two things: Ethereal projections emanating from small, coin-sized, hand-held discs, and really amazing porn. But more level-headed designer Josselin Zaïgouche decided to try his hand at creating what he imagines a holographic iPhone might look like (circa the year 2020), and I have to say, I’m a little unimpressed. Behold “The Apple Black Hole”.
Now, is it just me, or is the holographic iPhone not really all that smaller than the current iPhone? It almost seems like a replacement for an old fashioned rotary phone you might have on your desk.
I think the problem Zaïgouche ran into is he actually factored in “reality” into his design. No doubt in 10 years we’d be LUCKY if affordable holographic projectors could be that small and stylish. However, the reality of the iPhone evolving into something like that are pretty slim. I say, if you’re going to go all Sci-Fi on us, you might as well go all the way and have the phone emanate from a chip implanted into the palm of the hand. That’s how I see it going eventually. Nice to see Google will still be on the iPhone in 10 years though.
[via josselinz via conceptphones]
Video surfaces of the iPad nano
Filed under: Cynicism, Hardware, Humor, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Thanks to faithful Macenstein reader TheWarpedOne for the link!
“The 12 Days AFTER Christmas” Giveaway: Day 20 – Mophie Juice Pack Air
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Awesomeness, Free Stuff, Hardware, contests, iPhone
This contest is closed. Congrats to faithful Macenstein reader Scott.
On the Twentieth Day After Christmas, Macenstein gave to you (or, more accurately, gave you a chance to win…) A Mophie Juice Pack Air for the iPhone 3G!
That’s right, our good friends at Mophie were nice enough to give us the single most important iPhone accessory known to man, the Juice Pack Air for iPhone 3G and 3G S! This sleek external battery pack almost doubles your iPhone’s battery as well as protecting it from sharp sticks, bears, or other iPhone dangers. Having a Juice Pack Air means you no longer need to fear waiting in lines, as now you can actually play all those cool games you bought on iTunes AND still have enough battery left to use your iPhone as a phone, if you should need to. The Juice pack adds an extra 270 hours of standby time, 4.5 hours of 3G talk time on 3G, 4.5 hours of Wi-Fi use, 9 hours of video playback, or 27 hours of audio!
The world’s thinnest rechargeable battery case for iPhone 3G & iPhone 3GS, the mophie juice pack air™ is designed to virtually double the time you have to Rock, Talk, Surf and Send with your iPhone 3G or 3GS.
The juice pack air™ is a rechargeable external battery concealed inside of a protective form-fitting case for the iPhone 3G & iPhone 3GS. It offers you the full protection of a hard-shell case while providing virtually twice the battery life of the iPhone alone; all in an ultra-thin, light-weight, low-profile design.
To enter: With pretty much everything worth owning these days powered by some sort of rechargeable battery, devices like the Juice Pack Air are pretty much a necessity. And while we all love our iPhones, iPods, and MacBooks, we’re curious, what is your favorite NON-APPLE battery powered device? Winners will be picked randomly 7 days later and notified (kind of like in The Ring, only with less killing… we hope). Open to ALL readers WORLD-WIDE. Good luck, and thanks for reading Macenstein! (Oh, and be sure to enter ALL our “12 Days AFTER Christmas” Giveaways!)
Please note: Comments may take a while to show up, please do not double-post. Thanks!
Review: Tyme Machines Star Wars flash drives come to a galaxy very, very close
When it comes to giving geeks presents, nothing says “I love you and respect your need to move large files quickly” like a USB flash drive. And nothing says “I am a geek too” like giving them a flash drive that looks like a bobble-head Star Wars character.
Currently the big name in Star Wars-themed flash drives is Mimoco, with their adorable line of smooth-headed characters. However the Star Wars flash drive arena just got a little more crowded with Tyme Machines’ new line of sculpted USB flash drives.
Unlike the super stylized Mimobots, Tyme Machines went for a somewhat more realistic, yet still comical look for their drives. The characters are more physically detailed than the Mimobots, from Boba Fett’s dented helmet to the “011″on the back of the Storm Trooper, there’s some pretty impressive detailing going on. The overall look is reminiscent of the dashboard “bobble head” dolls that I assume all of you have distractingly placed in your rear windshields.
Each drive consists of a 3-inch tall figure from the original Star Wars movies (aka, the good ones). Darth Vader, Boba Fett, Yoda, and a Storm Trooper are all available in capacities ranging from 4 GB to 16 GB, at prices ranging from $29.99 to $59.99. (Tyme Machines also makes a “Twilight” drive for Read more
