The Gadgets Page

The minute I heard that the Aida Keyboard Case for the iPad was available, I ordered one. It arrived a couple of days ago and I’m eager to share what I’ve learned.

I was worried that it would be too thick to still fit in my purse, but the case hasn’t caused any trouble. It IS twice as thick as an iPad without a case, but compared to many other cases, it is similar in thickness.

I also like the magnetic closure. I kept having trouble with other cases opening up in my purse. This one stays closed.

I was also worried that it wouldn’t fold flat so I could read magazines, books and websites. Fortunately, it folds easily and I can hold it to read without any trouble.

I’ve had trouble with my iPad and Bluetooth keyboards, so I was worried I would run into the same trouble, but the Aida keyboard paired with my iPad without a single hitch. It also charged quickly and I haven’t had to recharge it in the last two days.

Now, for the bad news. The case uses only gravity to keep the iPad upright when you’re typing. That works fine if you are typing on a table, but if you’re at a conference and have your iPad on your lap, it will NOT work. The iPad will flop down every time.

I tried to fix the problem by adding industrial strength velcro. This makes the case almost useable on my lap, but not quite. There is still a lot of flopping and the sound of the velcro ripping when it finally fails to keep it upright. I just wish a case manufacturer would use laptop hinges instead of relying on gravity.

The worst problem of all is the keyboard layout. If I had been able to see the actual buttons on the keyboard before I bought it, I wouldn’t have bothered with this case.

There are a few issues:

• There is only one shift key on the left side. The right shift key has been replaced with a key for the equal sign and an up key, so every time I try to capitalize like normal, I end up either typing an equal sign or moving the cursor up one. This is a major pain in the butt.

• The apostrophe is in the lower right hand corner under the period key. I’ve never had a keyboard with the apostrophe there, so I have to learn how to type all over again just to use the apostrophe.

• The keyboard feels mushy. I prefer a keyboard that’s silent, but this one is so floppy that I can’t tell if I’ve pushed a key or not. This ends up giving me double letters at some times and missing letters at others. I find that I have to correct my work just as often as when I use the virtual keyboard.

There are some good things about the keyboard. Copy, paste and cut work using the command button (i.e. Command+V for paste). This streamlines some of my workflow, but it doesn’t make up for the other issues.

In the end, don’t bother with the Aida Case. You’ll probably type faster on the virtual keyboard and you won’t have to worry about charging a keyboard and setting up Bluetooth. Sometimes the best solution is the one Steve Jobs gave you.

I have been reluctant to write about Zinio and the People Magazine iPad apps because honestly, I didn’t want anyone to know how many horrible magazines I read. I LOVE reading them, but I don’t want the whole world to know that I love them.

I have easily spent over a hundred dollars on digital magazine subscriptions since I bought my iPad. Magazines that I would never allow into my mailbox or sit on my counter or pass through my checkout line are happily loaded onto my iPad. I still feel guilty reading them, but I CAN read them without anyone knowing how white trash I am.

By far, my favorite app is Zinio Magazine Newsstand & Reader [iTunes link]. I have subscribed to US Weekly, OK Magazine, Cosmo and Elle. All four of these I would never allow in my home because I’m so embarrassed by them. I’ve also subscribed to Weight Watchers, Smithsonian and Bicycle Times. I wouldn’t have ever bought a subscription to them before because I couldn’t deal with the clutter of unread magazines in my house. Recycling them without reading them is just too painful for me, so I just didn’t bother with those kinds of magazines for years because I knew I wouldn’t read them every month.

I love the freedom of a digital subscription because I can delete or download whatever issues I want. I can read them at my leisure and if it takes MONTHS to get around to looking at them, it doesn’t matter because they’ll wait, sight unseen in my iPad until I have the time to look at them. I can take screen shots of things I want to buy and I NEVER have clutter in my home.

The PEOPLE Magazine App [iTunes Link], however was so irritating that I had to delete it. There are so many things wrong with this app that it’s hard to know where to start. They offered the lure of additional digital content, so I thought they would be better than having the same subscription with Zinio, but I was sorely mistaken.

• You MUST buy the print subscription: People Magazine is just barely reputable enough to be allowed in my mailbox, so I didn’t have a problem with their requirement to buy a subscription. I DO have a problem with the paper magazines that show up in my mailbox every week, however. I would much rather prefer the digital only version, even if I had to pay the same price.
• It’s a TIME SUCK: Downloading issues takes at least ten minutes and it HAS to be done over wi-fi, so that’s a pain. After I read an issue, I can’t delete it, so when I sync my iPad, it takes easily a half hour for iTunes to back up all my stupid back issues. After I deleted the app, my sync time went from over forty minutes to less than two minutes.
• It isn’t even the full People Magazine: When I compare it to my print copy, the digital version is missing almost all of the advertising and the crossword puzzle. Some people might not care about missing the advertising, but honestly, sometimes the ads are better than the content with People Magazine, so I really felt like the digital version wasn’t as good.
• The extra digital content is useless: There ARE videos that aren’t included in the print version that I can watch and I kind of liked those, but they certainly weren’t worth the forty minutes of my time it takes to download them and back them up on my computer.

Time Inc. should take a look at how Zinio is handling things. I have spent FAR more money on digital subscriptions with them and I like them WAY better. The People Magazine App isn’t worth the time to download it.

In the end, I absolutely LOVE getting my magazines digitally on the iPad. It decreases my household clutter and I get to enjoy my shameful pleasures without anyone looking down on me. Thanks, Zinio!

I absolutely LOVE this California Gurls Music parody. It’s a shout out to all the geek and gamer girls out there.

Geek and Gamer Girls Song

I wish I looked as hot as any one of those girls. I guess I’m happy with my geek skillz and I’ll have to work on being a hottie as well.

You can download the song here:

• Download Geek and Gamer Girls Anthem

This video shows an iPad keyboard case for the iPad. It looks pretty good.

The iPad sits upright using a notch that holds it in place (much like other cases) instead of a laptop-like hinge.

The case looks incredibly slim.

Unfortunately, the keyboard case isn’t available yet. I’ve checked all the retail sites as well as Kensington’s own site, to no avail.

• iPad Accessories – Kensington iPad Accessories

The Aida iPad Keycase is available NOW, however.

If you are looking for an iPad case that also has a Bluetooth keyboard built in, I predict the market will be FLOODED with them within six months. It’s hard for me to wait for the leader to work its way to the front of the pack, so I’ll probably end up buying several until I find the perfect one for me. If you can wait, you’ll be able to learn from my mistakes. Stay tuned for iPad keyboard case reviews.

Via: Found Footage: Kensington Bluetooth keyboard case for iPad

This advertisement for the Maybelline Magic Mascara from 1959 really surprised me.

FIFTY years ago, Maybelline was promoting a mascara with a new spiral brush. Before the advent of the spiral brush, women were using flat brushes that were similar to a brow brush. It would be rubbed on a pan of mascara wax and then you would apply it to your eyelashes. The process was difficult and the advent of a spiral brush made it much easier.

Now, Maybelline’s makeup gadgetry has advanced to a vibrating mascara brush called Pulse Perfection. It’s the same mascara as their Define-A-Lash brand with a brush that vibrates. Here is a review of it by AmyBabyDoll on YouTube:

Amy says that the mascara is nice, but the vibration isn’t worth the extra money.

Although I like how it looks on the lashes, I do think the vibrating part is completely pointless because I’ve used the Define-A-Lash mascara in the past and it has given me the exact same effect. The vibration is so slight and gentle that I really don’t think it makes that much of a difference… Also you have to be quite patient, because you have to do it so slowly. I would rather get in there and get it done really quickly.

Maybelline has a long history of gadgetry with their makeup and they always have something new for us gadget girls, but it looks like the Pulse Perfection doesn’t quite live up to the original spiral brush on the Magic Mascara fifty years ago.

Our family is always on the lookout for fun games to play together and we’ve been big fans of Scrabble. When I heard there is an interesting game out called Konexi, I jumped at it. It’s like a cross between Scrabble and Jenga. You balance the letters carefully to create words. The strange thing is that the letters don’t have to be in the correct order to count as a words as long as all the letters are touching. Here is an explanation.

In this example, you could add the letter N to the left branch to create the word “wine,” but you couldn’t add it to the right branch because that doesn’t make a word and it doesn’t connect to the W and I on the left.

Sadly, every place I’ve found that sells this game has none in stock. I guess I’ll have to wait until it becomes available to try it out with my family.

Via: Konexi Word Game is Scrabble Meets Jenga | CraziestGadgets.com

A special thank you to Thom Allen, who allowed me to post this photo he took of the inside of a Red Box Machine. If you have ever wondered how that cool gadget works, here is a peek.

I’m impressed with how Red Box has taken the polar opposite business model of Netflix. Instead of offering you EVERY movie with a delay in the mail, Red Box gives you the most popular twenty movies at every convenience store in the city. Both methods of business are profitable and it’s surprising to me to know that there is room in the market for both.

Photo via: Inside The Redbox | Official Website of Thom Allen

I absolutely LOVE the concept behind the Dishmaster!

Instead of a sprayer attached to a hose on your sink, the sprayer has a dish brush. Not only does your brush stay right where you need it, it squirts water out on your dishes while you clean. You can see the entire ad here:

What I would love to see is a modern day hack that takes the Oxo SteeL Soap Squirting Dish Brush and attaches it to my nearly useless sink sprayer. What would I have to do to make that a reality in my own home? Maybe it’s time to hit the hardware store and find out for myself.

Advert via: Live Journal vintage_ads: This is actually kinda neat!

When I upgraded my iMac to Snow Leopard, my iSight camera mysteriously stopped working. It was kind of frustrating because I used that little camera a lot. Unwilling to lug my computer to the Apple Store to see a “Genius,” I just stopped using my iSight camera. I just figured it was a feature that got lost in the upgrade and I’ve lived without it ever since.

Today, I was cleaning out my dock by removing shortcuts to applications that I didn’t use anymore. I watched them poof with a puff of air as they went. I came to Photobooth and I hesitated. I LOVED that application when my camera worked. I decided to just load it up once more before deleting it off my dock.

To my surprise, my iSight camera is working again!

With all the updates that I’ve downloaded, I have no idea which one fixed my camera, but I was so happy to see myself smiling. All the things that I used to love to do with the camera (video blogging, taking goofy pictures of myself and playing with the effects on Photobooth) were suddenly given back to me and it feels like I have a whole new computer again.

If your iSight camera mysteriously stopped working with the upgrade, try it again. Like mine, yours might be working again now that Apple has had a chance to fix what was broken in the new operating system.

I’ve have received so much joy and laughter from the iPhone app, Ghost Radar by Spud Pickles [iTunes link], and that’s just from the user reviews. As far as I can tell, the app is a fancy random word generator. Now, I’ve always been a friend of The Random, so it sounded like something perfect for me. After I read the reviews, however, I just HAD to buy it.

Here are a few of the funniest reviews for your enjoyment.

One Word “Wow” by Night Lover: ok I bought this app this morning thinking that it’s fake and also being a skeptic I’m not sure what to make of it. After I installed it I launched it in my garage and it was dead silent and a few minutes later it started showing strong feilds and then said my name, after that I was a little creeped so I got up to leave and it said “don’t leave” I’m not saying it paranormal but it’s deffinetly strange.

Should I tell him that iPhone apps can access the phone owner’s name?

Is a quiet house worth 99 cents? by monkeyrotica: I have on idea if this really detects anything or if this is just a random word generator. I don’t care. All I know is that I put this on the table in front of my kids and whispered to them, “Ever notice haunted houses are quiet? Ghosts hate noise. The Ghost Detector only works if you’re QUIET.” For the next HOUR they sat silently and listed to the app spit out a bunch of random words. They then whispered among themselves what those words could possibly mean. If you have kids and want some peace and quiet, buy this app.

I actually tried this with my husband’s little sister. We had a very enjoyable (and quiet) half hour talking to the iPhone, OuiJa board style.

Still testing by SoYLaVoz: Ok so it’s been 3 months since I used this app. I thought it was a random word generator until that one day it said my grandmothers name while she was talking. So now 3 moths later I’m playing with it again noted that I’m still thinking this app is a joke. 2 mins into it the word came “Keplar” now this isn’t a random word because I’m a cop and my Keplar (bullet resistant) vest is on my top shelf next to me. So I’m still wondering…

I don’t have the heart to break it to him that Keplar is a random name and KEVLAR is what his vest is made out of.

As I’ve said before, I’m a BIG fan of The Random. I talked about it in detail almost seven years ago:

• Pick Me! » Gathering Randomness

Music Match is long ago defunct, but the iTunes shuffle feature has nicely taken the place of Auto DJ. When I don’t know what to write about, I put iTunes on shuffle, listen to the songs and do whatever they tell me. It’s a true exercise in creative writing and very helpful to me.

Ghost Radar is yet another way for me to get creative inspiration from randomness. I can just turn it on, collect a few words and write a short story based on them. It rarely produces something I can post on any of my blogs (fiction or otherwise), but it really gets the creative juices flowing.

How Could They Make It Better?

I really wish the programmers for Ghost Radar would take it a step further. Instead of believing their own baloney, I wish they would cross over into full-time chicanery. Here is what I’d like to see Ghost Radar do in future updates:

• Look up location and spit out words of nearby streets and points of interest based on data from the GPS
• Access the contacts folder and regurgitate names of people in the contact list or, even better, the recent calls list
• Listen to the people playing with it and using word recognition, parrot back the words said
• Scan for laughter and give more words when people interact with it
• Track the reaction to certain words and give synonyms to the ones that receive more laughter or speaking

In the end, I’ve enjoyed Ghost Radar far more than the 99 cents it cost me. Does it channel the words of non corporeal spirits? No. I don’t even believe it measures electromagnetic fluctuation. Is it entertaining? Hellya.