Griffin Survivor Case for the New iPad

Yes, I was one of those people who pre-ordered the new iPad from Apple. I'd planned it months ago as a birthday present to myself as a replacement for an ASUS Netbook that's getting a bit long in the tooth and can't handle all my mobile computing requirements.How is it? Great. It's heavy, though. This is not something you can comfortable hold in one hand. A case is really necessary, both to provide a good grip, and for protection of this expensive device.

Having invested over $600 in this toy, and given my history dropping things, I thought I'd better get a proper ruggedized case for it. There are three companies supplying rugged cases for the iPad now: Otter, Griffin, and Gumdrop. I have the Otterboxes for my iPods, and like them, but I've read a lot of negative reviews of the Otterbox Defender Case.  (It does have the advantage of being around $15-20 cheaper than the other cases being discussed.) The Gumdrop Cases look interesting, particularly the Military Edition. They get a lot of positive reviews from buyers.

In the end I settled on the Griffin Survivor case. Price is similar to that of the Gumdrop, but it looks like it might be superior in terms of being shockproof and resistant to sand and dust- in fact, it's actually built to a military standard- MIL-STD-810F. I like the design, the flaps that cover the microphone, speaker and earphone jack, and the detachable stand. Some reviewers have complained that the flaps are difficult to keep out of the way, but in fact Griffin has molded into the case a set of tabs and sockets that allow you to lock the flaps out of the way while you use the camera or speaker. Very clever. The silicone rubber jacket has a good anti-slip texture that keeps it from sliding around- a problems with the Gumdrop, according to some. And I figure if it can handle the rigors of combat it just might be tough enough to handle my day to day use, too.

Pralines 'n' Tabasco!

We were shopping for rugs at Cost Plus when I spotted this- Aunt Sally's Sugar & Spice Pralines! Sugar, pecans, and Tabasco- how could I resist? I had it for dessert after dinner. Sweetness with just a hint of hot pepper.

Philips DS7650/37 Fidelio Docking Speaker

I have a small but growing collection of speakers designed for the iPhone and iPod touch. Some I purchased, and some, including this one, I received as review samples. They all work well enough, and deliver the kind of audio fidelity you'd expect for the price.

Three of the speakers are from Phillips/Norelco, and these all come with the Fidelio app. You don't need to run Fidelio to use the speakers. In fact, you don't even need an iPhone or iPad. Each of these units also has a 1/8" stereo in jack, so they'll work with just about any portable stereo device. What Fidelio gives you is a number of very useful features: Adjustable tonal response, alarm clock functions, and an internet radio receiver app. Very useful.

This unit- the Philips DS7650/37 Fidelio Docking Speaker- falls into the medium price range at around $130. It's compact, and delivers pretty good sound, with a natural bass. It's not terribly deep, but it's natural sounding. Volume is very good. In fact, it'll play uncomfortably loud in my living room. But what sets this unit apart from others it the built in lithium-polymer battery. The DS7650 is designed for music on the move, and Philips claims a battery life of "up to eight hours." I haven't tested it that long yet, but it's run for four hours in my tests at moderate volume.

In addition to the battery, the DS7650 is also significantly more rugged than most similar units. There's a built-in cover that protects the speakers, and then hinges around and under to provide a stable base. Very nice. Mine hasn't taken any trips yet, but it's providing yeoman service on my nightstand.

Swedish Fire Steel

Like most campers and outdoorsmen, I switched from matches to disposable butane lighters years ago. They're waterproof, reliable, and inexpensive. Yet these ferrocerium fire starters- the modern equivalent of the old flint and steel- seem to be more popular than ever. They're not as convenient as a disposable lighter, but they do have the advantage of being just about indestructible, and impervious to water, heat, and shock. I suspect there's also a certain romance to using a more primitive fire starting method, and more than a little association with the survivalist mindset.

Regardless, they're handy things to have, and there are a wide range of fire steels at widely varying prices available. I bought a few off eBay for under $2 each, and more recently this Swedish Firesteel from Amazon for around $15. There are some significant differences between the two.

The cheapest ones consist of a magnesium rod with a very small- about 1/8"- rod of ferrocerium set into the magnesium. The idea is that you scrape some magnesium off he rod for tinder and ignite it with sparks from the ferrocerium. It works, but the thin rods don't last very long. The better units consist of a solid 1/4" ferrocerium rod. That's twice the diameter, and 4x the mass.

There's another difference. The cheap units come with what looks like a piece of hacksaw blade as a striker. On mine, I had to scrape a thick coating of green paint off the metal before it was usable. The Swedish units come with a hardened steel striker that works much better. Of course, you can always use the back of a good knife as well.

My feeling is that the cheap ones aren't a particularly good deal. Assuming you're buying a fire starter as a piece of real emergency gear, you should probably buy the best one you can- especially when it's less than $20.

I might need one of these...

Nothing like the taste of hot dogs cooked at the local 7-11:

Amazon Kindle Fire

I bought one of the earlier Kindles, the second generation standard model. While it was impressive in many ways, there were several things I didn't like about it.

1. It was slow. This was particularly annoying when flipping back and forth between pages.
2. The Web browser was all but useless.
3. It wouldn't display all the available e-Book formats
4. You couldn't zoom in on a page
5. It couldn't display most images
6. Navigation was clumsy

The new Kindle Fire is supposed to improve on all those issues. With a larger, color display, touch navigation, a dual core processor and free cloud storage, this may actually displace my iPod touch as my go-everywhere electronic notebook. I've pre-ordered mine, and with luck it'll be here inside of a week. You can find out more about it here.

Invasion of the Robot Tea Infusers!!!

Is it high tech? I'm still not sure, but I do know I coveted this Kikkerland Robot Tea Infuser the minute my friend Kev showed me the one he found on the web. How can you resist?