Jawbone
With a name like Jawbone, I had no idea what to expect when I got this Bluetooth headset. The packaging of the item impressed me; it was clean and slick looking. Something similar to what you would expect an Apple product to look like.
I opened and charged the unit and within a few hours it was ready to go. The headset is a bit more bulky then most mainstream headsets these days, but it is still lightweight and comfortable to wear. The big selling feature of this headset is the noise reduction capability. With a simple push of a button, the noise reduction turns on. There is a noticeable difference with this feature enabled. I was extremely impressed with the sound quality and I received many complements during my phone conversations with other people regarding the clarity of the headset.
Like most headsets, it has voice dial compatibility. It also has call answer/hang up feature, so there is no need to take the phone out of your pocket. I really was impressed by the battery life, which lasted about 9 hrs. of stand by or 4-5 hrs. of talk time. All in all a very nice headset, with great sound qualities, good value and it is also comfortable to wear. All these factors make me give it a “buy” recommendation.
Jawbone
Maybe the most fun I have had with an iPod yet. After testing the Apple iPhone for a few months I was sold on Apple’s new “touch” interface. The first thing that caught my eye was the fact that this iPod was about 60% slimmer then the iPhone (its closest cousin) and still had most of the same features. One feature that I really liked was the built in web browser (Safari). This feature combined with the built in WiFi (802.11G), gave a real web viewing experience similar to using a full size computer. Some other applications that were very handy were the picture viewer and the calendar. Although the screen was not as sharp as the iPhone, the iPod Touch was better then any other PDA, MP3 Player or even digital camera display that I have seen. As for the Calendar application, it was easy to use and was able to sync up with my iCal, Outlook and my Gmail Calendar applications. The newly released mail application was a snap to set up and was quickly syncing with my desktop mail application. It is a great feeling when convergence works right!
iPod Touch Mail App.
By now you have probably seen a lot of commercials for this iPod Touch and are aware of how the touch screen works. I will not go into detail about the touch operation, as I feel it is mainstream enough. (If you have not seen how it works yet, please click here) One aspect that a lot of people have been asking me about is the Touch’s keyboard. Since there is no tactile keyboard, users are forced to use the built in touch screen keyboard that pops up as needed. I found the keyboard to be a bit clumsy at first, but as I used it more, the keyboard became less and less of an issue. Some other points of interest about the iPod Touch are; the battery life is better then average (with the WiFi off); the iTunes built in download feature makes it easy to get new music on the iPod; the ability to add-on new applications from the Apple.com website allows for this iPod Touch to be a very versatile product; in addition, it plays movies with a beautiful quality.
As with all good consumer products, there is always room for improvement. Some things I would have liked to see are the following: a built in speaker and microphone, a wall charger in the box, an open OS (operating system) to add and change applications on the “Touch” and a built in camera. As a side note, I did hack the OS on the demo unit to see what other add-ons are out there and I was very impressed by the level and quality of what has been developed (by 3rd parties) to date. I do not recommend that you hack your iPod’s OS, as it may have a negative effect on your warranty status. My final thoughts are that unlike any other iPod Apple has created, this one has unlimited potential. I cannot see myself using it at the gym or while jogging, and if all you really want is a replacement for you mid-80’s “Walkman” then this is not the product for you. Alternatively, if you want to have a sexy, fun filled multi functional device that can also play music, then go out and spend the $299.00 (8GB) or $399.00 (16GB) or $499.00 (32GB) on the iPod Touch from Apple and you will not be disappointed.
What a great little printer!! I bought this sub $100.00 US printer expecting to get okay looking prints. I had also tried the older versions of the Epson PictureMate and was not greatly impressed with it, as well I tested models from both HP and Canon (1 year ago) and found that they all lacked a certain quality that is found in most consumer photo printing places. “WOW!” is the best word I can use to describe for this lightweight, small form factor, 4 x 6 printer that packs a punch. It was nice and easy to use with a big LCD screen, big buttons and the output did not show any track-marks. I also let a senior citizen try it and they had no issues with getting great looking prints out of it. You have the option of going through the speedy USB 2.0 port or direct from the camera using “PicBridge Technology”, but by far the easiest way to print pictures was by using the Dash’s build in card reader and LCD screen.
Epson PictureMate Dash
The Dash really lives up to it’s name, I was printing photos right away (in a DASH) , the cartridge was easy to load, and the provided starter cartridge and paper gave me a nice set of 20 pictures right out of the box. I do suggest buying an extra one or two replacement cartridge/ paper sets because as I quickly found out, I wanted to print more then 20 pictures. This Speedy little printer knocked the socks off a few pro photographers that I showed pictures to, and at a cost $0.19 per print I would suggest that this unit will sell very, very well. My final thoughts are that this PictureMate Dash by Epson is a great value and a great accessory to any digital camera user world wide, what a great toy. Well done Epson!