Best Gadgets World

Forget everything you know about your computer.  Now, take this disc and put in your DVD writable drive and whammo you’ve just backed up your iTunes collection.  Sweet right?  No clicking, no registering, no signing on.

Simplicity is everything behind ClickFree, a foolproof tool for those not intimate with storage solutions.  Selling now at places like Best Buy, ClickFree has hopes on tapping the dummie market (which means everyone not reading Gadgetell).  The concept is simple, the product is simple, the hardest part will be ensuring you have a writable DVD drive.

There is no scheduling, if you want a back up, simply insert the disc and it backs up.  The company says subsequent back ups will only write changes to the discs saving lots of time.  They have the software and packaging set up so you can save only music files or photo files or desktop files.  You’ve got to admit they’ve nailed simple.  I know at least 10 close family/friends that could handle only this.

I got a demo of this last night and it works just as billed.  The back up starts right away without fidgeting.  No hiccups, fits or incompatibility issues.  Not too many products you can say that about these days…

Each DVD disc has approx 4.5GB of space.  Sold in packs of 3, 5 and 10 discs, the company rep says you’ll be prompted when it is time to insert a new disc.  They start at $9.99 for the 3 pack.

Not sure about the DVD writable?  The company also offers an external drive with similar features ($149 for 120GB in Black and a larger version in Silver is due out soon)

Check it out [GoClickFree]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →

by Paul Miller, posted Jun 26th 2008 at 5:16PM
We got a look at some engineering prototype versions of Dell’s new Studio 17 and Studio 15 laptops, so while they might be lacking a minor bit of polish here or there compared to the real versions, Dell certainly had these up and running a good couple months ago. We’re not totally blown away by the design, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction for Dell, and a few elements (like the hinge) even seem to be taking some cues from Lenovo’s ultra-designed IdeaPad line. There’s no denying that the Studio 15, with its flush-to-the-edges keyboard strikes a more stunning figure than the slightly bleh Studio 17 version, but neither one is quite as thin as we’d like, and the material doesn’t quite shake off the cheap plastic feel of Dell’s Inspiron series. But hey, color (and graphic) lid customization is fun, and you’re still going to be hard pressed to beat Dell’s prices. Pics are below, and we apologize for the blurring: a few unannounced products snuck into the shots, but hopefully we’ll be hearing more about those shortly.

Gallery: Dell Studio laptop hands-on

• Permalink
• Email this
• 40 Comments

Filed under: Laptops

by Darren Murph, posted Jun 26th 2008 at 5:14AM
Pictured above, dear readers, is all the proof you need that a universal remote really is the best option if you have 4+ units that you use on a regular basis. This borderline-comical storage unit has enough room for four of your favorite clickers and one ice cold beverage, but oddly enough, there’s no basket for holding your day-old tater tots or marginally stale Fritos. Still, it does boast a built-in panel that will automatically buzz a lost remote in case you misplace it, which totally makes up for any other oversights in design. Of course, we’d recommend putting the $59.98 that this costs towards a decent universal remote, but at least this piece is less embarrassing than the infamous Remote Wrangler.

[Thanks, Juergen]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 19 Comments

Filed under: Misc. gadgets, Household

by Donald Melanson, posted Jun 26th 2008 at 1:46PM
ZAP didn’t have much more than some shiny renders to show for itself when it snapped up the hundred-year-old Detroit Electric brand earlier this year, but it looks like the company has now finally turned out an equally shiny prototype, which recently made its debut on the local news in Ohio. Unfortunately, the car apparently isn’t capable of moving off the parking lot on its own just yet, with it reportedly now on its way to California where it’ll get outfitted with a motor. While the current pace of things may seem a bit slow, the company is apparently still promising to have its first cars on the road as early as next year, when the Alias here is expected to sell for about $33,000. Hit up the read link below for the video.

[Via AutoblogGreen]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 53 Comments

Filed under: Transportation

Last night in NYC, Gadgetell was on hand for the Digital Experience, a tech press event where companies show off their latest and greatest.  Think of it as a condensed mid-year CES event.  The question everyone asked me was, “what is hot here?”.  For me, the answer was pretty easy: FindWhere.

You might remember us getting excited about adding GPS and reporting capabilities to your car we found at CES.  That is all well and fine, but this company has done it for your GPS smartphone.  As more and more phones toss in GPS, unique software solutions abound to help us take advantage out of it.  The company aims their product at two groups: families and enterprise.

As the father of a preteen, my daughter gets a very short list.  With Findwhere, I can get alerted when she crosses over our town line, travels at over 65mph, or even if she travels to a dead end street the teens like to hang out at (so I can show up with my baseball bat).  Perhaps even better, she can hit the panic button and I am alerted to her location immediately.  Maybe I will make it through the teen years…nah.

For their enterprise clients, FindWhere can offer similar conveniences: tracking, location of execs, even panic could be handy.

The key to all this is convergence.  It is not something else you have to remember.  No one goes anywhere without a cell phone these days and that makes it the perfect tracking tool.  FindWhere relys on a small downloaded program installed on each users phone.  Simple settings are set and the rest is automatic.  Users can be tracked on a web tool and there are tons of custom settings to take advantage of.  Even minimizing battery drain can be addressed individually for each phone. 

Right now the service is $19 per month (a small price to pay for that kind of piece of mind) and the company intends to offer a paired down service in the future.  The list of phones it currently works with is rather short (AT&T and T-Mobile in the US) but expanding and they are, of course, targeting the iphone.

I really like this service and will be reviewing it in the near future.

Company site: [FindWhere]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →

Last night I had the occasion to play around with the new crop of phones put out by the industry’s big players.  It always surprises me how quickly a phone can feel great or not so great in your hand vs staring at it on the screen.  I was shocked at how quickly I hated one of these supposedly sexy models and how much I liked one I really didn’t think I would.  Here is the run down:

HTC Touch Diamond. One word: HOT!  This little phone is very sexy and after I figured out how to turn the bugger on, it was off to the races.  The skin over the Windows Mobile OS is the best yet in terms of speed and functionality.  I’ve played with a few of these skins and this one is rather remarkable.  The screen is very responsive, and it’s tempered glass feels very high end.  It even has a tilt game with feedback as your little ball hits the obstacles.  Overall, I was very impressed with this diminutive phone and could easily see owning this one. 

Sony Xperia. One word: Not.  Maybe it is just me (I am sure our Sony-fanboy Adam will refute my impression) but this phone just doesn’t do it for me.  Sure the slide out keyboard felt like a Sony: finely crafted of smallish buttons that looked sharp; it is a well put together beast for sure.  But I was dumped out of the UI very quick, leaving me staring at Windows Mobile which brings me back to why I look at other phones all the time: it doesn’t feel fun, new or sexy.  Perhaps my beef is with Windows Mobile, but Sony’s rendition here seems just, I don’t know, not fun.  Not for me and I don’t think it will win over the BB crowd or the iphone crowd; and really, who does that leave left?

Samsung Instinct. After realizing I was cruising through the Sprint women’s personal phone, I quit sending text messages to her favs… This phone was rather nice in navigation, everything was laid out pretty well, the response was good and the feedback was a nice novelty.  My biggest issue came with what felt a real narrow screen.  The web and movies which automatically go to landscape felt like the edges were closing in.  Forget that some real estate is taken up by buttons that were not super intuitive: it just felt crammed and that kills the experience for me.

Blackberry Bold. I’ll admit to not being a fan of the blackberry but this bold was the nicest one yet.  The Blackberry rep was doing his best to dance around AT&T’s reasoning for delays, no news there.  The navigation was good, the screen bright and the look is rather sexy - even for Blackberry.  This will be the one to beat from RIM.

All told, there are some superstars in this crop of the latest and greatest.  These manufacturers have put some effort into staying on the curve while none really push it to much.  If I had to pick a fav of these, it would be the HTC hands down.  It’s small, fun and easy to work - which really is what the teeming masses hope to get out of their phone.

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →

You may not get excited by mice, but I have quite a collection of the cute critters. There’s the Logitech multi-media zoomer, my pink Kensington travel model, the Wow-Pen ergonomic version, not to mention the drawer full of reject mice that weren’t up to my exacting standards.

The SlimBlade Presented Mouse by Kensington is my newest pet. It combines a full-function laser mouse and presenter in one sleek device, and is still small enough to fit in your pocket.

Bluetooth connection; switch to go to presentation mode; goes to sleep when your notebook does; ultra-thin design for traveling - what’s not to love? $59.99 at Kensington.

Until recently, my thinking about USB flash drives went something like this: Why buy a dozen small capacity flash drives, when you can buy one really rugged 16GB or even 32GB flash drive that you can use for everything? Until . . . one day . . . I go to insert my super duper, rugged, weather-proof flash drive into my laptop . . . and it breaks into two pieces - just at that point where the rugged part ends and the USB connection (which of course is exposed when you’re using it) begins. Betrayal! (Never mind that I may have been a bit heavy-handed and impateitn with it - the point is, it was supposed to be tough.)

So, now I buy throw-away flash drives and treat them like large capacity floppy disks. I don’t commit, I make no promises - that way, I can’t be disappointed. They’re fun while they last.

These JT Baby USB flash drives are so tiny and flat, they can fit into little slots in your wallet, on a keychain, or on a cell phone. Pick them up from the site that sells all things USB — Brando.com ($22 for 2GB, $37 for 4GB).

HP has just unveiled a new entertainment notebook PC called the HP Pavilion dv5z. Aside from an AMD Puma mobile platform, this powerful machine can also be configured with either an AMD Turion X2 Dual-Core, Turion X2 Dual-Core Ultra or Athlon mobile processor. You’ll also never end up short with it’s relatively large 15.4-inch LCD display which could very well answer your mobile entertainment needs.

The Pavilion dv5z is packed with 4GB of RAM, either an ATI Radeon HD 3200 integrated or ATI Radeon HD 3450 256MB graphics, up to 320GB of hard drive space, a DVD burner with an upgrade option to a Blu-ray ROM, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g or 802.11a/b/g/n, an optional Bluetooth module, built-in 56k modem, Ethernet, HDMI, VGA output, four USB ports, ExpressCard slot and integrated Altec Lansing stereo speakers. You can also add an optional built-in web camera and fingerprint reader. And for its operating system, the machine comes pre-installed with Windows Vista.

If you’re in the market for a new laptop, you might want to consider getting one of these machines, they are currently available and retail beginning at $699.99.

Product [HP] Via [Laptoping]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →

What Imation has been touting as a paper clip-sized Atom Flash drive has just been officially released. Like we told you not so long ago, the Atom Flash drivefeatures a unique and iconic design in aluminum finish and comes with password protection and drive partitioning software. In addition the atom flash drive is compatible with Windows Ready Boost feature, so users have an option to speed up system performance on any Windows Vista PC. 

Measuring a mere 1.20 x 0.5 x 0.22-inches, you won’t have a problem carrying the Atom Flash drive around. In fact, you might even have a problem locating it due to its small size. The Atom Flash drive will be available in 1GB, 2GB, 4GB and 8GB storage sizes with prices ranging from $18 for the 1GB model up to $100 for the 8GB model.

Via [electronista]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →