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By song, February 23, 2012 10:53 pm

I’ve been trying to find a way to get my iPhone, iPod, Nano, etc. to play in my cars without having to replace or hardwire some new deck into the car permanently. I’ve also tried all kinds of things like tape deck adapters and FM transmitters. They all mostly suck big-time. Recently I wanted to add handsfree capability to our family SUV (Volvo XC90) and discovered that it used a fiber optic based system that was ridiculously expensive to upgrade. So I went looking for another solution.

This is ridiculously cheap, but it works!

On Amazon I started reading all kins of reviews of units that basically had lukewarm to bad reviews. In this search I started thinking I could use another charger for the car that would double as a mount. You know how those web searches can become a big black hole.

Then I came across this All in One unit for the ridiculously low price of $12.69! No this is not a typo. For the price of a cable I could have a mount, charger, fm-transmitter, and a remote. It was ludicrous. Since I have Amazon Prime and the shipping was free, I figured, “what the heck”?

I also perused the reviews and there were a surprising number of good ones considering this cost less than I spent on lunch today.

So in 2 days time, good old Amazon Prime came through again and I had my unit in my hand. I snapped a picture to share with you and then started to fiddle with it. Besides the fact that this thing has more appendages than a baby in a bilirubin chamber (ok, total non-sequiter) it seemed pretty well made. The mounting was secure, all the parts fits and the cigarette lighter adapter even had some rubber protrusions to makes sure it fit tightly.

The “remote” was amusing. They tried to make it look like a ipod! I really didn’t expect it to work so well, but hey, in the next weeks the truth will come out.

My phone in the cradle with the remote to the right.

OK, so how has it been in the past few weeks? Well, it’s a mixed bag. There are some goofy things, but also a surprising number of good things to report.  So let’s get to the deets.

GOOD STUFF:

• The FM transmitter actually works! I get a light static, but other than that the music is clear and the GPS voice directions are fine! I am amazed. It’s so much better than the half a dozen other FM transmitters I have tried.
• I can use it as a speakerphone for handsfree! This solves a world of problems for me. This is much better than a bluetooth headset or my Jabra clipped to the visor.
• It charges the phone, but a little slowly. Actually, if I am running the GPS, it charges it TOO slowly. Sometimes the battery level goes down after a trip with the charger plugged in.
• The crazy little remote actually works! It’s IR so you have to point it at the top of the unit, but it does work.
• The stalk is bendable and stay put.
• The phone mount is very solid and holds the phone securely.
• There’s an additional USB port on the side to charge another device.

BAD STUFF:

• The GPS seems to get confused and loses the signal at times. This may have to do with the fact that my mount is on the center console so the phone doesn’t have a clear view of the sky. It is annoying as I lose the signal a lot more than when I had it mounted higher up on the dash with the vent mount.
• Although the lighter adapter is tight, The weight of the unit caused the entire lighter assembly to wiggle around.
• The FM frequency is on top of the unit, covered by the iPhone. It’s a pain to see the station if you need to change it in route.
• The charger is weak.
• For some reason my iPod touch will not transmit via FM if I plug in the main charger. I can use the USB port charger on the side without issue.
• It a bit janky with all the cables coming out of it.

The bottom line is that for $12.69, this is a total steal. Consider that Apple charges $19.95 for the cable alone and it’s no comparison. In Summary, this is worth a try for the price. It ain’t pretty, but it’s functional.

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By song, February 4, 2012 7:37 pm

Here’s my latest new gadget. I was in the market for a new charging cable. The one that I normally use at my desk at home was getting all frayed and ready to bust at any time. If I goto the Apple store, they want $20 for the cable. If I goto Fry’s they have a “compatible” that goes for $7. Surely there must be something in between that would be better and perhaps get me more functionality.

Fits perfectly, charges the phone and sounds good too!

Now, I’ve been hankering to get some external speakers for my iPhone that wasn’t huge and a big hassle to have around. I started poking around Amazon (where I go for everything these days) and looking for a cable and a speaker.

Then a happy accident happened. For not much more than the cable from the Apple Store, I could get an Altec Lansing docking station with a speaker. The reviews were surprisingly good and the measurement showed that is was rather a small box. Now, I am very skeptical of things with very small speakers sounding any good at all. However; anything is better than just cranking up the built in (tiny) speaker of the iPhone. Besides, I was going to leave this sitting at my desk for background music while I worked in the office, so it didn’t need to have wicked bass or anything like that. It just had to sound good at low volumes.

So what the heck, I ordered it and thought I could always return it if it wasn’t any good. Boy was I surprised!

It has been over 3 weeks now and I can say without reservation that this little speaker / charger / dock really is a great device. As you can see from the picture at the right, it’s a simple unit. I just plug my phone in on top and the little green light illuminates to show me that it’s charging. Easy huh?

When I play music (like Pandora) the sound comes through the speaker and sounds really good. In fact, it’s a lot louder than I expected. As you can see in the picture, I usually end up turning the volume way down (about 1/4) and it still has plenty of volume to fill my office.

So in summary, I think this is a great little unit that fits the bill perfectly. It was about $28 which is much cheaper than I ever expected and it hardly takes up any space on my desk. I’ve been very happy with this unit. So, if you are thinking about a new cable to leave on your desk for charging, why don’t you notch it up a bit and get a full blown speaker and charger along with it!

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By song, December 16, 2011 7:04 pm

Every once in a while something comes along that is such a great deal that I have to tell the world. No, it’s not the Kindle Fire, but the cover I just got for the Kindle Fire from Amazon! For about 2 weeks I used the Fire naked and I was starting to get concerned that it was bouncing around in my bag. So I went looking for a nice leather cover.

After a bit of poking about (hours) on Amazon, I saw this all leather cover with a unique built-in stand. It cost all of $9.99 and looked too good to be true. It was also eligible for Amazon Prime, which means that they would ship it to me in 2 days.

Super snug fit and made of excellent leather.

Sure enough the cover arrived extremely well packaged at my desk at work. I took it out and immediately smelled the rich leather aroma. Nope, no cheap leather here. Take a look at the nice stitching and finish in the picture above.  It feels really nice as well, but how would it fit? Well I didn’t need to worry long. It is a perfect fit. The Fire is held snugly and it’s about as slim as you could ask for.

OK, how does it work as a stand?

A perfect angle for taking on a show

I like how the cover disengages from half of the Fire and folds to create a stand. This is a much better design than some other cases which overlap for a hinge causing the thickness of the cover to increase. I always avoided those covers after having gotten one for my iPad. I like my devices slim and trim.

There are two indentions in the cover that allow the Kindle to sit at two angles. I find that I like it slanted back a lot. It’s perfect for the desk height that I use and also perfect for an airline tray. The grey material inside appears to be some kind of synthetic suede or microfiber. It also feels soft and is padded to protect the screen of the Kindle.

In summary, I can’t believe that this cover only goes for $9.99 and includes free 2 day shipping! They are giving this away. If you got the Amazon provided cover at $49.95, it wouldn’t even be as nice or functional. Seriously, if you got a Kindle, BUY THIS COVER NOW!

Blurex Kindle Fire Cover on Amazon

You won’t be sorry.

Update: I just checked an the price is now $14.99. Still, it’s a steal at that price. Highly recommended!

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By song, October 15, 2011 9:01 pm

I am on the endless search for the perfect case for my iPhone 4. I have decided that I like the most minimal case possible and I do not want to spoil the nice white color. I’ve tried the official Apple bumper case, which is quite nice except that I had to dremel out the bottom to fit an aftermarket connector.

Several months ago I found a unique case from the folks at Cygnett. It was clear around the edges and had a white rubber at the edges. It looked pretty unique so I got it for my phone. At first I really liked the way it made the phone look. It also felt pretty good as it didn’t make the svelte iPhone too chunky. I thought I had found the perfect case.

Fast forward 4 months. The white was turning blue from my jeans I guess. I normally keep my phone in my front pockets so it’s going in and out of my jeans constantly. I tried bleaching the plastic, but alas, it appears that the dye had become seeped into the plastic. Oh well, I thought. Even if it’s tinted, it still works well.

Then the unthinkable happened. The case started to come apart. The while part and the clear part is separating. Here’s a picture of it so you can see what I mean.

The white and the clear don't like each other.

I recall that the case had a warranty of a year and it hasn’t been that long. So I head over to the Cygnett website to file my claim and things got weird. When I get to the claim page and try to file a claim, all I get is a dialog that says “DEATH KINGS”. Seriously! Click on the email, pdf, or print link from that claims page and a dialog will appear that says “DEATH KINGS” and that’s it. Nothing else to do.

How annoying is this? I guess I’ll try and superglue the thing together, but I am not hopeful. Maybe after a few weeks I’ll get an iPhone4S and then go shop for another case. Sigh, I had such high hopes for this case. The search continues. If you have a especially great case for your iPhone, leave a comment in the post below. I’d appreciate the guidance. Thanks.

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By song, September 8, 2011 9:46 am

As some of you know, I am now running a Macbook Pro with Windows 7 using VMWare Fusion. (That sentence made my brain hurt). It’s been really a pretty nice experience with all the slick goodness of a Mac and the utility of the Windows programs I know and love.

Now the sleek aluminum case of the Mac had to be protected. I looked all around at Best Buy and Fry’s and they all wanted $49.99 for a hardcase shell in rather loud colors. I really didn’t want to change the look of the Mac. I like the cool case. Amazon to the rescue.

A quick search yielded a product from iPearl for only $17.99. I was very skeptical. It’s from an unknown company and it’s less than 1/2 the price of similar products. Always willing to give it a go, I ordered it anyway. Besides Amazon is great about returns if you are not happy. Within 2 days (I’m a Prime member) the shell arrived at my doorstep.

iPearl hardcase for Mac was very nicely packaged and fit wonderfully.

I installed it easily enough by snapping it on the case. The fit is very snug and it’s even got little nubs on the inside in key areas so that the case doesn’t rub on the aluminum and leave marks. It’s really quite remarkable how well it fits. All of the ports are accessible and it doesn’t detract from the looks of the computer at all. This is exactly what I wanted. The only questionable thing in a feature that allows the laptop to tilt. There are two plastic retractable legs on the back. They appear to be made of plastic, but appears kind of delicate to me. I don’t use them often, but when I do I am afraid it might snap off.

I’ll post a followup after a few weeks to let you know how it’s doing. So far (about a week now) I have been really happy and delighted with the performance and protection it provides. For $17.99 it’s a great deal. OK, back to my Windows 7 Hackintosh.