I have several devices that I depend on every day: my MacBook Pro, my Garmin StreetPilot 3270 GPS, my iPod. And while I can think of ways all these devices could be improved, there is only one device that I would gladly chuck into the ocean and never touch again, if not for the one vital job it does marginally well.

That device is my cell phone.

So when Apple introduced the iPhone, I had a geek-gasm right on the spot. Finally, my prayers had been answered: a handheld device that’ll connect me to people by phone, mail, IM, and to the Internet like a computer; and to my music and videos like an iPod.

Finally, a smartphone that’s actually smart. (more…)

Updated November 30th, 2006

The BlackBerry 8100, better known as the Pearl, truly is a thing of beauty. Sleek, black and compact, it’s one powerful mobile communications device that weighs just 3.16 ounces and will fit comfortably in a shirt pocket.

But while the Pearl is an amazing feat of miniaturization – perhaps too much so for users with large hands – Research in Motion’s Blackberry operating system is just now playing catch-up with the smartphone marketplace it helped define. And while the Pearl’s long-overdue feature face-lift is welcome, it still falls a bit short of competitors when it comes to multimedia capabilities. (more…)

There are three things you want from a wireless headset: You want it to have great reception, be comfortable to wear, and be unobtrusive. This last point in particular seems to elude most makers of Bluetooth headsets, whose devices often offer all the subtlety of a Borg implant.

Not so with the Jabra BT500 – a full-featured Bluetooth headset that tucks neatly away behind your ear. (more…)

Users of Skype, the global Internet telephony company owned by eBay, can finally cut the cord – that is, the USB cord to their computers.

A variety of wireless Skype phones are hitting the market and getting noticed, especially since eBay’s recent announcement that it has hired Google to sell advertising. That partnership will enable customers to contact sellers and advertisers using Skype and Google Talk. And it’s bound to drive demand for gear that makes talking over the Internet smoother and easier. (more…)