Griffin's Hi-Way to carry the Hi-Fi

Griffin Technology Inc., creator of all things iPod, today announced Hi-Way, a versatile, custom fit, roadworthy carrying case for Apple’s iPod Hi-Fi compact stereo.

Link to product.

Rock your house and shock the streets in style with the new Hi-Way. Griffin now gives you the ability to transport the big, rich sound of your compact iPod Hi-Fi sound system with ease.

Hi-Way is a unique combination of convenience and innovative features, designed to fit your Hi-Fi like a glove. Hi-Way’s outer shell is made of durable ballistic Nylon material to deflect real-world bumps and dings, while its soft inner lining keeps your Hi-Fi safe from scuffs and scratches.

Hi-Way includes lots of pockets and compartments for storing and organizing all your iPod cables and accessories, so you can keep everything your iPod needs all in one place. The padded adjustable shoulder strap makes toting Hi-Way a breeze, and the tough rubberized base and raised non-skid feet keep out grit and moisture.

Features
Soft inner lining to keep Hi-Fi safe from scuffs and scratches
Comfortable padded shoulder strap for easy toting
Lots of pockets for iPod accessories
Power cord pass-through lets you use Hi-Fi while it stays protected inside the case

Pricing & Availability
Protect your Hi-Fi investment with a Griffin Hi-Way case, priced at only $49.99 USD, available from www.griffintechnology.com and wherever quality iPod accessories are sold.
No UK pricing yet, so give it a few weeks and I am sure the info will filter through.

Jigsaw with some good Mac deals

For those of you wanting some good Mac deals, but can't find what you are looking for on the Apple Refurb Store. Check out Jigsaw Systems, I have used them for years, they offer great service and some excellent prices. Of note, for those of you wanting a G4 iBook (instead of the new MacBook) is a 12inch 1.33GHz at £499+VAT... no a bad deal !

Maplin bargain hard drive !

Looking for extra storage? Well, Maplin Electronics have this superb Seagate 300Gb External USB2 Hard Drive reduced from £169.99 to £99.99. I have seen one of these drives in action and they are a pretty neat (and stackable) solution.

Main features:
• High speed USB 2.0
• Sleek elegant structure actually dissipates heat so they run much cooler than any other external drives
• Hot-swappable so you can connect and disconnect without turning off your computer
• 7200 RPM spin speed
• Masive 16MB cache on this 400GB model
• 350Gs non operating shock resistance
• Whisper quiet acoustics
• Push button backup

New downloadable reviews

It gives me great pleasure to let you all know of a new service that will be appearing during September on Geekanoids.

We will be publishing our first full reviews of some products from Netgear (confirmed) and Griffin Technology (TBC). As well as the online review, we will also link to a full review which will be downloadable in PDF format. With 'fair use' you may download this review, print it, share it with as many people as you want, but most of all enjoy it! This will enable you to build up a valuable resource of reviews and product data courtesy of Geekanoids.

We will also be including links to the manufacturers product page and where possible links to datasheets containing the product(s) full specification.

Note: The only thing you cannot do is resell our reviews, or print them as part of your own publication without prior written permission.

FM Transmitters to become legal

For a long time now it has been illegal in the UK to use the small low power FM transmitters, you know, the type used by many iPod owners to get their sounds into their cars.
Well, it looks like this old law is about to be updated, which will allow these devices to be used legally.

Griffin Technology produce many flavours of this type of device, but my main interest lies with the iTrip Auto which not only sends the signal to your car stereo, it also charges your iPod too.

I hope to be getting one of these little wonders, so check back frequently to see the full review.

Griffin Technology also manufacture a wide range of products, many iPod related, but some other gems too. Check out the PowerBlock and Tempo, they sure do look the business.

Are wall plugged ethernet adaptors any good?

I often get asked if there is anything that can be done to improve the speed of an internet connection whilst using a laptop. Well I for one normaly sit comfortably, using my MacBook on a wireless connection. It is fine for blogging, email and general surfing, but sometimes if I want to grab a file or move something over to my desktop machine, things crawl a little.

The have been wall plug type ethernet devices for quite a while now, but the Netgear HDXB101 PowerLine HD Wall-plugged Starter kit claims that it offers up to 200Mbps. The website claims it "turns electrical (AC) outlets into Ethernet connections, capable of up to 200 Mbps. The HDXB101 contains 2 HDX101 adapters (also sold separately), which are simple to set-up; plug one HDX101 into an AC electrical outlet near your router and plug another HDX101 near the device you wish to network".

This sounds ideal, if only it lives up to expectations... I have contacted Netgear and hope that they will be able to supply a kit to enable me to post a full review on the website in the near future.

Link to product.

MacBook Fit and Finish

Why do I give myself the impression that as an Apple FanBoy I am sooooo fussy about the fit and finish of my Apple products that it spoils the enjoyment of them.
A year or so ago, a friend of mine pointed out that a PC user buys an iPod, takes it out of the box, charges it, uses it, chucks it in his/her pocket and gets many hours of enjoyment out of said product, whereas a Mac user buys the iPod, then keeps it hidden away, wrapped in cotton wool until the armour plated case arrives, then spends hours polishing and covering it in plastic, without even realising that it was bought to actually listen to some music (or watch a video).

Now, my point in this post is that I have gone through quite a few MacBooks, all returned for some sort of cosmetic damage. Marks on the case, screen, running hot, etc etc. My latest MacBook was unboxed, with the enjoyment of opening replaced with a tension you could cut with a knife. I knew, just knew there would be something wrong. Low and behold there was a blank mark on the lid, which I polished off and it is almost gone. Opened up and there is a grease mark on the trackpad, again almost, but not 100% removed.

Onto the screen, wow, bright, crisp, no dead pixels, but what do I find, a piece of plastic in the corner of the screen. I am too scared to take a scalpel to it, so there it will stay... for now. Closing the lid reveals yet another problem, it shuts slightly wonky, not enough for a NORMAL person to notice, but about 1mm out and it bugs the hell out of me. I was looking around the back to see if there we any adjustment screws and yes, you guessed it, another problem, the vents have one hole blocked by plastic shaving that has not been milled out correctly.

So what do I do? I can still enjoy the MacBook, I am posting this article using it right now, so do I overlook these small problems and get on with using it, or do I send it back yet again. My point is that I shouldn't let these small things spoil my enjoyment, but why should I spend my time trying to troubleshoot the problems that Apple quality control should have sorted out before sending the unit out to a customer.

Rant over... on a more positive note, the plastic on the trackpad of this week 29 MacBook is different. A lot smoother and a big improvement on the previous ones. I have asked Apple if they have changed the material used and will report back as soon as I have an answer.

Segway comes to the UK

Now I for one loved the idea of the Segway, shame it was so expensive and only available in the USA. For those who are not in the know, the Segway is a two-wheeled scooter for nipping you around at 12.5mph with a unique way of controlling movement. You lean forwards to go forward, left and right to steer, and if you are brave enough, I am pretty sure you can also go backwards.

Three models are available starting at £3,399... yes very expensive, but I think once they come down in price as the technology becomes cheaper to produce I sure they will win out. Under £1,000 and they might get me, but in the meantime I will keep checking ebay for a Sinclair C5.

Segway-UK website.

Gizmodo UK have published a nice look of the Linksys CIT300 Dual-Mode Skype/Landline phone. I have wanted one of these for a long time and I might just give one a try. Imagine a handset that I can use to call through Skype without having to start-up my Mac.
The full review can be found here.

Geekanoids - First Year Fun !

Just a quick post to celebrate the fact that Geekanoids has been around for one whole year. A busy, interesting, yet rewarding year, with lots more to come in 2006.

Post count is up and it is my intention to develop the site with more articles, full reviews and maybe even a podcast popping up later in the year.

I do need more support to do this, but will continue to develop Geekanoids as much as I can, to deliver interesting content to our readers.

Before I sign off, a big thank you to all who visit and read the site and for your kind emails and donations. Many many thanks.

Amber MacArthur and Torrent

Well, another day, another dollar... and for me after a hard days work I try to catch up with some tech news, but it can't be all tech, I have to throw in some fun too and Podcasts, or should I say Video Podcasts are burning hours into my social calendar lately.

I really got into CommandN.tv which is a great podcast with a smooth delivery and great news, webpicks, tech tips and other special features. Each weekly episode runs to about 15-20 minutes and is nice a refreshing.

This lead me to search a bit deeper and I came across the g4techtv website and their tv show called 'Torrent'. A description from their website hits the nail on the head.

"Torrent is a weekly one-hour television Internet-culture show for tech-savvy audiences looking for unique first-person pop-tech stories from around the world."

Remember Etch-A-Sketch, well check out episode 7 for how to control this classic device with your computer.

Trouble is, being in the UK I cannot get this programme direct, but soon learnt that all episodes are available on GoogleVideo.

Both these programmes are hosted or co-hosted by Amber MacArthur, who delivers the news and articles with the sort of fluency that one could only ever dream of. I urge you to check out the links below.

CommandN.tv
G4TechTV
GoogleVideo

Upgrade to QuarkXPress 7.01 for Intel-based Macs

Quark today announced the free update for Intel support for QuarkXpress 7, now that was quick !
QuarkXPress® 7 is the first page-layout application designed to run natively on Intel®-based Macs. Now run amazing new features in QuarkXPress 7 — such as transparency, direct PDF creation, and Composition Zones™ and Job Jackets™ technologies — at peak performance when you upgrade to QuarkXPress 7.01.

Download it here.