Gotta Have Gadget

Speaking of relaxing, after mowing the lawn, I like to lay back in the hammock and listen to some tunes.  To fully engulf myself into the sound, I reach for the Aerial7 Chopper2 headphones.  These headphones are designed to give you optimal sound from your iPod™, BlackBerry™ or any other MP3 player or phone.  What’s cool about the Aerial7 Headphones is most of them are compatible with the iPhone™ and Skype™.  With a 3.5mm adapter and built in slim profile microphone you can listen to your favorite music and not have to worry about missing a phone call.  If you are more of an “in ear” person, check out the Aerial7 SUMO line of headphones.  They offer the same great sound, and also feature the slim line microphone.  If you go to www.aerial7.com, you can certainly find the style and design that fits your style.   GET TO THE CHOPPER!!!  Sorry, had to do that, please read in your best Arnold Schwarzenegger voice!!

Straight from the NBC Universal Lawyer:

Hi Michael:

I am responding to your note about the co-existence of your use of your gottahavegadget.com blog and the Bill Henley holiday shopping segment on NBC Philadelphia called “Bill’s Gotta-Have Gadgets”. Mr. Henley’s segment in the local Philadelphia news broadcast reviews which gadgets are this year’s “gotta-have” items for Philadelphia viewers. A brief search of the Internet shows that the phrase “Gotta Have Gadget” is pretty commonly used for a purposes similar to the focus of your blog, namely, gadgets you “gotta” have. It’s not surprising that the words “gotta have gadgets” are commonly used by many parties for reviews of technology gifts/toys. In addition, the local NBC station in Philadelphia uses this phrase a little differently from you, i.e., the phrase is preceded by “Bill’s” and uses the plural “gadgets” rather than your singular “gadget”. There is also a hyphen between “Gotta” and “Have”. For these reasons, we do not believe that our viewers will confuse our infrequent holiday segments with your blog dedicated to reviewing tech gifts. Nor are we aware of any instances of viewer confusion.

I would be happy to discuss this further with you, but trust that for now this matter is resolved.

Wonder what class this was taught in at law school??  Stick up for the “little guy” and let them know how you feel!  http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/contact-us/

This holiday season, one of the questions I get asked the most is, “What is a good reliable phone I can get without breaking the bank?”  The LG Revolution is a great deal right now!  At $199 (with a two year Verizon contract) the LG Revolution gives you the quickness of 4G LTE, a 4.3 inch screen, high res camera and Android marketplace.

Some features I really like are micro-HDMI port for quick connections to a TV or computer to transfer your 720p HD videos, and the 5 megapixel camera.  I know what you are going to say, there are much higher resolution camera phones out there, yes there is, but the LG Revolution gives you options which takes far better pictures than you would expect with a 5 megapixel camera.

Something that is over looked now a days with cellular phones is audio quality.  With the backing of the Verizon Wireless network, I didn’t lose a single call and the audio was just fine.  The battery life is what you will find in most data phones, of course the more you use it, the less the battery will last.  If you are a heavy data user, a back-up battery is always recommended.

If you don’t need the latest and greatest phone the LG Revolution is a great alternative at a reasonable price that will give you everything you need and with the power of Verizon’s 4G LTE service, it will give you it quickly.

For all the latest LG phones, you can check them out at http://www.lg.com/us/mobile-phones/view-all-phones/view-all-phones.jsp.

Here is your chance to win TWO one-year Pandora One Premium Subscriptions, 4 Movie Tickets a month for a year from MovieTickets.com and a $250 Open Table Dining Card!!

Over the next couple of weeks, I will release a series of clues.  If you can correctly guess what the clues are YOU WIN!  The first person with the correct guess wins all of the above mentioned Prizes!!

Each week two clues will be added to the contest page, until the correct answer is received.

http://gottahavegadget.com/contest-page/

I found a really cool gadget from Crosley Radio.  The Crosley Revolution™ turntable will truly rock your world.  Yes, that is right the Crosley Revolution™ plays record albums!  You remember those right?  The cool thing is the Crosley Revolution™ can play your 45s or full albums through your FM Stereo, through the built in speaker, or my favorite option you can connect it to your computer and record them into audio files which can be converted to MP3 files.  I know what you are saying, you can download the MP3 files on-line, guess what not every record is on iTunes!  Find those records in the basement you haven’t heard in years, convert them for your iPhone and rock out to your favorite tunes.  Another cool thing about the Crosley Revotution™ is it is portable.  It takes up very little space, and can run on AC or batteries making it easy for you to move all around your house.  It was fun to find records I have not downloaded, or couldn’t download and hear them again.  Check out the Crosley Revolution™ at www.crosleyradio.com.

With technology changing every day, there is a new computer, laptop, or tablet on almost everyone’s list.  However, when was the last time you changed your wireless router?  If it’s been a few years since you upgraded your router, you maybe slowing down your new device.  I recently upgraded to the Cisco Linksys E4200 Maximum Performance Wireless-N Router.  The key here is the simultaneous Dual-Band signal.  If you use new computers and old computers on a single band router, your new computer’s internet speed will slow down.  With TVs, Xbox, Computers, Laptops, Cell Phones and Tablets connected to your router, you need to upgrade.  Do you have “dead spots” in your house?  You know, the room that no matter where you put your router, you still can’t get a signal.  Try the Linksys RE1000!  What does RE stand for you ask?  Range Extender!  Just sync up the range extender to your router, then plug it into any outlet in your home or office, and BAM better signal!  I have the E4200 in my basement and an RE1000 on the third floor, and there isn’t a spot in the house that I don’t get a great wi-fi signal!  If you are a heavy multimedia user or gamer, you will be interested in the Linksys WES610N.  The WES610N is a 4-Port Dual-Band N Entertainment Bridge.  With so many TVs, DVRs and game systems that require internet access, if you were to hook them all up via network cables, you would need a hole in your wall the size of Rhode Island!  The WES610N picks up your wireless signal from the E4200 and allows you to plug in up to four devices.  With push button set-up, it couldn’t be easier to be wireless throughout your entire house!  Find the best router and accessories for your home at www.linksys.com.

PowerSkin iPhone 4S

Looking for some holiday swap gifts or some great stocking stuffers?  Do you know someone with a SmartPhone?  Of course you do, most 13 year old kids have one now.  What is the biggest complaint?  Battery power!   I have a PowerSkin for my iPhone and now I never have to worry about the battery.  I can surf the web all day, use the GPS for golf, make calls or check email and still have a full battery at the end of the day.  The PowerSkin is basically a protective case that has a second battery built into the case.  Find your PowerSkin at www.power-skin.com.

Well if you combine Xbox and great audio, you would have the next product, the Creative Sound Blaster Tactic3D Omega Headset.  OK, that is a mouthful; however the sound is an earful.  The first thing you should know is just because my loyalty is with Xbox, these headsets will play on any computer or gaming System.  What is really cool about this gaming headset is the surround sound.  Playing a game such as Left 4 Dead or Battlefield and you will know what direction your attacker is coming from, and not only left and right, but up and down!  If you think back a few years, Creative was the leader in audio sound with their “Sound Blaster” cards for your PC, they are taking gaming back with this headset.   Another cool feature of this system is you can customize and share audio settings.  There are so many cool and unique features in these headphones you have to visit us.creative.com to see them all!  All I can tell you is that if you have a gamer, they will love this headset!

Crosley iJuke

For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted a Jukebox! Tracking down a real 45’s (if you know what that is) record jukebox is next to impossible, so I turned to my friends at Crosley Radio! Known for their audio products, I knew Crosley would have something cool. The iJuke® Premier is a desktop jukebox which has an iPod dock and CD player. With blinking neon lights, and authentic jukebox look, this not only would look great in any game room, but it sounds great as well. Listen to your iPod or favorite CD using the fully functional remote control. The iJuke® Premier is lightweight, so on warm summer nights I bring it out on my deck and relax to my favorite tunes. My goal is to find a spot where I can upgrade to a full size Crosley Jukebox! If you have that person on your list who has a cool game room or mancave and is impossible to buy for, check out www.crosleyradio.com and check out all their unique audio products.

I’ve been a big fan of Xbox360!  I have reviewed several games and consider myself a gamer.  Then Kinect for Xbox 360 arrived!  Unlike most of the other motion games, you don’t need any wires or controllers for the Kinect system.  Out of the box and installed within minutes, I was dancing like a fool playing “Dance Central!” A camera records all your moves and interacts live with the game, I realized quickly I cannot dance, but we had a lot of fun playing.  We quickly moved over to “Kinect Sports,” so I could show off my true talents.  Boxing, soccer, bowling and a few more with no strings attached, I felt like Pinocchio when he was turned into a little boy. Plus sequel titles, “Dance Central 2” and “Kinect Sports: Season Two,” will be available this holiday.  For more intense workouts, try “EA Sports Active 2” or “The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout!”  If you think you can’t get a good workout from a video game, think again!  Try to dog it, and you will learn quickly what the personal trainers think of your effort!  No matter what Kinect games you chose, you will probably work up a good sweat and have a lot of fun.  So if that special someone has an Xbox 360, Kinect will be a great present!  Check out all Xbox has to offer, as well as Kinect games at www.xbox.com.  If you dare, check out my testing of Dance Central!!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cXjdDY4sfw

First things first, THANK YOU Microsoft for making this a multiplayer game!  I know most of the Xbox world plays on-line, but I’m an old school, have a couple beers with a buddy, shoot ‘em up guy!  Multiplayer two controller campaign games are becoming rare, so when Gears of War 3 showed up at the front door, I couldn’t wait to play.  You can actually have a four player co-op campaign going with Xbox Live, or grab a buddy and play on a split screen!  The Gears of War series is the most popular franchise in Xbox history.  I feel silly talking about graphics because honestly, is there a game around where the graphics don’t kick ass anymore?  However, just when I think graphics can’t get any better Gears of War 3 raises the bar.  The videos (some maybe a bit too lengthy) and game play are awesome.  I had to call my brother-in-arms neighbor Don up to check it out.  We had to pry Gears of War 3 away from my son, but once we started we couldn’t stop.  Gears of War 3 is a tactical battle game where the story line actually makes you want to go deeper into the game.  The Delta Team battle locust and critters that seem to pop out from everywhere.  Stick your head out for too long and it’s almost guaranteed to get shot off.  The good thing is in most cases a single shot won’t kill you, and the Delta Team is there to help you get back up should you be wounded.  A wide variety of weapons allows you to find one that works for best for you, and if you run out of ammo, you better hope you chose the Lancer with a chainsaw on the end!  If you think you are good on these types of games, you have to prove it in Gears of War 3!  You will need to beat the game first before unlocking the third level of difficulty.  The COG soldiers are gritty and damn tough looking.  There are plenty of funky enemies that have different levels of toughness to kill as well.  Dig in, and make sure you have time to play, because once you start, you may not be able to stop!  Check it out on-line at www.xbox.com/gearsofwar

It’s designed to hold everything a BBQ enthusiast needs so that they never have to leave the grill. It’s got places for your tools, pockets for your sauces and seasonings, loops for your lighter, a thermometer, a place for your smart phone, insulated beer pockets and The Chamber TM – a special sealed and insulated pocket that holds a spare unopened beer.  It also has a professional-grade “speed opener” – the kind you see bartenders use – attached to a heavy-duty retractable reel.  No more fumbling for a bottle opener and no more “misfires” because of a second-rate tool. This is a great feature at tailgates and backyard BBQ parties.  The Pit Boss is designed to be rugged and it looks the part.  Details include 1680 Denier fabric, heavy-duty double stitched seams, reinforced pocket stitching, and a die-cast belt buckle. With a regular tool belt, you never misplace your hammer or measuring tape. With the Pit Boss you’ll never misplace your tongs, sauce or a frosty beverage. Just like a regular tool belt, when you’re done with the job, hang up the belt and it’s all right there, ready for next time you grill.  The Pit Boss makes an outstanding gift for anyone who loves to grill, tailgate or for “the man who has everything”.  Available now at www.bbqpitbossbelt.com

There is nothing better than going to your local Hooters Restaurant to watch some football!  Unless of course you want to make it more interesting!  Watching football is great, betting while watching the game is awesome!  SportsActionBoard fits right on your coffee table at home, or roll it up and take it to your local Hooters!  Just roll it out on the table and let the fun begin!  No worries if you spill a drink or a little buffalo wing sauce, simply wipe it away and game on!  Bet with your friends on a 4^th and goal if your favorite team makes the touchdown or gets stuffed!  Let’s face it, you make predictions all the time when watching a game, make it more interesting with the SportsActionBoard!  Bet for real, or just have some fun!  Check them out on-line at www.sportsactionboard.com!

Finally, an infomercial that actually delivers what is promised!!  By now you have probably all seen the Pivotrim infomercial, if not you can see it on their website www.pivotrim.com.  Time and time again, I get infomercial products shipped to me and they end up in the trash.  The Pivotrim will be on my Ryobi trimmer for a long time!  I didn’t cut through any plywood, or chain link fence, but I did give it the works in my yard.  Most trimmers heads are great until that first time you run out and have to replace the trim line.  I have tried several different trimmer heads looking for one that I don’t have to replace the line 2 or 3 times while I am trimming.  I was a little skeptical when this arrived, but I installed in anyways.  The install was quick and easy, I was ready to go in under 5 minutes.  Like the last several times I have trimmed my lawn, I took a handful of replacement line so I wouldn’t be down long when it needed to be changed.  To my surprise, I didn’t have to change the line once!!  I thought I beat on this and deliberately hit rocks, bricks, light posts and anything else I thought would make the line break.  Not only did it NOT break, it didn’t even look like I used it!  Doing the same thing to any other trimmer line and I would have had to replace the line at least 3 times.  I really wanted the Pivotrim to work, and I was glad it did!  The Pivotrim is certainly a Gotta Have Gadget for your gas powered trimmer! Order yours today at www.pivotrim.com!

When sitting on the deck, there are a few guests you don’t want…..no not your in-laws, mosquitoes!  One item you will find on my Country Living Patio Set is the ThermaCELL® Mosquito Repellent Lantern.  This DEET-free, flame free lantern keeps the bugs away safely and uses a repellent that is a man-made copy of a natural insecticide found in chrysanthemum flowers.  The ThermaCELL® Lantern gives you a 15 x 15 foot zone of protection, which is perfect for your deck or patio.  If you are working out in your yard, or hiking, ThermaCELL® also makes an appliance  Mosquito Repellent, which is virtually odorless and completely portable   creating a 98 percent effective bug force field.  Both products operate on a single butane cartridge which heats up a repellent mat which keeps the mosquitoes away!  Another nice thing about ThermaCELL® is they are a New England company.  ThermaCELL Brands is a division of The Schawbel Corporation located in Bedford, MA.  These products are great to keep the bugs away; however they do not work on in-laws!  For all the ThermaCELL products and specifications, visit www.thermacell.com.

I love to have friends and family over for a cookout and hang out on my deck.  To make sure everyone is comfortable, I turned to Sears and the Country Living Ashmore 7-Piece Dining Set.  There are several things I look for when I shop for a patio set, the first and most important is how easy the set is to assemble.  Picked up at my local Sears warehouse, on my deck and assembled within 30 minutes!  I really like the fact that the top of the table are tiles instead of glass.  The tiles give the table a much nicer look and more “deck appeal” than a traditional glass top.  The other six pieces are of course chairs.  Four traditional chairs, and two that swivel and rock back, and one of those is of course saved for me.  There is nothing better than when the sun goes down, grabbing an ice cold beer and sitting back, rocking the stress away.  I was very impressed with the selection from Sears!  Take a trip to your local Sears or check out the selection online at www.sears.com.

Unless you have been cut off from all forms of communication, you might have heard that the Boston Bruins won the Stanley Cup!! So what does that have to do with summer? Even during the hot, and humid weather, you want to look cool. Antigua has a line of golf shirts that help you look great, and keep you cool. The Desert Dry™ line of golf shirts are light weight which trap less body heat, which in turns help you stay cool and dry. So right about now you are probably asking yourself what does that have to do with the Boston Bruins winning the Stanley Cup? Well, I happened to be out shopping for Stanley Cup gear and found a great looking golf shirt with the Bruins’ logo. It should have come as no surprise when I picked up the shirt and it was made by Antigua! One big selling feature for me is something Antigua doesn’t market, and that is that I can pull these shirts out of the dryer and put them right on, wrinkle free! Check out all the great styles for both him and her at www.antigua.com and shop.antigua.com!  For the Bruins shirt, you can purchase from the NHL shop, http://shop.nhl.com/entry.jsp?source=PE&entry=11744842

Does dad own a motorcycle? Cardo Systems’s G4 PowerSet is a Bluetooth headset that helps motorcyclists stay connected while riding. The Cardo System’s G4 PowerSet comes in a package of two that are paired together to help riders communicate with one another. The G4 Powerset has some great cool features. First you can communicate with another rider with a range of up to 1 mile! Secondly, with the Click-to-Link™ feature, if you see another rider with a G4 PowerSet, you can easily connect to communicate with that rider. Thirdly, with the multi-device connectivity, you can listen to your MP3 player or connect to your cell phone in addition to talking to your riding partner. Fourth, having the windscreen mouthpiece will reduce the amount of bugs in dad’s teeth! For more information or technical specs, visit them on-line at www.cardosystems.com.

Is dad always on the go?  Does he have to stay connected via his laptop?  If so, trying to find a wifi hotspot or paying $20 per day at a hotel is a pain.  Virgin Mobile’s MiFi® 2200 with Broadband2Go can give dad instant nationwide Sprint® 3G network coverage.  Dad can connect up to 5 Wi-Fi enabled devices to the 3G wireless internet with no contract needed!  It doesn’t matter if dad has a PC or Mac, the Virgin MiFi® 2200 can connect to either with very little set-up.  The pay as you go is probably the best feature of the MiFi® 2200 because dad can change his plan based on his personal needs with Broadband2Go plans as little as $10.  Backed by the Sprint® 3G Network, dad can find the coverage he needs.  Check it out at www.virginmobileusa.com.

If you can’t make it to your local Hooters to watch the big game, turn your living room into a theatre with the Casio Green Slim Projectors.  During the Super Bowl this year, I was projecting the game in stunning 1080i High Definition Video onto a screen that measured 9 feet x 5 feet!  Typically projecting an image that size you lose quality, however this was certainly NOT the case with the Casio XJ-A150 projector.  The Casio Green Slim projector is so easy to set-up; my 13-year old daughter had it up and running to watch a Boston Bruins game while I was out running errands.  One of the best features of the Green Slim projectors is the projector can run up to 20,000 hours without changing lamps with up to 3,000 lumens.  What does that mean to you and I?  It means a quality picture that your neighbors will be talking about for weeks!  You can connect to your laptop for stunning presentations, or use the HDMI input to connect to most High Definition video devices.  The sleek design which measures 11.69×8.26×1.69 (LxWxH) makes the Casio Green Slim Projector extremely portable.  I can’t wait to get this projector outside on a nice summer night to entertain the neighborhood with a game or movie.  For all the technical specs on the Casio Green Slim line of projectors, visit www.greenslimprojector.com.

T-Pro Golf Caddy is a cool app for the iPhone!  OK, I hear you asking, “what does it do?”  Well, the T-Pro Golf Caddy app is a series of short videos to help with your golf game.  I can’t tell you how many times I have been on the tee box trying to figure out if I open the club face or close the club face to hit a draw.  Well, with this app, all I have to do is go to the main menu and select the shot I am trying to hit.  In this case it, I hit the “driving” button which brings me to another menu.  There my choices are “Straight Drive”, “Draw”, “Fade” “Hybrid” or “Par 3 knock down shot”.  I click on “Draw” and quickly, Ted & Buck shows me in 1 minute and 13 seconds how to hit the draw shot.  My only wish is I could execute it as good as Buck in the video.  There are videos for every part of your golf game.  From the main menu, you can choose “Golf Swing”, “Driving”, “Thru the Green”, “Bunker Play”, “Short Game”, “Trouble Shots”, “Putting”, “Practice Area” or “T&B Tips”.  There is a video for any shot you want to hit, or it seems like any situation you can get on the course.  You have all seen the tour caddies giving advice, well this is your tour caddy!  Now, I wouldn’t recommend going out with your buddies and watching a video before every shot, what I do is watch a few videos while I am eating lunch.  Another great way to use this app, is to take it to the driving range.  The app cost is $9.99 available in the app store.  You should be able to get that back by improving your score and winning a few bets!  Check them out on-line at http://www.tedandbuckgolf.com/

If you walk while you play golf, check out the new Clicgear 3.0 push cart.  This is the third version of the popular 3-wheel push cart.  The folks at Clicgear took feedback from users and incorporated the best of the best into version 3.  The thing I like most about the Clicgear 3.0 cart is that it does not take up a lot of room in the trunk of my car.  This allows me to keep the Clicgear 3.0 in my trunk at all times ready to get the call to go play.  Another added bonus is all the accessories available for the Clicgear 3.0 cart.  Accessories include a wheel cover, shoe brush, warm mitt for cold days, a cup holder and more!  You can now purchase the clicgear 3.0 on their website at www.clicgearusa.com!

I spent the day playing cornhole, and it was great not worrying about having my beverage knocked over or wondering what the score was!  With the Backyard Barkeep, I have a place to not only hold my beer, but open it with the built in bottle opener, and keep score for my favorite game!  It doesn’t matter if you play horseshoes, washer, bocce, or if you are playing in your yard or tailgating, you will always need a place to hold your beer and keep score!  The Backyard Barkeep does all that for you!  The Backyard Barkeep includes two sturdy drink holders and sturdy base, two coozies, a scorecard and two score keeping clips!  Check them out at www.backyardbarkeep.com!

Are you a fan of Hooters?  Show off your Hooter’s Orange with style, check out the Arnette Fire Drill Glasses.  These limited edition stylish glasses have a matte black frame with neon orange stems.  Now if you are interested, they do come in other colors, however think of how good you would look walking into your favorite Hooters Restaurant wearing the black and neon orange glasses!  These glasses feature a large square frame and have polarized or non-polarized lens options. Read the rest of this entry »

There’s an app for that!  Well, actually there are a ton of navigation apps!  A few months ago, I reviewed the Magellan RoadMate 3065 (http://gottahavegadget.com/?p=871) so I was anxious to put the RoadMate App to the test.  To my surprise, the Magellan RoadMate app had all the functions of the stand alone GPS.  If you are a data subscriber, you even get the Magellan Traffic Updates (in select areas).  I never really liked using my iPhone for a GPS as the battery seemed to drain quickly, Magellan took care of that with the Magellan Premium Car Kit!  Read the rest of this entry »