Tuxtops

Early in 2006 HTC Prophet (Qtek S200) was launched '“ the last communicator the company released before getting to have an own HTC brand. The same platform is made use of by a navigation communicator HTC P3300 (Artemis) and a QWERTY-slider HTC P4350 (Herald). The latter offering is actually being stared upon in this review. And finally, the company has come up with a pair of 3G-enabled models: HTC TyTN (Hermes) and HTC P3600 (Trinity). So, we have five products in sum, running on only two stand-alone platforms.

A mobile web page that let's you access the best J2ME phone applications created so far. The page will prove helpful to users who just got a new cellphone or reseted their existing one and are in need of re-installing their Java applications as quickly as possible.

Geeks.com sent us in for a review this BUSlink Bluetooth Car Kit w/Caller ID and LCD screen. Read on for more.

Now that in California there is a new law that prohibits people to use their cellphones while driving, this handsfree kit can definitely amend the situation. The unit has a caller ID a full Dial KeyPad, call Transfer support, apeaker volume and gain control, support voice dialing, incoming call voice, echo Free Sound, low Battery Indication while it mounts on car sun visor.

In the box you will find a Li-Ion rechargeable battery, a sun visor clip, a 12V car power adapter and a users manual. The device is very light and so when mounted to the sun visor it didn't bring it down. It uses Bluetooth V1.2 and it has a range of 33 ft. It has a talk time of 4 hours (at which point you can recharge it using your car's cigarette lighter) and a standby time of 100 hours. It has a memory of 30 Calls.

Using it might take you a bit of getting used to, as there are quite a few buttons and only a small LCD to indicate the various statuses. Regardless, the basic functionality is pretty easy to get into. Audio quality is very good, it's clear, loud and everyone in the car can clearly listen to the speaker.

We tested the device with a Sony Ericsson W810i and a Nokia handset and it proved fully compatible with the unit.

If you care about your safety, then get this Buslink handsfree kit for your car. You won't regret it.

Rating: 9/10

Pepper Computing's Linux-powered, x86-compatible PepperPad 3 continues to rack up rave reviews. CarryPad.com publisher Steve Paine calls the device a "hackable gem of a mobile PC," while Pocketables.net publisher Jenn K. Lee devotes nearly 3,000 words to "delightful stuff" about the product.

Geeks.com sent us in the "Oriental Rug Style Mouse Pad" for a review. Check in for more.

I've been using and testing this mouse pad for a few days now and I must say that it's one of the best mouse pads I have ever used. Not only it looks cool and hippy, but it works great with either optical or rolling ball mice. I always hated the "plasticky" feel of some cheap mousepads that make the mouse jump too fast or too slow and have an impact on the precision you are using your mouse for. This product does not have this problem. It feels like a real cloth-like mousepad that it's even machine washable! Don't pass on this deal, it's a great mousepad at $6. Rating: 10/10

VajaCases sent us in their iVod nano SP case, for the 1st Generation iPod Nano. It has easy access to all functions, a screen protector, access to Headphone jack & Dock connector, syncs and charges through Apple travel cable, there are several colors available, it has optional clip systems & click wheel protector. Read more.

[Special thanks to Jean-Baptiste Queru for testing the case for us.]

I've been using a Vaja case for my 1st generation iPod nano for the last few weeks. The case is an i-volution SP, red and blue (pretty much the same colors as the original Ford GT40 that won Le Mans in 1969, i.e. red and blue, but they're swapped compared to the color scheme of the classic race car).

The construction of the case is top-notch. The iPod slips in smoothly and doesn't slide out on its own, but can be removed without a problem. For a moment I was worried that the junction between the colors would not hold for long, but it still looks as good today as it did when I take it off its box, so I guess that it'll hold just fine.

The materials are excellent. I've carried the case in my pocket for a few weeks, and it doesn't show a single sign of damage or wear. It's made of really good leather. I'm confident that it can last a long time.

I have two gripes, though:

-the (optional) protection for the click wheel gets quite in the way - I found that scrolling around or pressing the menu zone aren't quite easy as they are on the naked iPod, such that it can't be used "by instinct". I primarily use my nano in shuffle mode, so I don't use the wheel a lot, but I'd find the issue annoying in a situation where I'd carry my entire music collection, e.g. if I had a hard-drive-based iPod. Since the protection is optional, I'd recommend not getting it

-because the iPod slips through the top of the case but the headphones connector of the nano is at the bottom, the jack ends up being recessed quite deep. This isn't a problem with the headphones that come with the iPod, and it end up being barely OK with my Sony E828LP headphones, but the larger jack of my Sony XD400 headphones simply doesn't fit in. The issue wouldn't exist if the case was designed to insert the iPod through the bottom and if the case was designed to have exactly the right height; unfortunately with such a design the dock connector wouldn't be nearly as well protected.

Overall though, this is one of the best Nano cases out there, luxurious and functional.

Get your own iVod Nano SP case from here.

For better or for worse, we're about full-circle with Garnet now: Palm just forked over $44 million to ACCESS for a perpetual, non-exclusive license to the Garnet source code, granting Palm "the right to use Palm OS Garnet in whole or in part in any product from Palm and together with any other system technologies," along with the welcome ability to modify underlying Garnet source code.

Taiwan-based e-book specialist eRead is shipping a Linux-based electronic book reader featuring an electrophoretic (aka electronic paper) display (EPD). The low-power, thin, light-weight Star eBook STK-101 can be used to read as many as 60 books on a single charge, the company claims.

Trolltech's Linux/Qtopia-powered Greenphone aims to provide a real (rather than emulated) hardware platform for mobile phone application developers to test their applications on. This hands-on review takes an in-depth look at the phone's software environment, and at the development tools supplied with the phone.

All you Motorola Junkies should be pretty ecstatic now since the Motorola MOTOROKR E6 has officially announced for the worldwide market! According to Motorola, the E6 is a "new flagship PDA" and promises to be an one stop solution to all your multimedia needs!