My first Mac I ever owned was a 2009 white unibody Macbook. I thought it was the coolest gadget on the block, until I realized there were more. After that, I ended up modifying my Macbook a little bit and then it began to slow down. I finally figured, it was time for an upgrade. Call me crazy, but I purchased an 11″ Macbook Air with an Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB of RAM, and a 128GB SSD (Solid State Drive). Despite my doubts, I did not make a bad choice. This has to be the smallest notebook I have seen outperform a 15 inch Macbook Pro from 2010. First of all, I was stunned it defeated a Macbook Pro and on how fast the laptop actually is due to the SSD. An SSD is a solid-state memory module that you can find on most iPad’s, iPod’s, and iPhone’s in the

Apple product line. Apple making a decision to integrate this into laptops was their best yet. Now, lets to the laptop itself. The Macbook Air is 0.68 inches at its thickest point and 0.11 inches at its thinnest point. The weight of the laptop is only 2.38 pounds and it sports an 11 inch screen. The pixel resolution on the laptop is 1366×768 compared my old laptop which had a resolution of

1280×720 pixels, so this was a pretty big jump. In the box, you get a charger, manuals, and some really sweet Apple stickers. I am currently using a case on this laptop, and the case is made by Speck. The

Macbook gets an average life to around 5 hours with screen brightness set to medium and laptop brightness turned off. Oh yes, I forgot to mention, it comes with a backlit keyboard! This is great for anybody who is on the go and is often in dark rooms or just when there is no light. Here are some pictures of the laptop. Now, if you want to see a whole series I am doing on the laptop, head over to my channel and check that out. My final rating for this laptop would be an 9.5/10. The reason why give such a shy rating is the graphics card. The graphics card in this computer is an Intel 3000 HD graphics. Its not a WEAK graphics card, but rather a low-end one. Thank you for reading my review!

I’ve owned Razer gear my entire life. They make awesome gaming peripherals with quality you just don’t see on average mice. Today I’ll be taking a look at one of Razer’s mice, the DeathAdder – Transformers 3 Edition. Here are some of the notable specs before we begin with the full review:

Design

Let me just say outright that there is little difference between the original Razer DeathAdder, and the Transformers 3 edition. The slight changes that you see between the two are purely aesthetic. That actually is a really good thing, as the DeathAdder is one of the most superior gaming mice on the market right now, only being bested by it’s big brother, the Mamba.

One of the most obvious factors of the mouse you see when you get your Transformers DeathAdder for the first time, is the bold design. My first word when opening the box was “WOW”. I got the Bumblebee variant, which is a brightish yellow, but the colors range with all the different Transformers. I can assure you, if you’re looking for a subtle mouse, this not your mouse. Each DeathAdder comes with a glowing Transformers symbol in the place of the Razer logo on the original DeathAdder, which matches the style of the mouse. I noticed that the light pulses depending on whether or not you’re using the mouse or not. One thing to note is that because of this light, the mouse can get quite hot with long hours of summer play. I don’t really like the glossed plastic effect they used on the body of the mouse, it just feels quite cheap. The rubber-ish style which you find on the original.

Performance

A truly awesome thing about having Transformers branding and Razer performer, is that you get the best of both words. During my play-tests with various games, I found the DeathAdder to be extremely responsive, and easy to manipulate. Trickshotting and sniping in games like Modern Warfare 3 were a breeze, because of the on-the-fly sensitivity changes, and the long hours of building in Minecraft was manageable. Unfortunately you do have to install the Razer drivers before DPI and other aspects of the mouse such as the lights become changeable, but this isn’t a huge deal as Razer’s site is easy to navigate, and I was up and running in no time.

The scroll-wheel and buttons on the mouse were fine just like any other Razer mouse I’ve used, but they didn’t blow me a way. The buttons are completely made of plastic, and the scroll-where is generally quite lightweight, and doesn’t allow the “rubber-banding” effect you see in high-quality wheels. For the average gamer however, they will do the job nicely.

To sum it up, I would recommend the Razer DeathAdder Transformers 3 Edition to people that are really into Transformers. There is isn’t much reason to spent the $10 or so for the brand. The performance you get with Razer mice is unparalleled though, so if you are into Transformers, or just want a vibrant-looking gaming mouse, this would be a good choice. The DeathAdder goes for $70 retail, but you can find it on Amazon for just over $50.

Otterbox Reflex Series for iPhone 4S

For the last month, my iPhone has been sporting the Reflex Series case from Otterbox. The case is designed to give the signification protection Otterbox provides, while not being as bulky as say the Impact or Defender Series cases. The Reflex is a two-part case; one half having the cutout for the camera, 3.5mm headphone jack, and silent/vibrate toggle; with the other half having a single huge cutout for the 30-pin dock connector, speaker, and microphone.

The back side of the case is composed out of a hard plastic and rubber. The rubber, theoretically, is to make the case react as if when you drop it, it’s a car crash, and your iPhone is the person inside being protected. The rubber absorbs the shock from the drop, and releases it at different points in the case.

There is a large-enough cutout for the camera, lined in rubber. Also, Otterbox placed a logo on the rear-bottom of the case.

The volume button covers have a rubber coating, which take a bit of force to press. This is the same case for the sleep/wake button. The silent/vibrate switch is left completely open, and is large enough to accommodate the AT&T or Verizon iPhone 4. This case is also compatible with all models of the iPhone 4S.

The Reflex Series is available in five different colors: black plastic with black rubber (as pictured above), grey plastic with black rubber, turquoise plastic with black rubber, hot pink with black rubber, and dark green plastic with black rubber. The first four colors will run you $34.95, and the dark green with be $29.95.

Coming with a front screen shield, the case is defiantly a good buy. It was a little bulkier than I expected, though not too bulky. The plastic is also a lot harder than I imagined, but again, it wasn’t a big deal. I think my only gripe about this case is that the headphone jack is too thick to accommodate my headphones. However, with the top portion of the case easy to slide off, it isn’t really a big deal.

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Hey all you hardcore gamers out there! I’m coming to you with a new review of Astro Gaming’s new product the Astro A40 wireless system.

While previously owning the Turtle Beach x11s, I decided that I needed to take the leap to the highest level of gaming headphones out there. After researching review after review, I narrowed it down to three choices: The Astro A40s, Triton AX720 Pros, and the Turtle Beach x41s. I finally decided to go with the Astros due to their capability of use in gaming events.

To start off, there are many different types of Astros out there, and these are the ones I got: http://www.astrogaming.com/wireless-systems-1/a40-wireless-systems/a40-wireless-system-mlg

When I first received them, I was amazed by how awesome the packaging was. It came with two seperate boxes, one for the mixamp and one for the headset. The boxes had magnets inside of them for easy opening and closing without having to rip, and had several cases inside for extra wires and even the headset. These Astros came with everything you could think of, from a guitar plug in to computer splitter cables, Astro really gave it all. But, enough with the boxing, lets get to the product.

Setup:

Although it says on the website that these are wireless, do not be fooled; the link between the two mixamps is wireless instead of being daisychained. So, to setup the Astros, there is one mixamp near the xbox that plugs into the wall and the hdmi port which sends and receives messages from the other mixamp. The mixamp that you have to keep on you at all times, is hooked up to your controller and your headset. This is connected by wires, so watch out for that. If you are going to be playing in any MLG, PCL or Lan events, you have to get the wired headset. The headphones can be unplugged really easily, which makes for easy use, storage and comfortability.

Headphones with Mixamp RX:

From my experience, the Astros are nothing without the RX mixamp system. With built in Dolby 7.1 surround sound in the speakers, the audio performance is amazing. However, if you’re going to be playing Call of Duty seriously and you need to hear someone’s footsteps, you need the RX .On the RX there is a button that lets you amplify the bass. This allows for hearing the most minuscule things that would have otherwise gone unheard. Using these headphones for gaming does take a little time to get used to because you can hear absolutely everything. They are a truly one of a kind gaming headset, and have the best sound quality out there.

Durability/Customer Service:

The Astro A40s are the most durable headset I have found. From previous experience it seemed if you looked at a Tritton the wrong way it would break. The shell of the headset is strong plastic with a comfortable pad in between. The ears are adjustable via spring and the ear pads are very nice. Now, Astro is known for their wonderful customer service. Just the other day one of my cords started to act up causing my right ear to muffle. I sent in an email and within hours they sent me a shipping order of a new part. It is one of a kind service you can’t find anywhere else.

Speaker tags:

This headset has a unique feature where each ear has a magnetic ear cover over it. You can buy the specially made ones (for example MLG) or you can have them customized to just the way you want it. Whether its your gamertag, team, or even a picture of you, you can do it. They are easily detachable and are a very cool way to customize your headset.

Overall:

Overall I would give the Astro A40 MLG Edition a 9.5/10. They are the best gaming headset on the market, legal for competetive tournaments, and are overall a  great company. The only thing is that they are a whopping $280 which is very expensive. But if you’re going to buy a nice headset, buy these.

Moo business cards have been the top-dog in creative business cards for a while now, and they’re looking to expand to Facebook. Recently, they announced their partnership with the fabled social networking company, to bring the Facebook timeline offline. They also launched the new cards with a promotion to make the first 200,000 orders free, on a first come, first served basis. I managed to snag myself a pack of the cards, and got them in the mail today,  after I ordered them only a few days ago. Pretty fast service if you ask me. You can still grab yourself a free pack over at their Moo page.

I have to say, the quality isn’t AS good as the Moo cards I paid for a few months ago, but that’s expected with 100% free business cards. That being said, they are very nice business cards. Here you see the front of one the cards, with my Facebook profile picture, and one of the timeline pictures I uploaded. When you purchase the cards, you have the option to select a certain amount of the timeline pictures you’ve used since starting Facebook. Everything else on this side is pretty much automatic, showing the city and state where you live, and your current job.

The back is a little more customizable, giving you options to define your phone number, and email address. You can also put in a quote, or some other text, that will be displayed on the back of the card. It would have been nice for Moo to allow use of other Facebook pictures on the backside, but you can’t get everything you want when getting free business cards. If you haven’t already, do go to the Moo page, to get your own Facebook business cards for free. You don’t have to pay a penny. After the promotion ends, a pack of 50 cards will cost over $15.

The rear side of the Kindle Fire.

A few weeks ago back, Amazon released the latest and greatest installment to their Kindle lineup- the Kindle Fire. If you’re like me and you got  in the month of December, you’re still tinkering with it, download books and apps, and doing tablet-ish things with it. If you’re still debating on if you should get one, look no further than this article.

Design

The Kindle Fire in sleep mode.

The Kindle Fire has a very simple design. With it’s 7-inch LCD IPS display surrounded by a nice, black bezel, the Kindle looks both professional and simple. On the back we find a nice, rubbery-plastic, that is easy to grip. However, I usually find that when I hold my Kindle, I hold it with my entire hand around it, because it’s so small. We also find on the back an engraved ‘kindle’  logo, along with the Amazon logo. The only grip I really have with the design is that the sleep-wake/power button is on the bottom, which is a little awkward to get to. I wish they would have put it on the top, or at least on the side. Speaking of the top, up there we find two stereo speakers, which I found to be very good. Sure, they aren’t Bang & Olufsen’s, but for a tablet, they get the job done. I also wish the Fire had a volume rocker on the side, being the only way to adjust the volume is to pull down the menu in the operating system.

Operating System

Amazon used their own version of Android for Kindle Fire. On my Kindle, the only software version it displays is “6.2.1_user_3103920″. Whatever that means. I cannot find a place in the actual operating system that tells me what exactly the version of Android it is.

The lock screen, in my opinion, is terrible. The lock slider goes from right to left, and when you think reading a book, you read from left to right. It almost seems like Amazon was trying too hard to make the Kindle Fire different. Heck, at least keep the normal lock screen from Android. Another grip about the lock screen is that I have not found one way to change the wallpaper. Amazon has loaded about twelve different photos on it, and I have not found away to change them. Very frustrating. I could go on for days about things that I don’t care for in the operating system. It has a lot of work to go under.

My current system version.

Bottom Line

At $199, the price is hard to beat. I think, however, that the Kindle Fire is almost too in the middle. What I mean by this is that it’s little brother is of course the original Kindle, and it’s big bro, the iPad. I think if I just wanted a normal e-reader, I would go with the Kindle. If I wanted more, the iPad. The Kindle Fire is just too much of a compromise. I would like to see a better operating system (and Amazon, when I say better, I want you to scrap the one now and start anew), and a front-facing camera.

There is one reason to me, why the Travel Express beats a lot of cases I’ve used; the case has space for things other than just the laptop itself. Like a lot of other kids these days, I take my laptop to school, to take notes and other write documents. The thing is, I don’t use my computer for absolutely everything, and I’m sure that is true for a lot of other people. Luckily, there is a whole compartment for holding various items, such as documents, chargers, cables, and anything you might need to take with you on a day-to-day basis. Unfortunately, it doesn’t include a pen/pencil holder,  which was a little frustrating to me as I do carry several around with me during school. The Travel Express isn’t just limited to school use though, as I have been using it on my trip to Mexico, and it does exceedingly well at carrying around all the necessary cables that I use on my trip.

As far as protection goes, the Travel Express does a fine job at protecting your MacBook Air for drops, scratches, and other damage to the device to your expensive investment. The laptop itself is separated from the rest of the bag in a more protective compartment, so your other accessories don’t get in the way. The only complaint I have is that the zipper gets quite close to the computer on the case corners, and I’m always worried about getting the corners of my computer scratched on it. That being said, for the most part this case will do nicely to keep your laptop safe.

On the outside of the Travel Express, WaterField has used a slightly bumpy texture, which is actually quite stiff, and doesn’t provide much movement in the case. I’m sure this adds to the protection aspect of the case, which is definitely a good thing. The only other notable design aspect is the colorful band leading around the entire outside shell. I think WaterField could have done a slightly better job at adding to the design, but a necessary sacrifice to keep the cost down. This case is still very eye-catching, and showcases your MacBook Air for it’s sleek design.

The MacBook Air Travel Express by WaterField costs $89 for the 13″ version, and $79 for the 11″, which is quite an investment for a laptop case, but is sure to last the entire duration of your laptop’s life, and most likely longer. It is very protective, good for school, trips, vacations and everywhere else you need to take your MacBook Air. It would make a great gift for anyone expecting a shiny new MacBook Air under the tree this year, and would make a good stocking-stuffer. You can buy this case on WaterField’s website here.

The SoundBender - Small Doesn't Mean Weak

To all iPad users, you’ve probably noticed that the iPad’s speakers location on the back of the iPad causes the volume of music to drop dramatically and lose clarity. Then I heard of the SoundBender, which is a small, powerless device that magnetically attaches to iPads and redirects the direction of the soundwaves towards you. I’ll admit it. When I first got my hands on a SoundBender I had my doubts. I didn’t think it would be able to direct sound as well as it was described to be. I was utterly wrong.

The first time is attached this device onto my iPad 2 the difference in volume absolutely shocked me. The quality of the iPad 2 speakers are maintained, and the focus of the sound being emitted comes towards the user, rather than going away from you. I love how the SoundBender doesn’t need batteries, and simply magnetically attaches itself into place at the speaker location. Now, there are a few small problems that come along with the SoundBender’s simplicity. First of all, it’s not going to work with iPad cases that completely or partially enclose the speakers. My Quiksilver Hard Back Shell case fits nicely with the SoundBender, but many other cases will not. Secondly, the SoundBender isn’t the most attractive of all accessories. It’s presence was quite prominent to me, mainly due to clash between the red of the SoundBender and the white of my iPad. However, if you get a color that matches your style, you’re good to go. A third issue is the magnet strength. The magnet that holds the SoundBender in place is strong, but not strong enough to withstand a light bump directly to the SoundBender. If you are watching a movie without moving the iPad, no problem. But if you are carrying the iPad around with the SoundBender attached, it’s going to fall off.

A perfect fit

To receive your very own SoundBender, visit the SoundBender’s KickStarter site at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1922462513/soundbender and make a donation of at least $10 to help them get the SoundBender funded. Oh, and trust me, even though there are some troubles, it’s worth the investment.

A video interview with the creator of this awesome iPad accessory is coming soon.

Panorama of my Office

So, as you can see, this app takes panoramic photos. All you have to do is move your device around, and the app will automatically take pictures. As you keep taking more and more pictures, the app figures out your surroundings. When your finished, Photosynth “stitches” your photos together, again, to figure out the big picture. Obviously, the app has some MAJOR work to go under, but the interface is nice, and with practice, may be extremely cool and fun to use.

Now, since this is made by Microsoft, they had to include all of their Bing connectivity, which I do not use. You can also share to Facebook, Bing Maps (*sigh*), Photosynth.net, email, or your camera roll.  Of course, this is an iOS only app, so you Android users will just have to wait.

Overall, I think this is a great app. It may be a little tricky to use, but you will soon get the hang of it. Also, since it is available for free, you have to get it.