There Otter Be a Better Way...

Product: iPhone 3G Defender Case
Manufacturer: Otterbox
Price: $49.95

A small but growing company, Otterbox continues to impress me with their line of technology cases. You may have seen my Blackberry Curve case review a couple months ago. Well, now it's time to tell you about the case that started it all (for my family), the iPhone 3G Defender series case. As far as I'm concerned, there is no better way to protect the iPhone. We've actually tried 5 other cases, $149 at the high end and $9 at the low end.  Every time we went back to the Otterbox Defender. Read on to learn why I have purchased 2 of these cases (one for each iPhone) and why I'll do it again for anything else I own that they make a case for.

Lift That Laptop. 

Product: Laptop Lift
Manufacturer: Great Products Group^2
Price: $29.95

I met George Gruber, the designer of Laptop Lift, in a small booth at the back of south hall on my last day of CES 2009. As I was walking through the isles one last time, a clear laptop model caught my eye.  I went over to talk to the man running the booth and he demonstrated the product to me. He told me about how the simple act of lifting the laptop off your desk improves airflow and the natural cooling abilities already built into the computer. Not only that, but setting the laptop at an angle helps with eye, neck and wrist fatigue of the user. After a short demonstration, I was hooked. I'd been looking for something like this for a while - small, light, portable way to get my laptop off the desk at an angle to improve cooling and ergonomics.  I knew at once that this product needed to get out there in the world and people such as you needed to know about it. As of right now it is not carried in any stores in the USA, but can be ordered directly from Great Products Group ^2. I hope that will change soon and George can get some great US distributors.

What Goes Around Just Might Come Around. 

Last year GameTechWorld created a new holiday. “Buy a Friend a Game Day” is meant to ease the woes of tax crunch and takes place April 16th, this Thursday. “Buy a Friend a Game Day” is meant to be a playful, friendly gesture to amongst your fellow gamers. You don’t have to buy your friends a game that’s hundreds of dollars. A $5 downloadable game will do, but if you really lke your friend get them something they will enjoy! Find a friend who’s had a rough year and do something nice. I don’t want to hear any of the El Cheapos again this year complaining “Why should I spend my money on someone else?” If you have to ask that question you should probably ponder your part in the gaming community.

If you have a friend who helps you out this year, do the right thing; come on by here and give them a shout out!

Pleading Your Case for Size.

Product: Matrix
Manufacturer: InWin
MRSP: $109.99

InWin has been kind enough to send another computer case our way for review purposes. This time we’re graced with the Matrix MicroATX Computer Case. From the get-go I can tell you that this is definitely not the case for high-end PC users, but what MicroATX case is? If you’re a user looking for a clutter-free set-up and space is definitely a concern of yours, the Matrix may be just what you are look for.

 ...And Down Will Come Cellphone...

Product: Defender Series™ for BlackBerry® Curve™
Manufacturer: Otterbox
Price: $49.95

Otterbox creates specialized cases for phones and other electronics. A small but growing company, the cases Otterbox has created are amazingly tough and molded for each phone model. Here I'll be reviewing the case for BlackBerry Curve. I recieved the case a few weeks ago and wanted to give a good amount of time in use before my review. Being in the IT field, you might not think that I would need such a sturdy case. It is amazing, however, how many times a person will drop a phone. Ok ok, it's amazing how many times I will drop a phone. Now normally it falls on soft carpet at home, but at work the carpet has no padding underneath.

Drop And Give Me 850, Soldier!

Product: Commander 850w PSU
Company: InWin
MSRP: $250

Today’s computers, especially gaming rigs, have become power-hungry beasts. I can attest to this by sheer fact that I have 3 power rigs in my office running multi-core processors, multi-core graphics cards and even multiple graphics cards. Today we’re taking a look at the Commander Series 850w PSU from InWin. As with all electronics I receive for review, the Commander PSU sat for a nice, long 72-hour total burn-in period to test its durability and heat. How did it hold up? You’ll just have to read on to find out.

Is That a Ninja In Your Pants... 

Title: Tenchu: Shadow Assassins
Developer/Publisher: Acquire/Ubisoft
Platforms: Wii
Release Date: 02/03/09
Number of Players: 1

I'll admit readily that I am a ninja fan. I'm not saying I'm good at ninja games, but I love them for some reason. I think it is the sneaky stealthiness that I love, and the close-combat weapons. Sure, a BMG is great but nothing satisfies like dropping from the rafters and breaking a neck. You know what I mean? Ok, maybe you don't...but if you really are a ninja game fan, I'm sure you are curious about the Tenchu game from Acquire.

When You Want Your Computer To Sneak Up On You...

Product: B2
Manufacturer: InWin
MSRP: $140

I’ve actually had this case for a couple weeks now but I had to order some new parts to put it to use (or gut my existing 79lbs gaming rig… which I was not up to doing). On top of that, I like to give computer hardware a 72 hour burn-in period where I let the unit run for 72 hours straight, no breaks, no rest, just running at peak level for 72 hours. Being a computer case one would think this is an unnecessary task, but the B2 actually has a lot of bells and whistles that needed scrutinizing. And scrutinize I did.