Author Archives: Stephen Hackett

Adobe Lightroom 5 Beta

Adobe Lightroom is the go-to app for many professional photographers, and it’s about to get a big update. The new version boasts better healing tools, more powerful vignette options, off-line editing and more. The beta is free, and you check it out here.

Seagate Wireless Plus Hard Drive

If you’ve got an SSD-equipped Mac, you know the pain juggling files can be. Most MacBook Air users I know have at least one external drive for stuff they can’t fit on their machines. The Seagate Wireless Plus drive takes that concept and applies it to iOS devices. Put the 1TB drive on your network, fire up the free Seagate Media app…

Status Board for iPad

While I love my iPad, during the work day, it often sits on my desk, off. The guys over at Panic Software are trying to change that, with their new app for Apple’s tablet. Status Board for iPad is a new $10 iPad app that takes the concepts of widgets and the OS X dashboard and brings it to the iPad. The…

“America The Beautiful” Field Notes

Look, our love of of Field Notes notebooks is well-documented, but while it may sound familiar, we keep falling in love with the these things. The new “America The Beautiful” series is here, and it’s a big departure from previous offerings. The three-set showcases thee different, all-color covers, “Spacious Skies,” “Amber Waves,” and “Mountain Majesty.” The paper is ruled (which makes me…

The Writer’s iPad

Despite what critics claim, the iPad is a device made for creation. In his new book, Thord Daniel Hedengren discusses iOS’ built-in apps, third-party apps, keyboards and details about cloud services. In it, he builds the case that iOS — and the iPad — is a great writing tool. The one-app-at-a-time model can cut down on distractions, and the iPad’s great battery…

Booq Courier Messenger Bag

While Chris’ post yesterday is fine and all, I like my bags a bit darker. A bit more menacing, if you will. Enter the Booq Courier. Dressed in graphite nylon on the outside, with a herringbone nylon interior. This particular example is for a 13-inch laptop, but the company makes other sizes, too. Reflective piping lines the edges, making it a nice…

Bluelounge Mika Stand

While we like Apple’s Smart Cover for iPad, it doesn’t do a great job for those times we need to sit an iPad upright. The Bluelounge Mika sets out to pinch-it in this situation. With a design inspired by the foot on the iMac, this aluminum stand has rubber stops on each end to keep your tablet safe and sound — and…

The Vamp

Got an old-school stereo, but don’t want to add an AirPort Express to get AirPlay working with it? Well, if Bluetooth audio is your jams, this Kickstarter project might just be the ticket. The 4 watt peak single channel amplifier has Bluetooth built-in, letting you beam audio from your smartphone or tablet to your stereo. £45 will get you the cube in…

Gramatica for Instagram

The fact that Instagram doesn’t have an iPad app is a first-world problem that annoys a lot of nerds I know. Gramatica is a new iOS app that not only brings Instagram to the iPad, but offers powerful tools for the service on the iPad and iPhone. Think of this app like Tweetbot. It’s a client, but one that adds lists, filters…

‘Your First iOS App’ eBook

Ash Furrow is a well-known iOS app developer with a great goal: teaching people how to program. His Indiegogo project is all about it, in fact. Ash’s new project is an ebook titled Your First iOS App. In it, Ash will cover the basics of Objective-C and iOS-specific topics. It’s more than a book, however. Here’s what Ash’s project entails: In exchange…

Textastic for Mac OS X

Textastic, the fantastic iPad text editor is now available for the Mac. The app packs in support for 80 source code and markup languages, iCloud auto-save and OS X’s Versions. Built with the ability to import syntax definitions, themes and templates from TextMate, moving to this text editor should be pretty seamless for many users. It’s on sale for just $2.99 on…

RAM Mount Universal X-Grip Holder

While iPhone car mounts I’ve used in the past have been flimsy and weak, this $50 suction cup smartphone mount doesn’t look like either. Built with “Marine-grade” aluminum and plastic, this mount comes with a lifetime warranty. The 4 pressure points that hold the phone are spring-loaded, so they’re tight, but easy to pull off. The suction cup is designed to stick…

Wahoo Fitness Blue Cycling Speed & Cadence Sensor

Whether I’m on the trails on riding my bike to work, I use Map My Ride to track of my miles, speed, etc. While it’s not perfect, it’s simple. I start the app on my iPhone 5, stick it in my bag, and start pedaling. While bike computers are cheaper and simpler to use than ever, I like that I can keep…

OpenFrame

While I don’t have many of them hanging anymore, many of my posters from college have had their corners destroyed by years of taping, tacking and stapling to numerous walls. The OpenFrame is a Kickstarter project that tackles this problem head-on. Each frame is built using birch plywood, birch veneer, and stainless steel, with a with a clear lacquer finish. Thanks to…

Basil for iPad

The iPad has infiltrated our lives in a ton of unique ways. It is portable, light and has great battery life. One of these ways is in the kitchen. While Safari is fine for searching and reading recipes, there’s a better way: Basil. Built for the iPad, Basil can be used to search for, collect, organize and record recipes. With tags and…

The 10-Year Hoodie

My favorite hoodie is dying. I’ve had it since 2006, and didn’t pay all that much for it. Years of wear, washes and the occasional nap have worn it thin, and it’s showing its age. I’ve been thinking about what do about this for a while now. While I have a nicer jacket that I’m supposed to wear at work, I still…

Kickoff for Mac and iPhone

There are a ton of great to-do applications out there, but very few of them play nicely with teams. A new app named Kickoff is trying to change that. Built for the Mac and iPhone, Kickoff houses group chats, shared tasks and supports file sharing between team members, all in an iChat-like interface. Messages can be sent to the team or individuals,…

Logitech X-140 Computer Speakers

I recently bought a set of Logitech X-140 computer speakers for my desk at work, and so far, I’m impressed with them. I know what you’re thinking — why did someone who links to awesome stuff 7 days a week spend just $25 on a set of computer speakers for their office? Budget issues aside, the simple fact is that these speakers aren’t…

Lomography Smartphone Scanner

Got a bunch of 35mm negatives laying around, but no way to easily scan them? Well, the Lomography Smartphone Scanner promises to solve this problem. The kit comes with a light panel and mount for your iPhone. Slide in the film, hit the light and take the photo. The scanner works with color negatives, color slides and black & white films and…

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