Every day, it seems like more and more people are looking to turn their iPads into mobile recording studios. Whether they're playing music or podcasting, a good mic is absolutely essential — and the Blue Microphones Spark Digital doesn't disappoint. While the Blue Spark is perhaps not quite as portable as the Samson Meteor mic if you count the included metal stand,…
In my opinion, one can never have too many Lightning cables on-hand. The only problem is, Apple's official cables are a tad on the expensive side for what you get ($20 for only ~3ft of cable). Thankfully, Amazon offers their own Lightning cables and they're pretty great. Not only are they well-built, they're also a good deal — $15 for a 6ft-long…
We've mentioned the game Machinarium in the past, but I think it's worth bringing up again, for three reasons: The first time we posted about it, the game was only available for the iPad. Now it's a universal app so you can enjoy it on your iPhone as well (although iPad is probably still the best experience). It made The Sweet Setup's…
Sometimes a new writing app comes out that has everybody talking about it for a while. Right now, Writer Pro, the successor to the ever-popular iA Writer, is the new hotness. This app is designed around the four basic stages of any writer's workflow – note-taking, writing, editing, and reading – each of which is represented by a different typeface and color.…
The Gravitas is an upcoming dock for iPhone and iPad that promises to be extremely stable even for one-handed docking and undocking. At first glance, it looks like it would be made of lightweight aluminum, but it's actually a much denser metal alloy. The resulting dock is one that has a small footprint but still weighs 2.54 lb (1.17 kg), which is…
As someone who does nearly all of my writing from an iPad, I've been very happy with my Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover. I like the feel of the keys and the way it protects my iPad when it's closed, plus I haven't yet needed to charge the thing once in the six months I've owned it. But it's not without limitations. The…
The Slate Mobile AirDesk is a Kickstarter project for a small, portable "desk" that sits on your lap. Cut from a block of premium bamboo and large enough to fit 13"-17" laptops, the Slate sports several rows of ventilation holes in the section where your laptop sits and the bamboo absorbs any remaining heat, so your legs stay cool during use. The…
Podcasting is something I've been considering getting into lately, but I primarily work on-the-go from my iPad and most of the setups I've read about are designed with a stationary Mac in mind. Now, thanks to a recent blog post by Fraser Speirs – co-host of the Out of School podcast with Bradley Chambers – I've been made aware of the Samson…
FiftyThree has just made another leap into the world of physical goods with a gadget called Pencil. Pencil is essentially an iPad stylus, but one with special features designed for use with their popular sketching app, Paper. Simply touch the stylus tip to the screen while Paper is open, and it will automatically pair via Bluetooth. From there, the app will be…
The COBURNS iPad Stand is a new Kickstarter project that caught our eye this morning. It's comprised of two wooden blocks, each with a pair of magnets and a slot — if one didn't know what they were, they might think they were looking at some sort of puzzle. The magnets hold the blocks together when not in-use, and when separated, the…
Before I describe the Encounter Collection itself, I should mention that the main reason I wanted to talk about these items on T&T was this incredible video that was filmed to promote the collection. With its gorgeous cinematography and a story centered around a father's heartfelt letter to his son, it's something worth watching whether or not you even want to buy…
The new BookBook Travel Journal from Twelve South allows you to carry an iPad and additional gear around without looking like that's what it's doing. What appears to be vintage leather hardcover book on the outside is actually a clever, hi-quality case with internal storage for your iPad, USB drives, stylus, power adapters, and even large headphones (provided they fold flat). $99…
Our friend and photographer John Carey of fiftyfootshadows has been the creator of some of our favorite wallpapers over the years. For the last month or so, he's been meticulously experimenting with many of these wallpapers, searching for the optimal photo resolution that can take full advantage of iOS 7's parallax effect and maintain their crispness. He's taken his findings and assembled…
There's a lot of denim that gets wasted around the world. Every day people are throwing out old pairs of jeans for various reasons, and even the big denim factories are discarding a good deal of unused fabric. Rather than letting all that good material go to waste, the people at Ikku have decided to repurpose the stuff to make awesome gadget…
It's not been mentioned here before, but unless I'm mistaken, all of us here at Tools & Toys use Delivery Status Touch to track our various shipments. I certainly can't think of a better option, because you can add tracking numbers from just about any delivery service out there and it will work like magic. The app just got even better too,…
Super Squares is a simple and fun new puzzle game for iOS. To beat each level, you must find a way to connect each colored block with its twin and make sure every star on the grid has been "collected" along the way. It's easy to pick up the the basics, but there is some challenge added (in the form of brick…
The new Papernomad cases by Griffin are interesting. Where most case manufacturers would recommend avoiding marks and spills, the Papernomad line is actually designed to be written on, sketched on, coffee-stained, and painted to your liking. It's essentially a blank canvas for your imagination — a lofty description for a gadget case, but fitting nonetheless. The exterior is made of a special…
The 11+ Felt Case is an attractive, hand-made case designed to protect a MacBook Air or full-sized iPad, as well as a few smaller items you might keep in your bag like cables and business cards. When opened, the inner pocket can double as a mousepad. We think this is an awesome solution for "light tech" travelers. Here's a view of the…
Ask any iPhone 5 or recent iPad owner about the Lightning cable, and they'll probably still roll their eyes. While the new connector is technically superior — both smaller and easier to use — than the 30-pin Dock Connector used before it, many iOS users had tons of accessories that relied on the older technology. Then there's the price. Apple's first-party cable…
Twitterrific 5: Twitterrific 5 as it existed a few days ago really wouldn't have looked out of place on iOS 7. But that didn't stop the developers from going the extra mile anyway. The Iconfactory has re-done pretty much all the UI elements and added many new features such as background fetching of tweets/sync position, several new gestures, and usability improvements. Just…