The SpeakerSlide is a Kickstarter project that reminds me of the SoundBender from a while back, but modernized for today's iOS devices. It plugs into your Lightning port, placing a curved space directly over the device's speaker so that its audio redirects to you rather than going sideways out into the air. No more cupping your hand over the speaker like an…
The Mod Folio is a leather case for securely carrying an iPad mini and other small items such as cards, pens, earbuds, and more. What makes it really interesting is that they have all these various inserts—each designed with a different purpose in mind—that magnetically attach to the inner spine of the folio. Say you buy the Traveler Mod to start with,…
Twelve South's new HoverBar V3—an adjustable-arm mount for iPad—is just like the old HoverBar, but now it can also be used with newer iPad models such as the mini and Air. It can be clamped onto the edge of any surface 1" or thinner, including a desk, the kitchen counter, or even directly onto an iMac for use as a sort of…
Our friend Bradley Chambers updated his iBook and screencast series, Learning to Love Evernote, to version 2.0 today. He has re-recorded every video with new tips, tricks, and workflows to account for updated editions of the Evernote iOS apps. It's a free update for anyone who already owns the book. If you didn't pick up Learning to Love Evernote the last time…
WriteRight is an app for iPhone and iPad that probably won't replace your favorite iOS text editor (cough Editorial cough), but works nicely as a supplemental writing and editing tool. It analyzes your writing and offers synonyms and antonyms for any highlighted text, and will even show alternative ways to phrase a multi-word selection. It understands gender, number, and conjugation, so its…
Prizmo is an iOS app that lets you use your device's camera to scan text and do all sorts of neat things with it. The scanned text can be exported directly, or saved in PDF or image form to be sent elsewhere. But that's only the beginning. It understands over 40 languages (10 are built-in, the rest must be purchased) and it…
The Think Tank TurnStyle 20 is a sleek and practical sling bag designed to hold a standard DSLR camera, along with several lenses and plenty of other accessories. There are tons of little pockets throughout the bag for pens and memory cards and whatnot, along with a larger pocket on the back side that can comfortably hold a full-sized iPad. Watch this…
This won't be the first time we've talked about Pushpin for Pinboard, but I wanted to bring it up again for a couple of reasons: The release of Pushpin 3.0 a few weeks ago brought a completely overhauled interface to the app (particularly noticeable on iPad), along with lots of new features, such as renewed TextExpander Touch support and the addition of…
Designed with photographers in mind, the Booq Python Slimpack can carry pretty much an entire kit: Up to two DSLRs Four mid-size lenses A large zoom lens A tripod A full-size iPad Large headphones (provided they fold flat, for the top compartment) A variety of accessories (memory cards, batteries, etc) You can easily access the camera compartments from the top or back…
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,…
Following in the tradition of last year, we, the Tools & Toys staff, are here to share a few of our favorite... ahem... tools and/or toys from 2013. Let's get to it, shall we? Shawn's Favorites Seiko Automatic Watch Buying an automatic watch is an investment that takes research and money. The Seiko is great for dipping your toe into the world…
The Magnus Mini is a clever little magnetic stand designed for the iPad mini. It's very portable, it has ten embedded magnets to hold your iPad mini in place, and the rubberized exterior prevents it from slipping all over the place. It stays connected to your iPad well enough to move from room-to-room, but is also easy to remove when necessary. The…
Type faster on your iPhone or iPad using short abbreviations that expand into long snippets, such as email addresses, URLs, and standard replies. Tap in your abbreviation and it automatically expands to the full snippet. You can even insert today's date automatically with the default abbreviation "ddate"! Use Dropbox to sync your snippets to all your iOS and Mac devices! New in…
As Stephen wrote about earlier, the new hotness right now is Panic's iPad app, Status Board. It's the kind of thing that's perfect for outputting to an external display, but what if you just want to use it in your personal workspace? You could lay it on your desk or put it in some kind of stand, but I'd want something that…
Recently I posted about the Soundbender, which is a lo-fi way of redirecting an iPad's audio output towards you rather than out into the air. For anyone looking for a more robust solution, I'd recommend the Zooka Bluetooth Speaker. It hooks onto any edge of the iPad and connects via Bluetooth, no dock connector or cables necessary. A little metal stand is…
We've talked about OmniFocus before, and I'm excited to share the news that the OmniGroup has announced the next version of the GTD application for Mac. Due out sometime in the first half of this year, the new Mac version takes heavy cues from the iPad version, including a new Review mode, a Forecast view and a unified sidebar. OmniFocus 2 will…
This is the 2011 Tools and Toys gift guide for the holidays. Forty-seven gift ideas for those who can be the most difficult shop for: picky gadget geeks, music lovers, coffee nuts, movie buffs, and men. As always, only the finest gifts suggested. New Amazon Kindles Kindle Touch: The first E Ink Amazon Kindle to have a touch-screen; the Kindle Touch is…
Pick up a new iPad or iPad mini last night? If you're like me and still shoot with a stand-alone camera, the Lightning to SD Card Camera Reader is a must-have. Simply pop in your SD card, and the iPad will import your photos. Once imported, you can share them via one of the 275,000 iPad apps out there, or simply stream…
Here is some of the gear I take with me when traveling. Sometimes it's to the coffee shop for a day of work "off site" and sometimes it's to another state for vacation or a work trip. Extra-Long USB Cable for Your iPhone, iPod, and iPad I received one of these cables for my birthday this year and I now use it…
The 2012 Tools & Toys Christmas gift guide. For the gadget geek, the coffee connoisseur, the writer, the nerd, or just the guy who's hard to shop for. As always, only the finest gifts suggested. Kool New Kindles Kindle Paperwhite: The best Kindle out there, and the best gadget there is for reading long-form books. The new Paperwhite Kindle is very affordable,…