Our four favorite gifts for iPad users!

Artisan iPad Skins – These high quality skins allow you to truly personalize your iPad with free matching wallpapers! Each skin is covered with a clear laminate layer (in gloss or matter finish) to protect the design and the device from minor scratches and abuse. DecalGirl has skins available for both 1st and 2nd gen iPads. – $19.99

iPad Solar Charger – This USB based solar charger works with all kinds of gadgets, although it was specifically designed for the iPad. 6 inter-linked solar panels fold and unfold for ultimate portability. – $179

DODO Case – A hand made, book-bound iPad case made in America. Made from black Moroccan cloth and constructed using traditional bookbinding techniques. $59 – $89

Virgin Mobile MiFi – It’s prepaid 3G internet for your iPad, but it works with up to four other wifi devices as well. The MiFi itself runs $149, and plans start at just $10 for 10 days and goes up to $50 for one month unlimited service.

The SunLeaf Pro is an iPad Solar Charger. We tested it out on an iPad 2. It brought our dead unit to 80% in just under 6 hours. That’s the better part of the day, but if you are miles away from any power outlets, it’s a small price to pay.

There are six inter-linked solar panels that provide up to 18 Watts on a sunny day. The included voltage regulator converts the 18v down to 5v for USB charging. The SunLeaf is capable of charging any device which charges via USB, not just the iPad.

Thinking about picking one up? Use coupon “promoaa” for $20 off.

With consumer desktop CPU’s reaching 8-cores per CPU, we can expect to see similar tech find it’s way into our upcoming tablets and mobile CPUs. Playstation’s Vita for example features a mobile GPU with 4 cores! It’s called the SGX543MP4. It’s little brother, the the SGX543MP2 is a dual-core variant and it is at work in Apple’s iPad 2.

In OpenGL benchmark tests (3D Graphics and User Interface) the iPad 2 is 4x faster then the original iPad and 3x faster then the Motorola Xoom. 1.

• SGX543MP2 – 2 cores -iPad2 – 67M polygons – 2Gpixels/sec @200MHz
• SGX543MP4 -4 cores- PS Vita- 134M polygons – 4Gpixels/sec @200 MHz

The PS Vita as mentioned early has a 4-core GPU and a 4-core CPU. That’s double the power in half the size of an iPad 2. It’s only logical assume that Apple’s next iPad will be at the very minimum 4x faster than it’s predecessor. I don’t think it is out of the question to expect a 4, or possibly even 8-core A6 chip in the iPad 3.

Apple’s A4 chip is starting to show its age as it moves even closer to it’s 2nd birthday. Apple has something new in the works and we will likely see it in the iPhone 5. The new processor, dubbed “A5″ Will essentially be a multi-core version of the existing A4. The A4 processor is actually a re branded ARM Cortex-A8. The upcoming A5 processor is said to be based on the ARM Cortex -A9 CPU, which is a dual 1GHz CPU.

New Grahics Processing Unit as well for iPhone 5. The SGX543 is a GPU upgrade from the existing  SGX535, which can can be found in the iPhone3Gs, iPhone4, and the previous and current gen iPod Touch. This next gen GPU will purportedly also allow for OS X’s OpenCL tech to be introduced into the iOS. This means even better gaming and system performance for all upcoming iOS devices (Think awesome Apple TV and iPad Gaming.)

Also, news has come forth sitting a 8MP OmniVision sensor could power the iPhone 5 camera. The new sensor includes improved hardware that would bump video resolution up to 1080p and offer digital image stabilization and decreased rolling shutter effects as well as 20 percent improvement in peak quantum efficiency in all color channels, a 35 percent improvement in low-light.

I’m impressed overall, is it silly to want a micro-sd card slot too?

Source: http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2011/02/new-8mp-omnivision-sensor-could-power-iphone-5-camera.ars

VLC is a free and open source cross-platform multimedia player and framework, that plays most multimedias files and various streaming protocols. VLC has all codecs built-in. It comes with support for nearly every codec there is.

Requires: iPhone OS 3.2+

8.9 MB

Download and learn more about VLC Media Player for iPad here.

At $99, it is hard to be upset with the new Apple TV. Especially with the fact that you can stream HD Netflix, YouTube, and iTunes TV shows and movie rentals right from the Apple TV. You can also stream content from any iOS device (iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad) right to the Apple TV.

The HD streaming is made possible by built in 802.11n WiFi and a HDMI port. It’s all powered by Apple’s revolutionary A4 chip. The step away from purchasing and storage to a pure rental system is something I’m not overly thrilled about, 
however the fact that I can wirelessly stream my data from my Desktop to my Apple TV kinda makes up for it.

A huge price drop and increased streaming compatibility finally make the Apple TV a viable option for those looking to cut the ties with their monthly TV bill.

Courtesy of iFixit we present you the inside of Apple’s newest iPhone!

The iPhone 4′s design is a dramatic departure from the aluminum and plastic drenched days that have plagued the iPhone in the past. The rugged stainless steel bezels around the iPhone 4′s perimeter double as both structural supports and antennas to boost reception.

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The Sanyo Xacti VPC-ZH1R is an HD camcorder that is worth every penny. I was able to grab mine from woot.com for just under $140. It came with an extra battery, 1GB SD card, and case. I seldom come across products that are actually a really good deal, so when I got my hands on this camera I though I needed to let you all in on what I found so impressive about it.

What I liked:

• Solid construction. Doesn’t feel cheap at all. Easy to hold
• Direct recording of video to SD+SD HC cards. (32GB Max)
• Awesome recording structure. The 720p video is captured at ~9Mb/s and is stored into a convenient h.264 MPEG-4 file.
• 3″ WideScreen TFT screen looks amazing. Video is crisp and the colors are vibrant.
• HDMI out via mini-HDMI port. (HDMI cable included)
• Long battery life. Good two hours per battery. Two batteries included.

What I didn’t like:

• Auto-focus didn’t always work the best. Your HD video becomes fuzzy if the lens isn’t focused.
• No optical image stabilization, the digital version lacks much, but at this price point you can’t expect more
• Quality of video drops significantly as the light decreases.
• 2MP CMOS sensor means your stills are capped at 1200×1600. That means nothing bigger than 5×7

If you can get this camcorder for less than $170 I suggest you go for it. It works seamlessly with YouTube HD as well as iMovie. It sells in a bonus pack that comes with a case, extra battery, and 1GB SD card.

I have also posted a quick HD video of some trains on YouTube to test the quality. You can see it here. (Sanyo Xacti HD test video)

Is over innovating a possibility? If so, the new Apple Remote is a victim of it. Apple’s Last remote was perfect. Simple, stylish, and functional. Yet Apple managed to completely ruin the svelt feel of the Apple Remote by introducing this new overly designed product.

It starts out at the same price point, $19 so I can’t complain. But other than the price there isn’t much else to love. It features the same 5 buttons, but this time they made it look like there are three buttons instead of two. The remote itself is just as thin and a bit taller and longer than its predecessor. A silver matte finish coats the entire device except for the buttons which have a black matte finish.

Not digging the new remote either? Well head to your local Apple store and stock up as it seems they haven’t pulled the old ones yet.

Fancy this one? you can pick it up online @ the Apple Store.

If your addicted to Apple’s app store and you’re looking for a PMP (Portable Media Player) stop reading. However, if your down with a touch screen media player that just handles movies, music, pictures, and e-books, keep reading.

All of the following PMP’s are OS X compatible.

We start out with Mach Speed’s TRIO TCH843. – $89
The TRIO TCH843 is an 8GB touch screen beauty. It features a touch responsive 4.3″ TFT LCD which is almost a full inch bigger then the iPod Touch’s 3.5″ Display. The TRIO also sport a MicroSD slot which allows you to double your storage for less then $20 with an 8GB MicroSD card. It’s also less then 1/2 an inch thick.

Here are the detailed specs:

• 480×272 Resolution
• Supported Video Formats: AVI,FLV,RM,RMVB,AVI,DAT
• Supported Audio Formats: Mp3,WMA,FLAC,APE
• Supported Image Formats: JPG,BMP,GIF
• Two Headphone Jacks
• Mic in Jack
• E-Book Reader

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