Daily deal – Peek personal email device – buy one, get one free

by Scott Carmichael on

My daily deal for today is another of those great products from the Gadling top 25 travel gadgets of 2008.

Peek is a handheld wireless email device that offers access to your email anywhere in the US. The device does not require a long term contract, and service is just $19.95 a month.

To help you stay in touch with your loved ones, Peek has a special Valentines day deal – buy one Peek, and get one free. All you have to do to take advantage of this deal, is purchase a Peek on Amazon, and add a second one to your cart. The final price will reflect a promotional discount of $79.99, the price of the second Peek.

Included with the Peek is a MicroUSB charger, battery pack and a quick start guide. The Peek setup wizard will have your email up and running in a matter of minutes.

Like this gadget? Check out these other cool products we recently reviewed!


Slacker personal radio service comes to the Blackberry

by Scott Carmichael on

Remember Slacker? Their personal radio service was one of the winners in the Gadling “best of 2008” lineup of travel technology products.

Until now, the only way to take Slacker with you on the road, was through one of their portable radio players. That just changed with the release of Slacker for the Blackberry.

Users of a fairly recent Blackberry device can download the free Slacker application directly to their device by pointing their mobile browser to Slacker.com.

The application offers all the same features you’ll find on the other Slacker players, plus you’ll be able to store several hours of tunes on a memory card (when installed).

With music cached on your memory card, you’ll be able to keep listening to music even when you are outside your network coverage area, or away from your WiFi network.

Slacker also announced that they’ll have an iPhone version of their player ready soon!

Rentobile lets you rent the hottest mobile phones

by Scott Carmichael on

When it comes to mobile phones, there really are only 2 kinds of users – those that buy a phone and use it until the tape holding it together finally gives up, and those that consider their phone to be part of their fashion ensemble, requiring a new phone every 2 months.

Sadly I have to admit that I’m one of the latter – I’ll swap my phone out for a new one in anything from 2 weeks to 2 months, but rarely will I be happy with my purchase for more than a couple of months. Not because the phone sucks, but because the damn phone companies keep releasing something newer (and better) at a frantic rate.

Of course, this silly hobby is quite expensive, so when I came across Rentobile, I couldn’t help wonder whether they have finally cracked the code to keeping us phone freaks happy (and solvent).

Rentobile appears to be Netflix for phone lovers. You add a phone to your wishlist, and when one becomes available, they’ll ship it to you. You then continue to use it until you are bored with it, or until the next best super phone pops up on their site.

Rental rates are between $20 and $50 a month, and their lineup includes top sellers like the T-Mobile G1, the Blackberry Bold and Storm smartphones and the Verizon Touch Pro.

Rental rates are different for members and non members. For example; the Nokia N95 costs $42 per month for non members, or $28 per month for members. Membership starts at $5 per month when prepaid for an entire year.

The site itself could use a little polishing, and most of the bestselling phones are currently “not available”, but the concept seems brilliant so I wish them all the luck in the world in making this a huge success.

(Via Engadget Mobile)

Daily deal – Shure I2C-MP noise isolating headset for $39.69

by Scott Carmichael on

My daily deal for today is for the Shure I2C-MP stereo noise isolating headphones. These headphones combine passive noise isolating headphones with a microphone. The combination means you can use them on your regular MP3 player as well as a compatible mobile phone or smartphone.

They have been tested with the Apple iPhone and the Blackberry Curve, but should work on any phone with a 3.5mm stereo headset jack. If you plan to use these headphones on the “old” iPhone, you’ll need to order a headphone adapter, thanks to the silly recessed headphone jack design.

These headphones normally retail for a little over $100, but Amazon.com has them on clearance for just $39.96. Of course, at this low price there is a slight trade-off; they do not feature a call pickup/hangup button. This means you’ll have to reach for your phone to control the call.

Despite that minor detail, under $40 for a pair of Shure noise isolating headphones is quite a bargain. The advantage of noise isolating headphones is that they are very light, and they don’t require batteries to operate.

The headphones include a personal fit-kit consisting of several different earpieces and a nice Shure carrying case.

Remember, Amazon ships their own items for free (when over $25), and Amazon Prime members can get these headphones sent with 2-day shipping for free.

Product review – 3M mobile privacy film

by Scott Carmichael on

In this product review I’ll be giving you a brief look at the new 3M mobile privacy film.

3M has been making privacy filters for laptops for several years and the recent surge in popularity of smartphones has increased the need for privacy when you use your device in public.

The 3M mobile privacy film attaches to your screen, and is held in place with a special removable adhesive. Like the laptop version of the privacy film, you can only view what is on your screen when you look straight at it. Anyone looking at your device from an angle, won’t see a thing.
The mobile privacy film has the added advantage of protecting your screen and reducing screen glare.

I tested the mobile privacy film on several devices; the T-Mobile G1, the Apple iPhone, a Blackberry Curve and the new Sprint Touch Pro. Oddly enough, the Sprint Touch Pro was the only device that was not compatible with the privacy film, most likely due to the high resolution of the screen.

Applying the mobile privacy film is easy, and involves cleaning your screen, cutting the film to size (if needed) and removing the protective backing. Once on your screen, you simply rub any remaining air pockets towards the edge.

Because of the special adhesive used, it is easy to remove and reapply the film, or remove it for use on a different phone. The film does not leave any sticky residue behind.

Of course, the privacy film itself functions exactly as advertised; looking straight at the screen is the only way to see what is on it, but viewing from any angle does not reveal anything. If you plan to use your phone in public (or on a flight), this is the best way to read private messages, or play a game without revealing what you are up to.

The mobile privacy film is available for most smartphones on the market, including the Blackberry, Palm Centro, Treo and the Samsung Blackjack. Each sheet costs about $9 and can be cut so size for phones not specifically listed in the 3M lineup. Since most other premium screen protectors cost about the same, I found the 3M mobile provacy film to be a pretty good deal.