#13
/ July 1, 2009 / 4:06 min.
TomTom XL 340*S widescreen GPS with Homer Simpson celebrity voice
The TomTom XL 340*S widescreen GPS is the latest from in-car GPS heavyweight TomTom. It's a worthy addition to the line-up and at US$220, it's reasonably priced to boot. With millions of points of interest (POIs) and the ability to add "NavTones,"
celebrity voices that issue GPS instructions like "turn left in 300 meters," it's also a lot of fun on road trips... at least for a while. We demonstrate the Homer Simpson voice on the GPS device
. In addition, TomTom's Route IQ, available traffic data (with add-on service charges) and easy to understand and navigate menus, make the TomTom XL 340*S
an excellent GPS unit.
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show notes
XL 340*S
TomTom
$219.95
In the box:
- Cigarette lighter power adapter
- USB sync cable for connecting to your computer
- Suction cup windshield mount
- Adhesive dashboard mount
- 4.3-inch wide touchscreen.
- Millions of POIs.
- Easy-to-use menu system.
- "NavTones" celebrity voices for spoken directions.
- Features Map Corrections which allows users to submit map corrections, like a new subdivision or a road that's recently been made one-way.
- IQ Routes uses statistical data of actual road speeds (as opposed to posted speed limits) to select the quickest and most direct route possible.
- Advanced Lane Guidance offers more detail when highway driving; it tells you which lane to go with if the road splits, complete with a handy picture of the roadway.
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#97
/ March 15, 2010 / 2:50 min.
Internet video
is awesome... and we're not being biased. You can find niche content that would have no chance on a mainstream TV network but that is feasible online thanks to the web economy.
Roku brings Internet video to your TV and this model, the
Roku HD-XR brings it to your HDTV. The only thing missing is a butterscotch.com channel to catch all your favorite shows. We're working on it!
#96
/ March 12, 2010 / 2:20 min.
If you and your significant other are dedicated denizens of the Apple camp and so both tote an
iPod or
iPhone. If you're an incredibly dedicated denizen of said camp and have both an iPod and an iPhone. If you can't get out of bed in the morning. If you like to fall asleep to music. If you're not put off by a few frustrations. Whatever the case, the
iLuv Double Play iMM173 deserves a look.
#95
/ March 8, 2010 / 2:40 min.
YoGen is a
portable device charger
that you hand crank using a pull string. It promises a charge rate about on par with a plug-in wall charger. You probably won't be using this as your primary device charger; it's for emergency use or extenuating circumstances where no power outlet is available, like when you're camping... or fishing or stranded on a desert island, if the super cheesy commercials (embedded after the break) are to be believed.
#94
/ March 5, 2010 / 2:55 min.
Hands at 10 and 2, we take the
Scosche solCHAT for a test drive. This partly
solar powered Bluetooth in-car speakerphone
brings the standard features of an
in-car Bluetooth speaker
and adds in a slick solar panel. It can be windshield or visor mounted and comes with all the cables, cradles, clips and chargers required for hands-free chatting.
#93
/ March 3, 2010 / 3:45 min.
We've never been big fans of
Motorola's smartphones
in general. We've always found them cludgey and a little too "me too" for our tastes. That changes with the
Motorola Milestone, AKA Droid. Running Android 2.0.1 and featuring a pleasant hardware QWERTY keyboard and bright touchscreen, it's fair to say we're ready to at least consider jumping on the Motorola train.
#92
/ March 1, 2010 / 3:00 min.
We've seen and enjoyed
eInk in the Kindle and in the Nook eBook readers. Now, we can have the technology on our wrists with
Phosphor's line of premium eInk technology digital watches. Valuable as a conversation piece, the
Phosphor E Ink digital watch
is comfortable and easy to read... at least during the day it is.
#91
/ February 26, 2010 / 2:00 min.
We fell in love with the
original Mophie juice pack air. It's always on our
iPhone, always ready to boost the battery life when needed. Now,
Mophie has expanded the juice pack line to include this red, velvelty finish unit. Flip a switch on the juice pack and your iPhone gets charged up effectively doubling your iPhone's up time.
#90
/ February 24, 2010 / 2:30 min.
You love your digital camera because it's easy to travel with. It fits in a pocket or a purse, takes great quality pictures (assuming you're in the proper light conditions) and best of all, you no longer have to go visit the local photo lab to get your pics printed. However, in low-light and any shooting condition that's less than optimal, it starts to show its weaknesses. The
Joby Gorillapod is a fantastic piece of digicam kit that will let you get the shot you want just about anywhere, just about any time.
#89
/ February 22, 2010 / 2:57 min.
It's bound to happen at some point. You bend over a body of water (be it a lake, a pond, the tub or the toilet), forgetting that your valuable gadget was sitting in your shirt pocket. We say "was sitting" because it's since slipped out and is now taking a swim with the fishes (or worse, in the case of the toilet example). First things first, fish the offending gadget out of the water, cry for a little while then go to the store and drop few hundred on a replacement. Or, you could just drop it into a
Bheestie Bag to dry out
and hope for the best.
#88
/ February 19, 2010 / 3:07 min.
The next evolution of USB,
USB 3.0
, has captured our imaginations. We all hate the spinning beachballs, the rotating hourglasses, the rotating glossy donuts, the slowly tricking sands through an hourglass icon, the never progressing progress bars associated with file transfers. Sorry, where were we? Oh yeah, file transfer. The next generation of
USB external drives
promise up to 5 gigabit transfers speeds and backwards compatibility with previous USB standards.
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