Author: Gary Fairchild (Page 13 of 15)

      Sweet Site of the Week – dealcatcher.com

      March 12, 2009 /

      Sometimes it’s hard to sift through the millions of websites out there to find the fun, unusual, creative, and especially, the useful ones. And word of mouth can only take you so far. Well, leave it to Gadget Teaser to give you a hand in your search. Once a week, we’ll highlight one of our favorite sites that not everyone knows about. I like to think that we here at Gadget Teaser are performing a public service for you… the avid gadget blog reader the general public.

      This week’s Sweet Site of the Week is: dealcatcher.com

      I can honestly tell you that I never miss a deal or a coupon or a discount when I purchase online. And I can also honestly tell you that, for me, a very good portion of those deals, coupons, and discounts are found on dealcatcher.com.

      Dealcatcher.com scours the internet for deals on everything from PCs to flowers and from clothes to diamonds. There is nothing dealcatcher.com doesn’t cover. Take, for instance, Dell. Did you know that Dell always has a sale going on? No really, always. As I’m writing this, dealcather.com informed me that Dell has savings of 15 – 25% on desktops, notebooks, and all-in-ones. Target has $5 off a $50 purchase. Old Navy has free shipping on orders over $75. There’s stuff like this all over the site.

      But dealcatcher.com is more than just sale items and discounts. They also have printable coupons, Sunday ads, rebates, and a price compare engine. I used price compare to check the price of the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W300 from this week’s Top 3. Instantly I got the bottom line price (total price plus tax plus shipping) from 7 different stores.

      Now you know why dealcatcher.com is our Sweet Site of the Week. I like to save money, and I think you do too.

      Websites

      Sweet Gadgets That Fell Short

      March 11, 2009 /

      Interesting article by popularmechanics.com this week. Here they explore “5 Design Flaws that Ruined Otherwise Smart Gadgets.”

      Storm

      In order for a touchscreen to be successful, the user needs to feel that he is in constant control, and for this, responsiveness is key—even small lags can prove immensely frustrating. One recent offender of this rule is the Blackberry Storm, RIM’s first touchscreen phone.

      Some history: Before the Storm was released, there was a lot of buzz surrounding its supposedly ground-breaking touchscreen, which depresses like a button, giving users a satisfying “click”.

      But when users and reviewers actually got their hands on their device, the real shock was how buggy the whole thing was. The touchscreen suffered from long delays—often a second or more—that made users yearn for their old button-based Blackberry. And completing simple tasks took an unnecessary number of steps. For example, inputting the letter “C” involves putting one’s finger on the letter, waiting for the phone to respond by highlighting the letter, and then pushing down. All that for a simple letter.

      I can definitely agree with some of this. BlackBerry, for instance, had a good vision when designing the touch-and-click function in the Storm, but the execution was less than stellar. Have you tried this thing? Press and hold, press harder, wait for it… wait for it… and click. Are you kidding me? That’s the ultra-innovative touch-screen we’ve been waiting for? Please.

      I can’t agree too much with the Wii Remote. After all, they did include a wrist strap with every Wiimote. If you choose not to use the wrist strap, that’s at your own risk.

      I’ve already touched on the Kindle vs. the Kindle 2 here, so I won’t go there right now.

      Check out the article and let me know if you know of any sweet gadgets that have a clear miss in the design.

      Apple, Computers, Gaming, Mobile, News

      Top 3 – Compact Digital Cameras

      March 10, 2009 /

      CyberShot

      It’s time to break through the clutter and get down to business. This weekly post is going to list not the top 10, or the top 5, but the top 3 of anything gadget related. Why the top 3? Because anything more would be watered down.

      So without further ado, here are the top 3 compact digital cameras.

      3. Nikon Coolpix S610

      Armed with up to 1600 ISO, 4x optical zoom, and the ability to take wide-angle shots, the Nikon Coolpix S610 is sure to please. Oh, and taking pictures in 10 megapixels doesn’t hurt either. My only real complaint is the price. It’s not the cheapest compact camera around but as you know, you usually get what you pay for.

      2. Canon PowerShot SD1100 IS ELPH

      I heard someone was looking for a less expensive compact camera? Well, you found it. If you make a small sacrifice here and there, the Canon PowerShot SD1100 IS ELPH is the way to go. With 8 megapixels and 3x optical zoom, you’ll still get great shots from this small camera. Add in face detection and you’ve got a great camera at an affordable price.

      1. Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W300

      For those of us who want the best of the best, look no further than the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W300. Check this: 13.6 megapixels, 3x optical zoom, smile shutter mode, face detection that can differentiate between adult and children’s faces, and adjustable noise reduction. The fact of the matter is; all the cameras on this list will take good pictures. But if you want great pictures from a compact camera, look no further than the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W300.

      Cameras

      Major Crackdown on Swedish File-sharing Server

      March 9, 2009 /

      Big news coming out of Sweden this weekend:
      Arrest

      Police have made a major crackdown on illegal file-sharing by seizing a giant computer server during an apartment raid in a Stockholm suburb, an official said Saturday.

      Henrik Ponten, a spokesman at the Swedish Anti-Piracy Bureau, said the server contained about 65 terabytes of files, corresponding to around 16,000 full-length movies.

      “The size of the works are gigantic,” he said, noting it was one of the biggest pirate server confiscations ever in Sweden.
      It has been my understanding that Sweden has been pretty lenient towards file-sharing in the past. Sounds like those days are over.

      The curious thing is if and how much this will affect sites like ThePirateBay.org and IsoHunt.com. In theory, it shouldn’t affect them at all. But I guess we’ll know for sure in the next few weeks.

      Music, News, Video

      Goodnight Circuit City

      March 8, 2009 /

      CircuitCity

      The day has arrived. Circuit City is officially closing its doors tonight. First and foremost, my well wishes are being sent out to the 34,000 employees that no longer have a job there. It’s a sad day when anyone loses a job.

      As for Circuit City itself, it will be missed. I personally liked the store and especially liked the integration between the website and the store. Having the ability to purchase items online and pick them up in-store in 24 was a genius idea. Their ability to sync their inventory between website and physical location should be applauded and mimicked whenever possible (are you reading this Fry’s?). Also, great deals were always to be had at Circuit City. I have bought many-a-gadget there myself and will miss all the incredible discounts.

      It’s a sad day for the electronics community. You will be missed Circuit City.

      News

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