Overview

After giving the app a spin, the first thing we noticed is the care with which it was developed; the designers truly took care of every little subtlety in the designer workflow. Because the look of the platform matters, the clean and elegant appearance of the app makes its use extremely pleasing and intuitive.

Until now, there was that missing slot in the designer’s app needs, and we’re now sure that no professional will be able to do without it. The purpose of the application is to keep all your images in the same place, organized and easy to retrieve. Not only will Pixa deliver all of the common organizational tools of other programs, but adds that extra magic through unique options such as auto-tagging to all the imported images by color and size. With an app like this, working on new projects and designs becomes that much easier.

Test, test, test

The first thing we tested in the app was importing our full images library.  By simply dragging our folders to the sidebar, we obtained the representation of our Finder folders in the Pixa’s folder/project structure. What is surprising is that even ZIP and RAR archives were imported without effort.

The overview of Pixa is clean and elegant

Types of supported files:

- Photoshop (PSD)
- Illustrator (AI)
- JPG
- PNG
- TIFF
- PDF
- BMP
- GIF
- ICO
- ICNS
- ESP

One of the particularities of this organizing jewel is the aforementioned auto-tagging of the imported images. By looking at the Tag sidebar (by the switch in the upper left corner of the window) immediately after the import, we easily found all our images organized by color and size.

Pixa organized our first shot of 6K images by size and color without taking additional time after the import.

At this point, trying to search for images from the Library the result was exactly what we had expected.

Pixa searches by image tags (so we can filter by auto tags), name, notes and extension.

As designers, when we approach a new work we want to collect inspiration. Pixa comes to the rescue once again. For example, if we’re looking on the Internet for ideas, it automatically inserts the url of the image grabbed from the browser on the fly so we don’t have to note down where we’ve got the image from and we can concentrate on the creative flow.

Pixa has an integrated tool for taking screenshots which we used to create the image content of this review. We particularly appreciate the fine tuning with the arrow keys of the screenshot area to move it exactly where we want it.

The information for all of the images can be found all together in a drawer (‚åòI). Along with the basic image information, Pixa displays the EXIF and TIFF data, which are useful details for photographers and image voyeurs, as well as tags and notes. Users can also bulk rename and tag multiple images at once while using the drawer feature.

Image information drawer with displayed some pro infos, tags and notes

After brainstorming for a project and collecting images, Pixa easily helps you to analyze the retrieved data. Using the Loupe Tool, users can get the RGB color information on the fly. Just clicking on the image allows the Loupe Tool to copy the color in the selected format (html, css3 rgba, etc) to your clipboard, quickly and easily.

Pixa copying the color in the Photoshop format

To open an image for editing in an external program, users select the “Open With” menu. From there, you will notice that all thumbnails are updated as soon as they were saved–no lag at all. That is surprising, as generally there is a lapse in time before it is saved.  This is another indication that programmers for Pixa tried to bring the most pleasant user experience to Pixa users–and succeeded.

Designers know that the final goal of a design work is to present the results to someone. To help with this, Pixa has included a feature called Quick Export, which allows users to export the chosen images in just a drag and drop. From the quick export drawer (‚åòE) users can choose from different buttons – each representing a different export preset. If the embedded presets are not enough for you – there is a way to create new ones; you can chose all of the settings, including the maximum dimensions, and Pixa can create an archive with the exported files. Once you have chosen the preset, drag it on the desktop and the file is ready to be sent to the client.

Pixa will easily flow into your daily way of working. Out of the “box”, it is set to use its managed library, meaning that every imported file will be copied in a secure place and organized for you. However, this behavior can be changed to suit your needs; using the preferences tab, you can select for Pixa to only reference the files that we want to modify and organize instead of choosing them all.

There are other handy additions that are just created to make the program easier to use. For example, renaming images not only renames the main files, but also the linked files and tags and notes are added to the originals. This allows them easily found in Spotlight, as well.

In addition to the ease of the built-in library, there are is also multiple library support. Users can create multiple libraries across their hard drive or external drives, which allows even more control over the organization – and switch through them from the preferences panel. Another useful aspect is the “Recent” sidebar element, which helps find the last imported files or the last images that were worked on.

Going extreme

We tried pushing Pixa to the limits by importing as many images we could at once. After topping 20k+ images, we discovered that it still maintains a good speed, even in the General Library where all the images are shown together.

We also carefully noted the memory consumption – very important for those who work with graphics – and Pixa surprised us: the consumption of RAM is below 250 Mb.

Final verdict

Our approach was straightforward and exploratory, and we had our fun finding out Pixa’s secrets. As designers, we know that each person has a different way of working and Pixa is a versatile tool that adapts to the needs of everyone.

The versatility of the program is also in its target. Besides professional designers, this app is perfect for those who just need to keep a gallery of images organized or take and manage screenshots with simplicity.

Currently, the application is in public beta so do not miss your chance to try it out for free from http://www.pixa-app.com and maybe suggest some features to developers for the final release.

The application is young and still growing, but without any doubt it already has a solid base for the main functions: the organization.
Certainly it provides solidity and security for our pictures – and we know how important it is to entrust an application with the fruit of our hard work.

Because of this, its ease of use, beautiful platform, and top performance, we recommend the application to graphics professionals.

EDITORS NOTE:   We are currently doing a full hands on review of the iPad. We are currently finishing testing the 4G in Vancouver and San Fransisco, as well as testing for over-heating issues. The full review will come in the next couple days. We have not experienced any over-heating issues at all with our demo model. Overall, it is almost perfect. Just add two speakers in better locations, make it a little lighter, and it is perfect.

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If you’re debating whether to upgrade from your iPad 2 or, now seemingly ancient, iPad, here are some reasons you might opt for the switch.

The Display

Just like on the iPhone 4S, the breakthrough retina display makes everything look that much better. With all your images on the screen crisper than ever before, and far more lifelike, each razor-sharp text and image will bring forth those colors that deserve to be there. The screen is home to 3.1 million pixels that are powered by a new A5X chip, with every bit so perfectly detailed. It has a 2048 by 1536 resolution, which also has a 44 perfect greater color saturation. With four times the number of pixels than the iPad2 and a million more than an HDTV, your eyes can hardly even fathom it. The technology used for this is the first of its kind, and Apple engineers specially elevated each pixel from its signal so quality is the highest possible.

The A5X chip has quad-core graphics, driving super power to the pixels with a quick response time. Fast and reliable, it’s always ready at your fingertips.

The Battery Life

Despite all of the speed and improvements in the display, don’t fret about the battery life. Users will still get up to ten hours of use on the new iPad.

The Camera

The new iPad has a much-improved camera, featuring 5 megapixels with advanced optics, a backside illumination sensor, auto white balance, face detection, and more. You can also record 1080p HD video. The iSight camera’s backside illumination sensor creates autofocused exposure regardless of the lighting. The video has an automatic stabilization feature, so recording is clear and crisp. The camera uses advanced optics with an f/2.4 aperture and five element lens, and delivers a sharp, clean image.

The Speed

The new iPad is equipped with the next-generation wireless technology, letting users connect to fast data networks, up to 4G LTE. It is specially designed with celluar antennas that have access to a larger frequently spectrum, meaning pretty much anywhere you are, you’re connected. Because it supports these everywhere, you can surf the web, download, and get work done at quick, efficient speeds. It is compatible with GSM/UMTS, as well as HSPA, HSPA+, DC-HSDPA, with downlink speeds up to 42 Mbps and 21.1 Mbps.

Even better, the new iPad is a personal hotspot, so users can share their data connection for up to five devices, including your iPod touch, iPad, iPhone, Macbook Air, Macbook, and more, all over WiFi, Bluetooth, or USB.

So what do we think? We think it’s pretty awesome, and a great upgrade, especially if you have an iPad first generation or (!) no iPad at all. It still is home to the iOS that we love so dearly, and is connected to iCloud for easy access to all of your content on all of your devices.

Stay tuned as we review it more, along with apps, in the next couple weeks.

Pixelmator has to be one of the best looking applications for the mac. The interface, the icon and even the sales site show how much the developers consider and care about design.

It’s quite inspiring!

First thoughts and tools

Now, I could compare Pixelmator with Photoshop. But, I’m not going to. Yes, it does have alot of the tools Photoshop has, but this app is $59. Photoshop is not, so already Pixelmator is heads above Adobe’s image editor.

Just a few of the Pixelmator tools available, they are Marquee tool, Polygonal Lasso, Freeform lasso, magic wan, pen, brush, eraser and paint bucket respectively.

Recently, Pixelmator integrated a ‘Save for Web’ feature (think image optimization for the web, aswell as the ability to slice), which is very handy. Pixelmator also supports Snow Leopard.

Before we give you a list of all the tools available, let us just say one thing. Each tool works perfectly and the range available means quite often you can forgo booting up a more expensive image editing program, because Pixelmator is feature-rich. Another thing I like is that the devs could have gone over the top, adding features to bloat out the app. But they haven’t. It has a refreshing simplistic feel and interface.

Features:

• Use over 20 tools for selecting, cropping, painting, retouching, typing, measuring and navigation
• Selection tools
  • Rectangular Marquee
  • Elliptical Marquee
  • Polygonal Lasso
  • Lasso
  • Magic Wand
  • Move
  • Modify selection
    • Smooth
    • Feather
    • Size
  • Inverse selection
  • Load selection from layer
  • Save selection as Mask
  • Edit selection in Quick Mask mode
• Crop tool
• Slice tool
• Painting tools
  • Brush
  • Pencil
  • Gradient
  • Paint Bucket
  • Specify blend mode, opacity, brush for painting tool
• Retouching tools
  • Clone Stamp
  • Eraser
  • Magic Eraser
  • Blur
  • Sharpen
  • Specify strength, brush. Specify blending mode, brush, opacity for Clone Stamp tool.
• Type tool
  • Creates editable type layer
• Measuring and navigation tools

• Eyedropper
• Hand
• Zoom

Remember, this app is $59. Not $590 or $1590. $59! The developers quite rightly boast “The application has everything you need to create, edit, and enhance images.”

The above list doesn’t include all the Filters (of which there are 130+) and color correction tools, as well as Automator support for actions (such as re-size e.t.c).

Feature wise then Pixelmator is way up there. We tested ours on a 2.4Ghz iMac with 4GB ram, and there was no delay what-so-ever! Performance is great. Pixelmator works so intuitively (alot of effects are generated real time on your actual image as opposed to some small thumbnail or preview).

Test

Now we couldn’t review an image editor without showing you some of the images we made with it could we?

This image was generated in about a minute using some filters. Looks pretty cool (love the floor filter!)

This image has been auto-enhance on the right. Note the increased contrast (less washout) and general more vividness. Note, the image was taken on an iPhone 3G.

Testing out the blur tool and Clone tool.

One final little play with our test image, using a built in filter. We could spend hours playing around.

Interface

I really love the interface! It’s very Photoshop-esque, however, I think that’s because it works well. You have tools on the left, layers top right, tool options bottom left and brush settings / swatches to the lower right. And the image taking pride of place in the middle. The icons are great, very self explanatory, and everything is linked to a shortcut key (such as CMD + Shift + N for a new layer), so getting around is very easy.

Final verdict

We may just have to re-visit Pixelmator in the future to give you further impressions. We really love the app. It’s fast, easy to use and good value. What more could you want? If your looking for a lightweight, no thrills but hard-working image editor look elsewhere. Pixelmator is a thrill-full powerhouse. The price alone makes it a serious consideration for any mac user who needs a clean application to work with images. If my Granddad ever gets a Mac, and needs to edit his photo’s, Pixelmator will suit him fine. Its so easy to pick-up. However, if a power-user friend is looking for an app that keenly focuses on quick and easy image editing, I’ll recommend it to him too! An app for the masses!

Pixelmator is well worth the $59 the developers charge for it! My only minor qualm is that I’d like some sort of Vector tool. Apparently, trawling through their site it appears as though they could be doing something about that. Great!

Pixelmator is available from http://www.pixelmator.com/. For more information about the application and its features click here. For more examples of the application in use, including tutorials by the likes of Abuzeedo, you should click here.

A tidy package arrived in our office a few hours ago. The little package from FedEx was duly opened, and neatly nestled inside, we found THE most beautiful hard drive ever. Find out what we think to the brand new 2TB G-Drive in today’s review.

What a piece of kit! This is quite easily the most beautiful mac accessory ever! The machining and build is second to one. I’m not an expert on CNC machining, however I do see that the finish is absolutely flawless. This product is Apple-level quality. The case comprises of an outer shell wrapped around an inner cage, with small air holes that add a real classy finish and presumably aid cooling and ventilation.

Spacing and fitting around the hard drive is uniform and only adds to the high-caliber finish. It looks right at home on my desk next to the iMac – finally a hard drive I am proud to show off! Every detail serves a function as well as looking fantastic, somewhat similar to Apples own memorandum. The G-technology guys have put some serious thought and design into this product. Its easy to see that whilst visually pleasing, each element of the hard-drive serves a functional purpose. Each detail is carefully perfected and the finished product reflects this. The whole case has a lovely, mottled effect, similar to the iMac finish but slightly more pro-found. Even the G logo on the front looks amazing, with a grooved effect to the logo, mounted on an acrylic / polycarbonate plate that lights up white when the hard drive is active. The case is very sturdy, with a heavy feel to it, which adds to the quality.

The whole item weighs 2.6lbs – this is a monster of a hard drive. It’s compatible with both OSX and Windows 2000 / XP / Vista. As you can see from the pictures we’ve included, the hard drive has to be seen to be believed. Even the under-side has been carefully crafted, with a large heat sink placed on the bottom designed to keep the heat down.

Set-up

Setting up the massive 2tb hard drive is a doddle. Simply plug it in to your mac using one of the supplied cables, and power up the drive. We were supplied with a US fitting plug, fortunately we had an AC / DC adapter from another external hard drive (that was made by the same company too) and within minutes we had a huge back-up hard drive up and running. We chose to use the Fire-wire 400 port in our mac. The whole thing looks very neat, with only 2 wires entering the drive.

I was very pleased by the amount of cables included in the package. Normally, I’d expect a USB cable to be included, and I’d be pretty happy if that was all. However, the hard drive also ships with:

1x 3Gbit, eSATA
2x FireWire 800 (9-pin)
1x USB2.0
(FireWire 400 via 800 to 400 cable – which we used to connect to our 2008 iMac test model)

These aren’t little 1 foot long cables either, included to save money. No, these are 1.6, 1.8 and 0.6 meter long cables respectively, meaning you can have your hard drive placed up to 5 foot away from your workstation if needed.

On your desk

Upon powering up, the G Drive took perhaps 10 seconds to register as a drive to the Mac. Shortly it would be time to test it, but we wanted to talk about how the devices works in terms of noise, size e.t.c

On your desk the hard drive sits pretty right next to your mac. It runs with a pleasant sound – its pretty quiet and has a Macbook Pro sort of sound to it. As with other drives, expect the occasional whizz and whir as the platters spin round, but in general the hard drive is no noisier (or annoying) than your average clock or colleague.

The hard drive is a reasonable sized piece of kit, it’s not huge, it’s not small, its just about the right size. it fits snugly under my Dell 24″ monitor, but I have chosen to place it further away to allow air to access the awesome looking heat-sink on the lower-side. To sum up, if you buy this hard drive, everyone knows you mean business, it transforms any desk to look like something out of Star Trek Enterprise (TNG).

Performance

Now for the fun bit. The hard drive looks mean and purposeful, but can it live up to performance tests? Running a few tests, transferring 1-3GB files, we found the drive to be blisteringly fast. The disk runs at 7,200 RPM, with up to 32MB of cache. I expected the transfer of one file, which contained 3.75GB of data to take around 20 minutes (perhaps even 30 minutes) as I had become accustomed to my slower, cheaper previous external drive. After 1 minute we’d transferred close to 1GB of data. I couldn’t believe it!

The OSX data transfer windows tells me at 2.2GB there’s a minute left In all the whole operation took 3 minutes 48 seconds.Very quick indeed! A result I am thoroughly happy with.

As a back-up drive for a designer or developer, the G-Drive will be asked to do a lot of work. But, from our tests I can tell you its going to take everything you throw at it. This is like a marine of the hard drive world.

Transfer speeds could be even faster, if we had a Firewire 800 port, we could expect speeds of 75MBps writing and 55mbps writing.

With Esata this is even more impressive, 113mbps reading speeds, with similar writing speeds. This drive is pretty future proof.

The drive knows how to keep cool too! It’s been running now for about an hour or two non-stop. To the touch its not even warm, a push to even call it tepid. I haven’t given it an easy time, it’s backed up half my computer now! The design of the case surely helps this, as the drive stands on what look like 4 legs, squat like a rhino. The benefit of this means the underside is open to cooling air. its large 4 x 2 inch heat sink is completely exposed. The aluminium cover also helps to keep things cool, dissipating any heat generated. It’s not got that much of an easy environment to work in either. Currently its about 22 degrees indoors. It’s winter here, and outside is chilly to say the least. We have the heating on, leaving the office rather toasty so we don’t freeze our little fingers. Consequently, the hard drive is dealing with that extra heat too.

The underside heat-sink. Just out of frame are the rubber pads that grip the drive to your desk, and cushion the metal from scratching.

Verdict

I’m not traditionally a very easy to person to please. Even the great Apple iMac has a few niggles that bug me. But this drive is probably the first ever product I say I’m 100% happy with. There’s nothing that could be done to make this drive better. It looks great, performs insanely fast and is a pleasure to use. Nothing major stands out and that really demonstrates the work and effort that has gone into creating the perfect hard drive for video and web professionals alike. The speeds of the hard drive are impressive and the G-Drive packs some horsepower under its beautifully crafted hood.We had the 2TB model to test, that’s a lot of storage! But thanks to the G-Drive we know we can restore back-ups at blistering speeds and more importantly, reliably. A great hard-drive, and the best product I’ve tested all year. Hitachi Hard Drive Data Recovery.

If your on the look-out for an external back-up or network storage drive, this device should be the only one on your list. Forget about wasting your money on anything else! Get a G-Drive, and you’ll love it!

The G-Drive is available in 500GB – 2TB configurations, and ranges from $149.99 (500GB) to $349.99 for the top spec, 2TB drive we had. The drive is literally worth every penny. I have no intention of ever switching to another drive manufacturer and will be highly recommending G-Technology products to my peers and contacts. The G-Drive isn’t the only G-Tech product though! They have all kinds of drives and RAID devices. You should head on over to the G-Technology website, where you can find out more about their awesome products: http://www.g-technology.com/index.cfm

The product is extremely well built. It feels solid and strong in the hand, which makes a change from some of the other aftermarket parts available – matching Apple’s build quality. The Hypermac battery is designed to extend your portable work life, if your on the go and your battery goes flat, the Hypermac can extend battery life by several hours, giving a combined run time of up to 12 hours.

Features

• Use your MacBook for up to 12 hours without recharging
• Power your MacBook and recharge the internal battery at the same time
• Uses original Apple MagSafe power connector for maximum compatibility
• Compatible with all models of Apple MacBook / MacBook Pro / MacBook Air
• Additional USB port powers any USB device (e.g. iPhone) simultaneously
• High capacity 60-Watt-hour (compared to MacBook Air 37Wh battery)
• Military grade lithium ion cells, rechargeable up to 1000 times
• Advanced safety protection circuitry
• Beautiful aluminum housing color matched to complement the MacBook
• Laser engraved logo and all-white accessories
• Optional car charger powers your MacBook safely and efficiently on the road
• ONE year warranty

The size of the battery means it will fit in any bag or notebook sleeve which has storage for peripherals. Size-wise its certainly very small, we think appropriate to the extra-battery performance it affords and equally as light, weighing at only 0.8 pounds. Sitting in your notebook sleeve its hardly noticeable, no more than carrying a few moleskines or your iPhone and a camera.

The battery itself is a Lithium ION type, providing good reliability and up to 1000 charge cycles, meaning this battery should last you many a trip away from the desk. Charging the battery takes around 2 to 3 hours, no more than a fully discharged iPhone or Macbook takes.

The battery itself looks great next to the new unibody Macbooks, though its noted that this particular model doesn’t suit the 15″ and 17″ Macbook Pro models. It’s also possible to charge your iPhone of these batteries, and larger capacity, more powerful versions are available for the larger Macbook Pros.

Included in box

• HyperMac External Battery
• 1 x MacBook charging cable with MagSafe connector
• AC power supply 100-240V (for charging HyperMac)
• Printed documentation

You get everything you need to start charging your Mac or iPhone on the go straight from the box. Hypermac also offer an optional in car charger, for the ultimate portable charging toolkit! A highly impressive product indeed! 100% recommended and with prices starting from $199, can you afford not to increase the time you get to spend on the road without worrying about finding a power outlet?

Hypermac is available from the Hyperstore, with prices starting from $199.95 for the base model battery.

It is by far the best car stand we’ve tested. It offers great strength, flexibility and durability. The Xtand Go has many intelligent features, which we’ll cover in our review below…

Features

As usual, we’ll start with specs. The Xtand Go on paper looks like a competent and flexible stand. It offers up additional pads that can be used to secure the Xtand Go to a dashboard, or a generic device. Because these pads are universal in fitting (either as a dashboard or gadget mount) you get 4 or 5 in the pack. That’s a brilliant idea, as it allows you to use the stand in several cars or on a TomTom, an iPhone and Blackberry as you wish.

• Flexible mounting system

• X-mount for iPhone 3GS/ iPhone 3G
• Go Button mount for smart phones and sat-navs
• Pocket-sized and portable

The Xtand is made from a tough, durable plastic. At the top, you have an iPhone holder. This fits the iPhone perfectly – the phone is held very securely in place, ideal when you start hitting more bumpy roads. Not that it’s so strong you’ll never be able to release your iPhone from it’s grip, a molded tab situated on one car means removal of the iPhone is very simple and practical. In the above picture, you can see one of the Xtand’s mounting blocks. These slot into the stands base, but can easily be removed by pressing the small clips on the base.

The instructions have very easy to follow diagrams, rather than wordy directions.

The windscreen sucker. This is by the far the best qyality sucker I’ve tried by any aftermarket company. Most other designs usually fall off at least 3 times before they stick permently. Because the Xtand’s base is removable, it’s easily fit to the windscreen – with the sucker providing good even pressure. Application works the first time every time! Removing from your windsheild is a synch! Just twist the base ring anti clockwise a little, and peel off using the tab on the suckers surface!

The base is made of 3 separate blocks. Each block pivots from one edge, but also rotates 360 degrees. That means you’ll be bale to fit this stand pretty much anywhere and configure it to suit you and your vehicle. Even when the 3 blocks are fanned out , the base is still very sturdy with minimal wobble whilst traveling.

The 3 block system in action. Note the articulation in each segment. On the right most block, you can see on of the clips that facilitates quick release of either the stand from your car, or the device on the other end from the base.

The fully assembled stand, stands at around 3 or 4 inch tall with the top block tilted).

Here you can see the Xtand secured to a windshield. The sucker on the bottom works faultlessly. In this configuration there is literally zero movement whilst traveling on even the roughest roads. Note the suckers removal tab.

You can physically see the connection made here, it’s almost rock solid. The darker areas indicate where the rubber has sealed to the glass. It would probably secure more if we’d have applied a little pressure and cleaned our windscreen – but we wanted to give it a real world test, which it handled effortlessly.

Here we have TomTom iPhone edition at work, held perfectly in the corner of our windscreen. You can position the Xtand almost anywhere (as you’ll see shortly) so you can affix it in a location that suits your driving style and car. We like it to be well out of our line of view, close to our speedometer and rev counter. The top left tab is visible in this photo.

Positioned  in a non-distracting, safe manner. This sits well below the level of our steering wheel hump.

Here we see one of the stand mounts. These have an adhesive backing, and can be attached to generic devices, your dashboard, roof lining – anywhere they’ll stick. These can also be attached to your favorite case for super speedy iPhone placement.

In a preferable position on our dash. We love it placed here, as it’s in no way obstructing the drivers line of sight and can be quickly referenced without taking ones attention away from the road. We plan to mount it on the dash across several cars, and the pads are ideal for this as the mount is always in place.

Drivers eye view

We also prefer the dash mount for security reasons, it doesn’t leave that tell tale sucker mark on the window for thieves to see. Rather, you’re left with a discreet and uninteresting block on the dashboard.

Conclusion

The Xtand Go by Just Mobile is one serious piece of kit! If you ever use Sat Nav or your iPod in your car, this is an absolute must, but forget any other car stand – it has to be the Xtand Go. Available from a large number of stockists worldwide. Visit JustMobile for more information

No, we don’t like James Morrison…

The built in iPod / iPhone speakers are great. Great when your out in the town and want to share your music. But when your in your home or workspace, and wish to play your music at a reasonable volume and for several hours on the go, then the iPhone will let you down. Speaker quality degrades the higher the volume and depending on the surface it’s resting on – and then there’s the problem of Mr “I can’t last more than 4 hours continuously” iPhone battery. You could stick in the earphones, but again quality isn’t great and the buds aren’t exactly up there in terms of comfort.

You need something to dock your iPhone with, something to take the audio output from the device, and juice it up to a quality level, giving you real bass and much louder playback. You need a speaker for your iPhone. Luckily, we have one on review today, the Philips SBD7500.

How does it work?

Next to an iPhone..

As an Apple fan, I expect a lot from my gadget accessories. I expect gadgets to just work, as does Apple tech. By that I mean I want something that simply plugs in and plays. The Philips doesn’t disappoint here, because within 10 seconds of opening the box, you can be charging your iPhone / iPod AND listening to some music. Which is totally brilliant! All you do is plug in the AC adapter into a mains plug, dock your iPhone / iPod on the iPod connector (or via the audio cable provided) and your good to go. That’s really all there is to it – which is great because I hate 3 hour set-up guides and all that go with that.

The stand is hidden when retracted. This pic also shows the glossy finish, which can attract dust and finger prints, but looks slick.

Build Quality & Style

The SBD7500 again has to meet my very high expectation of gadgets. That is, I want everything to look and feel quality, as per my Apple tech. The Phillips doesn’t disappoint here. I’ve noticed a lot of manufacturers of these type of accessories can sway to what I call more of a ‘Windows’ styling. That is, adding nasty lumps and bumps of moulded plastic in order to make it look cool, but instead making you hate the product even more. Not this one! I’m pretty sure if Apple had designed a speaker / dock for their line-up, it would look similar. Philips have done a great job in the styling and build quality.

That’s how reflective it is. Looks cool though…

In the hand, it feels light, but not overly light. It doesn’t feel flimsy or wobbly, which is good because it could be holding $500 of iPhone. The speaker itself is shaped like a large lozenge, with a glossy black finish on the rear, and some minor chrome detailing / buttons dotted about. The AC adapter in and audio in / out (hokey, kokey, kokey) have a small, matte finish surround, presumably to avoid scratching whilst trying to locate the plugs without looking (i.e from the front). That’s a nice little touch.

The stand folds away to form part of the closed lozenge shape, when carrying it for example, and folds out to provide a good, solid base. To deploy the stand, you simply push the stands upper center. This then forces the stand outwards,. Cleverly this does away with the need for latches or a grabbing edge. The design of the case is much better for that, as there are very few elements to detract from the overall design. Nothing on this gadget is there to look pretty or add design prowess, but simply to serve a function. And for that, I think it looks great on any desk or tabletop.

SBD 7500 tag-teaming Spotify to make the ultimate music machine!

Size

The speaker is well sized, both in how it looks and sounds. It’s approximately a foot long, but 4 or 5 inch high. It’s around 1.5 inch thick, meaning it should fit pretty much anywhere you have space. Philips have packed in great sound quality for such a modestly sized speaker.

This picture shows the speaker in situ and scale with an iPhone 3GS

Chrome detailing adds a little iPhone like bling

Features

Powerful Sound
• Dynamic Bass Boost electronically enhances the low tones
• Class ‘D’ digital amplifier for quality sound performance

Always ready to go
• AC adapter lets you power up at home.
• Mobile phone shielding technology means static-free sound

Share your music anywhere
• Power your speakers with batteries when you are on the go.

Sound
• Frequency response: 100–20,000 Hz
• Sound Enhancement: Dynamic Bass Boost
• Impedance: 4 ohm
• RMS Power rating: 10 W
• Sensitivity: 80 dB

Convenience
• Power on indication
• Volume control
Accessories
• AC/DC Adapter

Power
• Battery type: LR6

Carrying Case -  a sturdy, neoprene feel case is included too. This is quite spongy and offers good protection for the speakers.

All this from a $99 device. Not bad ey?

Sound Quality

So we’ve established that the Philips SBD 7500 looks good and feels good in the hand. It’s a well built iPod accessory from a large and well respected company. But now we hit the real test. The sound quality. Testing sound and then talking about it is difficult, but we are going to do our best in order to give you the most accurate picture possible of the product’s output.

Firstly,  you have the option to turn on the DBB, which visibly gives the track more bass. This is a more realistic viewing experience, as opposed to this been turned off, when the song sounds flatter (something you only notice when playing with the switches). At full volume the speakers maintain quality, and it’s very loud. Set at around medium is quite fine for working to. The actual sound is very crisp, there’s not a whiff of crackle or distortion. It’s very, very impressive.

We tested the speakers with Spotify (which is not known for it’s amazing sound quality as songs are streamed over mobile web) but it sounded very clear, which we we’re impressed with. Combining such a device with an app like Spotify means you have a portable bank of almost every song ever produced, and a means to play those songs with a high quality piece of kit. I really, really like this speaker. It looks great, works great and is very well priced.

Don’t laugh at the Editors choice of music….

Conclusion

I really can’t think of anything else you’d want from a speaker that the Philips doesn’t have. Sound buffs will love it’s quality, the price challenged will love it’s $99 selling price and Apple fans all over will love the ability to play iTunes / other apps (such as spotify) through an external speaker that offers great sounding music. This is a brilliant piece of kit and will suit anyone from Grandma and her iPod nano to your cousin who rocks out to AC/DC on his iPod touch!

The SBD7500 is available from Philips and most other good Philips stockists. Click here for more information.

The snug fitting travel case protects and stores well. It’s even got a handy carry handle and external pouch for the AC adapter.

iPhone app developers Transfer music from iPod to computer .

The Mophie Juice Pack Air in action

Checking your emails, playing some light games and playing films suck your iPhone’s battery quicker than you can say “Oh, where’s my charger?”. You might consider purchasing an external, top-up mobile charger for your iPhone or even a car charger. But the external battery is just another thing for you to carry or to lose. You’re not always with your car, and not everyone has one.

The Mophie is well protected in it’s packaging…

The instructions are pretty handy…

With that in mind, we review the Mophie Juice Pack Air.

The Juice Pack Air is a combined case / iPhone external battery. Mophie claim the device will virtually double your 3G or 3Gs’ talk, surf or rock time.

The Mophie has been officially certified by Apple, as a “Works with iPhone 3G(S)” product and provides both protection and extended life for your phone. Let’s take a closer look at the Juice Pack Air.

The Juice Pack consists of 2 ‘halves’ – a short top that envelops the leading edge of the iPhone – with cut-outs for the camera, power & silence buttons and the headphone jack.

The 2 halves of the Mophie

The bottom half has an iPhone dock, 2 moulded dimples that open up the speaker and mic that would other wise be covered. On the bottom edge, where the normal dock would be, is a mini-usb port for charging the Mophie and a small rocker switch to toggle charging modes.

The part fitted Juice Pack Air!

Finally on the rear you’ll find 4 small blue LED lights that indicate the power level of the Mophie’s internal battery.

The LED’s indicate battery level

The whole case is finished in a high gloss finish and is available in either black (like our review sample), white, purple or a new soft-touch finish red.

As a case, the Mophie is impressive. It’s made of a very tough plastic and the case follows the iPhone contours and buttons closely – minimizing dirt and dust ingress.

Ergonomically, the case is very good. In the hand, it feels chunky but not uncomfortable. Mophie have done well to keep this case as thin as it is, thanks to the clever design and lightweight battery. Once fitted you really don’t notice the Mophie one bit – that is until you need to top up your iPhone.

Iphone profile vs the Mophie

Picture the scenario. Your in town, on the move on your way to a very important annual meeting. You simply must not lose contact with the office as all calls are been forwarded to your iPhone. But what’s this? You’re incredibly forgetful, and you haven’t charged your iPhone this morning. Fortunately, you have your Mophie Juice Pack fitted, and that is fully charged thanks to it’s stand-by mode that conserves the Mophie’s battery level.

So, you flick the switch – and your iPhone is heading out of the red – and should see you double the iPhone battery level.

The Mophie is a real life saver.

The Juice Pack air saving your life

To give you an idea of double, here’s how the 3G and 3GS currently stand on time:

3GS:

• Standby Time: Up to 270 hours
• Talk Time: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 10 hours on 2G
• Internet Use: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 8 hours on Wi-Fi
• Audio Playback: Up to 27 hours
• Video Playback: Up to 9 hours

iPhone 3G:

• Standby Time: Up to 270 hours
• Talk Time: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 9 hours on 2G
• Internet Use: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 5.4 hours on Wi-Fi
• Audio Playback: Up to 20 hours
• Video Playback: Up to 6 hours

Battery

Now it’s time to talk tech.

The Mophie has a built in LiPo battery rated at 1200mAh. LiPo’s are very light batteries and relatively small in form factor – meaning the Mophie adds little to the iPhone in weight or bulk. The battery has built in overcharge, short-circuit and temperature protection – which is always nice.

Charging the iPhone is super simple – simply connect your iPhone to your Mac and you can still charge (both the iPhone and the Mophie simultaneously) and sync the phone using the ‘pass-though’ usb – remember, there’s a dock connector built into the Mophie.

Using Intelligent Power Distribution, the Mophie always tells the iPhone to run off the Mophie power over it’s own battery – so when the Mophie runs out, you still have a fully charged iPhone.

Verdict

The Mophie get’s a huge thumbs up from us, giving it the Apple Reviews seal of approval

To conclude, the Mophie Juice Pack Air is the product I want to take on my next trip – thanks to it’s unique case / battery concept. Other batteries we’ve tried only clog up your luggage – whereas the Mophie is right there on your phone all your time. It’s very comfortable too, adds little weight and size to the phone – and it looks good.

This is THE external battery you’ll want to buy for quick-out-and-about topping up of your iPhone’s battery.

You can purchase the Juice Pack Air directly from Mophie for $79.99.

Simply click here: http://www.mophie.com/product-p/1059_jpa-ip3g-blk.htm

Check out Part I of our tips, Part II, and keep reading for more…

Automatic Trash Emptying

Though you would think that Automator can empty your trash automatically, considering it can move items there automatically, it actually doesn’t. However, savvy users can create an AppleScript that accomplishes this task. To do this, launch Automator, then choose the kind of workflow you want to create. In the next window, choose Utilities and drag the AppleScript to the workflow area. Highlight the text and enter the following:

tell application “Finder”
empty the trash
end tell

Save this workflow to the desktop, and put something in the trash, and double click the workflow. It should empty.

Using Stickies to their potential

Most folks love Stickies, and they definitely give you a lot to be organized with. But here are a couple more things that’ll make you love it even more. One is using the keyboard shortcut Command-Shift-Y, which automatically creates a new note with text that you have just highlighted. The other approach is highlighting your information, then dragging it to the Stickies icon on your Dock. A new note will appear. Excellent.

Built-in Reminders for iOS 5

Apple’s built-in reminders tool can give you more than just storing simple lists. When you launch it, a blank list  appears. Here you can crate mulitple reminders and assign lists to each of them. To add a new list, tap the Edit button, then Create New List. Title it, tap Done, and edit when necessary. Other than lists, you can also create tasks, which are basically reminders.

There are two ways to add them. You can tap the [+] button at the top, or the top blank space on the “paper”.

Type the task, then either tap the Return key on the keyboard or tap Done. You can schedule this at a specific time or location. Tap the entry, go to Details, and tap Remind Me button to schedule a time. If you want it to alert you at a specific location, slide the Location slider to On, and you  schedule your alert to sound when you arrive at or depart from the destination. By default it is your address, but you can choose any in your address book. If you don’t have it in there, go to Contacts, tap [+], put the location, click done, and there it is.

Simplifying with Siri

An addendum to the Reminders above, Siri works really well with these. If you use an iPhone 4S, just hold down the Home button so Siri is activated and instruct her with the words “Remind me” (IE “Remind me to get eggs from the grocery store”). Follow her prompts to set the reminder for when you need it.

Other ways to use DropBox

I love to use DropBox to integrate between all my devices, but also with co-workers, family, and friends. Here are some of our other ways to use it:

• Keep current projects in there so you can access them anywhere
• Share a file with your family to easily send photos
• Work easily with your coworkers to send and adapt files to each other
• Build your music library and share along your with your family members
• Store encrypted files for extra privacy
• Use as your sole “Documents” folder to keep everything in one place

Everyone will find this program useful in some form.

Built within the app are sections for:

• Drawing
• Brainstorming
• Organizational Charts
• Space Planning

Pre-defined templates

Drawing

OGP is provided with pre-installed maps, furniture and all kinds of fun web design stencils. However, there are free (and some paid) 3rd party stencils available.

This stencil by Koingi is available for free, and allows you to quickly begin developing wire frames with OGP.

Or even an iPhone UI kit: http://graffletopia.com/stencils/413

Brainstorming

Brainstorming / Navigation planning works great with OGP! The interface includes a slick, subtle animation effect when adding elements to charts.

Space Planning

A bizarre room design, but this diagram demonstrates the space planning feature, along with extensive furniture and appliance objects.

From the range of available stencils, I can see OGP is highly flexible but produces some impressive (and quick) results every time.

Verdict

This application is absolutely phenomenal! Highly recommended for anyone who ever needs to create Charts, Wireframes and Diagrams of any sort. The add-ons available are great, opening up the app to even UI designers. Creating diagrams is super quick. Everything about the app is perfect. My only slight concern is using it on a 13″ screen over the 44inch desktop set-up we have felt a little cramped. Nothing major. Most programs do….

To sum-up, if your after a highly professional, affordable and easy to use Diagram and Interface Editing power-house OmniGraffle Pro is for you! This app could have been completely bloated, like a 200foot blue whale been carted around by a Donkey. But the finished product is elegant and unbelievably easy to work with. Well done to the dev and interface teams!

The Pro license is avaialble for $199.99 here, The Standard version is available for $99 but lacks features such as Visio Export and presentation mode.