The Latest From FilmCrunch: The Departed, The Lake House, and Little Mermaid Platinum Edition

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Announcements, Home Entertainment, Movies, Product Reviews,

So, we introduced you to our new movie review site, FilmCrunch, earlier this morning. We figured we would give you a taste of the show here on Gear Live as well, just so you can see how they roll over there. In the latest episode, Neil Estep and Veronica Santiago review movies like The Departed, The Lake House, and the Platinum DVD release of The Little Mermaid. Check out the video, and let us know what you think.

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Tom Bihn ID Bag Review

Posted by Sparky Categories: Accessories, Wearables, Features, Product Reviews,

Tom Bihn recently released an update to their mid-sized messenger bag, the ID. The updated ID has several notable improvements and makes for a great everyday bag for anyone with lots of stuff to cart around. Gear Live took it for a spin and compares it to the Imago which we recently reviewed. Click through for the full review.

Click to continue reading Tom Bihn ID Bag Review

Xbox 360 Video Marketplace Reviewed

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Movies, Product Reviews, Video Games,

This one is from our friends over at Krunker, who decided to go through the horrific pain and agony (in our opinion) of downloading the huge video files available on the Xbox 360 Video Marketplace onto the miniscule Xbox 360 hard drive. They report back with their full review of the service, which they see as one of the beginnings of an Xbox 360 - Zune relationship:

The new Xbox Video Marketplace is a small step in the right direction for the Xbox 360. The initial release is underwhelming and some of the restrictions annoying, but the service introduction clearly lays out the infrastructure and ground work for a bigger service down the road - one that will most likely bridge us to the Zune as well.

A small step in the right direction - we agree there - but come on Microsoft. You guys created Windows Media Video, and it streams incredibly well on PCs. Why can’t you use the same technology on the Xbox 360? Don’t you think users would much rather have instant-on access to these shows and movies rather than having to wait hours for a download to complete? Contemplate that, please, and get back to us. Thanks.

Read More | Krunker

Verizon V640 EVDO ExpressCard Review: MacBook Pro

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Apple, Broadband, Features, PC / Laptop, Product Reviews, Wireless / WiFi,

For anyone that has picked up a MacBook Pro, or any other laptop computer that has replaced the PCMCIA card with the newer ExpressCard format, you will be happy to hear that a couple of options have become available for getting on the Internet while on the go. New ExpressCards from both Dell and Verizon have surfaced, giving anyone with an ExpressCard slot the ability to resume their mobile tech lifestyle. We got one of the new Verizon V640 ExpressCards and have set it up and tested it, and we are here to report back with our results. Check out the full review of the WWAN V640 after the jump.

Click to continue reading Verizon V640 EVDO ExpressCard Review: MacBook Pro

Tom Bihn Imago Bag Review

Posted by Sparky Categories: Wearables, Features, Product Reviews,

Recently Gear Live had the opportunity to review another model from the Seattle based bag artist and engineer - Tom Bihn. This time I was reviewing the Imago, a stylish shoulder bag designed for the on-the-go professional.

The Imago solves the problem of what to do when you have a big data-centric phone, camera, PDA (or even a small laptop), keys, cords, USB drives, and all the other bits of clutter that life necessitates and no place to put them.

Find out more about the Imago, and get detail impressions after the jump.

Click to continue reading Tom Bihn Imago Bag Review

T-Mobile Dash Reviewed

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Handhelds, Product Reviews,

Looks like my boy John over at CrunchGear got his hands on one of the new T-Mobile Dash phones, and is reporting back with his impressions of the unit. The Dash is the new Moto Q-esque phone by HTC, which runs Windows Mobile 5.0 and has a full QWERTY keyboard. While John’s lack of love for Windows Mobile 5.0 may seem unfair at first, we can totally sympathize. That said, CrunchGear seems to think the phone is an all around good experience, WinMo 5.0 notwithstanding. If you are looking for a consumer-level phone ($199 with 2-year contract) that does more than just play fancy ringtones, this one might be worth a look if you are on T-Mobile (or looking to switch.)

Read More | CrunchGear

Bleeding Edge Byte 033: Nintendo DS Electroplankton Review

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Design, Features, Music, Product Reviews, Video Games, Videocasts,

Read More | The Bleeding Edge

LG Chocolate VX8500 Review

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Features, Portable Audio / Video, Product Reviews,

The LG Chocolate VX8500 debuted in the United States to much fanfare. Verizon pushed it as the next big thing in mobile entertainment phones, and even went all out with a television commercial campaign. Focusing on a cool music playing experience along with V-Cast entertainment over 3G EVDO, the hype machine seems to have paid off, as quite a few people that we know have ended up with an LG Chocolate phone. We took the VX8500 for a spin, and report back with our full review which you can check out after the break.

Click to continue reading LG Chocolate VX8500 Review

Bleeding Edge Byte 029: Tom Bihn Archetype Review

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, PC / Laptop, Product Reviews, Videocasts,

Read More | The Bleeding Edge

Diamond Viper X1600 PRO Reviewed

Posted by Brian Viele Categories: Corporate News, PC / Laptop, Product Reviews,

I think I was ten when my father and I bought our first PC at a computer show around 1992.  We pieced it together from parts from each vendor who had the best deal on a given peripheral.  I remember looking down at the video card selections at each vendor booth, seeing the DiamondMM (Diamond Multimedia) cards at the top of the list. Diamond, at the time, had the best performing video cards in the market, the Stealth 24 VLB just preceding the top of the line Viper P9000.  This scheme carried on for years with the Stealth series featuring mainly less expensive S3 series chipsets including the Virge and Savage4 while the Viper carried exclusively high end nVidia Riva chips. They also added in the Monster3D which made use of 3DFX Voodoo line. This trend continued until 1999 when Diamond merged with S3 Graphics, and all of the ensuing cards released carried the unimpressive S3 Savage2000 line of GPU’s. These cards were a market failure, and the Diamond name disappeared from the video card market.

In 2003, Best Data purchased what was left of Diamond MM creating the current iteration of Diamond Multimedia as an independent division of Best Data.  They used the newly created division to market products such as video cards, tv-tuner cards, sound cards and various connectivity devices in true DiamondMM fashion. The new video cards now carry exclusively ATI series chips.

HardOCP has put together a nice review of the Diamond Viper X1600 PRO 512 MB PCI-Express which is Diamond’s current mid-high end line, second only to the flagship Viper X1900 line of products. Be sure to check out www.diamondmm.com to see details on the new DiamondMM line of products.

Read More | HardOCP