I don’t get why when I go to an electronics or computer store other than the Apple Store, I can’t find a Bluetooth mouse. Other than gaming, there really is no excuse for not having a Bluetooth mouse. Since all Mac laptops and some PC laptops now come with Bluetooth pre-installed, it’s just silly to use an RF wireless mouse that requires an USB receiver. I’ve been using my Logitech Bluetooth mouse for over a year and I love it. Heck, I bought one for my wife’s Mac mini I loved it so much (and she loves it, too.)
Looks like the folks at Proporta understand this issue as well as it has just released the Bluetake BT510 Bluetooth Mouse. Its optical sensor will scan your surface at a rate of 800dpi giving you precise and quick movement. It’s comfortable shape will allow both lefties and righties to enjoy the mouse within their hand. A middle scroll button resides, well, in the middle. 
With its nice little black bag, and 2 AAA batteries, you can purchase direct from Proporta for VAT 40.95.
A lot of people are pretty giddy about the iPhone and it’s all understandable. However, if you can’t wait three more months to shell out $500 for a phone that will only be on one network, then maybe stick with what you got…plus one accessory.
Gear4’s BlueEye is a similar Bluetooth device we reviewed last year called the Tekkeon myTalker ET7000 (review). While we really like myTalker, BlueEye takes it a step further and displays Caller ID information (when available) on your iPods screen. It also uses the dock connector to tap into your iPod so newer generation users are not left in the cold due to the removal of the remote port on top of the iPod.
Like we already stated, you plug in the BluEye into your iPods dock connector and then your headphones plug into the port at the other end of the remote. The remotes layout is identical to that of the Apple Remote and iPod shuffle, so the learning curve is lessened with this smart replication move. You pair your phone to the remote and then you simply enjoy the tunes. Well, until someone calls. Gaze at your iPods screen and see if the caller is worthy of being spoken to. If so, press a button on the remote and up comes your caller and off goes the music. Don’t worry about missing the rest of Xanadu either, BluEye goes ahead and pauses the current track playing and resumes play where you left off after the completion of your call. All automatically. Very nice.
You’ll have to hunt for the BluEye in the States as this a UK product, though it’s not tough to find. It’ll cost ya around $100 but hey, it’s still less than the iPhone and the phone you’re probably pairing the BluEye up to was most likely a freebie for that two year contract you signed anyway.
From the CTIA WIRELESS 2007 show today, Verizon Wireless, operator of the nation’s most reliable wireless network, and Motorola, Inc. announced the exclusive availability of the new Motorola Automotive Music & Hands-free System T605. Available at Verizon Wireless Communications Stores across the country on April 6, including those within Circuit City stores, this new car kit gives music-lovers access to digital music and phone calls directly through one car sound system.
“Customers will enjoy the fact that their music will stream wirelessly from any Bluetooth stereo mobile phone, but when a call comes in the T605 pauses the music and resumes it when the call ends,” said Patrick Bucci, director of accessories for Verizon Wireless. “This is an easy way for Verizon Wireless customers to take their music with them wherever they go.”
“We are thrilled to team-up with Verizon Wireless for our first in-car streaming audio solution,” said Robert Levine, general manager, North America, MobileME, Motorola. “The T605 expands Motorola’s Bluetooth enabled automotive solutions to give people choice and flexibility for their connectivity needs in the car.”
The T605 also lets Verizon Wireless customers enjoy uninterrupted conversations. Just turn on the ignition and the T605 automatically syncs with a compatible Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone.
Equipped with digital signal processing for noise and echo reduction and enhanced technology that lets the volume increase as background noise increases, full duplex capabilities and version 2.0 Bluetooth wireless technology* the Motorola T605 is engineered for advanced call quality and clear connections.
Complete with a sleek, dynamic finish, an improved user interface for intuitive navigation, and Motorola’s exclusive EasyPair technology, this hands-free system promises ease-of-use.
Alltel Wireless, America’s largest network and LG Electronics MobileComm U.S.A., Inc. (LG Mobile Phones) today announced the LG AX8600, an ultra-slim phone that lets customers listen to their favorite music while on the go. Available in Marine Blue, Apple Green and Shimmering Gold the LG AX8600 features an MP3 player with touch-sensitive external keys, a 1.3 mega pixel camera/camcorder, Alltel’s patent-pending Celltop technology and entertainment applications including Alltel’s Axcess TV and XM Radio Mobile, making this a must have mobile entertainment device. The LG AX8600 is now available and can be purchased at Alltel Wireless retail stores and at shopalltel.com.
“For our active customers who desire a phone that offers the latest in technology and fashion, the LG AX8600 is a perfect fit,” said Wade McGill, senior vice president of product management for Alltel Wireless. “In addition, Alltel Wireless customers can choose from three great colors that best reflect their personality.”
The LG AX8600 includes a 1.3 mega pixel camera with video, Bluetooth Stereo® wireless technology, an expandable microSD memory slot and the latest Axcess features, including Alltel’s Mobile Guide navigation service. The phone also comes with Alltel’s Axcess TV application preloaded, allowing subscribers to watch over 25 available channels, and features XM Radio Mobile, a subscription radio service that provides customers with unlimited access to select audio streams of 20 popular commercial-free XM music channels for $7.99 per month. Read the rest of this entry »
Tekkeon today unveils ezSpeak™, a portable Bluetooth speakerphone with DSP technology for clear, handsfree mobile conversations in the car, home, or office. With echo cancellation and noise reduction for premium digital sound enhancement, ezSpeak lets users hear callers clearly, even in noisy environments. A full-duplex speaker provides excellent sound performance to ensure call clarity.
ezSpeak can be mounted on the car visor, or placed on a desk¾no professional installation is required. An easy-to-read digital display provides the incoming caller ID, call status, volume level, and low battery indication at a glance. Advanced features that are supported by the mobile phone, like voice dialing, stored number redial, conference, and last number redial, enable users to quickly and safely make calls while driving without juggling the mobile phone.
“Because it can be easily mounted on the car visor, ezSpeak is an ideal solution for handsfree communication in an automobile,” says Jerry Yang, president of Tekkeon. “With all the new laws that affect the use of mobile phones in the car, the handsfree communication provided by ezSpeak becomes more important than ever.”
Equipped with a rechargeable lithium polymer battery, ezSpeak provides up to ten hours of talk time and 220 hours of standby time. ezSpeak is designed with Bluetooth v1.2 technology, is backward compatible with Bluetooth v1.1 devices, and works with any device that supports Bluetooth Headset and/or Handsfree profiles.
The MSRP for ezSpeak (ET6000) is $79.95, which includes a one-year limited warranty. The package includes ezSpeak, a 12V car charger, visor clip with optional swivel, and user guide. ezSpeak is available through retail and major on-line stores including Buy.com, DataVision, eCOST.com, J&R, Mobile Planet, Newegg, PC Mall, Shop4Tech, and Tiger Direct, and from the Tekkeon store at www.Tekkeon.com.
Moon Valley Software has introduced FixDat, a new wireless communication device at the International Consumer Electronics Tradeshow (CES) on January 8th. FixDat is a wireless diagnostic tool that can be used to send and even reset the diagnostic codes of your vehicle. Connect using a wide range of devices, including your cell phone, PDA, laptop, or even Personal Computer. The product is set to hit the shelves by storm this spring with a price tag of around $150. Compare that to other cabled diagnostic devices that are much more expensive, and work with a narrower range of vehicles. This unit is compatible with 1996 and beyond passenger vehicles and light trucks, semi’s not included (sorry guys.) Whether you have a Ford, Chevy, Dodge, or Toyota, you’ll be able to use FixDat with any of them.
The CEO of Moon Valley Software, Mr. Peter Ryan, is enthusiastic about the new product. He said: “We’re very excited…Linking wirelessly to an onboard computer system with my cell phone is hot. The possibilities are endless.”
Hot huh? Well, it’ll get even hotter this summer because there are more products that will be added to the Dat family later this year. TripDat will wirelessly provide bookkeeping software, data logging and porting. Not only this, it serves as a hub for linking stereos, Global Positioning Systems, cellular phones, and other Bluetooth devices. Rental car companies, CheckDis out. FleetDat is a commercial product that will allow for communication over long distances, such as fleet management and other car rental applications. All wirelessly. Dat’s cool!
James Bond has had some pretty cool gadgets but I can never recall a more functional yet sexy gizmo as the Motorola Q in Bond’s collection. We got to play with the Q for over three months to really give it a thorough test and we’ll tell you right now, what we thought was just another gimmick turned out to be a surprising useful and enjoyable tool. With it’s built-in Internet EV-DO capabilities and the ability to let MacBooks attach to it and surf the Internet via Bluetooth, this has become one very special little guy to us. Too bad we have to give it back.
Read the entire (and very in depth) review on our Reviews page.
Watch out America, there’s a new style of Bluetooth accessories coming to our side of the hemisphere and boy does it look good! The former managing director of Nokia Mobile Phone has left to start Iqua, a company based in Finland. Iqua has quickly become a high end luxury brand in Scandinavia and Europe and now it has its eyes set on the US market.
“The Iqua Vogue” is one such product it hopes to do that with. Designed by the award-winning Finnish design studio, Salovaara & Salonen, the classy and sleek looking headset not only looks good, but SvenOnTech is told it’s a performer. With its in-ear speaker, it makes it a bit easier to believe. Iqua claims 9 hours of talk time and 200 of standby. You get 3 colors to choose from: pearl white, charcoal or pink.
We’ll keep you posted on these and other products from Iqua as we’ll be stopping by its booth at CES in January.
Have you been waiting to use the Bluetooth Serial on your handheld computer? Now you can get the most rock-solid bluetooth serial on the market. PN Technologies, www.pcables.com, is well known for rock-solid serial cables for handheld computers. The first Bluetooth Serial Adapter from PN Technologies is a no-compromise solution which is just as reliable as our serial cables. It is a Class 1 Bluetooth Radio. This means that a Tungsten E2 from Palm can easily achieve a rock solid Serial connection at 30 feet - even through walls!
ECYPH, like all PN Technologies innovations, is designed for easy serial connection to other computing products. The EBTE-M9-6 utilizes the same RS232 interface technology as our world-famous "M9-6" line of serial cables for Palm Pilots, such as the PDCT5-M9-6. This means that if you have purchased a PDCT5-M9-6 (or in fact any -M9-6) cable from www.pcables.com and it is working in your application, you can be guaranteed that the EBTE-M9-6 will make the serial connection just as well. For customers who are ready to make the move into Bluetooth Serial on their Palm Pilot, here is the most rugged and reliable solution available. To buy, log on www.pcables.com and click on the "Palm Data Cables Catalog" link on the left and order the EBTE-M9-6 from the top of the page.
When I had Vonage VoIP, I loved it’s CallVantage feature. It integrated with Outlook and let me select a contact and instantly dial it. Within seconds, my phone was ringing with the call in progress. But when I left Vonage due to lack of a data centers in the 209 area code (which it still doesn’t have) for Packet8, I lost my beloved feature. Sure, there are phone dialers that work with modems, but lots of good that does me on a MacBook Pro. Thankfully, a guy named Jon felt my pain.
Not to be confused with SvenOnTech’s own contributor, Jon is another famous Jon that develops some neat applications for the Mac. You may have seen his Docktop the last time you visited an Apple Store. You know, the little collection of applications in the middle of the screen that you could launch much like the Apple Dock but it’s in the middle of the screen. Ya, it’s sweet. Well Jon has applied the same sweetness to JPT, short for Jon’s Phone Tool.
If you’re a lucky Vonage user, you’ll be able to use JPT with it much like CallVantage which is great for Mac users since Vonage doesn’t have a Mac version of CallVantage. But if you don’t have Vonage, as I don’t anymore, then you have other choices to get that number dialed from your Mac. This list is long, but I’ll be brief with it. Methods include Bluetooth (sends the number to your mobile or one of the handful home phones with Bluetooth), VoIP, touch-tones through your speaker, and good ol’ analog modem. If you’ve bought a Mac recently, then the latter won’t apply to you as it doesn’t for me. That leaves good times with those tiny speakers (or VoIP for you Cisco cats)!
I played with JPT for maybe ten minutes before I found myself at Kagi’s site making a purchase of this fine tool. Jon knows how good his dialer is since he not only mentions the competition but even puts links to them on his FAQ page! With the its ease and power, it just was too easy not to even consider looking at the other dialers. For $15, ya, I’ll feel fine slapping out the credit card numbers via 1Passwd since it’s just that good.
A couple of things I do want to tell you potential dialer users before I conclude. First, its integration with various address books is great. It tapped right into my Entourage as well as Apple’s Address Book. Since I connect to an Exchange server, the dialer took a great amount of time to find my number I was searching for; however, Address Book was instant. Since Entourage now lets you sync with Address Book, I ended up just keeping JPT settings to use Address Book.
The other feature I wanted to let you know about is the ability to dial Mnemonics directly. For example, if you see a number that is, say, 1-800-GO-BEARS, you input that and off it dials. Very, very nice!
Again, you can’t go wrong with this dialer. It’s spot on. If you make frequent calls throughout the day and need a break on the dial-pad, let Jon’s Phone Tool help you let your fingers get a break. I did.
UPDATE: Jon let us known that Docktop was inspired by the very application found on the Macs at the Apple Store and is not the application seen there as earlier reported. Thank you, Jon, for the clarification!