Archive for the ‘Blogging Gadgets’ Category:
5 Cool Gadgets For Bloggers
So you want to get more done on the road and keep yourself up to date with the latest developments in your niche? Whether you are a full time blogger or just blog for fun, there are certain gadgets that could come in handy in helping you get more done and produce better work on your blog. There are too many of them to list here and not everyone is going to like the same gadgets. But here are 5 blogging gadgets that should give you ideas:
iPhone: Apple iPhone doesn’t need any introduction. It’s the best tool if you want to blog and tweet on the go. The contract is a bit pricey, but being able to take advantage of all the apps available on iTunes to get more done is truly a blessing. Of course, you can settle on Droid.
Netbooks: netbooks are not only portable but also energy efficient (most of them anyway). They are not as powerful as your home desktop or laptop but they are great for blogging.
HP Officejet Pro 8500 Premier Printer: gives you a very good bang for your buck. It may be an inkjet printer, but it is high quality and full of features you’d only see in more advanced printers. Having a decent printer never hurts, whether you are a blogger or a stock broker.
4 Best Webcams To Produce Video For Your Blog
So you want to take the next step and add video content to your blog? Maybe you are not ready to graduate to one of those fancy digital camcorders or SLR cameras. If you are just a beginner and have not produced a video before, you are probably better off with a standard webcam. Camcorders and digital SLRs are for people who intend to take videos on the go, do interviews at conferences, and post content from all around the globe. With webcams, you can still capture YouTube quality videos for your blog without having to spend too much money.
Choosing a webcam is not that hard, but you do want to make sure you get the right model that is compatible with your system (Win 7, Mac, …). You also want to pay attention to video quality as not all webcams are created equal. You certainly don’t want to go for the cheapest model on the market as you do get what you paid for.
With that in mind, here are 4 cool webcams to get you started in the world of video production:
Logitech QuickCam Orbit AF Auto Focus System: it’s a unique webcam that comes with motorized tracking to help you capture better video on your computer. The camera literally follows your face. The quality of video and still photos is superb as well.
Logitech Webcam Pro 9000: it’s less fancy than the above webcam but it does allow you to take 8 MP photos and high quality videos on your Windows machine. It works with ustream and similar services as well. Read more »
International Kindle: Worth it for Bloggers?
Unless you have totally spaced out for the past few months, there is a good chance you have heard of Amazon Kindle. Amazon Kindle is an innovative e-book reader that lets you read and download books from Amazon on the go. So no longer do you have to carry a few books with you when you go for a little trip around the nation. Most bloggers do spend a lot of time reading new material and keeping up with the latest developments in the world around them. For these folks, Amazon Kindle can be a life-saver. You can not only download books, but also newspapers and magazines on your Kindle. So it does provide bloggers with a lot of tool to stay on the top of their niches.
The international version of Kindle, which was released just a few days ago, allows you to download books all around the world. So if you happen to be interested in going to that conference in Europe, you won’t have to sweat about carrying books for your trip. You can just grab your Kindle, and you are set. Kindle international costs only $20 more than its domestic counterpart. But is it worth a try? Here are a few facts that you need to know before getting one:
My 4th Month with Livescribe Pen
If you have been following this blog, you probably know that I like to talk about fancy gadgets from time to time. I’ll try any tool that can save me time and help me become a more productive blogger. A few months ago, I finally decided to take a chance on Livescribe Pen. I had heard about the smart pen a while ago, but I was a bit skeptical about what it could do for me as a blogger. I had tried smart pens a couple of years ago and was not impressed with their quality, so it was hard for me to justify paying close to $200 for this pen. But after 4 months of playing with Livescribe, I can tell you now that it’s been an amazing experience.
If you are not familiar with Livescribe, it’s an innovative smart pen that lets you keep track of your notes and link them with audio notes when you are on the go. The pen records everything you are writing, and you can always upload your latest notes to your computer and online. The pen comes with a high speed infrared camera that enables you to take and store notes in a convenient fashion. There are many positives to Livescribe pen, but here are the main reason I love my pen:
- Convenience: it’s so convenient to take notes and search through them on your computer. Once you sync up your notes, you can easily use the search functionality provides to go through your notes and find the specific part your are looking to review.
- Features: being able to record what others are saying during a meeting is a big plus. You can always refer back to your notes and find out what you may have missed. You can also leave yourself with audio notes. I don’t know about you, but from time to time I fail to understand my own notes. By providing background information in audio and linking them to your note, you always know what your notes are about.
- Easy to use: this gadget is very easy to use. When you open up your kit, you are going to find a guide that helps you master the art of using this pen. The menus are very straight forward too. So you won’t have to spend too much time getting a hang of this pen.
- Online Features: Livescribe provides you with free storage online, so you can always export your notes and keep them safe online. A great way to store those highly valuable notes.
- Quality: the pen is very well made and solid. It has yet to fail to capture my notes. With my previous pens, I always had to worry about them missing my notes. But with Livescribe that hasn’t happened yet.
- Apps: there are plenty of cool apps in the works for Livescribe. Whether it’s the translator, the calculator, and other cool features, there are plenty of things you can do with Livescribe.
Panasonic Professional AG-HMC40: My First Pro Camcorder
Filed under: Blogging Gadgets, Start a Video Blog | View Comments
You may have noticed in the past few weeks that I have been talking more about video-blogging and the tools that can help you get vlogging done more effectively. The most essential vlogging tool is your camcorder. If you intend to make a professional quality video for your web show, you are going to need a decent cam. The mini camcorders that you see in retail stores do a good job taking videos on the go, but if you intend to conduct interviews with the experts at conferences or professional gatherings, it’s always good to have a pro camcorder.
I have always wanted to own a pro camcorder to not only check it off of my wish-list but also capture better quality videos to share with others. I do have a Zi8, so I am all set for my road trips. But I have never really cared for paying $5000 or more for a pro camcorder. I have never wanted to be a director or professional producer, so spending that much money on a pro camcorder has never made sense for me. Besides, there are a lot of other things you can do with $5000-$10000. Read more »
IDC Ecco Intelligent Pocket GPS Locator Review
Going to conferences and events around the world is going to be a major part of your blogging career. As someone who’s been in the blogging conference circuit for a while, I can’t tell you enough about how much tangible and intangible value you can get out of these conferences. But as someone who’s directionally challenged, I have had lots of difficulty getting around cities that I am not too familiar with. That’s why I have spent months looking for a device such as IDC Ecco GPS Locator to get around these conference sites easier. There are many digital compasses on the market but none comes close to what you get with IDC Ecco GPS.
I found IDC Ecco GPS to be very accurate and easy to use. You can track multiple locations and find your way back to your car with this gadgets easy-to-use locations. It’s also great for those international trips where the SI system is in place. Here is how it works. Once you are leaving your location, you just lock the place, and the device will help you get back to your hotel with ease.
This GPS is great if you are going for a walk in a foreign city and just want to enjoy what the city has to offer without having to worry about making it back to your hotel or the conference site. And the fact that you don’t have to pay for a monthly fee to use this device is a big plus. It’s not a battery killer either, so you can keep recharging the battery and use this device to your heart’s desire.
Now I know what you are going to say. How bad does one have to be (directionally) to need one of these devices to get around? I am not going to pretend that I use this device for my 10 minute walks but sometimes you get carried away and start exploring a new city without really knowing your way back. That’s when IDC Ecco Intelligent Pocket GPS Locator comes in. Just lock and go! If you are directionally handicapped like me, IDC Ecco GPS is a must have.
My Toshiba NB205: Who Says Netbooks Are Useless
I have heard a lot in the past few months about how netbooks are useless and are not useful for getting real work done. That’s why I stayed away from netbooks for months. But a few weeks ago, I decided to finally take a chance and get a brand new Toshiba NB205 netbook. After all, if the market is growing fast, there got to be a reason why people are taking a chance on these mini laptops. After trying Toshiba NB205 for a few weeks, I can tell you that it is a solid investment for all bloggers. It’s not only portable, but it’s powerful enough to let you blog on the go. And it’s energy efficient too. Perfect for blogging on the go from conferences, events, or a beach.
You can always look at the specifications and figure out which netbook works for you the best. But the way I look at it, it really comes down to these 5 factors:
- Performance: NB205 comes with the fastest CPU (among netbooks) on the market. The system is not as fast as a quad core PC, but it’s not supposed to be. It’s perfect for blogging as is.
- Battery Life: 9 hours of battery life is more than enough for me. I actually got close to 8 hours with my NB205, and I never blog that long a day. So it does the job for me.
- Weight: anything that weighs less than 3 pounds is good enough for me.
- Connectivity: comes with a bunch of USB ports and also wireless G connectivity. It’s blue-tooth capable too.
- Recording capabilities: comes with a decent web cam and microphone. It doesn’t set the world on fire, but it gets the job done.
There you have it. Do I believe NB205 is as powerful as my dual core 17 inch Macbook? Not really. But it is powerful enough to let me get my blog done on the road without having to carry a whole lot of weight with me. The fact that the battery lasts quite a while is a big plus. If you are a pro blogger, you are going to love these netbooks.
My Experience With Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2000
I am a big fan of mini camcorders. I have owned a bunch of them in the past and couldn’t be happier with them. But as is the case with most gadgets, you get what you pay for. And a $100 camcorder does not give you super video quality. The vidoes that I took with my Flip Camcorder were good enough but they were by no means superb. Another big problem with these mini camcorders is the fact that you need to take a digital camera with you to take higher quality pictures as well. So in essence, you have to take 2 gadgets with you on the go instead of one.
iPhone 3GS is an exciting gadget and can be used to take good quality videos and decent quality pictures. But if you are anything like me and want to take high quality videos on the go, iPhone 3GS won’t do. That’s why I decided to pay a bit of money to get a Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2000 HD Camcorder. Xacti line caught my eyes a while back, but I had a couple of good camcorders at a time and decided to wait for better models. VPC-HD2000 is certainly a superb model.
What I love about this camcorder is the unique design. This is one powerful gadget but it feels like a mini camcorder. You can easily hold it and take high quality videos (1080p) and awesome still images (8 MP) on the go. So the next time you are going to a conference, like Comic Con, you can take killer videos and share them with your readers. The audio quality is decent as well, so you can capture every moment to its fullest.
