You might remember how a raved about the digital Fly Fusion pen in a past post. Well, hopefully these are still available over at your local Target. Run back to the toy clearance aisles and you’ll find these once $80 pens for under $20.
Go now, Target will be cleaning out those rows of cheap toys and sending them off to the local Goodwill which will mark it back closer to the orginal prices.
Remember the Fisher Space pen and how cool it was to be able to write anywhere even upside down? I found another pen that is just as cool, maybe even cooler. (If that’s possible since the Fisher Space pen did do a licensed Star Trek pen back in the day, I have one in my collection.) This new pen I am talking about is the INKA pen.
The Inka pen is from those innovative guys over at Nile Ize and it is pretty sweet. Like the space pen it writes anywhere — upside down, under water and in extreme temperatures. So you can take it with you anywhere you go even planet Vulcan.
It has a multifunction design. The closed pen is watertight and can be used as a key chain or attach it to your gear. There’s a PDA stylus too so you can quickly tap out commands on your tricorder or smart phone (which ever one you happen to have). Take the key ring off and reassemble your Inka in to a full size writing instrument, which by the way is pretty smart looking, with its stainless steel and carbon fiber components. This would make a great gift for anyone from all out geek to a sports nut. For more info check out writeanywhere.com or just head on over to ThinkGeek.com to pick up yours.
LeapFrog FLY Fusion Pentop Computer is more than just a digital pen. It is an educational tool as well. It is made by Leapfrog so we adults that are using it sometimes feel like we are using a kid’s toy more than a productive piece of equipment. I would say that the fly fusion is geared more toward the junior high (oops I am showing my age there, I mean middle school) and high school crowds, but college students and adults can also use it.
As you write on special paper with the pen it scans your text into the pen then you download your notes to your PC where you can store, email, edit and organize them. You can get additional math and language programs for the pen as well. All your applications can be accessed through a control panel on the fly fusion notebooks. You can even play MP3s through the pen.
Since I’m not in school I don’t really need the added test prep or math programs, but the composition and language programs could be of some use. For the most part the pen work s pretty well. I do have to fix a few errors once my handwriting is converted to a word document, but I would need to proof read a typed document as well. For $ 79 you get the pen, a very thin notebook and $10 download card to use with the enclosed software so you can add games and other apps right away. If you head over to the online store you can pick up additional notebooks, ink, memory cards, a case and other goodies.
I bought the Target exclusive black pen because I thought it looked classier. Well it doesn’t any more because nothing else comes in black. So my pen now looks like Frankenstein. Also the ink is only about 2 thirds that of a regular pen so you’ll want extras right away and I have not seen the ink refills in any store just online. Ink is available in blue, red or green but not black. I like the pen it is nice to carry a tablet and pen with me instead of my laptop. If you do a lot of writing (blogging) you might want to take a look a the fly fusion for under a hundred bucks it is a handy tool to have.
Digital pens are so cool. I first saw the livescribe pen at Target and boy does it look sweet (I am writing this using the fly fusion digital pen), The Livescribe Pulse Smartpen looks to be more geared to college students and business people over the LeapFrog FLY Fusion Pentop Computer. Live scribe also records the audio as you write and it can be played back with just a tap of the pen on your tablet. With digital pens you don’t have to lug your heavy laptop with you just a pen and paper is all you need. Bloggers are going to love this new toy. Simply hand write your posts then upload them to your PC. Proof read and cut and paste, viola you’re all done. (If it works, but reports/reviews say the LiveScribe pen does not convert your handwriting to text just yet.)
I have always loved looking up at the night sky. Funny thing is I have never anything better than binoculars to view the heavenly bodies with. The night sky is one of the things I miss most since I have moved out of the country and into the city. Now I barely get to see a single star let alone a sky full. There is just too much light pollution here.
I would love a really good telescope. This one has an onboard computer to show you where the stars are and it will even hook up to a PC so you can create your own sky tour. Heck this thing could even teach a slacker like me astronomy. And boy could I spot the UFOs with this!
It is getting to be that time of year again. Time to go back-to-school. I live with a teacher so even though I don’t have to head back to school myself I get all those old feelings stirred up every year as this time of year rolls around. For teachers the school year has technically already started. They have to go in and get their rooms ready for the arrival of all the kids that will be flooding into the rooms.
I honestly cannot say I miss going back to school at all. I was a total wreck every year. I was (still am) a disorganized mess. Way back in my day (when we used to walk 12 miles to school in the freezing rain) we did not have handy organizational tools like the Dymo label maker. I wish I had one of those back then. I would have labeled everything, my books, notebooks; I would have used it to put my schedule on each and every one of my books and folders. I had an irrational fear of losing my schedule and not knowing where I was supposed to be. The labels would have been great and Color labels even better. They certainly would not have faded like writing on the book covers does and it certainly would be much neater that’s for sure.
So when you’re getting ready to head back to school be sure to add a Dymo label maker to your shopping list. It will make heading back to the classroom so much easier no matter whether it is kindergarten or college. You’ll find a valuable use for it, I’m sure.
Now here is a bit of technology any sci-fi geek would think stepped off the screen of the latest Terminator movie, (you do know Christian (Batman) Bale has signed to do 3 Terminator movies don’t you?) This cool device shines a red laser keyboard on any flat surface. As they say over at ThinkGeek.com, the future has arrived. How Sweet is that?
I like it when real tech could double as TV and film props.
I think this could be considered the world’s most expensive keyboard probably only surpassed by keyboards on the space shuttle (or others purchased by the US government as they tend to over pay). Each key has its own OLED screen so you can customize it to your hearts content and at 1500 bucks it should do your work for you!
Apparently ThinkGeek.com can’t keep these expensive keyboards in stock. You can backorder them and get yours as soon as they come in stock.
How cool is this? A solar charger for the iPod and other small electronic devices. This little gadget could be a life saver when out on the beach and your tunes stop pumping or your cell phone is dying and you are no where near and outlet.
Now mind you it isn’t going to work at night or in a deep dark forest, but it certainly could come in handy when at the beach or the park. Added bonus of making you all the cooler because you are helping to save the environment by not using up all the precious oil to power your gadgets with household electricity. Everybody needs a Soldius 1 solar charger from ThinkGeek.com!
So what do you get that business guy that seems to have everything? And no room for anything?
Well, guys love gadgets and a lot of gals do too. If they are on the road a lot or travel tugging along their laptop computer an accessory along those lines is always a good bet.
A good suggestion is the ScanShell 2000N. The scanshell 2000N allows them to scan and save all kinds of business documents at the touch of a button. It is small and lightweight, only 14 ounces. It is very easy to stow in that laptop bag and it does not take up a lot of desk space either. It uses the USB port for power so you aren’t dragging along AC adapters.
Quality is pretty good too for such a small sheet scanner. It scans at 600 dpi and saves your documents to all the standard formats like JPG, PNG, TIF, and others. It also scans directly into your software already on your system like Paint, Arobat and more. ScanShell also comes with Scan2Contacts for scanning business cards directly into MS Outlook.
The best part is that it is Vista compliant. So if you were forced into upgrading or got a new system with the Vista operating system on it this little portable scanner will work for you.
Looks like Steve is at it again. Apple just announced three new iPods. The 160 GB iPod video, new nano phatty with video and the top of the heap the iPod Touch [which is an iPhone without the phone]. The prices will be from $149-399 kind of like the line up now.
You might remember how a raved about the digital Fly Fusion pen in a past post. Well, hopefully these are still available over at your local Target. Run back to the toy clearance aisles and you’ll find these once $80 pens for under $20.
