By Chris Scott Barr

If you’ve looked at PC cases, power supplies and cooling systems, there’s a good chance that you’re familiar with the name Thermaltake. However, you may not recognize their new brand, LUXA2. The LUXA2 brand features products that keep simplicity, luxury and unique designs in mind. I’ve had the opportunity to check out one of their first offerings, the H1-Touch.

The H1-Touch is very simply a holder for your mobile phone. Specifically, it is aimed at the iPhone and iPod Touch, but the nature of the design allows it to work with just about any phone. Practical applications range from watching a movie to using it as a stand for charging.

At first glance you’ll notice the beautiful brushed aluminum frame, black pad and the six “fingers” which will hold your device. The designers were going for style through simplicity, and I think that they really hit the nail on the head. The Luxa2 brand name is the only visible marking, which is accented by a pair of Swarovski crystals.

So what exactly does the H1-Touch do? As I said before it really only holds your phone. You’ll set your device on the black rubber pad, and adjust the six fingers (which move together as one) to hold it firmly in place. Once there, you can freely rotate it 360-degrees or tilt it all the way back to the other side.

The H1-Touch does one thing, and it does it well. Setting my iPhone in the cradle takes very little effort, and frankly makes using various functions on my phone a little easier when I’m at my desk. My only complaint is that it is a little too light, so it will sometimes scoot back when I press the home button. That aside, it looks and functions beautifully.

Overall, I really enjoy using the LUXA2 H1-Touch at my desk. It complements my iPhone, and looks great sitting next to my MacBook Pro. Of course its limited functionality and luxury price ($49.99) ($29.99) will likely mean that it appeals to a limited crowd.

Update: We have been informed that the price of the H1-Touch has dropped to $29.99.

[ LUXA2 ]

By Chris Scott Barr

These days it seems like everything has a digital camera in it. Okay, maybe not everything, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find someone that doesn’t own at least one device that functions as a camera. Of course if you aren’t using a dedicated camera, the lack of an optical zoom can limit your shots. Then again, that’s what crazy accessories are for.

Nyko has announced that they will soon be offering cases for your DSi which will let you attach an 8x zoom lens. I suppose if you carry your DSi everywhere, and enjoy taking a lot of pictures, this might be worth looking into. Sure, you’ll look like a dork, but at least your snapshots will look a little better. Not to mention the $25 price tag certainly can’t be argued with.

[ Nyko ] VIA [ Kotaku ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Most amateur photographers aren’t known to directly use their laptops when shooting pictures. However, professionals will sometimes hook their camera up to a notebook so that they can see immediate results on a large screen. As you can imagine, not all situations make it easy to keep a laptop situated near your camera. Well now you can have a flat surface for your laptop anywhere you can set a tripod.

The Tallyn Series Laptop Deck attaches to your tripod (you’ll need a really good tripod for this, not your $20 Walmart special) and will hold a laptop at the angle you desire. It is adjustable and holds laptops up to 17-inches and 8 lbs. The deck will set you back $85, which is a small price to pay for the convenience it will bring.

[ Tallyn's ] VIA [ Crave ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Remember back when the Nintendo Wii came out, how there were reports of idiots tossing their Wiimotes through their fancy TVs? Well that sort of thing is still an issue for people with LCD and Plasma TVs, and not just from flying game controllers. Since the screens are easily harmed, one company has decided to specialize in protecting these expensive pieces of equipment.

TV Armor is a simple way to prevent objects from impacting (and thus ruining) the screen of your HDTV. The solution is about as low-tech as it gets, consisting of a thin layer ( ¼-inch)of acrylic held on by Velcro straps. The acrylic is considered optical-grade so that it won’t reduce the quality of the image.

The TV Armor won’t win any awards in the looks department, but it isn’t hideous by any means. The acrylic blends in rather well, and the Velcro straps are barely visible. You’ll need to set back $69-$289 depending on the size of your TV. It’s a little salty, but far less than you paid for your fancy-pants TV no doubt.

[ TV Armor ] VIA [ Technabob ]

By Colin Ackerman

We’ve been fans of iGo’s power accessories for a while; with a system of interchangeable tips to charge as many gadgets as you own (almost) from any source iGo supports, you have to carry around far less self-tangling cableage keep all of your stuff juiced up and happy. iGo’s latest offering is a Netbook Charger, designed specifically for, uh, netbooks. It’s just like the power brick that came with your netbook, with few key exceptions: it can power any netbook you have a tip for, it includes a powered USB port, and it’s pretty. Read all about it, after the jump.

The powered USB port is especially handy, since the iGo charger can take the place of one (or many) other chargers for devices that are USB compatible. For everything else, you can get an adapter cable from iGo that plugs into the USB port and accepts iGo tips for $7. So basically, instead of carrying around chargers for your netbook, cell phone, GPS, digital camera, and weird tubey speaker thing, you just pack the Netbook Charger and a bunch of iGo tips.

iGo Laptop Charger, iGo Netbook Charger, standard netbook power adapter (MSI Wind)

I take my netbook everywhere. Whether I’m traveling on business, pleasure, pleasure, or pleasure, my computer comes with me. And so does my cell phone. This charger lets me charge both of these critical pieces of my life with a minimum of hassle and cableage, which is quite nice. It’s a little bit bigger than the power brick that came with my netbook, which is unfortunate, but it’s smaller than that plus the other chargers that I would ordinarily be carrying around. I also like the fact that the cord that plugs into the wall is two prong instead of three… It might not be the greatest idea, but it sure is convenient. A bonus is that the cord is detachable and replaceable since it features a standard connection, giving you the option of going super low profile:

The iGo Netbook Charger is a no-brainer if you need a replacement (or additional) power adapter for your netbook, if you travel a lot with a bunch of accessories, or if you commonly travel with multiple netbooks… I’m not sure why you’d do that, but I’m sure there are people out there. If you’re happy with your current power adapter, though, I’d hesitate to recommend buying one of these simply to take its place. The USB port is convenient, to be sure, but the iGo Netbook Charger is likely larger than the adapter that came with your netbook, and at $50 (which includes 2 free iGo adapter tips), it’s certainly not cheap. But sometimes the convenience is worth it, especially if you hate hate HATE cables as much as I do.

If you and your netbook find yourselves away from standard outlets a lot, iGo also offers a Netbook Anywhere Charger, which includes auto and airplane adapters for an extra $20.

[ iGo Netbook Charger ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Laptops are awesome, but they do have their drawbacks. My biggest issue is that I like to use a mouse, rather than the trackpad after a while. Sure, it’s fine for a bit, but a mouse is just so much easier and more comfortable to use. That’s why Logitech has announced a new product that will help in this area.

This anti-slip laptop board keeps your computer firmly in place and has a slide-out mousing surface. Now you can surf the web on your couch with a mouse. Sure, you could try using the cushion as a mousepad, but it doesn’t always work so well. Since the mousing surface retracts into the lapboard, it doesn’t actually add any extra bulk, making it easily stored. Look for this later in the month for $29.99.

VIA [ Logitech ]

By Chris Scott Barr

It’s rather apparent that Apple tends to spend a lot of time crafting their products to be appealing to the eye. Even if you’re not a Mac fan, you have to admit that they look good. As such, a lot of Mac users will go out of their way to make sure that their workspace looks just as good as the computer they’re using. If you’re one of those people, and you tend to use your MacBook as your primary desktop, then you might find some appeal in this BookArc.

This BookArc is a stand for your MacBook (regular, Air and Pro all work) that keeps it out of the way while it is hooked up to an external monitor. Since Apple places all ports on one side, you can situate it so that all of your cables are hidden and out of the way. If you only desire to use a single monitor, and are obsessed with style, then this $50 plastic stand might be for you. Personally, I can never have enough monitors, so I prefer a stand that actually lets me use the built-in screen.

[ TwelveSouth ] VIA [ Dvice ]

By David Ponce

The Thiphone is a strap that holds your iPhone onto your thigh. Really, that’s all it does, and it’s $30. It’s brilliant, especially if you’re into multiple car pileups and looking particularly douchey as you wait for your plane. Why these two suggestions? Well, that’s because that’s exactly how the device is being marketed. The Thiphone is perfect “For Commuters or Truckers” or “For Frequent Flyers” says the website. We couldn’t agree more. And as if to further emphasize the douchiness feature, the model displaying it is wearing sun shades indoors. He’s just missing three popped collars; someone alert their marketing department asap.

It comes in three colors, uses a suction cup to hold your device (technically making it work with anything that has a flat surface) and angles your cellphone for optimal viewing enjoyment.

Hit the jump for one more picture (with douchey model).

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Coolest Gadgets ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Having a 3G card can really be handy if you’re on the road a lot. Unfortunately some places don’t get the best coverage. Thankfully many cards have a port to connect an external antenna, which can significantly boost your signal. But what if your’s doesn’t have such a port? In that case, you get a Modem Mate external antenna.

This cool antenna has an adapter that clips onto your 3G card and couples inductively with the internal antenna. That allows you to boost the signal by up to 2 dBi, which should hopefully get you that extra speed to get things done. The antenna itself can clip on the top of your laptop’s screen, where it will likely get the best reception. If you’re a road warrior that needs to squeeze every bit of bandwidth out of your 3G data card, then this might be $56 well spent.

[ Nova Media ] VIA [ Electronista ]

By Chris Scott Barr

If you’ve spent a lot of time behind a camera, you’ve no doubt discovered just how much of an impact lighting has on your pictures. Sure, you can make do with that built-in flash on your DSLR, but if you really want some great shots, you’ll need to cough up the dough for a decent flash. Once you’ve done that, you can pick up this awesome kit from Brando that will really let you do some cool stuff.

This kit includes 6 different flash accessories that will drastically improve the quality of your shots. I’m still in the learning process myself, and for $88, this kit certainly looks tempting.

[ Brando ] VIA [ CrunchGear ]