By Chris Scott Barr

I’ve never rode on a motorcycle, but I would imagine that using an iPhone on one wouldn’t be the easiest of tasks. In fact, I probably wouldn’t even bother trying. Of course those that are more skilled at riding might want to do so, and for those people there is the iBike Rider Case.

This waterproof wrist-mounted (or handlebar-mounted) case is just about the only way you could hope to use your favorite phone on a bike. You obviously aren’t going to be able to have your hands free enough to operate it, so the hard plastic case isn’t going to allow you to take advantage of the touchscreen. It does have an optional battery pack that will allow you to use functions like GPS without leaving your battery dead when you reach your destination. You can also purchase a separate headset that will allow you to talk on the phone through your helmet. The case itself is going to set you back about $57, or you can get a bundle with the headset and case for $85. If you want the battery back as well, all three items together will run $159.

[ SoEasyGPS ] VIA [ CoolestGadgets ]

By Chris Scott Barr

If you’ll recall, back in August I reviewed the Mophie Juice Pack Air. The thing has been a life-saver on a number of occasions. I love my iPhone, but some days that battery just doesn’t cut it. I’m sure that some of you guys can relate, which is why we’re giving away one brand new Mophie Juice Pack Air (an $80 value!).

If you’ve got an iPhone 3G and have ever found yourself running low on battery life when you really needed it, leave us a comment for a chance to win. Get creative, tell us why you need one of these and I’ll pick the winner next Friday. Oh, and if you didn’t like the purple one I reviewed (not my favorite color either), don’t worry as the one up for grabs is black.

Now for the legal mumbo-jumbo. The contest is only open to US residents over 18. Keyboard cats need not apply.

[ Mophie ]

By Chris Scott Barr

iPhones aren’t known for their excellent battery life. In fact, they pretty much need recharged every night just to make it through the next day. If you’re a heavy user, then sometimes you’re lucky to make it through the day at all. This has lead to all sorts of interesting battery packs being created for Apple’s phones. One of these is the Mophie Juice Pack Air, which I’ve been testing out for the last week or so.

The Juice Pack Air is one of the latest battery packs from Mophie, who makes a host of iPhone products. It is essentially a hard case for your iPhone (3G and 3GS), which adds a small amount of bulk to your phone in exchange for roughly double the battery life. So is it worth it? Read on to find out.

The Juice Pack Air (I’m just going to call it the Air for now) is broken up into two pieces. Your phone slides into the larger bottom part, and then the top slides down to cover the rest of the iPhone. It fits rather snugly, and has openings for the button on top, headphone jack, volume rocker and camera. The dock connector is obviously covered, as it’s how the Air keeps the phone juiced up.

The Air does add some bulk to the iPhone, but it still slipped easily in and out of my pocket. When holding the phone, it did actually feel a bit more comfortable, since the iPhone itself is rather slim. I was worried that since the bottom area was covered, that it would cause issues with the speaker and mic. This is not the case, as those areas are curved slightly so as to accommodate the sound waves. People on the other end could still hear me just fine, and I thing the speaker actually worked better in the Air. This is because the sound bounces off the case and is directed somewhere.

You’ll find three things of interest on the Air. On the back is a button, which when pressed lights up four LEDs to indicate the current battery life (of just the Air, not your iPhone). Next, at the bottom of the phone is a simple switch. This is used to turn the battery on and off. I’ll explain more about that later.

Finally, you’ll see a small port that you’ve likely never seen before. I mistakenly thought this was some proprietary port, but it actually isn’t. It’s a microUSB, which is the first of it’s kind that I’ve seen. I’m disappointed to see this, as I have a plethora of miniUSB cords lying around. This port is used to charge the Air, but it also does something extra. If your iPhone is in the Air, you can still connect it to your PC using the microUSB port. You’ll be able to charge your iPhone and sync it with iTunes, just as if you were using the cable that came with the phone.

Now, back to that switch on the bottom. This gives you two choices when using the battery. You can either keep it on, and allow it to perpetually charge the iPhone until the Air is dead, or you can wait until the iPhone is low on life and recharge it. It’s rather difficult to compare which of them is more effective, since my usage varies from day to day, but it seemed like leaving the switch off until it was needed provided a bit more life.

So how much extra life are you going to get from your iPhone when using the Air? Here’s the official word from Mophie. Bear in mind that these are additional hours, which don’t include the amount of life you’ll get from the iPhone’s battery:

iPhone 3G S:

• Standby Time: Up to 270 hours
• Talk Time: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 10 hours on 2G
• Internet Use: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 8 hours on Wi-Fi
• Audio Playback: Up to 27 hours
• Video Playback: Up to 9 hours

iPhone 3G:

• Standby Time: Up to 270 hours
• Talk Time: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 9 hours on 2G
• Internet Use: Up to 4.5 hours on 3G | Up to 5.4 hours on Wi-Fi
• Audio Playback: Up to 20 hours
• Video Playback: Up to 6 hours

If you compare it to the battery expectancy of the two iPhone models, you’ll find them to be almost the same. The Air will almost double your battery life according to Mophie. I can safely say that the Air lives up to those claims. As I said, it’s difficult to measure just how much extra time I got with the switch on all the time. However, twice I let my iPhone die completely, and it was back to nearly full when the Air gave out.

I was pretty happy with the Air, but there are a couple of negative things that I should point out. The first being that your iPhone can actually be a bit difficult to remove from the case. It’s a very snug fit, and when you remove the top piece, there’s still very little of the iPhone to grab onto. This brings me to my second point. I hook my iPhone to my car via the dock connector, which means removing it from the Air. The same idea applies to anything that requires a dock connector. Thankfully, since the microUSB port can be used to sync and charge your iPhone, you won’t have to remove it for either of those tasks.

Overall, I’d say that I’m pleased with the Mophie Juice Pack Air. It nearly doubles my iPhone, and gives it a nice protective case at the same time. I usually don’t have issues with battery life in my usual day-to-day business, as it charges both in my car, and on my iHome alarm clock at night. However, if I’m going to be out of town on business, or just plan on heavy usage away from home, I can pop in my iPhone and not have to worry. Honestly, I’d have killed for one of these during E3. The Mophie Juice Pack Air retails for $80 and can be found in black, white and purple.

[ Mophie ]

By Luke Anderson

I could probably go on at length describing the things I love about my iPhone. However, you’ve probably heard enough about it over the last year and a half, so I won’t bore you. No doubt you already know that one of the shortcomings of the phone is its camera. Even the later 3G model takes equally poor snapshots. I’ve seen a few different goofy-looking attachments that promise to help in one way or another, but in the end they just don’t seem practical for use. I mean, who wants to carry around a tiny lens for their phone? At least Griffin seems to have the right idea with their Clarifi case.

Instead of offering some sort of clip-on attachment for your phone that won’t work with a protective case, they built a macro lens right into their own case. Sure, you aren’t always going to want to take close-up pictures, so they positioned the lens on a slider which can easily be engaged when needed. When you’re done, just slide it back over. You would probably pay $25 for a standalone lens attachment, however, for this price you’re getting an entire case as well. Not a bad deal at all.

[ ThinkGeek ] VIA [ Coolest-Gadgets ]

This post is syndicated with permission from GamerFront.net

I consider my iPhone to be a pretty handy device, even when it comes to mobile gaming. I’ve yet to see anything that makes me consider leaving my DS at home, but in a pinch, it keeps me entertained. There have been a few times that I would have enjoyed the game I was playing more, if only there was actually something there to grip. Don’t worry, the Marrware Game Grip promises to fix all of that.

This is a wonderful device that serves a variety of functions. First, it gives your iPhone that “toy” look that you’ve always wanted. It also will give you something to carry around in your hand when you’re not gaming, because honestly, what are you going to do with two empty hands? This isn’t listed on the features page, but it also looks as though it will finally get people to stop noticing that you’re talking on an iPhone whenever you receive a call. The Game Grip even has the keen ability to make $50 magically disappear from your wallet. Oh and I think it helps with playing games too, or something.

Source

This post is syndicated with permission from Gadgetoholic.com

Over the years, I have seen some strange gadgets that are designed for the exceptionally wealthy geek. Things like cell phones that sell for $17,000 or gold plated iPods. These types of gadgets are meant for only one thing — to show how fabulously wealthy their owners are. Personally, if I were fabulously wealthy I would opt for exotic sports cars.

For the wealthy geek that wants a new iPhone 3G — but feels the need to be sure people understand he could have a much more expensive phone — might want to opt for the Noreve iPhone Diamond leather case. The diamond case retails for $14,990 and is available in 12 different colors.

The case is made from leather and has cut outs for the controls and camera of the iPhone. The iPhone slips into the case like a sleeve. Where the expense of the case comes in is the 272 brilliant cut diamonds on the front of the case. Each of the diamonds is between 18 and 22 points and of VS quality and G color. The total diamond weight is 6.8 Karats.

Via [ Gadgetoholic ]