December 23rd, 2009

Review: Aerial7 Sound Disk Beanie headphone-hat

Short Version: The audio is only passable (at least at speed) and the fit questionable, but hey, these do just what they set out to do: put some headphones in a decent hat. → Read More

December 22nd, 2009

Last Minute Shopping: Gift Guide Roundup

Still haven’t gotten all those holiday gifts? You still have a wee bit o’ time left. Whether you’re planning to run out to a brick and mortar store or you’re willing to test the limits of expedited shipping, here’s a quick rundown of ideas and info from our gift guide. → Read More

December 22nd, 2009

PSA: Double check your ‘guaranteed Christmas delivery’ online orders

A tale of holiday woe for your enjoyment. I just logged into my BestBuy.com account to make sure that the gift I ordered for someone on my list would indeed arrive by Christmas. It will not. Could be Best Buy’s fault, could be UPS’ fault – either way, the train went off the tracks. → Read More

December 21st, 2009

Review: second generation Pogoplug NAS

PogoPlug has gotten a fair bit of coverage here at CrunchGear, including a full review of the original PogoPlug device. A new version was recently released, with quite a bit more to offer, so an updated review is in order. The second generation PogoPlug supports up to four USB drives, offers gigabit Ethernet, has mobile clients for the major smartphones, and has a burgeoning independent developer… → Read More

December 21st, 2009

Bark4Beer: Dog collar with bottle opener

If you have a dog and you’ve thrown a party, you know that dogs generally add a bit of fun to the mix at the beginning of the party but by the end, they’ve mostly eaten food off the coffee table, scared the bejesus out of the three guests who have an irrational fear of dogs, and had a few “accidents” in high-traffic areas like hallways and doorways. → Read More

December 21st, 2009

Super Smash Bros. hits Wii Virtual Console

For those of you who have graduated from college in the past decade, you may want to relive the glory days of playing Super Smash Bros. until 4AM, except this time you’ll just skip an entire day of work instead of a morning class or two. On the plus side, at least you live in a marginally cleaner apartment now. → Read More

December 18th, 2009

Wii Maracas perfect for Maraca-based games

The product description says it all. “With the Maracas for Wii you can enjoy those Maraca based video games as if you were actually celebrating a big fiesta!” Ah yes, all those Maraca based video games. → Read More

December 18th, 2009

Dual USB port charger is tiny, cheap

This might make a good last-minute stocking stuffer, although I’m not sure if it’ll get to you in time. It’s a little USB power plug with not one, but two (!!!) USB ports. → Read More

December 18th, 2009

The UltraMega Weekend Giveaway: $500 gift card from Lottay.com

Good morning. We have a week until Christmas and we’ve been pounding out giveaways left and right. We’ve had Smart Pens, Olive Hi-Fis, and your own personal Ninja for a year (didn’t see that one? There’s a reason.) But today we’re here to announce the final big giveaway: a $500 gift card towards anything you want from the kind folks at Lottay.com.

Here’s what’s up. → Read More

December 17th, 2009

Review: Panasonic 360 Degree Quick Iron

This is an iron that promises to increase your ironing speed by up to 25% thanks to a symmetrical titanium soleplate, which allows you to iron forwards, backwards, left, and right with ease. It doesn’t make ironing any more exciting but with a street price of around $40, it’s a solidly-built and attractive iron if you’re in the market for one. → Read More

December 17th, 2009

Product Photo Awards: Arcade Putting Pro

Product photography is an art form. It must appeal to the senses, tickle one’s fancy, instill a sense of urgency – I NEED IT! Take this Arcade Putting Pro game, available at JCPenney.com on clearance for $30. → Read More

December 17th, 2009

Review: Vibram Five Fingers KSO Trek

Short Version: There are two kinds of people in the world: those who will wear Vibram Five Finger shoes and those who won’t. After a bout with plantar fasciitis and shinsplints, I joined the former camp and feel much better for it. These new shoes, called the VFF KSO (Keep Stuff Out) Trek, add a bit of coverage to what are essentially foot gloves for running, hiking, and looking like a total… → Read More

December 17th, 2009

CrunchDeals: 25% off Skagen watches

Our friends at Skagen have offered our readers 25% off their watches from now until December 31 which means you can order even after Christmas and pretend the order was held up at the post office. → Read More

December 16th, 2009

Nerd Alert: Calculator shaped like a gamepad

Awww, schweeeeeet! This calculator says, “Hey, I need a calculator but I want people to know that I’m down with video games. Please don’t step, mess, or front. I got eight digits to work with, B.” → Read More

December 16th, 2009

Thursday Giveaway: A Nooka Accessory Selection

Good afternoon, chaps. Do you feel underdressed, under-accessorized, and smelly? Nooka has something nice for you. Our buddies over there are giving out a new Nooka Watch (your choice), a Nooka Belt (shown above), and the new Nooka fragrance. That’s right: you can smell like a Nooka. → Read More

December 16th, 2009

Bag Week: Sumo Messenger Bag

Short Version: Sumo is fairly new to the bag game but this is a strong showing for the company. For $79.99 you get a 17-inch laptop bag made of waterproof ballistic, rip-stop nylon. Sadly, a lack of internal organization pockets hampers the overall storage capacity. → Read More

December 15th, 2009

Review: Kensington Car Mount with Sound Amplified Cradle for iPhone

Short Version: A solidly-built iPhone car dock whose unique, no-batteries-required sound amplification system actually works fairly well provided you get your phone’s microphone and speaker lined up correctly. → Read More

December 15th, 2009

Gift Guide: Gadgets for the Home

Gadgets need not be relegated to the darkest corners of your home office or rumpus room. There are plenty of options that can easily blend in to the less techno-centric areas of your humble abode. In that spirit, here’s a list of relatively inconspicuous gadgets for the home. → Read More

December 15th, 2009

Stocking Stuffer: Fake pregnancy test

I’m just reporting, of course, so let’s not kill the messenger. Don’t think of this fake pregnancy test as a cruel/hilarious joke to play on your significant other but as more of a relationship barometer. → Read More

December 15th, 2009

Giveaway: Olive No 4 Hi-Fi Digital Stereo

You like music, right? How about CDs? Do you still have CDs? Don’t have any cash this week? Did you spend a lot of money on presents for the kids already? Do you want one of these Olive No 4 Hi-Fi? Am I asking too many questions? Yes? No? → Read More

December 13th, 2009

Sunday Giveaway: Monster Miles Davis Headphone Pack

Boobledee ooh ooh woo woo ha lala! We’re coming at you with a fancy Monster Miles Davis Headphone pack. The kit includes Monster Miles Davis Tribute Jazz In-Ear Headphones, three albums, and a sassy print.

Take the A train past the jump to figure out how to win. → Read More

December 11th, 2009

Review: Buckshot Controller for Wii

Short Version: Looking for a solidly-built gun accessory for the Wii? This is it right here. Looking for a gun controller accessory that grants you easy access to the D-pad, 1, 2, +, –, and Home buttons on the Wii remote? Keep on moving. → Read More

December 11th, 2009

The Final Commenting Day: The last step to winning a SMART Board

Finally. We’re done. All you have to do is comment on this post and, presumably, all the other posts in this series, and then you’ll be eligible to win a SMART Board for your home, office, or school. Sorry for making you guys jump through so many hoops but I thought this would be a good idea to make it a little harder to win a nice, classy prize like this. → Read More

December 11th, 2009

Review: Shutter Buddy

So we got a Shutter Buddy a few days ago and we gave it a try. What’s a Shutter Buddy, you ask? Well, it’s kind of a satellite dish looking thing that you attach to a point and shoot. It fits over a DSLR, but not quite as well as you’d expect. You waggle the camera in front of a baby and the baby becomes happy and smiles. There’s some scientific reasons in there about why… → Read More

December 11th, 2009

Disappointing Gifts, 1986 Edition: The Etch A Sketch Animator

Gather ‘round, kids. Gather ‘round. I’m going to tell you the story of a disappointing Christmas gift from back before many of you were born. With every blog on the internet doing year-end and best-of lists, I thought I might try to shake things up a bit by telling you about an overhyped and underwhelming technology product from a long, long time ago. → Read More

December 11th, 2009

Reviews: Crazy Japanese Kit Kats

For some reason JList sent me a box of Kit Kats. These aren’t just any Kit Kats. They’re Japanese Kit Kats. If the Japanese are good at anything, it’s making the familiar inexplicably strange. So I decided to open up all of these Kit Kats and try them for you. I came away somewhat disappointed – the flavor gamut ran from “tea-ish” to “just another Kit… → Read More

December 10th, 2009

Stocking Stuffer: PowerGenix NiZn rechargeable batteries

There’s a fine line between giving regular batteries as a gift and giving rechargeable batteries as a gift. Giving someone regular batteries is a dumb gift. Might as well give them a sheet cake. Either way, the gift is a consumable and doesn’t last long. Rechargeable batteries, on the other hand, last quite a bit longer. → Read More

December 10th, 2009

Stocking Stuffer: Kensington Travel Battery Pack and Charger

The general idea behind most of Kensington’s products seems to be to perform one main task and then follow up with one or two secondary and thoughtful convergence features. In the case of the Travel Battery Pack and Charger for iPhone and iPod touch, you get a high-capacity backup battery that doubles as a horizontal stand for watching movies. → Read More

December 10th, 2009

Review and giveaway: Thirsty Light Snowflake

Short Version: Much like the original Thirsty Light, the Thirsty Light Snowflake is a single purpose gadget designed to tell you when your Christmas tree is thirsty. Drop the dongle into your tree’s water, and hang the ornament somewhere on the tree. It blends in nicely with your other ornaments, and blinks when there’s no more water. It runs on two AA batteries, and has an on/off… → Read More

December 10th, 2009

Heated portable chair costs $120, makes being outside slightly less miserable

If you’ve ever spent an extended period of time outside during the late fall or winter watching some sort of parade, sporting event, or interpretive dance, you’ll have no doubt A) had plenty of time to re-examine your life and B) wished you’d brought a chair. Now add C) to that list: wished the chair you didn’t bring was heated. → Read More