We’ve been posting quite a few products over the past few weeks, starting with our exciting and inviting Bag Week, and now our nefarious mission has become clear: welcome to TechCrunch Gadgets’ 2011 Gift Guide, a series of posts dedicated to how to shop for folks you love/like this holiday season.
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It’s not hard to love Mario. He’s had his ups and downs – what, for example, was the deal with Paper Mario? And Super Mario Strikers was pretty hard to love – but darn it if the little guy doesn’t keep coming back for more and keeps you, at the very least, entertained.
Super Mario 3D Land is the latest in the Mario saga. The story is fairly typical – something was stolen (a lot of leaves) and Bowser took Princess Peach. Your mission is to find the leaves (which are special and give you the Tanooki suit) and then find Peach. What you go through to find her, however, is where all of the fun comes in.
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When it comes to gift-giving, there are a few presents that siimply go above and beyond. Getting a first car on your sixteenth birthday (if you’re so lucky) is one of those moments, and some young couples are even lucky enough to get a house as a wedding present. But after a house and a car, a brand new laptop is probably the best gift you can get. We’ve compiled a list of notebooks ranging in price from $839 to starting points of $1,999, so there should be something here for everyone.
Without any further ado, here are some of our reccomendations if you’re looking to get your loved one a new notebook. → Read More
Home is where the heart is. It’s also the place where most people will live and die so give a gift that will make someone’s life a bit easier (or fun). No one wants a $20 coffee pot for Christmas. But yet there are still some awesome household items that will certainly produce a smile Christmas morning. The six following items range in price from $10 to $400. There’s something here for everyone. → Read More
The holiday season is upon us, and no gift keeps on giving quite like a smartphone. Think about it — there’s probably nothing in your dear friend or family member’s life that he or she will use on a regular basis more than their trusty new smartphone. And if you happen to be a super controlling boyfriend or girlfriend, just think of this spent cash as the best possible way to keep dibs on your sweetie pie. Prices range from $50 to a whopping $300 so there should be something here for everyone. If not, check out the BlackBerry lineup at your nearest retailer because you surely won’t see it anywhere here. → Read More
There may be no greater gift than a quality piece of home entertainment equipment. I mean that, too. Forget train sets, diamonds and puppies. Everyone wants entertainment this holiday season and we’ve rounded up six solid bets ranging in price from $40 to $600. There’s something here for everyone including your great aunt or boyfriend that already has everything. → Read More
What is it?
Is it a messenger bag? Is it a briefcase? How about both? Chrome’s Anton laptop bag is equal parts business and play. It comes in both green and black and has a real military feel to it, at least in army green. It may not have the most pockets, or be the lightest bag I’ve toted around, but I can’t help but love it. You can tell the user was in mind during the design process, as proven by swiveling shoulder strap hooks and the cross pattern of the Velcro. It is, after all, the little things that count.
Made of nylon and military spec wax-coated canvas, the Anton is heavy duty enough for a tornado chaser. I got stuck in a down-pour yesterday and was really worried about my laptop, but it was safe and dry thanks to the Anton. When the bag is full, it takes on a very boxy shape much like a brief case. When packed with a couple knick knacks, it sports a much more casual look. → Read More
I chose this bag because it’s a bit smaller than the other ones I tested this week and it could be good for a younger person or a svelte, slim lady/man about town. It is a fairly standard backpack but is nicely outfitted with a number of useful features including, but not limited to, a bottle opener, a side zipper to access your laptop, a bottle opener, and a bottle opener.
I’m starting to love bags with bottle openers. → Read More
What is it?
So you’ve already heard about the Incase Alloy Series Compact Backpack, and perhaps you felt that the style was super slick but you tend to prefer messenger bags over backpacks. Well, no worries. Incase has a space pack for every need, including the Alloy Messenger Bag. It’s got the same silvery metallic finish, and fits just as much of your junk, but can be tossed over one shoulder instead of two.
As far as style is concerned, the bag will certainly attract people with very specific tastes. That silver metallic finish certainly isn’t for everyone, so if you prefer a more weathered or classic look, this may not be the bag for you. Then again, its construction is super lightweight, making it easier to pack this thing full of goodies. In fact, since it’s a messenger bag instead of a backpack the material is much less rigid to where you can probably fit a few awkward shapes in there and still have no problem. → Read More
We covered Saddleback Leather’s products last year and we thought it would be fun to bring these guys back on stage one more time for an encore. As you can see from the images, these are, in a sense, your grandpa’s bags. They are made of thick, old-world, heavily-stitched leather and feature heavy duty hardware, delicate pigskin lining, and a lot of polish. While I wouldn’t go as far as to say you’ll hand this down to your children, the leather in this thing is so thick and luxurious there’s a good chance they’ll be able to eat it if they ever run out of food in the wild.
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In the mad rush to push out more and more Android slate products, Amazon and Barnes & Noble are like a calm port in the storm. Their devices are touted as ereaders but, after a bit of digging, you find that they are now considerably more interesting – and compelling – as tablet products for an entry level market. They are not threatening nor are they particularly difficult to grasp. In short, they are the perfect neophyte’s tablet, a cross between the simplicity of an e-ink ereader and a fully-featured mobile device. It’s good enough at both that people buying it for one purpose will be pleased with the device’s other strengths; depending on what you want, it’s either an Android slate in ereader’s clothing or vice versa.
As it stands, the Nook Tablet is an impressive bit of machinery. It is a solid slab of electronics designed to do a few things exceedingly well and – sadly – a few things quite poorly. As a color, touchscreen ereader it is one of the best and, for those with an adventurous bent, I can imagine this becoming a useful media and app device. → Read More
What is it?
Whether your apartment walls are covered in pop art or not, this Shoulder Bag from Incase’s Andy Warhol collection brings an entirely new sense of style to the laptop bag. Granted, it’s not as durable as some of the other bags we’ve seen this week, nor does it protect your gadgetry as well, but it does have one thing that the other bags don’t: a banana.
All jokes aside, this bag actually got the job done rather well and with more than a few pairs of eyes on me. Whether onlookers were making fun of me for carrying an Andy Warhol bag (not likely in this part of Brooklyn) or they were digging my style is yet to be determined. Either way, the bag suited my needs just fine, though it is a tad heavier than some of the other bags I’ve toyed with this week. → Read More
This is my new go-to bag. That’s saying something, too. Despite reviewing dozens of computers bags during my tenure at TechCrunch, I’ve stuck with the Ogio HipHop for years. It’s made four CES trips, three to CEDIA, a few E3s and countless random flights around the country. I love it. But now it’s just hanging in my closest. The Crumpler Pinnacle of Horror now hangs on the hook by my door, always ready to hit the road. → Read More
Sometimes you don’t need space for clothes, lunch, paperwork and your pet hamster. Sometimes all you need is an easy way to get your laptop from point A to point B safely. If that’s the case, then we shouldn’t waste any more time before I introduce you to Incase’s Nylon Sling Sleeve. It’s light, compact, durable, and has a design that’s equal parts fun and sophisticated.
The Sling Sleeve comes in several sizes, mine being the largest and able to fit up to a 15-inch MacBook Pro. There’s a smaller version for the 13-inch MacBook (though it’s seemingly out of stock right now), and a baby sleeve that can only handle an 11-inch MacBook Air. The bags come in several color flavors, with a solid color for the body of the bag and a complimentary color along the inside lining, zippers, and other accents. Speaking of the lining, inside you’ll find a nice faux fur finish to keep your laptop safe and snug (and probably warm and fuzzy too). → Read More
Today’s giveaway is pretty exciting. For your pleasure, we have a Timbuk2 D-Lux Racing Stripe Laptop Messenger bag, a $120 value, yours for the low, low price of free. Like the previous contest (won by a young man named Ryan Mense), this is a comment contest. Your goal this time is to tell us about how this bag will save/improve your life. That’s right: treat this bag like a DJ who did something for you last night.
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Next up during this year’s Bag Week we have the oddly named but delightfully designed Wise-Walker from Nomadic. This Japanese import is a business up front and a party inside. → Read More
Christmas is right around the corner, and what could be a better complement your gingerbread and eggnog than a full month of Christmas music. Nothing, right? Which is why you may need this new minimalistic speaker dock from Bang & Olufsen.
Based on the FCC info, it looks like the Beolit 12 will be configured for AirPlay, and also supports USB and Ethernet connectivity, along with a 3.5mm jack for those of you who prefer cords. → Read More
Bag Week continues with our review of Mission Workshop’s Sanction backpack. It’s a weather-proof pack made for short trips on your bike or long walks in the rain. It’s their smallest backpack, far smaller than the Vandal I reviewed last year. But at 1000 cubic inches, it’s still big enough day-tripping. Let’s take a closer look at this thing. → Read More
What is it?
Boy am I enjoying bag week. Incase’s Alloy series Compact Backpack was quite the treat, but I have wandering eyes which have now led me to the Chrome Krakow Laptop Bag. The thing about the Krakow is that it can withstand just about anything, which seems to be the trend at Chrome. The company is all about letting you go wild and crazy while keeping your gadgetry safe and snug in your bag. That said, the Krakow falls in line well, and has a design to prove it.
The bag sports industrial metal strap adjusters, along with two metal hooks on the straps themselves. Just from looking at it you can tell the bag is made for some heavy wear and tear, made obvious by the nylon construction with polyurethane coating. But what isn’t so obvious is the weatherproof military-grade truck tarpaulin liner on the inside. To put it plainly, you’d have trouble getting your laptop wet in this bag. → Read More
Phosphor has just announced a new world time/dual timezone model, the World Time Sport. The company is well-known for their e-ink watches (we reviewed a few here) and this one uses a unique touch interface to scroll through multiple timezones as well as various screens including a dual-time screen for travelers.
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