So you just bought yourself a shiny new smartphone and are obviously worried about keeping it shining for as long as possible. There are plenty of cases for all different phone models out there. We had the opportunity to review one such case from OtterBox, specifically their recently released Commuter series for the Nokia E63.

The Commuter series is a combo-case: it offers silicone skin protection (that’s available individually as their Impact series of cases), with the added protection of a rugged outer case (available from the OtterBox Defender series). Silicone protection is designed for protection from drop-impact. The great thing about the Commuter series is that it doesn’t add bulk to the phone - for our test phone, the E63 (which is slightly thicker than the E71) looked as sleek with and without the case. The molded polycarbonate shell further absorbs shock, while still exposing the camera on the back of the phone.

The case also comes with a clear protective film, which is a welcome relief for those used to Nokia’s flimsy film which just about peels off right after you buy the phone (you know what I’m talking about!). Commuter essentially exposes all the buttons, USB port and audio jack through silicone plugs. We drop-tested the Nokia E63 a few times, both on carpet and pavement (from a waist-level height), and there was practically no visible damage to the external body.

The one minor change in design we would’ve liked is an opening for putting on cell phone dangles. At the moment, the silicone covering closes it; while you can still pull out the dangle from underneath, it can look a bit odd. (Of course, this problem is easily solved by making the hole yourself with a pin).

The Commuter Case for Nokia E63 is now avaiable from OtterBox for US $34.95. The Commuter series is also available for a variety of popular phone models, including the iPhone 3G/3GS, the Nokia E71, BB Storm, BB Curve and more. Note that it doesn’t prevent water damage.

Overall Whack Rating: 4.5 / 5

Tags: carrying cases, Nokia, otterbox case, Reviews

You might think that there’s not a whole lot of point to talking about laptop cases.  After all, you’d think: they hold stuff.  What else do they do?  They hold stuff and they look good.  What’s the point in differentiating between them sufficiently to require a review?

That’s what I thought, frankly.  Then I got to try the V7 Premium Toploader by Targus, and it changed my mind.
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Tags: Accessories, Business, carrying case, checkpoint friendly, laptop case, Laptops, mobile case, netbooks, Reviews, Targus, Targus Premium Toploading Case

Writing this piece left me downright torn. It’s easy to be enraged at people selling a product so simple anyone can build their own at home.

However, you are restrained in this urge by the knowledge that the product indeed works as advertised as well as provides a significant service, if only to a narrow range of people.  Introducing the bluDangle Headset Lanyard, a device which is, essentially, intended to keep your Bluetooth headgear from falling irretrievably off.
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Tags: Accessories, bluDangle, bluetooth, bluetooth headset, bluetooth headset lanyard, Business, Cell Phones, Headphones, NC Jobs for Heroes, Reviews

With weather getting better and better here in North-East USA, it’s time to head for the outdoors. As anyone new to camping will have experienced, pitching up a tent while holding a flashlight in your mouth is not the most convenient thing on earth. Well, Energizer (the “bunny” company) recently unveiled a series of headlights. The new Trailfinder series of headlights and cap lights come in different variations – 1, 3 and 6 LED lights, and as you can guess, they take standard AAA batteries.

At MobileWhack, we received the 3-LED and 6-LED units for review. Both are exactly the same except for the number of LEDs and levels of light offered, which can be selected by repeatedly pressing the single button on top.

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Tags: Accessories, batteries, light, outdoors, Reviews, trailfinder

Microsoft recently unveiled the latest addition to the SideWinder line, the new SideWinder X3 Mouse. Designed for convenient use by both left- and right-handed folks, it comes in a smaller shape as well, along with plenty of control features for gaming.

One of the coolest features, like the other SideWinder mice, is the ability to switch mouse dpi on-the-fly. With three buttons, you can customize the desired dpi setting for each button and switch among them without having to access the Control Panel each time. That’s an increase in productivity right there, especially since you can continue with the game while setting the desired sensitivity at the click of a button. To set the sensitivity, open the Microsoft IntelliPoint software (bundled with the device), and under the “Sensitivity” tab, choose the dpi settings that you prefer.

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Tags: gaming, microsoft, Mouse, Reviews, sidewinder, x3

We saw the Nokia N79 Mobile Phone way back in August 2008, when it was announced by Nokia. The phone got the FCC approval in October and was finally launched into the world markets.

Exterior

The Nokia N79 comes in a candybar form factor - which Nokia calls as Classic - weighing in at a mere 97 grams. The phone measures 110 x 49 x 15 mm, and I rarely notice it when it’s in my pocket - trust me, that’s lightweight! The phone features a standard 2.4″, QVGA display. There are dedicated camera buttons on the right side - for taking snapshots and zooming. The zoom button doubles up as volume control.

Package

One of the cool things about the N79’s package is that it comes with three different Xpress-on covers. The review unit was a canvas white N79 and that came with light sea blue, espresso brown and olive green covers. If you happen to purchase the seal gray one, you will get covers in espresso brown, coral red and white. The phone came with a 4GB memory card, which was quite sufficient to try out my collection of music and podcasts.

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Tags: bluetooth, cameraphone, Cell Phones, Nokia, Reviews, Reviews, web browser

What would be a cool accessory to go with the Sony Ericsson C905, you say? Well, SE has just the thing for you: the Sony Ericsson MBW-150 Bluetooth Watch (Music Edition). The folks over at PureMobile sent us one of the latest units for review.

Packaging

The phone comes in a pretty big box - not something you would expect for a watch. But then again, that’s because packaging includes the charger as well. The watch comes in its own box, just like any other watch.

Bluetooth Music Control

With support for the Bluetooth Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP), the watch lets you control the music player on your phone. This is highly convenient especially when you are, say, on the treadmill because you won’t have to fiddle around with the controls on the phone with your sweaty hands.

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Tags: Accessories, bluetooth watch, Portable Devices, Reviews, wireless sync

The folks over at PureMobile.com sent us a BlackBerry Pearl Flip for review.

The first time the phone was turned on, it took nearly 1 minute, 35 seconds for the BlackBerry OS to boot up.. After navigating through the initial setup (language, date/time, and introduction to using the QWERTY keyboard on the Pearl), I finally reached the main screen.

The Phone

Let’s start with a phone call - from the main screen, I simply started dialing the numbers. Now I don’t know if there was an issue with this particular phone or it’s an issue with all Pearl Flips, there’s a definite delay between the time the key is pressed and the keypad tone is played back. It’s a minor thing, but for someone used to Nokia phones pretty much all my mobile life, it was kind of annoying.

The speaker on the phone was pretty crisp and clear, and the speakerphone was pretty great. In fact, the speakerphone is, arguably, better than most phones including the iPhone (on which it generally sucks). Build quality is rather nice, although when you keep it in your pocket, it seems a bit bulky - which is most likely because it’s a flip. As with the original Pearl, typing on the new-ish keyboard on the flip phone is something that old-school crackberries may have to adjust to.

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Tags: blackberry review, Cell Phones, Research In Motion, Reviews

As we approach the holiday season, MobileWhack will take a look at interesting gift ideas. This week, we present the Zapi toothbrush sanitizer.

Are you a traveler, or know one? One of my greatest worries when traveling (or when I’m home, anyway) is whether my toothbrush is clean from germs. You can never tell - especially considering the fact that a toothbrush can continue to harbor illegal aliens (or microbial organisms, give or take).

This is where the Zapi Toothbrush Sanitizer comes into the picture. The sleek, egg-shaped device uses UltraViolet technology and claims to kill 99.9% of germs/bacteria. Using it is pretty easy - after rinsing your toothbrush, simply place it in the sanitizer’s holder and turn it on. After 6 minutes of doing its magic, the sanitizer shuts off automatically.

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Tags: gifts ideas, portable, Portable Devices, Reviews, sanitation, ultraviolet

For whatever reason, people keep making gold devices. Do we need all that bling-bling laying around our gadgets. The Limited Edition Solid GOLD Eloquence Pico-C USB flash drives will get you some 8GB of memory and you will have various skins to use, each priced at $600. Isn’t that too expensive? And what if you loose it? I mean it’s pretty darn small.

Tags: gold, Mobile News, Portable Devices, Reviews, USB drive

Liquid Image’s underwater digital camera mask Shipping In Japan
Marantz unveils latest Pure Basic Series
How are the Top Earning Actresses
Monkey Ball For iPhone Sells 300,000 Copies

Tags: Off The Topic, Reviews

HTC NEON400 lands at FCC’s door
Motorola V9x Phone On it’s Way Soon
3G iPhone Plans in Portugal
3G iPhone Plans in Italy
Acer Announces x1200 Mini PC
Motorola Vegas VE20 Photos Leaked from the FCC

Tags: Mobile News, Off The Topic, Reviews, Uncategorized

Eyeview G-Power IP Base for Analogue Cameras
New Solar-Powered 26-inch LCTV from Sharp
Tarantino Remakes ‘Pussycat!’ Movie
Rumor Smash: Kratos Not Appearing in Soul Calibur 4

Tags: Off The Topic, Reviews, Uncategorized

For those of you waiting for the announced Nokia E66 and E71, the wait is almost over. A website recently got their hands official press images of what is supposed to be the Nokia E66 and Nokia E71. The E71 phone will the successor to the successful and popular E61 and E61i while the E66 follows the E65.

These devices is said to include Wifi, HSDPA, GPS and a 3.2 megapixel camera. They are not the prettiest smartphones in the market if you base your judgement on the pictures, but we’ll all just have to wait and see.
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Tags: Cell Phones, E66, E71, Nokia, Nokia, Reviews, Uncategorized

LG recently announced the launch of its latest LG-CU920 cell phone. This model is expected to be carried on the AT & T network. It is equipped with a 3-inch screen adding to the slim profile of the phone. Belonging to LG Vu category, this seems to be another model lined up in the race of copying the iPhone. It has a PRADA look and Mobile TV options. No word on the price yet. Let us wait and watch the moves of LG. How many iPhone competitors it will launch?
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Tags: Cell, Cell Phones, LG, LG-CU920, Phone, Reviews

Samsung today announced two new portable devices called the Samsung S2 ‘Pebble’ MP3 Player and Samsung S3 Slim Portable Media Player. The players have been developed to fit comfortabley in your hands, they are also offered in many different colors (black, white, red, green and purple) and are the perfect fasion statement for on-the-go entertainment. The main feature in the product is Samsung’s Digital Natural Sound engine 2.0 (DNSe) technology which provides High-Quality acoustics that are optimized for playback through a set of earphones.

“Samsung is excited to reveal our newest portable media players with designs that offer consumers a unique, yet subtle way to express themselves while enjoying their favorite mobile entertainment,” said Reid Sullivan, Vice President of Digital Audio and Video Marketing at Samsung Electronics America. “With the S2 and S3, consumers now have more compact and thin MP3 and portable media player options to choose from without needing to sacrifice overall functionality or multimedia playback.”

Samsung S3 Slim Portable Media Player Features Include :

At a 0.4 inches thick, 1.8 ounces and 1.73″ x 3.74″ x 0.39″ in size, the S3 takes up only takes up about the size of a credit card.

JPEG photo viewer, Video player (MPEG4), Music player (MP3, WMA), FM radio and recorder.

25 hours of audio playback and up to 4 hours of video from a single charge of a Li-Poly battery.

4GB of internal flash storage.

Flash Games

ScreensaversThe Samsung S3 Slim Portable Media Player with 4GB capacity will be available in June 2008.

Samsung S2 ‘Pebble’ MP3 Player Features Include :

MP3, WMA and OGG file playback for up to 13 hours on a single charge via the rechargeable Li-Poly battery.

1GB of internal flash memory which provides enough storage space for approximately 16 hours of audio.

Weight is 0.03 lb. So it is very light for easy carrying around.

Dimensions (W x H x D) 0.65″ x 1.62″ x 1.66″.

Standard, random and repeat playback modes.

Supports mobile playlists.

Lanyard earphones.

Compact USB connector.All controls are placed along the back face of the Pebble, including play/pause, volume, playback options (standard, random, repeat) and the player will be available in June 2008.

The Samsung S2 ‘Pebble’ MP3 Player, with 1GB capacity will be available in June 2008.

Tags: MP3 Players, MP3 Players, portable, Reviews, Samsung, video players

‘Human Giant’ Returns!

Ninja Gaiden 2 Coming June 3

Blu-ray Wins: Toshiba Discontinues HD DVD!!

CANON COLOR imageRUNNER C2550 MFP

Tags: Mobile News, Off The Topic, Reviews

Sprint Plans to Undercut Everybody Else’s Call Plans?

Pic of Unidentified Sony Ericsson Clamshell Leaked

NEC N095iµ Cell Phone

Pic of Unidentified Sony Ericsson Clamshell Leaked

NEC N905i High-End Cell Phone

Everex CloudBook Launched: Shipments Delayed!

NEC N905i High-End Cell Phone

Kingston Unveils DataTraveler Micro Reader

Tags: Mobile News, Off The Topic, Reviews

Sony Color Headsets

Red Alert 3 Coming To Xbox 360, PS3 (and PC)

Cesar Honors Moreau and Benigni

Sealux CC40 Underwater Housing For Canon 40D

Tags: Mobile News, Off The Topic, Reviews

Gellar Passionate About Alice Film

Pentax Unveils its US Entry-Level DigiCam model DSLR ‘K200D’

Sony Will Release 20 New Aquos TV Sets on March

‘River’ and ‘Wackness’ Sundance Winners

Tags: Mobile News, Off The Topic, Reviews