Tuesday, April 12th, 2011
After all the hype surrounding the iPad 2 (and rightly so may I add) and all the attention that has been paid to the iPad 2 Accessories that you can purchase from an iPad 2 Dock to and iPad 2 cover, I thought I would look at another tablet type device, namely the Motorola Xoom and some of the accessories that are currently available on our sister site Gearzap.com
I firstly went looking for a Xoom Case, so after browsing the Motorola Xoom Cases category, the Veggie Leather Style Pull-Tab Motorola XOOM Case from Tuff-Luv caught my eye.
Suitable For Vegetarians
Apart from the excellent protection that this case will give you, what stands out for me is that the case is made for the vegetarian market from leather style material as an alternative to the more standard cases manufactured from Napa leather. The lifetime warranty on this product proves that the artificial material does not mean that standards slip when protecting your Motorola Xoom.
Whilst we’re on the subject of protection, and still filtering through the great range of Motorola Xoom Accessories on Gearzap, I thought that I might have a look at the Xoom Screen Protector range. With products from brands such as InvisibleSHIELD to choose from, I actually looked at the Motorola XOOM MFX Screen Protector.
Motorola XOOM MFX Screen Protector
With long lasting protection against dust, this highly transparent film provides added screen contrast and brilliant colours. The super thin writing surface takes nothing away from the feel of using the Xoom and the screen protector can be easily removed, cleaned and reinstalled in seconds.
Tuesday, March 1st, 2011
With all the cases out there I can see it being very difficult for someone to find the best case for their needs… So…I have lined up a few of our best selling iPad cases to tell you about and given you my thoughts on who is likely to use them. Hopefully this will give you you that all important insight should you be struggling to find the right case for your requirements.
Here are my opinions… I hope they help:
Tuff-Luv Napa Leather Folio for Apple iPad - Black
A good looking, sturdy case and amazing value for such a high quality napa leather. The detailed look of the press-studs on the front of the case doubles as the support for the stand, which I must say is very solid. This also offers several viewing angles because any one of the five press-studs can be used. The only problem I envisage with this case is that if it gets dropped directly on to either of the two exposed corners very little protection will be offered, but I guess the chance of it falling exactly on to a corner is slim.
Main User: Trendy Commuter
Piel Frama iPad Case - Black
As soon as I got this out of the box I could smell the quality, this is no exaggeration. The feel of the leather is top notch and there is also not a stitch on this handmade case that is even slightly out. All sides are covered from damage and the padding is just right, not giving the case too much bulk. I was very please to see a leather chamois on top of the case when I opened the premium packaging, adding a real ‘first-class’ feel to this case. The price may seem high to some people, but it is well worth every penny if you are after quality. The only down side is that stand is a little flimsy and will fall over if the user is heavy handed.
Main User: High flying Managing Director
OtterBox iPad Defender Case
The Terminator! I had great fun putting this case together, it reminded me of a Transformers film. Once I had completed this task it was obvious that nothing was going to break or penetrate this case. Its rubber anti-shock exterior encases a solid hardened plastic shell. Every part of your iPad is protected including buttons and charging ports. All ports are still easily accessible by removing the silicone plugs. The stand is also very strong and robust, this also doubles as extra protection for the screen as it clips around the front while in transit, a screen protector is also included to prevent scratches while in use. There is a quirky little window on the reverse which has been cut to show the Apple logo and covered with a transparent membrane. The only flaw to this case is that it does add bulk, which is a small price to pay for maximum protection.
Main User: Quantity surveyor/Foreman
Macally mSuit silicone protective case for ipad - Black
Definitely the best silicone case I have found. I doesn’t feel cheap and it seems highly unlikely to rip, as I have seen others do in the past. It obviously add very little weight to the device which is great, it also has just enough profile to keep the screen from up from any surface should it be laid screen down. The back has a ribbed surface which offers a really high level of grip. There is also no need to remove the case or pull out any plugs for charging or inserting headphones as all holes (even speakers) are pre cut, however should you wish to remove the case it will only take a couple of seconds. I don’t think this case will help for a serious drop on to concrete for instance, but it certainly will help against minor bumps or falls.
Main User: Casual home/office user
Cool Bananas BulletProof Hardcover iPad Case - Black
Another well made protective carry case from Cool Bananas. This offers ultimate protection while in transit. Underneath the ballistic nylon outer-layer lies the incredible protection material of Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), which provides an anti crush barrier between the outside world and your iPad. On the inside of the case is a layer of shock absorbing memory foam which will prevent any shocks from bumps or drops. Even the zip seems well made and thought out as the inner lining also protects the iPad from the zip itself. It is a shame that the iPad has to be removed from the case for proper use, so it really can only be used for transport, but if that is what you need it for this case is great! Quick Tip: I found that placing the iPad in the case face down made it lass likely to fall out on opening if not on a flat surface.
Main User: Field Sales Agent
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Friday, February 25th, 2011
With the launch of the HTC Incredible S in the next few days, I realised I had stumbled upon something which could shake the very foundations of the world (well the world of any Incredible S or potential Incredible S owner).
Whilst walking around MWC I saw some unusual HTC cases and accessories and was not 100% sure what phone they were for, but the odd shaped indent leaves me with no doubt now it is definitely for the HTC Incredible S.
There were a couple of HTC Incredible S cases what really drew me to a new case in particular is that it had a style never seen with an official HTC case before, we are used to TPU and leather ones, but this was something quite different. It had a funky design, and seemed to be made up of two distinct materials TPU round the sides (we assume for easy phone entering and exiting of the case) and a tough polycarbonate back for protection.
Having been a long time HTC user, but generally just an all round cool guy – I hope to see more HTC cases like this. Yes sure the leather and TPU cases are adequate, but I want to add some funk to my phone – so roll on these call cases, so hopefully this HTC Incredible S Case is the start of something new and different from HTC.
Even the standard TPU cases seem to be getting an upgrade, up to now they have been the same colour (a clear with a black tint), we saw them in different colours! (Again they look like they are for the Incredible S)
The other thing I spotted was an official desktop, and looking at where the charging port is and the size I would guess this too is for the Incredible S. It has been a while since we’ve seen an official dock (remember the CR G300?), but this is smaller and is definitely less in your face. In fact it looks a bit like the official Galaxy S deskstand. As a fan of deskstands I again see this as really positive.
Keep an eye out on our HTC Incredible S Accessories page – we’ll be adding lots more as they are released and confirmed.
Friday, February 18th, 2011
I had a prang in my car this week. Nothing too bad and not my fault so I am not having to pay but it is a nuisance. The one positive thing I can think of (besides no-one was hurt) is that the more I used the Clip and Talk Bluetooth car kit the more I grew to love it.
I'm more grateful to this little device than ever.
It has always been good for taking and receiving calls, but this week it came into it’s own. I have now had two different hire cars, and had to use my wife’s car once as well. The handsfree kit is great as I can move from car to car, and just take it with me. It clips onto the visor of whichever car I’m in and away we go. Pairing with my phone is simple and works straight away, and even when my wife was in the car with me, due to the multipoint technology her phone paired to it too, at the same time.
I think it was a bargain when I first bought it, and I love it all the more now. I am a big supporter of the law regarding driving whilst talking on the phone, and owning this car kit has allowed me to stay legal whilst changing from car to car, thank you Clip and Talk.
See what 621 of our customers think by reading the Clip and Talk reviews and why they awarded it 4.5/5 stars
Wednesday, January 19th, 2011
If you frequently use your phone in the car, for music or calls, a Car Kit is an accessory worth investing in. A car kit will probably be the most expensive accessory purchase you can make for your phone, so it’s worth spending some time looking at what’s available, reading reviews and making sure that the kit you’re about to buy does everything you need it to and most importantly that it’s likely to work with your future phones too.
If you’re looking to buy a car kit, then a Parrot Car Kit is the way to go. Over the last few years, Parrot have grown from a relatively unheard of company to one that produces excellent car kits that even the big names in mobiles, such as Nokia, can’t compete with.
Parrot Car Kits come in two options, fitted and portable. Fitted car kits are hard wired into your car (normally through the stereo) and portable car kits clip on to your sun visor and rely on an internal battery for power.
This post will run through each of the current Parrot Car Kits and highlight some of their Pro’s and Con’s to help you decide on which Parrot Car Kit you should go for.
Portable Parrot Car Kits
Parrot MINIKIT SLIM Bluetooth Car Kit
If you don’t want to go to the expense of having a fully fitted kit, then the Parrot MiniKit slim is a great choice – regardless of whether you have a smart phone or a standard feature phone. The Parrot MiniKit Slim has all the basic features of the fitted kits, but without support for streaming music. It will automatically synchronise with your phone book, allowing you to dial a contact just by saying their name. You don’t have to mess around recording voice tags as the Text to Speech software will automatically match your voice print to a name in your phone book.
The kit is designed to be mounted on your sun visor and controls are kept to a minimum – two dedicated buttons to answer/end calls and a dial to increase the volume and navigate the system menus.
Battery life on the MiniKit Slim is excellent, offering up to 20 days of standby time and 15 hours of talk time.
Parrot MINIKIT SLIM Bluetooth Car Kit
Parrot MINIKIT Smart
The MiniKit Smart is the latest plug and play Parrot Car Kit. It’s been designed purely for larger smartphones, so standard sized handsets won’t really work all that well with it. Instead of clipping to your sunvisor, the MiniKit slim uses a suction pad to fix to your windscreen and combines a holder and handsfree kit. It’s receiving mixed reviews as it’s designed to hold your phone in landscape mode – perfect for sat nav, but not all smart phones can be used in landscape mode for calling and accessing the phonebook (mainly iPhones).
Parrot MINIKIT Smart
Feature wise it has everything that the MiniKit Slim has, as well as support for music streaming – although the mono speaker won’t really do your songs justice. Controls are just as simple as they are on the MiniKit Slim, but if you’re using it in portrait mode they can be a bit fiddly. The MiniKit Smart uses advanced noise reduction and a reasonably powerful (for a car kit) 2w speaker to make sure instructions are heard, but if I’m being totally honest, for the price, you’d be better off either paying the extra £10 for the Parrot MKi9000 or choosing the Jabra Cruiser and a dedicated Car Holder.
Installed Parrot Car Kits
Parrot CK3100 Advanced Bluetooth Car Kit
The Parrot CK3100 has been around for a long time now, but it’s still a firm favourite, particularly among fleet managers. In terms of features it’s pretty simple – handsfree calling with voice dial and phone book synchronisation. It has a clear LCD display that shows you the name/number of callers and allows you to scroll through your address book without having to touch your phone. Installation is pretty straight forward as the CK3100 connects using the standard ISO connections on the back of your car radio – although not all cars use ISO, so make sure you check before you buy as you may well need some additional cables.
As with all of the Parrot Car Kits, the CK3100 doesn’t use an external speaker in the passenger footwell, instead, all audio is routed through your car stereo speakers. This gives you much more control over volume levels and callers are much clearer and easier to understand.
Parrot CK3100 Advanced Bluetooth Car Kit
Parrot MKi9000 Bluetooth Car Kit
The MKi range of car kits are all based around the same basic model – the MKi9000, the only difference is the screen that ships with the kit. In the case of the MKi9000 there is no screen, but that doesn’t hamper it’s performance, especially if you’re using it with a large screen smartphone. In fact, the MKi9000 is our top selling Parrot Car Kit.
The main difference between the MKi range of kits and the CK3100 are their music capabilities. In addition to being able to handle calls, the MKi kits do a brilliant job of streaming music from your phone, MP3 player or USB flash drive through your existing Car Stereo. Controlling the Car Kit is done through a small remote that can either stick to your dashboard or attach to your steering wheel.
Each MKi kit has a connectivity cable that has a 3.5mm line in, USB port and Apple Dock connector. This allows you to connect pretty much any audio source to the kit and enjoy the sound through your car stereo. If you connect an iPod or iPhone using the Dock connector you can also use the remote to control your music playback. Every Parrot Car Kit is easily updated. Frequent software updates are available free of charge from the Parrot website and will often improve compatibility/usability.
The Parrot MKi9000 has phonebook synchronisation and advanced speech recognition built in. This allows the MKi9000 to automatically retrieve all your contacts from your phone and transfer them to it’s own internal memory. Pressing the Answer key on the remote will activate the voice dialling and you just say the name of who you want to call. No messing around recording voice tags, just say thej name and it’ll dial the number.
Parrot MKi9000 Bluetooth Car Kit
If you do have an iPhone 3GS or iPhone 4, you have two options when it comes to voice dialling. You can either use the voice features of the MKi9000, or you can use the Voice Control features built into the iPhone by disabling phonebook synchronisation in the Bluetooth settings on your iPhone. I’ve chosen to use the Voice Control features on the phone purely because it allows voice control of the iPod app as well as calling. Instead of fiddling with the remote, I can just hit the answer button and say “play” and it will start playing music back – either over a bluetooth connection or through the Dock Connector. Voice Control on iPhone even allows you to tell the phone to play a particular album, playlist or artist, so if you have an iPhone and decide on a Parrot MKi Car Kit, I’d strongly recommend turning off phonebook sync.
Parrot MKi9100 Bluetooth Car Kit
There are very few differences between the MKi9000 and the MKi9100, other than the display screen. If you use a standard feature phone like the Nokia 6700 or choose not to have a car holder then this will be a much better choice. The high contrast LCD screen will show you the name and number of the caller, allows you to see the contacts in your phone book as well as see the settings for the car kit – you can still access all these on the MKi9000, but with out the screen all your options are read out to you.
Parrot MKi9100 Bluetooth Car Kit
If the idea of a screen sitting on your dashboard makes you nervous, don’t worry, it’s detachable and can be taken with you when you leave the car. In terms of features and usability, it’s very similar to the CK3100, but with music support. The MKi9100 is still worth choosing even if you don’t plan on using it for music. The £25 difference in price is minimal when you take into account the extra features that you get – easy software updates, removable screen and better phonebook sync & voice dialling.
Parrot MKi9200 Bluetooth Car Kit
The MKi9200 is significantly different to the MKi9100 and MKi9000. Most obvious is of course the screen. It comes with a 2.4 inch colour screen that will not only show names and numbers of callers, but also their photo and during music playback, album art is displayed (if present on your phone). The screen also has an SD card reader built into it. This means that instead of storing your music on your phone or USB stick, you can put all your music on an SD card (max 32GB) and have it in the car permanently.
Parrot MKi9200 Bluetooth Car Kit
Controlling the car kit is done using the same remote that comes with the other two kits, but with the bigger display, navigating the menu’s is a little bit quicker and easier. If you have use your smart phone or an iPod as your music source in the car then you may not need the extra features that you get with the MKi9200 as the MKi9000 will be more than adequate.
Parrot Unika Steering Wheel Interface for MKi Car Kits
The Unika isn’t a car kit, but a rather clever accessory that works with the MKi range of car kits to fully integrate it into your car. It allows your existing steering wheel stereo controls to operate the car kit and completely eliminates the need for the remote control. Installation is a little fiddlier, so we’d recommend having it fitted by a professional installer. You don’t need to have dedicated telephone controls on your steering wheel, as the Unika will use a combination of key presses to activate the kit. In a Ford Focus for example, pressing ‘Rewind’ then ‘Forward’ will start music playback, pressing the SRC button will answer calls and confirm menu choices and a double press of the SRC button will activate voice dialling.
To check compatibility with your car, head over to the Parrot Unika Support Pages and enter details of your Car and Parrot Car Kit.
Parrot Unika Steering Wheel Interface
Parrot Head Units
Head Unit Car Kits haven’t ever proven to be all that popular, even though the idea behind them makes perfect sense. Installation is so much easier than fitting a regular kit, not only because of the reduced wiring, but the fact that you don’t have to find space behind your dashboard to hide the control box. Parrot currently only have the RKi8400 available, and the newly announced Parrot Asteroid should be available very soon.
Parrot RKi8400 Bluetooth Car Kit
It was launched at the same time as the MKi range of kits, but the RKi8400 isn’t proving as popular as Parrot would have hoped – although that’s probably due to most cars now having a non standard sized radio in them, rather than poor performance. The RKi8400 is essentially the same as the Parrot MKi9200, as it has the same 2.4inch colour screen, multiple ways to connect your iPod, MP3 player or USB stick and an SD Card Reader. The front of the stereo pops off, not only for security reasons, but also to expose a storage area where you can leave your iPod or MP3 player connected.
Parrot RKi8400 Bluetooth Car Kit
As with the MKi Kits the RKi8400 will synchronise with your phone to give you access to your phone book and voice dialling, as well as having a full keypad on the head unit itself. The replacement for the RKI8400 has just been announced, but no launch date has been given yet. The basic idea is the same, but the Parrot Asteroid will be running the Android operating system in an attempt to make media management even easier. We’ll post more details on the Asteroid as we get them.
If you’ve got any questions about any of the kits mentioned here, feel free to ask them in the comments below. For full details on any of them, head over to the Parrot Car Kits page on the Mobile Fun site.
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