Category: review

  • Review: Top 10 reasons why Civ V is awful (updated)

    (UPDATE in December 2014 — I guess it’s impressive that this debate is still going on and people are still adding comments to the blog post. I personally think it’s a little silly to criticize the post, which was written more than four years ago, over the many game features which have been updated or added since,…

  • Newest Kindles are the iPods of reading more than ever

    What the iPod Nano is to music, the Kindle is to reading. –Jon Gruber, Sept. 21, 2010 It’s been almost three years since Amazon introduced the Kindle, a groundbreaking electronic reader that — just as the name promised — ignited the long smouldering e-reading revolution. Way back then, I wrote a blog post for Businessweek…

  • New version of Civ? New Windows box

    Well, it happens every four or five years and it’s happening again. Firaxis is about to release a new version of the extremely fun and highly addictive computer game Civilization (Civ V, if you must know) and so we need to build a new Windows PC. It could be months or even years before the…

  • Find the best Blu-Ray movies ’cause some don’t look so good

    As the super-duper-hyper-amazing home theater plan moves into high-gear, I’m discovering an unfortunate side-effect from high-definition television. Lots and lots of shows and movies don’t look any better in high-def and, in fact, many look worse. We have a couple of sources of HD programming including HD shows on our Verizon Fios cable, HD downloads…

  • New Doctor Who is a throwback to greatest old Doctor Who

    When the BBC revived Doctor Who, one of my TV staples growing up in the 70s, a few years ago I checked it out a couple of times. But I just didn’t click with the actors they’d chosen to play the Doctor, Christopher Eccleston for a year and David Tennant after that. Nothing against those…

  • Out, damn’d spot – Reviewing iPad’s great Shakespeare app

    There are already a lot of very nifty iPad apps, from Entertainment Weekly‘s cool, interactive “Must List” to the show-me-the-radar greatness of Weatherbug to Amazon’s simple yet invaluable Kindle app. But so far, only one app has blown my mind: Shakespeare Pro (iTunes web link). It cost $19.99 but it’s probably worth $199.99 if you…

  • Early impressions and mini-review of Sprint’s 4G Overdrive hotspot

    In my continuing quest to keep up with the latest and greatest mobile Internet stuff, I’m trying out the new Sprint 3G/4G Overdrive, pictured above. Made by Sierra Wireless and slightly more portly than first generation mobile hotspots like my Verizon Mifi 2200, the Overdrive retains the same basic yet great feature set of its…

  • Recommending the Vers 1.5R clock/radio for iPod

    Just a quick entry today. We’ve been looking for new something or other to put on the bedside table that’s iPod-compatible, nice looking and includes an alarm clock and AM/FM radio. Turns out, that’s a tougher slate of requirements to fill than expected. Most of the iPod-compatible clock/radios are either on the ugly side or…

  • Kindle for Mac review: Just the basics (updated)

    (Updated 10/19/10) Well, the free Kindle application for Macintosh computers has finally arrived. The press release is here, which repeats the promise that there will be an app for the iPad as well. It’s pretty much what you would expect, with all the flaws and strengths of the prior apps, starting with the iPhone/iPod Touch…

  • Zenfolio iPhone photo app is great – finally!

    The kids and I have been watching an old Bill Cosby routine lately — chocolate cake for breakfast. Of course, my favorite part is after Bill has given his kids cake for breakfast and they start singing: “Dad is great, gave us chocolate cake.” I found myself humming the tune after I downloaded and installed…