Review

        I was pretty excited to review this Audio Technica turntable, as it was a good opportunity to digitize some of my older classic vinyl records. This turntable is also a higher quality machine that is full of the features that I was looking for. It has a lot of flexibility since you can digitize LPs, play them through a receiver, a computer or directly through speakers. It also has DJ capabilities to create a lot of special effects, whether you are a DJ or not.

Sony has been making waves with its latest smartphones, the Z3 Compact and the flagship Xperia Z3. I just sent a loaner Xperia Z3 back to Sony after several weeks of enjoying its big screen Android experience. This is one nice-looking smartphone and just in time for winter snow showers, it’s waterproof. And don’t get me started on the battery life. Read on for my full Sony Xperia Z3 experience.

For the past week, I’ve been rocking a new accessory on my left wrist – the Jaybird Reign Activity Tracker. Introduced earlier this year at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Reign goes above and beyond what other activity trackers offer by encouraging balance and prompting those who wear it to improve their habits. It tells you when you need more sleep, when you need to take it easy, and when you are your optimal self, and I recently got a chance to take one for a test drive. Here’s my take after wearing Reign 24/7 for one week.

Is your tablet a big part of your daily routine? If so, you’ll be interested in the Otterbox Agility Tablet System. Available for Apple iPads and coming soon for several Samsung Galaxy models, the Otterbox Agility is designed to put an end to the routine of struggling to pop tablets in and out of different cases for different tasks, propping the devices up in an attempt to get a good viewing angle and even eliminates cable clutter.

She’s cute isn’t she? Polly is a dachshund/Chihuahua cross, also known as a Doxie. Polly’s safety is the reason why I was pretty excited to test out the Motorola Scout Trainer 100. After using it for a few weeks, I’m pretty sure busy pet owners are going to like it over traditional training classes. Why? In a nutshell, it works.    

I started seriously looking at the 25.4 cm (10″) Hipstreet Phoenix when one of the youngest family members cracked the screen on the shared family tablet for the second time. The Phoenix cost less than a repair and turned out to be sturdier as well with some terrific features.

As the mirrorless (or compact system) camera segment has mushroomed over the last few years, one company has stood out from the rest for consistently releasing high-quality, stylish cameras that produce gorgeous images: Fujifilm.   Today I’m reviewing the rugged, durable X-T1, a camera capable of taking gorgeous images in the most demanding of circumstances.  

I’ve spent several weeks now with HTC’s Nexus 9 tablet. That’s a bit longer than a typical reviews, but with all the hype surrounding this device, I wanted to take the time to really run it through its paces. There are also questions surrounding the Nexus 9, primarily whether its unusual size should be considered a plus or a minus. Again, I wanted to spend time with it before coming to any snap decisions. Read my review to get the full scoop but here’s one spoiler: the Nexus 9 did make my best tablets of 2014 list. 

Last year’s Moto X was a surprise hit, winning praise for its attractive design, nearly pure Android UI and excellent value proposition. This year’s follow-up Moto X is much more than a spec-bumped version 2. The new Moto X is significantly bigger, much more powerful and gains new features, while retaining much of the appeal of the original. I just wrapped up a week with the 2014 Moto X and I’ll be sorry to see it go.

Smartwatches and wearables have been a hot category this year. It seems like everyone is making one, but this early in the game it’s tough to get things just right. Motorola’s Moto 360 has been one of the most hotly anticipated devices of the season because it’s one of the first out of the gate to tackle two challenges head on: it’s round like a traditional wristwatch, and with Android Wear it has an operating system built from the ground up for wearables. I’ve been spending some quality time with a Moto 360 and this is what I think about the latest must-have high tech accessory.