Hey everybody – I’ve been wanting to get this review out for quite a while now, and it seems like there just isn’t going to be time to really do the game justice in my review schedule for a long time, so rather than do some big drawn out affair I figured I’d give you some links, so thoughts and just go it from there. The best part is there’s a free “lite” version of Magnificent Gizmos & Gadgets out now in the app store(iTunes) which should give you a really good idea if the game is going to be one you can get into.

First things first – MG&G is not a game for me. It’s a great game to be sure, but I’ve come to find that this sort of brain puzzle sort of thing just doesn’t work for me, and it’s not for lack of challenge or the ability for my mind to comprehend a challenge… I’ve just come to find that I don’t tend to solve problems the same way that a lot of people do, and I’m a bit too far out of the box for the games to deal with. The other thing I’ve come to find is that a concept I have in my mind which in perfectly normal circumstances would work, tend not to work due to some limitation with the physics of the game. For example, there’s a level in the game where you have to go over some hill and down the other side. Seemingly a simple task took me forever because the tools in the game are too based in the game physics that they don’t respond how a normal item would in the same situation. In this example things kept folding over and landing on each other and then staying there. Well, little rotating wheels sitting one on top of another aren’t going to stay that way for long. You and I know this, but the game (while seemingly aware of the concept) didn’t have these wheels go shooting off in separate directions.

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After all the rumors and speculation, we finally have some official information from Microsoft.  The Zune HD is suppose to hit the US sometime in the fall of 2009.  It has some tasty features.  The first, and I think the most exciting, is a multi-touch OLED screen.  The current screens on the Zunes are nice, but this should be beautiful.  It will give the user the ability to flip through music, videos, pictures, etc.  To go along with this new screen, is built in Wi-Fi and full screen internet access.  Web browsing will be a big part of the new Zune experience.  All I can say is that its about time.  All those years with a Wi-Fi connection, and finally we see the net.  Now to the HD part of the Zune HD.  The new device will come with a built-in HD radio receiver allowing the user to have better quality music along with the display of additional artist and song information.  Users will still be able to listen to normal radio if they are not interested in HD.  Plus, content from the Zune HD will be able to be displayed on an HD monitor or TV with the help of a special Zune HD dock.  MS also mentioned that there will be more information next week at the E3 Conference about how the Zune HD will interact with Xbox live.  Obviously, MS is going after the iPod Touch with this new device.  I am sooo excited about this new Zune.  I have been wanting a touchscreen Zune for over and year, and this looks like it will be an excellent device.  I can’t wait to get my hands on one.

To everyone who has pups, few things are scarier than a lost pet.  They are an important member of the family.  There will soon be a way to help track your pet via GPS.  Spotlight GPS, along with the American Kennel Club Companion Animal Recovery (AKC CAR), has developed a GPS device that snaps right onto your pets’ collar.  The GPS works 24 hours a day-7 days a week-365 days a year.  So, there is no worry about holidays.  The way it works is that the owner will be able to create safe spots, and if your pup wonders out of that safe area, you will receive an e-mail or text message.  There are two features that I think are just completely cool.  One, through Spotlight, you can receive turn by turn directions to get to your pet.  Two, it has an anti-theft detection feature.  The GPS can track how fast your pet is going, and if it is going way too fast for a normal dog, then you can notify the authorities that your pet has been stolen and give them the location.  I think this is an excellent idea.  The service is not currently available, and I have not seen any info on pricing.  The one thing I wish is that there could be a GPS chip injected into your pet.  With a collar, a thief could simply remove it.  However, since this device requires a battery, I’m not sure how one would ‘charge’ their pet if the device was implanted.  I signed up for their mailing list, so when I hear about pricing, I will update the info. 

Via the gadgeteer

Excuse me if there are some typos in this post – I might be a wee bit tipsy from the celebratory champagne. What’s the big occasion, you ask? Why, the exorcism of the demonic “tap to click” from my MSI Wind, of course!

I’ve whined about this before, but here’s a quick re-cap: Thomas is typing paragraph, Thomas’ thumb barely nudges trackpad, paragraph is inserted into earlier body of text, Thomas’ blood boils. Yes, you can easily disable the trackpad with Fn+F3 but who wants to press that every single time they boot or wake their machine?

Thanks to the MSI Wind forums I’ve found a way to edit the settings on my Sentelic trackpad to completely disable “tap to click”. This means that the only way I can left click is to actually press the trackpad buttons – the way it should be! If this has been plaguing any of you JAMM readers, the answer to all your prayers should be on page seven of this thread (the post by PsychoMania).

There’s of course the usual disclaimer for JAMM: download at your own peril. This is in the case the trackpad driver completely nukes your computer by installing it (stranger things have happened) , but I’ve installed the thing and I’ve written this post without tearing my hair out. Woohoo!

It seems like it has been ages since SoundID initially announced the forthcoming SoundID 300, a stylish follow up to their initial offering, the SM 100.  At the time, I gave the the SM 100 high marks overat Gear Diary , and I was anxiously awaiting their sophomore effort.  Well, one month grew two, and just kept on going until it was well over a year later, and I began to wonder if the SoundID 300 would ever see the light of day.  Then, suddenly, it arrived.  But, SoundID had a special surprise in store for their loyal and patient customers.  Somewhere along the line, one had become two…SoundID had apparently given birth to twins: the SoundID 200 and SoundID 300, and I was lucky enough to land one of each, which SoundID sent for me to review and keep.  Keep reading as we will walk through both of the latest offerings from SoundID.

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