Mobile Technology

What if you could power your phone on a single AA battery? The SpareOne is a mobile phone that can to do just that. Designed as a back-up that you keep in a glovebox or emergency kit rather than a phone you keep in your pocket everyday, the SpareOne claims to deliver you up to 10 hours of talk time on one AA battery and (depending on the shelf-life of the battery you're using) it can hold charge while unused for up to a whopping 15 years. Read More

Just over six years ago, we reported that Nissan had developed a "Scratch Guard Coat" paint designed to repair scratches on not only cars, but on painted surfaces in general. The company has already applied its paint technology to a number of Nissan and Infiniti models, and in 2009 it announced that it would license it for use on mobile phones. It appears there weren't many takers as Nissan has now announced that it has produced the world's first self-healing iPhone case that makes use of the Scratch Shield paint. Read More

Although it can't be denied that smartphones are ... well, that they're really smart, the fact is that not everyone wants to play games, shoot and watch videos, surf the web or use apps every time they step out their door. For many people, the ability to make and receive phone calls is all that really matters. It was for minimalists like these that Austrian electronics company emporia designed its very basic, large-keyed mobile phones. While they were previously not available to North American consumers, that changed with an announcement last week at CES. Read More

More from CES 2012, Sin City, where we've briefly had a chance to get familiar with the Nokia Lumia 900, the Finnish corporation's sacrificial offering at the increasingly cluttered LTE altar to the gods of 4G. The Windows smartphone features a large 4.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 8-megapixel camera with a wide-angle Carl Zeiss lens and seven hours of talk time, according to Nokia. First impressions? Really rather good, actually. Read More

We all know that water and mobile electronic devices aren’t a good mix. But living on a world whose surface is around 70 percent water can sometimes make it hard to keep the two separate. While wrapping your device in a waterproof case will provide protection, they add bulk and can sometimes affect usability. California-based company Liquipel claims to have developed a hydrophobic nanocoating one thousand times thinner than a human hair that can be applied to a smartphone to protect it from accidental spills without affecting its functionality. Read More

People who are worried about their mobile devices running out of juice at inopportune moments now have another portable power supply at their disposal – and it’s tiny. The 2.8-ounce (79-gram) Innergie PocketCell is a little larger than a car key, and allows for hours of extra use of Apple and Android devices, MP3 players, and a variety of other mobile gizmos. It was unveiled this week at CES. Read More

Just as soon as Windows 8 is released, Lenovo will come to the rescue of those who simply can't choose between a notebook and a tablet with a new IdeaPad called the YOGA. Claimed to be the industry's first multi-mode notebook with a 360 degree flip-and-fold design, the new portable computing solution combines the ease-of-use of a 10-point capacitive touch tablet with the functionality and slim profile of an Ultrabook, while also bringing the screen closer to the user with a tent/stand monitor mode. Read More

We have to admit to being rather thrilled at discovering the Mikey for Flip and the Yeti Pro USB microphones from Blue at last year's CES, and were hoping for something just as good this year. We were not disappointed. The company has just debuted the Apple-centric Mikey Digital, the studio-grade Spark Digital and the cute as a button (but not actually sporting any) Tiki in Las Vegas this week. Read More

It’s now possible to use a smartphone or tablet for just about anything that would be traditionally done using a desktop or laptop computer. There is still one disadvantage to doing your computing on a mobile device, however – the small screen. Massachusetts-based Mobile Monitor Technologies (MMT) is attempting to address that shortcoming, with its Monitor2Go. The 15.6-inch HD LCD backlit screen mirrors the displays of all mobile Apple devices, along with those of Macs, PCs and HDMI-compatible smartphones and tablets, plus it can also be used as a lockable protective case for the iPad2. Read More