Mobile Technology

Developer Brandon Fiquett has hacked Siri on the iPhone 4S to work along with his Viper SmartStart module in order to not only start his car, but also to arm and disarm the car's alarm, lock and unlock doors, and even pop the vehicle's trunk. Read More

The Solio may not have been the first solar charger, but its appealing design and useful interchangeable tip system gave portable power packs a much-needed popularity boost. Transferring the juice from a charger to a smartphone or media player can be a time-consuming affair, though ... time that could be spent listening to the music stored on the device. SolLight's solution is to combine a lightweight carry pouch, a solar charger and some stereo speakers into something called the SoliCharger-SP. Read More

With the various aftermarket lenses that have become available for the iPhone recently, it’s easy to forget that the smartphone is capable of recording not only video, but also audio. Should you not want to be limited by its single bottom-mounted condenser mic, however, what choices are there? Well, you can play reporter and get a handheld condenser, or as of this Monday, you can now pick up TASCAM’s iM2 Stereo Microphone for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. Read More

Once upon a time, before zoom lenses were invented, movie and TV cameras had three lenses that the user could choose between, using a Lazy Susan-type arrangement to swivel them into place - you wanted to go wide, you'd swing in the wide-angle lens, if you needed a close-up, you'd swing in the telephoto. Well, in the spirit of everything old being new again, the iPhone Lens Dial now offers the same functionality for Apple's iconic smartphone. Read More

With two thirds of the world's population now carrying a mobile phone, the only functional aspect of the wristwatch is redundant. The appreciation of fine bespoke mechanical computers however, is stronger than ever - more than US$46 billion this year - three times the tablet computer marketplace. Last Saturday evening, the timepeice industry gathered for the Grand Prix de l'Horlogerie de Genève, where the industry awards the best timepeices in a dozen categories. The "Aiguille d'Or" was awarded to the US$87,000 De Bethune DB28. Another leaureate keeps time to one thousandth of a second and another keeps the true length of the day, both achieved mechanically. They cost more than a Ferrari, and are equally as complex. Showing this story to a loved one might cost you a lot of money. Read More

Swedish company Fructel will soon offer a smartphone- and tablet-compatible accessory tailored for mobile gamers, in the form of the Gametel wireless controller. Compatible with over 50 titles, the gamepad connects via Bluetooth and supports devices running Android 2.1 or higher, as well as iPhone and iPad. Read More

Typing long documents or emails on a tiny smartphone screen or iPad keyboard can be quite a maddening experience. As well as wasting time because of typing errors you can end up with neck strain and a strong desire to hurl the said device clean across the room. A more workable solution is to use a portable Bluetooth keyboard and Verbatim has just announced the second generation of its offering. The new Verbatim Bluetooth Wireless Mobile Keyboard can be paired with up to six devices at one time and is compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPad 2, and other Bluetooth-enabled tablets such as Samsung Galaxy Tab and the Motorola Xoom. Read More

Wondering where you left your dang car keys this time? Well, you might not be if you were using BiKN. Pronounced “beacon,” this tracking system consists of an iPhone case, an app, and up to eight tags that can be attached to items of your choice. Should you not be able to find one of those items, BiKN will help you relocate it. The system will also give you a holler should a particular "item" wander away on its own. Read More

When I was a kid, it always used to bug me when someone was supposed to be talking on a locked-off “video phone” in a movie, and yet the phone would pan with them to keep them in the shot! Well, like a lot of other things from sci-fi movies of the past, motorized face-tracking webcams are now a reality – albeit, they’re still not very common. As it turns out, however, more and more video calls are being made not from desktop computers, but from smartphones. So, that being the case, how do you go about getting one of those to pan with you? Well, you could buy something like the Swivl. Read More