Accessories

Carved improves handmade wooden case line for iPhone

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

iPhone cases vary from waterproof to minimal skins and all variations in between. Interestingly, there are several options that combine the beauty of nature, in stark contrast to the cold feel of anodized aluminum and glass. Carved is one of those companies that pours completely customized and natural elements into each case.

Utilizing wood, Carved hand selects each piece of grained material in their Indiana shop. The whole process takes place in their shop, including the CNC machining and even the shipping. If you want your product double checked by hand, Carved may be your new favorite case company, assuming you love wood...

ChargeCard now available for the iPhone 5

Cody Lee ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

We've been following the ChargeCard story since it debuted as a Kickstarter project last fall. The credit card-sized accessory, which has garnered all kinds of media and consumer attention, fits in your wallet, ensuring you're never left without a charging cable.

Earlier this year, we went hands on with a pre-production version of the 30-pin model of the ChargeCard, which is perfect for connecting your older iPhone to a USB port for charging. But what if you have an iPhone 5? Never fear, the iPhone 5 model is here...

iPhone to become dashboard in 2014 iScooters

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated December 22, 2017

Apple for some time has expressed interest in designing products for high-end automobiles, creating Siri Eyes Free to act as a driver's personal assistant. However, with the growing use of scooters - particularly ones electric-powered - the Apple handset is set to become the dashboard, serving up GPS information, speed and more. The iScooters should appear in 2014, one version from the maker of the tiny Smart Car and another from that wonderland of gadgets, Japan...

Did an iPhone 5 charger electrocute a Chinese woman?

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

Was a Chinese stewardess, just weeks from her wedding, electrocuted by her iPhone 5 charger? That's the claim Apple is investigating following a report widely distributed across a Chinese social media site.

Ma Ailun, a 23-year-old China Airlines flight attendant reportedly died after being electrocuted Thursday when she answered a call using her iPhone 5 that was recharging. The message was reposted more than 3,000 times on Weibo, China's microblogging site...

Strap-E iPhone case carries your cash, credit cards and more

Cody Lee ∙ July 14, 2013

I've long been in search of a proper wallet-iPhone case combo that would allow me to leave my conventional wallet at home. I've tried the BookBook, the HEX and several others, but have yet to find one that met my requirements for form and function.

This new Strap-E case looks interesting though. It's a slim (only adds 3mm to your iPhone) plastic, slide-on case that has durable, injection molded loops on the back that allow it to carry cash, credit cards and almost anything else you can fit in your pocket...

Seagate Central: a great storage solution for your Connected Home

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated March 19, 2019

Always moving forward, Seagate continues to reinvent current solutions. This time, Seagate took a hard look at their previous NAS drive, the GoFlex Home, and decided it left a few things to be desired. In an effort to impress, Seagate tore down the Home and seemingly started from scratch on the Central.

Overall, I am fairly impressed with Seagate's changes to the new hardware and corresponding software, online dashboard, and revamped media app. After speaking with the engineers behind the drive at CES, there appears to be a more prevalent focus on user experience with the new 2013 product line, of which I previously reviewed the Wireless Plus. Leading the charge for a user friendly product, this previously complicated network drive enables even novice users to go from box to operational in less than ten minutes...

Pebble announces it’s surpassed 275,000 watch pre-orders

Cody Lee ∙ July 11, 2013

Folks still skeptical on whether or not there's a real market for smartwatches should checkout Pebble's latest blog post. The company says they've received over 190,000 smartwatch pre-orders since their Kickstarter project ended last year, giving them 275,000 total.

Even if you do that math at $99 a pop—which was just a limited time early bird special price—that amounts to over $27 million. Not bad for a year's work...

Apple researching combining mouse and trackpad into one ‘motion touch’ control device

Ed Sutherland ∙ July 11, 2013

How do you get the speed of a computer mouse and the fine control of a trackpad? Apple's answer is to combine the two motion sensors into one device and wrap it all into a patent filed and published Thursday.

The patent application, published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, is entitled 'Hybrid Inertial and Touch Sensing Input Device'. The 2012 filing outlines a type of motion-sensing traffic cop which determines whether inertia (mouse) or touch (trackpad) should control your iDevice's cursor...

Apple researching safe vehicle telematics with touchscreen and tactile features

Ed Sutherland ∙ July 9, 2013

Apple hopes a new patent granted today will make driving safer in cars equipped with a growing array of screens and devices.

The patent combines the touch screen technology found in iPhones and iPads with haptic feedback, allowing drivers to adjust dashboard controls while keeping their eyes on the road.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office approved Apple's technology, entitled "Programmable tactile touch screen displays and man-machine interfaces for improved vehicle instrumentation and telematics." The technology builds on an earlier patent granted to a Canadian inventor on human interaction with computers...

Saidoka dock cradles iPhone 5 at the perfect angle

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated September 30, 2013

Review fans will be quick to recognize the Bluelounge company name as an accessory manufacturer we tend to frequently cover on iDB. Regularity is due to the creative products Bluelounge designs and produces on a continuing basis. The company is an international design studio that creates relevant and well detailed accessories for Apple products. The creative director, Dominic Symons, believes Bluelounge products should solve a problem, look great, and be well built.

To that end, today, Bluelounge announces the Saidoka desktop iPhone companion that is "docked by your side." The clever and streamlined design utilizes a minimal footprint and is an officially licensed MFI dock with a Lightning charging pin assembly built into the cradle. Thanks to a friend at the company, I enjoyed playing with the dock before its public release...

Olloclip introduces new telephoto lens for iPhone

Cody Lee ∙ July 8, 2013

In the world of iPhone photography accessories, there's perhaps no name more recognized than Olloclip. The company produces a popular 3-in-1 clip-on camera lens system for Apple's handset that includes macro, fisheye and a wide-angle lenses.

And today, they introduced a new telephoto lens, bringing the Olloclip line full circle. It's available in two flavors—one that works with the iPhone 5, and one that works the iPhone 4, iPhone 4S and the last two generations of the iPod touch...

Keep your Lightning cable handy with Nomad [review and giveaway]

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

Running out of the house with an empty iPhone battery can be catastrophic. We have all been there, stuck in the office, out of town, on a long car ride, when the low battery indicator pops up begging for more juice. Despite many 21st century successes, smartphone batteries still weigh us down. Unfortunately, this causes me to keep a Lightning cable near my nightstand, at the iMac, around the office, and in my car.

To prevent such problems, Kero developed the Nomad cable. Cleverly designed as a keychain, Nomad is a 3", fully Apple certified lifesaver. The seemingly simplistic resolution to an everyday problem prevents charging headaches...