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Category: Digital photography

The quest for the perfect combo camera bag is over: It's LowePro's SlingShot 350

Camera bags rarely get much attention. Unless they're good. Really good. And LowePro's SlingShot 350 AW convertible now has my undivided attention.

This, after years of lugging my gear around in a canvas Domke bag. It was great for my old FE2, and even managed to carry my modern-era Canon DSLR and lenses quite nicely for a few years. Then I bought a Macbook Pro and decided that it, too, could come along for the ride so I could process my pics on scene. I struggled with two bags for a while: One strapped to my back for the computer, and one over my shoulder for the camera. Then I discovered the combo bag.

Combo bags look like ordinary photo-oriented backpacks, but with a trick. They've usually got a zippered sleeve into which you can slide your laptop. My old Tamrac handled the job quite nicely, until I got my hands on a Crumpler. And my Crumpler handled the job quite nicely, until I got my hands on the LowePro SlingShot. That's when I realized what the convenience of a combo-combo bag (my label, not theirs) could bring.

Straight-up backpacks are great for hauling your gear. They're easier on your back and shoulders than an ordinary shoulder bag. But they're inconvenient if you've got to get into the bag frequently, to switch lenses, for example.

But the SlingShot is both. If you're simply walking from point-a to point-b, it wears like a sling bag -- a sort of single-strapped backpack. So you get the benefit of distributing the bag's weight more evenly, making a load of a camera body, lenses and a laptop easier to carry. But once you get to your shoot, you can extend the length of the strap, spin the bag around your body, and -- like magic -- it becomes an easy-to-access shoulder bag.

LowePro has designed the zippered pouch so it can be opened fully when the bag is laying down. Or it zips partially in shoulder-mode. A couple of small straps secure the flap at the corners to prevent strain on the zipper when in shoulder mode, and to keep you from accidentally unzipping too far and spilling your gear on the ground.

I managed to get the bag and its padded dividers to hold a 30D with one lens attached, a short zoom, a 70-200 2.8 zoom, a flash, and a small charger with enough space left over to tuck in my CF card reader and a couple of short cables. A top compartment holds still more stuff, and includes a small pouch for keeping things organized. And my MacBook Pro tucks nicely in back.

There are a few minor tweaks I'd like: I'd like a couple of small external zippered compartments so I don't have to go all the way inside to get to CF cards; And I'd like a couple more options inside the top compartment for organizing things. It tends to look like the inside of a purse after a while.

But, overall, the SlingShot does exactly what I need, and does it well.

Read more about it at LowePro.com. It lists for $179.99. Or, hurry off to Amazon, where their price and a $30 rebate drop it to $114.95.

-- Tom Gromak, The Detroit News

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Category: iPhone

Get iPhone, iPod recorder free while you can

Griffin Technology Inc., creator of all things iPod and iPhone, has announced the availability of iTalk, a new sound recording app for iPhone, iPhone 3G, and 2nd generation iPod touch.

Griffin iTalk turns iPhone or iPod touch into an ultra-mobile, super-compact recording unit. This two-part app allows users to create high-quality recordings, and then transfer the recordings to a Mac or PC. Users will appreciate the one-touch recording controls, and the ability to pause/resume recordings and even append to previous recordings on the fly.

You probably know Griffin best as a hardware manufacturer: Speakers, docks, and those little digital recorder adaptors that plugged into the pre-touch versions of the iPod.

iTalk is a two-part software application. Download the iTalk app from the iTunes App Store and install it on your iPhone or iPod touch, for mobile recording and playback. Its companion program, iTalk Sync, runs on your computer to transfer recordings from iPod or iPhone for editing and sharing. iTalk Sync connects to your iPod touch or iPhone wirelessly via your local Wi-Fi network, and makes transfers a snap: just drag the recordings from iTalk Sync's list and drop them onto your desktop. Recordings are saved as high-quality AIFF files, playable in iTunes and most other media players.

It's free for a limited time. But we don't know how long that will be. Find more in the iTunes App Store.

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Category: Digital video

Got video? Want it to go? Iomega's ScreenPlayHD makes it easy.

This device, about the size of a paperback book, makes it super simple to put your audio, video or photo content on that new LCD TV in the living room -- without the hassle of setting up a network and a networked media player.

That had been my method of choice for a few years. Music and movies that I had downloaded or ripped from original disks or taken with my camcorder all sat on a central storage drive on my home network. I watched them on my PC or laptop, or on a modified Xbox rigged with its own operating system and media player, or on a standalone D-Link media player. But the server grew full, and the laptop screen was small, and then there was the issue of portability. If I wanted to take movies to view at the homes of friends or family members, I had to take on the task of porting them back to a disk.

The $199 ScreenplayHD eliminates the extra steps. It is, essentially, an external hard drive on steroids. You jack it into your PC or Mac with USB 2.0, then simply drop the files into folders to organize them. It requires no extra drivers, and no special software to manage the library -- a real plus. Just plug it in and fill it up: MPEG-1, -2, and -4 are all welcome, as are DivX, Xvid, and AVI video flavors. It'll take and play back audio in MP3, AC3, WAV, OGG and WMA, and can display jpeg photo images.

The device then connects to your TV with your choice of inputs: HDMI, composite, or component video, for maximum flexibility.

An easy on-screen menu operates with a small, slim remote control that you simply use to navigate the folders, choose content for playback and select interface and playback options.

"It's devised to get you out of the computer room and into your media room," said Chris Romoser, senior director of worldwide communications for Iomega, whether your content is downloaded, ripped or self-produced.

"What we were hearing over and over again is that we've all gotten tired of huddling everyone around the PC to watch the latest videos or our home movies. We all want to sit down and watch together," Romoser said.

Their efforts have succeeded.

In my tests, the ScreenplayHD did an admirable job. You have to remember, first, that you're playing back super-crunched versions of movies. While an original DVD contains nearly 5GB of data, a DivX or Xvid compressed version is often 700MB or less, so there's going to be some loss. But, if you're ripping or downloading compressed video, you already knew that, and already accepted the tradeoff.

I found video playback to be excellent on the 32-inch LCD in the living room -- at least as good as my Xbox Media Center rig, and more solid and reliable than the wireless D-Link media player. It matched both devices again when connected to the standard-def 50-inch big screen in the basement (where the Xbox normally resides). And friends were amazed when we wired it up to their 52-inch plasma, both at the quality and the astonishing knowledge that the tiny device with the half-terabyte hard drive could hold as many as 9,250 hours of compressed audio, or 750 hours of compressed video -- all in the palm of your hand.

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Category: Accessories

Keep your cool when you're at work on the go

Whoever invented the word 'laptop' never imagined the high-powered machines and sizzling hot processors that would be in use today. It's a good thing we have products like the Futura LapWorks laptop desk. The slick, sleek folding plastic laptop holder spans your legs, separates the hot bottom of the machine from your skin, and now comes in a variety of cool colors and even custom patterns and designs: Deep Red, Bustin' Blue, Passion Pink, Tempting Teal, Largely Leopard, Desert Camou, Jungle Camou and Red Marble. Customers can even choose fromm matte or semi-gloss finishes, and black or translucent no-slip rubber pads. The UV-cured ink has a similar hardness to automotive paint, and a final coat of matte or semi-gloss acrylic further protects the colored surface. Want more options? Participate in LapWorks' customer polls, which will decide future colors patterns and features. Pretty cool -- literally -- for just $49.95. Find more at the LapWorks demo page or visit the page full of painted Futuras.