bluetooth

I see lots of iPad speakers out there. With several options currently being promoted on Kickstarter alone, it can be hard to get noticed among all the competition. That's probably why the Zooka speaker now glows.

The wireless Zooka has a tough silicone sound bar design that slips onto the edge of your iPad, or connects via Bluetooth or audio jack to other devices.

Regular Zookas are available in a small rainbow of colors for $89. Pitch in at the $149 level on Kickstarter and you'll get an iPad speaker that will match your Tron costume.… Read more

If you've been inspired by Jeremy Lin's story and want to work on honing your basketball skills, Nike has a new solution to help motivate you and track your progress.

The sportswear giant expanded its Nike+ line today with the introduction of Nike+ Basketball. The solution includes a new line of sneakers with pressure sensors strategically placed throughout the soles to measure how hard you're playing, how fast you're moving, and how high you're jumping (as if I need an app to tell me my vertical sucks).

The sensors then wirelessly transmit this data to your iPhone via Bluetooth, so you can see the results and track your progress. Social networks also play a big part of Nike+ Basketball, as you can share your stats with friends on Facebook and Twitter, or compare them to other users via the app's global leaderboard. There's even a showcase mode that lets you superimpose the data onto a video of you working your magic on the court. … Read more

Scrubbing your chompers probably doesn't top your list of favorite things to do. That means you rush through it without lavishing your teeth with the attention they truly deserve.

The Beam Brush is aiming to change your slacker ways. The manual brush hooks up with an Android app to track how long you are brushing, with the ideal time being 2 minutes per session. Simple charts show if you're reaching your goals. … Read more

I'm one of those Bluetooth people--you know, the guy who's always got a weird flashing thing stuck in one ear and you can never quite be sure if he's actually listening to you. But I can take the stares and the eye rolls and the mockery, because I know the rest of the world just doesn't understand what we have; my old Jabra BT8040 headset and I have been through a lot together.

In the rural area where I live, many folks don't have e-mail or any kind of smartphone yet, so I can look particularly ridiculous jogging down the road or snowshoeing a high-altitude trail with an earpiece jammed in the side of my head. But it's worth it--my Bluetooth is my window on the world.

Most of my time online is spent on work, leaving little time to follow news and podcasts or check out new music. Whenever I'm not staring at a laptop, I'm probably driving, exercising, or doing chores with my trusty BT8040 in my ear getting caught up on those sorts of things, or with friends and family on the phone. In short, I constantly hear little voices in my head in more ways than one.… Read more

The InCharge Auto BT is a simple device, both in form factor and function. Essentially, it features a 12-volt power connection on one end of a 4-foot cable and a male analog auxiliary audio connection on the other. You may be asking, "If one end of the cable connects to power and the other end connects to the car, where does my phone connect?" The answer is: wirelessly. That "BT" at the end of InCharge Auto BT doesn't stand for Brian Tong. It's short for Bluetooth and this unit uses Bluetooth HFP and A2DP/AVRCP to wirelessly receive audio from your handset to be output to your car's speakers via the aforementioned auxiliary audio connection. … Read more

With its low-profile design, the Parrot Minikit+ doesn't command a lot of the driver's attention. That's a good thing.

It even knows to turn itself on when you enter the car thanks to its vibration sensor and automatic power feature. Beyond a basic setup and the occasional charging, you'll likely forget that this slim Bluetooth speakerphone is suspended from your car's sun visor...waiting.

That is until a call comes in and the Parrot Minikit+ springs to life and starts talking to you with its odd, robotic British accent. You'll then be able to … Read more

We saw iHome's new portable Bluetooth speakers last month at CES, and both models, the iDM8 and iDM11, looked pretty nice.

They're shipping now and available for $59.99 and $69.99, respectively.

The spherical iDM8, which comes in black as well (for some reason iHome's only showing the red version on its Web site), seems to be the more travel- and bag-friendly. But, as you can see from the specs, the iDM11 has a built-in microphone and speakerphone capabilities, a plus.

We'll let you know how both models sound when we get our hands on … Read more

Mark Ecko beefs up its Unltd.Sound series of streetwear headphones with two new over-ears blasted with bright colors.

The company today announced the Exhibit headphones that make bold statements in green, blue, red, gray, and white. The guts feature standard 40mm drivers but the presser makes no mention of an in-line remote control to control music on smartphones, which sounds irritating for users that prefer to keep their devices in a backpack or tucked away in a pocket.

The bright designs of the Exhibit headphones are inspired and extended to Ecko's matching CE accessories that include a range … Read more

There's nothing like hitting the ski lodge for a warm beverage after a few hours on the slopes, but trying to round up the troops can be a pain when you have to dig through your winter layers to find your cell phone and then shout instructions over all the swooshing and ambient noise around you.

If you're sick of dealing with this first-world problem, let us introduce you to the Buhel SpeakGoggle G33. These high-tech goggles connect to your cell phone or smartphone via Bluetooth and feature a bone conduction mic integrated into the frame that translates speech using the vibrations from your nose. The advantage of bone conduction technology is that it blocks outside noise, so you can have a clearer conversation with your friend. … Read more