Underwater Tunes

If you’re a lap swimmer, you know that going back and forth in the pool can be monotonous. I always enjoy listening to music while I’m running, but swimming? Yep, it’s possible. Finis’ SwiMP3 is designed for you swimmers out there.

The SwiMP3 is a waterproof mp3 player that is created with a unique sound transfer feature that gives you underwater sound clarity. It uses a patented bone-conduction technology that vibrates from your cheekbone to your inner ear so you can hear it clearly underwater.

At first I was a bit skeptical that this thing would actually work as advertised - water and electronics usually don’t play well together. To produce decent sound underwater, you need to turn up the volume very loud. Out of the water, you can barely hear it. Don’t even try to compare the sound quality to a regular mp3 player - heck, it’s a music player that works underwater!


SwiMP3 comes with its own media manager software, but it’s not worth using. Loading your music is quite simple. When you plug your SwiMP3 into your computer, it shows up as any removable hard drive would (on a Mac or PC, mp3 or WMA files). If you’re using iTunes, the SwiMP3 pops right up in there, too.

It connects to your computer with a USB connector, which also charges the device. It takes about three hours for a full charge, giving you approximately eight hours of playback. Additionally, it has 1GB of storage (approximately 240 songs).

The headphones are very sturdy and clip right onto your goggles or mask. They also are surprisingly comfortable to wear, as they stay in place resting on your cheekbones. But I have a small issue with the buttons on the goggles - they’re tiny, and it makes concentrating on your swim a bit distracting if you need to make adjustments to your tunes. The buttons on the goggles include on/off, volume, next/previous track, pause and shuffle functions.

The bottom line: Listening to your favorite songs takes the monotony out of swimming laps, and if you’re a dedicated lap swimmer or triathlete, the SwiMP3 could be your new best friend. Find it online for $150 at Finisinc.com or Amazon.com.

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Click Chick’s iPhone: App of the Week: NASA
A couple weeks ago NASA released its first app for the iPhone/iPod touch. This is a dream come true for space geeks. You can see up-to-date space mission information with this all in one easy-to-use app.

NASA’s app collects, customizes and delivers an extensive selection of dynamically updated information, images and videos from various sources. You can see NASA countdown clocks, the NASA Image of the Day, Astronomy Image of the Day, online videos, multiple Twitter feeds, track the positions of the International Space Station and see satellite imagery (with the option of overlaid with country borders/labels).

Not only is this app way cool, it’s free at the iTunes Store. Note that it requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.

Checking Out The New Zune HD

By popular request from many friends, I had to take a look at the Zune HD, Microsoft’s first portable multimedia player that combines a built-in HD radio receiver, High-Definition (HD) video output capabilities, organic light-emitting diode (OLED), touch screen, Wi-Fi and an Internet browser. Other than the radio capability, you could say it’s similar to Apple’s iPod touch.

Before I go any further, let me clarify a common misconception: The “HD” in HD radio does not stand for High-Definition as it would for HD video. It is the trademark/marketing tool for iBiquity’s in-band on-channel (IBOC) technology that was selected by the Federal Communications Commission as a digital broadcasting method for the United States. Essentially, the “HD” has no real meaning.

Note that Hawaii has six HD radio stations: 98.5, 93.9, 92.3, 101.9, 100.3 and 105.1. This is the first time I have a device that can actually play HD radio, and these six stations sound the same as any other “regular” radio station. I cannot hear the supposed “higher quality sound,” but I do enjoy being able to switch back and forth between the HD1 and HD2 channels that most of these have available. I wish my iPhone or iPod touch could do this.

That aside, other than the obvious new slender look of the Zune HD, the biggest change is in its software. The new interface is simple and easy to navigate through with its large typography. Being accustomed to the iPhone/iPod touch, going through the menus required a small learning curve for me, but I adapted to the change within a couple of minutes. The sensitivity of the touch screen is different. It’s not as reactive as tapping on my iPhone, and it doesn't feel as fluid. But the Zune HD’s display looks extremely sharp (16:9 widescreen display, 480x272 resolution). A huge plus is the ability to play back HD video files in 720p from the Zune HD using a docking station (sold separately for $90).

In addition, you have access to a limited amount of apps such as a calculator or the MSN Weather application. Later this year, there are plans to release other apps such as Twitter, Facebook, and 3D games like Project Gotham Racing: Ferrari Edition. As you would download apps, songs and videos from the iTunes Store on an iPhone/iPod touch, you would acquire these for the Zune HD from the Zune Marketplace.

There’s nowhere near the selection of apps/media you would find on the iTunes Store, but I have a feeling it’s not Microsoft’s goal to compete with the iPod touch here. The bottom line: The Zune HD is a great media player and big improvement on the original Zune. This would have been better as a media phone ... maybe in the future?

It comes in 16GB ($220) or 32GB ($290), plus you need to subscribe to the $15/month Zune Pass (which gives you access to everything on the Zune Marketplace). Buy it at your nearest Best Buy (bestbuy.com) or find it online at Zune.net or Amazon.com.

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Click Chick’s iPhone App of the Week: Labor Mate
There must be something in the water because I have many friends and friends of friends who are pregnant or just gave birth recently. A tip from one of them who recently gave birth: White Peak Software’s Labor Mate app. It’s a labor contraction stopwatch and your best friend if you have your iPhone in-hand while you’re having contractions.

Instead of thinking about or counting your contractions, you tap the labor stopwatch as the contractions stop and start. Labor Mate then tracks the information and reports the timings back to you in an easy-to-read format so you’ll know when it’s time to call the doctor and head to the hospital. Find Labor Mate at the iTunes Store for 99 cents.

Microsoft's Windows 7

Apple’s latest operating system, Snow Leopard Mac OS X 10.6, came out a couple months ago, and this week (Oct. 22) we’ll see the next big operating system release with Microsoft’s Windows 7. I’ve been playing with it since the beta came out in January, and it’s basically a streamlined version of Vista with many visible changes.

Here are some of the main highlights that come to mind:
* Installing Windows 7 was a breeze, and now anytime I turn my computer on or off, both are very quick to do - faster than when it was XP or Vista. Following the install, the first thing I noticed about the display was the choice of fun, colorful desktop pictures. Of course, you can still use your own pictures, but I enjoy some of the ones you can choose from since they remind me of cute Japanese anime.

* The new Aero Peek feature helps you through desktop clutter by giving you X-ray vision through your open windows straight to your Windows 7 desktop. To activate it, point to the right edge of the taskbar and watch your windows instantly turn transparent. Going hand-in-hand with that is Aero Shake - click on a pane and literally shake your mouse. This causes all your open windows, except the one you just clicked, to close. It’s perfect to clear a cluttered desktop quickly. Also related is Aero Snap: This gives you a smart and fun way of resizing/working with your windows.


* If you use OS X, you’re probably quite familiar with Spotlight. Information on your hard drive is better organized in Windows 7; the new search built into the Start Menu works similar to Spotlight. As soon as you start typing in a search query, the results start populating in the window immediately, as it looks at your entire hard drive and not just where you tell it to look. Another OS X similarity is the Taskbar - it reminds me of the OS X dock, but it has larger icons and it’s not as pretty. As far as software compatibility goes, Windows 7 worked with everything I tried loading on the machine, including Office 2007. I didn’t try to install anything out of the ordinary, so maybe I was lucky.

After running Windows 7 for more than nine months, I can say that this new operating system patched up the potholes that Vista left in the road and is a huge improvement. I wouldn’t call it a complete makeover, but more of a refined version of the Windows you already know.

Is it worth it? For the fixes and software stability, yes. The Windows 7 prices vary: $120-$220/upgrade from XP or Vista or $200-$320/full version. Find it at the Windows Store (store.microsoft.com) or Amazon.com.

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Click Chick’s iPhone App of the Week: Babyphone
With a baby on the way, I’ve been doing a lot of research on baby tech stuff and, in the process, found Babyphone. You place your iPhone near your baby and it turns into a baby monitor that will call your house phone (or another number) to let you know your child is awake.

Babyphone’s main screen shows the current status, microphone sensitivity and the threshold for triggering the alarm. Once the microphone display reaches or exceeds your set threshold, it will call your designated phone number. Since I don’t have an actual baby on whom to test it yet, I used it on my parrot - it works great with him! Find Babyphone at the iTunes Store for $3.99.

IngBoo: Information At A Glance

Launched earlier this year, IngBoo brings you a new way to interact with information updates on the Web. It’s basically a heavy-duty tracking tool that analyzes each feed to give you the latest information. It tracks and helps you to quickly find just about anything you can think of, including specific news stories, traffic reports, sports scores or ongoing sales. In today’s economy, this is really helpful for a job hunter to do quick, yet personalized job searches.

“IngBoo provides all of the information on the Web that is important to you in glanceable, snackable snippets,” says IngBoo co-founder and CEO Rikard Kjellberg. “Unlike similar services such as Google Alerts, Trackle and Alerts.com that deliver updates via e-mail, IngBoo updates are experienced in the form of a uniquely designed list that is accessible on desktops and smart-phones.”

There are a number of Web applications similar to IngBoo, but really none is as efficient as IngBoo. It helps you keep all your RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds, social networking accounts (i.e. Facebook, Twitter) and online interests in one place. Setting up your feeds/info interests is very easy to do with the predefined content catalog/big buttons, or the search function. Once you have that ready to go, you scroll over your topics and the full story appears without actually clicking on the link - very convenient!

For you bloggers, Web publishers and retailers looking to increase your Web site revisits, IngBoo offers a free button that you can place discreetly on your site (similar to an RSS button). This button lets you subscribe with a single mouse click instead of a whole complicated process. Basically, the IngBoo experience is tailored to the folks who may be intimidated by the complexity of an RSS reader.

The best part of it all: IngBoo is free! Too bad there’s no iPhone app to go with it yet. Visit ingboo.com to begin your efficient information flow.

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Click Chick’s iPhone App of the Week: myStarbucks
It was only a matter of time before Starbucks came out with its own iPhone app, and now it’s here. There’s not really much to the app, but, hey, it’s Starbucks - and as cliche as it is, I love Starbucks coffee. The most convenient thing about the app is the Store Locator. It’s not such a big deal here in Hawaii since I know where all my nearby Starbucks stores are, but if I were traveling, I would want to know where all the Starbucks are.

You can build your perfect drinks, save and share them via e-mail or if you’re close enough, iPhone to iPhone. The Coffee Menu and Food Menu will let you see the full Starbucks selection along with the detailed nutrition information (sometimes it’s better not to look at all - but at least my favorite latte is only 170 calories).

Mr. Click Chick’s Top TGS Picks

This year’s Tokyo Game Show (TGS) in Japan just finished, and it was yet another expo I could not attend this year. I’ve always wanted to attend a TGS, but keep missing the opportunity - the show is similar to the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo, E3, in Los Angeles that I’ve written about. This year my schedule looked open, so I registered early, but I’m now well into the third trimester of pregnancy, and per doctor’s orders I cannot travel.

As with all the shows I missed this year, I sent “Mr. Click Chick,” my husband, Alan (systems manager for MidWeek and the Star-Bulletin), to cover TGS for me. Held for four days (Sept. 24-27), this year’s theme was “Game, it’s so energetic!” During that time, a whopping 185,030 attendees showed up, even though it was much smaller than a typical E3. Pretty impressive for a show that had 180 exhibitors and 760 game titles.

There were obviously too many titles to mention individually, but here are a few highlights with release dates/platforms that caught Mr. Click Chick’s eye:


* Tekken 6 (Oct. 29: PS3, Xbox 360, PSP): Both PS3 and Xbox 360 versions were featured at TGS, just as they were at E3 by its publisher, Namco Bandai. Only this time it was all in Japanese and the Scenario Campaign was playable along with its entire 40-character roster. First impressions from the demo: Along with normal moves, you can pick up weapons, heal downed opponents (not to full health) and there’s a new energy drink that adds electrical damage to your attacks.

* Lost Planet 2 (Feb. 21: PS3, Xbox 360): Developed by Capcom, this is a great sequel to Lost Planet: Extreme Condition. It’s a first-person shooter with RPG elements and big bosses to take down with three of your friends in coop campaign mode. One of the best games at TGS.

* Bayonetta (Jan. 2010: PS3, Xbox 360): From SEGA/Platinum Games, this is an action-adventure story in which Bayonetta is a reborn witch who battles against angels with her unique shape-shifting abilities and weapons equipped to her hands and feet. The gameplay is similar to Devil May Cry and involves melee and long-range attacks.

* Front Mission Evolved (spring 2010: PS3, Xbox 360, PC): This latest addition to the Front Mission series by Square Enix moves away from turn-based play to full third-person shooter. If you are a fan of robot battle games such as MechWarrior, you’ll love this latest installment. It has great graphics and gameplay, as you can customize your mech’s armor and weaponry.


* Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 (released Sept. 29: PS3): KOEI TECMO’s compelling action-adventure game is a redefined version of Ninja Gaiden II and shares a similar gameplay style to God of War III and Heavenly Sword. There are 17 levels in the game that traverse to several locations to show off the impressive graphics.

You’ll be seeing some of these titles and more in my upcoming columns. If you’re curious about the Tokyo Game Show, visit the Web site for more information/pictures: http://expo.nikkeibp.co.jp/tg s/2009/en/.

SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny For PSP

Namco Bandai Games recently released SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny, its latest in the SoulCalibur series - but this one is exclusively for Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP). Broken Destiny is the title’s handheld iteration that gives you the signature SoulCalibur weapon-based fighting formula on the go.

You have 28 characters to choose from and they’re available right from the beginning without having to unlock anything. If you’re a SoulCalibur follower, you’ll see some of your old favorites along with some new faces - even a special appearance by Kratos from the God of War game. I was surprised to see him in there, but it’s fun to play his character. In addition, you can create your own character from scratch with the customization tool for physical appearance, apparel and gear. Unlike the characters, these other options need to be unlocked. They’re purely aesthetic since there are no point bonuses associated with what you’re wearing.


For the average user. this game is very easy to grasp right from the start. All you need to do is experiment with the buttons while you’re fighting your opponent, and you’ll eventually figure out the basic horizontal/vertical attacks, kicks and swings with whatever weapon you’re armed with.

Chances are, without reading the manual, you won’t know what every button does, but if you hit the square button (when you’re in the character select menu), that will give you information about your character along with combinations to special moves. Additionally, if you don’t feel comfortable jumping right into the fights, you can practice your overall strategy with over 80 exercise missions, and use your fighting skills and advanced techniques/combos in the training mode.

Overall, I think SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny packs a powerful punch and is a must-have PSP game. The fighters are detailed with smooth/natural animation, the ad hoc multi-player mode works well, and the best part is that I can have SoulCalibur available to play right in my purse. The only disappointment I have with the game is the lack of online play, but at least there’s an option to play against your friends with the ad hoc mode.

SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny is rated “T” for Teen and retails for $39.99. Find it at your nearest GameStop (gamestop.com), Toys N Joys (toysnjoys.com) or on Amazon.com. Check out namcobandaigames.com or soulcalibur.com for more information about the game.

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Click Chick’s iPhone App of the Week: MewMew Tower
MewMew Tower has been out for awhile, but I didn’t find it until last week when I saw it on my brother’s iPhone. It’s such a simple game, but so addictively fun. Your goal is to stack as many cats as possible on top one another without making the whole pile topple over. The key is to heap the kitties in a straight line to maintain good balance. Don’t move your iPhone/iPod touch around too much because it affects your tower’s integrity. In the beginning of a game, you’ll see small cats and think to yourself, “Oh, easy.” Then after stacking several of those, the game will throw in some fat cats. Watch out - if you’re not careful, those tubbies are the ones that will make your kitty masterpiece come tumbling down. Find MewMew Tower (aka Tumi Neko) for 99 cents at the iTunes App Store.

The World's Smallest Camcorder

Of the all the announcements from Apple in the last couple weeks, the new iPod nano is hands-down the best one. The capability of this new nano reminds me of the compact Flip Mino camera I reviewed a little over a year ago - but it’s much smaller, and has a greater space capacity and more functionality. Not only did they add a video camera to it, there’s a built-in FM radio with live pause, iTunes Tagging and a pedometer. If you were following the rumor mills, sorry, disappointingly, there’s no iPod touch with a camera yet.

“iPod nano is the world’s most popular music player with over 100 million sold,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “And now we’ve added a video camera to its incredibly thin design, without any additional cost to the user.”

This new nano is exactly the same size as the previous one: 3.6 x 1.5 x 0.2 inches. It has a microphone the size of a pinhole and a speaker perfect for on-the-go footage for your blog or Facebook page, or if you’re traveling and don’t want to lug around a huge video camera. The 2.2-inch screen makes it fairly easy to see your images. There are various video effects you can do for fun - black and white, X-ray, thermal, security cam, cyborg, sepia and more. Sadly, its camera does not take still pictures, only video. The speaker isn’t anything special, but good enough for you to play back your videos or audio if your ears are near it.


A few drawbacks on the camera piece: The video quality isn’t as good as a regular camcorder, but it’s certainly better than a typical cell phone. The nano’s video produces standard definition (no HD capability) and there is no image stabilization, so you’ll need to have a steady hand to keep your footage looking good.

As far as the FM radio, Apple is a little late on this capability compared to other music players. I wish the iPhone had this too. Your headphones act as the FM antenna and you can pause live radio for up to 15 minutes by pushing “play” after a phone call. Your music/show then continues right from where you paused it. Theoretically, you can tag songs as you’re listening (to later purchase in iTunes), but so far Clear Channel radio stations are the only ones that transmit this special iTunes tag to make it work.

In addition, the pedometer counts your steps and counts your burned calories. It’s supposed to help you meet your fitness goals. You can also upload your workout data to the iPod+Nike website for complete analysis and/or to compete against others.

The new iPod nano retails for $149/8GB (2,000 songs or eight hours of video), or double your capacity for just a little bit more $179/16GB (4,000 songs or 16 hours of video). Available colors include silver, black, purple, blue, green, orange, pink, and PRODUCT RED and yellow online only. Find the new nano at your nearest Apple Store (apple.com) or Mac Made Easy in Kailua (maceasy.com). Other Apple updates include a new iTunes (iTunes 9), an updated iPod shuffle price ($59) and an iPod touch lineup geared more towards games.