Google have recently released a native version of Google Maps, for Symbian.

Compared to the older Java version of the program, this has lots of advantages, the most obvious being start-up speed and runtime speed. Every animation is smooth, loading times are blazing if you have a good connection.

An added feature would be the GPS support. This is really cool as long as you have an always-on connection, especially when on foot. It’s got all of the search features you know from the online version of Google Maps.

Read on for some hands-on reports and screenshots.

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Digital picture frames have really taken off this year. Here we compare some of the cheapest and best digital picture frames that are currently available with regards to both features and value for money. We’ll also provide an explanation of all the features that the various digital photo frames have to offer.

Check here for a full selection of digital picture frames for sale or continue down to read our reviews and comparisons.

	Pandigital	Kodak	eStarling	Phillips	Portable USA
Screen Size	8″	10″	8″	6.5″	10.4″
Resolution	800 x 600	800x 480	800 x 600	720 x 480	640 x 480
Aspect Ratio	4:3	16:9	16:9	4:3	16:9
Frame Style	Acrylic and black wood	Black Gloss	Black Piano Finish	Interchangeable	Cherry finish
Remote Control	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes
Wi-Fi	Not yet	Yes	Yes	No	No
Memory Cards	6 in 1 card Reader	MMC SD MS CF	MMC SD MS CF	USB	MMC SD MS CF
Internal Memory	128MB	128MB
Sound	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes
Plays Video	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes
Optional Batteries	Optional	N	N	N	N
Special Features	Built in clock, calendar and alarm	Print directly to any PictBridge enabled printers	turn-off automatically at night, email photos to the frame, text Messaging to Frame	Interchangable frames
Price	$179.99	$199.31	$169.99	$136.93	$175.95
Price

You can see an explanation of all comparison points here.

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Upon looking in my Google Docs page today, I discovered some new thing: Google Presentations.

Of course, the first thing to do was test it. And I did. And it’s cool!.. Even if there are no fancy transitions or animations, you can still create decent, good-looking presentations, and there are some pretty nice features to it too.

Best of all, the presentations are always online and you can access them anywhere.

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For the unknowing, Apple started shipping its new iPod Touch late last week. This is the new iPod that’s essentially the iPhone sans the phone; prices start at $300 for 8GB and go up to $400 for 16GB. While they’re usually sold out as quickly as they come in, I managed to grab one and made a nice little review, at least I hope it’s nice. I’ll be covering the design and structure of the device itself, the UI and applications, music playback, video playback, and the iTunes WiFi store (I know it’s an application, but it’s special!).
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A few weeks ago, when ordering some motorcycle gear, I took a random look at the ‘Presents&co.’ section. There I found a lighter that caught my eye.

Made of first-grade but vintage-looking brass, it’s a replica of those used by French soldiers in the first World War.

It’s an inexpensive gadget which is always a pleasure to look at. You’ll see a bigger picture and a video after the break.

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We wrote about the Vertical Mouse back in January, one of my friends has been suffering from R.S.I. so decided to buy one of these to see if it helped, so here’s his review of the Vertical Mouse, cheers Scott.

Working from home on my PC has been a pleasure & a blessing for the last few years until around June when I developed a sharp R.S.I. pain from using my mouse, the only thing I could do was take regular breaks away from the computer but I soon found this more of a hindrance than a solution and it was never long before the pain would come back. I decided upon the Evoluent 3 vertical mouse which keeps the wrist in a more natural handshake position rather than the common twisted forearm, the logic sounded good and I decided to try it out.

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Why give someone a single still framed picture when you can give them an entire slide show? The MF-575 is an inexpensive hi-tech digital photo, MP3, and video player with a bright, high-resolution 5.6-inch color TFT screen.

When I bought my first MF-575 picture frame, I got it as a gift for a family member who liked to complain that I never send them pictures anymore. The problem is, I have a digital camera and haven’t gotten any pictures developed in several years. So now, whenever I go over to their house for a visit, I just bring an extra memory card from my digital camera full of new pictures. If you don’t have an extra memory card, the MF-575 has an easy-to-use MD/SD/MMC memory card reader that plugs into any computer with a USB port. So you can just plug the entire picture frame into your computer and copy the pictures onto the card that way if necessary.

This year on Christmas morning, I was thinking about taking a series of pictures while everyone is opening their gifts. Then I’ll take the memory card out of my digital camera and pop it into the MF-575 picture frame for an instant slide show for everyone to enjoy on Christmas afternoon. Good idea right? The number of images you can put into your MF-575 slide show is only limited by the capacity of the memory card being used.

Here’s the full review: MF-575 Digital Picture Frame

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I was recently approached by Scott Seegert and asked if I’d like to review his new book, it’S A GUY thiNg. It’s the first time I’ve ever been contacted by a published author and as I’m not renowned for saying no to freebies I was more than happy to accept.

I received my signed copy of it’S A GUY thiNg last week and have flicking through it and giggling to myself ever since. The book is all about the crazy things that oddballs guys have registered patents for in the past. There are such gems as the “Helmet mounted Pistol” which incorporates a neck support so as not to strain your self when it fires. Patented in 2002 is “Tom’s Buttocks Cleavage-Revealing Pants” which are special pants for the ladies with a certain area of material removed in a nice fashion conscious pattern.

Scott’s writing style suits the subject material perfectly and if he ever fancies blogging he is more than welcome here. He’s given me permission to reproduce a couple of his patent posts here, so enjoy:
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