512 Pixels

Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 voice recognition needs a little work.

1Password is half-off this weekend. This is a great app to keep your passwords and other critical data — like credit card numbers — safe and sound.

Seriously, WTF…

Ars’ Casey Johnson in her review of the Nook Tablet:

The virtual keyboard suffers from the same major problem as does the Kindle Fire and every other 7-inch tablet: the portrait-oriented keyboard is slightly too big for comfortable thumb-typing, and the landscape keyboard is too small for ten-finger typing. I submit that, unless your hands are significantly larger than mine, 7-inch tablets are just never going to become e-mailing, note-taking machines. I’d rather try to type things out on my smartphone than a 7-inch tablet.

As pointed out by Erica Sadun at TUAW, Type2Phone is a neat little Mac app that allows users to type on their iPhone from their Mac.

While this seems a bit silly, I know that I type much faster on my computer than on my iPhone, and stopping my work to answer a text message can be annoying. This app promises much smoother interaction with iOS.

To set the app up, the iPhone and Mac have to be paired over Bluetooth, which I found a little buggy. I blame Lion for that, but once I got the pairing up and going, the app worked as advertised. I got a text message, swiped to reply, tabbed to Type2Phone on my iMac and replied. Until iMessage makes it to the desktop, this is a neat little way to make texting less intrusive while working at a computer.

(Of course, Type2Phone works with any text field on iOS, but iMessage makes the most sense to me for this app.)

While the app isn’t the best-looking on the App Store, I think it’ll be living in my Dock from now on.

Maybe the call just got dropped?

Huh.

It’s the holidays, meaning it is time to get something for those nerds in your life. I’m here to help you not screw it up.

Tech

• $79 Kindle — Amazon’s new e-reader is great. It’s cheap, small and has incredible battery life. I’ve read more than I ever have since purchasing mine several weeks ago.
• Apple TV — For $99, you get iTunes, AirPlay and more. Apple’s set-top box is an amazing value, and a must-have for any TV setup.
• Bose SoundDock Series II — It’s a Bose iPhone dock. Everyone needs good tunes that sounds good.
• The Glif — iPhone 4/4S + tripod. What a slick combination.
• Twelve South Compass iPad Stand — Twelve South’s iPad stand is well-built, handsome and sturdy. When not in use, it folds down in to a small, well-designed pouch.

Writing

• Field Notes — These little notebooks are my favorite in the world. They are pocketable, sturdy and affordable. They ship in multiple colors and setups, so there’s an option for just about any writer.
• Blue Pilot G2 07 — Don’t listen to the others — this is the best pen on the market.
• The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law 2011 — This book isn’t just for those of us with journalism majors. If your favorite nerd writes on the web, they need this book on their desk.

Fashion

• Casio Men’s DBC30–1 Databank Digital Watch — This is my new watch, and although I’ve had it just a week, I already feel smarter.
• Saucony Originals Men’s Jazz Low Pro Sneaker — I’ve worn these sneakers since 2002. I’m currently wearing a pair of green and gray ones, but it’s about time to replace them. These are comfortable, cheap and colorful. Nerds like consistency, and these shoes offer it.
• Ray-Ban RB2140 Original Wayfarer Sunglasses — Like a boss.
• Batman Classic Distressed Logo Adult Ringer T-Shirt — If your nerd is a Superman guy, I can’t help you.

Entertainment

• Mad Men: Seasons 1–4 on DVD — Uh, it’s freaking Mad Men. Why are you even questioning this?
• Sigh No More - Deluxe Edition by Mumford and Sons — The deluxe edition of Sigh No More included a full-length recording of Mumford and Sons live. These additional tracks are well mixed, unlike some live albums. This is a must-have for those long coding stretches.
• Sennheiser HD–280 PRO Headphones — The best way to listen to the above album without bugging those around you.
• The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe — The first NASA astronauts and the numerous test pilots before them pushed the envelope over and over. These guys, who were real badasses. This book chronicles their journeys into space.

Vices

• Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Whiskey — While it is hard to beat straight Jack after a bad day at the office, the honey version takes the bite off, replacing it with a smooth, sweet flavor.
• Zippo Black Ice Pocket Lighter — Smoking may not be cool anymore, but this lighter sure is.
• LEGO Star Wars Ultimate Collector’s Millennium Falcon — Star Wars. LEGOs. Hours of fun.
• PowerMac Cube G4 — This is the best-looking Mac in my collection, and a great talking point while showing off a man-cave.

Instacast HD is now on the App Store. If you own an iPad and care about quality podcasts, you need this app. Cody Fink agrees.

It includes all the features found on the iPhone version, re-imagined for the iPad’s form factor. The few people I showed it off to during the beta testing phase were all seriously impressed at the UI. The guys and gals at Vemedio really know how to build a good-looking app.

With Instacast’s iCloud sync, it’s easy to keep subscriptions matched between the two devices. However, I’m just using HD for video podcasts. That’s not to say I don’t love the iPad version for audio, too — I just find my iPhone a lot easier to deal with in the car, which is where I listen to podcasts the most.

I’ll be passing out a handful of promo codes over on Twitter today, by the way. Even if you don’t get one, the $4.99 for this app is well worth it.

In this episode, Myke and I wrap our talk on Nessie.

I had to finish my Kindle Fire review early. It really is that bad.