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Hot Gadgets
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We at Backbone are big fans of computer bags. Most knowledge workers carry a notebook computer, so choosing the right bag is important. Which brings us to the Blackfly ($80), an innovative product...
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Setting up a home theatre is a complex undertaking, with a typical setup seemingly involving about 250 wires. Gentec has a simple three-wire sound solution: plug one large barshaped speaker...
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About five per cent of people lose a cellphone per year, according to McAfee and the Ponemon Institute. This Kensington case and key-fob combo could reduce that, at least for iPhone owners. The case...
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Like just about everyone else, I was unimpressed by the PlayBook: nice hardware, but no on-board calendar or e-mail and few apps, at a price basically the same as an iPad. How times have changed....
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The next time you’re shopping for a Blu-ray, make Universal’s Second Screen feature part of your criteria. Second Screen integrates a tablet or notebook into the viewing experience,...
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I recently added five new remote controls to my life, via a media room with LCD TV, home-theatre receiver and speakers, TiVO, PS3, Apple TV, Xbox and Wii. Only the last two devices have no remote....
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You know that hilarious Samsung video that skewers iPhone fans waiting in line for the new model? The phone that tempts the line-dwellers is the Galaxy S II, and it turns out there is a lot to like....
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Ultrabooks were the big news at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, with about 60 models heading for shelves in 2012. Ultrabooks, a category created and defined by Intel, are affordable,...
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If you use iTunes, like music and have a Wi-Fi network, you’ll love the iW1. It’s a portable, rechargeable speaker that uses Apple’s AirPlay technology to stream music from an iOS...
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When there is no plug nearby, opt for the PowerTrip battery. Once charged—from a plug, a computer’s USB port or through the built-in solar panel—its 6,000 mAh battery charges mobile...
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Many of us travel with an essential trio of computer gadgets: a laptop, smartphone and tablet. Kensington’s AbsolutePower ($120) powers all three simultaneously, with tips for popular...
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The HD7 is a nice unit—5MP camera with high-def video and good build quality—but it was introduced about a year ago, so it’s not new. What is new is the 500-odd changes that come...
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Printer innovations are rare. Incremental improvements—better colour, faster output, maybe cheaper ink—are common but honest-to-goodness new stuff is uncommon. ePrint is an exception:...
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For sheer value we have to give the nod to TomTom for its focus on reducing drive time. The 1535 M’s HD Traffic service communicates in real-time (every two minutes) to and from HD-enabled...
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Rethinking GPS: Magellan pumped some useful features into its new RoadMate ($300), specifically lifetime map updates and traffic data, Wi-Fi connectivity and a basic browser, and a TourDirector...
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These in-ear headsets incorporate a microphone into each earbud and an on-board sound card. They also feature “adaptive beam forming,” which “centres microphone sensitivity on the...
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The X1 is just about perfect. Yes, it could be a little lighter and the battery could last a little longer, but those are minor quibbles. The 13-inch X1 (starting at $1,200) is the thinnest...
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In our last issue I wrote “If you want a tablet, buy an iPad.” If you took my advice you’re now looking to accessorize your new companion. Start with the Tri-Axis, the best iPad case...
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Vogel’s Ring O mounts let you clip your iPad onto a wall or the back of a car’s front seat. This means your iPad can display recipes near a kitchen counter, act as a wall clock or digital...
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This thing is just cool. You plug one end into any audio source—notebook computer, iPod or even an old cassette Walkman—and pop the sticky disk on the other end onto just about anything....
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Using a Web cam used to be an unsatisfactory experience: low-res, high-contrast images with washed out or dark backgrounds. But current cameras, such as this Creative model, are reversing that...
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In our last issue I wrote that the new MacBook Air is the “ultra-portable notebook to beat.” For this issue, I challenged HP: send me the model you would put up against Apple’s...
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Here’s the thing about wireless routers: buy a pricey one. Seriously. The router is the centre of all your home technology: your wireless Blu-ray player, your connected TV, your PS3 or Xbox or...
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IDC expects Apple to own 70 to 80 per cent of the tablet market throughout 2011, even with this year’s flood of competitors. And it’s easy to see why that is: more apps, great accessories,...
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There are three reasons to consider an Optimus Pad: 1. You like the Android operating system. Optimus runs the tablet-optimized 3.0 version. 2. You find the 10-inch iPad too big and the 7-inch Galaxy...
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The Duo is a full-on Windows 7 netbook but with a twist: pivot the screen, close the lid and you’ve got a tablet. It’s a neat trick but it comes with two gotchas. The first is...
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RIM has long been known for security, and that huge market place advantage gave the company less incentive to innovate or offer sexy devices. That mindset contributed to the company’s recent...
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HP killed the TouchPad in August, less than two months after launching the device. It turns out the WebOS operating system was both the TouchPad’s strength and weakness. It was a strength...
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I am a lifelong Windows guy, and the revamped 11-inch MacBook Air has me thinking about buying a Mac. The 11-inch Air introduced last year was a little underpowered; the revamped 2011 model...
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Vampire or standby power is the electricity wasted by devices that draw power even when you’re not using them, like game consoles and phone chargers. Natural Resources Canada pegs the average...
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If you follow mobile technology you’ve been following the Atrix, and with good reason: the handheld sports a dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, a qHD smartphone display, front- and rear-facing...
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Vampire or standby power is the electricity wasted by devices that draw power even when you’re not using them, like game consoles and phone chargers. Natural Resources Canada pegs the average...
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Vampire or standby power is the electricity wasted by devices that draw power even when you’re not using them, like game consoles and phone chargers. Natural Resources Canada pegs the average...
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It’s a helicopter, it’s controllable from an Apple iPhone or touch, it has cameras that stream video to your handheld and it moves fast. And the whole copter can be surrounded by an...
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Every product has pros and cons, and for the five-inch Dell Streak the big plus and minus is the same: screen size. The Streak is a very capable Android-based tablet. It’s responsive,...
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LCD projectors live in boardrooms and classrooms and so have a reputation as useful, functional devices. The word “fun” is rarely applied. But that’s not true of the MovieMate...
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When you buy an iPhone 4 it comes with a small wall plug and a USB cable for charging, so why would you shell out extra dough for a PowerMat? It’s all about the convenience. PowerMat is a two...
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Clickfree manufactures products that make data backup simpler. And that is critical: a recent survey found that 89 per cent of users do not back up home computers and 67 per cent have lost pictures or...
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Play is important, and the Sphero comes to play. A plastic ball about the size of a baseball, these are kitted out with an omni-directional drive and a Bluetooth radio. Players drive and...
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The K750 is not currently available from Canadian retailers, but this is a great idea so hopefully that will change soon. Why put batteries in your wireless keyboard when it can suck free energy...
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There were not many vendors who did more than simply ape the iPad look. One member of the elite club that did was Samsung, with its cool Windows 7 slider (video), but our favourite was Lenovo’s...
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This year’s CES could have been renamed the Consumer Tablet Show, with approximately 80 models on display. The tablet market is now a textbook example of buyer beware, because most of those 80...
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Copia is a multi-platform e-reading app and bookstore that encourages readers to share highlighted text, notes and bookmarks with other readers. Think of it as a real-time social network for...
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From a small Canadian company comes the Kiwi Choice U-Powered battery: it can be charged from a wall plug, a car charger or from the sun, using its fold-out solar panels. Eleven...
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This slim and light Monster outlet for laptops turns one outlet into three and adds two USB charge plugs. It’s $30 and you need one. More Hot Gadgets
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The Kensington Wall / Air Ultra Compact Notebook Power Adapter replaces your notebook power cord and its two USB outlets will charge iPhones, BlackBerrys, etc. It even plugs into airplane outlets...
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Sony has two new models out but the small and sleek Pocket Edition caught our eye. “Pocket” is marketing exaggeration—this won’t fit in your Levi’s—but it is...
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Apple’s Steve Jobs recently took some public shots at his smartphone rivals and those competitors—including RIM’s Jim Balsillie—shot right back. The rare open sparring was...
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Or if you’re just tired of plugs, check out the Duracell myGrid charging pad. You have to slip your device into a Power Sleeve or attach a Power Clip, but then you simply drop your handheld on...
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3D is hot right now (see Backspace in this issue for more on that) and Samsung has been an aggressive early player with five different 3D models in Canada. All offer 240 frames per second and range in...
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Flip video cameras became popular because they’re small, super easy to use and deliver good quality. Those attributes continue in the MinoHD, and the new entrant is smaller than its predecessor...
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Presentation remotes are a must for anyone navigating a PowerPoint in front of a crowd. The problem is many of them suck: you press the Next button and nothing happens. Kensington claims this unit...
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Laptops are useless without Internet access, and you can’t always find reliable Wi-Fi. For $0 on a three-year contract, Internet Sticks from Rogers (manufactured by Nokia or ZTE) deliver high...
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To link up a family or workgroup, consider the Rocket Hub. About the size of a hardcover book, the Hub connects to the cell network and creates a Wi-Fi hotspot, allowing multiple computers to connect...
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Linksys set two goals for the recent revamp of its Wi-Fi router family. It wanted to rationalize the lineup to make selection simpler and it sought to make management and setup easier. Mission...
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Earlier this year we tested messenger bags. For our look at computer backpacks we put the winner of that review—Tom Bihn—up against a worthy competitor: booq. And booq won, although it was...
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Netbooks are hot right now: 60 million are expected to ship worldwide in 2010, according to ABI Research, and that will grow to 120 million in 2013. They’re popular because they’re cheap ...
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Here’s the promise: “the world’s first sunglass-style portable video eyewear,” the Wrap 310 “features twin high-resolution LCD wide-screen displays, 2D and 3D...
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If you have any private information on your BlackBerry or iPhone (and everyone does) consider the people sitting nearby the next time you use your device on an airplane. 3M privacy filters are a...
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What’s the worst part of air travel? It’s neither the food nor the cramped seats, it’s the increasingly invasive and complex security check. From Tom Bihn comes the Checkpoint Flyer,...
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Notebook webcams are great for conferencing with clients and staff but image quality is often poor. And this is especially problematic when you want to read your kid a story from a far-flung hotel...
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From Nokia comes a stereo Bluetooth headset for those who really like mobile music and really hate headset cords. The build, finish, look, noise cancellation and sound quality of the BH-905 are...
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Let’s cover the dollars first: the new 14-inch T410s starts (on sale at time of writing) at $1,600. For that same investment you could equip three employees with a ThinkPad SL410 each ($550 at...
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The company’s car mount ($129.99) charges the iPhone, attaches it to a dash or windshield, and adds a stronger GPS chip, a speaker that is louder than the iPhone by itself and support for...
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The iPhone 3G and 3GS have onboard GPS chips and ship with Google Maps, but an iPhone will not replace a standalone navigation unit. The GPS chip is not overly powerful and Google Maps does not offer...
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If you prefer your exercise on the more rugged side, consider the $300 Expedition WS4. The oversize face displays an altimeter, barometer, compass and thermometer, in addition to pedestrian elements...
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The new Timex Ironman ($125) builds on traditional training features—lap timers, alarms, water resistance—with advanced options including: Target Time Pacer, an audible alert that...
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Smartphones from RIM and Apple still rule the mobile roost, but Google’s Android operating system has the lead in buzz. The hottest Android phone in the U.S. right now is the Motorola Droid; in...
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Slingboxes are small units you hook into a television signal and an Internet link, enabling you to watch your TV stations on any ’net-connected computer. A number of models are available, including...
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Logitech followed up its successful Squeezebox Boom player with the smaller and less expensive Squeezebox Radio, a stylish and functional player that’s a good buy at $230. The Wi-Fi-enabled radio...
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Satellite radio is a maturing technology and the Xpress RCi isn’t a huge leap forward, but it does offer some very nice features. The first is the ability to display what’s playing on up to three...
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Backbone recently generated a full comparative analysis of seven computer messenger bags from the top manufacturers in the business. We’re going to ruin the surprise, though, by announcing the...
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From the have-to-see-it-to-believe-it file comes the Mindflex, a game that uses the player’s brainwaves to raise or lower a ball on a column of air. Essentially, it’s an EEG machine hooked up to a...
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Hands-free driving laws are now in effect in Quebec, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Ontario. B.C. is currently considering a similar move and other provinces may follow. In response,...
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For those who prefer a speakerphone, BlueAnt also makes the Supertooth 3, which offers similar voice features. It reads out caller IDs and allows you to answer and initiate calls. Our favourite...
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Or, if you want to wow passengers in addition to simply answering a call, pick up the Yada Rearview Mirror Speakerphone. It actually clips over your existing rearview mirror. When a phone call comes...
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If you want headphones that deliver better sound than the Apple freebies, there are a lot of options, but not if you also want headphones that offer the call-answer and play/pause functionality of the...
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Programmers have worked hard to up the reality level of games: wave effects in water and hair, facial expressions that look (at least almost) real, shadows that travel and twist with the characters,...
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Notebook computers are great. Notebook computer speakers are lame. So pick up a pair of Z-5s. Why these? Three reasons. First, they are USB powered, so you don’t need an outlet. Second, they come with...
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This is simply a good idea: plug the Transformer into an iPhone and into your PC or Mac; the unit then launches on-board backup software and copies important computer files to the unused space on the...
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Microsoft reintroduced its much-loved Sidewinder line with a gaming mouse in late 2007 and the family now includes a keyboard and a few mice. At the top of the game, though, is the X8. This mouse uses...
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The Smartphone market is very hot right now. Q1 sales are up 33 per cent over the first quarter of 2008, according to IDC, and manufacturers are pumping out innovative devices to meet that demand. The...
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As much as we like the iPhone at Backbone we often miss having an old-fashioned FM radio on board. In steps Griffin with one of the best iPhone/iPod accessories ever made. The Navigate plugs into your...
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A year ago Flip hit the market with its small super-simple video cameras and sold a ton of them. This year the company is back with a revamped lineup. The cameras now come in high-def and standard...
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The Apple iPhone is arguably the best smartphone on the market today, and the best just got better. While the 3GS is not a huge leap over its predecessor, it adds enough to make the upgrade attractive...
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Google’s Android operating system makes its official entry into Canada with the HTC Magic, and if you like iPhones you might like this HTC quite a lot. It too is a generous touch-screen only device,...
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With companies cutting back on business travel, videoconferencing is taking off. IDC predicts that close to 35 per cent of SMBs will use some form of videoconferencing by 2010. Dell is backing this...
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Motorola has put a lot of work into environmental initiatives, and that work shows up in the Renew. The entry-level cellphone is made from recycled water bottles and the body itself is entirely...
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Many devices in a home—a TV, DVD player, printer—consume power even when not in use. This is called standby or vampire power, and according to Natural Resources Canada it amounts to five to 10 per...
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If you’re jonesing for a Mac and you want to make a conscientious choice, Apple says it has the notebook for you: its new 13-inch MacBook is free of mercury, uses arsenic-free glass, employs...
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New printers are not as much fun as, say, a new MacBook, but if you really want to reduce your environmental impact, consider this: ColorQube printers employ solid ink, and this change alone greatly...
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The X1a runs Windows Mobile 6, not the most modern nor exciting mobile operating system out there. Having said that, there are two good reasons to take a look at the X1a. The first is the hot arc...
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Love your iPhone, wish the battery lasted longer. Sound familiar? If so, check out one of these slide-in, add-on batteries. Both the Juice Pack and the Power Slider work well, both more than...
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$60 turns any external hard drive you happen to have lying around into an automatic backup device. The Clickfree cable plugs into a computer and then into the hard drive. Once done, pressing the...
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Okay, it’s actually a portable workstation, and it’s not really the biggest ever: the luggable portable computers from the 1980s were bigger. But the W700ds will have you hearing Comic Book Guy say...
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Handsfree legislation is marching across the country, with Ontario’s proposed Bill 118, Countering Distracted Driving, being the latest initiative. From Parrot comes a Bluetooth-powered visor clip-on...
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