Out of all my portable gaming devices, the PSP is my favourite.  However it is rather big at times and thus the reason why I wanted to get a Dingoo.  The A320 is somewhere between a Gameboy Micro and PSP 2000/slim.  It’s pretty well made and has an interface similar to Sony’s XMB.  It’s just not as polished though.

For about $80US, it’s not cheap but it does a lot.  If they were about $60, they would fly off the shelves.  I ordered it from DX on June 2nd and it came to my house on June 11th!  That’s fast!

I was a bit disappointed with the gaming performance.  I bought it primarily to play CPS2 and Neo Geo games.  There was definitely slowdown for most games.  For CPS1/NES/GBA games, it’s very good though.  SNES wasn’t too great either.  The PSP blows it away in terms of speed for CPS2/Neo Geo games.   The PSP can of course play PSP games too which is a major plus.  The PSP also has a bigger, brighter, and nicer screen.  Emulators are miles ahead on the PSP with the exception of SNES, which no portable system seems to emulate very well at full speed.

There are also native games on the A320 like 7 Days but I wasn’t really into them.  They were GBA quality.  I played 7 Days for a few minutes and was rather impressed with the graphics but though it was poorly executed in the way of the dialog.  It was very “Engrish”, lots of grammar and spelling errors.  The story sound like it was written in Chinese and then put though a Google translator.

Sometimes the Dingoo would freeze and it was a huge pain in the butt to scrounge around for a small pin or needle to poke the reset button!  There are tutorials on the net on how to make a reset button that sticks out more but really I have better things to do! haha I just might after I get annoyed enough.

Pretty much all the divx files downloaded can be played easily on the Dingoo.  This is another reason why I like the Dingoo.  I also download lots of FLV clips from Dailymotion and they just play fine with out any conversion.

It plays every audio format I can through at it.  MP3/APE/FLAC/etc.   Call me crazy but most of my files are MP3.  I think the iPhone/Touch/PSP is a better music player.  It has a hold switch to prevent accidental button presses.

The Dingoo is a neat all around device.  However, for what the PSP Slim can do, I’d take that over a Dingoo any day.  The PSP scene has fantastic homebrew apps, fairly stable and fast emulators, and is quite active.

If you’re like me and love collecting portable gadgets get one!  If not, find yourself a hackable PSP and enjoy.  You’re not missing out on a lot at the moment.  In the future, there could be significant improvements so keep an eye out on the Dingoo scene.  The Dingoo is a jack of all trades but master of none and still a gadget to have if you like this sort of thing.  If the Dingoo homebrew community could write better, optimized programs, this device would be a must have.

Check out the photos.  I found a very snug fit case from Ross for $6US.  It’s a Case Logic phone holder.  The same thing is sold at Walmart for around $18!

Dingoo A-320 2.8″ LCD GBA/NGO/SNES/ NES/SFC/CPS1/2/+ Emulator Game Console (4GB Built-in + Mini-SD) (Black)
Dingoo A-320 2.8″ LCD GBA/NGO/SNES/ NES/SFC/CPS1/2/+ Emulator Game Console (4GB Built-in + Mini-SD) (White)

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This BT GPS reciever lets you become location aware.  Running desktop apps like Garmin Mobile PC or MS Streets and Trips, you can find your way around town.  I paid around $50 (shipping included).

For the $$ I paid, I got quite a lot.  Included in the package was a USB car adapter (you can use this with other USB devices too), USB cable, USB AC Adapter (again you can use it with other devices), BL-5C battery.

The great thing about this device is it uses a standard common Nokia BL-5C/A cellphone battery.   If you have Nokia’s lying around like I do, you’ll most likely have one to use as a spare already.

It’s a tiny device at only 6x4x1.5cm.  Since it’s bluetooth you can probably just shove it in the glovebox.

To work with your notebook/PC.  You have to have Bluetooth capability.  Most modern notebooks will have it built-in.  If not get one of these tiny USB dongles.

Use your Bluetooth manager to find the gps reciever.   Set up is different for each bluetooth device.  I have BlueSoleil and this is how to set it up.  It’s similar with other BT dongles.

Right-click and pair with your PC.

The passkey is 0000.  (4 zeros)

Create a serial port connection.

As you can see, a serial port (COM7) has been created.  You’re almost done.

Using your favourite GPS application, mine is Garmin Mobile PC, go to the settings and “Use Bluetooth GPS”.  That’s it.

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This case is my favourite case for the iPhone 3G.  As a case it does it’s job of protecting the phone. It’s a very decent case, but I’m not going to focus on that (pardon the pun).

It’s got one very useful feature, a macro lens.  This lens lets you slide it on/off the iPhone camera eye. In my line of work I find myself snapping pics of error messages, UPC codes, serial numbers on top of hardware or small text on a piece of paper.  I don’t always carry a camera with me but I do have my iPhone with me all the time.  Without the macro lens, whenever I take a pic up close, it comes out blurry.  Not anymore.

Here are some side-by-side pics I took with and without the macro lens. It’s very obvious which is which.

As you can see, it’s night and day when it comes to how much clearer the images are with a macro lens.  When you need to take a close-up pic, the iPhone can’t focus it properly to give you a sharp image.  With the Griffin Clarifi case, I can take some really nice pics.

It works fantastic with the Evernote app.  Take a picture of a business card, and Evernote will OCR the text for easy searching.  A must buy!

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After I got a car I stopped biking. So it’s been about 10 years since I last rode a bike. In my younger days, I use to bike to school/work/for fun/etc. I recently had an itching to start biking again however, I’m no longer a young whipper snapper and don’t really feel like biking the whole distance to my destination. I figure I’d drive there and then bike the rest of the way. Hence, the need for a bike rack for my Yaris hatchback.

My car didn’t have a hitch so a hitch rack is out of the question. I also didn’t want a roof mounted rack so I’m basically left with the option for rear mounted trunk racks.

Canadian Tire had a number of trunk mounted racks by SportRack. The A1152 was actually the cheapest at $49.99. On the box it claims to fit most 3, 4, 5 door sedans and hatchbacks. I was a bit worried it wouldn’t fit my car since it showed the rack attached to a sedan and not a hatchback. I figure, I’d take the chance, and if it didn’t fit, I could somehow return it. It fit perfectly.

The rack comes pre-assembled. You just have to pull it out of the box and adjust 2 knobs make it fit your car. There were 6 straps with metal tabs that hook on to the hatchback door. Do the top 2, then sides and finally the bottom straps. Make a knot at the end of the buckle so the straps don’t loosen up during transport. Play around with how you wanted the rack to mount. I originally mounted it too high. Instead, I moved it down so the bottom of the rack touches the top of my car bumper.

I’ve only tested it hauling 2 bikes even though it can do up to 3. So far everything is great. I can still see out the back. My bike doesn’t have your usual frame but it still fit well. SportRack also sells these bike adapters for people with really weird full suspension bikes… you know the Y-Frames or others. Since these frames don’t have a hole for the 2 rack arms attach to. The adapters themselves are $45.

Well pictures speak a thousand words so check out the pics and see if this rack would be suitable for your car and bike. For $50, it can’t be beat.

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Nintendo was too chicken to make a gun attachment that looked like a real gun so they left the door open for Nyko to do it.  Another quality product from Nyko.  For some reason, I always end up buying their stuff.  Every single time I’m never disappointed.  iCon and Madcatz should take a cue from Nyko.

The wiimote fits nicely into the top of the gun and a orange thingy holds it in place so it doesn’t fly off in those heated moments of House of the Dead or Resident Evil.  The nunchuk plugs into the base of the gun.  Sometimes I hookup both my Perfect Shots and go John Woo on everyone in the game.

For games like Ghost Squad I prefer the Wii Zapper though.  I can aim better and steadier with both hands on the thing.  For most other games, the PS is best.

I picked this badboy up for $14.99 so it’s not that expensive.  Get one of these to go along with your Wii Zapper or just on it’s own.  A must buy for shooting game fanatics.

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Another charge station? Oh yeah. I love these things. If I had a 360 I’d get one for that too. And it’d probably be a Nyko brand. They make really good charge stations. The one for the PS3 is just as good if not cooler.

One of the things I hate most is devices running out of power and needing a charge.  The other is changing batteries.  I wish Nintendo would’ve made rechargeable lithium ion packs built into their wiimotes like the PS3, but they didn’t.  Nyko comes to the rescue to fill in the gap.

The Charge station comes with 2 rubber covers, 2 battery packs and is powered by AC via wall plug.  Given how limited the Wii is in terms of USB ports, it’s a good thing.  You can place the charger anywhere you want since it doesn’t have to be hooked up to your USB ports.

The blue LED tells you it’s charging, and green means it’s fully charged.  The charger does not seem to be timer based.  So it actually checks to see that it’s charged or not before pumping in more power to the battery packs.

With the included battery covers, it will not fit the Wii zapper.  It works fine in the Wii wheel or Nyko Perfect Shot gun.

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If you’re a closet karaoke fanatic like myself.  A wireless microphone would be a nice addition to let you sing like a star.

For around $30 + shipping, you get 2 microphones (red, green), 2 receivers (different channels), USB adapter, and 2 long mic cables.  The antenna’s on the microphones are removable too if you want to change the mics to wired mode.

My karaoke setups include my XBox with XBMC installed to play MP3+CDG files, Rockband (PS3), and Singstar (PS3).  The wireless setup works with pretty much all consoles  XBox/Wii/PS2/PS3/PC.  Basically everything!  It comes with a USB adapter that plugs in to all of my consoles (Wii/PS3/Xbox360).  But the receivers themselves are removable and have standard 1/4″ plugs.  This enabled me to plug it into my XBox as well since the xbox has a 1/4″ microphone attachment.  It would work with other devices too that has your run of the mill 1/4″ inputs.

The microphones each use one AA battery.  The receivers also use one AA.  You plug the USB adapter into your console of choice.  Plug in a receiver and flip the switch on the USB adapter to choose which system you’re using it with.  You turn on the receiver and also the mic and you’re ready to go.  I was quit impressed with the quality of the sound.  I don’t hear a difference at all compared to the bundled mics from SingStar or Rockband.  Maybe diehard audiophiles can tell the difference but I certainly can’t.

It’s also very nice to not have wires running all the way back to the couch.  I don’t know why Sony/Nintendo/etc haven’t come out with a wireless mic set for their systems yet cause it would sell.  And I’d certainly pay $99 for it let alone $30.

On party nights with lots of peeps running around wireless is the way to go.   Other than my Rockband drums, I’m happy to say my pretty much wireless now.

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Nyko has always made quality 3rd party accessories. I’m very comfortable buying their stuff. From their awesome Wii sensor bar, PS3 guitar to this charging cradle.

I like a place for everything and everything should be in it’s place. My PS3 controllers use to be all over the place not having a place of its own. Most importantly, I always forgot to charge it before it was too late. Things changed when I got the ChargeBase. Now they sit nicely in a sleek stand with the batteries always fully charged and ready for some long Pixel Junk Monsters action.

It goes for about $30 and there isn’t much setting up involved. It plugs directly into the wall socket for power so no more taking up that valuable USB port on your 40GB PS3. Plus you can put the base somewhere else. It doesn’t have to be beside the PS3. The base unit comes with 2 dongles that plug into your controllers. They’re designed to be left connected to the controllers. They’re used to help facilitate charging. Basically drop and charge. I’ve used other charger bases before and most of them are very cumbersome in that you had to line up the mini-USB jack with the DualShock3′s charging port. With the dongles and the ChargeBase, you just drop it in and forget about it.

The Chargebase will turn green when the PS3 controller is fully charged. Red if it’s not, and blinking green when it’s “almost” charged.

You won’t know how much you needed it till you get one.

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The Wheel Stand Pro is a wheel mount for steering wheels. Specificially, it’s major advantage is it’s ability to fold away when done.

The wheelstandpro is a godsend for me. Back in the day when I use to play race sims on my PC with a 14″ CRT, I would attach my wheel on my desk and get everything set up just right and then after I was done I really didn’t want to play anymore. It was a hassle to hook up the wires, clamp everything down fire up the game, etc.

In order to not go through this hassle all the time I needed my wheel mounted to something all the time. I want to be able to move the whole unit out of the living room when I’m done. I looked at lots of solutions on the net. Some very nice looking cockpits and others made hilarious contraptions. I never thought an ironing board could be used as a wheel mount lol. I didn’t want to be that ghetto so I made my own.

This was my old wheel setup. I made it out of a chair frame and a piece of wood. I worked very well but I felt it was too low and not adjustable.

I’ve always dreamed about getting my own racing cockpit like the ones from PlaySeat. But who has the room for it? Not only that, it’ll always be there in my living room. When I was young and single, it would be perfect. Now that I have a room-mate (my girlfriend), I know she’s not gonna like it. Just like how I wouldn’t want a sewing machine table in the living room.

The perfect compromise is a wheel mount that folds away. The Wheel Stand Pro is what I need. Although a bit pricey considering the fact a PlaySeat is just like $70 more. With my WSP, it disappears when I’m done and I can set it back up in a couple of minutes.

Included in package:

wheel stand
shifter mount (a $30 piece of metal lol)
2x hex keys
wrench
2x zip ties
wedges for shifter clamp
instruction sheet

The WSP is shipped directly from Poland for $199CAN. In 3 business days, I received it. Pretty fast eh? I didn’t have to pay any local Canadian taxes but I was lucky The unit itself is pretty much assembled. You just have to mount this plate that holds the shifter and bolt on your wheel. I suggest you zip tie the shifter mount to the stand before attempting to put your wheel on. It was hard trying to clamp the wheel onto 2 pieces of metal while they are moving…. you’ll see.

The WSP comes with 2 wedgy type of things for your shifter cause the mount plate is too thin for the shifter clamps. They don’t work very well since they keep on falling off. Get a piece of wood to give the shifter something to clamp too.

Upon first inspection you’d think that it’s very wobbly. Not so, the thing is very well made. There is some side-to-side movement but it’s minimal for a stand like this. It’s not as solid as a full racing cockpit but pretty stable nonetheless. I had the base on carpet and it didn’t move an inch. However, my pedals did fall off the rails one time ’cause I was heel-toe’n too hard.

To prevent the G25 pedals from falling off, I zip tied it to the rails. Find yourself some M6 screws and screw them into the 4 holes on the bottom of the pedal base. Then use zip ties to fasten them to the rails. It doesn’t move an inch after this slight modification.

I had to really lock it down the clamps so it wouldn’t tilt forward or swivel on me when I was doing some serious driving. Even when I tightened it up, it still moved if I really pushed on it. But only if I tried. The clamps are super hard to unclamp once you lock them down. You pretty much have to be superman.

After mounting the wheel I decided the tidy up the cables a bit. The WSP comes with 2 zip ties. It’s not enough I’m afraid but I had tons at home so it didn’t matter. I’m a neat freak when it comes to cable management. I bought some wire tubing from the dollar store so I can put all 3 wires in it. (see pics below)

For those with a Logitech G25 wheel. Skip getting the G25 version of the stand and buy the normal $169 Logitech model. All that extra $30 gets you is a piece of metal that the shifter mounts to. You can probably find a piece of wood that does the same job for way less and does a better job.  The metal shifter plate it comes with is too thin and I had to put a piece of 3/4″ wood to make it fit snug any ways.

I usually use the WSP with my AK Rocker 100. However, it’s quite comfy to use on my sofa too. I just like sitting close to the TV so I usually use my rocker.

If your significant other won’t let you buy a race seat/cockpit, this is a good compromise. Until I get a bigger place where I have my own room for a full racing setup, this will have to do. Other than the minor issues I’ve come across, it’s not a bad stand to have. It’s the perfect addition to my PS3. Playing games like F1 Championship and GT5 is a much better experience.

Update:

Puck mod – I noticed how when the WSP was folded, it would press down on the brake pedal.  I decided to use half a puck to use as a stopper

PVC pipe mod:

The whole steering wheel has a tendancy to pivot downward when you’re not gentle.  I added a piece of PVC pipe, to use as a stopper. Cut about 1.5-2″ and put it just below the main base which lets you adjust the angle of the wheel.

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