Wenger Synergy Laptop Backpack by SwissGear

- Picket it up at buy.com when it was $55.
- My old Targus backpack has been through quite a lot and even has a small hole in it now. With the new macbook pro 13" I figure it was time for a new laptop backpack too.
- I did a bit of online research and eventually bought this backpack sight unseen.
- It's definitely not the lightest backpack but it isn't that bad for it's size.
- It has a ton of pockets. The laptop slot is in the middle and well padded for better protection. The case logic macbook 13" sleeve slides in nicely.
- I like how the side pockets are very deep and travel most of the length of the backpack.
- There is a nice little pouch in the center near the top to hold your music player. Inside there is a hole to route the headphones into the adjoining pocket and them up from there through the rubber headphone wire slit.
- I found it quite a bit more comfortable than my Targus. It has lots of padding around the shoulder straps.
- The handle seem very tough and re-enforced.
- From the reviews it sounds like it should last too.
- No waist belt but I never really liked those and thought those just kind of get in the way.
- Inside there is a base piece you can flip down to make the backpack stand upright.

So far I really like this backpack, and it's quite the looker too. I'll update this post once I get to try it out more in the field on a vacation.

Case Logic 13-Inch MacBook Sleeve

- Fits the macbook pro 13" like a glove. It really is a perfect fit since it was designed specifically for it.
- Nice and cushy inside.
- Has a small pocket on front to hold your ac power adapter and a mouse or whatever.
- Inside that pocket is an even smaller pocket to hold usb flash drive.
- $26 at amazon.

Highly recommended. It's just the right compromise of size and extra pockets for accessories and fits the macbook perfectly.

Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000 (bluetooth)

from left to right (Dell DH421, Presenter 8000, VX Nano)


- After picking up my macbook pro 13" I was looking for a good bluetooth mouse.
- The ideal mouse would be 5 buttons in the normal position, notched scroll wheel, full size, and laser. I didn't quite find that mouse but the Presenter 8000 comes pretty close.
- It's laser and tracks well on a variety of surfaces.
- It has 5 buttons but the forward and back are on the opposite sides and are a bit hard to reach which is partly due to its smallish size.
- The 4 way scroll wheel with tilt works well but is smooth instead of notched. I prefer notched for gaming but it does have a pretty good amount of friction to it.
- It seems to auto shut off but there is also a dedicated power switch on the underside.
- It paired just fine with the built in bluetooth on my macbook pro 13" and also my old Dell Inspiron 8600. No need to use the included bluetooth dongle.
- Uses 2XAAA batteries.
- Comes with a carrying case.
- Didn't need to install any drivers, and all the buttons worked. Even the volume buttons worked in presenter mode.
- Nifty laser pointer.
- It was quite the bargain for $38 shipped from amazon.

Highly recommended. It's not perfect but it is now my favorite bluetooth mouse.

iPhone 3GS Composite AV Cable

- So after finding out that my cheap $8 composite cables will no longer work with the iPhone 3GS I decided to finally pay the ultimate apple tax and buy the official apple composite cables. My local apple store was out of stock so I had to pay tax and shipping (thanks apple for offering free shipping on orders $50 and higher yet price the cables at $49, FU apple) which came out to around $57. Wow and these aren't even made by monster.
- I went with composite so it would be compatible with the most TV's out there.
- It does come with a usb charger to keep your phone charged while in use.
- Quality is pretty good for composite. The above example of Bolt was encoded using Handbrake and the standard iphone profile displayed on a sharp 52" LCD (52d64u). It still didn't look half bad blown up to that size.

I really wanted the cable but man apple sure makes you pay through the nose. Great cable, horrible price gouging by apple.