WindshieldMount
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Sticking to the windshield with iStabilizer's Glass
iStabilizer makes some great products that we've reviewed on TUAW before: the Monopod (US$34.95) and Dolly ($59.95) are perfect examples. Now the company has come out with a new take on the suction-cup windshield mount that should work perfectly with any iPhone that the brains in Cupertino come up with in the future. The Glass ($29.95, on sale for $22.50 for a limited time), takes the company's iStabilizer Mount ($19.95) and mates it with a suction-cup window mount. The iStabilizer Mount is a phone-agnostic mount that expands up to 2.75 inches wide, so you can use it with an iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 or iPhone 5 in just about any case made. That's right, it doesn't matter if you have your iPhone naked or fully protected in an Otterbox Defender, the Glass makes it simple to hold it steady on your dash or windshield. I've had issues in the past with the suction cup bases dropping off if the windshield gets too hot; Glass has a quick-release/quick-connect lever to make it easy to just pull off the window after parking the car. We've got one of these little wonders to give away to a lucky TUAW reader. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before November 30, 2012 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time. You may enter only once. One winner will be selected and will receive an iStabilizer Glass valued at $29.95 Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Insert Coin: Ray solar charger adheres to your window, basks in the sunlight
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. The most frustrating products are the ones that have such simple ideas, you're upset that it hasn't been done before -- or that you weren't the one that came up with it. No idea is so simple as the brilliant Ray solar charger. A mobile phone juicer that comes with a kickstand and built-in suction cup so that it's nearly always pointed right at the sun. If you think that sounds like simple madness or genius, click past the break to find out why it could be worth your investment.
Parrot Minikit Smart windshield mount cradles your phone, caresses its Bluetooth, charges its battery
Smartphones make great navigation devices (where still allowed by law), but trying to read the things while they slide about on the dash or peek out of a cupholder is hardly ideal. Universal windshield holders help, but none are as smart as the Parrot's latest. How smart is it? Why, it's right there in the title. The Minikit Smart will hold smartphones "whatever their size" -- so long as that size is between 56 and 70mm in width. It has an integrated speaker and telescoping microphone that connects to your phone over Bluetooth, boosting your celly's paltry internal speaker so that you can better hear directions and, of course, make hands-free calls. There's also a USB pass-through, so that you can not only charge this unit while driving but charge your phone. Imagine how happy and secure your phone would feel when being spooned like this, but at $129 it had better be over the moon.
iGrip mount brings inductive charging to your windshield (video)
At CES this past January we took a look at a number of high-end concept dashboards destined to fill up the insides of the car of the future. One of those concepts, from Visteon, even had an inductive pad upon which you could throw your phone and have it charged up by the time you got where you're going. Cool, but it doesn't do those of us driving the car of the present much good. The iGrip could, based on WildCharge tech and installable into any car, so you can just insert your handset into this windshield mount and get juice on the go -- if it's wearing the appropriate WildCharge-compatible case, of course. That's the idea anyway, but rather sadly this too is just a concept that may or may not ever make it to production, so don't throw away that tangle of car adapters just yet.
Windshield GPS mounting legalized again in California
Though one may assume Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger would have, um, more pressing matters on his hands these days, the man has somehow found time to address a complaint put forth by a-many travelin' Californians. Just this week Mr. Schwarzenegger signed into law a bill that was put forth earlier this year that will legalize windshield GPS mounting once more. Granted, stipulations are present, but at least you won't be forced to point your retinas down at the cup holders in order to see your navigation system after January 1, 2009. In the new year, drivers in the Golden State will be able to suction their GPS unit in the "lower 7-inch corner farthest away from the driver or in the lower 5-inch corner closest to the driver." If you go pressing your luck and throw it smack dab in the middle, be prepared for whatever fine you're due.[Via Gadling, image courtesy of GPS Tracklog]
California Senate votes to legalize windshield GPS mounting
Though it's typically common practice to suction that new GPS unit to your windshield just as soon as you whip it from the box, folks in California have long been unable to enjoy such luxuries outside of their own driveways. Currently, it's illegal to have navigators stuck to one's front window, and police have been handing out "obstructed view" citations for those who disregard the law in the Golden State. Now, however, the California Senate will be voting on Senate Bill 1567, which would "add an exemption for the use of a seven-inch GPS screen mounted on in the lower corner of the passenger-side windshield or a five-inch screen on the driver's side." Of course, there's still oodles of red tape (and you know, a vote) to pass through before gridlocked drivers are able to toss that NAV up at eye-level, but you've got to start somewhere, right?[Image courtesy of RVTravel, thanks Richard]
