taking

At least according to its spec sheet, Apple's new Time Capsule backup device/wireless router has only received updates to its hard-drive capacity. Where previously you paid $299 for a Time Capsule with 1TB of storage space and $499 for a 2TB model, you now get 2TB for $299 and 3TB for $499. We have test hardware on the way, and will report on any additional features we find, as well as both storage throughput and networking performance, but at first glance this update seems to merely improve the Time Capsule's price competitiveness in relation to its storage space.

The Time Capsule has always had few direct competitors. LaCie's Wireless Space is the only other recent product we're aware of to combine a router and network attached storage in one device. Right now you can get a 1TB Wireless Space for about $199, and you can get a 2TB model for $299. At least for its entry-level Time Capsule, Apple seems to be aware of its competition.… Read more

Awesome Note for iPhone lets you manage messages, memos, and ideas in several unique ways. An intuitive interface lets you use themes to help categorize information the way you want and get to the information you need quickly. Awesome Note includes a few demo categories (shown as folders) that you can use to see how your notes and info will be laid out. You can create new folders by hitting the add folder button in the lower right, selecting your preferred color, and adding a title. Opening a folder displays your notes for that category laid out as thumbnails so … Read more

Evernote (Free) is just one part of an excellent, access-from-anywhere note-taking system. In addition to using Evernote on your iOS device, you can also create and get to your notes from a variety of mobile devices (including apps for both the iPhone and iPad) and any Web browser on any computer. A free Evernote account links all your notes together.

Evernote is a mature and popular app, with an impressively streamlined interface that shares similarities across its multiple platforms and gives you many ways to create notes and collections of notes called notebooks. Your notes can be text, images, or … Read more

Formally unveiled at the company's E3 2011 press conference, the PlayStation Vita aims to provide the most comprehensive portable gaming experience around. We've had some time with Vita, so here's a preview of what gamers can expect before the end of 2011.

Overview Available in two models, the PS Vita will go for $250 or $300, a Wi-Fi-only and Wi-Fi/3G version, respectively.

Armed with a dazzling 5-inch OLED capacitive touch screen, the Vita also allows players to interact with games through a rear touch panel. Under the hood the Vita packs an ARM Cortex-A9 core (4 core) CPU and a SGX543MP4+ GPU.

Its 16:9 screen sports a 960x544-pixel resolution, which is flanked by a front-facing camera that can take 640x480-pixel photos. An identical lens is placed on the back to bring "augmented reality to a new level." Like the 3DS, iPad, and iPod Touch, the Vita will make use of motion control. This is accomplished via a three-axis gyroscope and three-axis accelerometer.… Read more

Outsource the task of remembering with Springpad, a free app for Android and iOS. Rival to the popular Evernote service, Springpad lets you jot notes, create lists, bookmark items, copy recipes, record voice memos, and so much more, right from your mobile device or desktop browser.

First, create a Springpad account, with which your Springpad mobile app will automatically sync. Once you're logged in on your mobile device, you'll find on your Home screen a My Stuff icon, which aggregates all of your notes, and a Friends Stuff icon, which takes you to shared content. The rest of … Read more

Notability might be the best note-taking application we've seen for the iPad, with tons of useful features that are easily accessed through the app's intuitive interface. Perfect for students or really anyone who needs to gather and organize information, Notability lets you use your onscreen keyboard (or a compatible Bluetooth keyboard) to keep track of information by grouping your notes into categories by subject.

You can start a new note by tapping on the Compose button, or open an existing note from the start screen. You have the option to open notes from Dropbox, or from your iDisk … Read more

Evernote for Android lets you keep track of your ideas using multimedia notes with text, voice clips, pictures, attached files, even location stamps. It automatically backs up to your cloud-based Evernote account for easy access from any data-connected device.

Evernote's interface, as sleek and intuitive as it may be, is a bit more involved than your basic notepad app, simply because the full Evernote service is so robust. It does a lot more than type out notes. From the Home screen you can choose to view your notes, notebooks (essentially folders to organize your notes), shared notebooks, or tags. … Read more

Catch Notes is a robust, yet simple notepad app that lets you keep track of your ideas using text notes, voice notes, camera notes, and more. Use it in conjunction with a free Catch.com account to sync your notes to the cloud and access them from anywhere.

The Catch Notes interface is super clean and refreshingly intuitive, with all of its basic functions laid out as icons on the Home screen. My notes brings you to all of your work. Tags lets you search your notes using hash-designated keywords. Settings lets you customize certain features. And the rest of … Read more

Note Everything falls somewhere between a basic, single-purpose notepad app and a richer, do-it-all note taker like Evernote. It's solid and stable, and, depending on the functionality you seek, it might be just what you're looking for.

Once you get started, the first thing you may notice is that Note Everything can punch out several different types of notes including Text notes, Paint notes, Voice notes, and Barcode notes. If you install the free Everything GDocs companion app, you'll even be able to import Google documents as notes (as well as export notes to Google Docs). If … Read more