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Wall outlet with built in USB charging

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Fastmac has created a wall outlet that include two USB ports for charging your peripherals without having to plug them into a computer.

USB Wall socketMy gal just showed me this and let’s just say it needs to be filed under: Why has nobody thought of this before? Typically, charging a device through your computer is considerably slower than doing it from a wall outlet (provided your device supports it). I know for a fact that my Samsung EPIC 4G will charge considerably faster when plugged into the wall than it will if charging off the USB port on one of my computers. The folks over at Fastmac have created an outlet replacement that includes 2 USB ports in a standard wall outlet; removing the need for that USB to outlet adapter.

I have an outlet in my kitchen that needs this in the worst way! Now when friends comes to visit and need a charge there’s no hunting for adapters, no need for them to plug into one of my computers, etc. All they’d need is a simple USB cord (which I have plenty of) and they could just set their device on the kitchen counter, plug in, and juice it up.

Take note that the webpage says “This item is currently waiting on final safety approval.”

Fastmac

Meditating With Your Smartphone – Insight Timer Review

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Perfect for mindful activities such as meditation and yoga, this simple yet powerful timer plays the beautiful sounds of the Tibetan singing bowl. Insight Timer (formerly Zen Timer) is a slick little timer app designed for meditation, yoga, and other such activities. You could of course simply set the alarm clock on your phone or use a timer, but Insight Timer has a lot of options for customization, and its sounds are much more peaceful than typical alarms. If you’re beginning meditation and looking for its immediate benefits, starting in an effort toward better productivity, or have been doing it for years this little app is handy.

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Easily Access Android SD Card Over WiFi with Samba

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This is something so simple that I cannot believe it’s not a part of Android by default. Here’s the deal, mounting your SD card, connecting to your computer, etc is just so 2007. If you have a rooted Android phone (shouldn’t ALL Android phones be rooted?), then you really wanna check out Samba Filesharing.

Whether you’re out and about and you’ve forgotten your USB cord or you just don’t want to be tied down by physical cables, Samba Filesharing is a ridiculously easy way to access your phone’s SD card from a computer. Again, you have to have root access to your phone but if you do simply download the app and type \\ANDROID into Windows Explorer, type in the username and password and bam… browse your SD Card and copy files to/from it just like any other network share.

Linkage!

Android Market

Appbrain

SuperOneClick: Root Nearly Every Android Phone

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SuperOneClick Roots Virtually Every Android Phone Out ThereWindows only: I recently featured step by step instructions on how to root your EPIC 4G. It’s just gotten easier with Windows program SuperOneClick – The easiest, most universal rooting app I’ve seen yet.

SuperOneClick,  works on all Android phones except seven, with little or no work required. Just download it, put your phone in USB debugging mode, plug it in, and go (to put your phone in USB debugging mode, just head to Settings > Applications > Development and check USB Debugging). Also, make sure to umount your SD card before rooting with SuperOneClick.

Six of the Seven incompatible phones (Specifically the EVO, Droid Incredible, Desire, Aria, Droid Eris, and Wildfire) can all still be rooted with methods previously mentioned on LifeHacker, so if you’re in that boat, you still have a perfectly capable one-click rooting solution. Unfortunately, users of the T-Mobile G2 are the only ones currently left out of the party.

Once you’ve rooted, you can continue as normal to install apps like Wireless Tether,previously mentioned SetCPU, and even install custom ROMs to get the most out of your phone.

SuperOneClick is a free download for Windows only, though a Linux version is planned for the next release and Mac support is on the wish list. Note that you need an account at the XDA-Developers forums to download the app.

SuperOneClick [XDA-Developers via LifeHacker]