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Most of you are probably just gearing up for your summer vacations, but we here at Always On have already had ours. It's all for you, dear viewers; it's all for you. On this week's episode, we visited Hawaii's Big Island to road-test gadgets meant for sun and water fun. And not to be all lowest-common-denominator, but that last sentence basically translates to an entire episode filmed in swimsuits. Just saying.

First up, we went snorkeling with three underwater cases for the iPhone: the $20 Proporta BeachBuoy, the $89 Hitcase, and the $329 iGills SE-35, to … Read more

Summer's here, almost officially, which means the road trip season is upon us. We set out to try to find out which gadgets could entertain you on a long drive, or at least keep the kids out of your hair, and whether the phone that's arguably the hottest of the season could handle some road trip mishaps.

But here at Always On, we road trip in style. No cramped back seats for us ... we were rolling in The Woody, a massive high-tech RV that's the custom showcase creation of OCRV Paint and Service. Thanks for the ride, … Read more

The Samsung Galaxy S4 brings a lot of tech to the table. From eye-tracking and gesture control, to its built-in translator and ability to act as a TV remote, the phone is cutting-edge in a plethora of ways. That being said, in today's highly saturated smartphone market, does the S4 have what it takes to be the best? And if it does, is it enough to get people to switch or upgrade with so many good options out there? With these questions in mind, we dished the S4 out to three people, both iOS and Android users, to let … Read more

This week's episode kicks off with our first ever unboxing performed in a motorcycle club. Yep, we went down to Piston and Chain in San Francisco to get our hands on the Samsung Galaxy Note 8. The 8-inch tablet sure is pretty, but with a hefty price tag it will have a tough battle against its strongest competitor, the iPad Mini. However, the Note 8 should expect a road test from the Always On crew in the very near future.

Next up, the Google ChromeBook Pixel endures a grueling, three person road test. Molly couldn't contain herself when … Read more

Welcome to Season 4, everyone! It's only been a few weeks since we said goodbye, but it's felt like a lifetime. We've been busy planning and shooting the upcoming summer season, and seeking out the tech wonders of the world to keep the Always On train in constant motion. This season we've got it all! We'll be road-tripping in pimped-out RVs, opening up the biggest phablets of them all, road testing everything from the Chromebook Pixel to action cameras with motorcross pros, and even visiting NASA's newest space exploration vehicles. Plus a serious summer … Read more

The interesting thing about Bitcoin isn't what it is today. What's interesting is that this experiment is turning into a serious proving ground for the idea of "crypto-currency," digitally created currency protected by powerful cryptography.

Crypto-currency is traceable, more portable than paper money, and harder to steal. If the Bitcoin experiment proves successful, how soon will a government or other regime develop, back, and distribute crypto-currency as a true alternative currency?

My money, paper or virtual, says that day is coming.

A particularly evolved regime could officially back a crypto-currency, issue some basic standards and regulations … Read more

Twitter's had a bad couple of weeks.

First, the Boston marathon bombings and subsequent manhunt led many (including me) to question the role of fast-moving, potentially inaccurate real-time Twitter reporting and its effect on mainstream news.

Then today, a false tweet from a hacked Associated Press Twitter account claimed that the White House had been bombed and that President Obama had been injured. The news caused a sudden plunge in the stock market (and, one can probably assume, some massive profit-taking by the hackers).

Twitter has always had an accuracy problem. It's a lot of voices, its information … Read more

Whether our bountiful screw-ups come by way of gibberish, bubble baths, or fart jokes (yes, we're very mature), they seem to snowball as the months of filming pile up. While these moments of humiliation have collected dust as the season flew by, we're shamefully happy to dedicate a full episode to our blooper-ridden endeavors. Sure, we've done blooper segments in the past, but nothing quite like this.

We've got a plethora of outtakes to show you the true blood, sweat, and tears we put into the show each week. Sometimes, just putting your face in front … Read more

Over the years, it seems the iPhone has made the use of iPods a tad redundant. However, iPods keep stealing the spotlight at Always On because they're just so darn tough! Every time we put an iPod through the usual measures, it comes through with flying colors. After our children, Cheeto, and fruit-punch induced torture test for the iPod Touch last season, we had extremely high expectations for these two at Mt. Shasta Ski Park. Those expectations were greatly exceeded, to say the least.

But now it's your turn to put an iPod through its paces. Maybe you'… Read more