Compatible with both PC and Mac platforms, IRISCard Pro and IRISCard mini are simple to use, and offer unprecedented processing speed. The portability, design and ability to recognize business cards from 54 countries make the products an ideal tool for the frequent overseas business traveler, as well as professionals, freelancers, companies exhibiting at tradeshows, administrative staff and home users.

I.R.I.S.’ Readiris Pro 11 & Readiris Pro 11 Corporate productively convert volumes of documents and images into editable text in numerous applications. Used with flatbed scanners, multi-function “all-in-one” devices and digital cameras, Readiris Pro 11 offers unprecedented speed and accuracy. Readiris Pro 11 and Readiris Pro 11 Corporate Edition also include unique features, such as hand-printing recognition and indexing bar code scanning.

Smart Card Group has announced the launch of iMind4U, a new concept in mobile phone technology which turns your mobile into a practical portable surveillance device to check up on your car, baby or other valuable assets. It’s simple. Once a phone is enabled with the iMind4U software it can be used as a remotely controlled audio, video and still image recorder. Just send a text message to an iMind4U enabled phone using any ordinary mobile phone and instantly receive a multi-media message picture, video or audio recording taken from where the target phone is located. iMind4U goes even further by incorporating image processing software that will detect movement in the camera’s field of view. You can set up the phone to automatically send you a short video of what it sees when it detects motion.

Proporta’s Mobile Device Socks help protect any gadget against scratches, perfect for protecting the screen of your device from keys lurking at the bottom of your bag. Available in a pack of three lively colors (pink, blue and green) you can now dress your device to match your outfit or mood. The Mobile Device Sock expands to fit any iPod, MP3 player, phone, PDA or games console.

For whatever reasons (and they’re twisted), we didn’t manage to kill this article. So, it’s in this spirit of newly discovered brotherhood (and grits, did we mention the grits?) that we bring you our review of red state vs. blue state software for your PDA. To be fair, we’ve discovered we really love grits, and, frankly, there’s been no really good hate mail for months. And, with all the warmth made possible by a sunny Florida summer, we bring you Red vs. Blue, state edition.

Read this Computing Unplugged article.

MobiMate announced that it is adopting WorldMate for the Motorola Q and that a special version tailored for the new Motorola device will be released in a few weeks. Users interested in the application may already pre-register at MobiMate’s Web site, where every third registrant will get a one-year subscription for free, once the application is released. WorldMate is a leading mobile travel service and best-seller on high-end mobile platforms. MobiMate is adapting its version of WorldMate for Windows Mobile to the specifics of the Motorola Q. WorldMate 2006 for Windows Mobile Smartphone will include eight services, including world clocks, global weather forecasts, satellite weather imagery, real-time flight status, currency conversion and more.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has been hit with a class-action lawsuit following the theft last month of a device containing personal information on about 26.5 million veterans. Five organizations and several individuals have asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to force the agency to individually inform everyone affected and to pay $1,000 each to anyone whose privacy has been harmed, Vietnam Veterans of America said Tuesday. The suit also seeks to prevent the department from using the data until safeguards have been put in place.

Apple Computer released a new version of its U2 Special Edition iPod music player, with a 30GB storage capacity and 14-hour battery life for $329. Like the first version, the black and stainless steel iPod has a red navigation wheel and is engraved on the back with the signatures of U2’s four band members. The new model holds up to 7,500 songs, 25,000 photos or up to 75 hours of video, Apple said.

SimpleTech announced the launch of its new line of sleek, sporty Pininfarina-designed portable drives. Rollout of the new line of portables to SimpleTech’s retail customers is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2006. These small, sleek drives not only serve the rapidly growing world of all things digital–photos, movies, music, and files–they provide consumers with easy-to-use, fast, and fashionable portable storage. The SimpleTech portable drives are available in four capacities, 40GB, 60GB, 80GB, and 100GB.

Belkin announced TuneStage for iPod nano, a device that allows you to play the music from your iPod nano through your home stereo wirelessly via Bluetooth technology. With a transmitter connected to your iPod nano and a receiver wired to your system, TuneStage offers reliable, high-quality sound without the clutter of cables. Wirelessly connected through TuneStage, your iPod nano becomes the ultimate remote, giving you full control of your music. TuneStage for iPod nano will ship in North America in July 2006, with launches in Asia, Europe, and Australia to follow.