More Consumerization of IT In Depth

Saving Google Maps destinations lowers risk of travel errors

Saving a destination in Google Maps makes it easier to navigate to and also lessens the chance for error when entering or trying to remember an address.

IT's new concern: The personal cloud

As personal and professional clouds converge, IT's mission to improve productivity while protecting corporate apps and data is getting tougher.

Google Now, Hangouts feel here, there and everywhere

Google this week unleashed a blizzard of updates and improvements that fundamentally change -- and radically improve -- how we get information and communicate.

Tech Titans Talk: The IDG Enterprise Interview Series

In the IDG Enterprise Interview Series, you'll hear from technology CIOs and CEOs on today's burgeoning trends, ongoing headaches and upcoming product plans. Check out this informative series from IDG Enterprise Chief Content Officer John Gallant and his team of editors.

Mobile management morphs

Customers are pushing the limits of the software -- asking it to manage and do many more things than it was originally created to do -- and vendors are happy to oblige.

Block rogue apps with Windows Server -- for free

It is a lot of work to set up policies; it takes trial and some error, too. But the payoffs are huge.

i-FlashDrive HD a flash drive for iPads, iPhones, and laptops

Wouldn't it be nice if you could just plug a flash drive into your iPhone or iPad when you want to transfer a file or you're short on storage? PhotoFast actually has one: The i-FlashDrive HD is a flash drive for the iPad, iPhone, and Mac.

Scot Finnie: A call for mobile innovation

A lot more innovation is desperately needed for mobile hardware design and platforms. Are Apple, Google, Samsung and Microsoft up to the task?

Preston Gralla: Microsoft's smartwatch: Been there, didn't do that

Vendors are falling all over themselves to develop smartwatches. Will this be yet one more example of Microsoft getting to a market first and then failing to cash in?

What I learned living abroad as a digital nomad

Digital nomad Mike Elgan returns to the U.S. after 10 months of travel and shares these tips for working and living abroad.

7 cool consumer technologies coming soon to a cubicle near you

Move over, tablets and smartphones. Here are seven user technologies that are heading into the office.

As BYOD explodes, IT managers learn to cope

Five tech departments share strategies for navigating the exploding demand for consumer gadgets at work. Insider (registration required)

Google Glass mysteries revealed!

Google made a long list of announcements and revelations about its cyborg eyewear Glass. Google is taking a very conservative, controlling approach to the platform, not unlike Apple's style.

Running the ROI numbers on BYOD

With hard data in short supply, the true value of bring-your-own-device policies is in the eye of the beholder. Insider (registration required)

Beacon Audio Phoenix is an unimpressive portable Bluetooth speaker

Beacon Audio's $100 Phoenix is a (very) portable Bluetooth speaker: It weighs less than half a pound, and is roughly equivalent in size to a three-inch cube. It's available in pink, yellow, red, blue, and black; my review unit was blue.

Why your clothes need a mobile upgrade

The clothing most of us wear hasn't changed to keep up with mobile technology. But there are apparel makers that are rising to the challenge.

Big Blue Media Tower mostly disappoints

Brookstone's $300 Big Blue Media Tower is an unusual entrant into the world of speaker bars. It's powerful, it offers pretty good audio quality, and it includes Bluetooth connectivity, but the speaker's design seems odd. It's meant to serve as both a music speaker and an entertainment-center audio hub, but it uses a tower design that presents a placement predicament: You don't want to put the Tower smack-dab in front of your TV, but if you place it off to the side instead, won't you be listening to off-center audio?

Zooka wireless speaker bar mostly disappoints

The Carbon Audio's $100 Zooka is a Bluetooth speaker available in black, green, gray, blue, pink, purple, red, or teal. My review unit is a color the company calls black, but it's a decidedly non-black dark gray.

Marley's Chant speaker sounds portable and inexpensive

House of Marley's $60 Chant Portable Audio System is a Bluetooth speaker that you can carry inside its own custom canvas case. If you prize affordability and portability over audio fidelity, the Chant is a fine option.

How Microsoft lost the future of gesture control

Microsoft squandered its five-year head start in gesture control technology and is now falling behind. By the time the company gets Kinect for Windows into the consumer market, Leap Motion may already own that market.