Headphones are a personal, subjective thing, and so is one’s affinity for the movie TRON. Monster’s T3 earbuds are a tie-in with the recent TRON remake—the website boasts that they feature “Disney’s futuristic styling and the phosphorous glow of the TRON universe.” Well, they don’t actually glow, and if we hadn’t been informed that they were TRON-related we never would have recognized the silver-and-blue TRON-ish T design on each earbud. But they are pretty cool looking.

Many of us at Mac|Life have cut ties with the cable company, and it feels great. There’s so much content available on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, iTunes, and others, that we only miss those 400 channels occasionally—mostly for sports and news. Reclaim live sports and news, and cut streaming service costs with the HD HomeRun. It tunes in over-the-air broadcasts or unencrypted (Clear QAM) cable channels, if you’re not ready to end that service.

Unlike the internet, analog synthesizers really are made of tubes. Well, not all of them, but the really nice ones do contain vacuum tubes. They range from ugly green metal boxes to incredibly beautiful pieces of art with wood cases. Someone looking to buy one of these instruments better be willing to pay a pretty penny—analog gear is not cheap. So while we’d all like a Moog, it’s hard to justify the premium price unless you’re a rock star. That’s why we’re impressed that M-Audio’s Venom brings the warmth of analog into the digital age at a price even enthusiast players can afford—and frankly, it does an incredible job.

I’ve been looking for a functional wallet/iPhone case hybrid for years. The allure of carrying -- and keeping track of -- one fewer item would simplify my life, and putting some decent protection on my phone wouldn’t suck. At first glance, the BookBook by Twelve South seemed like the answer to my prayers. However, after using it for a month straight, I really wish I’d prayed just a little bit harder.