Hands-on with three shirt-pocket gadgets

Aliph’s Jawbone Icon is much like its last in-ear bluetooth headset, but now comes with ‘dialing apps’ and a set of amusing voices to tell you about incoming calls and what-have-you. The new designs are welcome, but not as nice as the Jawbone Earcandy, to my eye–vivid colors are gone in pursuit of a jewelry-like look. They’re also short and chubbier, though about the same size overall. The quality was good when tested (paired with an iPhone) and it’s a little cheaper than the other models, at $100. Amazon link

The Technocell PowerPak is a matchbox-sized battery that serves as an emergency backup for your gear. It worked well in testing–it’s small enough to be portable, but big enough to actually get serious juice from–and comes with many adapter tips. The fold-out plug prongs make it easy and convenient to power up. I kept forgetting to charge it, however, so if you get something like this, be sure to keep it in the car or your front hallway so that you actually have it with you when you need it. $33. Product Page – Amazon link

ICON’s Rogue might be just another LED flashlight, but it is pretty. Made from greebled aluminum and finished with a metallic paint job, it resembles a minimalist hipster light saber. It didn’t seem quite as bright as dowdier models from Energizer, and can’t stand on its end – surprisingly annoying in a blackout. A standard off-half-full button sequence would be better than it being at half-brightness every second time you turn it on. There’s also a tiny AA-size edition, but both models are a little too pricey at $50 and $38, respectively. Amazon link