Now that Super Bowl XLV is over, fans might want to get their hands on the official NFL game program. These are often collectors items. In a digital age, getting access to a version that can be read on the iPad, while not as collectible, might be just as fun. So we are bringing you this week’s iPad App of the Week, which is the Super Bowl XLV Official NFL Game Program (free), in a digital format.

The program is like most NFL game programs – you get stories about the teams and their rosters of players and coaches. You also get info about past Super Bowls with highlight photos and stats. You also get stories and photos about how both of the Super Bowl teams made it through the 2010 playoffs to the big game. What sets the digital format apart from the paper version is you get multimedia content and they updated it after the game to show highlights, photos and info about the Super Bowl itself. That’s not something you could do with the old-fashioned game programs you would buy at the Super Bowl.

When you open the app up there is a nice video of the trophy with background music. You can scroll through the pages by swiping. And there is a button on the upper toolbar for a table of contents and one that reveals the scrolling thumbnails of the pages along the bottom. There is a Multimedia page and a shopping page called Extras as well.

The Multimedia page has pictures of this year’s game and video highlights from the game, playoffs, and past Super Bowls. The Extras shopping page has links to the NFL Shop where you can buy the paper program of either the Super Bowl or the NFL Pro Bowl game. The other link is to the shop where you can buy other NFL gear like hats and shirts, etc.

We really like the app because it shows the versatility of what a digital publication can do that print cannot. We doubt collectors of Super Bowl programs would see it as a replacement, but it does serve as a nice addendum to the print version. Plus, a collector could put the print version away for safe keeping and enjoy the iPad version. The NFL updated the app to show post game content, which you could not do with a book.

Here is our video review of the app:

Pros:

• More than just a scan of print version
• Has video highlights
• Has photo galleries that can be saved to the iPad by doing a screen capture
• Links to online content
• Includes updated content about the game and post-game celebrations

Cons:

• Wish it would natively let you save the photos to the iPad without doing a screen capture

Super Bowl XLV Official NFL Game Program: iPad App of the Week is a post by Kevin Purcell from Notebooks.com.

Whether you’re heading to the Super Bowl or hitting the road for vacation, keeping all of your gadgets safe is a top priority and one that can be done fairly easily with a little bit of prep. Credit.com has just shared 10 Super Bowl Scams and How not to Get Played, which includes good advice for online transactions, carrying your credit cards and keeping your laptop and smartphone safe.

In addition to watching out for fake Super Bowl tickets, be sure you’ve updated your antivirus protection to be prepared for the Super Bowl related spam and scams which may try to install a virus on your computer. We recommend Microsoft Security Essentials or another free antivirus tool from AVG or Avast.

Always important for traveling is to keep your credit cards to a minimum,

“Credit Cards, Debit Cards. Try not to take your entire inventory of debit and credit cards with you. OK. I understand that you absolutely, positively need your Packer or Steelers affinity credit card on your person at all times this weekend, but perhaps you could limit your plastic to that one card plus a debit card to ensure access to the cash required to speed your purchases of  $14 beers, $9 hot dogs and favorite team t-shirts, hats and sweatshirts ($32, $42 and $79.99 respectively)  at the concession stands.”

The same goes for your gadgets. If you can slim down to one or two devices instead of 4 different gadgets do so, and leave the extras at home.

When you get to your destination, be sure to secure your notebook and iPad in the safe. If you’re lucky the safe may even have a power outlet to charge your devices. as Credit.com warms, “Your room is not as impenetrable as the Green Bay or Pittsburgh front line. There are lots of folks who walk through it, clean it, restock it, or simply sneak into it looking to collect their favorite types of souvenirs.”

Also, be sure that you keep your smart phone locked down. With more and more financial information taking place on your phone you should have a password to lock the phone in the event it is lost.

To locate your gadgets if you lose them we recommend checking out some of the following tools.

• Find my iPhone – Free for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch
• Lojack for Laptops – Theft recovery for stolen laptops – (Review)
• Prey – Locate your lost laptops and Android phones for free. (Review)

Do you have any travel tips for keeping your stuff safe? If so, share them below.

Tips to Keep You Gadgets and Credit Cards Safe When Traveling (Super Bowl) is a post by Josh Smith from Notebooks.com.

For Geeks who will be watching the Packers and Steelers match up in Super Bowl 45, one thing you may be looking for is a good app to give you a little extra information and interact with other fans. Vualla thinks they have just the thing with their unique Entertainment app. The purpose of Vualla is to give TV viewers an interactive app to not only learn more about the show they are watching but also interact both with other fans of the show and possibly even those involved in creating or covering it.

Open Vualla and you see the top featured show, which this week is the Super Bowl. Below that are lists of shows based on things like time and category of show.

For the purpose of this review we will focus on the Super Bowl section. Each show has an icon that when tapped takes you to an interactive screen with things like a chat room for that show, Twitter feeds that have tweets mentioning the show, and Facebook pages related to it. The Super Bowl section has all that and a lot more.

Tap on the Super Bowl section and you see ten tabs along the right and left sides with the first tab highlighted: Game Info. Each of these tabs offers some interactive information or service that can get you ready for the game or enjoy the game while it is being played.

The tabs are as follows:

• Game Info: info about the teams, the game and the Super Bowl in general
• News: stories about the teams and the game leading up to the Super Bowl
• Videos: Videos found on the Internet related to the game
• SuperBowl Commercials: view past commercials, the best of all time, and info about commercials leaked for this year’s game
• Halftime: YouTube videos of past halftime shows and info about this year’s show featuring the Red Hot Chile Peppers
• Fan Chat: chat with other fans
• Twitter: tweets about the game, players and press covering the game
• Facebook: fan pages of each team and the game
• Fun Stuff: contests and games related to the Super Bowl
• Photos: pictures posted related to the game

Each tab lets you tweet about the content or post it to Facebook.

The settings page lets you tell the app where you live if it doesn’t find it from the iPad’s location settings and offers a list of television providers. Tell it who you provider is and then set your list of favorite channels. This way it can cater the listings to your area and provider’s channel numbers. It will let you set reminders about shows so you can watch live and interact with other users of the app.

The app is a novel idea, but the execution is little weak. The content mostly comes from the Internet, so you will have to be online to use it. That’s fine. But even on a very fast 10Mbps connection the content was glacially slow to pull from their servers. I worked with the company to discover what the problem was and it got better as it went. But I think they are struggling with the traffic of many new users.

One solution to the problems we had with the Super Bowl specific content not loading at all was to let the app fully load after first starting it up. Then go into the Super Bowl section. Do this by opening the app and leaving it alone for about a minute. Even then it was slow. If it is struggling now before the game, it will certainly have trouble Sunday after 6:30 EST when it is actually being played. If they can speed things up, it can be an interesting way to interact while watching live TV.

Here is our video review:

If you can’t watch the big game on your TV at home, check out our guide to watching the Super Bowl Online or on the go. If you can’t wait, check out how to get in on the SuperBowl Hype this week.

Pros:

• Lots of interactive content
• Attractive
• Settings let you customize for your TV provider

Cons:

• Slow to load

SuperBowl 45: Vualla SuperBowl iPad Companion App is a post by Kevin Purcell from Notebooks.com.

As the Super Bowl heats up this week, people will be gathered around huge HDTVs, video projectors, or just their good old 19″ Magnavox TV set to see who wins the NFL finale.

Unfortunately, some will be at work, on the road, traveling or other places making watching on a TV impossible — But if you have the right gear, there is hope that you can still watch the game. We’ll show you how to watch the Super Bowl on your phone, laptop or tablet.

SlingPlayer Mobile

Search Google and there are a ton of shady looking sites wanting you to download software that we guess is likely loaded with spyware, malware or just spammy junk at best or just big scams trying to separate you from your money at worst. However, SlingPlayer is an app and device that is legal and safe to use, if you have the right equipment.

SlingPlayer is available on almost any mobile platform you can think of, like iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Palm and even Symbian. The app is $29.99. Unfortunately the app by itself is useless unless you also have a Slingbox. You can also connect to your Slingbox with a laptop.

With a Slingbox Solo or a Slingbox Pro HD, you can interface with it through the Internet on the mobile app. The Slingbox Solo starts at $179.99 and the Slingbox Pro HD starts at $299.99. For owners of any other older Slingbox, you are out of luck. You will have to upgrade.

The Slingbox Pro HD is a great product as it streams full HD or SD video. You will need a fast 5MB/sec Internet connection to get HD. And it also has a full HD tuner (ATSC). Also you will have to run an Ethernet cable to the box or have a Wi-Fi adapter to plug into the box. See the video below from TigerDirect.

If you are not sure how good it works on say the iPad, here is a video review to help you decide if this is the way to go. The reviewer says that the video is pretty good with a Slingbox Pro HD streaming to the iPad’s Wi-Fi signal.

If you don’t want to bother with a mobile phone or tablet, you can also watch through your computer. Through both the mobile app or the web site you can fully control the TV set-top box regardless of whether you are using a satellite receiver, cable TV box, or even other boxes like the Apple TV.

Portable TV

Another option, if you don’t want to bother with the Slingbox and a mobile or even a computer, is just a mobile HD TV. We did a search on Amazon and found dozens of them ranging in price from $42 up to over $100. Based on customer reviews, the Axion AXN-8701 is an option. It has a 7″ LCD screen and built-in tuner. However, it has to be stationary while using it, so it won’t work in a car even though it ships with a car adapter. If you don’t live close to the HD signal, get an external antenna to hook up to it.

Internet Streaming

It may  not be legal, but it is also possible to watch the game live online through services like Justin.tv or Ustream.tv.  Both usually have someone streaming to the service using their integrated HD TV tuner in a computer. So when the game starts go over and do a search and you will most likely find the game. And both have iPhone apps that you might also be able to use. (Justin.tv iPhone app and Ustream.tv iPhone app)

How to Watch The SuperBowl Online and On the Go (SuperBowl LXV) is a post by Kevin Purcell from Notebooks.com.

Super Bowl 44 has wrapped up and with New Orleans already on it’s way to Mardi Gras complete with a Vince Lombardi trophy in hand we wanted to take a quick look at the technology commercials that have taken over the Super Bowl in recent years. Personally, I felt that the commercials in the first half looked a bit like last year’s notebooks but like the Saint’s performance I was pleasantly surprised be the second half worth of Super Bowl commercials.

Intel Sad Robot Ad:

Intel Generations – aka Space Invaders, Email, Wireless and Turboboost:

GoDaddy Spa – Massage Therapist Ad:

GoDaddy News Spoof:

GoDaddy “Lola” – NFL player turned fashion designer ad:

Megan Fox’s Bathtub Motorola Devour Ad for Verizon’s new Android Phone:

Google’s Parisian Love Story Ad:

KGB – Skinny guys versus a Sumo wrestler:

Vizio Internet Enabled TV / Vizio Web TV Super Bowl Ad:

Cars.com – Delivers a Tiger but scared to buy a car ad:

Flo TV Mobile TV- Driven Crazy with Jim Nantz:

Flo TV Mobile TV – Will.I.Am My Generation Super Bowl Ad:

Boost Mobile – Shuffle Super Bowl Ad:

Dante’s Inferno Game Trailer Super Bowl Ad:

To watch the rest of the Super Bowl Commercials check out the AdZone on Hulu:

What did you think? Did tech companies do a good job this year? At least they kept their pants on! Am I right?

Super Bowl Tech Ad Roundup – Intel, GoDaddy, Google, Vizio and more is a post by Josh Smith from Notebooks.com.