REVIEW – About 20 years ago, I had one of those older lead-acid jump start battery packs. It was very heavy, but it saved the day more than once. It even had an air compressor on board! Newer jump start battery packs are much smaller with lithium batteries. Today I get to try one with […]
REVIEW – As I’ve written before, I’m active in Scouting (Eagle Scout, Assistant Scoutmaster). One of the Ten Essentials for the outdoors is appropriate rain gear. I’m not sure if it’s because we’ve had crippling droughts in California for years, but I actually don’t own a packable rain jacket. Thankfully, now I have one to
LA Police Gear Expedition packable waterproof rain jacket review Read More
REVIEW – Although I grew up as a Scout (and made Eagle) I’ve never used a hydration bladder. For me, it was always canteens. My son is training for a 50 mile hike this summer, so he’s got many training hikes planned. I thought I’d have him try it out! But first, a look at
LA Police Gear 3 Liter Hydration Bladder Review Read More
REVIEW – Spring is here and allergy season has begun! This time, I’ve got a new weapon in my aresenal: A portable , USB powered air purifier from Scosche called the FrescheAir that fits into a cup holder. What is it? The Scosche FrescheAir is a compact air purifier with a 3 stage HEPA filter
Scosche FrescheAir portable HEPA air purifier review – Clean air for your car Read More
REVIEW – I’ve thought about ways to spruce up my video calls with interesting things in the background. I’ve seen these LED tiles before but the price seemed out of range. I had a chance to take a look at these hexagonal shaped LED lights from Lamp Depot. How did they work out? What is
Lamp Depot Honeycomb touch sensitive modular wall light review Read More
REVIEW – I send many packages that require labels- most of them Amazon returns or eBay shipments. Normally I’d print out a sheet of paper, cut out the excess, and tape the remainder on the box. Seems a little wasteful. With a label printer, I figure I’d save a lot of steps, plus no more
iDPRT SP410 thermal label printer review Read More
ARTICLE – For years I had this idea to decorate my garage with all the tail lights of all the cars I’ve owned. Not the originals, of course, but junkyard specials, eBay finds, etc. I finally had some free time over the holidays so I finally assembled my collection and wired it up for some
My garage has an awesome feature that yours does not Read More
REVIEW – I strongly dislike exercise (see photo above). However, I do like my indoor rower (or “erg” for you crew fans) which is something I fell in love with in college. My particular machine has a heart rate monitor receiver, but that usually means supplying your own chest strap, which always felt slightly burdensome
Scosche Rhythm+ 2.0 armband heart rate monitor review Read More
ARTICLE – About a decade ago, the government agency I work for declared they were going “paperless”. Haven’t we heard that since electronics were invented? Just before the pandemic hit, our office was starting to have an all-electronic option for nearly every kind work we do- then we were told to Work From Home. Good
Gadgeteer team’s work from home (WFH) setups – Andy Chen Read More
REVIEW – Ever since I picked up the iPhone 12 Pro, I’ve been looking around for MagSafe charger accessories. It’s still a little early, but RAVPower has released their own MagSafe compatible charger that comes with a pleasant surprise: A teeny, tiny 20W USB-C charger. What is it? This is RAVPower’s wireless charger with MagSafe
RAVPower magnetic MagSafe charger review Read More
CROWDFUNDING REVIEW – I’m not into styling my hair. For me, I comb it and hope it’s not messed up. This is even more true during the pandemic since I’m not going into an office with other people. There are times I need to dry my hair, and the idea of a hair dryer without
Lylux cordless, bladeless hair dryer review Read More
REVIEW – As an Eagle Scout and father to a scout, to me the idea of a firestarter that works by just pulling a string felt slightly insulting a first. Fire making is an essential scout skill, after all! Then I looked back at all the times I’ve been in difficult or near-miserable situations where
Pull Start Fire Pull String Firestarter review Read More
REVIEW – Do you use your iPhone’s built-in speakerphone frequently? Ever want a little extra “oomph”? I got to try out a little plug-in device designed to do just that. What is it? The Pioneer Rayz Rally is a plug and play mobile conference speaker that connects with just one Lightning connection to your iOS
Pioneer Rayz Rally iOS lightning speaker review Read More
REVIEW – Have you ever tried to inflate an air mattress or pool toy by mouth? Yes, it gets exhausting. I’ve been using inflatable camping pads for a few years, which I prefer over the foam ones. However, inflating a pad after a day of hiking or at altitude isn’t very fun. GIGA Pump 2.0
GIGA Pump 2.0 review Read More
REVIEW – When I was young I always remembered this inexpensive, orange-handled metal detector in the Radio Shack catalogs. Never got one. I’ve quietly wondered how well these things work. I finally got my chance with the Sakobs GC1032 metal detector. The hunt is on! What is it? The Sakobs GC1032 is a portable metal
Sakobs GC1032 Metal Detector review Read More
REVIEW – The charger battle in my home has heated up. I’m finally collecting more gadgets that accept USB-C plugs. However, I’m stuck with the tiny ones that come packed in the box. Zendure’s SuperPort Gallium Nitride (GaN) chargers just might be my ticket to charging heaven. What is it? The Zendure SuperPort S2 is
Zendure SuperPort S2 and S4 GaN USB-C charger review Read More
REVIEW – I’ve shied away from giant USB batteries for camping because it means lugging them around. But when I look back, a majority of my expeditions are “car camping” where weight isn’t an issue. More and more of my gadgets are finally coming with USB-C. Let’s take a look at the Zendure SuperTank Pro
REVIEW – One of my favorite kinds of flashlights are the kind that are keychain-sized, and rechargeable via USB. Today I get to try out a successor to one of my favorites. Will it take the top spot as my go-to everyday carry flashlight? What is it? The TIP SE is a 700 lumen USB-C
Nitecore TIP SE Dual-Core keychain EDC flashlight review Read More
REVIEW – I hate fan noise. When I built a PC, I went through great pains to pick quiet fans and components. When the bathroom fan got noisy, I replaced the motor. If I got a fancy fan to keep me cool, I wouldn’t keep it if I found the noise distracting. It’s time to
Dyson Pure Cool Me Personal Purifying Fan (BP01) review Read More
REVIEW – Yes, you’re right. I’ve never heard of TREBLAB either. In the age of lookalike Bluetooth speakers and unknown brands, I usually stick with the “famous names”. My son has started listening to music while working out, so I thought this might make a nice spare speaker. But first, some tire kicking! What is
TREBLAB HD77 Bluetooth speaker review Read More