James Garriss

James is a systems engineer, has been married for 30 years, and has a pair of energetic toy poodles. His favorite gadgets are those that solve problems around the house and yard.

POTENCO Mini Chainsaw review – handy for trimming small branches

potenco chainsaw 1

REVIEW – My father has a house on Lake Hartwell, and much of the lot between his house and the lake is trees.  One tree or another is always falling down, whether to storms or old age or whatever.  While a chainsaw is great for breaking down the trunk and the large branches, it’s less […]

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Corsori air fryers recalled, free replacement offered

cosori air fryer recall

RECALL NEWS – Back in July 2019, I reviewed Corsori’s air fryer model number CP158-AF.  My wife and I like the appliance, but I recently found out that it and several other models have been recalled because a wire can overheat and thus cause a fire and burn hazard.  The impacted models are CP158-AF, CS158-AF, CAF-P581-AUSR

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Nanoleaf Lines Squared review – smart lighting at right angles (but with problems)

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REVIEW – In our house, we’re all in on HomeKit, Apple’s smart home system, and we have four HomePod minis scattered around the house to control our IoT devices.  Nanoleaf is our favorite source of smart lighting:  We have seven of their smart bulbs and one light strip.  We’ve found them to be reliable and

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VANPOWERS Manidae Fat Tire eBike review – loads of fun on the trails

vanpowers manidae 1

REVIEW – One way to stay healthy and enjoy the great outdoors is to go trail biking.  Sometimes, however, we need a little help, whether it’s climbing a steep hill or finishing that last extra mile.  The perfect bike for trips like this is a fat tire eBike, and I’m hoping that the VANPOWERS Manidae

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Starset: the Great Dimming – A Grimdark Tabletop RPG System

starset 01

CROWDFUNDING NEWS – In high school and college I spent a lot of my free time playing Traveller, a science fiction role-playing game (RPG).  As it turns out, Traveller is one of the inspirations for Starset, a new RPG written by Josiah Mork that is currently being crowdfunded on Kickstarter.  The setting style is known

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JMBricklayer Medieval Lighthouse Building Block Set review – a spectacular set with some issues

jmbricklayer lighthouse 1

REVIEW – After reviewing their 3-in-1 medieval weapon, JMBricklayer offered me a chance to review another building block set that they sell.  I gladly accepted their gracious offer and decided to build their Medieval Lighthouse.  This massive set arrived just before Christmas, which gave me the perfect opportunity to spend a couple days putting it

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Herman Miller and Logitech Vantum gaming chair review – an amazing gaming chair that puts good posture first

herman miller logitech vantum 1

REVIEW – One more game!  That seems to be the cry of every video gamer, especially when we’re on a roll. Unfortunately, long bouts of gaming tend to go hand-in-hand with slouching, hunching, and other types of bad posture, and if we’re not careful, the end result can be a variety of health risks.  Wouldn’t it

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JMBricklayer 3-in-1 Medieval Weapon model kit review – an excellent alternative to LEGO Technic

jmbricklayer weapon 1

REVIEW – I played with LEGO as a kid, and when my wife and I had kids, I rediscovered the joy of creating with them.  The kids are grown and gone now, but I still like building LEGO sets.  When I was younger, there really weren’t many choices.  Either we bought genuine LEGO bricks or

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Funwhole Lakeside Lodge Building Set review – a very detailed building brick set with lights

funwhole lakeside 1

REVIEW – I’ve been a longtime fan of building with Legos, but lately, I’ve been experimenting with Lego alternatives.  I recently built JMBricklayer’s 3-in-1 medieval weapon, and now I’m trying something a bit more domestic:  Funwhole’s Lakeside Lodge.  I’m hoping that this medium-sized set that comes with its own lighting system will be fun to

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HiCOZY Ice Maker review – a convenient source for extra nugget ice

hicozy ice maker 1

REVIEW – Most Friday nights we have company over to our house.  Sometimes it’s just a couple, but other times it’s an entire crew.  On those nights, the ice maker built into our fridge struggles to create enough ice for everyone to keep their sweet teas icy and their sodas cold.  Sure, we could swing

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AndaSeat Transformers Edition Premium Gaming Chair review

andaseat megatron chair 1

REVIEW – Every gamer, from the professionals to the weekend wannabe warriors, needs a good gaming chair when whiling away the hours in front of their computer.  A good gaming chair is not only comfortable and ergonomic, but it also has some pizzazz as well.  All of these come together in the AndaSeat Transformers Edition

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EVEAGE 14.5″ Pressure Washer Surface Cleaner review – a faster way to wash your driveway

eveage pressure washer cleaner 1

REVIEW – Pressure washing the driveway is an annual event where I live.  A year’s worth of dust and dirt from all the red clay we have around here gives my pavement a rather reddish, muddy look, something that’s definitely not very attractive.  Every fall I haul out the pressure washer, fill it up with

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Torro Leather Apple Watch Strap review – a timeless watch band

Torro Leather Strap

REVIEW – Apple recently released its newest round of Apple Watches.  While the Series 8 looks really nice, my wife decided to hold onto her Series 6 for now, as it still gives her all the functionality that she needs.  She does, however, want a new watch band, as it’s been over a year since

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Herman Miller x Logitech Vantum – an amazing gaming chair at a better price

hermanmiller logi vantum

NEWS – The Herman Miller x Logitech Vantum is the newest collaboration between two giants.  Herman Miller is best known for their incredibly comfortable and ergonomic office chairs, and Logitech is well known for its great gaming keyboard and mice.  A couple of years back, they teamed up to create the ultimate gaming chair, but

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Cyber Acoustics CA Essential USB Headset review – all day comfort for the professional

cyber acoustics essential headset 1 1

REVIEW – COVID has changed how many people work.  We spend less time in the office and more time working from home, and that means meetings are often done virtually with tools like Teams and Slack.  As a software developer, I have my fair share of meetings, and since my old headset is finally falling

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