Janet Cloninger

Control your entire house with the Revolv system

revolv home automation

If you’ve started trying to automate your house and find you’ve now got a variety of systems doing various tasks, you should check out the Revolv Smart Home Solution.  Simply power up the Revolv hub in your home, and it uses the proprietary FlashLink system to join your local network (you’ll need to enter the […]

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Nix Color Sensor helps you match your paint to your new shirt

nix color sensor

Years ago, I worked for a company that developed color matching, formulation, correction, and quality control software for the textile industry.  Before you could create a formula or correction with our software, you had to first know what color you were trying to match (and what color you had created, for doing corrections).  Spectrophotometers costing

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Charge an emergency flashlight in your bed-side lamp’s socket

moma led lightbulb and flashlight

Here’s a new one for me.  This low-heat LED lightbulb from the MoMA Store becomes an emergency flashlight when you need one.  It screws into a standard socket, and it produces as much light as a 40W bulb using only 6W of electricity.  The LEDs will produces up to 60,000 hours of light.  When you

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Be visible when walking at night with this umbrella

suckuk reflective umbrella

When walking at night, you need to be conscious of your clothing choices to make sure that you are visible to drivers.  When it’s raining, it can be even harder for drivers to see clearly, so you want to make sure there is no way they can miss seeing you.  With the Hi-reflective Umbrella from

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Now you can log your daily thoughts in River Song’s journal

thinkgeek tardis journal

If you or someone you know is a journal-keeper and a devoted Dr. Who fan, here’s the perfect journal.  The blue, faux leather cover is embossed with a design reminiscent of the Tardis.  There are 440 thick, “aged” pages inside, and there’s even an encoded message for you to decipher (right image).  ThinkGeek says the Limited

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Disney introduces a second-screen app to complement the return of The Little Mermaid to theaters

little mermaid second screen app

Firmly in the “what in heck were they thinking camp”, Disney has released a second-screen app that complements The Little Mermaid.  You may be wondering what’s so bad about that, after all, lots of TV shows have second-screen apps to increase your involvement with their shows.  Well, this Second Screen Live: The Little Mermaid app

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Brenthaven BX2 Sleeve for 11″ MacBook Air review

brenthaven 11 inch sleeve 1

I have a couple of different bags that I use as my laptop bag.  One of them has a built-in, cushioned, zippered sleeve to hold my MacBook Air; my laptop is safe from scratches in there.  The other bag only has a laptop “divider” panel that’s open at the bottom and top, and my laptop

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An iPad mini case that promises to strengthen WiFi reception

absolute linkbook ipad mini

The thing I most hear people say about the iPad mini is that they can just throw it in their pocket or bag and take it everywhere.  With a WiFi-only mini, you’ll probably find yourself somewhere where you’re limited by a weak WiFi signal.  If you had the LINKBOOK case for iPad mini from Absolute

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Grow your own food on your windowsill

modern sprout

There’s a hydroponics supply store near my house, but I’ve never been in there because I always think of illegal substances when I think of in-home hydroponics systems.  These planter boxes from Modern Sprout take hydroponics out of the musty basements and put them on your windowsill.  They may look like simple wooden boxes, but

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TouchTone wireless Bluetooth speaker and speakerphone

Id america touchtone speaker

The new TouchTone Bluetooth Portable Wireless Speaker from id America connects with phones, tablets, computers, or other Bluetooth-enabled device to let you share your music or to act as a speakerphone for hands-free calling.  Two 2W speakers “deliver deep base and clear highs” in a package small enough to take with you.  The rechargeable battery

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