REVIEW – The EXCITRUS NitroCharge 120 Pro Magnetic Wireless Power Bank is a hand-purse sized pack of power for devices you need to charge. It has a lot of capacity and offers speed charging, plus a water resistant fabric cover. And it’s no weakling. It’s powerful enough to charge most laptop computers, as long as […]
REVIEW – Oladance Open Ear Headphones are a different way to listen to audio. The speakers sit just over the ear canal instead of in the ear, or via bone conduction. This allows you to hear your audio but also environmental sounds as well. I’ll describe the fit, comfort, run-time, and audio quality of this
Oladance Open Ear Headphones review – You’ll want to dance with Oladance Read More
NEWS – Twitter may eliminate NWS severe weather alerts due to a new policy to control automated tweets. My National Weather Service Office sent this tweet saying Twitter has decided to ‘limit’ automated Tweets as of 3/29/2023. I encourage you to submit a comment to Twitter Support strongly suggesting they allow an exception for the
Twitter may eliminate NWS severe weather alerts Read More
NEWS – Two weeks ago my old but fully functional Pixel 3a XL got valued at a respectable $180 at the Google Store so I ordered a Pixel 6a. The deal is, once the phone is inspected and is found to be factory reset, powers on, and has an unbroken screen, it is predicted (not
Phone trade-in values at the Google Store are in flux. Check yours now! Read More
NEWS – Have you ever wanted to get into fountain pens but thought they were too expensive or too inconvenient? If you’d like to dip your toe in, or your pen, you might consider the Jinhao brand of fountain pens. This brand is sold at Amazon, the famous Goulet Pen Company and other places. I
Curious about fountain pens but think you can’t afford them? Read More
NEWS – 880,000 e-bikes were imported into the U.S. in 2021 according to the Light Electric Vehicle Association. Consumer Reports, Fox, and several other media sources are reporting a high incidence of lithium-ion battery fires from e-bike and electric scooter batteries. Most large battery packs contain smaller cells connected together. Consumer Reports points out if
You don’t want your e-bike to go boom! Read More
NEWS – My Zero-G garden hose from 2018 is still performing perfectly. I bought it myself, leave it outdoors, and it works like a champ. If this sounds like a commercial, sorry, but this mundane, ‘everybody needs one’ product has been a good one for me, so this is an uncompensated endorsement. This hose has
Don’t get hosed by low quality hose Read More
NEWS – Hearing loss is no joke. I play drums. Remove the ‘r’ from drum and that’s what I’d be if I hadn’t used hearing protection the whole time I’ve played. But I also use hearing protection when I mow the yard, blow leaves, use power tools louder than a drill, and when I vacuum the
Anyone out there need hearing protection? I SAID, ANYONE OUT THERE… Read More
ARTICLE – In 2022 I changed away from years of using a paper journal/planner book. My word processor was fountain pens. I switched to plain text journaling and scheduling. All along I used the ‘aCalendar’ app on my phone, which automatically syncs to Google Calendar. But my paper journal/planner was my complete backup to aCalendar,
Plain text journaling – Trading in old tech for new? Read More
NEWS – The Tumbler Knife Sharpener is a can-shaped sharpener with a diamond disc surface on one end, and a stainless steel surface on the other end. The unit includes a 15° and 20° magnetic blade guide that holds the knife as you roll the ‘can’ along the knife edge. Only serrated-edge knives and scissors
The Tumbler Knife Sharpener is a new take on blade maintenance Read More
NEWS – Make a free PocketMod so you’ll know if you need ‘em! PocketMod is a free, foldable, small notebook made from a single sheet of printer paper. Sometimes paper is just faster if you need to glance at your week, make notes during a phone call, or check a date later in the year.Â
Does anyone remember the humble PocketMod? Read More
REVIEW – HiFuture FutureFit Ultra2 smartwatch does Bluetooth calling really well. But HiFuture needs to put some work into several other functions of the watch to bring it into the present. Take a look to see if the Ultra2 does enough for you to justify its relatively low price. It’s well built overall, has a
HiFuture FutureFit Ultra2 smartwatch review – How futuristic is it? Read More
NEWS – Work Sharp has more than one trick up its sleeve! I reviewed the Work Sharp Mk 2 tool and knife sharpener back in the spring of 2021. The Mk 2 is still the fastest, most effective sharpener I can imagine using. It produces super sharp edges on any knives with non-serrated blades and takes
Work Sharp now has a bunch of sharpener styles Read More
REVIEW – The HOKOLITE Runner Bright Light is really bright for night running or riding. The main COB (chip on board) LED light modes are built into the yellow LED set which is on the larger, flat side of the light. There is a hat light built into a thin side of the light and
HOKOLITE Runner Bright Light review – Bright and light Read More
REVIEW – The Midland WR400 Weather Alert Radio is a desktop weather alerting radio that also plays AM/FM radio and can serve as a wake-up alarm. The size and design of the WR400 are perfect for bedside or any indoor use, but choose your alert type carefully if you live with others. The 85 dB
Midland WR400 weather alert radio review – Looks good in any room in the house Read More
NEWS – Grill mats give you a griddle-like surface for your gas, charcoal, or electric grill. I was given a set of 6 grill mats two years ago for Christmas by a son-in-law who loves to cook. I shared a couple with friends and the ones I kept are still in service. These mats make it
Stop sacrificing food to the grill fire gods! Read More
REVIEW – The Velotric Nomad 1 e-bike is a new model from Velotric Bikes. Its fat tires are matched by a well-built, substantial frame. Plain road bikers with their synthetic bike shorts and featherweight bikes they can lift with two fingers may scoff as I pass, as I sit comfortably upright, not sweating, not pedaling
Velotric Nomad 1 e-Bike review – ‘Kid in a candy store’ adult bike fun Read More
NEWS – Stop The Bleed is a FREE course developed by the American College of Surgeons and is available to the public as a means of providing lifesaving bleeding control skills to more people in more places in our country. Where might you encounter a severe bleeding emergency? Can you name a place where it
Tourniquets are gadgets too! Learn how to use them with the free Stop The Bleed Course Read More
REVIEW – The Skilhunt EC300 Multicolor LED Flashlight has 15 light modes. It took lots of practice to figure out the modes but I got ‘em now, and this flashlight became one of my favorites thanks to all it can do. It has a 0.5 lumen light that is great if you need a tiny
Skilhunt EC300 multicolor LED flashlight review – 15 lighting modes from mini to mighty Read More
REVIEW – The Decked X Pathfinder Survival Kit is thoughtfully packed with quality gear that can help someone off the grid to survive in an unexpected emergency. I counted 22 items in the kit. I didn’t cheat! There are 10 alcohol swabs that I counted as one item. This kit is very well supplied. What
Decked X Pathfinder Survival Kit review – Have it, before you need it Read More