Smythe Richbourg

A gadget nerd from childhood, Smythe has always been drawn to solving everyday problems with clever tools. An Apple fan since his Mac Plus in 1987, he's usually pretty current with devices. Sometimes, however, he still misses his Newton 2100 MessagePad.

simplehuman CleanStation review – Deep cleans your smartphone

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REVIEW – Be honest. How many times have you been in a public restroom and heard someone a few stalls over talking, and you knew they were on the phone? Or you’re hearing TikToks playing? Public restrooms are germy nightmares, and don’t tell me about washing your hands – you need to disinfect your phone […]

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PowBuzz battery powered screwdriver review

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REVIEW – If you’re reading this website, there’s a good chance you’ve used a powered screwdriver before. Building your own computer, Raspberry Pi projects, changing out the memory or storage on your device – having a power driver makes short work of those pesky screws. The folks at PowBuzz have responded to the increasing miniaturization

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JoyGeek Wireless Charging Station review – 3 chargers in one

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REVIEW – As our digital lives progress, we suddenly find we have a network of things that we are carrying around. Phones, earbuds, watches, tablets – and everything needs recharging at some point. Since we aren’t yet able to leverage the Universal Will to Become to power all our things, we have to pause every so

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Astrea ONE water bottle review – Fights pollution two ways!

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  REVIEW – Municipal water is, sadly, no longer guaranteed to be safe from pollutants and poisons from pipes and groundwater leaching. Many folks I know use filtered pitchers in their fridge to take care of the impurities, but those things take a good while to seep through. Plus, they aren’t portable. Enter the Astrea

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Waterfield introduces new Double Take sleeve for those who pack two screens

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NEWS – There are those of us who tote two screens around at least some of the time. Since today’s devices are so slim and light, most folks in this group have probably just been packing the two together in the same slot in their bag. Waterfield, a perennial favorite with Gadgeteers, just released their

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Aracky’s SuperDanny Spin Tower review – The lazy Susan of power strips

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REVIEW – We all have them: those surge protectors that either have a mile of extra cord to manage, or that are just short of reaching the outlet you want to plug into. Aracky’s SuperDanny Spin Tower solves both of these problems worth a neat, elegant solution. Let’s dive in! What is it? Vertical power

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Zagg Messenger Folio 2 for the iPad Pro 10.5” review

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REVIEW – I’ve been using Bluetooth keyboards with iPads since the original model shipped in 2010. I’ve mostly used them separate from the case, however, because the original sized iPads were smaller, which made the keys tinier on those keyboards. Recently, I was sent the Zagg Messenger Folio 2 for the iPad Pro 10.5”, and

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Ucam Private HD Security Camera review – with 100% data privacy

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REVIEW – As data breaches become more common, there is a growing desire for secure online storage of data, particularly from in-home security cameras. No one wants to feel they are being spied on, and with unknown security practices in the data storage area of large companies (despite statements from wealthy CEOs to the contrary),

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Gig Gear Cam-a-lot chair-mounted green screen background review

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REVIEW – The move to remote work brought about by the current pandemic has forced a lot of us to be on-camera much more than previously. For those of us who don’t have an area we can use to create a camera-friendly background, virtual screens have become a life-saver. But many things in the actual

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Jabra Speak 750 conference call speaker review

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REVIEW – Raise your hand if you’re quite over the fact that every meeting and relationship that used to take place in person is now a video-conference. The fuzzy video, poor lighting, and Carl, who can’t ever seem to keep his mike muted are grating on everyone’s last nerve. (You hear that, Carl!!) Well, one

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Android Nougat security certificates are expiring in 2021

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NEWS – Came across this news item recently, and haven’t heard much about it elsewhere. Turns out the 7.1.1 version of Android (Nougat) may not be able to access secure websites starting in 2021, unless you update their operating system. I’m not worried about those who read The Gadgeteer who are in the Android camp,

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SandMarc Motion Filter Variable Neutral Density Filter for iPhone review

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REVIEW – Photography, as we’ve stated before, has a lot to do with light, and today’s gadgets let you create, filter, and otherwise adjust the light getting into your phone’s camera in myriad ways. Recently, I was sent the Motion Filter, a variable Neutral Density filter for iPhone from SandMarc, a company that makes quite

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SandMarc ProLight RGB review

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REVIEW – With the huge improvements in camera phones lately, the procedures for getting better shots have migrated from the “megapixel/lens” level of discussion to such perennial photography topics as light quality management and filters. To this end, SandMarc has recently released two light sources that promise much more control over some of these issues.

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