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.

BrainTap headset review – Can it unlock areas of your brain with sound and light?

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REVIEW – Hacking your brain is almost a cottage industry these days. From meditation apps to headgear with electrodes to audio that uses your hearing’s phase detection, there are a lot of companies trying to enrich your life in a solid, real way using their technology. We’ve covered a good bit of it here at

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AfterShokz Xtrainerz Bone Conduction MP3 Swimming Headphones review – Fill your underwater world with sound

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REVIEW – Listening to music can make exercising more tolerable. Witness the huge case market for sweat-resistant armbands, cases, and headphones. Listening to music when you’re outside running, biking, or otherwise being exposed to environmental hazards (i.e. cars, trucks, and other motorized vehicles) can be dangerous to your situational awareness. Aftershokz, a company that specializes

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Doqo iPad keyboard case review – adds ports to rival MacBook Pros

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REVIEW – The iPad, introduced in 2010, changed the idea of “tablet computing” for many people. It’s often been said that there isn’t really a “Tablet Market”, so much as an iPad market with various copycat devices. However you feel about this, third parties have embraced the iPad wholeheartedly, and nowhere is this more visible

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WFH or elsewhere with a portable magnetic workstation from MOFT

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  CROWDFUNDING NEWS – Mobile Office for Travelers – (MOFT) has a new product, the Smart Desk Mat. I have backed several of their past projects personally, and have found the products to be very interesting. Since I’m not traveling as much as I did 2-3 years ago, however, the need has not been as

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Elite Screens Yard Master 2 screen review – A screen as big as all outdoors

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REVIEW – As we move into summer here in the Northern Hemisphere, more and more people are having outside get-togethers. If a movie would make a part of a good gathering for you, a sturdy outdoor screen will be in order. To that end, ProjectorScreen.com sent me the Elite Screens Yard Master 2 screen for

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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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