News - The Gadgeteer

This temperature-controlled butter dish promises perfectly spreadable butter all the time

By Janet Cloninger / January 16, 2015 / News / Cooking, Food, Home and Kitchen / 22 Comments

The Alfille Temperature Controlled Butter Dish promises to keep butter at your perfect spreading temperature. It plugs in to a wall socket and is intended to operate 24/7. It comes with a pre-set spreading temperature, but you can adjust it if you prefer your butter a bit softer or firmer. It’s designed to keep butter […]

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WayTools TextBlade is a folding QWERTY keyboard the size of a pack of gum

By Julie Strietelmeier / January 15, 2015 / News / Android, Bluetooth, Bluetooth keyboard, iOS / 10 Comments

The onscreen keyboards we use on our smartphones and tablets work just fine most of the time, but when you need to enter a lot of text, they become more annoying than useful. To remedy that situation, most people opt for a cover that has a built in keyboard. That works ok, but drastically increases the bulk and

WayTools TextBlade is a folding QWERTY keyboard the size of a pack of gum Read More

Know Your Knots Bandana is a multi-functional accessory for the outdoorsman

By Janet Cloninger / January 15, 2015 / News / Gear, Outdoor Gear, Outdoors, Sports / Leave a Comment

Most everybody has used a bandana. They are useful for many things – tying back your hair, tied around your head to act as a sweat catcher when you’re working or playing hard outdoors, wrapping up things in your bag… Now they can even serve as a reference guide. The Know Your Knots Bandana from

Know Your Knots Bandana is a multi-functional accessory for the outdoorsman Read More

The Waterfield Bolt Briefcase is at home in the board room or the coffee shop

By Janet Cloninger / January 15, 2015 / News / Bags, Laptop bag, Laptops and Gear / Leave a Comment

The Bolt Briefcase from Waterfield has a more traditional business case look, so it’s not quite as casual looking as a messenger bag can be. It will look equally at home in casual weekend use and in more formal business environments. It’s available in two sizes: small to fit up to a 13″ MacBook and large to

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Headphones enter a new Phāz

By Bill Henderson / January 14, 2015 / News / Audio, Video, TV, Batteries and Chargers, Headphones / Leave a Comment

Picture this: You’re cruising down the street plugged into your smartphone but the power is beginning to run low. You want to keep listening, but you’re afraid of draining the battery completely if you do. Now, picture this: You just keep listening anyway because the headphone is charging your smartphone. You read that right. In

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Knog [expose] smart sheds more light on the subject

By Janet Cloninger / January 14, 2015 / News / Camera gear, iOS, iPhone accessory, Photography / Leave a Comment

Although the iPhone has a built-in flash, it’s often not bright enough to provide sufficient illumination in really low-light conditions. Add a Knog [expose] smart light to your iPhone, and you’ll have 9 LEDs shining an extra 130 lumens on your subject. The [expose] has a built-in lithium-polymer battery, so it doesn’t drain your iPhone’s battery.

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Afterburner Battery Cases for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus

By Janet Cloninger / January 14, 2015 / News / Batteries and Chargers, Cases and Covers, iOS, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus / Leave a Comment

afterburner iphone 6 6 plus battery case 2

There seems to be an influx of battery cases for the new iPhone 6 models lately, but this Afterburner case seems to be less expensive than most – and they are on discount for a limited time. There’s a model for the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. Each model will contain a 3200mAh lithium-polymer

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New Dyson Cinetic Big Ball vacuum is so efficient that it doesn’t need a filter

By Julie Strietelmeier / January 13, 2015 / News / Home and Kitchen, Vacuum / 1 Comment

When I reviewed the Dyson Animal vacuum a year ago, I was impressed by its suction and overall cleaning ability. Dyson is well known for their convenient bagless design, but now they’ve improved things even more by ditching the filter. In other sweepers filters can clog if not cleaned regularly, which causes a loss of

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Otterbox announces a protective iPhone 6 case with a built-in backup battery

By Janet Cloninger / January 13, 2015 / News / Batteries and Chargers, Cases and Covers, iOS, iPhone 6 / Leave a Comment

otterbox resurgence battery case iphone 6

The new Resurgence Power Case from Otterbox, just like any Otterbox case, is built to be protective, with its fiberglass-filled polycarbonate shell and internal foam core. This new iPhone 6 case adds a 2600mAh lithium-ion backup battery, which can double the battery life of your phone. The case protects your iPhone 6 two ways. It is

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Keep a eye on what’s happening at your front door with the Kuna lighting fixture

By Janet Cloninger / January 13, 2015 / News / Home and Kitchen, Home Automation, Home lighting, Home Security / Leave a Comment

Kuna isn’t just a lighting fixture, of course. This outdoor fixture also has a WiFi camera and intercom system built in. You connect the Kuna fixture to an app on your Android or Apple phone, and Kuna can send you alerts whenever someone is at your door. You can customize the app to notify you

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Griffin adds Fitbit Flex and Fitbit One holders to their line of wearable accessories

By Julie Strietelmeier / January 12, 2015 / News / Activity tracker, Health and fitness / 3 Comments

If the wrist strap and belt clip that comes with the Fitbit Flex or Fitbit One activity trackers are a little too dull for your liking, consider these three new wearable accessories from Griffin. Designed specifically for the Fitbit Flex or Fitbit One, there’s the Courier Clip for Fitbit ($19.99), KaZoo Clip for Fitbit ($14.99), and the Tracker Clip ($14.99).

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BodyGuardz Crown will protect the curved edges of the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, and Samsung Note 4

By Janet Cloninger / January 12, 2015 / News / Android, Cases and Covers, iOS, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, Screen Protector / 5 Comments

Both the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have beautifully smooth touchscreens with curved edges that make it impossible to find a screen protector that can protect the entire glass surface. Traditional screen protectors either stop short of the curved edge (bottom, left) or they end up with gaps at their edges (bottom, right) because

BodyGuardz Crown will protect the curved edges of the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, and Samsung Note 4 Read More

Portable, convenient ultrasonic humidifier

By Janet Cloninger / January 12, 2015 / News / Appliance, Health and fitness, Home and Kitchen, USB accessory / Leave a Comment

Winter is here with a vengeance, and you may be plagued with dry skin and static shocks as a result of the dry air the extreme cold brings. The VapOrb USB Ultrasonic Humidifier can moisten your air and reduce your discomfort. Best of all, it’s only 2″ in diameter, so you can take it with

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Gamevice wants to take your iPad gaming experience to the next level

By Julie Strietelmeier / January 11, 2015 / News / Game controllers, Gaming Gear, iOS, iPad accessory / Leave a Comment

Last week at CES in Las Vegas, Wikipad took the wraps off of their Gamevice gaming controller for iPad. The Gamevice is a classic console style controller that supports the iPad Air and iPad Mini 1, 2, & 3. Compatible with 100s of iOS games including popular titles like Bioshock, Borderlands, Call of Duty, GTA and others,

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Add a smart cover with a second screen to your iPhone 6

By Janet Cloninger / January 11, 2015 / News / Bluetooth, Cases and Covers, iOS, iPhone 6 / 2 Comments

No, not like the iPad front cover. This case does more than just protect your iPhone 6. The popSLATE actually has an second screen that can continually display information without draining the iPhone’s battery. The second screen is a 4″ ePaper screen, so it can continually display a static image without draining the battery. The

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OKIDOKEYS Smart Locks, Marshmallow Blasters, Batteries that tell you when they are low on juice and more – Weekly roundup

By Julie Strietelmeier / January 10, 2015 / News / weekly roundup / Leave a Comment

It’s time to catch up with the reviews and news that we posted this past week. Click through to view the list of last week’s gadget news and reviews.

OKIDOKEYS Smart Locks, Marshmallow Blasters, Batteries that tell you when they are low on juice and more – Weekly roundup Read More

15 watt wireless charging is on the horizon

By Kathleen Chapman / January 10, 2015 / News / Batteries and Chargers, Qi, Wireless, Wireless charging / 3 Comments

I have just recently upgraded my phone to one that supports wireless charging and was excited to try it for the first time. I was going to purchase a five watt wireless charger until I came across a press release from Freescale Semiconductor about their 15 watt wireless charging solution. Their design will support faster,

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Throw away your dustpan and use Eye Vac instead

By Janet Cloninger / January 10, 2015 / News / Home and Kitchen, Vacuum / 3 Comments

Getting all the dirt you’ve swept up into the dustpan is like a line approaching an asymptote – it never actually happens. The Eye Vac Professional stationary vacuum gets rid of the dustpan and sucks up all the dirt when you just sweep everything in front of the vacuum. I’ve seen similar vacuums built in

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The future of gadgets is going to be software

By Smythe Richbourg / January 9, 2015 / News / Apps, Smartphone / 5 Comments

Reporting on CES, NY Times columnist Farad Manjoo, in an article titled In a World of Phones, Gadgets Must Adapt, speaks to a Gadgeteer’s greatest fear: getting a gadget that is no longer needed because of being subsumed by your phone. I saw this meme-type photo the other day and this story reminded me of it. I

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This dog crate blends in with your decor

By Janet Cloninger / January 9, 2015 / News / Pet Gadgets / 3 Comments

With the Polar Vortex in full blast, it’s not fit for man nor beast outside. You need to make sure you keep your four-footed friends indoors and safe, even when it’s not cold enough to kill, and many people like to use crates when they aren’t home with their animals or while they are sleeping.

This dog crate blends in with your decor Read More