Home and Kitchen - The Gadgeteer

Track your family’s temperature readings with the Kinsa Smart Thermometer

The Kinsa Smart Thermometer is a smartphone connected digital thermometer that is compatible with a variety of iOS and Android devices (see compatibility info). The name “Kinsa” comes from the words Kinder, meaning child, and Kin, meaning family. The thermometer is thin and flexible for comfort and plugs into the headphone jack of the mobile […]

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Balls of Steel with Arctic Core review

By Morgan Bornstein / September 6, 2014 / Reviews / Beverage, Home and Kitchen / 3 Comments

About a year and a half ago I reviewed a set of Balls of Steel, a drink cooler with a snappy name and ties to testicular cancer research; fifteen percent of their net profits are donated towards the cause. They recently reached out again to ask if I’d like to review their version 2.0–Balls of

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Matt Ferguson’s Star Wars Trilogy on sale for a very limited time

By Janet Cloninger / September 6, 2014 / News / Art, Home and Kitchen, Star Wars / 2 Comments

These Star Wars art prints by Matt Ferguson allow you to pay homage to your favorite movies and add some artwork to your home or office. These prints are very limited edition. If you want one, you’ll need to place an order before Sunday, September 7, 2014 at 11:59PM ET. The actual number of prints

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September is National Preparedness Month – let Champ Preparedness help you get prepared

By Janet Cloninger / September 5, 2014 / News / Emergency lighting, Emergency preparedness, Gear, Home and Kitchen / Leave a Comment

Were you aware that it is National Preparedness Month? Are you part of the sixty percent of Americans determined by the American Red Cross that are wholly unprepared for a disaster? Emergencies don’t have to be huge things, like hurricanes, tornados, or floods; they can be smaller things like car accidents or smaller damages to your

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Philips now offers a warm-white LED bulb for their Hue WiFi-connected lighting system

By Janet Cloninger / September 4, 2014 / News / Home and Kitchen, Home Automation, Home lighting / 5 Comments

My mission is to automate the lighting in my house. I don’t have to have every light connected to the internet, but I would like to have WiFi-connected and controllable bulbs in certain rooms in my house. I got the Hue Starter Kit for Christmas last winter, and I use them in my living room

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Dyson unveils the Dyson 360 Eye cyclonic robot vacuum cleaner

By Julie Strietelmeier / September 4, 2014 / News / Home and Kitchen, Robot, Vacuum / 6 Comments

In all my gadget reviewing years, I have yet to try or even test a robotic vacuum cleaner. It hasn’t been from lack of desire, I just haven’t found one worth trying – till now. Today in Tokyo, Dyson unveiled the Dyson 360 Eye cyclonic robot vacuum cleaner and it looks very impressive. From its

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Reduce germs and sanitize while you vacuum with this Verilux vacuum

By Janet Cloninger / September 2, 2014 / News / Cleaning, Home and Kitchen, Vacuum / Leave a Comment

When my daughter recently moved into her dorm room, the first thing I did was put a mattress encasement on that mattress that had been used for years by people doing who knows what. shudder! I wish I had had this Verilux vacuum with me, too. The CleanWave Sanitizing Portable Vacuum is a hand-held model that is

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Belkin WeMo LED Lighting Starter Set is finally shipping

By Janet Cloninger / September 2, 2014 / News / Home and Kitchen, Home Automation / 1 Comment

Actually, they’ll be shipping on September 18, 2014, but Belkin is finally taking pre-orders for these WiFi-controllable light bulbs. I’ve used Belkin WeMo Switches for a long time now. I have lamps plugged into them around my house, and the Switches are programmed to turn my lights on at sunset and off several hours later.

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Rockabye baby automatically with the Nuna LEAF

By Julie Strietelmeier / August 31, 2014 / News / Furniture, Home and Kitchen, Kid Gadgets / Leave a Comment

Parents who are looking for a battery, electricity and noise free way of gently getting their little ones to sleep should look into the Nuna LEAF. It’s a leaf shaped chair attached to a sturdy frame that can be locked into a stationary position or unlocked to swivel side to side with a slight push.

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Sumo Lounge Omni Reloaded review

By Julie Strietelmeier / August 30, 2014 / Reviews / Furniture, Home and Kitchen / 3 Comments

I love my Lazy Boy couch and my double recliner, but most furniture items want you to adapt to them instead of the other way around. You can’t easily move a recliner around your home from room to room or fold it up and shove it under the bed when you don’t need it. But with

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Come up to the lab and see what’s on the … err, what’s cooking

By Janet Cloninger / August 29, 2014 / News / Cooking, Home and Kitchen / Leave a Comment

I’ve heard the expression that baking is science and cooking is an art (meaning that baking requires more precise measurements, temperatures, and times, while cooking is a bit more forgiving), but as any chemist knows, it’s all just chemistry. This cute salt and pepper set lends an air of the chemistry lab to your kitchen.

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Buck Knives 941 Travelmate Kit review

By Julie Strietelmeier / August 28, 2014 / Reviews / Camping, Cooking, Cutlery, Home and Kitchen, Outdoor Gear / 3 Comments

The next time I go camping will be never, but if you love that activity, the Buck Knives 941 Travelmate kit is a nifty addition you should consider adding to your camping kitchen gear. It packs a knife, fork and other tools in a convenient sheath that even prevents the spread of bacteria. Let’s take a

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Here’s the true secret to easily spreadable butter

By Janet Cloninger / August 27, 2014 / News / Cooking, Food, Home and Kitchen / 23 Comments

It seems many people are looking for the perfect method for buttering up their toasts and bagels. Julie was disappointed with the knife that promised to use the heat of her hand to make butter spreadable that she reviewed yesterday. As Julie mentioned, butter can actually be left out on the counter without refrigeration, but

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ScoopThat! and SpreadThat! self-warming ice cream scoop and butter knife review

By Julie Strietelmeier / August 26, 2014 / News / Cooking, Home and Kitchen / 31 Comments

I love ice cream and I love butter, but what I don’t love is having to wait for them to soften and melt so that I can scoop and spread them. Is there a solution other than just waiting? Maybe… The self-warming ScoopTHAT and SpreadTHAT ice scream scoop and butter knife claim to solve these

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Walhub switch plate storage review

By Greg Carter / August 23, 2014 / Reviews / Home and Kitchen, Organize / 2 Comments

Do you frequently misplace your keys in your house or apartment? Share your keys with others in your household and need a common access point? Like to dump your keys as soon as you come in so they’ll be accessible when you leave? Leave outgoing mail near the door so you don’t forget to post

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Get ready for Oktoberfest with Das Can-In-Stein

By Janet Cloninger / August 23, 2014 / News / Beverage, Home and Kitchen / Leave a Comment

Your barware might not include expensive ceramic or metal beer steins, but you can simulate the look with these Das Can-In-Stein beverage can holders. Simply slip any standard 12 ounce can into the “scaffolding”, and you’ll have a stein, complete with handle and thumb-opened hinged lid. Although it looks like pewter, Das Can-In-Stein is made

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Save space with collapsible buckets

By Julie Strietelmeier / August 22, 2014 / News / gardening, Home and Kitchen, Outdoor Gear / 3 Comments

Janet recently turned me on to the Tiny House Nation TV show on the FYI channel. While I know I will never be able to talk Jeanne into downsizing to a 500 or smaller square foot house, I can’t help but dream about minimizing and simplifying all our junk. I love watching the Tiny House

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Viatek Night Stars Landscape Lighting review

By Bill Kuch / August 22, 2014 / Reviews / Home and Kitchen, Lighting, Outdoor Gear, Outdoors / 23 Comments

Ever since my granddaughter visited Disney World, she’s been asking when I was going to put “Fairy Lights” in the trees around the house. I’ve been able to deflect, usually with the promise of ice cream, but now I can answer her request using the Night Stars light. Although my initial thoughts were “who needs

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These SmartPlanet lunch containers expand to hold your lunch and flatten for the trip home

By Janet Cloninger / August 18, 2014 / News / Food, Home and Kitchen / Leave a Comment

SmartPlanet has a line of lunch containers that flatten up for compact carrying home after the lunch is eaten. More importantly for people with not much storage in the kitchen, they don’t take up a lot of storage space, either. The Collapsible Eco Meal Kits have BPA-free silicone bases that open to hold your food,

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Simplify your home automation with the SmartThings Hub and app

By Kathleen Chapman / August 17, 2014 / News / Android, Home and Kitchen, Home Automation, iOS / 4 Comments

There are a lot of home automation devices out there, each with their own app. As you work towards the smart home of your dreams, before long, you’ll have multiple apps for your multiple devices. You can simplify things by controlling everything with the SmartThings Hub and iOS/Android app (you’ll need at least iOS 7.0

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