Misc Gear

VollyC EZYPAK Vacuum Travel Bags Review: A Travel Hack That Actually Saves Space

If you’ve ever stared at a suitcase and wondered how your clothes multiplied overnight, vacuum travel bags can feel like a pretty tempting solution. For an epic 14-day trip to Ireland, I tested the VollyC EZYPAK system to see whether these vacuum travel bags really make packing easier, more compact, and more organized. After trying them at home and then using them throughout a two-week trip with frequent hotel changes, I’ll let you know what I think.


Gear Diary’s 2026 Father’s Day Gift Guide & Giveaway: Smart, Stylish, and Useful Gifts That Dad Will Love

Welcome to our 2026 Father’s Day Gift Guide, where the goal is simple: help you find something Dad will actually use, enjoy, and maybe even brag about a little. This year’s picks cover the practical, the indulgent, the outdoorsy, the techy, the cozy, and the delicious, because fathers are not a monolith, despite what novelty grill aprons suggest. Whether you’re shopping for a golfer, traveler, cook, camper, audiophile, whiskey lover, or dad who simply deserves a better everyday upgrade, you’ll find plenty of thoughtful ideas here. Be sure to stick around for the giveaway at the end, too.


The reMarkable Paper Pure Is a $399 Digital Notebook for People Who Still Think Best on Paper

The reMarkable Paper Pure is the company’s new 10.3″ black-and-white paper tablet, built for people who want the quiet focus of handwriting without fully stepping away from digital work. Announced today, it starts at $399 and is expected to begin shipping in early June. This isn’t the color-screen, frontlit model for people who want every bell and whistle. Instead, Paper Pure looks like reMarkable’s attempt to make its third-generation paper tablet lineup feel less aspirational and more approachable, with faster writing, a crisper display, longer battery life, and enough workflow tools to earn a place beside a laptop.


SurviveX Large First Aid Kit Review: Basically a Field Hospital for Your Trunk

Whether you’re a weekend warrior tackling the trails or just someone who occasionally loses a battle with a stubborn bagel, being prepared is half the battle. I have seen a lot of medical kits, ranging from “two Band-Aids and a prayer” to “full-blown field hospital.” I like to carry kits in my Jeep and have a couple at the ranch in deer blinds, available for emergencies while working. The SurviveX Large First Aid Kit definitely leans toward the latter, and it’s become a fast favorite for my bug-out bags and trunks.


Crafty Moms, Rejoice! Cricut’s Mother’s Day Sale is Here

If your mom is the type of person who sees a plain coffee mug and thinks, “That needs a custom vinyl monogram,” or if she’s been eyeing a way to turn her Pinterest boards into reality, listen up. Cricut just kicked off its Mother’s Day sales event. We’re talking discounts on the heavy hitters, including the very first price drop on the brand-new Explore 5 since its launch. Whether she’s a seasoned pro or a beginner, Cricut’s updated Design Space (now featuring an AI Project Designer and Guided Flows) makes the learning curve feel more like a gentle slope.


Gear Diary’s 2026 Mother’s Day Gift Guide & Giveaway: Stylish, Smart, and Genuinely Thoughtful Gifts for Mom

Mother’s Day gift guides can veer into clichés fast, but the best gifts are the ones that feel chosen, useful, and maybe a little indulgent in all the right ways. This year’s roundup leans into that sweet spot, with picks for mothers who love better sleep, smarter travel, polished tech, beautiful kitchens, cozy patios, and the everyday upgrades that quietly make life nicer. Some are practical, some are playful, and a few are definite splurges, but all of them were picked with real life in mind. And before you click away, be sure to stick around for the giveaway at…


The Prego Connection Keeper Turns Family Dinner Conversations into Keepsakes — No Phone Needed

The new Prego Connection Keeper sounds like the kind of branded idea that could go wrong in a hurry. A pasta sauce company teaming up with StoryCorps to sell a recording device for family dinners has all the ingredients for something overly precious, but the actual concept is more grounded than it first appears. The limited-edition Prego x StoryCorps Connection Keeper is a simple, offline recorder designed to capture the kinds of dinner-table conversations that usually disappear the second the plates are cleared.


Vitamix Spring Deals Slash Prices of Blenders, Immersion Models, and Kitchen Systems Ahead of Mother’s Day

Some kitchen purchases seem purely practical until they become the appliance you use almost every day, and that’s exactly where Vitamix has landed for plenty of home cooks over the years. If you have been waiting for a sale to make the price feel a little easier to justify, this spring promotion may be your sign to go for it. From April 24th through May 10th, Vitamix is taking $50 to $200 off the Ascent X Series, Propel Series, 5200, VX1, and select kitchen systems. The 5-Speed Immersion Blender is also $25 off, and the 2-Speed model is $30 off.


NextSense Smartbuds Review: A Clever Sleep-Tech Idea That Never Quite Let Me Forget It Was in My Ear

NextSense Smartbuds arrive with promises that would make any sleep gadget hard to resist. You tell yourself this might be just the thing™ that finally blocks the hotel HVAC drone, the hallway slams, your spouse who somehow snores in surround sound, and the midnight brain chatter that has no business chattering when the rest of you is trying to clock out. Sleep earbuds already have a tough job. They have to stay comfortable against a pillow, disappear enough that you don’t fixate on them, last through the night, and actually help rather than just look good in an app.


4Patriots Blackout Buddy Emergency Power Supply Review: The Automatic Fridge Backup Battery

If you want automatic backup power that kicks in the instant the lights go out, the 4Patriots Blackout Buddy delivers exactly what it promises. Installation is dead simple, the automatic switchover is seamless, and the remote monitoring screen is genuinely useful. But here’s the catch: fridge/freezer combos with ice makers may exceed the 600W max output. Our GE Profile fridge/freezer pulled 620W at peak, which means this may not work for some appliances. For older, lower-power fridges or freezers? It may work, but you’ll need to check the power draw.


Bob and Brad Zero Pro Ultra-Quiet Eye Massager Review: Headache Relief Is Available at Home and On-the-Go

When I was a kid and would get sinus infections, my mom’s solution was always to heat up a washcloth in the microwave. The heat over my aching sinuses would help until the washcloth cooled off, and then I had a slightly less bad headache and a damp forehead. Bob and Brad have taken their knowledge of massage and expanded it from guns to eye massagers, and they’re also addressing the hot and cold compress treatment as well with the Bob and Brad Zero Pro Ultra-Quiet Eye Massager!


KitchenAid Artisan Plus Stand Mixer Debuts with 11 Speeds, a Bowl Light, and Smarter Mixing Features

The KitchenAid Artisan Plus Stand Mixer is KitchenAid’s latest update to a kitchen staple that has spent decades on countertops and wedding registries. This new 5-quart tilt-head model keeps the familiar silhouette, but adds some genuinely useful upgrades, including finer speed control, a gentler fold setting, a built-in LED bowl light, stainless steel accessories, and a redesigned beater meant to cut down on scraping.


FEIERDUN QuickDial DB1 Adjustable Dumbbell Set Review: The Adjustable Dumbbells That Finally Kill “Plate Math”

I love working out at home, but there are a few things to tackle when you’re setting up a home gym. One of the biggest is space; weights and equipment take up a lot of room. The second is cost; it’s not cheap to accumulate a full set of dumbbells in multiple weight sets. FEIERDUN neatly solves both of these with the QuickDial DB1 Adjustable Dumbbell Set, which is designed as an all-in-one, space-saving setup that replaces an entire rack of weights.


15.6″ Cozyla Calendar+ 2 Review: The Smart Family Hub That Finally Gets Everyone on the Same Page

Managing a household is hard, whether you’re doing it solo or juggling the needs of a full family. There are endless moving pieces to track, from overlapping schedules and after-school activities to meal planning, grocery runs, and the constant mystery of who forgot to mention we’re out of toilet paper. Traditional family calendars used to help keep everyone aligned, but they relied on someone actually updating them. Cozyla takes that familiar concept and modernizes it with the Calendar+ 2, transforming a simple shared calendar into a centralized, interactive hub that keeps every detail and every person on track.


Tide Evo Reimagines Laundry Detergent with a 6-Layer Dissolvable Tile for Cold Water Washing

Laundry detergent has looked more or less the same for decades. You pour liquid from a heavy plastic jug, scoop powder from a box, or toss in a pod and hope it dissolves the way it should. Tide evo is trying to change that by turning detergent into a lightweight, dissolvable tile that promises the same cleaning power without the bulky bottle. It sounds simple, but the idea took years to develop.


The $78 KANE Revive OB Turns the Humble Slide Into a Serious Recovery Shoe

Athletes tend to focus on performance. Recovery usually happens in the quieter moments between workouts, games, and everything else that fills a day. Those small transitions, like walking out of the gym, standing in line for coffee after a long run, or shuffling around the house after leg day, can determine how your body feels the next morning. KANE builds recovery shoes specifically for those moments when your feet are tired, but you’re not quite done moving. The KANE Revive OB takes the brand’s familiar recovery design and reshapes it into a casual open-back slip-on built for quick transitions.


Cricut Shrinks the Machines, Not the Magic with the Joy 2 and Explore 5

If your crafting habit currently looks like a mountain of glitter and a machine the size of a microwave, Cricut has some very good news for your desk space. Today, they’ve pulled the curtain back on two new evolution-of-the-species machines: the Cricut Joy 2 and the Cricut Explore 5. Whether you’re a “make a custom card five minutes before the party” person or a “label every jar in the pantry” person, these updates are looking pretty sleek.


Statik Rechargeable AA and AAA Batteries Promise a Simpler Fix for the Disposable Battery Problem

Disposable batteries have a way of quietly multiplying in modern homes, especially once toys, controllers, flashlights, and small gadgets start piling up. The new Statik Rechargeable AA Battery and its AAA counterpart aim to ease that familiar frustration by replacing traditional alkaline cells with rechargeable versions that plug directly into USB-C, eliminating the need for a separate charging dock or specialty adapter.


SKG G7 Pro_Fold Neck Massager Review: A Smarter Approach to Fixing Modern “Tech Neck” Pain

Neck pain has quietly become one of modern life’s most reliable side effects. If you spend enough hours leaning over a laptop, peering down at your phone, or wedged into an airline seat that eternal optimists clearly designed, your shoulders will eventually begin to hurt. Portable massagers try to solve the problem, though most fall into familiar extremes: bulky massage guns that rarely leave home or lightweight should-worn options that buzz without doing much else. Then there’s the 3rd-generation SKG G7 Pro_Fold, made to offer meaningful relief in a light and portable design that can tag along through everyday routines.


Fed Fitness FEIERDUN 5-in-1 Adjustable Weights Review: Big Home Gym Value with One Serious Barbell Flaw

I started working out at home during the pandemic, and even after gyms reopened and life returned to something close to normal, I kept it up. Skipping the commute and waiting for equipment has its perks. Fed Fitness recently sent over the FEIERDUN 5-in-1 adjustable dumbbell and barbell combo, along with a Flybird weight bench, transforming my spare space into a surprisingly capable home gym. The setup promises impressive versatility in a compact footprint, though one part of that flexibility comes with an important limitation. Even so, it covers nearly everything I need for most home strength-training workouts.


AT&T Wants to Fix the “First Phone” Problem with the New amiGO Jr. Phone, a Smartphone Built Just for Kids

Giving a child their first smartphone has become one of modern parenting’s more fraught milestones, sitting somewhere between handing over a house key and giving them the car keys, except the smartphone is also a portal to everything wonderful and deeply questionable about the internet. For years, parents have faced an unsatisfying binary choice: hand down an old iPhone and hope for the best, or opt for a stripped-down “kid phone” that often felt more like a plastic toy than a serious communication tool. The new AT&T amiGO Jr. Phone is an attempt to redraw that line.