There have been few toys that have drawn neighborhood jealousy as much as the Rollplay Nighthawk NexGen we’ve been testing. It’s an incredibly fun electric ride-on toy with a powerful 24V battery that powers a single rear wheel and is steered by your child by leaning side to side.
During the course of the pandemic, I’ve collected my fair share of masks in a variety of colors. Some have been good, and some have been bad, but none were quite like the Refresh Mask N95 Personal Purification System. A self-proclaimed ‘Intelligent Personal Air Purifier’ that leads me to ask the question — Why?
We all have certain personal, medicinal, or otherwise private items that we’d prefer not to be easily discovered by curious children, snoopy coworkers, or opportunistic strangers; the TROVA GO can help. Marketed as a discreet biometric smart storage vessel, the TROVA GO is compact, intelligent, and secure.
Being first-time parents came with many helpful suggestions of “things we should get.” Some were useful, but we ended up not needing many of those items; some of them we ended up regretting instantly, exchanging them for things we would actually use. But one of the saving graces over the first 5 months of our daughter’s life hasn’t been new toys or a NoseFrida, but what she’s slept in. After the past few months, it’s been repeatedly shown why the Happiest Baby SNOO Smart Sleeper Bassinet has been the best thing we’ve used with or our newborn.
Before the pandemic, when I would travel (remember doing that?), I usually packed a gear pouch loaded with cables, batteries, adapters, and more. The resulting package was bulky, cumbersome, and it weighed a lot, but it kept me connected in any situation when I was away from home. Even when I’m just going out and about or to the office, I’ll usually bring too much gear with me, but the Pitaka MagEZ Digital Travel Kit makes that a thing of the past.
When Qi Wireless charging finally appeared on phones, there were (at least initially) a limited number of available chargers. That’s changed. There are more offerings than ever, and many of them deliver a full charge in far less time than ever. Then there is the SanDisk Ixpand Wireless Charger Sync. It’s a wireless charger and a solid-state backup device.
When it comes to “gear,” one of the best recent trends has been seeing how technology advances are transforming the medical and recreational cannabis business. One example is the Cloudious9 Atomic9 Vaporizer. At under $60, it is small, discreet, heats rapidly, and is a pleasure to use.
Printing photos for your relatives every time you take a great shot of one of the kids or your latest vacation is so retro; instead, you could be uploading and sharing those masterpieces directly to a Brookstone PhotoShare Smart Digital Photo Frame in their homes. We’ve got their latest 14″ frame in for review, and it’s as easy to operate as it is stunning to look at (and watch).
In my attempt to ward off the “quarantine 15[pounds]”, I converted a section of my basement into a home gym consisting of a treadmill, dumbbells, and a smart TV. But after nine months, I realized I needed something new to reinvigorate my workouts. After much research, I chose the Echelon Smart Connect Bike EX-5, and I could not be happier!
OnePlus released the Nord in Europe some time ago with the promise that it would eventually arrive on our US shores. They later released the OnePlus Nord N10 5G and Nord N100 in Europe with promises to eventually bring them to the US. I’ve been testing the European OnePlus Nord N10 5G, and I am quite impressed. It is an excellent phone in its own right, and it represents OnePlus returning to its roots and the approach that first put it on our radar.
One thing that’s truly been missed out of 2020 is the ability to party with family and friends. With the holidays in full swing and the New Year looming, you don’t want to end the year without having a bit of fun. And why not do so safely at home with the LG XBOOM Go PL7 portable Bluetooth speaker?
If someone had told me that after 2005 I’d be enamored by a flip-phone, I likely would have laughed at them; yet here we are. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip first came out in February, and the 5G version came out just a few months ago. While I think a lot of us were taken aback by the Z Fold 5G’s $1450 price tag and worries about how its folding screen would actually hold up over time, the Z Flip has been out long enough that even if the price understandably gives you pause, you might still be interested in…
With just a few days left before 2020 ends, Nomad is releasing not one but two new products. Their Horween leather sleeve is a thing of beauty. Available for both the 13” and the 16” MacBook Pro, it offers refined protection… for a price. They’ve also announced a new leather mousepad; it’s the MacBook accessory you didn’t know you needed.
We recently reviewed Pitaka’s MagEZ case for the iPhone 12. It’s my daily driver thanks to its lightweight, excellent protection, and the embedded metal that makes it perfect for use with Pitaka’s MagEZ chargers, like the MagEZ Juice or the MagEZ Mount Qi. But while it may be thin, the Pitaka Air Case is even thinner! Weighing just .35oz, it is featherlight but protective.
I’m a big fan of the CBD as a way to reduce anxiety and treat pain. By far, my go-to place for CBD products is Extract Labs, so when they offered me the chance to review their CBD Gummies and CBN PM softgels, I was very excited about the opportunity!
Indoor gardening has become really popular these days, and Altifarm has released the cutest version thus far. Pico is, as Altifarm puts it, “A garden in your palm.” It’s a miniature garden meant to grow small plants or herbs that is self-watering and has a built-in telescoping LED grow light. You can get yours from Indiegogo starting at $34.
I love WaterField products… but they’re going to the dogs, and that’s a good thing. In recent weeks they announced two new products, the Wag Hip Pack and Wag Dog Leash. Designed for those of us who are owned by a dog (because dog people know who’s the boss), they bring WaterField’s premium design and construction to your favorites pooch’s gear.
Nomad sent me their new Sport Strap to check out, and trust me — if you planned on getting an aftermarket band for your Apple Watch, this one needs to be it. It’s quite possibly the best third-party Apple Watch band I’ve ever used.
Back in March, when the pandemic started, my job decided early to send us home to work safely. They supplied us with monitors, keyboards, mice, and well wishes, but the one thing we couldn’t take home was our standing desk. This resulted in hours of sitting at my apartment’s kitchen island with improper posture while getting my work done. Fully recently offered me the opportunity to check out their Remi standing desk, and let me tell you… without it, I wouldn’t have been nearly as productive.
Ready Player One has been the butt of internet jokes for years. I didn’t hate it, though I agree it wasn’t exactly fine literature. Still, I enjoyed it enough that I impulsively bought Ready Player Two over the weekend despite poor reviews. Should you read it? Well, read on for my review.
Fans of classic adventure gaming can mark the date of the re-birth of the genre: October 17, 2006. That is when the first episode of all-new Sam & Max adventures was released on PC to critical and commercial success. It was followed up by five other episodes and two additional entire seasons, all from the original creators of the series and somehow living up to (or exceeding) the original series’s quality.