Home 2018 May

The Cuisinart DCC-3000 Coffee-on-Demand 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker gets your day off to a great start


If you are anything like me, your work day has to start with a cup or two of coffee. I particularly like the French Vanilla flavor, and everyone in the office knows when I get to work in the mornings, because of the great aroma of that Folgers French Vanilla ground coffee. They have become so accustomed to the scent that I can never pretend to be at work when I am not. This custom has evolved into a responsibility on me, to make coffee for several of my co-workers every morning, and has forced me to look at coffee makers that may work better than my current one.

My research has led me to a few, and today I am looking at the Cuisinart DCC-3000 Coffee-on-Demand 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker. That name alone is a mouthful. This coffeemaker touts an on-demand system that dispenses one cup at a time, and up to 12 cups for each filled water reservoir. As folks grab cups of coffee, there is a gauge that shows how many cups are available, and in my case it would indicate how much closer we are to the main event fight for the last cup. A nice feature is the included charcoal water filter that makes sure that each cup of coffee tastes great, and with the programmable shutoff and the self-clean functions, it will be ready at every moment for the next brew and eventual fight.

If you would like to take a closer look at the features of this coffeemaker, or if you decide to purchase one, you can head over to Amazon and check it out. It is available for purchase for $79.34.

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The Cuisinart DCC-3000 Coffee-on-Demand 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker gets your day off to a great start originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 8, 2018 at 8:00 am.

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MNML Case Pixel 2 XL thin case review

I prefer to use my phones naked. That’s the phone, not me! 😉 Cases add bulk and cover up the phone’s style. But, I also like to keep my phone protected and add some grip to it since a lot of phones these days are ultra slippery. One way to add a little protection and grip to a phone is to add a thin cover to the back. The folks at MNML Case sent me one of their 35mm thin covers for the Pixel 2 XL. Let’s take a look.

What is it?

The Pixel 2 XL Thin Case from MNML is exactly that. It’s a really thin case. 35mm thin to be exact. And it is available in 6 colors including the Really Blue version that they sent me.

Design and features

There’s not a whole heck of a lot to say about this “case”. It’s basically a super thin piece of flexible plastic that snaps on the back of your phone.

The case has cutouts for the power button, volume buttons, camera, fingerprint sensor, USB-C port, and microphone.

When it’s snapped in place, it covers the sides and back without adding any extra weight or thickness to the case.

The MNML case also does not have any branding at all. This is a completely utilitarian style case. There’s nothing flashy about it.

One nice feature is a lip around the camera lens that slightly higher than the lens itself, which adds a bit of protection when the case is on a flat surface.

The cutouts for the power button and volume buttons line up perfectly and since the case is so thin it doesn’t hinder pressing the buttons.

The MNML case doesn’t affect your calls in any way either.

Although this case covers the corners and the back of the phone, it only adds the basic protection from scratches and knocks. I would not expect the case to offer any protection from falls.

What I like

I like that the MNML case is so thin that you will forget that it’s there. I like that it adds a little bit of protection to the camera lens and it will keep the back of your phone from being a fingerprint magnet.

What needs to be improved

A lot of people like to add a thin case to their phone to provide extra grip because their phone is slippery. Unfortunately, I don’t think that the MNML case improves the slipperiness of my Pixel 2 XL at all and it might be just a little bit more slippery than without it. I really wish the MNML case had more of a rubberized coating that would improve the grip.

Final thoughts

The Pixel 2 XL thin case from MNML adds zero bulk and some basic protection from scratches to the back of your phone, but that’s about the extent of it. If that’s all you desire for your Pixel 2 XL, and your budget is small, the MNML case isn’t the worst choice that you can make, but I think there are better choices if you don’t mind paying more. You can check out my favorite gear page to see my current favorite Pixel 2 XL cover.

Price: $14.99
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by MNML.

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MNML Case Pixel 2 XL thin case review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 7, 2018 at 5:12 pm.

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Diaper bags and baby gear for dads living in the urban jungle

When my daughter was born, I bought a bunch of Disney’s The Lion King stuff for her, including a diaper bag.  It had a leafy jungle print background and an appliqué of Simba on the front.  It was cute, and it was obviously for the baby I was toting around.  I never gave the cutesy design a second thought.  Years later, I realized, while looking for news items to write about for The Gadgeteer, that some people want plain, utilitarian bags for their kid’s stuff.  I asked my husband if that cutesy bag had bothered him, but he said he never gave it a second thought, either.  It was Rachel’s bag, and he was just carrying it for her because she was too small to carry it herself.

While searching for news items a couple years ago, I found a variety of gray or neutral bags for people who didn’t like carrying colorful baby bags, but I did notice that most of them, while plain and neutral, still looked more like a lady’s tote bag than a unisex bag.  I just found some diaper bags by a company called Tactical Baby Gear that might look more at home loaded up with gear for a military campaign than they would being loaded up with bottles and diapers for a day out with the kids.

TBG Deuce 2.0 (yeah, I noticed the name, too) Tactical Diaper Bag, as described by the creator himself, “marries a typical diaper bag with rows of MOLLE webbing. This webbing allows for complete customization, as dads can swap out tactical pouches, bottle pouches, baby blowout pouches, and the top-selling “dump pouch,” which is designed for exactly what you think.”  They have the Deuce 2.0 bag (shown above), backpacks, changing pads, baby carriers, and accessories in black, coyote brown (shown), gray, and black camouflage.  Prices start at $80.00 for the Deuce 2.0.  Learn more and purchase your gear at Tactical Baby Gear.

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Diaper bags and baby gear for dads living in the urban jungle originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 7, 2018 at 1:41 pm.

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Roland GO:MIXER audio mixer review

The GO:MIXER from Roland is a palm-sized audio mixer aimed at today’s content creators whether their taste is music, podcasts or video.

What is it?

It’s a small format mixer that lets you blend multiple input sources for a seamless output to a USB connected smartphone, tablet or laptop.

Hardware specs

Audio Channels: 8 input channels, 2 output channels
Connectors: Instrument (L/Mono, R) 1/4”
Line-in 1&2: 3.5mm stereo audio jacks
Mic-in: 1/4” (no phantom power)
Guitar/Bass: 1/4” (high-impedance)
Monitor out: 3.5mm stereo audio jacks
USB: USB Micro-B
Power supply: USB bus power
Current draw: 40 mA
Accessories:
     Lightning to USB Micro-B cable (~50cm / 1.5’)
USB OTG Micro-B to Micro-B cable (~50cm / 1.5’)
Size & weight: 95mm x 95mm x 28mm and 100gm (without cables)

What’s in the box?

Roland GO:MIXER
Lightning to USB Micro-B cable
USB OTG Micro-B to Micro-B cable

Design and features

YouTube, Instagram and other video sharing sites continue to grow and the success of a clip can just as easily depend on production quality as it does on the content itself. It’s clear that Roland aimed this product squarely at these creators. Let’s dive in a bit further…

Setup

The GO:MIXER is really its own instruction manual. As with most traditional audio products all the inputs, outputs and knobs are clearly labeled with their intended use and function. There are input level knobs for each of the three inputs as well as a knob for master output volume. Depending on what you’re trying to do, all that’s left is to connect your instruments, mic and/or auxiliary audio with the appropriate cables. In this review we’ll be connecting a microphone and an acoustic electric guitar via 1/4″ cables.

Performance

My son is a guitar player and I’ve enlisted his help with this review. Over the years, he’s created a number of videos for social channels and quickly got frustrated with audio quality when relying on his phone to capture audio with the onboard mic. The solution was to record audio separately (he prefers Reason) and then use iMovie to sync them up after the fact. That process worked well but required a lot of time.

The GO:MIXER solves for this exact scenario. With it’s included lightning cable (Micro-USB for Android) any audio sources coming through the GO:MIXER are piped straight to the phone in lieu of the iPhone mic. Playing an instrument, a vocal take with a microphone, or any combination of sources all come through pristinely. It’s important to note all sources are live feed so they need to be simultaneous. If you want to layer multiple takes, you’ll still need to use editing software.

I’ve created A and B videos with an iPhone X for comparisons. I didn’t worry about getting the video perfect for these as it’s the audio we’re focusing on for this review. The videos in this case are to help provide visual reference for what you’re hearing.

Video A

This video is shot with an iPhone X in the standard camera app using the built-in mic. The phone is set up on a tripod using a Glif smartphone holder from Studio Neat.

Overall, it sounds pretty good for a video recording on a mobile phone. What you don’t hear or experience is the multiple takes necessary to avoid the barking dog or the truck rumbling by. The bottom line is you’re going to get whatever audio is happening around you.

Video B

This is the same guitar / iPhone / tripod setup, but with some direct connections. The GO:MIXER is connected to the phone with the lightning cable. The acoustic/electric guitar to the guitar input. An Audio Technica M8000 microphone to the mic line-in. (The mic is actually not a Sennheiser as described in the video; bad cues on my part there.)

In the video, you’ll notice that he voice is clearer (holding a mic obviously). The guitar is crisp with more of the many subtleties present (fingers sliding on strings, fretting, etc.) While the audio levels may not be perfect in this video, a little experimentation will land on the best settings for each sound source.

Observations

  • The included cables are pretty short; only about 18”. They work well with smartphones and tablets if you’re using the selfie or front facing camera. If you want to use the (usually better) rear-facing camera, the short cables put the GO:MIXER further away from you and out of reach which means you’ll need to have your settings figured out ahead of time, as well as a way to start your recording remotely. Not a deal breaker by any means, but something you’ll want to consider. Micro-USB to Lighting cables are not readily available, so finding one will be a bit tricky should you need one.
  • The USB-bus power is a cool feature and it means one less thing to charge. Connect the GO:MIXER to your phone and it’s powered. The only catch here is that if your phone turns off / times out, the power to the GO:MIXER is also cut. It’s not an issue if you’re actively recording or have an app set to keep the phone from sleeping, but if you’re just practicing and the phone times out, the audio drops. Setting your phone to never sleep is a quick fix but you’ll obviously drain your battery faster.
  • The GO:MIXER also works well with a computer. Just supply your own USB Micro-B to USB A cable and connect it. Make sure to select it as the source in whatever application you choose to use.
  • There’s also a karaoke feature called “center cancel”. This should knock vocals down on audio source connected to Line-in 1 or 2. This function does not work if you’re playing audio from the USB connected phone. Makes sense, but unfortunate given the phone is where most of us keep our music these days.
  • There is a note on their website that some Android smartphones may convert the stereo USB audio output to mono on receipt. This was something I was unable to verify with the equipment I had on hand.

What I like

  • No batteries or power supply
  • Lightweight and small
  • Simple, understandable controls
  • App agnostic
  • Relatively low cost

What needs to be improved

  • Length of the included cables
  • Center-cancel function doesn’t work on a USB connected music source

Final thoughts

The GO:MIXER is intuitive and does what they claim it will. For capturing clean signals from simultaneous sources Roland has made it very easy to record a video without a lot of setup or post editing. There are more expensive solutions out there that are dedicated to source input for editing software, but for a multipurpose solution with a focus on one-and-done, Roland’s got a winner here. If you need to know more, Roland’s GO:MIXER webpage has a lot of detail.

Price: $99.99
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Roland

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Roland GO:MIXER audio mixer review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 7, 2018 at 10:00 am.

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The Yongnuo YN-24EX TTL Macro Flash for Canon Cameras is flashy but not pricey


Once again, Yongnuo is making a difference in the photography industry with another one of their photography products. The Yongnuo YN-24EX TTL Macro Flash for Canon Cameras is a great product that works very well, and is priced less than 1/5 the cost of the Canon macro twin flash. I own this twin flash, and while it is not completely equal to its Canon counterpart, it comes in at a very close 2nd place. It is well built, quite solid, and quite durable. Since these types of gear must always be handled with care, there is no weakness in build quality when compared to Canon’s twin flash.

This twin flash fully supports Canon’s E-TTL / E-TTL II system, and also allows for the usual manual control. Just like the Canon version, it has two flash heads that mount on the front of your lens. You can control the position of each flash head for optimal lighting of the subject. There is a LED autofocus assist light built in, and “users have access to both 1st and 2nd curtain sync”. The flash also has a PC sync port, and it can be powered by 4 AA batteries or an HV power pack. Included in the box are 4 adapter rings (52mm, 58mm, 67mm, and 72mm), and a nice protective pouch good for storage and transporting.

If you would like to purchase the Yongnuo YN-24EX TTL Macro Flash for Canon Cameras, head over to Amazon or B&H Photo Video and pick one up for $171.

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The Yongnuo YN-24EX TTL Macro Flash for Canon Cameras is flashy but not pricey originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 7, 2018 at 9:00 am.

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