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5 of the Best Android Apps to Back Up Your Phone’s Data

When was the last time your phone did something strange, and you thought it was about to die permanently? Pure panic, right? If you want to assure yourself you are not going to lose your data, you should take a look at these Android backup apps to back up your phone. 1. G Cloud Despite the name, G Cloud is not part of Google. G Cloud is an easy-to-use service specifically designed for backing up mobile devices. It allows you to choose which types of files to back up, and you can save just about anything from media files to call logs. You can even… Read more

Elago’s back with another Apple Watch stand that pulls at our retro heart strings

Elago, the company that has given us Apple Watch stands with a retro twist like W3 and W4 stands, is back at it again. The W6 stand for Apple Watch is designed to turn your Apple Watch into an iPod classic, complete with the iconic click wheel.

Like its predecessors, the W6 is made of scratch-free silicone which protects the Apple Watch when it’s sitting inside the stand. And prevents it from moving around when resting on a surface. It works with all Apple Watch models and is compatible with Nightstand Mode.

It’s easy to use, simply place the Apple Watch charging puck into the cutout. Then simply slide the Watch into the opening at the top of the stand. The watches display lines up perfectly, making it look as though it’s the display of the classic music player.

The Elago W6 Stand comes in classic white or black. Right now you can pick up the white version from Amazon for $12.99. If you want it in black, it’ll cost you a couple of dollars more. Still, not a bad price to pay for a little bit of nostalgia.

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Elago’s back with another Apple Watch stand that pulls at our retro heart strings originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 5, 2019 at 11:00 am.

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Dyson Pure Cool TP04 purifying fan review

REVIEW – It’s clear by now Dyson is all about air movement, whether it’s sucking (vacuuming) or blowing (fans). Their vacuum cleaners—especially the newer Dyson cordless stick models—are practically legendary and the fans have also become quite popular. Now, Dyson has incorporated an air purifier into their floor-standing tower fan making air in a room more breathable—a good thing for allergy and asthma sufferers. 

The Dyson Pure Cool TP04 purifying fan replaces the original Dyson tower cooling fan. Its same look has not dated at all and still fits any decor.

What is it?

The Dyson Pure Cool TP04 purifying fan is a stylish 10-speed tower fan that purifies the surrounding air as it helps cool a room. It captures 99.97% of particle pollutants as small as 0.3 microns. According to Dyson, the TP04 will automatically detect and report air quality levels in real time on PM 2.5, PM 10, VOC and NO2. Dyson also claims that the TP04 is the only tower fan to clean a whole room properly. While I think that’s a bit of advertising hyperbole, using the fan will result in much cleaner air than not using one.

It comes in three color combinations: White/silver, black/nickel and iron/blue. It rotates an almost fully circular 350° and can be controlled by the free iOS/Android Dyson Link app. 

Hardware specs

  • Diameter: 8.8 in
  • Cord length: 6.05 ft
  • Height: 41.5 in
  • HEPA filter
  • Glass HEPA media
  • Weight: 10.98 lbs

In the box

  • Fan
  • Remote control
  • Inner carbon filter
  • HEPA filter

Design and features

The Dyson Pure Cool TP04 purifying fan Can be as invisible or intrusive as you want, depending on where it is placed in the room and how high the fan speed is set. Usually we have it where we’ve kept all our tower fans through the years—in the living room between the TV and fireplace. It’s probably not as effective as it would be sitting in the middle of the room, but you only see those scenarios in advertising photos that showcase the product. I’m talking real-world here.

Dyson is really good at design. They use the “form follows function” ethos, meaning that their products are functional and easy to use. That’s certainly true here. The TP04 is way better looking than most tower fans available today And I have yet to look at the manual—it’s that simple to operate. 

It was also easy to put together. The filters fit together only one way and snapped into place with no tools required. The filters are easy to replace when it’s time to do so. The on/off button is within easy reach. There’s a small, circular window that continually reports air/pollutant conditions as well as fan speed. Dyson includes a small remote with easy-to-understand pictograms illustrating functions, such as rotate, fan speed, etc. This remote magnetically attaches to the top of the fan to help prevent misplacing it. If the app is downloaded, then the circular info window and remote kinda become useless. The app will perform every function and give reports in real time.

The TP04 fan can be remotely controlled using the app by WiFi, bluetooth and is Alexa compatible (what isn’t Alexa friendly today?). The fan can be controlled from anywhere. I’ve been tempted to play with the fan while at the office to freak my wife out, but thought better of it. 🙂 

The TP04’s cooling fan is good, not great. Yes, it cools and can be either directional or stationary, but the power of the fan’s breeze isn’t as strong as other fans we’ve owned. That’s not to say that it doesn’t cool—it does that well. It’s just that some less expensive basic tower fans (albeit missing purifier functions or wifi or bluetooth or Alexa or … ) will cool quicker and better. Note that the TP04 is totally safe. There’s no way you can touch the fan blades.

There are 10 fan settings on the TP04. Once you get into the 7-10 setting, noise becomes much more pronounced. I usually have it set at 8-9 during the night to provide air movement and also white-noise, which helps me sleep. If you require complete silence while sleeping, the TP04 (or any other tower fan) may not be for you if used in the bedroom.

One cool feature (pun intended) is that during days with cooler temperatures, the TP04’s fan can be redirected to the side vents for air purification without the cooling effect. This is great for those winter months when you want to preserve heat, but still want cleaner indoor air.

The Dyson Pure Cool TP04 purifying fan traps these pollutants: PM 2.5/10, VOC and NO2. I suspect most customers won’t bother to look up what all that means, so I did. Here’s the CliffsNotes version … 

Particulate Matter (PM 2.5/10)
Airborne particulate matter (PM) varies in its composition and size. PM10 and PM2.5 particles are of major current concern. They are small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs and potentially pose significant health risks.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) causes detrimental effects to the bronchial system. NO2 is emitted when fuel is being burned e.g. in transport, industrial processes and power generation.

Volatile organic compounds (VOC)
Volatile organic compounds (VOC) are compounds of hydrogen, carbon and other elements. VOC displays a wide range of properties. Some—such as benzene—are carcinogenic, some are toxic and some are harmless.

Note that these are extremely simplified descriptions. The bottom line is that the Dyson TP04 will trap a lot of bad stuff before it gets into your lungs. My wife has asthma and the purifier function of the TP04 has helped her somewhat, but has not reduced her number of attacks. But as I said earlier, it’s better than not using one. The TP04 has been certified asthma and allergy friendly by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.

The TP04 keeps a record of air quality on board and in its app. The app shows  this info dating back to when it was first turned it on, so it’s easy to keep track of air quality progress through the weeks in use. It also shows the current humidity and temp of the room its in—good information in hot and humid Florida where I live. The TP04 also keeps track of filter life—yes the carbon and HEPA filters will eventually need to be replaced.

What I like

  • Design
  • Purifier works well
  • Wonderful app control
  • Easy filter replacement
  • Good build quality

What I’d change

  • Expensive
  • Increase fan speed

Final thoughts

This—or another well-made air purifier—can be a necessity for allergy and asthma sufferers. Dyson has managed to incorporate what’s important in improving indoor air quality and not over-complicate how to use it. Making something easy to use is itself not easy to do. That’s why so many products have convoluted manuals—not Dyson. 

It’s expensive (like most Dyson products), but few fans can do what the TP04 does and look this good doing it.

Price: $549.99
Where to buy: Dyson and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Dyson.

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Dyson Pure Cool TP04 purifying fan review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 5, 2019 at 10:00 am.

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Increase your carrying capacity with Tote-It

NEWS – How many times have you wished you had another hand to hold something? The Tote-It grants that wish times 6. The Tote-It is a sturdy 15 inch long carrying device with 3 hooks on each end that you can use to hang bag handles and other items for easier carry over your shoulder.

Tote-It was invented by a life long NYC resident who had a eureka moment when he saw a man struggling with some bags and an umbrella on a New York train. The carrier is available in 4 colors and is priced at $12 each on tote-it.net

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Increase your carrying capacity with Tote-It originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 5, 2019 at 9:00 am.

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Logitech Zone wireless headset review

REVIEW – The trend towards open office spaces and other close-quarters work environments has made getting a little peace and quiet difficult. While I have an actual office with walls and everything, they are so thin it’s almost as if I was sitting in a cubicle. I also work with two folks who’ve got voices so loud that they could do crowd control without a bullhorn. Needless to say, I jumped at the chance to check out the Logitech Zone wireless headset to see if it could bring me a moment or two of peace.

What is it?

The Logitech Zone Wireless is a compact on-ear headset that combines active noise cancellation (ANC), wireless charging and a positionable microphone to give you a comfortable listening experience whether you are connected to your favorite music source or talking on the phone.

What’s in the box?

  • Logitech Zone Wireless headset
  • Charging cable
  • Travel sack
  • Wireless charger and cable
  • Documentation and instructions
  • USB-A dongle

Hardware specs

Headset
  • 6.88 in Height x 6.96 in Width x 2.78 in Depth
  • Ear pads: 2.78 in Height x 2.78 in Width x .65 in Depth
  • 6.4 oz
  • Microphone: Omni-directional dual MEMS mic array
  • Built in Lithium Ion battery with 14 (ANC on) or 15 (ANC off) hours of talk time and 14 (ANC on) or 16 (ANC off) hours of listening time.
  • Qi Wireless charging enabled
Audio
  • Music frequency response: 30~13kHz @ -10db
  • Talk mode frequency response: 100~8kHz per TIA920
  • Microphone frequency response: 85~20kHz @ -3db
Wireless
  • Zone Wireless Receiver: .85 in Height x .54 in Width X .24 in Depth
  •  Range up to 100 feet with open line of sight

Design and features

The Logitech Zone Wireless headset is designed to sit on your ears. While I didn’t find it as comfortable as some of the over-ear models I’ve used, I was able to wear them for several hours with little discomfort. The band is padded silicone and the ear pads are leatherette and replaceable. The microphone can be positioned either on the right or left ear. It can swivel it 270 degrees so you can set it where it’s most comfortable. The microphone will automatically mute when you swivel it up, say at the end of a conversation.

All of the controls are located on the ear cup with the microphone. Along the bottom are controls for Bluetooth pairing, a power button and an ANC on/off button. On the side of the ear cup is a multi-function button that allows for call (answer, end, reject) and medial control (Music play/pause, Skip forward/backward). You can adjust the volume from here as well. The only control on the mic itself is a mute button. There is a micro-usb charging port on this ear cup as well, should you decide not to take advantage of the Qi wireless charging ability. If you want to wirelessly charge the headset  the receiver is located in the other ear cup.

Setup

After connecting to your phone through bluetooth, the only other set up involved is connecting it to the Logi Tune app (available for IOS and Android). From there, you can work basic functions such as turning the ANC on and off, adjusting the equalizer curves and view the charge status.

One cool feature is the ability to adjust the sidetone volume. This is essential when talking on the phone as it allows you to hear yourself and avoid the embarrassment of unnecessary shouting.

Performance

I went into this review with the perception that I was evaluating a pair of headphones. However, as the name implies, this is a headset, designed to be equally adept at listening to music as handling phone calls. With that in mind, I gave it a run through with several types of music (from jazz to metal to classical) and some of my favorite podcasts, all stored on my phone. I also connected the wireless dongle to my computer and sat through an hour long webinar. Finally, I made several calls on my iPhone.

Overall, I’d say that for listening to music, the Zone Wireless headset provided a satisfactory experience. While there wasn’t too much in the way of dynamics, and the sound felt slightly compressed at times, my overall impression was that it was decent for a headset designed for listening and communications. When I listened to a webinar from my computer, I found the sound much less fatiguing than any other headset I’d used for that purpose. Another bonus was that it was quite a bit more comfortable. Using the headset to make a few phone calls, I found the audio clear and echo-free. Callers on the other end said that I was easy to hear and neither of us experienced any audio drop outs.

What I like

  • Comfortable to wear for long hours at the office
  • Good call quality on both ends
  • Quick and stable wireless connection through Bluetooth and wireless dongle

What I’d change

  • Active noise cancellation is not very strong
  • Music was somewhat flat, with little in the way of dynamics

Final thoughts

I’d say that the Logitech Zone Wireless headset is a great choice if you are looking for a do-it-all headset for the office. It doesn’t excel for critical music listening like dedicated headphones, nor does its active noise cancellation come close to industry leaders in blocking unwanted noise. However, it provides you with a decent listening experience, good call quality and the ability to tune out most distractions in your office environment.

Price: $199.99
Where to buy: Logitech and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Logitech.

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Logitech Zone wireless headset review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 5, 2019 at 8:07 am.

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