Home Reviews

The Marshinator rice cereal treats review

REVIEW – In the past, we haven’t reviewed many food items here on The Gadgeteer but that’s about to change really quick because today I want to tell you about some delicious snacks that will make you remember a favorite treat from when you were a kid.

What is it?

The Marshinator treats are a new twist on the classic marshmallow rice cereal treats from your childhood. Or if you’re like me, you’re in your 5th decade and you still eat these treats semi-frequently because they are yummy!

As the story goes, the originator of The Marshinator treats had forgotten to buy a Valentine’s Day gift for his fiancé. He remembered that she loved rice cereal treats, so he whipped up a batch and shaped them into hearts. It melted hers and The Marshinator treats were born.

There are currently 10 different flavors of The Marshinator treats and they can be purchased in packs of 4, 6, and 12. I was sent a 4 pack of the flavors shown above. The full list of flavors available is as follows: Classic, Fruit Blast, Vanilla Almond, Cookies & Cream, Cappuccino, Peanut Butter Chocolate, S’mores, Cocoa Blast, and Matcha.

Each treat hand-made and is individually packaged in a sealed plastic wrapper with a cardboard sleeve that has The Marshinator story on the back along with the ingredients and nutritional facts.

Each treat has different ingredients in addition to the rice cereal and marshmallow and each treat will have different nutritional facts such as the calories. FYI: if you’re watching your calorie intake, it might be best to skip these treats because each 3 x 2-inch treat is considered 2 servings. For example, the Fruit Blast treat shown above is 205 calories per serving. If you eat the whole thing, you’ve just consumed 405 calories.

Note: The Marshinator website does not list the nutritional facts for each treat.

If calorie counting isn’t something you care about, then go crazy because these rice cereal treats are very good! They are crispy but not hard like some rice cereal treats. The contrast of crispiness to soft marshmallow chewiness makes for a perfect bite. They also aren’t overpoweringly sweet which I really like. I’ll admit that I have a sweet tooth, but I don’t want my treats to be a straight-up sugar bomb.

The unique flavors of these treats will make you forget that they are a treat for children because you will want to try each one.

Of the selection of samples sent to me to try, my favorite was the Cookies & Cream for the Oreo style cookie chunks and cream topping. It also had the most calories of the ones I sampled at a whopping 632 calories per treat. Yikes! I split each one with Jeanne because I do keep track of my calories. At least most of the time 😉

What I like

  • Yummy!
  • 10 unique flavors to choose from
  • Handmade

What needs to be improved

  • No discount for buying more
  • The website does not show nutritional content for each treat

Final thoughts

When it comes to rice cereal treats, I prefer the straight up old school version without any extras. But The Marshinator treats were a surprising and enjoyable upgrade to one of my all-time favorite treats. As long as you realize that they are 2 servings per treat and you don’t mind paying $4 for each one with no discount if you buy more, they will bring a smile to your face and tummy and fond memories to your mind. Now I want to try the other 6 flavors!

Price: $16/4pk, $24/6pk, $48/12pk
Where to buy: The Marshinator
Source: The sample of this product was provided by The Marshinator.

The post The Marshinator rice cereal treats review appeared first on The Gadgeteer.

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged:

The Marshinator rice cereal treats review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 6, 2018 at 9:05 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Nomad Battery Cable review


If you depend on your smartphone as much as I do, then anything that adds convenience is worth at least a “second look”, and in many cases, is worth trying. When I saw the Nomad battery cable, its initial appearance seemed to be unique, so I decided to test it out.

What is it?

The Nomad Battery Cable is a cable designed for the iPhone that offers the ability to charge the phone and transfer date all in one cable, with a lightning adapter on one end, an inline battery, and a USB plug on the other end.

What’s in the box


In the box, you will find the Battery cable, and the instructions printed on the inside of the box.

Design and features

Specifications

1X iPhone charge
Apple MFi approved
Pass-through charging technology
Capacity: 2800mAh
Input: USB A 5V/1.5A
Output: Apple Lightning 5V/1.5A
Length: 1.5 meter

The Nomad Battery Cable is a rugged cable that according to the manufacturer is made from Ballistic Nylon. The inline battery is encased in an aluminum housing. This cable is compatible with the iPhone 5 through iPhone X, and it is not designed for iPad. When fully charged, the inline battery is capable of providing one full phone charge. During testing, my iPhone 8 Plus was charged at about 20% per hour.
The cable is 5 feet long, with a USB connector on one end and a lightning connector on the other. The inline battery starts at approximately 11 inches from the USB end of the cable and the length of the battery enclosure is approximately 5 inches long.


Nomad includes a silicone cable strap on the cable to conveniently keep the cable wrapped up neatly when not in use or when in use in close proximity.
Rather than include an instruction booklet, Nomad uses a minimalist style and prints the instructions on the inside of the box.

On the side of the battery enclosure, there is a button to test the battery charge status, and a LED that lights orange when the battery needs to be charged or is less than 30 % charged, and lights up white when it is fully charged or charged anywhere between 30% and 100%. If the battery charge is really low, the LED flashes orange.


What I like

I like that the cable is made extremely well, and seems very unlikely to easily suffer from the fraying damage that most cables do. I also like that the battery is built into the cable so that I can carry just this one cable for both data and charging purposes.

What can be improved

I find that the length of the cable can become an issue at times even with the silicone strap. I think that if the cable can be housed in some retractable way, then it would work better for my daily use.

Final thoughts

After using the Nomad Battery Cable for a while, I am still “on the fence” about whether or not it will become a part of my “go to” bag of accessories. While the concept is good, I can buy a USB battery pack with more capacity and a well-built lightning cable for much less than the cost of this item. While this cable offers the two options in one convenient package, its use is limited to specific phones and to only providing one charge before it needs to be recharged. It can definitely be very helpful in an emergency, but I am undecided about its practicality beyond that. Maybe I will post an update in a month or two if my opinion changes.

Price: $49.95
Where to buy: Nomad website and Amazon.
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Nomad

The post Nomad Battery Cable review appeared first on The Gadgeteer.

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged: ,

Nomad Battery Cable review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 5, 2018 at 12:00 pm.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

ZAGG InvisibleShield glass+360 screen protector review

REVIEW – I’m a huge screen protector advocate. I can’t tell you the number of times they have saved my, my wife’s, and many other clutzy friend’s and family’s smartphones. It is amazing how well they work, taking the bullet for your precious device, leaving your screen alive and well. In this case, ZAGG has released a whole-phone, barely-there solution, protecting not only the front and back glass but the sides and edges of your phone as well. The InvisibleShield glass+ 360 is engineered to protect your entire iPhone in hardened tempered glass and a minimal rubber bumper case.

What is it?

As I stated above, the ZAGG Glass+ 360 provides whole-phone, relatively unobtrusive protection to your all glass and metal iPhone X. The Glass+ 360 has three components: smooth tempered glass on the front, hybrid glass on the back, and a clear, durable bumper that protects the sides and corners of your phone from bumps and drops.

Let’s face it, as smartphones have evolved into something we tech/sci-fi-nerds only dreamed of a decade ago, they have become increasingly slippery, fragile, and very expensive to repair or replace. The iPhone is a prime example of this; even though Apple continues to harden their smartphones…gravity and concrete typically win.

Design and features

ZAGG has engineered the InvisibleShield glass+360 to complete encase and protect your very expensive iPhone from the outside world.

What’s in the box

  • Glass+ 360
  • EZ Apply Tray
  • Cleaning Wipe
  • Microfiber Cloth
  • Dust Removal Sticker
  • Instructions

Installation

ZAGG includes their EZ Apply technology to help you install the screen and back protectors. This system includes the red EZ Apply Tray seen above.

The tray and wings on each of the sheets of glass are supposed to help you align and set the protectors on your smartphone perfectly on the first try…at least that is the hope/theory. For me, the tempered glass front went on seamlessly.

But try as I may, I could not get the back glass on the InvisibleShield glass+ to adhere to the bottom corners and edge. Lynn had similar issues when reviewing the ZAGG’s InvisibleShield curved glass screen protector for the Samsung Galaxy S9. That said, the problem does not seem to be getting worse and the bubble has not become any bigger or gotten dust between the protector and the back glass of the iPhone X.

I have installed nearly a hundred of screen protectors in my day from the plastic film on my Palm Vx to the high-tech curved glass of today. I do this for myself, family, friends, coworkers, etc. Not to toot my own horn but I’m a screen applying ninja…no dust or bubbles while getting the placement/alignment spot on more often than not. So, I was frustrated and disappointed I could not get the back protector to seat properly no matter what I tried.

The front glass is perfectly sized for the screen with a black edge and cutout for the notch camera assembly. The surface coating they use on the glass is silky smooth and extremely smudge resistant. I can’t say the same for the back ‘hybrid’ glass, that is a fingerprint magnet. But that is a minor thing being the back vs the screen.

The left side of the bumper case has a cutout for the mute switch and push-throughs for the volume buttons.

The right side has a push-through for the power button.

The base has cutouts for the iPhone’s lightning port and speakers.

As you can see, dust and bits collect under the clear bumper case. This is the situation after about a week of living in my pocket. But the case itself can be easily removed, cleaned, and reinstalled.

The bumper case extends past the front and back of the iPhone providing extra protection for both faces.

What I like

  • Well designed
  • 360 protection
  • Includes EZ Apply technology
  • Excellent feel and smudge resistance
  • Lifetime warranty
  • Compatible with wireless charging

What needs to be improved

  • Expensive
  • Back glass failed to seat correctly

One More Thing…

The InvisibleShield glass+360 is expensive to say the least…$70 for two pieces of glass and a rubber bumper case. I grant you the whole system is well engineered with excellent material quality but just the same, that is seriously insane in today’s world. Where you can find the pieces to create your own ‘system’ on Amazon for about 10 bucks. Before I received the Glass+360, I had been using a $3 screen protector (actually a 3 pack for $8) and Slickwrap film on the back I bought on sale for $8 for two (pictured above). About as minimalistic as you can get.

And as the story goes, this extremely minimal setup was not only inexpensive but effective. It protected my iPhone X from several serious falls. One of the times, I dropped my iPhone from approximate six (6+) plus feet off of an elliptical machine, where it bounced off various parts of the machine before coming to rest on the concrete floor below. I thought I was totally horked seeing the carnage the screen protector had taken, but low and behold once I removed the glass protector and back film the phone looked new/untouched. Now that is rock solid, barely-there, nearly naked protection.

Once I got home, I slapped on another $3 protector from the box, applied the spare film and I was good to go…

Final thoughts

Even at half the cost, I would have a difficult time recommending the ZAGG InvisibleShield glass+360 case and screen protector system to anyone. It is just too expensive with issues adhering to some of the surfaces. I grant you it feels very nice on the iPhone X, is well made, easy to install, insanely clear, and comes with a lifetime warranty but still. I have used many ZAGG products over the years and they rarely disappointed me and really the InvisibleShield glass+360 doesn’t either…it really just comes down to the bang for the buck.

Price: $69.99
Where to buy: InvisibleShield Glass+360 is available from ZAGG.
Source: The sample of this product was provided by ZAGG.

The post ZAGG InvisibleShield glass+360 screen protector review appeared first on The Gadgeteer.

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged:

ZAGG InvisibleShield glass+360 screen protector review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 5, 2018 at 9:00 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Kwilt Shoebox Mini smartphone backup adapter review


REVIEW – While I love my iPhone 8 Plus, I hate paying so much money to get the version with the most storage memory. It would be much easier to have all of my pictures stored on a drive and to have access to them whenever and wherever. The Kwilt Shoebox Mini smartphone backup adapter claims to be able to give me exactly what I want. Let’s see!!

What is it?

The Kwilt Shoebox Mini backup adapter, allows you to offload your photos and videos from your phone or tablet, and have access to them and any other media attached to the shoebox from anywhere in the world and at any time, as long as you have internet access.

What’s in the box


1 x Kwilt Shoebox
1 x Mini HDMI to HDMI adapter
1 x Micro USB to USB adapter
1 x 32GB Thumb Drive
1 x Micro USB Power Adapter
1 x Quick Start Guide
1 x Tips Leaflet
1 x Additional Information Leaflet
2 x Kwilt Stickers

Design and features

The Kwilt Shoebox is a small and lightweight device that allows you to connect a relatively limitless amount of hard drive storage and apart from offloading your pictures and videos from your mobile device to “free up” storage, you have access to the content from anywhere in the world as long as you have internet access and the app configured on your device. You can set up additional accounts for family and friends and others.


On the back of the device, from left to right, there is a mini HDMI port, a micro USB data port, and a micro USB power port.


The picture below shows how the cables are connected.


With the mini HDMI to HDMI adapter, you can attach to a TV or monitor and view the content stored on the shoebox. You can connect a thumb drive to the micro USB to USB dongle as shown below, or you can connect a USB hub with multiple drives.

Performance

The initial setup of the Kwilt was very easy right out of the box, with no issues at all. The fact that they provided a 32GB flash drive to get you started is simply amazing and a great gesture by the manufacturer. After downloading the app and following the setup instructions, all was set and ready to go. Before I go any further, here are some of the features offered:
• Creates virtually unlimited phone/tablet memory
• Share with others
• Transfer large volumes of photos and videos
• Store other types of files

Once you sign in to the app, there is the main screen that displays some of your photos and videos as a background, with the options overlayed. In the upper left corner, there is an icon that looks like a large shoebox. Selecting this icon takes you to the options to transfer your photos and videos, as well as to set your preferences. Below are pictures of some of the screens. (Not all of the screens are included in the pictures. There are too many to show, but these should give you an idea).



When I selected the option to transfer my photos and videos together, the app crashed every time without completing the task. Eventually, I selected just the videos, and those transferred successfully. At that point, I figured that it was no big deal, and I would just transfer my pictures separately. However, no matter how many times I tried, the app crashed and I had to try again.  Despite my efforts to reach their customer support by sending multiple emails via their in-app email, I never received a response from their customer service. However, I decided to try the app on my iPad and everything worked. After taking a closer look at what was happening, and comparing my iPhone settings with my iPad, I realized that the Kwilt app does not run in the background if your phone is set to auto lock and if it goes into that mode before the transfer is completed. I find this strange and quite inconvenient since unlike my iPad, I set my phone to auto lock after 5 minutes for privacy and security reasons. The solution here for the first transfer that included a large number of photos was to disable the phone’s auto-lock feature, and then the transfer was successful.

The Kwilt Shoebox can also be set to perform automatic transfers one your device connects to the same network that the Kwilt is on.


Moving on, at the bottom of the screen, there are 3 icons. From left to right, they are the live camera view, sub-menu, and settings icons. The first icon which is the live camera view, allows you to take pictures or record videos from within the app. The middle icon gives access to the sub-menu options. Once you select the middle icon, the sub-menu icons appear in a semi-circle across the bottom of the screen. Here are some screenshots:






The last icon to the right is the settings icon that provides tabs to additional setup options, preferences, account information, help options, social media sharing options and the Logout option.

What I like

I like that the Kwilt Shoebox is small and lightweight, and uses a wireless connection so that you can place it just about anywhere.

I also like that you can attach a drive of any size including a thumb drive, and even a USB hub with multiple drives. This makes the storage virtually unlimited and provides the ability able to accommodate just about anyone that you want to share access with to store their files as well.

The incremental automatic transfer once your devices and Kwilt are connected to the same network is also a great feature.

What can be improved

The app needs some work, since it crashes (or just stops working) if the device goes into auto lock mode during the transfer process.

Without a doubt, customer service/support/response must be improved.

Final thoughts

The Kwilt Shoebox is a really nice device that is designed to perform a very useful and convenient function. It provides for virtually limitless storage for your mobile picture and videos, far beyond the built-in storage capacity of any phone on the market today. What is even nicer, is the ability to allow access to others of your choice. This is a much-needed device that would serve many people very well. Once I figured out the issue with the auto lock, this device became a permanent and convenient asset on my network.

Price: $59.00
Where to buy: Kwilt Shoebox Website and Amazon.
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Kwilt Shoebox.

The post Kwilt Shoebox Mini smartphone backup adapter review appeared first on The Gadgeteer.

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged:

Kwilt Shoebox Mini smartphone backup adapter review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 4, 2018 at 9:00 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Blitzwolf BW-SDB1 Sound Bar review

 

REVIEW – Gone are the days when a whole room of equipment was needed to have great audio. As sound reproduction improves, small and smaller gadgets are being built to permit room-filling sound without the bulk. There are many sound bars on the market to fill such needs so I decided to take Blitzwolf’s BW-SDB1 for a spin to compare.

What is it?

The Blitzwolf BW-SDB1 is a 60 Watt integrated stereo amplifier and speakers housed in an attractive black plastic and metal housing. Inputs include 1/8” stereo jack, optical, coaxial, HDMI and Bluetooth. A wireless remote control is included.

Hardware Specs

  • Material：Aluminum alloy+ PC
  • Dimensions： 35.4*3.4*1.7
  • Weight：3.96lbs.
  • Power Supply：AC 100V – 240V 50 – 60Hz
  • Power Consumption： 60W
  • Audio Input Sensitivity：500mV
  • Frequency Response：40Hz – 20KHz
  • Impedance：8Ω
  • Bluetooth Version：V4.2
  • Transmission Distance：10 – 15m

What’s in the Box?

  • BW-SDB1 speaker
  • Remote control with button cell battery
  • Power cord
  • 1/8” stereo to RCA male cord
  • Optical cable
  • Instruction manual

Design and features

The Blitzwolf BW-SDB1 arrived in a long, slender green and white box. Packaging is good, with foam padding to keep the speaker from thrashing about during transportation

The power supply is integrated into the speaker housing so there is no bulky transformer, however, the AC cord protrudes some distance from the back, so care will need to be exercised to ensure sufficient room. With such a speaker, my primary application would be to install it on top of a wall-mounted television. In my case, there is not enough room to put the speaker on top of my living room TV without purchasing a right-angle power cord, however, my guest room TV is angled away from the wall, so the Blitzwolf soundbar has no trouble finding a home here (as shown above). The audio, optical and HDMI connectors follow suit. Should the speaker bar be placed on a cabinet forward of the television, this would not be an issue.

I powered up the speaker, plugged in my iPhone and selected a short playlist. Drivers in the face and top of the enclosure deliver good quality audio with little distortion. Frequency range is limited predominantly by the size of the speakers, but, to me, sounded better than comparable models. Stereo separation is very good, sounding like the speakers are much further apart than they really are. Bass was fairly good for a unit of this size, particularly when lacking a dedicated subwoofer. Treble was clean and acceptable. Vocal audibility was well balanced and this speaker would do well as an enhancement to TV speakers. I duplicated my tests using the HDMI, Bluetooth, coax, and optical inputs with similar results.

I was able to keep the Bluetooth connected anywhere I went in my home, but your mileage may vary. At the limits of the reception range of about 45’, there was a little dropout, but that is quite typical.

The remote uses a button battery. It’s simple but definitely gets the job done. Equalizer settings are verbally reported as they are cycled.

Buttons on the main speaker can also be used to control the settings, input, and volume.

I’ve used several speaker bars, some more, some less expensive than the Blitzwolf BW-SDB1 with wildly differing audio quality. The BW-SDB1 has good sound, good volume, plenty of inputs and remote control and represents a good value.

What I like

  • Metal construction
  • Remote and cords included
  • Not too expensive

What needs to be improved?

  • Cord placement makes it difficult to mount on a wall.

Final thoughts

Blitzwolf’s BW-SDB1 60 Watt soundbar is a solid contender for those wishing to enhance their television sound. It’s not going to rival a full surround sound system for audio quality, but overall I found it to be very good.

Price: $99.99
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Blitzwolf.

The post Blitzwolf BW-SDB1 Sound Bar review appeared first on The Gadgeteer.

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged: ,

Blitzwolf BW-SDB1 Sound Bar review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 3, 2018 at 1:00 pm.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.