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ec-bc luggage, Apple iPads, iPods, and more – Review updates

This batch of review updates covers some devices that are almost 10 years old! How’s that for long-term use info? That’s actually the whole point of these regular review updates. It’s a way to let you know how well a product stands the test of time. Click through to see a list of the reviews that have been updated and then find the update at the bottom of each review.

ec-bc Sparrow II Wheeled Garment Bag review by Bill Henderson

Flosstime automated floss dispenser review by Julie Strietelmeier

mStation Orb 2.1 Stereo iPod Speaker review by Julie Strietelmeier

Apple iPod Classic 6th generation review by Julie Strietelmeier

Apple iPad 2 Review by Janet Cloninger

Apple iPad (3rd Generation) Review by Julie Strietelmeier, Janet Cloninger and David Rees

 

Product Information

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ec-bc luggage, Apple iPads, iPods, and more – Review updates originally appeared on on March 19, 2017 at 11:01 am.

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SCOTTeVEST OTG Jacket review

Clothing isn’t a topic that normally comes to mind when you think about technology and gadgets, but one particular brand of clothing has made a name for itself in exactly that niche. SCOTTeVEST products have been well known for years for one main reason… pockets! Their jackets, vests, shirts, pants and other garments have been designed with pockets that hold all of your gear while you’re on the go. The newest SeV product that I’ve had the opportunity to review is their women’s OTG jacket. Let’s take a look.

What is it?

The OTG (“Off the Grid”) jacket is an insulated jacket that is available for both men and women. The men’s version of the OTG jacket is available in black or midnight blue and in sizes S to XXXL. The women’s version of the OTG is available in black and plum and in sizes XS up to XXL. Both jackets have 29 different pockets.

Design and features


I was sent the women’s version of the OTG jacket in plum in size medium. The jacket is made of 100% ripstop nylon and features an attractive diamond quilted pattern with a flattering tapered fit.  The jacket is machine washable and has been treated for water and stain resistance.

Unlike some of SCOTTeVESTs previous garments, the OTG’s branding is not in your face. The branding is very subtle, with a SeV pocket logo embroidered on the back of the collar. There’s also a small metal logo badge sewed to the left sleeve in the shoulder area and some labels on the inside of the jacket.

The OTG jacket has a 3.5-inch tall collar that has a microfiber-style soft lining.

The collar can be zipped completely to the top and there’s a “hood” that covers the edges for comfort.

So many pockets!

Pockets accessed from the exterior

The OTG jacket has 29 pockets. Let’s see if I can list them all.

There are two Rapid Access Panels on either side that are accessed through vertical zippers that have a 1.5-inch long metal zipper pulls.

Running pocket count: 2

Inside each Rapid Access Panel is a second vertical zipper that opens into one large pocket that is big enough to hold a small laptop, tablet, a magazine, etc.

I tried to put my 13 inch MacBook Pro into the laptop pocket, but it was a little too large to fit. But my Dell XPS 13 fit just fine as well as tablets like the iPad mini and the Samsung Galaxy S Tab 10.5.

Running pocket count: 4

Inside the other section of the Rapid Access Panel on each side is a large open topped pocket with two smaller open topped pockets on top of it. The larger pocket is wide enough to hold an iPad mini and the two smaller pockets on top are large enough to each hold a Nexus 6P. The outside top edge of these three pockets

The outside top edge of the three pockets has a strip of Velcro (fuzzy) side and there’s a large elastic band inside the right side Rapid Access Panel pocket that can be used to hold a water bottle.

Running pocket count: 10

The OTG jacket has microfiber lined zippered hand warmer pockets on both sides. Inside these pockets is a small key-sized pocket that with a Velcro secured top.

The right hand warmer pocket has a removable key clip on a coiled cord.

The microfiber lined pockets are warm, but I am not a fan of this type of lining because my hands get dry during the winter months and they snag on the lining when I insert my hands in the pockets. This doesn’t hurt the lining, it just feels icky.

Running pocket count: 14

Pockets accessed from the interior

More pockets can be found when you unzip the jacket. Each side has a similar set of pockets that include a see-thru, touch-thru smartphone pocket that is large enough to comfortably hold a Nexus 6P.

Running pocket count: 16

On the zippered edge of both sides is a pen pocket that is large enough to hold one to two pens each.

Running pocket count: 18

If you look closely, you’ll see embroidered icons that tell you what each of the pockets has been designed to hold.

You will also notice the gray plastic clip in the image above. That’s part of the jacket’s PAN (Personal Area Network) system that allows you to wire headphone and power cables through specially-designed channels that prevent cables from tangling and looking sloppy.

There are also two small earbud holder pockets at neck level on both sides.

Running pocket count: 20

Below the see-thru, touch-thru pocket on the left side of the jacket are two horizontal zipped pockets. The top one is a large 10 x 10 inch sized pocket with a small lip balm sized vertical pocket with a Velcro closed top.

Running pocket count: 22

The zippered pocket below the 10 x 10 inch zippered pocket is a 10 x 6 inch mesh pocket with an ID pocket sewed to it.

Running pocket count: 24

Inside the mesh pocket is a removable RFID blocking pocket with a Velcro flap.

Running pocket count: 25

 

On the opposite side of the jacket is a vertically zippered pocket with a glass cleaning cloth attached to an elastic cord.

Below that is a horizontally zippered pocket that has two sections and another lip balm sized pocket inside it.

Another surprise I found in one of the pockets was a stack of SCOTTeVEST “trading cards” each featuring a geek hero like Steve Wozniak, Leo LaPorte and more.

Running pocket count: 29! I found all the pockets. Yay me!

The SeV OTG jacket has a few other nice features like cinch waist adjusters.

And elastic cuffs on the sleeves.


Here I am wearing the SCOTTeVEST OTG jacket sized medium. For reference, I’m 5’6″ and weigh 128 lbs. I could probably wear size small but I don’t like jackets that are too tight because I like to wear sweaters in the colder months.

Speaking of cold weather, I’ve worn this jacket almost every day for the past month. This winter has been pretty mild, but we’ve still had plenty of sub 30F days. The OTG jacket has kept me warm enough during my walks into and out of my day job office building to and from the parking lot which is about a 2 block walk give or take.

The images above are without any gear in the jacket.

I decided to load up the OTG jacket with most of the items that I normally carry in my Peak Designs Everyday Messenger bag. If you want a full description of my EDC, check out my recent EDC Update post.

And here I am with all the gear stowed away in the jacket. Did it feel bulky carrying everything? Yes, a little. The Leuchtturm1917 A5 notebook was the most noticeable item and it made sitting down feel a little awkward with it in one of the Rapid Access Panel pockets. That said, it was liberating to ditch my everyday gear bag and just throw on the jacket. I don’t see myself completely ditching a bag since I take my breakfast and lunch to work with me Monday through Friday and there’s no room in the jacket for containers of oatmeal.

Final thoughts

SCOTTeVEST has another winning jacket with the OTG. It looks nice, well made, is comfortable to wear, and offers 29 pockets to carry your EDC without needing a separate bag.

I think this jacket is great for travel or equally nice for everyday use. Either way, the SeV OTG jacket might demote your favorite gear bag to the closet.

Source: The sample for this review was provided by SCOTTeVEST. Please visit their site for more info and you can find them on Amazon too.

 

Product Information

Price: $215.00
Manufacturer: SCOTTeVEST
Retailer: Amazon
Pros:
  • Pockets, pockets, pockets!
  • Well made
  • Warm but lightweight
Cons:
  • Can get bulky if you take advantage of all the pockets to carry gear

Filed in categories: Gear, Reviews

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SCOTTeVEST OTG Jacket review originally appeared on on March 18, 2017 at 11:41 am.

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Sylvania LEDVANCE LED Flexible Strip RGBW review

This is the second in a three part review on LEDVANCE lighting and home automation products. The first review was for LEDVANCE’s Sylvania Lightify A19 LED bulb review. This review focuses on the LEDVANCE LED Flexible Strip RGBW. It is a 16-foot flexible strip that can be laid out to fit a variety of locations. The strips can be set to any color and can also tune white, changing from a correlated color temperature (CCT) of a warm 1900K all the way up to a daylight simulating 6500K. While people have been decorating their houses with white LED string lights for years, this product has some unique advantages if you control it with an IFTTT/Stringify integrated hub. Read on to see what I think…

Parts of the system

The light strip is powered by a 12 VDC transformer and controlled by a logic circuit. Both these parts are external to the light strip so the complete unit is made of 3 distinct parts: the transformer, the control module, and the light strip.

The transformer is a rather large unit at 4 3/16″ long, 2″ wide and 1 5/16″ deep (not including the ungrounded prongs). It has a circular threaded 2 contact connector on the bottom to which the cable to the lamp connects.

Because of the length of the connection and strain relief on the cable, after connecting the transformer, about 5 1/2″ will be positioned straight down from the top of the transformer. this may be a challenge for most weatherproof enclosures. While the cord does not need to be installed within the enclosure you may find that it prevents plastic shrouds and weatherproof doors from fully closing. The transformer output is rated for 12 VDC and 2 amps, which equals 24 watts, but even though the packaging and product code indicate 24 watts, the warning label attached to the light strip says that the lamp draws 29 watts.

There is about 2 feet of power cord between the transformer and the control module for the light strip. The control module is 2″ long, 1 3/8″ wide and 7/8″ high black plastic box that is DC powered and outputs the correct voltage and current for the red, green, blue, and white LEDs in the light strip. I suppose that the ZigBee radio is in this box too, so it should be mounted where it will be free to communicate with the ZigBee hub.

The light strip connects to the control module with 10″ of cable. The light strip is comprised of 16′ of rectangular silicone that contains a flexible copper strip with resistors and surface mounted LEDs. Due to the wiring connections and the extra length of the ribbon on each end, the overall length of the light strip is 16′ 1 1/2″ and it measures 9/16″ wide by 3/16″ deep.  The electronics of the unit are composed of eight 2′ sections. Each section contains 12 resistors and 24 LEDs: 12 RGB LEDs and 12 white LEDs. The LEDs are arranged with a RGB LED adjacent to a white LED and each grouping is spaced 2″ apart. All the LEDs are mounted on one side of the strip, which also acts as a heat sink for the components. The picture above shows the light strip bent back on itself and includes details of how the LEDs are grouped together, the resistors, and the soldering of 2 of the 2′ sections (the solder from the tip of the section on the top left connects and contacts the section adjacent to the letters on the top right.)

Installation

The kit comes with 16 plastic brackets and 34 wood screws to mount the light strip and control box to most surfaces. The installation instructions recommend not using staples or other fasteners that can potentially puncture the outside of the strip or damage the components inside. Because of the flexibility of the fasteners and the average installation offset of 1 foot, it is difficult to get a good tight fit in corners, even though the strip will bend as tightly as ½”. Also, because of the flat strip inside, the layout of the light strip should ideally follow a two-dimensional path as much as possible. It is possible to make left and right turns of the strip if you make a brief excursion into 3D, like so:

Also, while cutting the strip will leave the non-powered end useless, and at the same time expose the internals to the environment, it should be possible and permissible if the strip will be used indoors. In this case, the strip should be cut at one of the 7 internal junctions. A junction is shown in the picture above at the lower left. However, the packaging insert indicates that the strip should not be cut to length. This is especially true of outdoor installations. So, if you are planning to use this outside, the 16’ design will have to be a hard constraint.

Operation

The LEDVANCE LED Flexible Strip RGBW is designed to be operated through the ZigBee network. It is optimally plugged into a receptacle that is always powered. Most ZigBee hubs will recognize this as a RGBW light and will allow turning the light on and off, changing the color of the light, and tuning the correlated color temperature. The Lightify hub will also allow you to set the default on and off dim rate so that the turning on and off of the light is not abrupt.

Based upon the desired color temperature, level, saturation, and hue the controller will illuminate the RGB and/or white LED to a particular setting. The picture below illustrates all four LEDs illuminated at a low setting and photographed at 1/800 sec, F8 using an ISO1600 setting.

Note that all of the LEDs are controlled on the same circuit. Therefore, this light cannot perform chase or multi-color displays. The benefit of this product is that it can turn on and off and change color, color temperature, hue, level and saturation based on external criteria through IFTTT, Stringy, SmartThings, or other ZigBee enabled hub. Note that the Lightify hub does not have connectivity to IFTTT or Stringify, so using this hub will only allow you to control the lights through the app on a phone and also using Amazon Alexa. Also, although this can be programmed to change color, hue, level and saturation at fixed intervals, because of the latency in the ZigBee signals, it is unlikely that this can be synced to music or video.

Performance

One of the things that I thought was important for this light strip was for to match the other LEDVANCE Light bulb that I have in color temperature, intensity and color hue across a range of settings. That way the two products can be used to color a room consistently. In order to achieve these comparisons, I bound both bulb and light strip to my SmartThings hub and I created a program to set the various settings to the same value for both devices.  As far as the color temperature correlation between the two devices. I placed the bulb in a desk lamp fixture and lay the strip, coiled on a white painted bench in our mud room. I focused my comparison on the color and intensity reflected off of the rear of the bench.

As indicated above, color temperature performance seemed to be a little off between the bulb and the strip. However the disparity I observed first-hand does not seem as bad as what is shown above. The 2700K color seems a little bit too green and the higher temperature colors seem too blue. As discussed below, the strip has some issues displaying green when it should be displaying yellow. I have a feeling this may be due to the silicone casing.

The brightness level also seemed a little bit different from the A19 bulb, but this should be expected since the bulb has a translucent cover and the strip has the bare LEDs exposed. Also the illuminance per sq. ft.  may be the same but because the strip is larger it appears brighter. In the end, they both dim down to what must be only a few candelas.

The color performance of the strip seemed to be very close to the bulb, with the exception of yellow. The yellow from the bulb seemed to be a little bit green hued. You can see a little green in the corner of the picture that is mostly yellow. The light was washing out the picture so I needed to adjust my shot to avoid the lamp completely.

Conclusion

The LEDVANCE LED Flexible Strip RGBW is a unique product to allow programmatic or automatic control of weather proof light strips. While other light strips are available that are weatherproof, allow chase, and/or sync to music, they do not allow automation. Other light strips are available that permit automation but they are not weatherproof. The light strip retail price is roughly four times higher than a waterproof color-changing and color-selectable strip with IR remote. But if you want to ask Alexa to on/off and adjust the colors of the light strip around your hot tub (probably the killer app for this item) then the LEDVANCE LED Flexible Strip is the way to go!

Source: The sample for this review was provided by LEDVANCE Sylvania. Please visit their site for more info and Amazon to order.

 

Product Information

Price: $99.99
Manufacturer: LEDVANCE Sylvania
Retailer: Amazon
Requirements:
  • requires ZigBee Certified Gateway (sold separately)
  • GFCI outlet if mounting outdoors
  • Should not be submerged or installed less than 10 feet from open water.
Pros:
  • With the proper hub and programming, permits Alexa control of operation and scenes
  • Waterproof
Cons:
  • Should not be cut
  • Costly
  • Does not permit chase or color changing

Filed in categories: Home and Kitchen, Reviews

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Sylvania LEDVANCE LED Flexible Strip RGBW review originally appeared on on March 18, 2017 at 8:57 am.

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WalletHub daily credit score Android app review

A good credit score is important if you need financing for a big ticket item like a home or car. If your financial health has been a little weak in the past and you’d like to keep an eye on it and even get tips on how to improve it, you need to check out WalletHub for Android.

What is it?

WalletHub is the first and only Android app that offers credit scores and full credit reports that are updated on a daily basis for free.

What can it do?

If you’ve heard that doing multiple credit checks can show up as a red flag when trying to get a loan, you won’t have to worry about that with WalletHub because it does “soft” inquiries that do not show up on your record.

Note: the screenshots in this review are from the app’s page on the Google Play Store. For security purposes, WalletHub will not allow you to take screenshots while in the app. So all the info in these screenshots is fake.

I installed the app, verified my identity, set up a PIN and was immediately shown my credit score. The app even show outstanding loans and balance amounts. I thought this was pretty cool because I wasn’t sure how much was left on my MINI Cooper car loan or the fact that my home loan is almost paid off.

You can view a history of your credit scores to see how you’ve improved (0r not) over time and will show you how you compare to others in the Americas, others in your state, others of your age and others in the same income bracket.

The app also provides tips that can help you improve your score, a list of past credit inquiries (it showed a hit from me from T-mobile last July when I bought a SIM to see if the coverage in my area had improved from the year before). It even provides a list of previous employers and past addresses.

Final thoughts

WalletHub is an easy to use and secure app that provides information that you can use to monitor your credit score all for free.

I really like this app. I like that I can easily keep an eye on my credit score without worrying about it showing up as a “hard” credit check. I installed it a few weeks ago just to try it and don’t have any plans to remove it.

Source: The app for this review is free from WalletHub. Please visit their site for more info and the Google Play store to download it.

 

Product Information

Price: Free
Manufacturer: WalletHub
Retailer: Google Play
Pros:
  • Free daily updated credit scores
  • Does not show up as a credit check
  • Shows outstanding loans and balances
Cons:
  • None

Filed in categories: Android, Reviews

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WalletHub daily credit score Android app review originally appeared on on March 17, 2017 at 2:18 pm.

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This Is Ground Mod Mobile 2 review

I’m a sucker for organization and minimalism. To me, there’s nothing better than having a place for everything and having everything in its place, and all the better if I can consolidate and reduce the number of things that I have to carry with me on a daily basis.

So when I got my hands on the This is Ground Mod Mobile 2 case, its smart layout, customizable interior, and well-made hardware immediately put a big smile on my face.

A case? A wallet? Or both?

There’s a lot to immediately like about this svelte, leather case. However, I can’t decide if I’d call it a large wallet or a small purse.

The French Gray color is really more of a light tan, in most lighting, and quite handsome.

The size and utility of it struck me as very… European. By which I mean it feels like something you’d see a very well-dressed man wearing while stepping off a train in Italy, or that’s the scene I’ve created in my head, at any rate. It’s intended to accommodate a passport, several cards, a tube of lip balm, pen, charging cables, bills and change and, of course, a large (but thin) cell phone such as a Plus-size iPhone or Galaxy s7.

Plent of space for several cards, bills, coupons, wires, cleaning cloths, lip balm… it’s meant for your everyday items.

According to the This Is Ground website, their products are “handcrafted of highest-grade leather by our heritage leatherworkers in downtown Los Angeles and Italy,” and that quality really shows. The leather is supple and flexible and looks like it would age handsomely. I received the French Gray model and I really like the color much more than I originally thought. The stitching is gorgeous and strong. Every element used feels extremely high quality and is admittedly much nicer than most other wallets or cases I would purchase.

Size is everything

The dimensions of the Mod Mobile 2, which I gathered from the website, are 4.5″ wide x 7″ high x 1″ thick closed and 9″ wide x 7″ high open. So it really is crafted around the size and shape of these larger modern phablets. I currently own an iPhone SE, which did of course fit inside the case, but my phone seemed a little too thick for the phone pocket. It began to make some indentations in the leather because of the SE’s angled edges. Fortunately, I’ve been dabbling in bullet journaling, and that pocket was the perfect size for the Moleskine Chapters journal I was using at the time.

That notebook is about the size of an iPhone 7 Plus.

The case can be slung around ones neck using the removable strap, or simply carried around like one would a sizeable hardback novel, which was my chosen method.

Everyday use

In preparation for writing this review, I went all-in and used the Mod Mobile as my every day carry, all-purpose wallet for a couple weeks. And while it took a bit getting used to, having to carry one large case versus putting my things in several pants or jacket pockets, I quickly adapted and put my full trust in knowing that if I had my leather case with me, I had everything I needed as well.

The center billfold carrier is snapped in and easily removable.

After some experimenting, my eventual loadout included my Moleskine journal, pen, debit cards and license, iPhone and BeatsX headphones. That case plus my keys is everything I’d need in a typical day, and there was something quite comforting in having to check only one place instead of my pants pockets and jacket to make sure I had everything. I removed the snap-in, zipper billfold after a few days since I never really carry cash, cutting down on the weight and thickness, a bit. I thought it was brilliant that both the inner billfold and the strap were both removable, offering a surprising amount of customization.

The snap-down cord holder is a nice touch and did a fine job of holding my earphones in place.

The fine construction of this case feels as if it could withstand many months of abuse, and I wasn’t shy with throwing it on my car seat, desk or shopping basket. The exterior looks like it would age well and take on a rugged look with each mark and scar inflicted on its surface, the way leather is intended.

Conclusion

The Mod Mobile case is gorgeous, well made and feels like it would last a good, long time under regular use. But is it worth the $250 asking price? Like any other premium product, you’d have to weigh the price against its usefulness and longevity. And I would say it delivers on both counts.

The Mod Mobile 2 is now available from This Is Ground for $250. It comes in five color choices and monogram option.

Source: The sample for this review was provided by This Is Ground. Please visit their site for more information.

 

Product Information

Price: $250.00
Manufacturer: This Is Ground
Pros:
  • Superior build quality and beautiful materials
  • Removable strap and billfold allows for some customization
Cons:
  • Pricey for the size and functionality of it
  • Could be a bit larger, or a bit smaller

Filed in categories: Bags, Cases and Covers, Reviews

Tagged:

This Is Ground Mod Mobile 2 review originally appeared on on March 17, 2017 at 7:27 am.

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