December 2017 – Page 2

Noontec Hammo Wireless headphones review

Writing for the Gadgeteer has given me the opportunity to sample several different types of wireless headphones. I’ve reviewed on-ear, over-the-ear, in-ear, sports headphones etc. It’s a lot of fun and I’ve also learned quite a bit along the way. The Noontec Hammo Wireless Headphones are the most recent pair I’ve had the pleasure to review. And they might be my favorite pair yet.

What is it?

The Noontec Hammo wired and wireless headphones are Professional Monitor headphones that can be used for studio tracking and mixing, DJ monitoring, or personal listening.

Hardware Specs:

Wireless transmission: Bluetooth 4.1
Transmission Distance (max): 10m
Headphone Speaker: Votrik HD500
Resistance: 32 Ω
Battery: built-in non-replacement rechargeable battery
Charging Time: 5 hours
Battery playtime: up to 50 hours

Whats in the box?

Wireless Headphone
3.5mm audio cable
USB-3.5mm Charge cable
Carrying case
User manual

Design and features

The Hammo Wireless headphones have a nice versatile modern design. I really like their dark gray color and brushed metal gold accents.

The fully adjustable ergonomic headband, handcrafted leather ear cups, and exceptionally lightweight build make these headphones extremely comfortable.

I use them for several hours a night and they never become uncomfortable. They’re definitely amongst the most comfortable headphones I’ve ever worn.

Even though they’re made of an extremely lightweight plastic the build quality is solid and they don’t feel cheap in any way.

The headphones fold up, making them compact enough to put into a backpack, briefcase, laptop bag etc. Noontec also provides a handsome hard-shell case complete with a small metal carabiner that can be quickly clipped onto a backpack for easy carrying.

Controls

Hammo’s intuitive three-button control panel (located on the back of the left ear cup) allows you to pair, play, pause, power on/off, change track and control volume. You can also access a range of voice commands like Siri to make phone calls using the built-in microphone.

Control buttons and indicators

There’s also a friendly male voice prompt that alerts you when the headset is turned on or off and when it’s connected/disconnected to a device. It will even alert you when the battery is low and needs charging.

Battery/charging

Possibly the best feature of these headphones is their battery life. Hammo Wireless takes advantage of low-power consumption technology and a large-capacity rechargeable battery to provide an unheard of 50 hours of life. That’s enough to go around the world on a single charge! I’ve used them extensively for nearly a month and I haven’t had to charge them once.

Hammo Wireless uses a 3.5mm to USB charging cable and to fully charge the headphones takes about 5 hours.

Performance

Now that we’ve established that these headphones are well built and extremely comfortable the big question is how do they sound?

Noontec developed what they call SCCB (Surround Closed Cavity Body). This unique cavity design technique provides the wide and flat frequency response needed for a high-fidelity sound. Combined with unique Votrik HD500 50mm extra size drivers the Hammo Wireless headphones produce an exceptional audio experience.

I used the headphones extensively over the last several weeks to listen to music and TV audio. Both sounded very natural and true to the source, even when listening at a low volume. And if you crank them up, there’s no distortion and the sound remains clear and balanced.

The bass response is deep and realistic without overwhelming the mid-tones and the treble is clean and crystalline.

I was able to pair them with my Miccus Home RTX 2.0 wireless transmitter to listen to movies through my TV. The dialog was clear and audible and there was a surprising amount of depth to things like explosions and soundtracks.

Bottom line here is no matter what you use them for the Hammo Wireless won’t disappoint.

Even though they don’t have active noise cancellation Hammo’s over-the-ear design and pivoting ear cups do a really good job of keeping out any unwanted ambient noise.

Hammo Wireless uses the latest in Bluetooth 4.1 Qualcomm aptX technology so you get virtually the same audio fidelity as a wired system. If you’re a sound professional or just want to get the optimum lossless sound you can use the provided 3.5mm audio cable.

Noontec even provides a 5mm jack converter so you can plug into a stereo system, amp, or musical instrument.

Positives

Lightweight design
Fold up for portability
Comfortable
Great sound
50 hr battery life

Negatives

No active noise cancellation

Final thoughts

The Noontec Hammo Wireless headphones were designed and engineered for the sound professional but they’re perfect for anyone that just wants to chill out and enjoy their music. There’s isn’t much not to like about these cans. They have a great low-profile design, they’re extremely comfortable and a pure joy to listen to, all without breaking the bank. Oh, did I mention the insane 50-hour battery life?

So, If you’re looking for a pair of really nice headphones, start the New Year off right and give the Noontec Hammo Wireless headphones a try. Who knows they might just end up being your favorite pair of headphones too.

Price: $149.95
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Noontec.

Two must-have wireless mice for Guardians of the Galaxy fans

Whether you liked the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie or the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 movie best, you’ll love these Groot wireless computer mice from Brando. Authorized by MARVEL, these mice feature 1,200 dpi and a 2.4GHz wireless connection which uses a USB dongle.

You can choose from the original Groot or baby Groot. Both are two-button mice with a built-in scroll wheel and are compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Both mice are priced at $48.00 each from Brando.

Julie’s gadget diary – One reason why I love the Pixel 2 XL that you’ll never guess

I switched from an iPhone 7 Plus to the Pixel 2 XL back in October, so I’ve been using it for almost 3 months now and feel like I have a really good handle on how it works and performs.

When people were complaining about the phone’s display issues, I shrugged my shoulders because the blue tint problem didn’t make any difference to me considering I don’t pivot my phone from side to side when I’m using it.

Then when people complained that the display’s colors weren’t vivid enough, I just shook my head because the colors looked just fine to me.

I can honestly say that Google Pixel 2 XL is my all time favorite smartphone for several reasons. One of those reasons will probably come as a surprise to anyone who has read my past smartphone reviews.

Here are my reasons in no particular order:

The Pixel 2 XL is a stock Google Android phone, so it will always get OS updates faster than Samsung, LG, and Motorola phones.
The Pixel 2 XL’s built-in camera is so good that I sold my Canon 70D DSLR a month ago and have been taking all my product review images with the Pixel 2 XL. I bet you didn’t even notice a difference, did you?
Free unlimited full resolution photo storage to the Google cloud until 2020.
And the reason you will probably never guess why the I love the Pixel 2 XL is that the fingerprint sensor works EVERY time for me! Until now, smartphone and tablet fingerprint sensors have hated me and I have felt exactly the same towards them. I would be able to unlock my phone for a few days or maybe even a week, but then they would stop working until I’d re-program in my fingerprint. And then we’d start over again where it would work for a few days before flaking out again. This hasn’t been my experience with the Pixel 2 XL. I’ve only programmed my finger once back in October and it’s still working almost 3 months later! This is unheard of for me. And just to make a point, I bought a new Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 a couple of weeks ago and I’ve yet to get that tablet to unlock with my fingerprint.

Those are my top 4 reasons why I am enjoying the Pixel 2 XL as my main smartphone. Are there other Pixel 2 XL fans out there? Let’s hear from you in the comments.

Mohu Leaf Glide indoor HDTV antenna review

With the increasing popularity of streaming media like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime, it’s becoming a much easier decision to cut cable and satellite TV from one’s monthly bills. I cringe every time I look at a statement from my cable company, and it seems to get more expensive with every passing month. But dropping cable doesn’t have to mean doing away with live TV altogether with ever-improving HDTV receiver technology, like the kind included in Mohu’s Leaf Glide antenna.

What is it?

The Mohu Leaf Glide is a compact, amplified HDTV antenna that promises the simplicity of an indoor antenna with the reception power of an outdoor antenna. It pulls in available free HDTV channels within a 65-mile radius.

Hardware specs

Powerful HDTV antenna with a 65-mile radius
Patented SignalLift technology is the best at receiving VHF channels
Amplified by Jolt with Clean Peak filter technology, removes unwanted RF signals and boosts the ones you want
Multi-directional, no “pointing” required
Paper-thin, reversible (white on one side, black on the other) and even paintable to match decor

What’s in the box?

Leaf Glide antenna
16’high-performance cable
USB/Cable connector
AC Adapter
Push pins and velcro stickers for mounting

Design and features

The Leaf Glide antenna was really simple to install. We’re talking 5 minutes and done. Since the antenna is essentially a sheet of plastic with a cable port on the bottom, it can easily be hung on any wall with the provided push pins.

I like the fact that it has a black side and a white side. My walls are white, so the antenna is fairly unobtrusive.

All I had to do was hook the cable the antenna, attach the USB power module, and hook that to the cable and USB ports on the TV.

There is also an AC adapter that can be utilized, but the USB port on my TV seemed to be enough to power the antenna.

Step four – connect USB power to AC adapter or TV.

After a 5-minute channel scan, the channels were automatically indexed and added to my TV’s memory. I suspect that a lot of modern TVs will have the same type of easy channel scan in the setup menu.

My first test was to see how many channels were detected vs. how many were listed on Mohu’s website for my area. There is a search function on their website that will list out expected channels for your area. When I entered my ZIP, 20 channels were displayed, which sounded pretty great.

However, my TV scan saved only 10 channels into the memory. I tried adjusting the position of the antenna on my wall, moving several feet at a time, to see if that would affect the number of detected channels, but it didn’t seem to matter much.

I do wonder if I were to move the antenna upstairs if that would help. I live in a townhouse, so I have a house on either side of me. I may be a bit too insulated by housing material to pick up on that full list of 20 channels.

That said, the channels that did come in performed fairly well. Most of them were 3 “bars” on my antenna strength indicator on my TV and also were in full HD. The signal remained strong and clear on most channels. A few of the weaker signals cut in and out a bit, enough to make it less than watchable. Really, I think I had about 7 good channels.

That’s not to say it’s false advertising on Mohu’s part. Their information is gathered from the FCC and the radius and results don’t take into account terrain. For instance, I live in a large valley, which might be too low for some of the signals to reach.

Their site also recommends trying different locations for the antenna until you get the best results, which means repeated attempts at moving, scanning, moving again, and scanning once more until you get the best results. I might try to do this to see if I get better/more reception.

It definitely brings to mind trying to position those old rabbit-ear antennas on the tiny TV I had in my room so long ago. I could juuuust manage to pull in Fox in order to watch The X-Files. This feels like a high-tech version of that old song and dance.

Anecdotally, for comparison’s sake, I had once tried a non-powered antenna on my TV, and it found zero channels. I just couldn’t get it to work from multiple spots in my living room and quickly returned it. So to find any channels at all with this antenna seems pretty great.

Positives

Easy to install
Can be powered by TV’s USB port
Paper-thin, unobtrusive design

Negatives

Didn’t quite find all the channels promised on the website channel search, but those results are based on a perfect topography
Still requires multiple antenna location tests as well as living in a good reception area

Final thoughts

I was impressed by the design and ease of setup of the Glide. It feels like cheating, in this day and age, to be able to plug in a sheet of plastic and get even a handful of free HDTV channels. I’d love to see how many more channels I could get with a little repositioning when I have the patience to attempt that.

For anyone thinking of cutting cable or satellite TV from their monthly bills, this is a great little tool for doing just that, well, depending on your location. It’s the perfect combination of size and power in an internal HDTV antenna and might be able to find quite a few more channels than a non-powered antenna.

Price: $74.99
Where to buy: You can purchase the Leaf Glide directly from their website and Amazon.
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Mohu.

Your drinks will be shaken, not stirred, with the Mixology cocktail shaker

If you like to mix up your own drinks in your home bar, you know you need various tools, including a cocktail shaker. Unless you have an incredible memory, you’ll also need a recipe book, or you’ll find yourself asking Siri or Google how to make drinks. With the Mixology Cocktail Shaker, you’ll have recipes for eight drinks, like Mai Tais, daiquiris. cosmos – even shaken Martinis – right there on the shaker. You just twist the outer cover to select the drink you want, and you’ll uncover the ingredients needed.

The Mixology shaker is made of stainless steel and copper plating. It has a 750ml capacity (about 25.4 fluid ounces), and the recipes are listed in milliliters. And you’ll be glad to know you can throw the shaker in the dishwasher after you’ve worn out your arm muscles shaking up all those drinks! The Mixology Cocktail Shaker is $29.99 at ThinkGeek.