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Scissors inside a pen, X-Bows ergonomic keyboard, Coolala solar powered AC, and more – Notable crowdfunding campaigns

Check out this week’s picks for crowdfunding projects from Kickstarter and Indiegogo that are worth your consideration.

The Five-Day Performance Dress Shirt by Bluffworks

blurb by Andy Jacobs

What is it?
A dress shirt designed from the ground up for travel and loaded with features, from a company that has proven that it knows how to design and build travel clothes.

Why do I like it?
Lots of reasons! For starters, it features soft-feel fabric in multiple checked patterns. And although it’s soft, it’s still breathable and has 2-way stretchy to keep you cool and comfortable when you’re active. Additionally, travelers will appreciate that it’s anti-microbial, wrinkle free and can be machine washed and dried (or even washed in a sink and hung up to dry). While some or even many of these features may be present in other, similar products, it’s the combination of these features, plus the attention to design detail, manufacturing and quality that puts the Meridian Dress Shirt in a class of its own. It includes brass collar stays, a pattern-aligned pocket and reinforced buttons. And if all of that wasn’t enough, Bluffworks is the real deal. I can tell you firsthand that their Blazer and Travel Pants are top-notch, for travelers or anyone else who appreciates well-designed, well-built clothing.

Where can I find more info?
The Kickstarter campaign began on September 18 and ends October 23, so you have plenty of time to become a backer. In fact, after only a few hours after going live, it exceeded its minimum goal of $10,000 and raised over $65,000 in funds with over 375 backers so far. Pledge packages start at $98 for a single shirt and top off at $280 for a package with three shirts. Estimated delivery is December 2017 for all packages. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

Coolala Affordable In/Outdoor Solar Powered Portable Air Conditioner

blurb by Julie Strietelmeier

What is it?
Coolala is the first outdoor and indoor solar-powered portable 7 pound 3,500 BTU air conditioner unit that has 150 square feet of cooling power.

Why do I like it?
It’s been in the 90’s here in Southern Indiana this week, so our AC unit at home has been running like it’s still summer. AC units need a lot of juice, so having a small portable unit that is powered by sunlight sounds like a genius idea. The Coolala has a built-in rechargeable battery that can run for up to 8 hours when fully charged by either plugging it into an AC outlet or by using solar panels. You probably won’t try using Coolala to keep your 3000 square foot house cool, but it would be great for an enclosed patio, camping, a garage, etc. It even has a built-in light.

Where can I find more info?
With 9 days left in the campaign, the Coolala campaign has already met their funding goal of $25,596. You can pre-order a Coolala starting at $219. After the Coolala campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in April 2018. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

X-Bows Mechanical Ergonomic Keyboard

blurb by Julie Strietelmeier

What is it?
The X-Bows keyboard is a QWERTY keyboard that has a unique key layout for better ergonomics.

Why do I like it?
Traditional keyboards are designed so that our fingers, hands, and wrists need to be at a right angle to the horizontal keyboard for optimal typing speed. The problem is that after long sessions of typing, the placement of our hands and wrists can cause pain and discomfort. The X-Bows keyboard positions the keys in a more natural layout that should allow for more comfortable typing without having to learn a brand new key layout.

Where can I find more info?
With 42 days left in the campaign, the X-Bows campaign has already met their funding goal of $32,345. You can pre-order an X-Bows keyboard starting at $119. After the X-Bows campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in December 2017. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

Xcissor Pen – One Mighty Scissors Hidden in Your Sleek Pen

blurb by Andy Jacobs

What is it?
The Xcissor Pen is a sharp-looking writing instrument that has a sharp hidden feature inside: a miniature pair of scissors, for those times when a knife blade may just not be right for the job.

Why do I like it?
I’m an EDCer, and I appreciate items that can perform multiple functions. The mininch Xcissor Pen does just that, and looks good doing it, plus it looks durable as heck. Just pop off the main body and disengage the safely lock and you are ready to cut away. The body are made from Stainless Steel and are available in various combinations of silver pen or scissors (nickel plated) or black pen or scissors (Teflon coated) and it uses a Mini D1 Ballpoint Pen Refill. Also, the cap threads on for security, but also posts on the rear for better balance while writing. The mininch folks have already run several other hugely successful Kickstarter campaigns for similar EDC tool gadgets, including the Wrenchit, the Tool Pen and the Tool Pen mini.

Where can I find more info?
The Kickstarter campaign is in full swing and will end November 9, so there is still time to become a backer. It’s worth noting that the campaign has already met its minimum funding goal of $10,000 as of this writing. Pledge package pricing starts at $45 for a single Xcissor Pen and combo packages are available. Estimated delivery is March 2018. Visit the Xcissor Pen Kickstarter campaign page for more details. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

VIITA Watch – Custom Wearable Fitness Coach

blurb by Julie Strietelmeier

What is it?
VIITA is a smartwatch with regular smartwatch features and fitness features like sleep tracking, stress tracking, heart rate tracking, GPS, dehydration tracking and more.

Why do I like it?
I’ve yet to find a smartwatch that I want to wear day in and day out. The VIITA smartwatch looks promising for a couple of reasons. First of all, runs for up to 4 weeks on a charge which cuts out the huge hassle of charging the watch every night. VIITA also tracks hydration levels which is interesting to me because I know I don’t drink enough liquids and would like some type of visual prompt to help me change that. I also like the My Sets feature that lets you find the right timing between your resting periods and sets, to optimize your muscle growth.

Where can I find more info?
With 30 days left in the campaign, the VIITA campaign just working towards their funding goal of $30,000. You can pre-order a VIITA watch starting at $135. After the VIITA campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in December 2017. Visit their Indiegogo page for all the details.

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Scissors inside a pen, X-Bows ergonomic keyboard, Coolala solar powered AC, and more – Notable crowdfunding campaigns originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 26, 2017 at 12:17 pm.

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OVC H15 Noise Cancelling Earphones review

When you travel as much as I do, the ability to shut off the outside world and immerse yourself in music or a movie is not just important, it is a necessity.  And when hear about a small, lightweight product which claims up to 60 hours of battery life, active noise cancelling, and all in an affordable package, you have to investigate.  Today I am doing just that with the OVC Noise Cancelling Earphones.  How well does the real-world performance stack up against the claims?  Read on to find out…

OVC packs a lot of stuff in the box.  You get a small carry pouch, two sets of earbuds (one white, one black with small, medium and large sizes in each color), a charging cable (micro USB but no wall plug so plan on using your computer to charge these), an increasingly unnecessary dual airplane plug, and a cord manager.  Pretty complete setup for such a low price point.  You can see what you get in the picture below.

So how do they stack up in the real world?  I started this journey just listening to music on my phone while at my home office desk.  The H15’s sport a bass boost mode that is activated via a switch on the volume/microphone inline control.  When turned off, the H15’s sound like the cheapest earbuds you can buy – tinny, muddied and the volume (even at maximum) feels low.  Turn on the bass boost, however, and the sound is great.  You get the bass (not Beats-level, chest-thumping style but enough to let you feel the music) plus the music clears up – you can hear the highs, vocals are clear and crisp, and the volume is much louder.

I also used the H15’s for business meetings via Skype and my computer, and once or twice to make phone calls.  The microphone works well – in both Skype and the phone others could hear me clearly and I could hear them – but, again, only with the bass boost activated.  Without it, while callers could hear me I could hardly hear or understand them.  Pretty clear that the only way you want to use these is with the bass boost on at all times, which does reduce the battery life.  More on that in a minute.

The H15’s also have active noise cancelling.  Pretty unusual to find this in a sub-$50 earbud.  On the outward facing side of each ear bud, you can see a series of small holes on an O shape – these are the microphones used to generate the anti-sound waves that active noise cancelling produces.  The feature is activated via a button on a control close to the end of the cable that plugs into your device.  Press to turn it on or off.  Noise cancelling seems to work OK, but I have a specific problem that prevents me from getting the full benefit.  Each size of the rubber earbuds comes with a “stabilizer” that you can see in the picture below.  I have unusually large ear holes (hmmm…) but small ears.  The stabilizers push the earbud slightly out of my ear canal and breaks the seal.  If I hold the earbuds in place, the intact seal gives me the full effect of both the bass boost and the noise cancelling.  I cut off the stabilizer on the large size black buds and problem solved, although I feel I am not alone in this problem and OVC should include standard earbuds in the box.

With the stabilizers out of the way, I could begin the real test of the noise cancelling feature – 4 cross-country airline flights in 8 days.  Yes, I am a glutton for punishment.  That said, the noise cancelling feature is a partial success.  With a good seal in my ears and the feature activated I could drown out the engine noise from the plane.  Weirdly, though, I could still hear snippets of conversation around me – not a constant thing, mind you, but the occasional word or phrase would come through reasonably clearly, most likely the result of the noise cancelling feature choosing to continue the suppression of the engine noise over a higher-pitched sound like human conversation.  On phone calls and in Skype while in office surroundings, the noise cancelling feature works as advertised.

One thing missing, however, is sidetone.  This is the ability to monitor your speech while listening to an active conversation.  The H15’s seemingly don’t support this, so if you use the noise cancelling while on a phone call your voice sounds like it is coming from two rooms away.  Getting this to work properly is not an easy task, and even headphones like the Logitech H800 – which are made specifically for Skype-type communications – can’t get this to work.  So just be aware that if your use case is primarily communications, these may not be the earphones you want.

Finally the quirks.  There is the standard inline volume and call accept/end control at the place where the earphones split into the separate channels.  The bass boost switch is on the side of this control.  If you look at the picture, though, you will see the noise cancelling box (and, I assume, the larger battery this headphone supports).  The plug for your device is about 4 inches away from this control.  That means if you put this in your pocket along with your phone and are involved in pretty much any sort of activity you are constantly going to press the on-off button for noise cancelling.  Plus, given where my headphone jack on both my laptop and tablet lives this control just sort of dangles there – too close to the plug to lay on the table or desk.  Thankfully the control is not heavy or this could present problems.  A better design choice would be to have incorporated both the inline and noise cancelling controls into one and placed that higher up where the inline control lives.

Also bass boost and noise cancelling are not mutually compatible.  If noise cancelling is on, the bass boost switch does not appear to do anything.  You do get what I would consider 90% of the bass boost in noise cancelling mode, but the bass didn’t feel as deep as without noise cancelling, most likely because of the dampening sounds the earphones produce.

As far as battery life goes, I was never able to get to 60 hours active use no matter which configuration I used (noise cancelling on/off, bass boost on/off).  I was able, however, to get a very respectable 14 hours use with noise cancelling on.  That’s on par with my Bose QC-35’s so good job there.

For what they are – a sub-$50 active noise cancelling earphone – the OVC H15 delivers on most of the promises.  The places where it fails are either easily overcome or a personal choice.  These won’t replace my more expensive noise cancelling headphones, but if I were looking for earbuds for a child or were on a budget, these would be near the top of the consideration list.

Source: The sample for this review was provided by OVC.  Please visit their website for more info or Amazon to purchase.

 

Product Information

Price: $43.99
Manufacturer: OVC Audio
Retailer: Amazon
Pros:
  • Sounds great with bass boost and a good fit
  • Priced well with lots of extras
  • Fantastic battery life
Cons:
  • Hard to get a good fit
  • Odd control design choices
  • Not as responsive in noise cancelling as other earphones

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OVC H15 Noise Cancelling Earphones review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 26, 2017 at 9:00 am.

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World Maker Faire New York 2017

This past weekend I attended the 8th Annual World Maker Faire New York held at the New York Hall Of Science. Started in 2006 by the publisher of Make: magazine and sponsored heavily by Barnes & Noble, Maker Faires are “family-friendly festivals of invention, creativity, and resourcefulness, and a celebration of the Maker movement.” Everything a gadget lover could ever desire is represented in some form at a Maker Faire.

I spent two whole days touring the exhibitions and still feel like I might’ve missed out on some cool stuff.

Mainstays of the Maker Movement, like microelectronics, 3D printing, drones, and robotics are always represented well at these events. Several big names like Dremel, Mimaki, and Otterbox often display and demo prototypes of up-and-coming tech that they’re working on. It’s a great chance to get hands-on with the next level of DIY gear.

3D printers abound at Maker Faire, there’s a whole section devoted solely to vendors selling the biggest, smallest, fastest and cheapest 3D printers on the market. In addition, plenty of booths and exhibits showcase every type of 3D printing accessory and artwork.

Kids are definitely the target audience for a good part of the exhibits and the DIY spirit is strong. Little Makers were able to craft everything from a cardboard pinball set to their own soap to PVC marshmallow guns. All types of kits and workshops were being offered and enjoyed throughout the weekend.

With a strong emphasis on STEM learning, even the toys and fun workshops were geared toward teaching the participants critical thinking and the basics of science and mathematical theory

Art and music are also a big focus of Maker Faire. There are roaming street bands and tech-inspired performers making music nonstop.

The art on display tends toward the big and impressive sort. Where else can you see a fire-breathing dragon/bus as well as a robotic dinosaur being controlled by a hacked Nintendo Power Glove?

Competitions at Maker Fair are a great diversion after spending the day deciding which of the hundreds of vendors you’ll be giving your money to.

The Power Racing Series, known as “the only sub-$500 electric vehicle racing series that features grown-ups driving kids cars,” is great fun and offers a lot of thrills and spills.

Drone Racing, featuring competitors from the Aerial Sports League, is a fan favorite as well. With races running all weekend long, there was always something cool happening by the race area.

This year drone racing was even more exciting because fans were able to “ride-along” during races by donning FPV goggles that tapped into racers’ feeds.

And no Maker Faire would be complete without some Coke and Mentos shenanigans. The crowds lined up each day for the soda fountain fun.

If you like technology, are a nerd at heart, or just like arts and crafts, there’s something for you at a Maker Faire, be sure to check one out. To find a Maker Faire near you visit Make: magazine or the Maker Faire website here.

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World Maker Faire New York 2017 originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 26, 2017 at 8:00 am.

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Ninety7 LOFT adds stand alone power to the Google Home assistant

Ninety7, the same company who created the VAUX speaker for the Amazon Echo Dot which Joe reviewed earlier this summer, now has two new products. The LOFT and the DOX that have been designed for the Google Home and latest generation of the Echo Dot.

The LOFT is a battery base for the Google Home that makes your Google Home assistant portable. The rechargeable lithium-ion battery in the base provides up to 8 hours of unplugged freedom.

The LOFT is available in three colors that include the copper color you see above, carbon, and snow. The battery base is priced at $39.95. Shipping for the carbon version of the LOFT will start shipping mid-October and the other two colors will ship at the end of October.

If you have the 2nd generation version of the Amazon Echo Dot, the new DOX will turn this small Alexa device into a cord-free assistant. The DOX has a built-in rechargeable battery the provides up to 10 hours untethered portable use.

The DOX is available in carbon and ash and is priced at $29.95 with shipping to start mid-October.

Visit ninety7life.com for all the details.

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Ninety7 LOFT adds stand alone power to the Google Home assistant originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 25, 2017 at 3:55 pm.

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weBoost eqo 4G cellphone signal booster review

A few months ago we finally ditched our analog phone line. Yes, I know that I’m way behind the curve, but I was required to keep a landline phone line due to my hardwired T1 broadband which I also disconnected. That means that we are now relying on our Verizon phones for contact with the outside world and although I don’t live that far from a Verizon cell tower, the signal isn’t that strong throughout my house. Especially in the basement where dropped calls are the norm. So I was happy to test the weBoost eqo cell phone signal booster when the opportunity presented itself.

What is it?

The weBoost eqo is a cell phone signal booster that is designed to be used in a home or office up to 1200sq ft and has the ability to boost cell signals for any US and Canadian carrier by as much as 32x.

What’s in the box?

eqo Booster
eqo Inside Antenna
eqo Outside Antenna
25′ of Coax Cable
6′ of Coax Cable
Power Supply
User manual

Before we go any further, it’s important to understand that if you don’t receive any signal at all in your location, that the weBoost eqo will not boost the signal because there’s no signal to boost. So with that in mind, let’s continue.

The weBoost eqo is designed to be used indoors and does not require any type of hardware to be installed outdoors.

The setup includes three modules. There’s the Booster unit shown above, which needs to be placed on or near the window sill in your home where you receive the strongest cellular signal.

I used an app called OpenSignal which shows a compass that points to the direction where the cell signal is coming from.

Each of the eqo modules has pictorial diagrams to help you with the setup.

The indoors booster unit has three connections on the right side. There’s one marked Optional, which is where the Outside Antenna connects and the connection below that is for the indoor antenna. At the bottom is where the AC adapter connects.

The Outside Antenna doesn’t really go outside. It goes between your window and the window screen.

The Outside Antenna has a short section of flat cable that can bend under the edge of the window so it can shut.

If you don’t have a window screen, you can use double stick tape to tape the antenna to the outside of the window and if you have a window that can’t open, you don’t have to use the Outside Antenna at all.

Once placed in the window, you connect the 6-foot coax cable to the Outside Antenna cable and then the other end connects to the Booster unit.

The last step is to place the Inside Antenna in an area in your home where the cell signal is weak.

The Inside Antenna needs to be oriented so that it’s pointing in the same direction as the Booster unit as shown above.

The Indoor Antenna has a popout stand so that it can sit on a shelf.

It also has a removable plug that covers slots that can be used if to mount it on a wall.

The 25-foot coax cable connects to the Indoor Antenna behind the popout stand. This is the only downside to setting up the weBoost, you have to route coax cable between each module. For my setup, I had the Booster unit upstairs and the indoor antenna downstairs. That means that I had to route the 25ft of coax from one floor to another.

After the three modules are placed, all that’s left to do before plugging in the AC adapter for the Booster unit is to check your phone’s current signal so you’ll be able to compare before and after signal strength readings.

You can’t really go by how many bars that you see on your phone’s display. It’s better to see the dB signal strength reading. For iPhones, that used to be as easy as dialing *3001#12345#* , but the latest OS update to iOS 11 seems to have killed that feature. Luckily I was able to use Jeanne’s Samsung Galaxy Note 2 which runs Android. With Android you can check the dB signal strength by going to Settings > About Phone > Status or Network > Signal Strength or Network Type and Signal (it depends on the phone and what Android version it’s running).

Before turning on the weBoost eqo, I checked the signal in my basement with my iPhone 7 Plus. It consistently showed 1 bar and Jeanne’s Note 2 would show 113-117 dBm.

After the weBoost eqo was powered on, the iPhone would show 2-3 bars and the Note 2 would show 96-105 dBm. A very nice improvement. Of course, those readings didn’t remain rock steady, but they have been better than without the weBoost eqo powered on.

LEDs on the Booster unit provide a coverage status. If the light is Green, that means you should have good coverage. Orange means you’re receiving a low signal boost and a Red light means no signal boost. The manual includes troubleshooting tips for orange and red light issues.

Final thoughts

There isn’t much more to say about the weBoost eqo other than it does what it is designed to do, boost an existing cellular signal.

As long as you have some signal in your area, this product will do its job. And as long as you don’t mind having to set up 3 different modules connected by coax cable, it’s a good solution for boosting signal strength.

During my testing of the weBoost eqo 4G, we had no dropped calls in our basement, which is a testament that this product works as advertised.

Source: The sample for this review was provided by the RepeaterStore. Please visit their site for more info.

 

Product Information

Price: $379.99
Manufacturer: weBoost
Retailer: RepeaterStore
Pros:
  • Easy to setup
  • Does not require an outdoor installation
  • Can improve existing signal by as much as 32x
Cons:
  • Have to route coax cables

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weBoost eqo 4G cellphone signal booster review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 25, 2017 at 10:22 am.

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