Home 2018 January

Bissell makes bathing your dog as easy as cleaning a carpet

The Bissell BarkBath machine looks like one of Bissell’s small spot-cleaning machines for rugs or upholstered furniture.  As a matter of fact, there is even a BarkBath accessory that can be added to some of your small Bissell machines for bathing your dog, but this BarkBath system is for people who don’t already own a small Bissell.

The BarkBath Portable Dog Bath & Grooming System consists of a Bissell base unit, a BarkBath unit, and Bissell rinse-free dog shampoo.  You’ll also receive a microfiber mat to place under the base unit, and a microfiber towel for washing faces and paws.  You add some shampoo to the BarkBath unit, then you use the dispensing nozzle to spray water through the fur down to your dog’s skin.  As the shampoo solution sprays out, there’s also a gentle vacuum pulling it back out through the fur.  The dirty water collects in one side of the base unit for easy disposal.  The BarkBath unit can be switched to spray either clear water or a water/shampoo solution.

Bissell says you can clean an 80 pound dog with about 40 ounces of water, where a traditional tub bath for the same dog can take up to 19 gallons.  Using the BarkBath system saves water, and it saves clean up of a messy, hairy tub.  It’s so clean, Bissell says you can clean your dog anywhere in your house without making a mess.

The Bissell BarkBath Portable Dog Bath and Grooming System is on sale for $119.99 at Bissell right now;  it’s also available for the full price of $149.99 at Amazon.

Alpha & Delta JAAP Bluetooth headphones review

I have been quite hesitant to delve fully into the truly wireless Bluetooth world, simply because I hate the idea of running out of battery and having them become useless. The cost also is a factor, since decently priced headphones tend to be hit or miss on quality. Alpha & Delta’s JAAP headphones are affordable and truly wireless, but with the ability to charge them while listening to extend the battery life. So, I thought I would give them a try.

What’s in the box?


In the box, you’ll find the JAAP headphones, instruction manual, 6 sets of ear tips, charging cable, and charger unit. I was very impressed with the generous amount of ear tips they included.
My first impressions on the headphones themselves was how big they were. How were they supposed to be comfortable? I was actually quite surprised that despite their size, they fit pretty well. I also really liked the case they included. It would fit the headphones and the charging adapter easily, and also was slightly firm to allow it to be protective.

Pairing was simple. They recommended pairing the left headphone first with the phone, and when you place the other headphone into pairing mode, the right headphone will connect with the left. It worked like a charm. The only thing I noticed was that it did not automatically connect to my phone after I turned them off and wanted to use them again. I had to pair them with my phone each time. The second headphone would always pair right away with the first.

I charged the headphones by plugging the included charging unit to each headphone and charging the charger. The battery life was very decent. I ended up charging them at approximately 12 hours of use, but they were not quite empty by the time I put them on the charger. It took quite a while of daily use to run the battery down. Eventually, I just charged them up overnight and they were good to go.

The thing I thought was the most ingenious about these headphones had to be the charger unit that extended the battery life but still allowed you to use the headphones. Other truly wireless headphones have to be charged in a case, which prohibits use, but not these. Would I run with the charger unit on? Probably not. But for sitting around an airport, bus, or just at home, the charger unit worked well.

As a person who enjoys bass heavy songs, these headphones were nice. They were comparable with my Bose iE2 earbuds in terms of bass, though the mid and high ranges were affected slightly by it. I didn’t mind, but someone who does not prefer the bass and instead enjoys the crisp quality may be deterred by it. Comparing the price to Bose earbuds, the slight decrease in sound quality is on par with the cost.

Sometimes when it comes to Bluetooth headphones, you have to deal with connection problems. The only time the sound cut out for me was when I paired them with my PC computer. For some reason, the right earbud would cut in and out. This could have been due to the Bluetooth adapter since I had no problem with the sound cutting out on my phone. When watching a video, the sound had a slight delay. I have yet to find a pair of Bluetooth headphones under $100 that does not have a delay, and it was quite negligible.

When it comes to comfort, these headphones were decently comfortable. The longest that I wore them for was 1.5 hours, and my ears did not feel fatigued. There are several tips to choose from and I was intrigued by the foam tips but ended up liking the spinfit eartips best. They are supposed to rotate 360 degrees for a better fit. They must work in some way because they were pretty comfortable.
I never had the feeling that the headphones were going to fall off, and other than getting used to how to put the left one on in the best way, I had no problems with fit or comfort. Am I the only one who has a problem fitting one earbud at times?

Positives

  • Very long battery life
  • Comfortable to wear
  • Decently priced

Negatives

  • Bass can drown out some of the high/mid tones

Final thoughts

Overall, I feel these headphones are worth the price. They have an excellent battery life, decent comfort, and the bass is really nice. While the bass can be a little overpowering to some, to me, it was great. They were great for tossing into my work backpack, and I plan to keep them there in the future.

Price: $71.90
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Alpha & Delta.

Clamp on five extra ports to your iMac with the new Satechi USB-C hub

Satechi has designed a new USB-C hub specifically for the 2017 iMac Pro and iMac.  The hub clamps on to the bottom of the iMac and plugs into one of its Thunderbolt 3 ports to add forward-facing ports to the bottom of the screen.  The Satechi Aluminum Type-C Clamp Hub adds one data-only USB-C port, three USB 3.0 ports; all USB ports have speeds of up to 5Gb/s.  There are also MicroSD  and SD card readers with speeds up to 104mB/s.  The hub is available in silver or space gray colors.  The Aluminum Type-C Clamp Hub will be $49.99 and will be available starting January 5, 2018 at Satechi and Amazon.

Survival Hax 6″ Fire Starter Flint Review

Do you know what the Ten Essentials for the Outdoors are?  From the Boy Scout Handbook, it includes a pocketknife, first aid kit, extra clothing, rain gear, water bottle, flashlight, trail food, matches/fire starters, sun protection and map/compass.  Let’s take a look at starting a fire with a flint.

What is it?

A 6″ fire-starting steel rod kit capable of producing a shower of hot sparks, despite weather conditions.

Hardware specs

Large 6” Ferrocerium rod will keep starting fires up to 30,000 strikes.

What’s in the box?

  • Emergency paracord and whistle
  • Multifunctional scraper tool
  • Tinder holder and cotton

Design and features

The6-inchh rod feels substantial. When I was a kid, I had a tiny keychain version that was no larger than a match. This thing is about as big as a Sharpie pen.

The metal scraper has a scale on both sides plus a bottle opener notch.

Inside the capsule is a wad of cotton tinder, in case you don’t have anything suitable to start a fire.

The orange bit is actually a whistle and snaps into the black part to form a paracord end.

Setup

After going through the Cub Scouts my son is now in his first year of Boy Scouting. I thought I’d let him take a crack at it. His 11 year-old muscles had a little trouble producing a shower of sparks, but with some patience and persistence…

Success!  “Woo hoo!” was his quote.

Performance

I discovered that with the included metal scraper tool, technique is key.  Scraping at a roughly 45 degree angle gave slightly better results.

Positives

  • Beefy 6″ rod will likely never run out in your lifetime
  • Everything you need for basic survival included (paracord, scraper, whistle, tinder capsule)

Negatives

  • You’ll need a little bit of grunt power to produce sparks of sufficient quantity.

Final thoughts

The SurvivalHax 6″ Fire Starter Flint totally beats my wimpy flint steel of yesteryear.  I like that it includes not just the steel, but a few other items that make this an no-brainer for one of the Ten Essentials for the Outdoors.

Price: $22.99
Where to buy: SurvivalHax.com or Amazon.
Source: The sample of this product was provided by SurvivalHax.

Forget yoga. Get your workout by toting around some beverages!

A recent trip to the local wine store has opened my eyes to the many possibilities for smuggling alcoholic beverages with you in a variety of purse styles.  Apparently, now the seemingly health-conscious can also smuggle in their potables (potent or not) in this yoga mat-like Sling Beverage Cooler.  The sling measures 28″ long x 3.25″ in diameter to hold 6 12-ounce cans.  It’s made of polyethylene and hemp, and the insulated bag is waterproof, with a seam-sealed lining to contain any condensation or spills.  The adjustable strap allows you to carry it on your shoulder or crossbody.  The Sling Beverage Cooler is available in tan for $21.95 at UncommonGoods.