Home 2019 March

Miccus Swivel Jack RTX review

REVIEW – My niece just got her drivers license but her car stereo doesn’t have built-in Bluetooth. The Miccus Swivel Jack RTX device is a perfect solution for her. She just needs to plug it into her car’s aux connection to pair with her phone. Or if her sister or boyfriend wants to switch to a playlist on their phones, it has easy, wireless pairing.

What is it?

The Swivel Jack RTX is a pocket-sized long-range wireless transmitter/receiver.

What’s in the box?

  • The transmitter/receiver
  • Instruction manual
  • USB cord for charging
  • 3.5 mm female to RCA male audio cable

Specs

  • 3.5mm Stereo Audio Input and Output
  • Operating range of up to 100ft
  • 2.10 Hour battery life
  • USB Power: DC 5V @500mA or higher
    Dimensions: L 1.9in x W 0.8in x H 0.5in
  • 4 GHz operating frequency

Design and features

There’s a single jack on a swivel, for easy positioning no matter which device you plug it into. And the jack tucks back into the body when not in use.

Its blue light flashes rapidly when it’s pairing and glows solid blue to confirms if it’s working.

We found it very fast and easy to pair with a Bluetooth device.

A toggle switch lets you easily alternate from transmitting to receiving.

First, we tried using it as a receiver. We connected it to a portable, mini speaker and paired it with a smartphone in just a few seconds on the first try.

Our speaker didn’t have an aux input but that didn’t matter since the Swivel Jack RTX came with an RCA cable, which worked like a charm. We appreciated being able to connect with devices that don’t come with an aux input.

The Swivel Jack RTX boosts an operating range of up to 100 feet. We tested it at 75 feet, outside on a crummy day, and it worked quickly. However, it was a less stable connection than the closer range audio. We were still impressed with the quality of the receiver at that distance and plan to use it this summer to play music in our backyard and pool area.

Next, we tried using it a transmitter, which worked equally as well. In fact, we thought the sound quality was just as good as our wired connection without any noticeable delay.

Size wise, we found it fine for plugging into a car or speaker. However, it’s about twice as wide as a typical smartphone, which we found bulky when attached at the headphone jack. It wasn’t a big drawback but ideally would have fit within the phone’s edges.

The Swivel Jack RTX glows red when charging and turns off when it’s done. It took about 40 minutes to fully charge and lasted more than three hours on one charge, which was a pleasant surprise since the manual says it only lasts two hours.

What I like

  • Fast pairing
  • RCA cord came in handy
  • Swivel design made it easy to plug in anywhere

What needs to be improved

  • We found it a little bulky when using with a phone

Final thoughts

It’s a powerful little receiver and transmitter with many practical uses.

Price: $39.99
Where to buy: Miccus.com and Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Miccus.com.

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Miccus Swivel Jack RTX review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 4, 2019 at 9:00 am.

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Keep your cool in the kitchen with Gourmia CoolCookers

NEWS – It doesn’t get much better than coming home to a freshly cooked meal.  Slow cookers have offered that convenience to home chefs for quite some time.  Toss in the good stuff, set it for low and slow, and come home to a house that smells amazing and fall-apart tender food. But, what about those meals that don’t need 8-10 hours?  Some cookers had timers that could start the cooking process several hours later, but your food would sit for hours at kitchen temperatures, just waiting to turn nasty. What if your schedule changes and you come home early or late?  You have undercooked food and spend some quality time with the microwave, or overcooked, mushy food that nobody wants to eat.

Gourmia has solved that problem with their new line of Internet of Things (IoT) CoolCookers. Gourmia is rolling out a new pressure cooker (GPCC1960) and multi cooker (GMCC1970) with built-in refrigeration to 35 degrees.  These units will keep your food fridge-fresh until cook time.  In addition to keeping your meal fresh and healthy, they also bring internet accessibility via WiFi and an IOS and Android app as well as integration with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa.  I don’t think it quite gets to the dream of saying “Alexa – what’s for dinner?”, but it’s a start!  What the app does do is allow for remote changes if your schedule changes.  If you’re running late home from work, you can delay the cook time, right from your smart device.  Of course, you can’t tell it to cook more food, because your boss is now coming for dinner.

The pressure cookers offers Gourmia’s state-of-the-art automatic pressure release, an auto stir system to stir the food, and fully adjustable pressure settings.  Via the app, chefs can also remotely release the pressure, allowing for pressure cooking without having to be right at-hand at a specific time.

The multi cooker has a spacious 6.5 quart capacity and provides 11 different cooking functions including sauté, bake, roast, steam, sous vide, and stew. For those of us with limited kitchen cabinet space, having one device that can handle all of these cook methods is a great space saver.

Gourmia is ETL certified, meaning that their products have all undergone rigorous safety testing and meet Underwriters Laboratory (UL) standards for safety.

Both CoolCookers will be available later in 2019 at major retailers.  Pricing has not been announced.  For more information go to www.gourmia.com.

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Keep your cool in the kitchen with Gourmia CoolCookers originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 4, 2019 at 8:00 am.

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KLIP: Titanium Pocket Knife + EDC Suspension Hook – Notable crowdfunding campaign

CROWDFUNDED – Are you one of those folks who like to hook their keys to their pocket or belt?  Ever find yourself wishing you had a knife during the day, but don’t have one handy?  Do you appreciate clever, aesthetic design?  KLIP checks all of those boxes.  Let’s have a look!

What is it?

Made from Titanium, KLIP is a Knife + pocket clip that is designed to suspend your keys or other items from your pocket while also giving you quick access to a small knife.

Why do I like it?

I love combo items—items that can serve multiple functions.  The KLIP can be your key holder and you can hang them down into your pocket, or from your belt, or even from backpack webbing.  Plus, there’s a little knife hidden in there, in case you need to open a box, etc.  The KLIP is machined from durable, lightweight, stonewashed Grade 5 Titanium and it sports a super-sharp 440C steel blade which locks into position with a “click.”  Its deployment mechanism also features a ball detent and adjustable pivot screw.  KLIP has a lot packed into a small, functional package.

Where can I find more info?

The KLIP: Titanium Pocket Knife + EDC Suspension Hook campaign ends on March 6, 2019. To date, over 670 backers have already pledged over $37,000 toward the $5,000 funding goal. Pledge packages start at $39 for a single KLIP  and increase from there.  After the end of the campaign period, rewards are expected to start shipping in April 2019. Visit the KLIP: Titanium Pocket Knife + EDC Suspension Hook campaign site for more information or to become a backer.

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KLIP: Titanium Pocket Knife + EDC Suspension Hook – Notable crowdfunding campaign originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 4, 2019 at 7:03 am.

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Facebook Allows Strangers to Find You with Phone Number You Provided for 2-Factor Authorization

We’ve been told for years that two-factor authorization is a way to help keep us safe, as it makes it harder for hackers to get their hands on our information. But Facebook doesn’t seem to notice the technical oxymoron of allowing others to find you with the phone number you provided them to set up two-factor authorization. Worse yet, they won’t even let you opt out of it. Facebook Allows Phone Number to Be Used If you’re feeling extra-safe on Facebook after you secured your account with two-factor authorization with the use of your phone number, you may want to read this. Perhaps, however, you… Read more

Posted by / March 4, 2019 / Posted in News

Can’t Upload Files to Google Drive? Here are a Few Fixes

Google Drive is up there with the most influential pieces of software in the last decade, single-handedly transferring the workspace for the average user from the hard drive up into the cloud. But it does have its problems, one of the most notable being upload issues, and not being able to transfer the files you want to the cloud. Thankfully, we’re here with some fixes for when Google Drive uploads start letting you down. Note: The below instructions are for the web version of Google Drive, as it’s prone to upload issues. Although unlikely, if you are facing upload issues with the desktop or mobile… Read more