Home John

EDC fire starter, key multi-tool, smart sculpting gadget, and more – Notable crowdfunding campaigns


crowdfund

This week we have five picks for notable crowdfunding campaigns that include an interesting design for picture hanging device, a keychain multi-tool, and more. Click through to see this week’s list of notable crowdfunding campaigns.

Exotac nanoSPARK

What is it?
The Exotac nanoSPARK is a tiny spark generator that you can add to your EDC and survival pack.

Why do I like it?
I like the Exotac nanoSPARK because it’s small, fits in your pocket or any gear bag, but is capable of starting a fire. The handle of the nanoSPARK is a waterproof storage area that can hold cotton or other fire starting tinder so that you can start a fire as quickly as possible.

Where can I find more info?
With 6 days left in the campaign, The Exotac nanoSPARK campaign has already passed their funding goal of $20,000. You can pre-order an Exotac nanoSPARK starting at $22. After the Exotac nanoSPARK campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in July 2017. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

BISON ROLLING GRILL

blurb by Bob Patterson

What is it?
The Bison Rolling Grill is a flexible grill grate that, including the frame and stand, rolls up into a pouch about the size of a bag of tent stakes.

Why do I like it?
Whether you’re car-camping or backpacking, hauling your grilling gear is always awkward. The Rolling Grill provides a clever solution that’s easy to pack and stow without taking up a lot of space. The Teflon-coated aluminum grate is easy to clean, and the stand height is adjustable to match the size of your fire.

Where can I find more info?
With 9 days left to go, Bison Camping Equipment has almost reached its fundraising goal of $35,000. While the early-bird pledges are sold out, you can still get one for $49 with delivery planned for July 2017. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

Absolut Hangsmart

What is it?
Absolut Hangsmart is a tool that helps you hang stuff on a wall.

Why do I like it?
I like the Absolut Hangsmart just because it’s an extremely overbuilt gadget that will let you hang a picture on a wall. It’s a cool idea but wowza, it will get very expensive if you want one for every item that you want to hang on your walls. Apparently, people disagree because they have already doubled their funding goal.

Where can I find more info?
With 10 days left in the campaign, The Absolut Hangsmart campaign has already passed their funding goal of $30,000. You can pre-order an Absolut Hangsmart starting at $24. After the Absolut Hangsmart campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in July 2017. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

Handy Kee – Most Useful Titanium Multi-Tool Key

What is it?
Handy Kee is a Grade 5 Titanium multi-tool with 18+ functions and shaped like a key.

Why do I like it?
I like the Handy Kee because it’s small enough to fit on your keychain but has enough features to make it a worthy EDC item. It has multiple sized wrenches, a flat screwdriver, bit holder, bottle cap lifter, lottery ticket scratcher and more.

Where can I find more info?
With 16 days left in the campaign, The Handy Kee campaign has already passed their funding goal of $2,000. You can pre-order a Handy Kee starting at $21. After the Handy Kee campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in August 2017. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.

CHIZZLE: The Smart Sculpting Surface & Guide

What is it?
CHIZZLE is a platform that connects to your computer to help you make sculptures.

Why do I like it?
How you make a sculpture of a bird? You get a lump of clay and remove everything that doesn’t look like a bird. Simple right? 😉 But that’s what CHIZZLE is supposed to do for you. It shows you on the computer screen what to remove from the lump of clay. In a world full of 3D printers, this device looks like a lot of hands-on fun.

Where can I find more info?
With 30 days left in the campaign, The CHIZZLE campaign is still working towards their funding goal of $60,000. You can pre-order a CHIZZLE starting at $89. After the CHIZZLE campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in May 2017. Visit their Indiegogo page for all the details.

Filed in categories: News

Tagged:

EDC fire starter, key multi-tool, smart sculpting gadget, and more – Notable crowdfunding campaigns originally appeared on on May 16, 2017 at 8:30 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Stick LEGO to your walls with Brik removable wall tiles


It’s time to take your LEGO creations from the floor and table and put them up on a wall for all to see. Brik Wall Tiles are LEGO compatible peel and stick 10 x 10 inch baseplates.

The back of each flexible wall tile has a temporary adhesive that can be used multiple times to attach the tiles to smooth surfaces like walls, doors, refrigerators and more.

The wall tiles are available in white, blue, and black and are priced at $19.99 in packs of two or $59.99 for a package of 6 which includes additional bricks and a removal tool.

Visit https://www.brik.co/ for more info. I also found another company on Amazon which sells peel and stick LEGO compatible wall tiles in other colors and sizes. The ones on Amazon have construction grade adhesive though, so you won’t be able to remove them without damaging the wall.

Filed in categories: News

Tagged:

Stick LEGO to your walls with Brik removable wall tiles originally appeared on on May 16, 2017 at 7:08 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Benjamin Bott Design Chickadee English Tan ultra minimalist wallet review


In my quest to find a great minimalist leather wallet, I was given the opportunity to review a Benjamin Bott Design wallet called the Chickadee English Tan ultra minimalist leather wallet. When it arrived, it was love at first sight.

The wallet arrived in a drawstring bag to protect it from scratches during shipping. There was no other fancy packaging involved – all of the time, energy, and money goes into the product itself.

Design and Quality


Description: The Chickadee English Tan wallet is a 100% handmade (hand cut leather, hand sewn, etc.) item made in the USA in Gloucester, Massachusetts by Benjamin Bott Design Leather Goods. Benjamin Bott Cunningham is the proprietor and has been working full-time for the past four years making leather wallets, phone cases, and key fobs.

The Leather: One of the first things I noticed about the Chickadee wallet was the quality of the leather, its suppleness, and its beautiful color. The Chickadee wallet is made out of full grain English tan Dublin Horween leather (4.5 oz or 1.8 mm). The Horween Leather Company, a tannery located in Chicago, IL established in 1905, is well known for producing some of the finest leathers in the world. Dublin is a waxed version of the Horween Essex tanned leather. Horween describes the Essex tanned leather as a rich full grain top quality cowhide that is tanned with “the same liquor we use to tan shell cordovan [horsehide].” Even though this is a vegetable tanned leather, it is not as stiff because of Horween’s tanning process. The leather holds its shape, yet is soft and flexible enough to give a little to accommodate the cards you insert into the wallet.

The Design and Workmanship: The design and cut are clean, unpretentious, precise and gorgeous. The wallet is made up of two rectangular pieces of leather (one long piece, one short): the long rectangular piece is folded in half with the second piece inserted in between to create the two available wallet pockets.


The wallet was then hand stitched together with a short stitch length using 0.035” thick waxed polyester Olive Green thread along the right-hand side of the wallet (a saddle stitch). The stitching is very tight and really well done. The above photos show the saddle stitch from the front of the wallet (left photo), then from the back (right photo).

Along the lower edge of the wallet, a cross-stitch was used. The wallet comes in different thread colors: Turquoise, Royal Blue, Scarlet Red, Purple, Lark (looks like ivory), Seal (looks like black), Olive Green, Emerald Green, and Old Brown.

The burnished edges are beautifully polished and so even with each other that you cannot tell that there are three edges sewn together just by touching the edge. Wow.

I spoke to Mr. Cunningham about how he was able to obtain such a nice finish on the edges of the leather. To obtain the smooth polished appearance as shown in the photo above, he started with 100 grit sandpaper and worked his way down to 1000 grit sandpaper and finally treated it with saddle soap and water. The wallet is an amazing piece of craftsmanship – you can tell that a lot of time was invested in this beautiful leather product.



The Chickadee English tan wallet has two pockets. There are no additional materials used to line either of the pockets. The interior of the back pocket is raw leather. The back pocket also has a stamp with the Benjamin Bott Designs logo inside – the words “Benjamin Bott” are printed at the top, then below that is an image of a cow with “made in the USA” stamped underneath.

One of the sides of the interior of the front pocket is made of smooth finished leather while the other side is raw leather.

Size: The Chickadee wallet measures 9.5 cm L x ~6.7 cm W (3.75″ L x 2.75″ W) When the wallet is empty, it is approximately 0.25″ or a little over 0.5 cm thick. The wallet is made from 4.5 oz. leather which is about 1.8 mm thick. Mr. Cunningham informed me that if it were made with thinner leather, over time the leather would break down from use thus limiting the length of time that you would be able to use such a wallet.

Comparing the Chickadee English tan wallet to my Garzini wallet shows you the difference in size. The Chickadee is definitely more minimalistic. You can also see the differences in the thickness of the types of thread used and the leather quality. The Horween Dublin leather really catches your eye thus making the Chickadee wallet stand out.

The wallet is indeed a very nice size and fits comfortably in my hand.

Use


The wallet is capable of holding 3-4 cards and some cash according to the Benjamin Bott Design website. As you can see, it is indeed capable of carrying four plastic cards in the front pocket and four paper cards and two five dollar bills in the back pocket.

When full, the wallet is about 5/8″ or a little over 2 cm thick. If you carry less than this, it will obviously be thinner.

I have been using this wallet for almost two weeks now, and have only grown more impressed with it over time. My only concern was that the exposed cross-stitched thread along the bottom of the wallet might wear out over time, but Mr. Cunningham is confident in the stitching quality and has thus offered a lifetime warranty to cover the stitching (and the wallet as a whole) should it become an issue.

Final Thoughts

The Benjamin Bott Design Chickadee English Tan ultra minimalist leather wallet is by far the best made, highest quality, and in my opinion, most attractive minimalist leather wallet that I have reviewed to date. It is made using world renowned Horween leather (Dublin English tan) and thick waxed polyester thread. It is extremely well made and I expect that it will last a lifetime (the stitching and the wallet have a lifetime warranty). It is $60 but well worth the price. It holds my basic needs (4 plastic cards, 4 paper cards, and a couple of dollar bills) and I absolutely love it. I will be using it every day – perhaps on some days, just to gaze at its beauty.

Source: The sample used in this review was provided by Benjamin Bott Design Leather Goods. Please visit his website for more information or to purchase one.

 

Product Information

Price: $60
Manufacturer: Benjamin Bott Design Leather Goods
Pros:
  • High-quality materials (0.035” thick waxed polyester thread, 4.5 oz. Dublin Horween leather)
  • Minimalist design
  • Extremely well made (precise hand cut leather, tight stitching, beautifully burnished edges)
Cons:
  • None

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged:

Benjamin Bott Design Chickadee English Tan ultra minimalist wallet review originally appeared on on May 15, 2017 at 9:50 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Make a small batch of ice cream almost instantly with the Chef’n Sweet Spot


I love ice cream but I don’t get to eat it nearly as often as I’d like because Jeanne can’t tolerate dairy and making non-dairy ice cream at home with our own ingredients can be a hassle to drag out an electric ice cream maker and all the necessary gear. When I saw the Chef’n Sweet Spot Instant Ice Cream Maker my eyes lit up because it looks like it could be the holy grail of frozen treat makers.

The Chef’n Sweet Spot Instant Ice Cream Maker doesn’t require electricity, batteries, a crank, or even ice. All it needs is space in a freezer and scraping action from you.

How does it work? It’s a flat metal bowl that you store in the freezer until you’re ready to make ice cream. Then you take it out and pour the ice cream mixture (the Chef’n Sweet Spot Instant Ice Cream Maker comes with a recipe book) into the frozen metal bowl. After a very short time, the cold surface freezes the mixture and you then mix and scrape it into the consistency that you like using the provided tools.

The Chef’n Sweet Spot Instant Ice Cream Maker makes small servings that you eat immediately, so you won’t overeat. You can read more about it at the Chef’n site and order one on Amazon for $43.51

Filed in categories: News

Tagged: ,

Make a small batch of ice cream almost instantly with the Chef’n Sweet Spot originally appeared on on May 15, 2017 at 7:50 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Ultimate Ears Wonderboom shockproof and waterproof Bluetooth speaker review


In 2014 I had a chance to review the cylindrical Ultimate Ears Bluetooth speaker.  At the time, it was a uniquely shaped speaker paired with a 360-degree sound.  There have been other versions of this speaker such as the Boom 2 and the Megaboom, but the squat, softball-sized Wonderboom caught my eye.  Let’s take a look.

The UE Wonderboom is another cylindrical-shaped speaker, but one that goes everywhere.  It just begs to be picked up.  As usual, the packaging is as interesting as the speaker itself.

  • Height (102 mm)
  • Diameter (93.5 mm)
  • weight (425 g)
  • IP67 rated
  • 10hr playback
  • 2.8hr charge time

Impatient?  The basic instructions are printed on the inside of the box.  (1) to turn it on, and (2) for 2 seconds to enter pairing mode.

You get the wonderful, flat, bright yellow micro USB cable.  I noticed this one is much shorter than the one they packaged with the original UE speaker I tested in 2014.  Cost cutting?  Maybe.

On the scale, the Wonderboom checks in at just under a pound.

There’s only one port on the Wonderboom: microUSB for charging.  It’s behind a rubbery flap.  There is no aux audio port in the back.

This UE speaker has a little color-matched loop.  Hang it off your pinky, or maybe attach it to your backpack.  It would have been nice if they threw in a basic D-clip accessory.
The controls on top light up.  The Bluetooth control is the dot, and the power button is the elongated one on the bottom.  The UE logo, which acts as Play/Pause/Skip and Volume Up, does not light up.

Like the original speaker, the Wonderboom is waterproof and can be linked to a second speaker (Double Up).  It’s listed at 10 hour playback time.

But how does it sound?  In casual testing, I found the sound to be “all around” like the original, and pleasantly full its tiny size.  To get more hard numbers, I went to my recording boom.

For this test, I performed sweeps of the Wonderboom (2017), the original Ultimate Ears Boom (2014) and the Bose Soundlink Mini II (2016).

Here’s theWonderboom (blue) vs, the original (green).  The Wonderboom had a bit of a high-frequency bump above 10khz. vs. the original.  Click for full size.

Next up was the Wonderboom (blue) vs the Bose Soundlink Mini II (red).  As I expected, the Bose has a little more low-end boom, as they tend to exhibit.  Again, you can click for full size.

I know what you may be thinking:  “No bass?  No deal!”  Yes, if you’re a bass-head, you’d probably go for the Bose.  But don’t forget, the Wonderboom is waterproof (IP67) and the Bose is certainly not.  If I need to pick a compact go-anywhere speaker, the Wonderboom is a great choice.

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

 

Product Information

Price: $99.99
Manufacturer: Ultimateears
Retailer: Amazon
Requirements:
  • Bluetooth, USB charger
Pros:
  • Compact, waterproof (IP67 at 1m for 30 minutes)
Cons:
  • Not going to shatter your windows with bass, but sounds great for the size.

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged:

Ultimate Ears Wonderboom shockproof and waterproof Bluetooth speaker review originally appeared on on May 14, 2017 at 5:10 pm.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.