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Learn calligraphy or take your lettering to a new level with the Ensō Parallel Pen set from Pilot

NEWS – If you’ve ever wanted to learn calligraphy, the Ensō Parallel Pen Set from Pilot can help you on your way.  Pilot says these pens are a major breakthrough in calligraphic pen design:  “The nib consists of two parallel plates and allows for sharp, monoline writing with the narrow edge, and expressive, calligraphic writing with the broad edge.”  Ensō Parallel nibs also allow you to easily draw color-blended letters by simply touching the nib of a pen filled with one color to the nib of a pen filled with another color.

The Parallel Pen set consists of four pens with 1.5 mm, 2.4 mm, 3.8 mm, and 6.0 mm nibs; 18 refill ink cartridges (12 assorted colors and 6 black); a pipette; a nib cleaner; and an instruction book to get you started.  Check out Pilot’s product page to see examples of hand lettering done by some of their customers.

The Ensō Parallel Pen Set is $47.08 at Pilot.  The same kit is available at Amazon for only $28.49.

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Learn calligraphy or take your lettering to a new level with the Ensō Parallel Pen set from Pilot originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 26, 2018 at 8:10 am.

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KAMVAS Pro 22 pen display features battery-free pen

NEWS – In the digital age, where digital content replaces printed material at an ever-expanding rate, it only seems logical to draw with digital ink on a digital screen. The graphics tablet, which combines a tablet pen, tablet, and screen is one way digital drafting can become a reality. Last month, Huion introduced the KAMVAS Pro 22 graphics tablet; the successor to the powerful and versatile KAMVAS GT-221 Pro.  The newer model adds a more responsive report rate (266PPS vs 233PPS), a battery-free electromagnetic resonance pen, and 100% fidelity of the sRGB color set. These features already included in the previous version include: 589 x 344 x 21mm dimensions, 4 kg weight, 20 customizable hard keys with a touch bar, 8192 levels of pen pressure, 5080 LPI of pen resolution, and  178° wide viewing angles. The surface of the tablet is a specially etched glass which is anti-glare and also provides a paper-like feeling.  The size and weight permit this tablet to be used on a lap, but it also includes a stand that can be set from 20° to 80°. KAMVAS Pro 22  is compatible with both Windows (Windows 7 or later) and MacOS (MacOS 10.12 or later). It is also compatible with mainstream software like Adobe Photoshop, Clip Studio, Toom Boom Harmony and many more. Being left-handed, I especially appreciate that the hard keys and touch buttons are symmetrically placed on each side of the screen.  In addition to the graphics tablet and the pen, the package includes an HDMI cable, a USB cable, power adapter,  pen holder,  10 pen nibs,  nib clip, and adjustable stand. The retail price is $899.00. Visit https://www.huiontablet.com/all-products/presale-item/kamvas-gt-221-pro-v2.html for more information.

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KAMVAS Pro 22 pen display features battery-free pen originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 25, 2018 at 8:00 am.

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Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frame review

REVIEW – Several years digital photo frames were a popular gift idea. I reviewed at least a dozen of them until their popularity grew stale. But what’s old is new again and today digital photo frames are making a comeback. One new frame that I’m going to show you today is the Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frame. Let’s take a look.

What is it?

The Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frame is a digital photo frame that can be used to view your favorite images. Nixplay makes a variety of frames but their  Cloud Frames are available in 15 and 18-inch screen sizes. I was sent the 18-inch version.

Hardware specs

Screen Resolution: 1366 x 768 pixels
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
Brightness: 350 cd/m2
Supported Photo Format: JPEG / JPG / PNG
Supported Video Format: H.264 HD 720p
Speakers: 2 x (1.5W) Stereo Speakers, 3.5mm Stereo Headphone Input
Ports: USB Drive / SD / SDHC
Wireless: 802.11 b/g/n
Width: 18.4 inches (467mm)
Height: 11.4 inches (290mm)
Depth: 1.3 inches (33mm) – without stand, 4.5 inches (115mm) – with stand
Weight:2.72kg – without stand, 2.80kg – with stand

What’s in the box?

Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frame
Screw in stand
IR remote
AC adapter
Quick start guide

Design and features

This is the largest digital photo frame that I’ve reviewed and I have to say that if you’re going to buy a digital photo frame, go big or forget it. This 18-inch frame is big and well made. It has black 1-inch bezels on all sides to make it look like a picture frame.

The Nixplay has two sensors that are built into the lower part of the frame. In the lower left corner is the motion detection sensor and there’s also the IR sensor for the included remote control.

The remote control has a membrane style keypad with functions to control the photo slideshow and video playback.

The back of the Nixplay Cloud WiFi Frame has mounting slots to help you mount the frame on a wall in either landscape or portrait orientation.

There are also speakers built into the back of the frame and a set of control buttons in case you lose the IR remote control.

The back of the frame has an SD card slot and a USB port if you want to load your own images from flash memory. There’s also a 3.5mm headphone jack and the power port.

If you don’t want people messing with the ports, you can block them by using the included cover.

The port cover is secured by two screws.

If you don’t want to mount the Nixplay on a wall, you can attach the included stand which snaps into the back of the frame and is secured by a brass thumb screw.

I opted to do my testing of the frame with the stand. However, by using the stand, you can only use it in landscape orientation.

Loading your images and videos into the frame

To see slideshows of your favorite images and video, you can load them on an SD card, a USB flash drive, or you can connect the frame to your wireless network and then load images from a selection of social media sites like Dropbox, Facebook, Google Photos, Instagram, Flickr, and Verizon Cloud by using the Nixplay web app. Note that except for the Dropbox dynamic playlist, the other social media sites will not automatically sync new images to the frame. You will need to update the playlists when you add new images that you want to show up on the Nixplay frame. Don’t worry though, it’s as easy as dragging and dropping the images into the playlist from the Nixplay web app.

Another way to get images into the frame is by email. Each frame has an email address assigned to it once you create a Nixplay account. Images sent to the frame using this address will be added to a special playlist.

Last but not least, you can install the Nixplay app on your smartphone or tablet and send images from your device to the frame that way too.

Before you can use the frame, you’ll need to create a Nixplay account which is free and allows you to easily configure a variety of settings on the frame. The free account also allows you to create and modify playlists of up to 10GB of photos for up to 5 different Nixplay frames. If you need to manage more frames, Nixplay offers a Plus account where you’ll have 10 frames per account and 30GB of storage.

For example, if you load an album of photos from Instagram or Google Photos like I did, you can remove images that you don’t want to see or disable the playlist altogether.

Note that the images will be loaded on to the frame itself so that even if you log out of the Nixplay account or lose WiFi connectivity, the frame still continues to work.

Most nicer digital photo frames allow you to set a sleep schedule so that the frame goes into standby mode during the nighttime hours when no one would be seeing it anyway. The Nixplay will allow you to either have the screen turn off or it can display a clock during the sleep schedule hours. But that’s not all. The Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frame goes even one step further by implementing a motion sensor that will put the display in sleep mode when it senses that there’s no one in the room. I love this feature and have found that it works really well.

Another feature worth mentioning is that you can control your Nixplay frame with Alexa. You can ask it to play specific playlists just by using your voice. I don’t have an Amazon Echo set up to test this feature, but you can find out more about it by visiting the Nixplay site.

Display quality

A digital photo frame is only as good as the display quality right? Well, there’s nothing to worry about with the Nixplay because the glossy LED-backlit display is bright, crisp, and vibrant with excellent viewing angles so that you can see image details even if you’re not directly in front of the frame.

The frame has a 16:9 aspect ratio so images that you take with your phone will probably not fill the screen and you’ll send up seeing bands on the sides or the top and bottom of the screen. The cool thing is that Nixplay makes the color of the bands match the image on the screen.

This way the bands aren’t just white or black.

Here’s an example of a panoramic image that I took while on vacation in Three Rivers California. See how the Nixplay is showing top and bottom bands?

Here are some other examples. Click the pics to see the full image.



You’re probably wondering if there’s a way to fill the screen with the image to get rid of the bands and yes, there is. Actually, there are a few other ways to display your favorite pictures on the Nixplay frame.

You can set the images to fill the frame which Looks good as long as the subject of the image is in the center of the picture and is small enough that certain details don’t get cut off with the image fills the frame. See the image above, it’s an Instagram picture which is typically a square image. I’ve set the image to fill the screen.

And here’s the original image. See how the tops of the mailboxes are cut off when it’s using the fill display mode?

Here’s the snapshot display mode which shows each new image on top of the previous image.

And here’s the tile display mode which shows two images side by side. This mode works great for images that are up and down (portrait) instead of wide (landscape).

In addition to the multiple viewing styles, the frame also has 11 different transition styles when it loads a new image. You can specify the one you like best or just set it to random so it uses all of the styles.

What I like

  • Great display
  • Doesn’t require a paid subscription
  • SD card and USB readers
  • Alexa enabled
  • Motion sensor

What to consider before buying

  • Price

Final thoughts

As I mentioned in the opening paragraph of this review, I’ve reviewed at least a dozen digital photo frames in the last 2 decades, but the Nixplay is the first digital photo frame that has actually impressed me on all fronts. It makes my images look great and the built-in features like motion detection and sleep schedules make this an enjoyable digital photo frame to use.

Price: $279.99
Where to buy: Nixplay and Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Nixplay.

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Nixplay WiFi Cloud Frame review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 31, 2018 at 12:00 pm.

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The DrawBag backpack is made of paper leather that can be customized with your artwork

NEWS – Are you someone who likes to blend in with the crowd by carrying a boring black backpack, or do you like to show your style by choosing a backpack that will turn heads when you walk by? If you answered yes to the second question, you’ll want to check out the DrawBag backpack.

The DrawBag backpack is a 15.5 x 10.5 x 4.25 inch backpack that is made of leather, but not the leather that comes from cows. This material is called paper leather. What is paper leather you ask? It’s kraft paper, which is strong and tear-proof. When I asked them if their backpack would fall apart if it gets wet in the rain, I was told:

No, it won’t fall apart in the rain– You can actually run it through a washing machine without a problem (although I advise hand-washing because of the metal hardware which in a machine could bang up against the interior metal walls during the cycle). It’s incredibly tear-resistant due to the process by which the paper is made, and has even been used for bags of concrete mix.

True to its name, you can draw your own designs on the DrawBag. It even comes with markers. The Classic DrawBag comes with 3 markers and the Signature DrawBag comes with one marker since it’s designed to be signed instead of drawn on.

But won’t the ink bleed and run if it gets wet? Apparently not:

The included pens are permanent markers and will last through rain and washing. Likewise, acrylic (or oil) paints will last. If you wanted to remove the artwork, you could use water-based inks or paints. Additionally, If you wanted to use water-based inks or paints and make them permanent, adding a coat of fixative or acrylic sealant (just as you would for protecting artwork on drawing paper, etc.) also works. So there’s some versatility in how the bags can ultimately be fashioned by the owner or artist.

What about the interior of the backpack? It has a blue nylon interior with open pockets and one zippered pocket to help keep your gear organized. So what do you think? Will your next backpack be made of paper?

You can find more info or order a DrawBag for $50 at thedrawbag.com

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The DrawBag backpack is made of paper leather that can be customized with your artwork originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 25, 2018 at 2:00 pm.

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Light your room with an eco-friendly piece of art

If you purchase these E.P. Eco-Friendly LED light bulbs, you’ll need a lamp that doesn’t have a shade.  These bulbs are little works of art, and they are too pretty to be covered up.  They are all handmade from a resin to which some colorant is added to give the bulbs a look inspired by a Jackson Pollock painting.  The resin is break-resistant, making these bulbs safer than standard glass bulbs.

The E.P. Eco-Friendly bulbs are “green” in many ways:

  • Made from green, recyclable materials
  • LED bulb saves up to 60% more energy than regular lights
  • Won’t get hot even after hours of producing rich, radiant light, thus keeping the room cooler
  • Uses only 3W of power

They are good for the Earth, and they’re good for your wallet, too.  They are rated for 100,000+ hours, saving on replacement costs.  The screw bases are designed to fit standard E27～E26 sockets.  And they are backed with a 1-year warranty.

There are six styles of these bulbs, but each bulb will be unique.  The actual color and curves will vary because of the handmade nature of the bulbs.  The E.P. Eco-Friendly LED light bulbs are normally $24.95, but they are $19.95 at the time of writing.  Purchase at the Popular Science Shop.  You can find a larger variety of the E.P. bulbs, plus a variety of light fixtures designed for these bulbs, at the E.P. DesignLab website.

The post Light your room with an eco-friendly piece of art appeared first on The Gadgeteer.

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Light your room with an eco-friendly piece of art originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on June 25, 2018 at 10:00 am.

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