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E-Blox building brick sets review

REVIEW – E-Blox are great for anyone who loves Lego but wants to try something different, perhaps a little more advanced, with cool light-up blocks.

What is it?

Building-block toys with LEDs, some sets come with related stories, some are kits with free-play options, others involve constructing circuits.  

What’s in the box?

We tested two boxes. 

Our Power Blox Builds Plus set came with:

  • 73 pieces (3 models shown)
  • Safety instructions for 9-volt battery handling

Our Story Blox The City set came with:

  • 138 pieces (8 models)
  • “The City,” a chapter in the E-blox novelette “Earth One”
  • An assembly manual
  • Safety instructions for 9-volt battery handling

Specs

A 9-volt battery is required for the power box/battery case, which powers the LED pieces. Each box includes a safety sheet about the hazards, storage and removal of the battery in order to avoid a short circuit or leakage. In fact, there’s even an alarm incorporated into the battery box, which sounds when there’s a short.

On the opposite side of the safety sheet are instructions for getting started with E-blox. Unlike other building block toys, there are several specific rules with E-blox in order to get the light-up blocks to work properly:

  • The LED must be connected to the battery case terminals.
  • Each piece must be placed correctly, with the positive “+” side of the LED module connected to the positive side of the battery case. (Both are labeled.) Backward LEDs won’t glow.
  • It must also be connected to the negative battery case terminal, too.
  • If you want your project to include more than one light by connecting the modules in a series, the silver conductive pieces must interconnect the LEDs to each other and to the battery module terminals.

Design and features

There are four different types of E-Blox:

  • Circuit Blox, where you use a circuit board to build toys, with 13 different sets including a flying saucer or FM radio.
  • Power Blox, with 11 sets, where you build structures that incorporate glowing pieces, with multiple designs per box (ours was a kitten, tower or picture frame; another option was an airplane, space invader or ghostship).
  • Story Blox, three sets that incorporate a story and 8 corresponding models to build.
  • Single Pieces, buy exactly the blox you need, priced from 10 cents for a 1-block spacer to $10 for a battery block.

We tested a Power Blox and Story Blox set. My son, 11, was excited to make the kitten in his Power Blox set. Based on previous Lego experience, he expected he could improvise— and he constructed it just fine to the naked eye, but the cool green eyes wouldn’t glow, because we hadn’t sufficiently studied all the rules for getting the LEDs to work.  

As you can see from the LED requirements in the Specs section above, there is a lot to pay attention to. For us, this meant a little learning curve before building, at least if you want the lights to work on your creation. 

After 30 minutes of frustration, we looked up the instructions on YouTube, since his Power Blox set didn’t come with an assembly manual. With the instructions and a more attentive eye to positive and negative terminals, his dad helped work it out. 

I should note that after my son built a handful of smaller models with the instructions (in the Story Blox set), he went back to his Power Blox and was able to build an impressive tower on his own. So these can be used for creative play and freestyling, but you need to study up and get a feel for them first.

Story Blox are a neat concept, especially if you’re trying to help a hands-on learner get in more reading and even a little research. For every page of text, there was a related build, as well as a QR code to research topics related to the story. Don’t expect a lot of reading, there are only about 8 sentences to read before each build. But it’s certainly a clever way to get kids engaged.

  A few watch-outs:

  • These creations are very delicate. While the conductive pieces are very tight and hard to get apart because of their plating, the regular pieces are very loose. I carefully picked up the kitty after taking its picture, and it crumbled in my hands. I also accidentally broke the bridge from The City. If my child were younger or more sensitive, that could have led to tears.
  • The light-up pieces look like three separate pieces, but they are actually one. If you’ve spent any time playing with Legos, you’d be conditioned to see 3 one-by-twos. And like both me and my son, you’ll try to rip them apart. Don’t! You’ll break them.
  • The pictures on the box aren’t necessarily the models you’re going to build. Our Story Blox box showed cool light-up office buildings, which were not included. Be sure to check the back of the box to see the exact models it comes with.
  • You need to take apart each project to build the next, which may be hard for those who get easily attached to their work. We’ve been displaying my son’s creation-of-the-day as our dinner table centerpiece each night before he takes it apart to build something new. But five years ago, we wouldn’t have gotten past the first build, because he could never bear to destroy it.

What I like

  • Creative toy, with several ways to engage young learners
  • The different colored lights are very cool and unique
  • It’s educational, a great way to learn about 3D electronic circuits
  • Attention to safety, especially the alarm for short circuits

What I’d change

  • Include written assembly manual for all sets
  • Tighter fitting “regular” pieces for more stability
  • Add a tool for unlocking the tight-fitting conductive pieces

Final thoughts

A fun, unique toy with a bit of a learning curve at first, but lots of cool designs and creative possibilities once you understand how they work.

Price: Power Blox sets from $21.99 to $175.99. Circuit Blox sets from $10.99 to $82.49. Story Blox sets are $54.99. We tested Story Blox The City, $54.99, and the Power Blox Builds Plus set, $43.99.
Where to buy: E-Blox and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided by E-Blox.

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E-Blox building brick sets review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 11, 2019 at 11:00 am.

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Nomad offers a free Lightning cable if you plant trees in the Amazon


NEWS – No one ever has enough Lighting cables, and no one who isn’t a land developer hates trees. What if you could plant trees and be given a free cable for your trouble? Nomad is offering exactly that in their Free Cable for the Planet program. Donate at least $5 to plant 5 trees in the Amazon, and they will send ya 1.5 meter Lightning cable, with or without end-caps. You do have to pay for shipping, but when’s the last time you bought a quality third-partly Lightning cable for under $10?

Hat tip to imore.com for their reporting of this news.

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Nomad offers a free Lightning cable if you plant trees in the Amazon originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 11, 2019 at 10:00 am.

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ZVOX Voicebud VB20 Hearing Amplifier review

REVIEW – A little bit of context for this review, I was born with significant problems with my right ear. It has been and always will be a pain in my, well, head. I have suffered hearing loss, had two surgeries on it, have a permanent hole in the ear drum and suffer through ear infections throughout the year. Needless to say, any dreams of being a swimmer or diver were out of the question by the time I was 5 years old. Age and the medical issues have made my hearing an issue and I find myself more and more often lately asking someone to repeat what they just said, especially if they are standing on my right side. I have put off getting a hearing aid, but am slowly starting to realize that at 38 years old, I’m only delaying the inevitable. So, I volunteered to test out the ZVOX VoiceBud VB20 Hearing Amplifier when it became available.

What is it?

The VB20 Hearing Amplifier is an FDA registered class one hearing aid.

What’s in the box?

  • Instructions, first use pamphlet and contact card.
  • Spare batteries
  • Zippered carrying case
  • Cleaning Kit with extra tubes and ear domes
  • Hearing aid

Design and features

The VB20 is an over the ear style hearing aid with a small clear tube that runs from the aid into the ear canal.

There is a small stabilizing arm that tucks into the lower part of your ear to keep it securely in your ear canal. There is a toggle switch on top to turn the volume up and down. Long pressing either of the volume buttons will cycle through the 4 different hearing settings:

1) Speech – for usual conversation without much background noise

2) Noisy Room – for inside spaces with distracting noise and other people talking

3) Automobile – for inside moving vehicles

4) Outdoors – for outdoor spaces or very large empty spaces.

Setup

Setting up the aid is pretty easy. Just insert a battery and shut the battery door, then insert the tube with a dome attached snugly into the ear canal. Any time the battery door is closed, the aid is on and turning it off involves removing the battery.

Performance

Over the weeks of using the VB20, I found that in most instances it did provide amplified sound and allowed me to pick up a more rounded sound from the world around me. Typically it stayed in mode 1, for normal conversation with mode 3 used for my commute to work and mode 2 when I went out to lunch or dinner. I used mode 4 only when I was walking to and from my car at work, as it did a good job of filtering out the noise of the wind.

It does take some getting used to though and not all of the added noise was welcomed. The first few days took time to get used to the aid being in the ear canal, and it’s even recommended to wear it for about an hour at a time with breaks between until you’re used to it. Conversation also took a little bit of getting used to as well, with voices sometimes taking on a mechanical almost robotic tone depending on the setting. Additionally, while using some wifi or Bluetooth devices, there would be painful interference that would make me pull the aid from my ear very quickly.

It did improve my hearing and my wife noticed a difference when I was wearing it and when I wasn’t. The size, color, and style allow it to remain relatively hidden from most people I am in contact with at work, so it’s not distracting or embarrassing to wear – and let’s be honest this is what I believe is what I believe keeps most people from getting hearing aids. The battery life leaves a little to be desired, as none of them lasted more than a week of use.

What I like

  • Easy functions, toggle switch for volume and change of mode and easy to change battery
  • Small and sleek design fits nicely behind the ear
  • I can hear better with it, even with the occasional annoyance

What I’d change

  • Extend the battery life
  • Ear canal irritation is going to be an issue with long term use, possibly make the domes softer? I don’t know how to fix this, and I’m sure it’s a problem across all types of the in-the-canal style hearing aids

Final thoughts

Being that this is my first experience with a hearing aid, it may be noted that I don’t really have anything to compare this to other than my base hearing level. That being said, I did notice an improvement in my hearing in all 4 modes of operation. The occasional problems were outweighed by the positives and I just learned over time what situations wouldn’t work well with this type of aid. It does make me wonder if I could get more precise results with an actual hearing test and customized hearing aid, however at this time I do think it’s more than sufficient for my day to day needs for hearing improvement. For those who suffer from a slight to moderate hearing loss, I believe this would provide a noticeable improvement over the base hearing level.

Price: $199.99
Where to buy: ZVOX Website
Source: The sample of this product was provided by ZVOX.

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ZVOX Voicebud VB20 Hearing Amplifier review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 11, 2019 at 9:00 am.

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