NEWS – The New Year is coming soon, and you may be thinking about your resolutions. If drinking more water is one of your goals, you need to consider one of the water-tracking bottles or tumblers from Zak Designs. The bottles and tumblers have silicone rings around them that help you keep track of your water consumptions. You can transfer a band to your arm for each glass of water you drink, or you can simply move the bands up to the top of the tumbler, as shown here.
Zak Designs offers the HydraTrak line as tumblers like the one above made of Tritan plastic or stainless steel, in a variety of colors. All are double-wall insulated to keep your water cold. Some have screw tops and some have straws. All are BPA-free. Sizes range from 16 to 32 ounces.
The Zak Designs HydraTrak line ranges from $8.50 to $20.00 at Amazon.
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REVIEW – There’s finally a unique solution to the problems of never finding the right auto air freshener scent and wishing you could use your essential oils in the car. Gurunada has you covered with their Mobile USB Car Diffuser. Read on to see how it works.
What is it?
Gurunada’s mobile ultrasonic diffuser creates vibrations that are carried to the surface where oil is floating. The oil mixed in with water gets broken down and diffused into the air, filling the car with atomized essential oil.
Hardware specs
55ml reservoir
overheating protection
low and high modes
approx. 3-6 hours of mist time
USB cable draws power from car
What’s in the box?
oil diffuser
USB adapter cable
DC car adapter
bonus free essential oil
Design and Features
I feel like before I begin this review, I should mention a couple of things about essential oils and their supposed benefits. From what I understand, there are wildly varying beliefs on the practical use of essential oils, naturally extracted from plants. Each variety of oil, such as lemongrass, peppermint, and lavender, is purportedly useful for very specific things.
Each oil is supposed to be good for a few things, including relaxation and revitalization.
Some believe they’re fine for smelling and relaxing. Others think they can be used to cure major ailments. And while I’m not discounting their purpose, here, I should mention that you should check with your doctor before using them as a substitute for any sort of medical treatment.
One last point, I found it funny that most of the scents that I received with the diffuser mention a calming or relaxing effect, which I’m not sold on being the best use for driving, an activity that requires alertness and quick reflexes.
Setup
Once you’ve got the diffuser in a secure spot, most certainly a cup holder near the power outlet, simply plug it in and fill the reservoir up to the line. Then put a few drops of your favorite essential oils. I’m sure that Gurunada would prefer you use their 100% oils, and they are quite nice, but I imagine you can put in any ones that you happen to have from other sources. You can mix and match to your heart’s content, creating your perfect combination of scents.
Usage
Now you’ve got a little plastic container with water and a little oil floating at the top. You’ve also taken up half of your cup holders. Just saying. To turn on the unit, you simply press the button on the front once for high, twice for low, or a third time to turn it off. When the diffuser is set to high, the light on the button turns on. However, when it’s set to low, the light turns off, making it difficult to tell if the unit is low or off, other than the mist coming out at 20 second intervals.
It’s possible you’ll be carrying this in and out of the car with you if it’s too hot or too cold outside.
The diffuser works by creating ultrasonic vibrations, dispersing the water and oil on the surface and creating a fine mist that blows out the top of the unit like a tiny humidifier. It didn’t take long for the car to fill the with the aroma of bergamot, one of the oils I received to test, and the only oil that promoted alertness. Plus, I love that scent … like a warm mug of Earl Gray.
Everything seemed to work perfectly for a while. Then I noticed the unit shutting off at random times. I discovered that if the water level isn’t high enough, turning around a corner is enough to trigger the auto shut-off. It’s designed to shut down when the water level is low enough, and my turning must have shifted the contents enough to make it think it was running low.
Maintenance began to become a problem as well. I don’t usually take water in the car with me, but once I had this diffuser in place, I needed to remind myself to carry a refillable bottle so that I could keep the water at a level that didn’t trigger a shut-off. And of course, a few more drops of oil are needed whenever you top off the water. So it does need some tending, especially vs. any regular 30-day car freshener.
Also, it is winter in PA right now, which means most nights are now below freezing. And since you’ve basically got a plastic cup of water in your cold car all night, you can bet you’re going to find a bergamot popsicle waiting for you in the morning. Or even at the end of the workday.
The Gurunada website recommends to clean out the unit every few days to avoid buildup of oil. Not a problem if you have to take it with you every time you get out of the car.
Overall, the portable diffuser worked pretty well, provided you keep it properly fed and maintained.
What I like
diffuses a high amount of fragrance mist
compact, portable solution that works well
What needs to be improved
high maintenance vs regular air freshener
easy to trigger shut-off
can’t be left in the car in freezing weather
Final thoughts
For the amount of maintenance and baggage that comes with this mobile diffuser — taking up a coveted cup holder, needing to store oil bottles in my glove box, futzing around with water levels and shut-offs — to me, it’s more trouble than it’s worth. Especially when I can just hang up a Little Tree from my rear view mirror and be done with it.
“Philistine!” cry the proponents of essential oils. I understand that’s not the point of this unit. For what it was made for, a mobile USB-powered solution for diffusing oils in your car, it serves its purpose well, and I know a lot of people would be satisfied with it. Especially at the low asking price.
Price: $19.99 Where to buy: You can pick up the Gurunada Mobile Diffuser directly from their website and Amazon. Source: The sample of this product was provided by Gurunada. You can find out more and check out their full line of essential oils and diffusers on their website.
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NEWS – Roborock has announced an update to their S5 robotic vacuum cleaner software that they feel adds some joy to their customers’ holiday celebrations. Instead of an update for controlling the vacuum in a new way, the new function is simply a “holiday egg”.
Roborock says you can unlock the Christmas song with the following steps:
“Enter Mi Home App, enter the RoborockS5 plug in, then Settings.
Press on “Find my Vacuum” for 2-4 seconds and a push notification “Time to open the gift! go find me” will be displayed.
Press on “Find my Vacuum” again, a push notification “Merry Christmas” will be displayed, followed by a Christmas Song.”
If you want your vacuum to go Christmas caroling, then try these steps. Learn more about Roborock vacuums at their website.
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REVIEW – Join me as I take a look at the Rx8s from RevoNext. Great specs, braided cable and a price that likely forces a double take. You’ll want to keep reading.
What is it?
RevoNext’s Rx8s are a pair of dual-driver earphones with detachable cable and solid performance at a very attractive price.
Hardware specs
Type: In-Ear
Connectivity: Wired
Cable Length: 125cm±2cm
Sensitivity: 105dB
Impedance: 25Ω
Frequency Range: 7Hz-40KHz
Plug Type: 3.5mm L Plug
Pin Type: 0.78mm
Weight: 20g
What’s in the box?
Dual Driver In-Ear Headphones
Silicone Ear Tips (3 Pairs)
3.5mm input, 2 pin Detachable Hifi Audio Cable
User Manual
Design and features
The Rx8s are designed with an ergonomic fit to sit relatively flush into your ear. Three different sizes of silicone ear tips are included to customize the fit. Two different drivers are used in the Rx8s; a Dynamic driver which offers a wider spectrum of response, and a Balanced armature which is tuned for a sweet spot. In theory, this provides great coverage and should reduce the risk of the earphones not being perfect for a certain type of music. They’re available in 4 colors: Solid Black, and then transparent versions of Blue, Red, and Grey which are shown in this review.
The audio cord is designed to wrap up and over the back of your ear. It’s removable from the earbuds which is a great feature as cords tend to take the most abuse on headphones with inadvertent tugs and constant winding and unwinding for storage. The connectors use a pair of male pins on the cord side and a mated female connector on the earbud side.
The cord itself is twisted pairs from the earbud to the yoke and then braided below that which creates a very sturdy cable. There’s a small, clear heat-shrink sleeve over the cable where it wraps over your ear. This smooths the texture and provides a bit of a formed shape to make the fit consistent. The audio plug is a 3.5mm stereo jack w/ a 90º connector with built in strain relief.
Setup
This part is pretty easy. Try each of the ear tip sizes to see which one fits best for you. It can be tempting to go for the largest one as they seem pretty soft, but it may add too much pressure over time and become uncomfortable. Too small and you may not get a good seal in your ear canal, resulting in less bass response and external sound seeping in.
From there it’s really just getting them properly seated in your ears and running the cord up and over the top behind your ears.
Performance
When the RevoNext R8s came up for review there were three things that jumped out at me in the product description and images. Dual-driver, behind the ear design and the price.
I’m a big fan of cords that wrap up over the ear. The earbuds stay put better during cord tugs and the yoke stays against your chest better due to the cords draping closer to your shoulders.
The braiding on the cord does mean that it has a pretty bumpy texture which can translate into some noise migration up to your ears (think cable rubbing against a zipper). I was concerned that there’s no moldable wire in the ear shape, but the cord stayed put really well. It took a solid week for this thicker cable to forget the tightly folded wrap from the packaging. It did go away after I hung them upside down for a couple days to let them unkink. There’s no storage bag/case of any kind provided but I usually seek out my own storage solution anyway. In this case, I had a Blue Lounge Cableyoyo laying around and it worked really well for these if I nestled an earbud in from each side. It keeps the cable wound in a smooth circle while the earbuds are held in the center magnetically.
As for dual-drivers, I like listening to music and any technology that allows my music to sound better to me… well, that’s a good thing. I like a broad selection of music and would prefer not to swap headphones and audio settings as I switch between them. The match of dynamic and balanced armatures in the Rx8s really seems to suit my tastes well. I can get the bass response I’m looking for in my heavier music selections as well as the clarity when I’m listening to something jazzier. I didn’t want to crack these open to get at the insides, but the translucent shell lets you see a bit into all that’s going on in there.
If you’ve spent any time looking at high end earbuds you’ll know that detachable cables and multiple drivers are common. It’s not common to find those features at this price. They’re listed at $36 on RevoNext’s website but currently only $26 on Amazon.
At either of those prices, these are a steal. As I write this review I have three small things to point out which I cannot fault them for at this price point.
The connectors are friction fit and seem to hold well, but they are not directional. This means you could install them +/- reversed per side, or swap L/R, or even both. It’s not a deal breaker as they’ve clearly marked L & R on the connector and the bend of the cable won’t wrap over your ear correctly without a big twist if you connect them wrong.
The ear tips may not be a perfect fit for you. Luckily the tip-post has a very common shape so you’d be able to pick up some other options or Comply tips if needed.
This is an audio only cable with no microphone. Almost all my music is through my phone, so I do get interrupted with phone calls and it would be much easier if the cable had a mic. Luckily, it looks like RevoNext has one and it’s only $12 on Amazon with 3 button control. No-brainer purchase.
What I like
Price!
Sound quality
Replaceable cable
Solid in-ear fit
What needs to be improved
No storage bag/case
See above for additional notes
Final thoughts
I can’t find a reason that you shouldn’t pick a pair of these up right now. These sound as good as some earphones costing $100 or more. If… you like good sound, are afraid of losing expensive earbuds, break earbuds often, etc.
I’ll be picking up the mic cable and using these for a while and am now thoroughly intrigued by what their triple and quad driver earphones must sound like.
Price: $36 Where to buy: RevoNext and Amazon Source: The sample of this product was provided by RevoNext
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NEWS – In today’s technology-driven world, everywhere we look there are security cameras on businesses and homes, and although businesses used to be the primary places for such devices, homeowners have caught on to the value of having this sense of security. At this time of year when all around the USA we seem to be dealing with package theft and other crimes even in neighborhoods once considered “safe”, many security companies are stepping up to answer the demand by consumers for affordable and effective security devices and systems.
Earlier this year, I reviewed a couple of security systems and security cameras from a few companies. One of those companies is ALC Wireless. This company offers well-built and reliable DIY home security cameras, systems and components, with no need for monthly fees or contracts. For the holiday season, they are offering 15% to 20% on Home Security Products. The following are some of their security systems and components along with the promo codes for great discounts:
Full HD 1080p Video Doorbell (model AWF71D): 20 percent off with promo code 20VIDEODOOR
HD 720p Indoor Panoramic WiFi Camera with On-Camera Recording (model AWF08): 20 percent off with promo code 20PANOCAM
Full HD 1080p Outdoor WiFi Camera with On-Camera Recording and Cloud Storage (model AWF61): 20 percent off with promo code 20HDOUTDOOR
Full HD 1080p Outdoor Pan & Tilt WiFi Camera with On-Camera Recording and Cloud Storage (model AWF53): 20 percent off with promo code 20OUTDOOR
SensorCam II Full HD 1080p Indoor Pan & Tilt Security WiFi Camera with Siren and On-Camera Recording (model AWF33-S2): 20 percent off with promo code 20SENSORCAM
7-Inch Monitor Full HD Surveillance System with Single Outdoor Camera and Remote Access (model AWS337): 15 percent off with promo code 15CAMSYSTEM1
7-Inch Monitor Full HD Surveillance System with Two Outdoor Cameras and Remote Access (model AWS3377): 15 percent off with promo code 15CAMSYSTEM2
Accessory Outdoor Camera for AWS337 and AWS3377 (model AWSC37): 15 percent off with promo code 15CAMERA
Home Security System Starter Kit with Control Hub, Built-In Siren, and Two Door/Window Sensors (model AHS612): 20 percent off with promo code 20STARTERKIT
Door/Window Sensor (model AHSS11): 20 percent off with promo code 20CONNECT
Remote Control with Panic Button (model AHSS21): 20 percent off with promo code 20REMOTE
Smart Power Switch (model AHSS41): 20 percent off with promo code 20PWRSWITCH
For additional information or to make a purchase, you can head over to the ALC Wireless website or to Amazon.
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