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While not a familiar brand to me, the Kurbis is a German speaker system.
The Kurbis is a Bluetooth Bookshelf speaker system that forms part of the Thonets & Vander's catalogue of audio products. For those not familiar with the company, Thonets & Vender is a German organisation originally founded, in Berlin, during the middle of the last century, by Hannes Josef Einrich using his telecommunication experience gained during the Second World War.
Just after my review of the Oppo Reno was published I was invited to the launch of version 2, having checked that these items would be available for review without a long wait I journeyed to East London for the launch event held in Canning Town.
Two phones were launched as well as a headset. Here I am looking at the slightly lower specifications of the Reno 2 Z which has a Gorilla glass back so it could be a little slippy, however there is a reasonable back and sides case in the box. It is 16x7.3x.9cm and it weighs 200grams. The right side has the SIM entry point and below that the on/off button. Boot up is 15 seconds and shutdown is 3 seconds. The base has speaker, USB ‘C’ port, pin hole microphone and 3.
I expect many of you already know of the connection between a coven of witches and the Full Moon. For those who don't I would suggest joining the Witch Hunters and taking a look at the Full Moon Ceremony game
Available from Big Fish Games, in either Standard or Collector's edition format, "Witch Hunter: Full Moon Ceremony" belongs to the Hidden Object Adventure genre of digital games. I have been dipping my game playing experience into the Collector's edition version of the title. Developed by Top Evidence, this particular version of the game deals with the activities of a group of evil witches intent on taking control of the world.
In the morning there are two stimulants to get you out of bed one you will know about as you reach older age -your bladder - and the second the smell of a fresh brewed cup of coffee, even the sound of the beans being ground could do it.
As Bean to Cup coffee machines go this is thin at 19.5cm wide, it is 48cm deep and 35cm tall. Setup is just a matter of putting beans in the hopper on top of the unit and putting water in its container that shares the back part of the unit with the bean hopper. Next flush some water through and test the steam from the milk frother. Now place a cup under the coffee outlet and in less than two minutes you can be drinking your first cup of black or white coffee.
Bringing dead parents back together is the task set by this next game.
Stormhill Mystery - Family Shadow could be described as a story within a story. To achieve this state you are presented with a Hidden Object game as a son's request to fulfil the wishes of his deceased father. Before entering this Hidden Object adventure, you can make minor adjustments to the game playing environment and create profiles for different players.
Where did I - you - put my keys, who has moved my mobile, where is my &*%!ing wallet and many more. Perhaps more importantly you could attach one of these – with their permission – to your cat, dog or tortoise to locate then when they become elusive.
Something I have looked at before, now available in a range of styles and pack sizes. I was sent a four pack of ‘Pro’ and another pack of four of ‘Essential’. First the ‘Pro’ this consists of four tiles, two white and two black. They are 4cm square and are less than .7cm thick with a notch cut out of the corner will fit on any keyring or possibly all but the smallest cat or dog collar as they weigh only 13 grams each.
Do you know where you are going or what you are planning to do? I only ask because somebody else might be privy to this information.
For some reason whenever I hear of, or come across the term, "Stalkerware", my thoughts immediately turn to the victim being a celebrity who is the target for this type of malware. But as recent research into this anti-social phenomena has shown, this is not always the case. The perpetrator of this type of attack is not just interested in celebrities but also ordinary members of the public in their attempts to gather the information they need to carry out their nefarious activities.
Early this year I told you about the Google Home Hub, now Google have launched another range of products. I will start with probably the smallest the Google Nest Mini (2nd Generation) that is truly small but it has a big sound with twice the base of the first generation offering.
The Google Nest Mini is round with a 9cm diameter and is 4cm thick; there is a choice of four colours: chalk; sky; coral or charcoal. There are three touch controls on the device volume down, volume up and mute. The only physical connection is the 1.5 metre long micro USB to mains plug. The initial setup requires the Google Home App which is available on the iOS or Android store. Once setup is completed you can run the Nest Mini totally from your voice so the phone does not need to be present.
Getting more clothes into a small space is made easier by the next product.
SAllow me to introduce you to Masterspace. This is a Hong Kong based company that was founded in 2017. Following successful Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns, supported by 5,101 backers, the company raised over $272,000 USD which was then used to develop the Pacum product which is the subject of this review. Both the company's name (Masterspace) and that of its initial product (Pacum) should give pointers as to the aim of the product when released into the hands of the user.
A lot of software is sold as a subscription some stop working once the subscription ends other will continue to work with limited functionality which in the case of security software probably means you will soon find you have problems with viruses and other nasty results. So one thing you always keep right up to date should be security software.
I am old enough to remember when you purchased a floppy disc and then later a CD-ROM but as threats became more immediate these needed to be updated and so what you buy now is a download link and these are updated every time you go online as the threats are not just updated monthly weekly or daily but all the time.
The Epson WF-110W portable colour inkjet printer is not an office printer but a business printer aimed at the business traveller
What would you say to a free holiday? Think carefully before you answer.
Following a late night of revelry and enjoyment, you open your morning post to discover that you have been booked on a free holiday, Unfortunately the location of this unexpected gift was that of the Bermuda Triangle.
This is a foldable chair that fits into the back section of a backpack, it can be used separately from the backpack or still attached to it, so ideal for those journeys on a packed train where you can find a corner but cannot find a seat.
The backpack is 35x27x40cm and the chair once assembled is 30x27x29cm. I am told the weight capacity of the chair is 100 kilos just as well as I am very close to that figure. Let’s deal with the chair first when assembled it is two 20cm wide 19cm side pieces going into an 8cm wide hinge the wide top sides click together by a two piece 2cm wide and 11cm long clip. The top half is two more 20cm wide side pieces that form an overall ‘X’ shape. The sides are two each of 3.
Is the use of a computer mouse causing pain, then the following might help.
ARSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) is used to describe an infection that can occur due to the continuous use of a regular action, Due to the repetitive nature of its various actions, RSI can often make an appearance through working with a computer and certain of its accessories such as the ubiquitous mouse controlling the activities of the desktop cursor.
A recent very noisy event at an iconic London institution had me see a range of audio items one such was this soundbar from Orbitsound and if you delve through the Gadgetspeak archives you will find other such reviews from them.
This recent offering has Airsound and Airamp technology. Airsound means wherever you place the unit in the room you get surround sound. Airamp is an active amplifier which increases clarity and reduces distortion. You can connect to it by Wi-Fi or Bluetooth the setup for these is via an iOS or Android App. The third choice is via optical and the required lead is supplied in the box. There is also an option to listen via Aux input.
Can you solve the mystery of a strange mist that cause a village to disappear?
TForming part of the Strange Cases series of titles is "The Secrets of Grey Mist Lake". This game belongs to the Hidden Object Adventure genre and is available in Standard and Collector's Edition versions.
Having recently told you about a smaller Chromebook, here is something larger that may suit. In fact for those only used to Windows this will not have a lot of differences for you to get used to and if you do not require third party Apps designed for Windows then it may do everything that you require. Also with Windows 7 support ending in January 2020 another reason to change.
The Acer Chromebook 315 measures 37x25x1.5cm the last figure is a maximum around 5cm from the back, it weighs 1791 grams. Going around the outside has power LED, USB ‘C’, USB3, micro SD and headset on the left. On the right are USB3, USB ‘C’ and Kensington lock connector. Both the front and back have no connections. The underside has for 3x.7cm rubber feet that raise it just enough to stop it scratching whatever you place the Chromebook on.
Take a sample from the Spirits of Mystery and sprinkle in more than a touch of the Song of the Phoenix and you have a tale of thwarted marriage with a royal theme
Developed by ERS Games and available from various downloading sites, Spirits of Mystery: Song of Phoenix is a game which is available in either Standard or Collector's Edition format. My review is based on the Collector's Edition which includes a number of bonus items adding extra appeal to the product. As usual with other games of this type, several of the bonus items give the player immediate access to content. These items include wallpaper, concept art and screen savers.
First one of the smallest at less than 10cm tall which has either a looping light or a light always on inside the rabbit. Second one of the largest Pokémon items and certainly for the older child which has induction charging for your iPhone and also USB for those of us without ‘i’ devices.
It is a tad over 9cm tall and comes with the required batteries fitted inside behind a door in the base protected by a Philips screw to deter a young child from eating them. A cord is attached between its ears to hang from the top of a pram so the child can be entertained. The switch on the base has three positions, off, on with a slow rotation from on to off which may even encourage sleep and finally on.
When playing games there is a wide virtual world out there accessible with an appropriate router.
Adding to an extensive catalogue of products, D-Link has released its Exo Smart Mesh WiFi Router series which offers a seamless connection solution to the home user. At its launch, this new series consisted of the AC1900 and the AC2600 Smart Mesh WiFi versions of the product.
This is the latest offering from Sony. Like most Sony offerings it is high specification, the 21:9 screen ratio may not suit all and like a lot of recent offerings there is no 3.5mm socket for headphones. Read on for more details of this latest offering to pass my desk courtesy of Vodafone.
The Sony XPERIA 5 measures 15.5x6.7x.8 and it weighs 165 grams. The viewable screen is 14.3x6.1cm which gives the notional diagonal imperial screen measurement of 6.1inches. Start Up is a sparkling 10 seconds while shutdown is 2 seconds. 21:9 for the screen ratio means that watching movies look better than with a lot of other current offerings. The screen is full HD and more at 1080x2520. My unit was black but I am told other colours are available, both the front and back are glass.
Scammers are directing their efforts at the Mac community
While I have a fairly clear recollection of being introduced to the concept of phishing, I must admit that the date when this event occurred is extremely fuzzy. Let us just state that my introduction to this type of scamming occurred at a Computer Show held at Olympia at some point in the past.
With the nights now longer than the day’s most of us need to get up before the sun and that means we are far more likely to be woken unnaturally with the result that we feel – at the very least – less charitable towards others and therefore unhappy. This light from Philips can wake you with a gradually brightening light and for the heavy sleeper even bird song.
When the other end of the day arrives our sleep pattern can be out of sync and a red light can pulse to get up ready to sleep, this offering from Philips has both and it even has a built in radio. It is 22cm tall, 22cm wide and a maximum of 11cm deep at the base and less than 2cm deep at the top. The light unit is circular within those measurements. There is a line of four ports at the back towards the base, USB for charging only, a Reset button, DC power in and finally Aux in.
With the Reno2 Z Oppo is offering a mid-range smartphone with a wide range of impressive photo and video features.
Putting a curse on an Undertaker can produce strange results.
A question! Who would you select as the central character is a game entitled Haunted Legends? In the case of ERS Games Studio, the decision was taken to place The Undertaker in the central character role for the company's Haunted Legend title which belongs to the Hidden Object Adventure genre of game play. This game is available in a choice of Standard or Collector's Edition formats. Following my usual practice, I will be looking at the Collector's Edition of the product.
A new name to me and without a visit to the Amazon Christmas event it would have probably stayed that way. This is a portable USB lead that has USB or USB ‘C’ on one end a coiled lead to fit into a small carry case and three different ends to make sure it has a fitment to suit whatever you need to charge, so wherever there is power so do you.
In fact there are six different combinations so three for each of USB and USB ‘C’. The outer box measures 9x9x2.5 and the inner one round at 6.5cm and 1.5cm thick; there is a rubberised loop to fit over a finger or more likely a belt. The weight is less than 50 grams. It has a clear top the flip open container has a black coiled lead 9cm long – fully coiled to over 30cm uncoiled. The ends are white, as it arrives USB on one end and micro USB on the other end.
Helping draw up a shopping list of toys is a top ten of offerings from Hamleys.
This is ideal for a first alarm clock for a child; it can also act as a night light. Dependent on the child’s age it can be powered by ‘AAA’ batteries or USB. It also has a built in sensor so you can even check the room’s temperature.
The Pokémon Lamp Alarm Clock has a rectangular base unit measuring 11x4x5cm with a rabbit – the light – on top that is 13cm tall to the tips of its ears; however the light is from its feet to its head just under 10cm. The display is around 6x2.5cm which means you get 2cm high digits for the clock; easily seen even the child has less than perfect sight. The clock shows hours and minutes in either twelve or twenty four hour format with the day of the week above the minutes.
With its carry and charging facilities, this next product might suit your ear bud needs.
As part of its range of branded headphones, Currys / PC World has released its Goji True product. This particular item provides the user with a set of wireless ear buds that come with their own carry case that doubles as a charging facility. Completing this package are a USB charging cable offering Standard-to-Micro connectivity and an instruction manual booklet. These ear buds, as already mentioned, are wireless devices.
While this was launched before the Cricket World Cup it did not arrive with me until the Cricket season was finished. Indeed anyone watching the main courts at Wimbledon would have seen the ‘oppo’ name on the show courts, great advert but how many will have known what the name referred to.
The Oppo Reno 10 Pro measures 16x7.5x.8cm and it weighs 216grams. The viewable screen is 15.5x7.2cm which gives the notional diagonal imperial measurement of 6.6inches. This is a large phone with hybrid zoom. The selfie phone gives a wider capture angle as the lens is not in the screen but on a pop out above it. Start up is 13 seconds and shutdown only 1.2 seconds. Going around the outside has the on/off button on the right. The base has USB ‘C’, SIM entry point and speaker.
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