Publication History For : Paul Smart
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For those like me who find sleeping difficult – even in normal conditions – these two devices can possibly help, Dot or Reston registers your movements and give other statistics while Homni tells you about the room environment and can help with the aid or red light take you to sleep and, in the morning, via white light and alarm to wake you up again, quite a partnership.
The Homni is circular 15cm tall and 10cm across, the bottom 6cm is solid and the top 9cm is open with the light source in it. The top part is opaque and the light source shines through it. There is a digital clock on the front near the top of the base. Power goes into the back and at that point there are two USB ports to allow you to charge devices.
While most will use Parallels on their MAC to give you a virtual Windows Box there are advantages for running a different version of Parallels software on your Windows machine and it can even do things in Windows that cannot otherwise be done natively.
Certain things in Windows are possible but not easy, other things are easy – if you know how – but some things are not possible. Of course if you are a Windows user only you know this and do not even try. Currently it works on Windows 7, 8 and 10 and there are twenty little separate programs.
While whatever space you have on your desk will always diminish to the point that things have to be placed elsewhere is a rule, there is a possible solution in the shape of the VariDesk which in effect allows your desk to grow.
While this can even be a solution for those with back problems I would suggest that you get someone to help you put it in place as it is not light in weight and if standing it on your current desk make sure that is able to cope with the extra weight. This is a standing desk which surveys say is a more productive way of working, unlike other such desks this is variable height so tallish or short it should suit you. It arrives in a box that is 1.02 metres x 83 centimetres and 14cm wide.
Earlier this year One Plus launched their new phone at the Copper Box Arena in Queen Elizabeth Park and they also showed these unique – as far as I know – wireless earbuds that when placed back to back stop the playback from your device. This is certainly a novel idea and that I why I requested to try a pair.
So in the box you get the neck band with gels attached (medium) two other pairs of gels together with smaller and larger sizes of fins. Also in the box are a rubber push open pouch that contains a 25cm long distinctive USB charging cable and a small six language User Guide. The total length of the behind the neck cable is 84 cm, the centre 38cm is stiffened in a semi-circle to fit around the neck with 23cm either side in a normal thin cable ending at the buds.
While the main purpose of this is to improve the air quality for those who unable to cope with less than perfect quality, I found quite by chance another feature of the product that might improve the chance of success with a partner.
Not the first one of these devices to get tested by myself. This unit arrives ready assembled but not ready to use as the filters although in place are sealed and need their plastic wrapping to be removed and discarded. So follow the instructions to open the unit remove the wrapping around the filters and replace in position.
This is a 24inch curved gaming monitor from AOC as the title might tell you. While I have other curved monitors including the first TV that was widely available in the UK they have all been substantially larger than the 24inches of this offering.
It is 53.5x32x1cm and the curve difference between the edge and the centre is 2cm. The stand is V shaped and is 43cm across at the front and 10cm across at the back it raises the panel by 6cm. There is a lot of back tilt (more than 20 degrees) and a little forward tilt. The panel can also move up to a maximum of 19cm above your desk. It weighs less than 4.5 kilos.
This is an enthusiasts camera, quality in a small package, but still able to give excellent ‘auto’ images and if you know better then the various special scene and manual mode allow you to get that extra special image to say great.
The Olympus Olympus PEN E-PL9 measures 12x6.5x6cm when off the powered zoom can take the 14-42mm lens out to 9.5cm. It weighs 513grams with the supplied neck strap in situ. People who have fondled it say that’s heavy and my response is that is quality down to the dark blue leather that goes round the front and sides.
It’s taken a while, 18 months in fact from change of agency to the first arrival of an HP notebook. Its thin its light and it has connectivity so what is not to like about this 13inch offering called very appropriately by the name of ENVY.
The HP Envy 13-ad015 laptop measures 30.5x21x1.5cm and weighs 1359 grams. It is matt silver grey in colour with four silver lines of two lengths that form a very clever HP logo. The left side has a USB port, 3.5mm headphone socket, USB ‘C’ port and micro SD card port. The front is clear the right side has USB ‘C’ port, USB port and charging port. Open the lid and the screen can go back to 135 degrees.
In a way a throwback to the past a mechanical timer which works solely by counting down from a set figure to zero and then ringing a bell to warn you, a simple process that should still enable you to extract things from the over without them burning.
It is circular at 9.5cm and slopes up from the front where it is 2cm up to 5.5cm at the back. It is made of stainless steel with the twist arm plastic so both are wipe clean. The clock is marked in five minute increments up to an hour with the areas between the numerals clearly shown by dashes so you could set seven minutes or forty eight minutes just as easily as five minutes or twenty five minutes.
While modern SmartPhones can take excellent images and videos one thing that a decent DSLR camera often has is a good optical zoom, here is a kit that can give your SmartPhone the ability to get great zoom for your images.
I have tried this unit with success on three different Smart Phones all with single lenses, I do not think it would work on dual lens units. The complete kit comes in a fitted zip up case the 22x zoom lens which on close inspection is F1.8 250mm marked 4K 22x Telephoto Lens. It has adjustment at the camera end as well as at the lens end it weighs 150 grams without the supplied lens cap.
Being a diabetic I have to look after my feet, most socks tend to dig into my legs so socks with special tops are on my agenda. Here also socks for the airline traveller who – especially on long hall – need to be aware of deep vein thrombosis.
The company concerned was one of the few that pulled their finger out after the range of Christmas In July events that take my time during the recent hot summer weeks. Their socks have had several wearing’s since the event and although woollen socks in this weather may seem strange they do not tend to overheat the wearers feet. I found I had been sent two types of diabetic socks, first ‘Wool Diabetic’ that although for shoe size 11-13 fitted my size 10 feet fine.
Most wireless earbuds still have a cord of some sort even if it’s just enough to link the two buds behind your neck. Here nothing more than the buds that fit in your ear. So the total weight is just an amazingly small 13 grams the pair. So as they say on the box ‘no strings attached’.
The no strings goes as far as charging as instead of attaching a cable to the buds they come with their special case and the USB lead attaches to the back of that so they are charged in a fitted case ideal for transporting them when not in your ears. As regular readers know I have a somewhat problematical existence with earbuds in that my ears swell and after less than an hour they start to become uncomfortable.
This camera is much the size of a mobile phone and like a great many mobile phones it runs on Android. While it has internal storage it can also accommodate a micro SD card and indeed initially slightly more puzzling it can also take a SIM card, this is however solely so you can send data that you capture while still out and about to various sites.
The Acer Holo 360 measures 11x5.5x1.3cm and weighs 141grams with the supplied wrist strap attached. The viewable screen is 6x4.5cm which gives the diagonal notional imperial measurement of 3 inches. Bootup is 15 seconds while shutdown is 3 seconds. Going around the outside has on/off on the right side with camera button below this, the base has micro USB port for charging and a 3.5mm headphone socket.
I see a good number of professional photographers at a range of events and while a lot of them have Canon offerings there are also Olympus and Fuji cameras. Here I get to try a recent mirrorless compact system camera that is very much in their professional range which really pushes my knowledge – or do I mean lack of knowledge – in this category of products.
While it is possible to attach a lens and focus on a subject with you taking the ‘easy’ way out and letting the camera make the choices it is designed for use for those whose knowledge knows as much as the camera so they get that ‘yes’ image. The FujiFilm X Pro-2 measures 14x8.5x11.5cm. The last figure with an 18>55mm lens fitted which can increase it to 15cm. It weighs 837grams.
As you might get from the title this is a 27inch panel. Like most recent offerings it manages to take a minimal amount of desk space and also to supply an excellent image while at the same time looking after your eyes with flicker free 1920x1080 resolution.
The BenQ GW2780 measures 61x36.5x1.5cm, its stand is an inverted T with the top of the T being 31cm long and 9cm thick and the upstroke linking the stand to the support arm 7cm wide. It lifts the panel by 10cm from your desk. There is around 30% of back tilt and close to 10% of front tilt. With the stand attached it weighs just under 5kilos. It can be wall mounted should you wish and the weight without the stand is less than 4kilos. The viewable screen is 60.5x34.
While for some a kitchen scale able to measure up to 15 kilos may seem overkill for others especially those using large copper pans will say at last. As the dimensions are bigger so to the great relief of those with less than perfect sight is the display.
The Salter Max digital kitchen scales measure 34x26x2.5cm and the weighs 1.365kilos. The scale can weigh from a single gram up to 15 kilos or 33 lbs. Most kitchen scales will measure amounts up to 3kilos or more recently 5kilos they are small in size and that - when not in use - is a plus but when larger bowls or pans are placed on the scale there are two main problems firstly things can weigh too much and it is also hard to read the display especially if a bowl or pan covers the display itself.
This is neither large nor heavy so ideal to use when out and about. A black sandwich with silver grey slices, it is a Notebook and a Tablet running the latest version of Windows 10 V1803. Three sides of the screen have tiny edges the forth the bass is the less than usual place to find the webcam. There are other surprises like only USB ‘C’ ports.
The Dell XPS 13 "2-in-1" convertible laptop measures 30x19.5x1cm at the front and 1.5cm at the back it weighs 1212 grams. The diagonal imperial measurement is 13inches As this folds back on itself the rear is clear of any ports. The left side has USB ‘C’ and headset 3.5mm socket along with a button to show the current battery state in 20% increments. The front is also clear apart from an LED to show when the unit is on.
A couple of days before the UK launch I was invited to a breakfast briefing in a swish Kensington hotel to see this conference room camera in action. It is designed for a meeting of between say five and ten people and also remote connections can connect to become part of the meeting. I emphasize part of the meeting as normal conference room cameras do not do this.
The "Meeting Owl" conference webcam measure 10cm across at the base and slightly less at the top of its 28cm height. Its camera is a range of cameras around the top under a 1cm dome hence the name ‘Owl’ as it sees all round without moving, whereas with normal conference cameras they take a viewpoint and if someone at the periphery of the view is speaking even if speakers pick up the remarks the camera view cannot change.
A small screen tiny buttons it looks so strange today but only not that many years ago it would have been the thing to have, over 150 games built in would have at that time been unheard of. However when you are old enough to remember these sort of basic offerings the one thing you certainly don’t miss – as a music lover – is the terrible music and sadly that is still here.
The console is 9.3x5.5x2cm and it weighs 72grams. The viewable screen is 3.5x2.8cm. Below the screen on the face of the unit are a five position joystick, to its right round buttons marked A and B and below this two bar buttons marked Reset and Start. Near the bottom on the left side is the speaker. On the left side a slider button for on/off and below this a volume control.
Maxcom are quite a new phone company to arrive in the UK, they have been in Europe for some years. While this is not exclusively an older persons phone it would certainly be useful to allow someone to keep their independence and as it has an emergency call button on the back providing the phone is within reach, then help should come when needed.
This is a Flip Phone and it has its own charge dock so close it up – unflip – and when at home it can remain docked beside you so it’s never going to run out of battery. When docked there are three indicators on the area near the top battery, phone and message. Just above this is the camera and LED flash. The other side has the emergency button and beside that the more than adequate speaker.
As an ex chef and keen home cook for over fifty years I know that food poisoning is a rather nasty - and for some – potentially dangerous condition. So basic hygiene is key and knowing when various items are hot enough to kill bugs is vital so a quite simple tool like a meat probe is not just useful but vital especially when dealing with larger items.
While a lot of what keen foodies will enjoy at Heston’s outlets are considered by many to be strange combinations they still receive careful preparation. This comes with two ‘AAA’ batteries which need to be inserted into the head of the unit. This is covered by a silicon rubber sleeve that is a tight fit but needs to be partially removed to allow the battery door to be slid off to fit the batteries.
This product consists of ten bags of one size and five bags of a larger size, three air exaction valves and a pump to remove the air so whatever you want to ‘keep fresh’ without air making it go off, you are able to store items in a fresh state for far longer by being in a vacuum.
Vacuum packing is not new but home vacuum packing is, Chefs use vacuum packing in preparing a lot of items. The bags provided are high quality reusable nylon bags and so the curse of single use plastic is slightly lessened. The pump is polypropylene and the valves are silicon and nylon. All are cold resistant to -20 degrees Celsius and heat resistant to 100 degrees Celsius for up to 15 minutes. The two bag sizes are 26x28cm and 20x22cm.
For those whose preference are earbuds over headphones quality brand Sennheiser have now several items in this category, here a set of buds that use Bluetooth so they fit in the ears and the only connection is that between buds that goes around the back of your neck.
As the buds go that little bit deeper in the ear than with standard earbuds it is very important you choose the correct size from those offered. By going that bit deeper the sound has a bigger area of the ear to work with. The version of Bluetooth is 4.2 and the buds are said to give you up to six hours of time between charges, I got close to eight hours on one charge and the others were at least seven hours.
This is somewhat of a surprise to me, having recently told you about the London worldwide launch of the Honor 10 to be offered the chance to review the Honor 7A was not exactly what I was expecting still here are my thoughts. Looking online sees that it was launched in April 2018.
The Honor 7A smart phone measures 15x7x.7cm and weighs 147grams. The viewable screen has the notional diagonal imperial measurement of 5.7 inches. The screen resolution is 1440x720 18:9 resolution. My unit arrived without any instructions, so first job is to hunt the SIM entry point once found on the left side near the top it reveals it uses Nano Sims (2) and also has a Micro SD Card slot in the same tray. The right side has volume rocker and on/off button.
Filtered water is often the best option simply because unfiltered water can have a taste and as this could even be kept in the fridge it is also chilled. So it is opportune for those who drink bottled could switch to something like Zero Water. One large supermarket chain has recently increased a two litre bottle of own brand water by 25% that is when they have stock.
You get a large jug you pour the water from your tap into the top of the unit it then passes through the patented filter unit and emerges into the jug ready to be drunk. You can then pour water into a glass or using a button on the bass to allow water to flow into a glass placed under the edge of the unit. The Jug is 28cm from the top back of the handle to the front of the spout, 28cm tall and 14.5cm at its widest.
A while ago I got up early to attend a presentation and eventually I received the first of the requested items from this event. One of - shall we say – more difficult things to get hold of but in a way something that may be of use to a great number of people.
This is a quite large and very weighty padlock. It is 15x5x2.5cm and weighs 375grams. The top 8cm is the very substantial metal locking part, there is a 3cm circular section on the face of the lock it shows nothing but one of two ways to open the lock is stored in here and where you touch it will decide if you end up with a red light (will not open) or green light (opens) at the end of the entered combination.
I first saw this almost a year ago but the agency that looked after Roberts at the time seemed reluctant to send it out for review. Since a new agency has been appointed I am now catching up on requests made at last year’s 2017 Christmas In July event.
It is round but a little squashed at 25cm from back to front and the same side to side but only 15cm tall. Both sides are the pair of speakers, my test unit was cream and so the grill covering the speakers was white. At the bottom of the front is a SD card insertion point. Above this a small round knob that has four positions, from left to right, USB, SD, CD and Radio. Above this a small white on blue 3.6x1.4cm two line display.
This is the second offering from Sennheiser that I have seen in the ‘sports earbuds’ category. Being wireless means that it matters not how much vigorous exercise you do as the only connection is between the two buds whatever position the rest of your body contorts to the earbuds stay firmly rooted to your ears.
These are what are called ‘Fin type’ buds in that the fin goes inside the outer part of the ear taking the strain off the bud itself which plugs into the main cavity of the ear. Perhaps the most important thing with earbuds is that you use the correct size and for that purpose there are four different sizes of buds in the box. It is important not to stuff the buds into the ear - not only for comfort – but also for clarity of sound.
While almost all mobile phones have screens to show the images they are capturing what they do not have is the ability to print them, yes Wi-Fi to the majority of recent printers and All In Ones will do so, most of those are not mobile devices.
So to capture the moment then maybe the Polaroid camera can be what the occasion wants. Here is their latest offering the Instant Square SQ6. The camera is chunky at 13x11.5x6cm and weighs 453grams. The film comes in a sealed pack of ten and full instructions are on the pack and in the manual, follow them or you will expose the film.
This small unit can work with Alexa should you wish. It is both a Wi-Fi and Bluetooth speaker. It becomes an ideal desk accompaniment and for someone like me that is a poor speller it can get you out of a hole when Microsoft Word fails to correct it for me.
Small and round at only 9cm tall and 6cm across, it weighs only 228grams, there is only one obvious control a rubberised push button on the base. The rear has the internal batteries charge connection point via the supplied micro USB lead. The top edge is twistable and this the volume control also touch anywhere around this ring and you are able to speak with Alexa as you would via any Amazon Alexa device once you have linked it to Alexa.
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