MediumTex Gear Reviews

[MediumTex]

Craig reviews all sorts of interesting gear over on his site and I wanted to do a gear review thread here based upon my own experiences with stuff that has worked well for me.  I have no financial interest in anything I review, other than if you happen to use the book link at the top of the page to get to Amazon and then buy while you're there the site gets a small portion of the sale (though it doesn't affect the price you pay).

In addition to my own gear reviews, please feel free to post your own reviews of things that people might not know about that can make their lives a little easier or just more fun.

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Review #1:

USB powered cooling fan.  Listed on Amazon under "ARCTIC Breeze Mobile USB-Powered 92mm Portable Fan, Portable Cooling Solution, Quiet Fan - White"



There are a lot of USB fans on Amazon, but I picked up two of the fans above and I love them.  They are quiet, move a lot of air and don't take much power at all.  I have a 5,000mah USB battery and when I plug one of the fans into it it will run for about 14 hours.  If you have your iphone or ipad power supply plugged into a power strip or the wall you can just plug this fan into it and you've got a nice low-profile, low-noise way to keep cool.  Computer USB ports, of course, are also great places to plug in the fan.  Another interesting use for the fan might be to use it as a cooling fan if you have a device such as a battery charger or inverter that tends to get hot and you would like a simple way to dissipate the heat.

Another interesting use of this fan might be if you were going to be at an outside event you could put a USB battery pack in your pocket, get a three foot USB extension cable and you would have a pretty powerful hand held fan that you could use to keep you or members of your group cooler all day long.

When I bought them I think they were $9.00 or so apiece, and they are now $16.00.  Even at $16.00, I think it's a pretty good deal.

Amazon link here.

[AdamA]

For those who travel by air a lot, this suitcase is great.

http://www.skyroll.com/

I'm not much for writing product reviews, but I think this guy's review is pretty accurate.

http://goeurope.about.com/od/packingtip ... ll_bag.htm

Bottom line is that for around $150, you get a carry-on suitcase that is adequate for most short trips (ie, you don't need to check any luggage).  IMO, you can fit a lot more stuff into it (comfortably) than the standard carry-on.

 

[MediumTex]

For those who travel by air a lot, this suitcase is great.

http://www.skyroll.com/

I'm not much for writing product reviews, but I think this guy's review is pretty accurate.

http://goeurope.about.com/od/packingtip ... ll_bag.htm

Bottom line is that for around $150, you get a carry-on suitcase that is adequate for most short trips (ie, you don't need to check any luggage).  IMO, you can fit a lot more stuff into it (comfortably) than the standard carry-on.

That's a neat looking bag.

I'm almost always disappointed in the way that so many bags seem heavy and bulky before you put a single item in them.

[WiseOne]

Briggs and Riley make wonderfully light and well-designed carry-on bags.  After British Airways lived up to its reputation and destroyed my old carry-on, I got the small 19" size.  It carries more than the older, larger bag, and weighs less than a small "weekender" I got that's half the size.

These bags are pricey, but worth every penny in my book.

[MediumTex]

Next up is the Sanyo Eneloop USB battery charger with two rechargeable AA batteries.

(I'm assuming that we are all familiar with Sanyo Eneloop rechargeable batteries, but if you aren't they are basically the best quality rechargeable batteries out there.  Apple's AA rechargeable battery and charger product uses Eneloop batteries.  Eneloop is basically the gold standard in rechargeable AAA and AA batteries.)

This USB battery charger is an amazing item.  For a while these weren't available anywhere and I think that I paid $30-$40 for mine on eBay, but it's available on Amazon again by searching "Sanyo NEW 1500 eneloop 2-AA Ni-MH Pre-Charged Rechargeable Batteries with USB Charger" and is currently listed on Amazon for $16.99 (which is IMHO a really good price for this item).



Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004UA ... UTF8&psc=1

It looks like a simple device, but its insides are apparently pretty sophisticated and it does a great job charging batteries.  It takes a little longer than some other chargers, but performs well as a "smart charger".  Here is a discussion of its electronics:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/sho ... SB-Charger

Here is a really helpful and detailed product review (this is what made me want one):

http://www.stefanv.com/electronics/sany ... arger.html

The thing that I love about this charger is how versatile it is.  I can charge my AA batteries and AAA batteries.  I can charge one battery at a time if I just have one to charge.  Most importantly, though, is that I can plug it into a computer USB port, the wall plug for my iphone, or I can use my solar iphone charger's USB port.

With this charger, I was able to complete my "ant farm" version of a complete off-grid power system.  I have several battery packs that provide power to USB devices that I can charge with my solar charger, I have a couple of the fans above, a couple of USB powered lights, and of course the various electronic devices that are charged through a USB connection, and with the Sanyo USB battery charger I can charge AAA and AA batteries that can be used to power almost anything.

The Sanyo USB charger is very lightweight and low profile.  It's about the size of a business card and is 1/2 inch thick.

If you have ever thought about getting the Apple rechargeable batteries and charger, I would suggest getting this one and an extra pack of Eneloop rechargeable batteries.  At $17 for the charger and $12 for a pack of four Eneloop AA batteries, for under $30 you would have six batteries instead of four, and you would have a more versatile charger that can charge both AA and AAA batteries, charge one battery at a time, and utilize a broader range of power sources.

[gizmo_rat]

Aerobie Aeropress coffee maker.

This is probably the most useful, long lasting 'gadget' I own. Looks like a hybrid bong/swedish man pump but consistently brews the smoothest, most intense coffee I've tasted.

Its a cup sized syringe with a filter at one end, you put your freshly ground coffee in, mix it with hot water, push it through the filter into your cup. 



It gives you a shot of coffee very similar to an expresso that you can then adulterate to suit your own taste. Clean up is as simple as releasing the cap and pushing though the remaining solid puck of coffee into the bin.

As it's just the size of a cup it takes up no space in your kitchen and requires no maintenance.

At $25' ish compare to the expense, space, cleanup and maintenance required for a decent quality expresso machine. 

The only downside is that you can brew up to 2 cups at a time, anymore than that is more pain than its worth.

Here's a neckbeard showing how quick and easy it is using a slightly non standard brew technique.

http://youtu.be/bzb6HcCVbYk

Thats the way I do it except in the interests of efficiency I pour the boiled water into my cup first, then the Aeropress, this cools the brew water ( stops bitterness) and heats the cup.

However its only as good as the coffee and the grind you put in it.
Which brings me on to

Porlex Mini Hand grinder

This is a tiny (size of a pepper grinder) ceramic burr grinder. You turn the handle it grinds your coffee (to a consistent fine size). Made in Japan of stainless steel, it'll probably last longer than you 



Like the Aeropress its small, no maintenance and relatively inexpensive (about $50) but again 2 cups is the limit.

The 2 fit together like this for storage.   



That's all you need to brew exceptional coffee easily and cheaply apart from some decent freshly roasted beans which is a bit of an adventure in itself.

Once you've gone this route you won't be able to even stand the smell of chain coffee shops let alone the taste.

[Pointedstick]

Leatherman Wingman multitool

UPDATE: no longer recommended. See http://gyroscopicinvesting.com/forum/ot ... #msg102700



This is probably the object I use most in my life; it sees action multiple times a day. Of all the multitools I've ever owned, this one is the best intersection of cost and value. It costs less than $25 on Amazon and includes a wide assortment of useful tools:
- Spring-loaded needle-nosed pliers
- Combination straight/serrated knife
- Scissors
- Wire cutter
- Wire stripper
- Bottle opener
- File
- Box opener (more useful than you might think!)
- Phillips-head screwdriver
- Two flathead screwdrivers
- Small ruler

The knife and scissors open from the outside, allowing for extremely easy access. The pliers are the best I've ever seen in a multitool; they're the perfect size, the metal is strong and doesn't flex, and the whole thing is spring-loaded just like real needle-nosed pliers! The knife is extremely sharp and holds a good edge.

There are only two things I miss from my larger, more expensive multitools: a saw and a tiny glasses-sized phillips-head screwdriver. If it had those, it would just be perfect.

[Mdraf]

That's all you need to brew exceptional coffee easily and cheaply apart from some decent freshly roasted beans which is a bit of an adventure in itself.

And for top quality coffee beans (for espresso anyway)  check out:
http://www.povertybay.com/

They are wholesalers but will sell you beans if you call them or email them.

[Coffee]

I love, love, love the Mora knives.  They're like paring knives.  Swedish steel.  Rubber handle.  $14 on Amazon.
We just used them to process backyard chickens at a local farm  The knives stay sharp and for the price... such a deal!

http://www.sobertgummer.com/

[dualstow]

Aerobie Aeropress coffee maker.

I just noticed the Aeropress review. I bought one about 5-6 years ago and loved it. Unfortunately, mine conked out after about 3 years of heavy use, but I will probably by a new one.

I'm looking for a good grinder, and the one you mentioned looks good!
ONE QUESTION, THOUGH. That mini Porlex is a blade grinder, right? And by definition, then, not a burr grinder.
Well, I guess it is a burr grinder even if the product page confusingly refers to "blades".

[gizmo_rat]

Well, I guess it is a burr grinder even if the product page confusingly refers to "blades".

Yep it's a burr grinder. (porlex spare shown below)



The Comandante C40 Hand Grinder is supposed to be even better but it's nearly three times the price. 

[dualstow]

Neat, thank you!
I just ordered a Porlex Mini.

[MediumTex]

Leatherman Wingman multitool



This is probably the object I use most in my life; it sees action multiple times a day. Of all the multitools I've ever owned, this one is the best intersection of cost and value. It costs less than $25 on Amazon and includes a wide assortment of useful tools:
- Spring-loaded needle-nosed pliers
- Combination straight/serrated knife
- Scissors
- Wire cutter
- Wire stripper
- Bottle opener
- File
- Box opener (more useful than you might think!)
- Phillips-head screwdriver
- Two flathead screwdrivers
- Small ruler

The knife and scissors open from the outside, allowing for extremely easy access. The pliers are the best I've ever seen in a multitool; they're the perfect size, the metal is strong and doesn't flex, and the whole thing is spring-loaded just like real needle-nosed pliers! The knife is extremely sharp and holds a good edge.

There are only two things I miss from my larger, more expensive multitools: a saw and a tiny glasses-sized phillips-head screwdriver. If it had those, it would just be perfect.

I ordered one and it arrived today.

What a nice tool.  A really great design and an amazing bargain for $23.

It would be nice if the scissors had a spring to keep them open, but that's a minor complaint about an overall solid design.

[Pointedstick]

Glad you've found it useful, MT! I'll also second Coffee's recommendation of the Mora knives. They're amazing. You can get the cheapest one for about $9 and it's got the exact same blade as the slightly more expensive ones. For that price, you can get 5 and stick 'em in every bag you own.

[dualstow]

.

Do you really find that grinding beans daily is that superior flavor-wise to just buying the coffee pre-ground or buying the beans and grinding the whole bag at once in the store?

Gizmo rat can probably give a better answer, but here's mine: SHORT ANSWER is that it's a bit better tasting but I mainly do it because I can.
LONG ANSWER: As long as I take the time to brew my own coffee, I take the time to do it right. My sense of taste and smell is probably not that great since I used to rinse my mouth with undiluted hydrogen peroxide before finding out that it was a bad idea.
BUT, if I grind too much of the stuff in advance, it seems to dry out. I like to use it when it's still oily, and I am not a heavy coffee drinker. Just two 8oz cups a day, 3 max. Wife drinks 0 to 1. So not much to grind. This will be my first hand grinder, though.

My parents are big coffee afficionados, but they still grind a ton of beans the night before so that they can just wander into their kitchen in the morning like zombies and press the brew button. They end up using most of those ground beans in a day and if by some act of God they don't, it's ok the next day. Somehow, they know how to keep it tasting good even if they freeze their extra beans.

The only time I grind a bunch of coffee at once is if I plan to use a siphon on the stovetop, and that's just not as much fun as it used to be. The novelty's wearing off, and we like the one-cup brewer that we bought to replace the broken Aeropress. (Aeropress is awesome, though). Even with the siphon, I never buy pre-ground nor even grind in the store.

[gizmo_rat]

Do you really find that grinding beans daily is that superior flavor-wise to just buying the coffee pre-ground or buying the beans and grinding the whole bag at once in the store?

Personally yes, after first finding freshly roasted coffee I liked it was the biggest step up in flavour I think I've made.

Obviously it's all individual taste but there's a consensus that coffee tastes flatter within a day of grinding, and radically different (nasty) within 1 to 2 weeks.
http://coffeecupnews.org/how-long-is-coffee-good/#

I use 1/2 oz of coffee a day so grinding fresh gives me a consistent bright taste over the 2 weeks that a 1/2 lb bag lasts. 

There's a number of other simple things to watch out for to get a consistently good cup of coffee.
http://www.sweetmarias.com/grind.brew.php

Although I like coffee I'm not willing to devote much headspace to making it, particularly first thing in the morning.
I find that using a scoop of fresh beans, grinder and aeropress is a hack that covers most of the major points in getting the best from your beans without actually having to think or spend time cleaning up.

[Coffee]

Ex-Lax.  When you need it, you need it. 

I've never had to use this type of product before, but I'm really impressed.

It comes wrapped in foil and packaged like chocolates.  It tastes like carob.  Keep it away from the kids because they'll think it's candy. 

If you ever have surgery (anesthesia) ... you're gonna need this stuff.

[Coffee]

On second though... Oh, the stomach pain!  Maybe find something more gentle...

[dualstow]

Do you all use APC for computer power backup?

I only have the bottom-of-the-line unit, US$40, but this morning it gave me a few minutes to shut down my computer after the neighborhood lost power.

[Coffee]

I'm moving farther and farther toward cloud drive + USB drive backup.  I'm not sure if this makes APC less necessary, but I bought a Chromebook this week while my main machine is in the shop. 

[dualstow]

I'm moving farther and farther toward cloud drive + USB drive backup.  I'm not sure if this makes APC less necessary,

I use those, but the reason I employ power backup is more to shut it down safely, avoiding damage during an outage.
Still, I must confess, if it doesn't shut down and I'm going out the door to catch a flight, I hold the power button until it capitulates.

Another advantage of power backup is having a few minutes to send off an email stating that I'm about to lose power. Handy.

[Coffee]

I've never had an issue with a computer shutting down prematurely.  Have you?
I'm not clear what the issue is: Is it messing up your system, or losing data somehow?

[dualstow]

I've never had an issue with a computer shutting down prematurely.  Have you?
I'm not clear what the issue is: Is it messing up your system, or losing data somehow?

I can only assume that it's not good for the health or lifespan of the machine, otherwise there would be no Shut Down procedure; there would only be a switch to kill the power.
Modern computers seem to be better at saving data, even that which hasn't been backed up. I have noticed during many outages and premature shutdowns that when I power up, my Mac has all the untitled text files that I'd started and never saved. Not even once. Whereas, in the past, my Windows XP box would scold me for not shutitng down properly, warning me that the settings were messed up, that some data may be lost, and that perhaps a drive was damaged.

Oh, speaking of drives, I often have an external one plugged into my Mac, and drawing power from it. So, if the house loses power, it may hurt both my Mac and the external.

I don't worry about any of this too much, but I definitely do assume that it's not healthy. My Mac turned 4 1/2 years old yesterday. It's been a good run so far.

[dualstow]

Porlex Mini Hand grinder

Wow, the instructions on this thing are in Japanese and nothing else.
I think I had better watch the video and search for English, as one review on Amazon says you can damage the thing if you turn the handle before adjusting it.

Found: http://espressounplugged.com.au/blog/po ... tions 

[dualstow]

I picked up the Porlex grinder that gizmo rat recommended in Reply #5 at my amazon locker the other day. A nice birthday present to myself.

It does a nice job. My wife could smell the coffee aroma wafting upstairs before I brewed, but if she had been sleeping this Sunday morning she would not have been awakened by our noisy electric grinder.

It's a bit of work, but it was easier than people make it sound in the Amazon reviews. They want to hold it firmly to the countertop, but I just grind it in the air since the steel bottom collects and stores the fruits of your labor.

Two things:
1) I wish there were numbers on the little coarse/fine adjusting wheel, because even if you find the perfect setting, it will be lost when you take the device apart to wash it.

2) How often do you wash yours, Gizmo_rat? There are all these warnings not to leave grounds or residue in the thing but...grinding tends to produce that. I will probably use it twice a day. I cannot imagine washing it every day. Maybe once a week? It wouldn't be hard to wash, but I never really washed the other one unless brushing counts and hey, I'm already putting in extra time to do the grinding.  Have to save some free time for Linux study.