Over the past few months I’ve picked up a few fun gadgets either as gifts or from finding deals online and at resale shops. Hope you find something to enjoy– check out the products on this Amazon list.
HTC ReCamera- Website, Amazon– Around $170 (as of Feb 2015), got mine for $100
Pros: Has revolutionized my picture taking, so easy to carry around in my pocket, ready to turn on in a second, can live stream to my phone, take pictures on phone app, do slow motion, wide angle brings in large areas, fun to share with friends, quick and easy and perfect shape for your hand, long battery life, good button, connect to computer via microUSB
Cons: Honestly, the only cons are people asking: “How do you know what you’re taking a picture of?” “…How do you know what’s in front of you?” “Well, I see it.” “Well, I see what’s in front of me and take a picture of it. (And I also can use the phone app.)” Also people’s comments on you being a spy or creep is sometimes annoying. Also I’m always afraid of the lens getting scratched, but it hasn’t so far
GE Camera Projector- Amazon– Around $75-$150
Pros: Connect to your computer (PC, not Mac) via cable and program and you can project almost anything from your computer screen, can project pictures on camera and SD card, thought it wouldn’t really be a great projector but I have been using it to watch movies projected on my wall and it is actually pretty bright projected from a decent distance, further than in the picture (though it helps if the room is dark), can adjust focus with slider on top, comes with cooling mount to keep camera from overheating
Cons: Can’t work on Mac, for some reason it won’t project Netflix or Amazon video (perhaps due to certain plugin?), no sound output from camera (but computer speakers work well enough), decently sharp not great, wish there was a cover for the projector glass, the camera is very slow and not great at actually taking photos and isn’t able to project certain images and absolutely no video files from other cameras or your computer which is a bummer
Brother Receipt Printer- Website, Amazon– Around $90
Pros: After looking at the Little Printer for years and thinking of buying it, word finally came out that it was shutting down, so I’m glad I didn’t buy it! Then after searching forever at potential thermal printers with a usable interface, I found this one. I can use a computer program or phone app to create labels, print photos and other images, and print many different things using different types of paper, it’s fairly easy to create files, print, and load the printer, plus its wireless
Cons: The whole goal in getting this one was that I read somewhere you could print to it from Microsoft Word. You can’t. Not sure if any printers can, they just don’t make it very clear. The program for printing text is easy but not great. Really you can only use those the program and app, though I read you could use other programs elsewhere. Oh well. Still cool.
6th Gen iPod Nano Watch- Review, Ebay– Around $100
Pros: With all these smart watches everywhere, I thought it’d be fun to go old school. I’m not a huge Apple fan, but I did have an iPod for ages and thought the little iPod nanos were always pretty cute and cool. And cool story: Bought mine off eBay from a guy who said the power button was malfunctioning (a common issue I discovered from reading reviews online) and he knew there was a way to fix it but he was too lazy to do so. So I bought it off eBay and it came with the original box, charger, and manual as well as 2 watch bands– and when I got it I discovered he hadn’t taken his music off of it! So I had to take a bunch of random music off of it, but he had some pretty nice pop and rock classics I kept. Also I found a way to fix the button online and I felt pretty cool after it worked! It’s pretty easy to use, fun watch faces, easy controls.
Cons: No video on the iPod, battery life just okay, small size makes it hard to operate at times but that’s what you get, hard to keep the watch face on top
HMDX Neutron Bluetooth Speaker- Walmart– Around $15
Pros: Love the colors, decent suction, good button control– this is much better than the first HMDX speaker I got which didn’t work and I tore apart with tools and rage, nice to have power button so it doesn’t die so quickly
Cons: Will lose suction between showers and fall to the floor, no advance track button, altogether nice
Tronfy Bluetooth Earpiece- Amazon– Around $20
Pros: So much fun. Seriously, had it connected to my phone and my computer and could walk around with it in my ear and listen to music for hours at a time, easy to turn on and off, connects quickly, actually fits in ear pretty well, charges via mini USB (not micro USB- there is a difference) AND comes with an extra part that connects a second earbud through the mini USB port! How weird but cool! Still I liked that it was only a small one ear earbud, also comes with multiple rubber earbud sizes
Cons: Lasts a couple hours and takes a while to charge again, small Bluetooth range and it cuts in and out when you get out of range, when on it glows brightly which could be annoying if you’re trying to be discrete (of course I got a bright green one so discrete wasn’t high on my list of priorities), somewhat cheaply made, got beat up from being in my pocket, button lid started to come off, made in China so hope my ear isn’t getting cancer
Kindle 3G- Amazon– Around $70
Pros: I’ve never been a huge Kindle guy, but thought it could be nice, plus I liked the idea of the 3G one because I read online you could trick it to accessing different websites on 3G (usually 3G only works for Store and Notes), but also works on wireless, kind of fun to see websites or pictures in the black and white format, easy buttons, nice and small, mp3 player is fun
Cons: Haven’t been able to use the 3G for some reason, got it from Half Price books and could have used a coupon for half off but didn’t (just sticks around in my mind), the screen is often dark, don’t like the way pages switch
Dell Inspiron Mini 9 Netbook- Amazon– Around $150
Pros: Wanted a netbook for ages, love the idea of small tech (if you couldn’t tell yet), but lately the netbook trend has moved to Chromebooks and the like, and they care more about being slim than small. Also got this one because it was Windows XP so I could connect a DVD player and play old games, love the tiny size, decent battery life (for its age), got a good price on eBay
Cons: Windows XP and computer can be slow… but that’s what I get, amazingly tiny keyboard can be hard to type… but that’s what I get, takes a while to turn on… but that’s… well, you get the picture
PowerBot Wireless Phone Charger- Amazon– Around $25
Pros: Got a different model for my Grandma because our phones are the same (Droid Maxx) and they can charge wirelessly, saw many out there but loved that this was made of wood! Pretty easy to charge, very small and light
Cons: If you don’t line it up PERFECTLY it will keep beeping at you and telling you to line it up. And if you do line it up perfectly, will still beep randomly, takes a while to charge as well. But it’s still WIRELESS CHARGING! How cool is that?
Duck MP3 Player- Amazon – Around $5
Pros: It’s a duck MP3 player. I mean, do I need to say more? Okay, I’ll say more. Plug in a MicroSD card (not included) filled with music and plug in some headphones. Has a volume rocker and if you press a button twice it will skip tracks. About the size of an egg.
Cons: There’s a slight buzzing underneath… certain versions online have more specific buttons on the bottom of the duck and the instructions that came with it said that it would have these buttons, but it doesn’t. Poor battery life. Cheaply made. But it is cheap. And it is a duck MP3 player!
MicroUSB Flash Drive- Amazon, Other Version on Amazon– Around $15
Pros: Thought it would be nice to transfer media from the phone to computer in an easy plug and play manner, finally found these online for decent prices, it is easy to use and very compact.
Cons: The one I got had no cover over the regular USB part and the microUSB cover broke because I didn’t open it right so now it hangs uselessly, bought it because it was Sony but wish I had bought the other version that seemed to have a good cover over both sides. Still fun.
Anyway, email me if you have any questions about these gadgets! Let me know if you get one of them!