A smartAC kit can make a dumb plug-in air conditioner a bit smarter and help with energy management. Read More
SmartAC Is Tech for More Economical Air Conditioning
Category Archives: Tools
Gadget Lovers: The ‘{ Device Diary } Vol. 11’ Is Hot
The { DeviceDiary } is our place to share some of the devices and accessories that rank high in the “cool, I need that” category. Read More
No Power? Goal Zero Yeti 1400 Has Your Back (and Fridge, PC, Lights, Etc…)
Goal Zero has all your emergency power needs covered off in one high capacity box: the Yeti 1400 Lithium Portable Power Station. Read More
Virtual Reality Construction Announced by DIRTT
At the 2016 Connext Conference, DIRTT Environmental Solutions (dirtt.net) announced a system that allows anyone to see a real-time video of an existing space that they want to remodel with an overlay of three-dimensional elements and objects they want to install. Read More
Kickstarter Alert: Arckit Dream City
Arckit has gone big and launched a new crowdfunding campaign for the latest in their line of building kits–Cityspace and Masterplan–that allow you to design and build entire cities. Read More
Rheem Residential Equipment Joins the Internet of Things
Rheem has brought Internet of Things to its HVAC equipment with EcoNet technology. BONUS: We get to chat with HGTV’s Josh Temple about smart home equipment. Read More
Take a Stand for Your Health: The FlexiSpot Standing Desk
I’ve run the gamut on standing desks. I started by playing MacGyver and creating my own, then my employer purchased me an Ergotron, and now with FlexiSpot I found a nice sweet spot—a quality product that is also budget friendly. Read More
Direct Sound EX-29 Headphones – Extreme Isolation
I was pretty psyched to try out Direct Sound’s EX-29 headphones. When working in a crowded space, trying to catch the nuances of sound as you mix or master, isolation is key. Read More
DEVONthink: Magical Data Management for Mac & iOS
Do you ever get tired of trying to figure out where to put something on your computing devices or how to find something? DEVONthink tackles this problem head-on and does an impressive job of making technology simplify your digital life. Read More
Smarter Home: Schlage Sense Smart Deadbolt Review
I was glad to see that Schlage continued with their best selling point for these smart locks: each user can have their own unlock code. This is great for families. Read More
Unboxing the Best Value Vacs Vacuum Chamber
The best way to get rid of air bubbles when making molds, is with a vacuum chamber. Read More
CES Report – Smart Detection of Radon with Airthings Wave
The new Wave radon detector from Airthings gives homeowners much more than just an alert when radon levels are dangerously high: it provides long-term analysis of the dangerous gas. Read More
Secure Your Family With 1Password Families
The start of 2017 is the perfect opportunity to up your family’s game with respect to password security. 1Password makes strong password management even easier with their new service called 1Password for Families. Read More
CES Report – Make Trash Smarter With GeniCan
Hands-free GeniCan device scans trash as it’s thrown away and adds items to an Amazon shopping list (and can even order through Amazon Dash). Read More
Smarter Home: ATOMS Garage Door Opener Review
My latest acquisition in the smart home build has been the ATOMS Garage Door Opener by SkyLink. Read More
“Monster Home” Tames the Power Cable Beast
New charging stations from Monster are a solution to keeping all the new mobile devices coming home for the holidays charged and organized. Read More
Nick Offerman Has Written a Great Book on Woodworking
If you’ve ever had the itch to make something from wood, Nick Offerman’s book is the perfect way to learn (or improve) that skill. Read More
The Sugru Rebel Tech Kit
Sugru has released a new package of Sugru called the Rebel Tech Kit. Inside a small tin you’ll find four colors (black, white, grey, red) of Sugru, a guitar pick for careful cutting or texturing, and a book of ideas to get you started. Read More
DIY X-Ray Vision with WalabotDIY Superpowers
WalabotDIY sees through cement, drywall and other materials, letting users locate items inside walls for home repair and renovation projects. Read More
OLALA Storage for iOS Devices Is a Snap
The OLALA iDisk 100 is a simple way to expand the storage of your lightning port-equipped iOS devices. The alternating lightning connector and USB 3.0 connector makes moving files between mobile devices and PCs as simple as sliding the switch and plugging in the flash drive. Read More
Roll20 Virtual Tabletop Licensed to Provide ‘D&D’ Content
Roll20 has signed a licensing deal with Wizards of the Coast to provide ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ content for the platform. Read More
GeekDad Review: Anker Lumos A1 LED Desk Lamp
A few months ago, I reviewed the BenQ WiT LED light. It was easily the nicest and more feature-rich desk lamp I’ve ever used, but it was also $299. The Anker Lumos A1 LED is a little more scaled back in its ambitions, but it does a decent job of illuminating your workspace at a much more budget-friendly $25.99 price tag. Read More
Flip Out for Dirt Devil’s New Flipout Hand Vac
Father’s Day rapidly approaches, and we’re all on the lookout for the perfect gift for dads with lots of hobbies. A great tool I’ve found is the new Flipout handheld vaccum from Dirt Devil. This is one of my favorite tools, ever. Bonus: It makes me feel like a super hero. See the post for details. Read More
OttLite: The Lamp by Which to Judge All Other Lamps, Plus a Giveaway!
OttLites have become the gold standard for quality, natural lighting for task lighting. Enter to win one of your own! Read More
Make Your Own 3D Shapes for the Classroom
My 6-year-old’s first grade teacher gave all the parents a flier during orientation: “This year we will continue to identify shapes and polygons, such as a parallelogram and trapezoid, as well as some of the more common 3D shapes.” My 3D printer and I could definitely crank up the geek factor for this one! Read More
New Kickstarter — RPiKit, The Raspberry Pi All-in-One Project Kit
Back in 2014, I met this interesting guy named Dan at the Atlanta Maker Faire; he was selling these very eye-catching electronics kits that were housed in secret-agent style briefcases. The product was called ArduinoKit, and I was absolutely amazed at how well Dan had designed the primary board that holds all the various components as well as a single Arduino Nano. Read More
Let’s Torque About Drills
For many years I’ve used the iconic Black and Decker 18 volt Firestorm cordless power tool system. When I was last in the market for cordless power tools the Firestorm brand was a DIY powerhouse but in the intervening years the NiCad batteries and relatively massive weight of these tools has made this system has become somewhat a dinosaur. Read More
Mold Making and Casting 101 With Smooth-On
I wanted to finally dip my toes into the amazing world of molding and casting props so I turned to the experts: Smooth-On. Read More
Apple’s Wasteful Press Event
According to Apple’s Senior VP of Marketing, having an older computer is shameful. You know what I think is shameful? That attitude. In fact, I think it’s downright harmful. Read More
Kickstarter Alert: The Edge Collapsible, Ergonomic Desk
A desk that’s both ergonomic and convenient? That’s the idea. Read More
Pressing Matters: Oliso Smart Iron Review
In addition to standard safety features like a timed auto shutoff, this iron takes it to the next level with innovative design and technology. It really is ‘smart’–the iron senses when your hand is on the handle, and will physically raise the plate up when you release it. Read More
Use the New Boogie Board Jot 8.5 eWriter for All Your Doodles
When I was a kid, we entertained ourselves with those waxy board things with plastic pull-up covers. When my kids were little, it was the Magnadoodle. Now, there is the Boogie Board Jot 8.5 eWriter. Read More
