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Top Tech of the Year

11/20/2017

As in past years (2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011), I am putting together a new list of my top tech. The list will contain my favorite things from the last year, even if they were available in prior years. By "tech" I am basically including any new toys, apps, etc... that I find cool and/or useful. The prices I have in the article are the current prices, but I would expect them to fluctuate between now and the end of the year.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

My Favorite Tech of the Year

NETGEAR Orbi Whole Home Mesh WiFi System with Tri-band (279.99 for the package I purchased, but there are different options available)- It is kind of strange for me to make a WiFi Router my favorite tech, but I have been on sites where people complain about Airplay drop outs or bad signals on nearly a weekly basis. I have recommended that people update their WiFi routers for years and from my experience, the Orbi system has run like a champ since I upgraded in February (when my Google Router bit the dust). My review is here. In short, the thing I love is its wide range and fast speeds.

Great for the Home Office

Epson ET-3700 ($379) - This is the printer I have needed for my home office for years. It comes with 2 years of ink, so you pay for that up front, but it means you don't have to worry about running out when you need to print something important. I like the fact that it can print on both sides of paper, has easy scanning to pdf, and is compatible with AirPrinting. I have a review here.

Most Underrated Tech

2016, 15 inch MBP with Touch Bar - This was probably the most controversial product that Apple has released in years. I love it, though. I have my initial impressions here. I have installed Windows on the bootcamp partition, so it works for most anything I need to do on a computer. (it should be noted that Apple has updated the MBP this year, so you might be able to find this on their refurb site if you don't need the new Kaby Lake processors.)

Best Desktop Accessory for the MBP

Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Dock ($338) - Definitely not the cheapest accessory available, but it is a one plug solution to turn my portable MBP into a multi-monitor 4k, desktop beast. I have a review here.

Best On the Go #Dongle

ABOX Type-C Hub with 2 USB 3.0 Ports and CF/SD/Micro SD Card Reader ($25) - As I mentioned in my MBP article, I mainly use CF cards, so #dongle life has been real for every laptop I have owned since I picked up a Canon Point and Shoot in 2004. I guess that is why carrying an adapter isn't a big deal for me since I have lived with that issue for over a decade. This dock gives me the ports I usually need most of the time. CF (for my Canon), SD (Canon/Olympus) and USB for plugging in my Dragonfly DAC or my old thumb drives.

Favorite Headphones

BeatsX Wireless In-Ear Headphones ($99) - First, let me say that these are not my best sounding headphones. However, they are easily the most convenient for this iOS/Mac user. I spend a lot of time roaming around the yard with the pups, grilling/smoking on the deck, and cleaning the pool. These just pop in and are connected in seconds. I can hit a button and tell Siri the music I want to hear. I can adjust volume, pause, skip, etc. right from the headphone cable. They isolate most sound so you don't have to turn them up loud to block out external noises. The great part is that I can jump from iPhone to iPad to watch a Youtube video and pairing is quick and easy. They are also easy to pair with my Apple Watch, so I can listen to music without even having my phone available. Sweet! When I bought mine, they had a $30 gift certificate for iTunes/Apple Music, so they were essentially $30 cheaper than I thought. My review is here.

Favorite for the Vehicle

PLANET AUDIO PCP9800 Double Din, Apple CarPlay, Bluetooth, MP3/USB (No CD/DVD) AM/FM Receiver, 6.75" Capacitive Touchscreen ($345) - I absolutely love this thing. Having Siri in the car to control Apple Music, pull up a location on the Map, or just being able to access my Podcasts with ease is awesome. I also like the way I was able to add a rearview camera and access it at any time. I have a review here.

Best Gaming PC on a Budget

Dell i5675-A933BLU-PUS Inspiron 5675 AMD Desktop, Ryzen 5 1400 Processor, 8GB, 1TB, AMD Radeon RX 570 4GB GDDR5 Graphics, Recon Blue (~$800) - I have seen this priced as low as $670, so the price can change dramatically. I have also added another 8GB of RAM and will eventually add an SSD. However, I wanted to get into PC gaming again and downloaded Tekken 7 from Steam and it plays without any issues at 1080p. While you can build something with similar specs for about the same money, you don't get Dell to stand behind it. My review is here.

Best PC Accessory for the Couch Potato

Steam Link and Steam Controller (I paid $50 for both directly from Steam, but price varies) - This allows you to run Steam on a computer (like the one above) and plug the Link into a TV on the same network and play your steam games. The Steam controller makes playing games designed for a keyboard and mouse easy from the couch. I have not reviewed this product yet.

Best for the Lazy

iRobot Roomba 652 Robot Vacuum ($269.99) - While the Roomba won't replace a full sized vacuum, for quick jobs this thing is ideal. You hit one button and it sweeps the floor for you. I have dogs, so being able to run this once or twice a week helps keep the floor clean.

Best for Audio

Yamaha WXC-50 (~$350) - This is an amazing little device. It works with Airplay, Bluetooth, DLNA (DSD and High Res files), has an aux input, and works natively with SiriusXM, Pandora, etc. You can use it with powered speakers or send the audio to a headphone amp or a vintage receiver (I use it for both). My review is here.

Best Audio/Video Portable Accessory

Blue Raspberry Premium Mobile USB Microphone for PC, Mac, iPhone and iPad (incl. Lightning cable) - This small portable microphone is ideal for taking on the road or for impromptu videos around the house. I like the old style look, the sound quality, and the fact that they give you cables to make it easy to hook up to a computer or iPhone.

Best For Home Entertainment

TiVo BOLT 500 GB DVR: Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player - 4K UHD Compatible - Works with Digital Cable or HD Antenna (~$180)- I decided to stop paying DirecTV this year. I was mainly keeping it around for NFL Sunday Ticket, but it was consuming half my weekend, so I decided to get rid of it. I was already paying Comcast for cable and it saved me quite a bit of money to switch over and use their cable card with the Tivo. The great thing about this version of Tivo is that it also work with an over the air signal, so if I decide to switch to SlingTV or another online source, I can still record my local channels in HD. This box has Netflix and Youtube built in, but they are a bit slower than my other sources, so I don't use them. My review is here.

Stuff on my Wishlist

Of course, we still have over a month left in December, so there are still a couple things I have on my wishlist that I may have by year end.

Apple Watch LTE - I am still using the Original Apple Watch and love it. This is a much more fully realized version of the watch.

Apple TV 4K - I have a 4K TV , so this is an obvious upgrade.

R2D2 - Just too cool.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

Wrap Up

I may add a few more products before Christmas, but I am pretty happy with this list. I noticed that a lot of this stuff is higher priced than my usual lists. I may put together an under $100 tech gift list if I have time. However, these were some of my favorites of the year, which was the point of putting together a list.

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Epson ET-3700 Review

11/5/2017

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The Epson ET-3700(~$379) is the printer I have needed for my office for years. Like most people, I have used the standard printers that use the relatively tiny ink cartridges and seem like they need to be replaced every time you need to print an important document.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

The Epson Expression ET-3700 EcoTank Wireless All-in-One Supertank Printer with Scanner, Copier, and Ethernet solves that problem. The printer comes with “2 years of ink”, so that "low ink" message from my computer should be behind me for a long, long time. This printer requires you to open up the ink and pour it in the tank, but in my experience, it was easy and not a drop went anywhere but inside the printer. It does take a little longer to get up and running (about 45 minutes or so), but a lot of that time is just waiting for the ink to charge and you can let it go through that process while you do something else.

How's it print?

Once I had everything setup, I set the printer to the quiet setting since I don’t typically print large jobs and I was willing to trade of some speed for less noise. The 2.4 inch LCD screen is easy to read and navigate. It even flips up, so if you have it mounted on a low shelf, like I do, it is still easy to read.

I tested printing several sheets and had no problems. That being said, I wouldn’t recommend this for photographers that print their own photos. This printer has 4 different colors, but printers that have three different colors for black (black, grey, light grey), rather than one, are typically better for photos.

This printer has 150 sheet paper capacity, so you won’t be bothered with having to change out paper as often as many printers, either. It is also relatively fast at printing.

Wifi Features

I have the printer connected via Ethernet, so I had no issues getting it added to my network. Once it is setup, you can scan documents and photos to your computer. I tested this feature and it worked great. I also tested printing a photo to it from my iPad and it had no issues. It showed up in "selected printers" right in the Photos app. I also downloaded the Epson iPrint app in case I need to fine tune print options in the future.

The Wrap Up

All in all, this is almost perfect for my home office needs. As I said, I would prefer to have more “colors” than 4, but even though it isn’t ideal for professional photos, it is still a great printer for my home office needs. I mainly just want something that has lots of ink, prints fast, and can be seen by my iOS devices and this printer fits the bill.

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Review of the HUGE Sony Portable Speaker!

11/5/2017

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The first impression of the Sony GTKXB90 is that this is the largest Bluetooth speaker I have ever seen! The photo above contains a pic of it with your standard Rolling Stone Magazine and a curious mini schnauzer. According to Sony, it weighs 31 pounds and is over 2 feet tall. If you can handle the size, you will be paid back with a fun, very loud Bluetooth speaker that is capable of deeper bass than any portable I have ever heard at this price point (~$349).

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

Let's Party

This is the ultimate party speaker. It puts on a cool, user adjustable, light show, has DJ effects, plays loud, and puts out a lot of bass. That being said, like every other Bluetooth speaker I have heard, it isn’t an audiophile product. It does have EQ settings you can use to dial in the sound, but it will be difficult to match the sound of a properly setup system with two speakers and a sub. I don’t think audiophiles will be buying this speaker for playing their RCA Living Stereo vinyl, but it still sounds pretty darn good for a portable speaker.

Apps - the good and the bad

The speaker requires a couple apps to get everything setup. The Fiestable app lets you setup DJ features and gives you a lot of control over the light show and the Music Center app lets you group with other Sony speakers, access your phone’s library, access most music apps on the iPhone, adjust the EQ, add Extra Bass, select the input you want to use, turn off the speaker, etc.

I found the apps very useful, but somewhat frustrating to use. While the ability to set the EQ is an absolute necessity to get the sound the way I like, the apps take a long time to locate the speaker even if you simply opened another app and go back to the Music app to adjust volume or another setting. I wish Sony would include a basic remote that could turn it on and off, control volume, cycle through inputs, and maybe turn on and off the lights. As I said, the features contained in both apps is what make this speaker so unique, but I would like a basic remote so I didn’t always have to go back to my iPhone or iPad and wait for the app to connect to the speaker..even when the iPhone has been constantly connected via Bluetooth).

Below are some screen shots from both apps to show you some of the features:

Ports

The speaker actually has several useful ports. It has analog in and out, a USB input, and a mic input (with mic control). I have tested the USB with a thumb drive with some mp3 files and it works fine, but I prefer the interface for apps like Apple Music, so I will rarely ever use it for this purpose.

One of my planned ways of using it was for when we are out by the pool. I could use it with an Amazon Echo Dot plugged into the USB for power, while also being plugged into the RCA input for audio. This will allow anyone to tell it what to play or ask it questions. However, when I plugged it into both ports, I ran into a lot of static. Luckily, I had a ground loop isolator that fixed that problem, but I found that I could also avoid the issue by using Bluetooth instead of the analog inputs. Inside the house, I will probably just keep my Dot plugged into the main office system via analog and pair it with the Sony’s Bluetooth to give me a lot more options.

The interesting thing about the Bluetooth feature is that it will stay connected to three devices at a time. It won't play them all simultaneously, but it doesn't have to be manually disconnected before connecting to a second device like other Bluetooth speakers I have used. It has NFC one touch pairing , but unfortunately my iPhone can't take advantage of NFC pairing. The speaker does not utilize Apt-X, but iPhones don't have the feature, either. It does have Sony's LDAC Bluetooth features available.

Design

While I like the handle that is built in that makes it easier to carry, one frustration is the lack of water proofing and the plastic housing that could get scratched up without much effort. It is a portable Bluetooth speaker, but make sure you don’t get caught in the rain!

The speaker also has the ability to be paired with other Sony speakers wirelessly using the party mode. You can also use the analog out to pair with more speakers. The speaker has two 7.09 inch woofers and three 2.36 inch (cone type) tweeters, however only two of the tweeters are active at the same time. If you have the speaker upright, the two tweeters on top play, if you have it on its side, the two in each of the corners play, so you get stereo separation regardless of whether you use it vertically or horizontally. In ECO standby mode, the speaker only use .5 W.

Is it worth it?

So, given the unusual size and weight, is the Sony GBK-XB90 worth having? I think it depends on your needs and whether you can handle carrying around such a bulky speaker. The large size means that it is louder and has better bass than most portable speakers on the market. They claim 16 hours of battery life, but using the lights and listening at max volume could cut it down to 4 hours. I think most people will fall in between 4 and 16 hours and end up with 7 or so hours at normal volumes. That is pretty impressive for a speaker this size that has this much bass.

For me, it is nice to have because of the many different lighting options. When I was a kid, my grandmother liked gadgets (she introduced me to my first video game...Pong!) and she had a speaker in her living room that would put on a light show depending on the music that was playing. I still remember her playing notes on the piano while I was mesmerized by the light show. This speaker takes that experience to a whole new level, so I know if she was still around, she would enjoy the unique features of this speaker as much as I do.

Below is video using some music recorded with my iPhone using a Blue Raspberry microphone for demonstration purposes. I wish I could use music that people are more familiar with, but I have been unable to reach The Rolling Stones to get their approval, so I simply grabbed a few copyright free tracks that show off some basic attributes.

It should be noted that this type of demonstration is limited because it depends on your speakers, the mic I used, etc. However, your speakers and my mic shouldn't put something in that wasn't there, so you can still get a general idea of how these sound if you have decent speakers/headphones on your end.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

I haven't posted a Youtube video in a while, but if anyone wants a Youtube video to show off the many illumination and DJ features, let me know and I will try to put a video together.

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Why I am not getting an iPhone X

11/4/2017

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Well, it is a new iPhone year and typically, I would be updating to a new iPhone. However, this year I decided to sit this one out.

There are really just a few reasons, but I freely admit that it has a lot to do with how much I like the 7 plus. However, here are the top 5 reasons:

1. 1st Gen Unforeseen Issues - This isn't my first rodeo. I have seen Apple come out with new products and many of them have unforeseen flaws (there is already talk of screen burn-in).

2. FaceID - I know I will eventually be forced out of TouchID into FaceID if I continue buying iPhones. I just don't want the inconvenience when my 7 plus still runs great. Eventually, the 7 will feel slow and I will want a new phone, but there is just not enough reason to go to a technology that needs to be stared at and the swiped compared to just touching a button.

3. The Notch - While the point of shrinking bezels is something I completely understand. I also understand why they need the notch for FaceID. However, it makes the screen smaller in landscape mode or it cuts into photos/video in landscape mode. I prefer the constantly larger screen of the 7 Plus.

4. Screen too small - As I said above, I prefer the 16:9 size of my 7 plus versus the 19.5:9 aspect ratio of the X. If you watch a 16:9 video in native format, it becomes a 4.96 inch screen when compared to the 7 Plus 5.5 inch screen. If Apple makes an X Plus next year or 11 Plus (whatever they call it), I will be much more interested, because even with the notch and longer aspect ratio, it should have more active screen space.

5. Price - Given the reservations above, I just don't want to spend the money to get one right now. Also, because of the glass back, Apple Care is almost a necessity, which only adds to the already high price.

I am not saying there aren't some positive attributes, but for me, they aren't enough to get me to trade in the 7 plus this year and pay extra for the X. That being said, I will be much more interested in a plus sized version.

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Top Tech of the Year

My Favorite Tech of the Year

Great for the Home Office

Most Underrated Tech

Best Desktop Accessory for the MBP

Best On the Go #Dongle

Favorite Headphones

Favorite for the Vehicle

Best Gaming PC on a Budget

Best PC Accessory for the Couch Potato

Best for the Lazy

Best for Audio

Best Audio/Video Portable Accessory

Best For Home Entertainment

Stuff on my Wishlist

Wrap Up

Epson ET-3700 Review

How's it print?

Wifi Features

The Wrap Up

Review of the HUGE Sony Portable Speaker!

Let's Party

Apps - the good and the bad

Ports

Design

Is it worth it?

Why I am not getting an iPhone X

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