Littlebits Avengers Hero Inventor Kit

Littlebits makes all manner of modular STEM kits and solutions for teachers and parents but this one is possibly the coolest educational toy ever! It includes some Lego-like construction, a bit of electronics and some easy-access coding so kids can modify and personalise their super hero glove as they wish. Including the ability to control the colour and strobing of lights, a movement and speed sensor plus an awesome stealth mode ability – I won’t spoil that one for you. Littlebits draws kids into playing with and learning basic STEM while playing at being their favourite Marvel superhero.

Littlebits draw kids into playing with and learning basic STEM while living as their favourite Marvel superhero.
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I can’t recommend this enough and only wish my hands were smaller! You can pick one up for only $105 here thanks to Littlebits’ 30% off Black Friday deals.

BlitzWolf® AmpCore BW-TC4 3A Braided USB Type-C to Type-C Charging Data Cable 3.33ft/1m

These are really lovely cables. Braided cables have long been my favourite but they can often be a bit thicker than is useful, however, these AmpCore cables from BlitzWolf are pleasingly thin and very well made.

Braided cables have long been my favourite but they can often be a bit thicker than is useful, however, these AmpCore cables from BlitzWolf are pleasingly thin and very well made
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Each cable rolls up small and the Gold-plated heads are really slim so should fit in USB sockets hidden in the narrowest crooks and crannies. Under testing, they stood up to their quoted speeds and quickly charged several phones. As you can see in the video below they are also stronger than the Hulk, just in case you need that. More info on each cable below.

Each cable rolls up small and the Gold-plated heads are really slim so should fit in USB sockets hidden in the narrowest crooks and crannies
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These cables have data transfer speeds of up to 480MBps and also support charging during data transfer
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BlitzWolf® AmpCore BW-TC4 3A Braided USB Type-C to Type-C Charging Data Cable 3.33ft/1m

56kΩ Standard Resistor is included to ensure that your device will not drain extra power out of the power source, which may lead to over-heating and serious issues. Supports 3.6-12V fast charging at up to 3A current, compatible with Qualcomm QC2.0, QC3.0, MTK Pump Express Plus and other fast charging technology. Data transfer speeds of up to 480MBps and also supports charging during data transfer. Compatible with most Type-C port digital devices such as smartphones, tablets, MP3 players, PDAs, digital cameras/camcorders, hard drives, e-readers, power banks and portable game players.

Premium Quality Materials: Nickel-plated reversible connector heads and 1m/3.33ft durable braided wire sheath with 22AWG power and 30AWG data tinned copper wire cores can be bent over 5000 times with no change in performance.

Specification:
Brand: BlitzWolf®
Model: AmpCore BW-TC4
Plug: 56kΩ standard resistance USB Type-C Male to USB Type-C Male, Nickel-plated Reversible Connector Heads
Materials: Double Color Injection Molding + TPE Cover & Polyester Fiber Jacket
Wire Core: 30 AWG(Data) + 22 AWG(Power)
Output: 3.6-12V, up to 3A
Data Sync Speed: Up to 480Mbps
Length: 1m/3.33ft
OD: 4.0mm
Color: Red & Grey

BlitzWolf® AmpCore Turbo BW-TC9 3A Braided Durable USB 3.0 to Type-C Charging Data Cable 3ft/0.9m

Fast USB 3.0 Type C: data transfer speeds of up to 5Gbps, more than 10 times faster than USB 2.0. cables. Internal Resistor: Type C cables without an internal resistor can overheat or damage your device. Ampcore Type C cables have a built-in 56kΩ resistor that provides smooth and safe charging. Supports 3.6-12V fast charging at up to 3A, and is compatible with Qualcomm QC2.0, QC3.0, MTK Pump Express Plus and most other fast charging technologies. Compatible with most Type-C digital devices such as smart phones, tablets, MP3 players, digital cameras, camcorders, hard drives, e-readers, power banks and portable game players.

Premium Quality Materials:
-Gold-plated reversible connector heads won’t corrode over time and provide unrivalled long-term conductivity.
-Flexible and strong braided wire sheath can be bent over 5000 times with no change in performance.
-Engineered with 22AWG power and 32AWG data tinned copper wire cores for fast charging and data transfer.

Specification:
Brand: BlitzWolf®
Model: BW-TC9
Material: Protective Tinned Copper Mesh + Aluminum Foil Shielding + Environmental Flexible Braided Jacket
Plug: Standard USB3.0 A Male to USB Type-C Male, Gold-plated Reversible Connector Head
Wire Core: 32 AWG(Data)*3 + 22 AWG(Power)
Output: 3.6-12V, up to 3A
Data Sync Speed: Up to 5Gbps (USB3.1 Gen1)
Length: 0.9m/3ft
OD: 4.0mm
Colour: Red Cable & Black Metal Plug

Take a look at all BlitzWolf’s products here on the wonderfully named banggood.com or pick up the USB-3 to USB-C here for £3.17 and the Type C – Type C here for £4.36

Naked Nutrition Protine Powders & Supplements

We have been looking at wellness products here at Tech Trends and seeing innovation everywhere in this booming market. In September we tried out Soylent Meal Replacements and this month it’s the turn of Naked Nutrition. From Grass-Fed Whey Protein to Pea Protein Powder to Organic Brown Rice Protein Powder, Naked Nutrition provides the “purest supplements”. They claim their powders are loaded with essential amino acids and no artificial sweeteners or colours and commit to offering the best protein powders and supplements including Powdered Peanut Butter, Casein Protein, Creatine Monohydrate and many more.

We are looking at health and wellness products here at Tech Trends and are seeing innovation everywhere in this booming market
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We tested out their Collagen Peptides Powder, the Powdered Peanut Butter and the mindboggling Branched Chain Amino Acids, WTF? Well, this last one claims “the highest pharmaceutical grade, fastest dissolving, and rapidly absorbed Branch Chain Amino Acids available”. OK, so that does what? Naken Nutrition says studies have shown that BCAA supplementation improves strength and muscle development, speeds recovery, and increases endurance for men and women at all fitness levels. I am afraid all I can say is that it tasted OK but as a slothful couch potato I can’t speak to its powers of recovery or muscle boosting powers. I might be the wrong person to review these…? Anyway the Powdered Peanut Butter next!

Naked PB is a vegan peanut butter protein powder made exclusively from peanuts grown on US farms. Our powdered peanut butter is made from slow-roasted, non-GMO peanuts that are mechanically pressed to remove fat and oil. The result is a peanut butter powder that is over 40% protein. Gain the nutritional benefits of powdered peanut butter and enjoy its flavor by using it in recipes from cakes and muffins to smoothies. Naked Nutrition is committed to shortening the steps between our farms and you.

Studies have shown that BCAA supplementation improves strength and muscle development, speeds recovery, and increases endurance for men and women at all fitness levels
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If you love peanuts and crave protein then this is for you, but not me. Now, this next one I can relate to. Collagen is the most abundant protein in your body and a major component of connective tissues in tendons, ligaments and having a long-term knee injury I can recommend others with joint problems regularly consume collagen and this supplement is as good a way as any to do that.

Consuming collagen provides health benefits including joint health, youthful skin, healthy hair, protecting cartilage and bones, and workout recovery. Our hydrolyzed collagen powder is sourced from European cows that are pasture raised. Highly soluble and tasteless, use our grass fed collagen peptide powder in hot beverages such as your morning coffee, cold sports drinks, tea before sleep or as an unflavored protein base in pre and post-workout smoothies.

I have taken Glucosamine for a few years and this should provide similar benefits without struggling to swallow those enormous horse pills
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Now, this tub will stay on my counter and I’ll keep myself topped up to ease pain and stiffness in my knee. I have taken Glucosamine for a few years and this should provide similar benefits without struggling to swallow the enormous horse pills I used to take. Check out Naked Nutrition here and sample some of their range of 21st-century health supplements.

BlitzWolf BW-BR4 Bluetooth V5.0 aptX 2 Way HD Music Receiver & Transmitter

I have tested one-way Bluetooth transmitters and receivers but not a two-way device and this BW-BR4 from BlitzWolf is one nifty little gadget for anyone who loves music and fiddling with tech. That’s all of you I hope! Set up is super simple if you have a basic need to transmit both ways between two devices but I took it a bit far and made a mess. However, the BW-BR4 performed exactly as it should and the Bluetooth 5.0 sound quality was excellent.

I wanted to stream music from my phone to my amplifier in receive mode and transmit the audio from my Playstation 4 to my Skullcandy Bluetooth headphones using the transmit mode.
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I wanted to stream music from my phone to my amplifier in receive mode and transmit the audio from my Playstation 4 to my Skullcandy Bluetooth headphones using the transmit mode. That means I was using the BW-BR4 as a hub between four devices! Long story short, the hub worked fine but I got in a terrible pickle when managing the four connected devices. Duuuuh!

I kept switching on the wrong device at the wrong time and then getting confused when pairing the phone or the headphones in the right order.

That means I was using the BW-BR4 as a hub between four devices! Long story short, the hub worked fine but I got in a terrible pickle when managing the four connected devices. Duuuuh!
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The BlitzWolf BW-BR4 performed exactly as it should and the Bluetooth 5.0 sound quality was excellent
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I got it to work after much shouting but decided the hub was smarter than my brain so abandoned that crazy config. It has the ports for this, though, and I think most audiophiles will be happy with the connectivity on hand here.

Features:

• Transmitter and receiver 2 in 1
• Transmitter mode: Turn your TV/Computer/Laptop into a Bluetooth-enabled device. You can listen to the audio from your Bluetooth headset and watch a movie or play a game without interfering with anyone.
• Receiver mode: Connect the BR4 to your home speaker system/car stereo/headphones and turn it into a Bluetooth audio device. You can then connect your smartphone or other Bluetooth device and play music wirelessly.
• CSR BC8675 Bluetooth Chip. The CSR BC8675 chip gives you Bluetooth V5.0 and optical audio output for a truly universal wireless solution.
  328 ft Wireless Connection Range
• Built-in antenna, up to 100 meters (328 ft) long range and stable transmission to share your audio from indoors to outdoors.
• Optical Fiber Transmit
• Gives you the option of digital connection to your playback device for maximum audio quality.
• Long Standby Time
• With a built-in 600mAh battery, you get up to 17 hours working time and 175 hours standby time.

Take a look at all BlitzWolf’s products here on the wonderfully named banggood.com or pick up a BW-BR4 here for £31.79

Piper Educational Computer Kit

So In my honorary role as the eternal child at Tech Trends, I gleefully rolled up my sleeves and got stuck into building my own Piper Raspberry Pi computer. Even for someone used to building awesome toys, this was really something, combining ultra-slick presentation and a very tactile, approachable and play-focused functionality and aesthetics. The Minecraft theme also makes it instantly approachable for kids of all ages, even those in their late 30s.

 

Overall this is an excellent product as it is, but the Piper team are not exactly resting on their laurels, as they’re constantly expanding and evolving their storylines and adding new games and challenges so be sure to keep your Piper Computer updated when it’s connected to the Internet, as the fun certainly doesn’t end when you complete your first mission. In fact, that’s just the start of your adventure.

Get your hands on one for only $249 here with a holiday discount.

Take a look at all BlitzWolf’s products here on the wonderfully named banggood.com or pick up a BW-AS1 here for £63.59 and save with this Holiday 15% off coupon code AS1:15AS1

This mains powered high speed charger is an excellent travel companion
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It provides six fast charging USB outputs from one mains connection and comes in a variety of standard international plug configurations
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Ever wonder why your smartphone charges faster from some charging ports and slower from others? Often, it’s not just the power that your charger can offer. Instead, it comes down to compatibility. Some ports simply don’t speak the right language to open up your device to full speed charging. Try plugging an iPhone into an Android adapter, or vice versa, and your charge time could be double so the BWS4 gives you six standard USB outputs, all connected to the same 50W power supply, all pumping out the same high-speed charge.

Features :

• 50W of Power – Enough to full-charge multiple devices simultaneously.
• 6 Ports Optional – Enough charging ports to handle a family’s worth of gear.
• 3S Power Technology – High-speed charging of up to 2.4A per port. Safe charging and multi-channel protection.
• Portable & Convenient – Creative two-side holder design, provides convenient charging. Compact and light design, ideal for home, work, holidays and wherever else you may go.

Take a look at all BlitzWolf’s products here on the wonderfully named banggood.com or pick up a BWS4 here for £15.89

The post November BLACK FRIDAY 2018 Product Reviews appeared first on Tech Trends.

This month we’ve had a wearables bonanza with two very cool smartwatches coming our way, plus some very impressive AR books and toys, enjoy!

Samsung Gear S3

I still remember my first watch. A red and blue, plastic, made in China, digital beauty that was also a Transformer. The fact it told the time was incidental. The reason I loved it was because of all the other crazy stuff it did. If we’re honest, smart watches are the grown-up version of that, still targeted at the same people. The difference is that now the “grownups” of my generation have a bit more pocket money to spend on their toys, and those toys can actually do a lot of the things that we couldn’t imagine back then.

Looks are also important, of course. A watch you choose to wear all the time should look the bollocks. I know my Transformer one was the king of the classroom, if only for a week. It’s a great feeling. And that’s the feeling I got as I unboxed the Samsung Gear S3 smart watch, in spite of it looking – sorry Optimus Prime – a whole lot classier than my childhood companion. Papa’s got a brand new toy, and it’s pretty awesome. Read the full review here.

RRP: £349

Tech Trends AR Toy Box:

Fun Educational AR Cards

It’s a good job I am a great big man-child as some of the most exciting advances in commercially available VR & AR are coming to market cunningly disguised as books and toys! So today I’m gleefully rummaging in the Tech Trends AR Toy Box for some STEM-based educational stuff as well something much more terrifying… The Educational option comes from ReTrak who are offering three Utopia 360° 4D+ Augmented and Virtual Reality kits for kids of 5+, The Space, Dinosaur and Animal Zoo 4D+ Bundles are literally amazing and I was blown away by the quality of the AR implementation and the educational content. Read both full reviews here.

RRP: £40

Alien: Augmented Reality Survival Manual

Next in my AR Toy Box is an excellent interactive book from Carlton Publishing featuring my favourite film of all time, Alien. Boy this is a treat for a geek like me, an Alien: Augmented Reality Survival Manual. The book was produced in partnership with 20th Century Fox and is full of detailed content on the marines, the tech and the universe of the films, with lots of high quality images and production artwork, But the AR is the USP here, and it doesn’t disappoint. Read both full reviews here.

RRP: £25

Suunto GPS Smart Watch

Who says that tech folk can’t be outdoorsy? This sturdy GPS smartwatch is the perfect geeky companion for all your fresh air pursuits.

As a Tech journalist I have to admit I spend most of my time staring at a computer screen (or a tablet screen, smartphone screen, TV… well, you get the picture, haha). But living in the great wilderness that is Somerset (it’s in the UK for any Americans that need to look it up) and with no fewer than three lively dogs to my name I also get dragged out of the house in all weathers to get wet, muddy and lost.

While I might not be your typical outdoorsman, however, I still like to think I could hack it in the wild, sharpening sticks, skinning seagulls and falling in rivers, that sort of thing. So I was keen try out the Suunto Traverse smart GPS watch. Very much a GPS navigation tool the Traverse is perfect for Hiking, Mountaineering, Trekking, Walking, Backpacking, Climbing and (less so in the UK as we have killed everything except the cows & sheep) Hunting. Read the full review here.

RRP: £325

Corkcicle Tumbler

Continuing Tech Trends’ crusade for ultimate hydration we took a sip from this very cute Corkcicle Tumbler. Promising at home or on-the-go, triple-insulated beverage security, the Tumbler promises to keep your drink cool for 9 hours or hot for three without freezing or cup sweat, I hate cup sweat, nothing worse! The Corkcicle Tumbler comes in two sizes and 13 colours. I have to say it rather attractive as far as insulated cups go, and it does do the job, as my coffee stayed hot for the two hours it took me to drink it on the train to Cornwall. Note of warning though, be sure to keep the sip slider closed when you are not drinking or all that lovely heat will disappear out the spout! Colours are a bit on the girly side perhaps, but I am secure enough in my masculinity so this was no biggie.

RRP: $24.95

Box Appetit by Black + Blum

Extreme Tupperware Tech! Long day of coding ahead? No time for lunch out? You’re going to need a lunch box full of healthy home made sarnies, celery sticks, and maybe even a Dairylea triangle and an apple to keep you going… Box Appetit by Black & Blum does the job in style, including an inner dish for food separation, sauce pot for dressings or condiments, and a fife (fork + knife) with a cutting edge for easy one handed eating.

RRP: £19.99

Joto the Robotic Drawing Board

Joto is the next generation drawing machine, combining elements of robotics and artificial intelligence with pen and ink. First launched via a Kickstarter campaign in early 2017, it sold over 1,800 units in just four weeks and raised over £362,000 – smashing its original target of £100,000. Joto was named the public’s favourite design at this year’s Beazley Designs of the Year exhibition at the Design Museum, and will be made available to consumers via an exclusive partnership with Selfridges later in 2017. Business customers already using Joto technology include Twitter, Google, IBM, Intel and Liberty of London.

Basically a connected whiteboard that draws with a pen, the Joto is happy sketching everything from works of art to messages. At the push of a button, Joto turns pixels on a screen into pen and ink drawings. Check out the video below to see how it brought the Tech Trends logo to life.

 “Most of the content we love is stuck on our screens, and as a result so are we. We’re seeing a new movement looking to engage people beyond the screen, indulging in both old and new technology, that embraces all the qualities we have lost with digital media. Examples of these success stories range from vinyl to Alexa. It’s the start of a new generation of technology in the home,” Jim Rhodes, the founder of Joto, explained to Tech Trends.

It’s great to see companies exploring the potential of creative robotics, and the design and art community is eagerly embracing the potential of the new technology in their work. Top names already creating exclusive artwork for the new medium include graphic designer Anthony Burrill, Mr. Bingo and Supermundane. To demonstrate the versatility of Joto, the team has launched 365 Days of Art, which will see a network of artists create and share unique designs with the Joto community via the app.

Creative robotics is an exciting new intersection between the worlds of design and technology,” adds Rhodes. “The response has been amazing, and with our ‘365 Days of Art’ project, top artists, designers and illustrators will be able to distribute their work on the Joto platform, letting users discover a new piece of art on their wall every day of the year.”

The post September 2017 Tech Trends Product Reviews appeared first on Tech Trends.