I provide honest ratings and reviews on tech, toys, and consumer home goods that I've purchased and used. Reviews are based on hands-on testing and personal observations. All opinions and comments are my own.
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Takeaway: Good fit, comfortable, quick drying, but small pockets. I ordered the swim trunks in size medium, which is according to Asian sizing should fit 28-30" waists and is equivalent to US men's small or extra small sizes.and runs a bit small for US sizes. The trunks come in two color choices, green with white and orange accents or blue with black and white accents. The trunks have the words ‘Take Seriously' embroidered in the front (go figure!). The only other accent on the front is a stitched in overlay athletic number '9' on the outside of the front left cuff. The material on these is a thin and lightweight quick dry fabric. The waistband is fully elastic and a fairly wide 1.75". The waistband cinches on the inside front via a hidden drawstring. The front features a false fly with the stitching but no actual opening. Inside, there is a mesh privacy lining made of black athletic mesh that is soft to the touch and eschews the need to wear underwear. In general, the seams and sewing work is pretty good with only a few stray threads that needed to be trimmed upon receipt. On either side of the garment is a shallow side pocket, and on the back there is an open top pocket on the right-hand side. The outseam is about 15" and cuts at about mid-thigh with a short 4" in-seam and 10" wide legs that can be expanded an additional 2" via the side zippers.
The medium size was accurate and fit nicely on my 28" waist though it stretches enough to probably accommodate a 30" waist comfortably. With the drawstring tied, it can be hidden on the inside of the trunks for a seamless look, and it's decently snug; I didn't feel like the suit could easily be pulled off by a big wave or fast moving water and it didn't slide down despite some rigorous tugging. The pockets are a bit too small though to be very useful for carrying things like your cell phone or wallet. The overall workmanship for the garment is good and the material dries fairly quickly which make these really nice for the pool and beach. The shorter leg length also allows for greater freedom of movement especially when being active like running on the beach or playing beach volleyball
Takeaway: Easy to assemble, lightweight, loud speaker, fun to use; comes w/handy field guide. The metal detector comes in several pieces and requires assembly, which seems to be the main complaint of a lot of folks, but I didn't have a problem with putting it together. It sounds like the piece that gives folks the most trouble is the tightening collar that connects the lower half of the shaft to the upper half. Make sure to unscrew the outer collar on this sleeve and slip the threaded side onto the upper shaft until the snaps click into the holes on the pole; then loosely place the tightening collar over it, insert the lower half of the shaft into the upper half and tighten the collar. You'll also receive a mini fold-able shovel, a set of instructions, and a field guide.
The control box contains the electronics for the device. On the front you have a detection display, a discrimination dial which filters signals based on metal type, a sensitivity dial which can increase the range and depth of detection and also serves as the power switch, a volume dial, a pinpoint button, low battery indicator, and 1/8" earphone jack. This unit requires two 9V batteries for operation which are not included. The coil is what detects metal in the ground and it plugs into the back of the control box. The included search head coil is 7" in diameter. When fully assembled the length of the metal detector is about 40".
The travel shovel comes in a green camouflage pouch with a nylon hanging loop and a belt strap on the back. The shovel also requires a bit of assembly, too. First, screw the upper shaft of the handle into the lower half, then unfold the shovel head. Remember to tighten the collar nut underneath the shovel head so that it doesn't move around. You can use this tool as a shovel for digging or turn the head perpendicular to use as a pick (you can also tighten the nut in this orientation, but remember to loosen the collar nut to switch orientations and fold the shovel back up for storage). On the side of the shovel head is a serrated saw blade edge and on the opposite corner is a bottle opener.
The included instructions are pretty basic but explain how to assemble and use the metal detector. The field guide provides more in depth instruction and tips and tricks for getting the most out of your unit which I found pretty useful. There are instructions on how to change the settings to filter out false positives from mineral rich locations and "junk" metal. You just have to turn the discrimination dial clockwise and adjust the sensitivity accordingly. Some folks said they had to constantly use the pinpoint button to get any positive hits, but you shouldn't have to do that if the sensitivity is turned to the max and discrimination set to "all metal." The pinpoint key will be able to locate items that are deeper and the unit detects metal to a depth of about 7 inches. But that's not really an efficient way to use this tool. So far, the metal detector has been pretty accurate for me. I've been able to locate quite a few metal objects, particularly in sand which were close to the surface. A few coins, some stainless steel jewelry, and the occasional odd metal scrap piece. The deepest object I've found was a chunk of aluminum gutter buried about 6 inches in my backyard. Not a great find but good for practice with the detector.
I found the field guide and manual instructive for first-timers, like myself, and being able to use headphones is nice so you don't have to disturb other people with loud beeping all the time. I will say that if you'll be using headphones, you only need to set the volume to just above the minimum as it's plenty loud. Overall, the metal detector works as expected and is a lot of fun to use, even though I haven't found anything worth mentioning here. I have not tried using this in water like a stream or shallows of a pond, so I don't know if it will stand up to its waterproof claim yet.
Takeaway: Somewhat effective, stretchy and versatile, reduces chances of mosquito bites but not 100%. You'll receive two each of the wrist bands in five colors: blue, green, purple, yellow, and pink. When you open the sealed bag, you'll smell the strong aroma of citronella, like the candles that you can burn to repel mosquitos. This repellent is DEET-free and is a natural plant-based essential oil. The bands are stretchy and can be worn on your wrists and ankles. You can wear multiple bands in different places for increased effectiveness. Note though, that if you stretch too far, too fast the bands could break. The smell on the bands is rated to last up to 250 hours, or 10 days out of the packaging. You can place the bands back into the package and seal it to preserve its effectiveness for a little while longer. My friends and I went on a hike in the woods in July and we each wore 2 bands. None of us were bitten on our 2 hour hike, though we may have just gotten lucky. In general these bands are not 100% effective, but can help reduce the number of bites. However, be aware that as the smell fades they become less effective over time and eventually will need to be replaced.
Takeaway: Compact and portable, no-frills shade from the sun, packs and unpacks in less than 1 min. The tent comes packed in a 19" nylon carrying bag and weighs just over 2 lbs and has a zipper like a pouch. The instructions for setting up and putting away the tent are printed on a tag inside the bag, so you can't lose them. The tent inside sets up in seconds. It literally pops open and just sits on the ground. Then you'll take the included 6 metal spikes and pin the strap loops down, there are four in the corners and two at the opening corners of the tent entrance. There are also two side pockets along the edges that you can fill with beach sand on a windy day to add some weight, or store some items like flip-flops. The tent is 3.5' tall and the lounging area is 5' x 3.5' or 5' x 5' including the section outside the tent. The tent is large enough to accommodate two people laying down or in a seated position. It provides nice shade from the sun and the vented back lets in air and prevents the tent from blowing away. Keep in mind, this tent doesn't have privacy screens to close off the entrance or vented window in the back; it's very basic but gets the job done in the hot sun. The tent also packs away in under a minute and is extremely light and portable for taking to the beach, picnics and other outdoor events. The only thing to be careful with is when pounding the pins in the ground because they are somewhat malleable and easily get bent.
