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: Decent battery, nice sound/features, convenient charging case. The earphones come with a lipstick style battery pack that doubles as a case and charger for the earbuds. You'll also receive 2 additional sizes of eartips (large and small), a microUSB charging cable, and instruction sheet. The earbuds are stored in both ends of the case using magnets and simply slide in and out. They charge using wireless contacts. On the side of the charge you have and 'IN' and 'OUT' rubber door that cover the microUSB charging port and full size USB output port for charging your phone or mobile device. This power button activates charging for both the earbuds and the USB port. When the battery pack is activated the LED in the front shines red and the earbuds have a red LEDs when charging which change to blue when the battery is full; charging the earbuds takes about an hour. On a full charge, the earbuds will last about 4 hours of continuous playback, depending on volume level.
The earbuds themselves are compact, if not a bit bulky for true wireless earbuds. They measure ¾" x ½" x 1" and weigh about ¼ oz a piece. Each earbud has a power button that you press and hold for a few seconds to turn them on. It's recommended that you turn on the right earbud first, then the left to get them to pair to each other automatically. Then you can pair them to your phone. If you need to get them back into pairing mode, turn them off, then press and hold the power button until it turns on and continue holding it until it says 'pairing'. This lets you re-sync them to one another and even use each each individually with different devices since they can both be used as a stand alone unit. Occasionally they'll drop their connection with each other or with the source device but the blip usually resolves itself and lasts for only a second.
The sound from these is not bad. It's balanced with well-supported mid and bass ranges for full and rich sound, though it lacks any definition in the low bass. At higher volumes the treble ranges distort a bit and can take on a harsh edge. However, the passive isolation was decent even at moderate volumes. For me, because of the angle of the eartips, I found that they seat better when rotated towards the back of my head rather than remaining vertical. This also helped keep the earbuds in my ears, as I found that they would fall out easily otherwise. There is no volume control on the earbuds, and the volume is only controlled by the source device. You can, however, start and pause playback by short pressing the power symbol on either earpiece. There are no additional playback controls, however, you can answer or disconnect calls by short pressing the power button and re-dial the last number by double pressing it; note you can only do phone functions with the right earpiece.
The earbuds are stated to be IP67 waterproof rated and I have gotten them sweaty and rinsed them under water and they still work fine. Overall, the audio quality of these earbuds is pretty good for the price, and they are fairly comfortable to wear with a decent battery life. The charger case comes in handy since you can charge them up automatically between uses and also use it as an emergency charger for your phone.
Takeaway: High capacity, waterproof, rugged with emergency solar charging. This battery pack is built for travel with its hardshell construction and rubberized sides and back panels. It feels solidly constructed and is sealed for watertightness. In addition to the charger, you'll get a 24" microUSB charging cable and aluminum carabiner to clip this to your belt or backpack. The unit measures about 6.5" H x 3.25" W x 0.75" D thick. It weighs 10.5 oz and has a 12000 mAh capacity that will provide about 4 full charges for most smartphones.
First and foremost, you should note that while this powerbank CAN be charged via the solar power, the manufacturer recommends that this should NOT be used as the default charging method. Rather, charge it like a normal powerbank using the included cable and plugging it into your computer's USB port or appropriate wall adapter. You should only charge the unit via the solar when absolutely necessary and only if the battery life of the power bank is below 75% as doing otherwise may damage the battery. I noticed that while charging via the solar panel the sun, the unit gets extremely hot which is part of the reason why it should not be used on a regular basis or for long-term charging. Also, it takes a really long time to charge the unit using just the sun, and if you have your device plugged in, it will only act as a trickle charge to maintain or slow the drain of your device's battery.
There are 4 charge indicator LEDS, each representing 25% of battery life. The left most LED will be green when the battery pack is charging via the solar panel. The two standard USB ports on each side output up to 1 A each. This unit also has a built in LED flashlight that you can turn on/off by pressing the power button twice. This battery can charge two devices at the same time if it has sufficient power. It functioned well for charging my devices, and I was able to charge it up using both the USB cord and via the sun. As a power bank it works well and has the added bonus of being able to charge up via the sun in emergency situations and when you are away from a wall outlet.
Takeaway: The size, shape and finish means that this battery travels well in a laptop bag and can be stowed easily in the glove compartment for emergencies.
Takeaway: Share photos and videos stored on an SD camera card wirelessly. The device also can act as an access point to boost the wireless signal in rooms that are far away from my router. These are handy features, though I'll mostly just use this as an external battery pack to charge up my phone or tablet on the go. Everything was plug and play from directly connecting to it via WiFi, to linking it up to my network over WiFi. Accessing the device via static IP address was quick and painless. You can also connect to it to use as WiFi storage on your phone or tablet if it doesn't have a card slot to add additional memory. It's a nice travel accessory to toss in the laptop bag because it can replace several devices with just one unit that's compact and functional.
Takeaway: Works great as a battery pack, NAS, and WiFi extender too! I have to say that the best feature about this device is that it looks cool sitting on your desk, but it works great as a battery pack, NAS, and WiFi extender too!
I have, now, a whole slew of battery packs: some flat like a portable hard drives, others cylindrical like lipstick, and still others odd rounded bricks and the one thing that they all have in common is that they only do one thing - charge my devices while looking very plain. With the SITH I get battery power, style and more. Now, not only can I charge my devices, but I can stream music, video and other files from a USB drive or memory stick... at the same time! I love this feature because my phone, oddly, doesn't have a memory card slot, which means I'm limited to 32GB of storage. That doesn't leave a lot of room for music, photos or media but now I can get those on my phone and other devices straight from my USB hard drive wirelessly. The plug and play setup couldn't be easier.
Or, if I don't need network attached storage, this handy gadget can turn an Ethernet connection into a private/secure wireless one that I can share. Or it can create a separate wireless connection off an existing one complete with a different network name, and password credentials. It does everything a router does but it fits in your pocket. Is it a bit chunky? Yes. But it's no less bulky then the 13000 mAh battery pack I've been carrying around already (it weighs about 9 oz). For someone who's always on the go, it's the one travel gadget that I didn't know I needed that now I take everywhere.
Takeaway: Easy to use, charges quickly. A great travel accessory to keep your devices powered while you're on the go. If your phone battery is always dying in the middle of the day, check out RavPower's Dynamo On the Go Power Bank (model #RP-PB07W).
Charges in about 2.5 hours with a 10400 mAh capacity; enough to charge my phone up about 4 times. It also shuts off by itself when it's done charging. Compact, lightweight and comes with a carrying case and two short charging microUSB cables.
