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The last time I took a Bridge to Another World, I ended up in the Land of Oz keeping Dorothy company. Now for my second excursion, over this virtual structure, to yet another literary environment, the destination is Shadowland with Alice as my companion. To avoid any confusion, and with my companion's name giving a possible clue, I was bound for a visit to Wonderland, the magical world created by Charles Dodgson who is better known as Lewis Carroll.
Profiles can be created to record the progress of individual players. There are also options to make adjustments to certain elements of the gaming environment. Levels can be set for music, sound effects and voice dialogue. You can also opt for full and widescreen viewing plus a special mouse cursor. When playing the game there are four levels of difficulty namely Casual, Advanced, Expert and Custom.
While audio in all its forms is of great interest to me, I am not a fan of my singing or should I clarify that no one else will be a fan of my singing. So it was with more than a little trepidation that this item got opened to be given the Smart onceover.
The box has a quite conventional looking Microphone, it is 17.5cm long with the head being 5cm across this has a connector on the base and an on/off slider switch on the side. Next is a mixing box 17x12cm and this is 4cm deep at the back and 2.5cm deep at the front with four twist knobs on the top, Mic one, Mic Two, Music and Echo. The front of the box has inputs for the two Mics and at the right front edge an on/off push button with an LED beside.
Personal data has an attracting for many as they can not keep their hands off it. It is up to you to protect this type of data from the schemes of hackers.
Setting up the product, in its initial format, is relatively easy as you follow a series of instruction screens. These screens will include options to accept or decline for feedback to be sent to Eset and whether you want to enable or disable potentially unwanted applications. The installation routine concludes with an initial automatic scan of the system under protection. As well as this automatic scan, there is a choice of other types of targeted scans.
These in ear Buds are small enough not to exert undue pressure on the ear so they can sit comfortably where others tend to droop down and with the ear being one of the more sensitive parts of the body comfort in that area is important.
Everything about this product is small from the box that is only 11x10.5x5cm to the charger that 8x4x3cm and the buds themselves that are around 1.5x1.5x2cm. The case with buds weights 57grams and the buds themselves weigh only 6grams each. These are Bluetooth only buds and like most units there are two other sizes of gels in the box. The only other contents are a short 30cm USB ‘C’ to USB lead to charge the charger unit and the multi-language guide.
Hopefully when visiting this establishment, you will arrive as an investigator rather than as a patient or you might never leave.
Classified as belonging to the Hidden Object genre, Abandoned : Chestnut Lodge Asylum forms part of the BlackLime series of game titles. Rated at being suitable for those aged 12 and older, the game has been developed by Lazy Turtle Games. Prior to entering this world built around an asylum from where patients tended to disappear and neither the nursing staff nor the police could find any trace of them, you can create profiles for different players and adjust the gaming environment.
Loved by some, certain features can be annoying to others.
A watch used to be for telling you the time, now lots do far more. This top of the range one from Polar does so much that there are no less than ten screens on the watch and when you sync the data you realise that what you saw on the watch was only a small proportion of the data it is keeping.
Let’s start with the watch as a timepiece it has one centimetre tall numerals in the centre of its always on display. In low light you may need to tap the display to get the backlight to show the result, you can also turn your wrist to activate the backlight. The first thing I liked was the fact you do not have to sync it with a phone you can do so and this will enable it to display the latest weather details.
Take a deep breather and breath in air that has been purified by this next device.
As regular readers will know I was very impressed with my initial weeks using the SleepHub and my last posting 25-11-20 told you so in no uncertain manner. While my sleep has certainly improved overall I have had some recent problems using it. However this could well be due a bout of toothache as well as some stomach problems and nausea.
There are four usage modes Deep Sleep, Easy Sleep, Fall Asleep and Power Nap. You select which you want on the 7inch Touch Display which spends all but two minutes when you activate it and when the alarm sounds totally blank. It sends a range of pulses and tones to the two supplied speakers. When you set the sound level of the Sleepsound you should also set a Soundscape but a tiny bit lower.
Going undercover as a detective can be tricky as you discover when investigating mysterious deaths.
Following a murder, which the perpetrator would claim was more of a test to check out the validity of a substance known as the Elixir of Immortality, and disposal of the corpse into the sea, you are cast in the role of a detective assigned to solve a series of mysterious deaths, you are presented with a list of suspects made up of a physicist, botanist, magician and alchemist. Evidence to reveal and convict the murderer is to be found on an island with a forbidden reputation.
If you are looking for a last-minute Christmas gift then this next product could help.
While I have been known to bestow certain inanimate objects with a personalised name, this practice has not been applied to my toothbrush. Despite coming into regular personal contact, as it carried out its teeth cleaning duties, this device was simple known as the toothbrush. Oral-B obviously feels differently as it named this particular series of toothbrushes, one of which arrives in the Fereday household, as "Genius X".
This is a small stereo unit that can run on mains or batteries. It is not only a DAB and FM radio but also an Internet radio and Bluetooth set of speakers. So what has Pure the biggest name in DAB radios got to offer for those who want the option of using their unit both in home/office and outside?
The Pure Elan Connect+ measures 23x10.5x5.5cm and weights 768 grams with batteries inserted. I found that you get between 7 and 8 hours on a set of four ‘AA’ batteries between charges. It is supplied with a USB to micro USB lead of one metre that then is the distance it can be from a computer or USB plug front. There is an eight piece 50cm long rod aerial that extends from the top.
While Spring is many months away, it might be time to consider having a clear our of technical devices.
Straight from the box this screen shows 3440x1440 which has the ability to show three screens of information at near to full HD IE 1920x1080 side by side with no real overlap and after a small amount of pruning this means no switching of screens just move your mouse to the bit you want and work away.
The AOC CU34G2 measures 80.5x36.5cm, the screen is 2cm deep at its edges, and it has close to 6cm of concave curve at the middle. While this initially seems a lot sit at least one metre from the screen and you are able to view everything on up to three screens and work on any of them with ease. I also was able to view full screen displays including the odd video or three from a little further back.
Don your detective garb as you set out to solve one of the Mystery Case Files.
With an impressive visual opening introducing you to an EIPIX created world, you are sent back in time to the Battle of the Somme. An allied soldier is rescued from death by a mysterious winged creature who gives him a single feather. This is your entry point to the game of Mystery Case Files - The Black Veil. This review is based on the Collector's Edition of the title which comes with a number of Extras.
Adding to its smartphone family of products, Realme has launched its new realme 7 model. This is a 5G smartphone that comes with the claim of being the best value 5G phone launched this year.
The realme 7 5G is slightly narrower and similarly shorter that my usual smartphone companion, the realme 7 5G has dimensions of 162.3 x 75.4 x 9.4 mm (L x W x D) and weighs in at 196.5g. Taking over the total front of the handset is the slightly raised screen. While the raising of the screen might appear unimportant but it does mean that there is no bezel taking up any of the screen area. Thus you get the full benefit of the 6.5" IPS LED capacitive touch screen giving you 90.
First a Book Light that is small and has choice of two settings it clips onto whatever you are reading and is small and flexible enough to fit into a pocket with ease. Second a game that unless you have been in a monastery or on top of very remote hillside for several years will be something you must have heard of, Richard Osman’s House of Games. Lastly a male Cologne in a tin and rather than it being liquid it is a gel so it will fit in a pocket for a quick freshen up while out and about.
It is 23cm long and a maximum of 3cm wide at the crocodile clip end it weighs only 33 grams. The last 4.5cm is the crocodile clip that pulls off to reveal a standard USB connection which is how you charge the light. The clip can easily expand to 2cm or more but it is also happy at just a few sheets of paper so is versatile. You can even remove the crocodile clip to help you investigate round dark corners in a cupboard and the flexible lead can even wrap round a pipe to give you a third hand.
A nudge is as good as a wink when it comes to reminding you to carry out a task or maybe not to do it again.
The pandemic has certainly resulted in a number of changes to our current mode of lifestyle. It has also encouraged the development of remedies and devices to help combat the situation. Falling into the latter category is the Nudge device which has nothing to do with the Monty Python skit or any innuendo that might spring to mind.
Certainly not a cheap notebook, however it is a very powerful offering that is capable of doing everything you ask and it does it all within a small footprint so easy to use at home, in the office, or on your travels. So the name is right this is a Travel Mate.
It is 32.5x23x1.5cm the last figure is maximum as it is only 1cm at the front, it weighs 1218 grams. The viewable screen is 31x17.4cm which gives the notional diagonal imperial measurement of 13.8 inches. The screen surround is matt black so less finger marks. There is a .7cm border either side, the top border is 1.3cm and the bottom border is close to 3cm. In the top border has a web cam complete with shutter for privacy and a pin hole microphone.
Can you help a magician undo a past mistake and reunite him with his loved one?
As part of the BlackLime games series of titles, The Great Unknown Houdini's Castle belongs to the Hidden Object genre. The game is rated at being suitable for those aged 7 and older. It is based on the efforts of an apprentice of the Great Houdini called Alan Whitehead who is trying to contact the world famous magician and escapologist. Houdini had died 50 years earlier. The reason for this unusual action will become clearer later in this review.
Providing camera storage is a product from HEX.
Although great strides have been made in the performance and capability of the photographic aspect of today's smartphones, the more serious photographer, whether of the professional or amateur variety, will prefer to use a Digital Single-Lens Reflex (DSLR) camera when capturing their images. However, rather than the easy convenience of slipping a smartphone into a pocket or the like, a DSLR camera will need a more substantial storage facility when not required.
Adding to their child-centric product line up, myFirst.tech has released a set of wireless headphones.
Headphones are available in a variety of styles with a collection of attributes that will appeal to a whole range of users. However, most of these headphones, especially those that tend to come my way, have been developed specifically for the more adult section of the population. Widespread as that section of society may be, there is one group that might feel neglected with regards to the choices on offer for their personal use.
It is rare for me to form an instant like or dislike and even rarer for this not to change during the course of the review period. This arrived as I was trying to stream something via a notebook that has adequate speakers when it is on your lap or desk, if you walk to the door you lose the context so as soon as I unpacked the Creative Pebble I plugged it in, instant plug and play and I could clearly hear even outside the room.
The Pebbles are 12cm across, 12cm tall and 12cm from back to front, however they are not round and in places are far less than that. A triangle might describe them better as the speakers are angled at 45 degrees. The left unit is hardwired to the right unit. The right unit has a wire emerging from the back to link to the left unit and another also hard wired that goes to the USB ‘C’ port.
Not an ordinary juicer that extracts a good amount of content from soft fruit but a masticating juicer that does much more with almost anything that has juice, so for those of you who want juice from Celery or Carrots or even things like onions this is the tool to do it.
It is 40cm tall, 37cm from back to front and 14cm from side to side, unlike most juicers that would require you to do most of the work like quartering an Apple before inserting this has a large capacity seven centimetre wide tube and once inserted any juice is soon extracted and then the remains – and in the case of soft fruit this is not much – is then masticated to pulp.
When law enforcement fails to respond to a call for assistance, you need to help yourself.
e-Funsoft has taken its Match-3 game offering, dusted it down with a selection of different tiles and background scenes, before placing it in a new story line environment. The result of this make-over is this next game entitled Murder by Moonlight - Call of the Wolf. Using the Match-3 game play as its central element, the game casts you in the role of a young woman named Carol.
With a title that clearly identifies the product's purpose, myFirst Fone is a watch-phone that is aimed at the young child member of the family. As the term watch-phone might not be too familiar to you, I should explain that this multifunction device combines the functionality of a wristwatch and a phone within a single product. The myFirst Fone is being aimed at children within the 6 to 12 year age group.
Built around a traditional circular wristwatch, this product sets out to provide features that might appeal to both the young child and parents. Befitting its targeted market, the myFirst Fone R1, to give it its full title, would hardly be considered a stylist item. However the bulky watch element and the rubber wrist strap, both coloured black in my review sample, should suit most children with its multifunction purpose rather than appearance being regarded as its main attribute.
Regular readers will know that I find sleeping difficult, often its 4AM before I start to sleep even then its poor so the SleepHub from Cambridge Sleep Sciences was a no brainer for me to request to review. Initial tests were nothing short of amazing. I have a watch that records sleep length and more importantly the deep sleep part of that.
Often prior to the arrival of the SleepHub my sleep score was described as POOR and a figure of 20 was achieved. By night three I was scoring 80 and best of all my deep sleep was no longer in ten minute chunks but up to an hour in length. In good sleep you drift off in a ‘U’ shape with the bit at the bottom being the deep sleep part this can last the best part of 90 minutes and then with good sleep you just repeat with the nirvana eight hours.
TCP. with more than 25 years of experience in the production of lighting products, has released its Smart Wi-Fi Multicoloured LED bulb.
Brightening up the home environment, especially important as we are spending more time at home due to the restriction enforced during lockdown, is the task of TCP's latest product. Available as either a bayonet (my choice) or screw-type 60W product, this bulb could, at first sight, easily be mistaken for a regular dumb bulb device. However. once inserted in an appropriate light socket, the bulb reveals its true colours (pun intended) in the form of additional features.
Having recently told you about a Samsung Tablet that could make and receive calls here something a little smaller that can be held to your ear without attracting attention as it is more normal in size for a SmartPhone, the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G.
The Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G measures 15.7x7.4x.8cm and weighs 192grams. The viewable screen is 15x6.8cm and this gives the notional diagonal imperial screen measurement of 6.5 inches. The screen is Quad HD+ at 3200x1440. Going around the outside it has the volume rocker and the on/off button on the right, the base has a speaker, USB ‘C’ socket and a pin hole microphone, the right side has nothing while the top has a pin hole microphone as well as the SIM entry point.
When world war conflict exists, what better time to search for a device promising the ability to rule the world.
Do you fancy ruling the world? If so then you might be interested in the Spear of Destiny, Regarded as the most powerful artefact in the world according to ancient legend, it is stated that whoever has possession of the Spear of Destiny can rule the world. To help you understand the power of this device, Brave Giant Games have developed the Spear of Destiny - The Final Journey.
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