Gadgets

My dashcam recently failed and I needed a replacement. I decided on this one based on the reviews and feature set.

You don't need a name-brand dashcam these days as they've been around long enough for them all to be about the same quality. (I have, however heard horror stories of some name-brand ones cooking in the sun…)

This one records two separate streams at once, unlike some other dual camera ones that split the video output in half and output at half the effective pixels.

Installation was a breeze because the old dashcam used the same connector which I had hooked up to a 10 watt 12v->5v convertor, wired up to the fuse box.

However, after installation I learned that my dashcam hadn't failed, it was the SD card so I did not end up wiring up the dual camera, rather using the old dashcam at the back window for a full 1080p recording.

Overall I give this product 8/10.

Usability 9/10

Video quality 8/10

Price 8/10

My old hard drives in my PC are starting to show their age - both in speed and capacity.

SSDs are still too expensive when you are a part-time data hoarder and you might have several terabytes of games installed at any one point.

After comprehensive research I found that the Toshiba X300 range were the bees-knees when it comes to value, capacity and reliability. Specifically I wanted to know how fast it was - and came across some benchmarks - both sequential read and write over 250MB/s! That is approaching first generation SSD speeds.

I can't see any reason why I would give this product any less than 10/10.

Value 10/10 (bought for A$273.41 including shipping)

Quality 10/10

The crew at MindPlace offer some of the most advanced meditation consoles and eyewear for an immersive audio-visual mediation experience.

The Kasina bundle is my top pick. It allows you to create your own sessions of binaural beats and there are 40+ preloaded sessions - including a sleep setting.

View and compare the MindPlace consoles here.

Decrease your plastic use and reduce your sugar intake by making your own sparkling water and sodas at home.

This is legitimately the best Christmas present I ever received.

Machines are available in Black, White and Red and lots of flavoured syrups to choose from.

Favourite flavour: Lemon, lime & bitters

For years I avoided name-brand fitness trackers, and always selected the cheapest option available... And without exception, every band I bought failed in spectacular fashion.

The Fitbit Inspire 2 tracks your steps and exercise like the off-brand watches, but the app also comes with a calorie counter that adjusts your daily intake needs as you exercise throughout the day.

With purchase you get 12 months access to the premium app functions like the detailed sleep tracker, workout videos and meditation and mindfulness audio tracks.

I’m now firmly converted to the Fitbit way of life!

Okay, this is probably a loose interpretation of the word “technology”, but I stand by it!

With practice, pendulums are perfect for applied kinesiology - a way of asking your subconscious yes/no questions.

This is a pack of 6 different stones, so you could keep your favourites and give the others as gifts, all for one great price.