Earlier this year I wrote about working from home and keeping your work spaces separate to your rest spaces. I live in a one bed apartment so that’s a real challenge for me. What I’ve tried to do is make different workspaces where I can. I’ve got a desk from Flying Elephant which is my primary work space. I’ve also picked up a foldable standing desk so I can move into the bedroom too. This article is about the Nerdy Tec Couchmaster Cybot lapdesk and how it lets me work from the couch.
What Is A Lapdesk?
Lapdesks or lapboards usually have a flat surface with a cushion stuck underneath. The idea is that the cushion sits comfortably on your lap while the board on top acts as a table for you. I’ve had some variation of a lapboard in my apartment for as long as I’ve lived here. They’re great for laptops or just eating while watching the telly.
Who Is NerdyTec?
NerdyTec is a German company with a real gaming vibe. While they seemed to set out to specialise in gaming accessories, they’ve cleverly spotted the market for people now working from home and have shifted focus towards a more general lapdesk in the Couchmaster. They sent over the Couchmaster Cybot for me to test drive and I’m going to have to say it’s an option I love having.
What Is The Couchmaster Cybot?
The Couchmaster Cybot lapdesk consists of three simple parts. There are two memory foam cushions which sit either side of your thighs and then the lapboard which sits across both side cushions. There’s really nothing high tech about this who set up, but there is some clever design included.
The lapboard has cut out slots to the left to let your laptop breath. On the right, another cutout slot lets you hold a tablet or phone. The model I was sent also had a nice big mousemat which I could stick on. The board is comfortable to use thanks to it’s layout and tapered, leather surfaced edges where your arms rest.
The cushions themselves are really comfy thanks to their (I think faux) leather covering and memory foam inners. One side has some extra pockets to hold some accessories, or for gamers, snacks.
What’s The Couchmaster Cybot Like To Use?
I loved using the Couchmaster and can I pause for a second to appreciate how awesome that name is. Anything called the Couchmaster was going to win me over.
I’ve used the lapdesk for many hours across a range of tasks. From work, to gaming to writing. Personally, I can’t fault it and that’s largely down to its simplicity.
However, there is one fairly sizeable fault that my better half pointed out to me. She’s left-handed and this isn’t a very left-hand friendly product.
If you flip the board over, the cut outs and tapers don’t deliver the same great experience. Because the concept is quite simple, being a board sitting on cushions, it will of course work for left-handed users but it really is designed for right handed people.
Couchmaster Cybot: The Verdict
Having a lapdesk these days is a bit of a must have. If you’re having one of those days where you’re planning on not quite going “flat out” while working from home, it offers a different way of working to sitting or standing at a desk. It’s ok to admit you have those days by the way, even if your boss disagrees.
I’m not best happy about this scenario that Apple puts you in as a consumer. They should be providing the minimum bits and bobs in the box for your day to day running of your phone. But Apple has decided to remove charging bricks from all new iPhones sold. They claims this is for the environment but I have my suspicions that there’s more financial factors driving this as a business decision. For now, there’s little to be done except accept that buying a new iPhone probably means you need to buy a new charging brick, so which one is best for you to buy?
What To Look For In A Charger
Not all chargers are created equal. If there was to be any positive about this whole mess that Apple created is that some light has been shone on chargers in general.
What Watt?
Typically, Apple shipped a simply awful 5W charger with most phones, like the iPhone 11. This thing took forever to charger your iPhone. Take Huawei for example. It’s completely standard for them to ship phones with a 40W fast charger in the box. This could get the likes of a P40 Pro charged from 0% to 80% in about 30 minutes.
The iPhone 11 supports 18W fast charge and the new iPhone 12 series supports 20W fast charge so you may as well pick up a charger to get the best charging experience.
USB-C Port
Apple has kind of made a stab at the universal charging standard of USB-C. Unlike most manufacturers who’ve adopted the USB-C port to their phone, Apple has just half adopted USB-C on their Lightening cable. This means, if you buy an iPhone 12 you’ll need to make sure you have either an old Lightening charger or a USB-C charging brick for your new cable.
The CE Mark
It’s all well and good saying it’s great to charger your phone faster and everything, but it’s essential you can do that safely too. The CE mark is a symbol which tells you the product you’re buying has met European Union production requirements. Basically, it means there’s a far greater chance that you’ll not encounter any safety issues with the product.
The CE marking on the Anker PowerPort III
This is remarkably important when it comes to phone chargers as they cause countless deadly fires. The biggest culprit is mass produced counterfeit chargers which have not been through sufficient testing. Beware, some chargers bought cheap will bare fake CE marks too. The best thing to do is not only keep an eye out for the CE mark but to buy your charger from a reputable source too.
Buying Your New iPhone Charger
So without further ado, here’s where to buy your new iPhone charger and the best one to pick up.
Official Apple Charger: Apple Website
As much as it kills me to recommend you doing what Apple want you to do, it’s not a bad option.
Apple 20W USB-C Charger
This is the charging brick that Apple simply should have shipped with all new iPhones but opted not to. This will set you back €25 and you can simply add it to your order when buying your iPhone 12 online.
The big benefit here is that you’re buying from a reputable source and you’re buying the charger designed for your new phone, right down to the 20W charging spec. You can also reduce the carbon footprint of your charger by getting it shipped with your phone. It’s not guaranteed to ship with your phone but hopefully it does.
Apple’s 20W USB-C charging brick will also work for iPad Pro and iPad Air along with iPhone 8 and up, all of which support fast charging. It’s worth noting that this purchase doesn’t include a cable with Apple assuming the one shipping with the phone is enough.
Anker PowerPort III: Amazon.co.uk
I’ve been a big fan of Anker for a few years now. The Chinese tech brand promises quality at a great price. A few years back they delayed the launch of a new product because they simply weren’t happy with a safety feature. A competitor beat them to market but it taught me a lot about what the company values.
Anker introduced me to the concept of e-waste at an event in New York a few years back along with their mission to produce the single charger anyone could need. It might sound hypocritical that I support their mission while berating Apple but it’s two very different things.
As luck would have it, Anker sent me a new charger to test out a few weeks back and but I only managed to get my hands on it a few days ago. The Anker PowerPort III is truly aiming to be the only charger you could possibly ever need. With a 60W output, two USB-C ports and IQ3 Power Delivery this charger is designed to power up two devices simultaneously.
Anker PowerP
The PowerPort III means I can charger my MacBook and iPad simultaneously from a single plug. Power Delivery means the charger is able to send the right amount of power to the right device at the right time. For example, I can charge my MacBook from one port at 60W while charging my iPad at 30W. The amazing thing is that the PowerPort III can actually charge two laptops requiring 60W each at the same time. Mighty stuff.
Anker can be a bit tough to find in Ireland but you can pick the PowerPort III up on Amazon.co.uk for €45. A bit pricier but remember, you’re getting two charge ports. This replaces my horrible MacBook charger and provides another port for various other devices. If you’re not feeling that one, Anker also created the PowerPort III Nano which will set you back less than €20. This smaller charger doesn’t come with a cable and is capped at 20W worth of output but it makes for a great alternative to what Apple is offering.
Anker PowerPort III Nano
There are loads of other chargers on the market I’d like to recommend but many of them are 18W chargers. Apple’s move to the 20W standard “for the environment” has actually led to some chargers from just last year looking a lot less appealing, while not quite redundant.
OnBuy is an online marketplace kinda like Amazon but not at the same time. They are the fastest-growing marketplace in the world, OnBuy doesn’t hold or sell its own stock, but instead focuses on helping sellers grow their businesses through promoting their products. I guess in a time where small business a platform like this is going to be a big help and OnBuy are planning a worldwide scale-up into over 140 countries by 2023, starting with 40 initial sites by year-end 2020 (Ireland set to launch in the next couple of weeks), which would make OnBuy the world’s first truly global marketplace.
Unique Proposition
OnBuy’s unique positioning allows it to offer sellers and buyers an improved marketplace experience: with competitive selling fees and the security that OnBuy will never compete against them, sellers can offer buyers better choice and better prices on a huge variety of products. OnBuy connects buyers with sellers in a safe and secure manner – plus, by never competing with its own sellers, sets a precedent for combining best value for shoppers with the opportunity for sellers to maximise opportunity and profit.
What these guys have done is partner with an array of industry-leading companies, and thanks to a PayPal partnership, both parties can enjoy a secure experience and PayPal Buyer/Seller Protection. So I went for a nose and it reminds me a lot of Amazon or Ebay. Find a product you like, literally anything and within the product you can check different sellers, so again find one you like or a company you trust and off you go. Look like any of these sites there are some nonsense bits and pieces, like Airpods for €2 you know yourself but there are plenty of reputable brands and products to search for. Oh and local currency payment is enabled as standard so even if you do find a product you like you won’t have the panic that Martin found with her recent Asos order.
Honest to jebus. If you're paying in € on ASOS you're, pun intended, having your pants pulled down. This is my quoted euro price in the ASOS app versus my converted Euro to Sterling price via @RevolutApppic.twitter.com/aOT7J0rtYJ
Unlike other online business, which have to build up product ranges from scratch in each new country they launch into, OnBuy’s immense product offering can be implemented almost instantly and as a result they recently announced 24,000% growth in just 4 years, with a reported 600% revenue growth year-on-year for the second year running.
“OnBuy is the marketplace of the present and of the future. Our move into global territories starting in November and continuing over the next 18 months is seen as the delivery of our global marketplace solution – a move that will establish OnBuy as a first-of-its-kind global player. We’ve worked very hard to create the world’s first global marketplace. Having rapidly overtaken our closest competitors, proving conclusively that the appetite exists worldwide for a transparent and ethical marketplace, we will welcome the planet to a better, fairer and more ethical eCommerce ecosystem, and support retailers all over the world in selling through the world’s first true global marketplace.”
Cas Paton, OnBuy’s founder and CEO
Targeting territories that other marketplaces have been unable to reach is a conscious focal point of the this global strategy. OnBuy’s differentiated model of low, competitive seller fees, and promising never to hold stock to compete with its merchants, has proven a resounding success. Essentially the idea is to support businesses of all sizes and in the UK they have supported many small business’ to make things more accessible and more visible. Whether it’s going to work or not honestly I don’t know but anything or anywhere a local Irish business can sell their products to an international audience is well worth a try in my book.
You might not think it, but I’m actually quite a fan of Apple. I’m typing this on my MacBook. I use Apple Sidecar to make my iPad a second screen so I can research and write at the same time. Apple products can be brilliant, but they can also be their fair share of crap. For example, nothing bores me more than iPhone. When your main selling point is “it just works”, in my eyes you’ve set the bar a bit low. In recent times, Apple has pushed boundaries in design and I agreed when they removed the headphone jack. Now, however, they’ve pushed their luck and left many wondering what motivates the big decisions at Apple. Why did they remove the charger from new iPhones?
The Emperor’s New Clothes
I first want to clarify why I mentioned the Emperor’s New Clothes. It’s a fairytale I often reference when talking about brands. In this story, two scam artists come to a city where the emperor loves spending excessively on clothes. The scammers offer to tailor some clothes for the emperor which are invisible to those who are stupid or incompetent. They get the gig. The emperor sees them “working” but can’t see the thread, but he plays along because he doesn’t want to be considered a fool. Eventually, the scammers tell the emperor that his new clothes are ready and he prepares to walk through the city to celebrate his new threads.
The people of the city see the butt naked emperor walking through the city but noone points out that he’s in the nip. Why? Well, they don’t want to be considered stupid now, do they? That was until a child shouts out that the emperor is indeed naked. The people of the city realise everyone has been fooled.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the story of Apple.
Apple Doesn’t Have To Be God
I read a remarkable line in the build up to the iPhone 12 launch. Plenty had leaked and a Twitter user remarked, love it or hate it, whatever is revealed at the launch, they looked forward to what would influence phone design for the next 12+ months.
This is wrong. Apple doesn’t get a free pass to influence the destination of phone design and the entire industry. In fact, to let them do so would be very dangerous. Like I said, a few years back when Apple removed the headphone jack I thought they were going too far. However, after thinking about it, it made a lot of sense. I was on-board because Bluetooth technology was in a good place. Apple still provided Lightning EarPods for those who didn’t want to go wireless.
At the iPhone 12 launch, Apple did something far more extreme. They removed wired EarPods and charging bricks from all new iPhones being shipped. Apple states that this is all an effort to reduce its contribution to global e-waste. It says a lot that accessory manufacturers agree but environmentalists remain sceptical.
People Still Need Chargers
People who buy new iPhones still need chargers. That need isn’t going to go away. Sure, Apple will still supply a charging cable in the box but this actually adds a layer of ridiculous to the scenario. The cable Apple now provides in-box is a USB-C to Lightening cable. This new cable renders all old charging bricks redundant. For example, if you bought an iPhone 11 last year, it came with a USB-A to Lightening cable and USB-A brick. All of this gave you a fairly brutal 5W charging experience, but at least you had everything you needed in that one box.
Now, if you upgrade to the iPhone 12, you can still use that 5W charger. Speaking to Wired.com, Sara Behdad, a sustainability researcher at the University of Florida, outlines how “Apple’s analysis is based on this impression that some users really don’t need chargers and EarPods, because they already have them”. The truth is that some users do not.
If this is your first iPhone, you’ll need to make sure you have a USB-C charging brick. While the upside to this is that you’ll get 20W charging and 60% power in thirty minutes. The downside is that you’ll need to buy a seperate accessory. If you buy this from Apple it’s pretty expensive and it may ship separately. That’s not great for the environment now is it.
Apple Still Refuses To Adopt USB-C
I believe nearly every new phone to hit the market these days has a USB-C charge port on it. It may ship with a USB-A or USB-C power brick and accompanying cable, but it ships with it nonetheless. Apple refuses to play ball here despite manufacturers seemingly agreeing to standardise charging with USB-C. Even Apple has adopted USB-C for iPad Pro and MacBook, but iPhone and some iPads remain with Lightening ports.
Apple has adopted the USB-C to Lightening cable as a standard for the first time with the iPhone 12 series. This means the company has never provided users with USB-C charging bricks included. Apple has flooded the market with USB-A bricks over the past few years and now, in one swift action, as rendered them all practically useless and at least a lot less attractive to use as a primary charger.
What Is Apple Removing Chargers?
Apple is telling me and you this is about the environment. I’m calling bullshit on this. Apple has stopped supplying chargers to
generate a headline around sustainability
create opportunity to meet sustainability promises however conceited they may be
save money
generate revenue through additional sales
The frustration here comes from how this whole story is packaged more than anything else. I can see the longterm benefits of us all moving to USB-C charging, but Apple doing it all this time around is just a PR play which will generate plenty of revenue.
iPhone Chargers: Danger Ahead
With all of this, what are the immediate impacts? When, consumers are going to be hit in the pocket and I believe the environmental benefits of all of this to be massively blown out of proportion. On Christmas morning, I know for a fact there’s going to be parents unable to charge new iPhone which will lead to arguments. But far more pressing is the fact that people will likely buy the cheapest charger they can find to support USB-C cables from their local phone repair shop or online. These may not even bear a CE mark and post a very real risk to fire safety.
The unfortunate truth is that Apple won’t change their approach now. This is it. The real risk is whether other manufacturers like Samsung, despite over the years mocking Apple for their decisions, will follow suit after mocking. For me, it’s back to the emperor’s new clothes. It’s up to consumers like me and you to ensure companies like Apple know when they’ve gone full notions. Apple doesn’t get a free pass to make wild decisions painted as “in the interest of the planet” unless they can really back it up. If you think Apple is walking around in the nip right now, make sure you’re talking about it.
Time will tell if these trends become commonplace but if you are in the market for a new charger please buy official Apple accessories or from reputable manufacturers like Anker.
Last week I spotted a tweet from UK tech reviewer Tomi Adebayo, AKA Gadgets Boy. He had just been contacted by Amazon support to be informed that he has had personal data leaked by an Amazon employee.
I share this guy’s concern. It’s not ok for Amazon to have a data leak like this and just call it case closed. These are two separate cases so naturally, I turned to Google. Turns out I missed this story before because this is not technically news at all.
Amazon Has Regular Data Leaks
Back in January of this year, Silicon Republic reported that Amazon was firing staff for the leaking of customer personal data to third parties. The situation would appear to that like the two cases I opened with and several other reports online over the past twelve or more months.
Customers are contacted and told that Amazon is “writing to let you know that your e-mail address was disclosed by an Amazon employee to a third-party in violation of our policies. As a result, we have fired the employee, referred them to law enforcement, and are supporting law enforcement criminal prosecution”.
DPC Response To Amazon Leaks
I reached out to the Data Protection Commission of Ireland to ask what this means for Irish consumers. The DPC said, “Amazon’s main establishment in the EU is in Luxembourg and under the one stop shop mechanism in the GDPR they are regulated by the Luxembourg data protection authority, the CNPD. The DPC does not receive breach notifications from Amazon”. Under the advice of the DPC I’ve reached out to the CNPD to ask how they are reacting to this news and if any action is being taken against Amazon for what seems to be a long running data protection issue.
Amazon Response To Leaks
In addition to the regulators, I’ve reached out to Amazon themselves to clarification on the situation. A spokesperson stated that “the individuals responsible for this incident have been fired. We have referred the bad actors to law enforcement and are supporting their criminal prosecution”. Amazon is notifying customers that their names and email addresses have been shared with third parties. This has occurred despite the systems Amazon has put in place to limit access. The response from Amazon did also state that the relevant regulatory agencies, which I’m assuming is the CNPD. I’ll be confirming this shortly.
Amazon also confirmed that no other customer information was disclosed, suggesting credit card and delivery information, along with passwords, have not been compromised.
What Does This Mean For You?
If you’ve received a similar communication from Amazon, the most important thing is to keep an eye out for phishing emails. Your data has been leaked and now someone has your email and knows you’re an Amazon customer. You could be targeted with emails trying to get you to update a password or payments details in an attempt to scam you. Most likely, nothing bad has happened yet but you must remain vigilant.
It’s all a bit odd, isn’t it? The data breaches seem to be a fact of life for Amazon. It’s extremely unusual. I’ll be updating this article once I hear back from the CNPD. If you’re interested in some other GDPR news, check out the latest on my attempt to leave the Catholic church using GDPR.
When you get to review as many things as I do you have to challenge a lot of your own perceptions. Getting around brands is one of the toughest things. Big brand names can product terrible products while smaller brands can produce some incredible pieces of kit. There was a time when Huawei was a little-known phone manufacturer, in Europe at least, but today they’re a household name with the best smartphone cameras on the market. When the JBL Club One headphones landed on my desk, I didn’t expect much. In fact, I pushed the box to one side for a few days because the JBL brand didn’t excite me. When I opened the box, I learned the error of my ways.
Who Is JBL?
It’s my first time writing about JBL so let me take a moment to give you a quick history. I used to think JBL was just a logo slapped onto accessories but the company has a rich history. JBL is an American audio equipment company founded in 1946 and today is a sub-brand of Harman International. Samsung users will recognise that name as the brand which features on a lot of Samsung audio technology. JBL, to a certain extent, is a value brand. You generally don’t pay a huge amount of money for their headphones or speakers but you do get a very good experience in return. JBL sent me the Club One wireless headphones to test out and it’s an interesting start point when reviewing JBL products. It’s interesting because these are not aimed at value users. At €330, these are not aimed at value-seeking customers but hardcore audiophiles. Let’s take a look at them.
The JBL Club One
The JBL Club One are over-ear studio-grade headphones. This means in testing these I’m putting them up against the very best in the business. For me, that’s my long-standing favourites, the Bose QC35 II, the Sony WH-1000XM3 (and yet to be tested WH-1000XM4) and even the lacklustre Sennheiser Momentum 3 headphones. The last one here is interesting because they are similarly priced setting the Club One up with a tough challenge to impress. Because we’re talking studio here too, I’ll include the Audio-Technica ATH-M50xBT
Sound Quality
The general one-liner I would give here is that they’re impressive but let’s dig into it a bit. What you expect from “pro-grade” headphones is crisp clarity and true mids and bass. For me, and it’s important to remember sound is subjective, the Club One headphone nails this balance. From live playback when recording to enjoying a podcast or some tunes on the go, these headphones deliver. You’d be forgiven for having the fear of god struck into you by the mention of DJ around a pair of headphones. I thought these headphones were going to crush my head with bass, but that simply wasn’t the case. Even the bass seems somewhat sharp if that makes sense. It’s not that horrid false bass headphones can often lean on to deliver what consumers think they want and apologies for what is one of the most arrogant sounding lines I’ve ever written.
Recording an interview with the JBL Club One as monitors
The reason this is important is because the Club One headphones have a target audience of DJs but the truth is these are universally pleasing on the ears no matter what you’re listening to. JBL add a tagline to the Club One page on their website which states “inspired by pro musicians” which is something I would believe given the rounded sound you get to experience.
One thing that did surprise me here and which does have a real impact on audio fidelity is the supported codecs. For the price, it’s a big surprise that aptX, aptX HD and LDAC don’t feature. Again, for the average consumer, this isn’t a deal-breaker, but for some audiophiles, JBL just lost a sale.
Battery Life
The Club One headphones are heavy enough so I was left with an expectation of charging these maybe three times in my lifetime. While that there was a little joke, the battery in this headphones is beast. The battery is actually so good that it’s really hard to get a grip on the length of life you get. JBL advertise 45 hours of playback with ANC turned off and that drops to 23 hours. I’ve fallen asleep with these headphones on several times between chargings. The battery gives me the impression of never dying. While I’m sure JBL hasn’t created the perpetual energy cycle here, it signals to me that the Club One headphones have one of the best batteries on the market. Good news if, somehow, you still do lots of long-haul flying.
Speaking of which, what about that ANC?
Noise Cancelling
With a lack of travelling still the way of life, I’ve once again had to turn to my trusty kitchen extractor fan to test out the JBL Club One Active Noise Cancelling. Through a combination of generous cup padding, tight fit and ANC technology, JBL has made a very honest fist of great noise cancelling. I have to admit though, they do not match the likes of my trusty Bose QC35 II which means I can’t say “if you’re after noise cancelling buy the JBL Club One”. They’re just not best-in-class but they are very good. Their failing comes from an imperfect seal as a result of quite a small gap within the cup itself.
Similar to sound quality, the JBL headphones do well in noise cancelling but they’re not the best at it. Still waiting to see how we can justify that price tag.
Call Quality
Here’s one of the genuinely surprising strengths of the Club One headphones. Call quality. In this new “working from home” world many of us find ourselves in, a good pair of headphones for calls is crucial. For me the reasoning is twofold. I like taking calls at my desk but also while out and about. I sometimes go for walks while having calls and having the right earphones or headphones makes this possible. I used to use the Huawei Freebuds 3 religiously before upgrading to the Freebuds Pro. Buds just seem to handle calls better which is why I didn’t have much faith in the Club One’s ability.
I was wrong. I’ve had loads of calls on these JBL headphones and they are exceptionally clear with the person I’m calling. The big test is that I’m usually calling my Mam and if call quality drops in the slightest, you better believe she’s quick to let me know.
Build Quality And Design
Boy oh boy, this is one incredibly well build pair of headphones. While not too exciting in colour, the premium materials on show give you the first impression you’ve spent well here. While the cup size is a little too small for even medium-sized ears, the cups themselves are really comfy. The headband offers generous cushioning and leather finish. Hours of wearing and you’ll not be in a rush to take them off. Elsewhere strong metal connects pieces of the headphones together and giving the overall feel a strong build vibe.
Aside from the great build quality, there’s also some clever features included too. Instead of the often tricky gesture controls, the JBL opted for physical buttons. Lots of physical buttons. On the left headphone you have power, Bluetooth and ANC controls. On the right you get volume up, play/pause, and volume down. The left side of the headphones, where the JBL logo is, is also a button for triggering the assistant of your choice whether it be Amazon’s Alexa or Google Assistant.
The headphones are charged by a USB-C port on the right headphone but both sides actually have a place for you to plug in your AUX-in cable. The good side of this is the fact that you can have your cable on the left or right should you prefer wired. As someone who uses headphones like this in a studio-like setting, this is a nifty feature but admittedly one most won’t need. It’s nice too because you can plug and twist the cable meaning it’s nice and secure.
The downside of this setup is that JBL opted for the smaller than 3.5mm port. This is a pet hate of mine and one quite a few headphone companies opt for. If you lose your cable you’re going to have to buy a specific cable as the regular 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable won’t work.
JBL Club One: The Verdict
The big question for me here is whether or not JBL has justified a hefty price-tag for the Club One headphones. I get the feeling these cans were really JBL trying to shake the “value product” moniker. They’ve achieved that but in doing so have landed into a very competitive space. If you want the best noise-cancelling, it’s probably not these. If you want the best general sound, it might be these. If you want a good pair of headphones which probably ticks more “great feature” boxes than most, as in a really rounded pair of headphones, I think it might very well be these. The price-tag is hefty and there’s no denying that. For me, what I’m surprised by is that price-tag is unlikely to be accompanied by any buyers remorse and in the headphone market that’s ultimately your goal in navigating the audio minefield.
You know what? I’m pretty sure NASA makes announcements fairly regularly. In fact, I’m pretty sure they always go under my radar because they are simply so regular. Yet, because it’s 2020 and it’s been a burning dumpster fire of a year, I’m just a little but more sensitive to some news. A couple of days ago, NASA announced that the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) had discovered something about the moon. In a week where Nokia won the contract to supply 4G signal on the surface of the moon that’s two bits of news about something usually relegated to special interest magazines and websites in a week. So what’s going on?
What is SOFIA?
SOFIA is actually a modified Boeing 747 jumbo jet. The aircraft is flown by ex-military pilots and manned by scientists who control the on-board 2.7-meter reflecting telescope.
SOFIA can fly into the stratosphere at 38,000-45,000 feet, above 99% of Earth’s infrared-blocking atmosphere, allowing astronomers to study the solar system and beyond in ways that are not possible with ground-based telescopes giving a unique insight into space.
What is NASA’s Announcement About?
NASA has discovered that water is available on a sunlit surface of the moon. This is a big deal given that water was previously believed to be on the dark side of the moon but that it would not survive in more accessible areas. SOFIA’s spectrometer was able to detect the fingerprint of water on the moon and raises questions about the presence of water on the moon.
With the Artemis Mission set to land a man and woman on the moon in 2024, the presence of water on the moon would be massive.
Significance Of Water In Sunlit Areas Of The Moon
SOFIA detected water molecules in the Clavius Crater. That’s one of the big craters you can see when you look at the moon from earth, located in the Moon’s southern hemisphere. Previous observations of the Moon’s surface detected some form of hydrogen but were inconclusive as to how useful it may be. Data from the SOFIA mission reveals about a coke can worth of water trapped in a cubic meter of soil spread across the moon’s surface. In terms of significance, don’t pack your bags just yet. As a comparison, the Sahara desert has 100 times the amount of water than what SOFIA detected in the lunar soil. Despite the small amounts, the discovery raises new questions about how water is created and how it persists on the harsh, airless lunar surface.
Why Is Water On The Moon Important?
During the press conference, NASA reps gave a range of reasons why water on the moon is important. Water can be used to measure our impact on the lunar surface should we successfully man the moon. It also could potentially save on us needing to bring water to the moon, massively reducing the cost of space flight. The moon could potentially be a much more sustainable place for man should water be readily available. I should stress we’re a long way away from that kind of news emerging.
SOFIA’s follow-up flights will look for water in additional sunlit locations and during different lunar phases to learn more about how the water is produced, stored, and moved across the Moon. The data will add to the work of future Moon missions, such as NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER), to create the first water resource maps of the Moon for future human space exploration.
Forgive me, but when you’ve seen a can kicked down the road for two years not all progress is good news. It’s emerged today that the Department of Transport plans to legalise electric scooters in 2021 but is that really good news for electric scooter owners?
The problem with Government and Eamon Ryan promising legislation in 2021 is that thousands of electric scooters are on our roads today. Ahead of a busy Christmas period, the likelihood is that, despite their illegality to use in public spaces, electric scooters will be a top seller this Christmas.
Electric Scooter Statistics In Ireland
In a recent Dail Debate, which came to my own attention while being interviewed by RTÉ’s Justin McCarthy, Deputy Darren O’Rourke asked of the Justice Minister, Helen McEntee, what the stats were for Garda interventions with electric scooter riders, sometimes I’ve asked the Garda Press office for several times only to be told they would not be able to acquire such stats easily. The Justice Minister brought the stats to the Dail and they are very interesting.
Stat
Jan-Jun 2018
Jul-Dec 2018
Jan-Jun 2019
Jul-Dec 2019
Jan-Jun 2020
Jul-15th Oct 2020
Traffic Offences
0
0
25
23
25
21
Collisions
1
2
4
18
12
25
Vehicles Seized or Detained
0
0
33
23
37
54
Dangerous or illegal use of e-scooters statistics
The Justice Minister outlined that this were cases of dangerous or illegal use of e-scooters. The sharp uplift during July to October of this year is particularly concerning. People are turning to electric scooters as an alternative to public transport but in turn are also seeing a sharp increase in scooter seizures. The number of reported collisions has also increased which is to be expected with increased usage.
Ryan’s Plan To Legislate
The good news to emerge over the past few days is Eamon Ryan’s plan to legislate for electric scooters in 2021. As I said, it’s nothing to get too excited about given the plan was always to legislate in this space, but Ryan did give us our first look at what his approach would be.
First of all, I refuse to celebrate this progress for a few reasons. It should have been done a long time ago and there still remains plenty of space for Government to continue kicking the can down the road to late 2021 and beyond. Also, my greatest fear is illogical legislation which introduces non-sensical and prohibitive regulations on speed or areas of permitted use.
The good news was Ryan confirming that last week, his Department did commence work on drafting changes to legislation. Exact timelines were not provided but Ryan did mention the process was “complex”, raising my fears again slightly.
Private Ownership Or Scooter Share?
One of the biggest question marks that is rarely talked about is private scooter ownership versus public shared systems. I’ve seen quite a few politicians popping up in support of shared systems suggesting substantial lobbying going on behind the scenes. I wasn’t personally a great supporter of shared systems unless they can be introduced without impacting pedestrians and vulnerable members of the public. However, technology has progressed significantly in position tracking and laws have taken so long that any share company I’ve spoken with has seemed clear that this was a primary concern they shared with plans to overcome.
Ryan cited that “localised trials”, similar to those in the UK, “have not consistently been either successful or useful, particularly in jurisdictions with similar legal frameworks”. Basically this means that until scooters are legalised, nothing changes and when change comes it might be overnight. It also suggests that scooters may just be legalised without specifying a difference between private ownership and shared systems, which could spell trouble.
When Will Electric Scooters Be Legal In Ireland?
How long is a piece of string?
The government doesn’t have a habit of moving quickly on topics which genuinely impacts day to day road users. Ryan did clarify that “until new legislation is in place, the use of electric scooters, whether privately owned or rented as part of a sharing scheme, will remain illegal”. For me that’s a massive issue ahead of Christmas and also with thousands of electric scooter users already on our roads.
They are all potentially at risk of being stopped by Gardaí, having their scooter seized, receiving a fine and a court date.
Lenovo are releasing a smartphone, yes you heard that right Lenovo with a smartphone. I never thought i’d see the day, but jesus what a phone it looks like it’s going to be. The Lenovo Legion Phone Duel is a revolutionary gaming smartphone that features an innovative architecture, such as dual batteries and dual-liquid cooling system. The device also features a livestream-ready horizontal pop-up camera to truly enhance the gaming experience. This new type of smartphone which is totally designed to be a gamers dream you can choose between six specially customized layout themes to choose from, each with distinctive design details, colors, and icons that resonate with gamers, you can stay in gaming-centric landscape mode or switch to portrait mode. Plus, home mode allows you to cast to or play on a connected external monitor/TV while using either a wireless keyboard and mouse, or your preferred wired accessories via a dock.
Something Different
The Lenovo Legion Phone Duel is built to behave like a console with virtual tools, gaming capabilities, and an optimized battery lasting up to a full day of average phone usage. They use an ergonomic design and the virtual joystick and dual ultrasonic trigger buttons are embedded, and dual vibration engines provide life-like feedback for deeper gameplay immersion. This phone is also going to be the very first to rock the latest top shelf Qualcomm Snapdragon™ 865 Plus 5G Mobile Platform that delivers revved-up performance across the board for incredibly-fast Qualcomm Snapdragon Elite Gaming™, plus global 5G support. For enhanced power efficiency, get advanced 5th gen memory chips, up to 16GB high capacity RAM or the optional 12GB configuration, and ample storage up to 512GB.
The screen is also made for gamers with a 6.65-inch Full HD AMOLED glass touchscreen display with 144Hz refresh rate for videos and gaming images so colourful and sharp, essentially the Lenovo Legion Phone Duel is made for gamers to create an immersive experience with impressive virtual tools, gaming capabilities, and an optimised battery lasting up to a full day of average phone usage.
Availability & Pricing
The Lenovo Legion Phone Duel is available for preorder now with the official release on October 25th. Starting with just the Black model the Red and Blue will be available later on in the year and the pricing is as follows:
12GB / 256GB: €899
16GB / 512GB: €999
Battery Power
Ok, so the Lenovo Legion Phone Duel very much looks to be a gamers dream and super stylish to boot and they have created advanced methods to better dissipate heat with dual liquid-cooling and copper tubes, plus moving the dual 2500mAh batteries off to the sides where gamers’ hands would rest, Lenovo has made the handset easier to hold while also extending gameplay without the fear of overheating. A design I have never seen before is the side based charging port so that when you are gaming or watching videos in landscape mode your charger wont get in the way of holding the phone like a gaming controller, but there is also a normal base port too meaning you can charge up both, yes both batteries simultaneously for a total of 5000mAh juice. That’s a lot of power and to get a 50% charge only takes 10mins while a full power up takes 30mins thanks to the 90W Turbo Power Charging.
Audio & Video
Again the audio here seems super powerful but as this Lenovo Legion Phone Duel is a specially designed gamers phone of course you can enhance things for clearer situational battle cues in-game, so you can react even faster to the footsteps behind you. It’s made possible with dual front-facing stereo speakers with large 1.4cc acoustics chambers for amazing far-reaching sound quality. This is also combined with a virtual gaming control which means you get near instant, dynamic and surrounding vibrations from the in device engines that will simulate in games hits so you can really feel the game. There is also a built-in gyroscope sensor detects motion and complex orientation changes, like while watching a 360-degree video, or when your screen view autorotates whenever you rotate your phone on its horizontal axis. Although many Android smartphones have one embedded now, the Lenovo Legion Phone Duel leverages its gyro to optimize the gaming experience for the user, for example, its virtual joystick feature works by moving your thumb around on the screen while playing a game, either to aim or to move players in a new direction.
These in-screen touch signals are mapped to gyro sensors which are continually sending data to the display driver resulting in the smooth rotations and execution of commands in-game. The idea is that you can simply tilt and angle your phone to aim or use it as your steering wheel in your favourite racing title. Further enhancing a more tactile gaming experience are the Audio to Vibration (A2V) features, this tool analyses audio directional signals for in-game cues to trigger associated stimulations, allowing you to hear and feel sound and vibration from the right if your race car was hit on that side.
Camera & Software
The Lenovo Legion Phone Duel is actually designed to offer gamers a better grip on the phone and despite it’s look it’s lighter than you would think at 239 grams while the real gamer design comes out in the red or cool blue with programmable RGB lighting effects for Lenovo Legion’s recognizable “Y” icon and the back of its pop-up selfie camera. Lights can also be programmed to dynamically change depending on in-game effects for a more immersive experience.
The Lenovo Legion Phone Duel also comes sporting it’s own software dashboard called Lenovo Legion Realm, wherever gamers are, they can tweak hardware performance settings, scroll through the latest downloadable titles in Google Play, and select the enabled network that gives you the best quality and/or least traffic in that moment, i.e. WLAN, 5G, or Wi-Fi, to help reduce video and in-game latency.
Lenovo also state that you can capture general HD 1080p footage and record in 4K at up to 30 FPS for remarkable clarity with a high-powered 20MP front camera that stays tucked inside bezel when not live streaming for a clean look, also features auto-retract drop protection. Plus, a high resolution 64MP rear camera for 64MP resolution photos, which also has a quad pixel sensor for shooting high-quality, 16MP resolution photos in dark and bright conditions.
To self-record your voice and reactions as you play, simply wake the built-in front camera while gaming to simultaneously record and overlay your image on-screen. This feature is compatible with popular streaming apps. With a multiple video lens, anyone can host a streaming channel. You can remove the background and use AI to auto-enhance your image via our selfie editor featuring several unique retouching filters and correction options for adding a sense of style. At launch, users can auto-enhance images with our programmed adjustments for a more balanced appearance.
With the Lenovo Legion Phone Duel, as soon as a gamer ends a session, you can review all the gaming highlights on-the-fly via a preview screen, so all you need do is select, then merge recorded clips together if desired, before easily sharing with others.
And if you’ve just knocked out a tough enemy in a game but forgot to hit record— fear not, just use a finger to slide your right ultrasonic trigger key to the left to go back in time to relive hero moments and instantly reversely-record what just happened to share proof of your victory with battle mates, fans and friends.
The Spec Sheet & Key Features
Optimal linear motor area
Dual batteries and dual turbo charging, with side-mounted charging port
Dual liquid, mid-thermal floating cooling system
World’s first Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 865 Plus processor
Ultrasonic dual shoulder keys
4D motion-sensing control
33ms touch latency with 240Hz touch sampling rate
1ms response time and 144Hz refresh rate
FHD AMOLED display with Dolby Vision™
Dual front-facing 3X louder than traditional stereo speakers with Dirac Audio
Customisable LED lighting
Desktop gameplay mode (keyboard and mouse keymapping enabled)
Dedicated game launchpad (Legion Realm) and assistant (Legion Assistant)
The Lenovo Legion Phone Duel will be available with up to 16GB LPDDR5 high capacity RAM and ample storage up to 512GB UFS 3.1.Customers ordering from the 1st October will also benefit from a pre-order bundle, choosing either:
Irish businesses are heading into an exceptionally tough time right now. Not only have retailers and restaurants battled to reopen in some way, shape or form over the past few months, but tonight they learned they would have to close under level 5 restrictions. Now, I’m very aware that just recently, I wrote about how to shop on Amazon.co.uk for Prime Day. I did caveat that with a note that “given the year businesses have had, please do try and shop local when you can”. Prime Day has come and gone and now if you have purchases left to do ahead of Christmas, it’s time to get online and buy Irish. To save you digging through Google to find local Irish businesses, here are some of my favourites. If I’ve missed some, drop me an email and I’ll get your business added.
I’m going to break this down by category in the hope it makes it a little easier to find what you’re after.
Clothing
Food and drink
Design and home improvement
Technology
Clothing
Clothing is usually right down the middle. Some of this will be shopping for yourself while other bits will be gifting. Either way, shop with these online stores safe in the knowledge you’ll be supporting Irish businesses.
Carpe Omnia
For Irish businesses this Christmas there could be no better message than Carpe Omnia. Seize it All. Carpe Omnia was founded in 2018 by two Irish brothers who were trying to find the perfect fitting pair of jeans.
If, after one look at the site, you think it’s not for you, give it a second thought for your teenage nephew or student son. This is more than likely exactly the kind of clothing he’s after.
Polly and Andy
This is a real family business. Polly and Andy are mother and son, who live together with Tom Waterford. Andy wasn’t always fully able to communicate how he felt and what he needed. After some teamwork, Andy started to communicate until one day, as Andy was getting dressed, he pulled on his trousers and happily declared “these don’t hurt” before running off to play.
Polly had a moment where she realised how important the first layer of clothes on our kid’s skin is. After a lot of research Polly found the perfect solution, bamboo fibre clothing. Bamboo is super soft and smooth and feels great against the skin. It naturally wicks moisture away from the body where it can evaporate more easily and keeps skin cool and dry. I personally love this because Bamboo is sustainably grown and long-lasting.
Polly and Andy offer free shipping within Ireland with you spend €20 or more. This won’t be a problem given the gorgeous designs on show.
Food and Drink
Craft Central
Craft Central can be a bit of a double or triple whammy. By order your beer online while safely at home from the Craft Central team, you’re supporting an Irish business ad keeping a courier in work. Also, if you order Irish beer from Craft Central it’s all the better.
Must say, it is somehow very satisfying to stand in front of these fridges. This picture comes from well over a year ago, but some things will never change…we promise to keep packing them with the best selection of brews out there! 🍻 pic.twitter.com/s5vWBv7POc
This online off-license is run from a newsagents near Stephen’s Green. The mind boggles at where they are keeping all the beer because the shop is small, but the online selection is vast. With a range of great offers and an amazing selection of beers, Craft Central will keep you liquored up during lockdown.
If you order before 3PM Monday to Friday, you generally get your beer next day. I can confirm this from lots of experience.
Donegal Farmhouse Cheddar
Screw it. I think it is now completely acceptable to eat your own body weight in cheese. Hell, it might even be expected.
the perfect indulgence or a cracking gift
Marty, he likes cheese.
Founded in 2018, Donegal Farmhouse Cheddar hails from Kilcar in Southwest Donegal. With a small farm of cattle and sheep, the team has perfected traditional techniques to product semi-hard cheese in the style of cheddar. Noreen and James launched their cheese website back in May and have seen steady growth in online sales since. I’m not sure there’s a human on this planet who can resist good cheese so this is both the perfect indulgence or a cracking gift.
Frank Hederman
Beer and food. I could go on all day here, I really could. Frank Hederman has over 35 years smoking salmon. Preferring traditional methods over automation, there’s a real craft to getting your salmon here. Widely considered one of the best in his field, you can get this incredible fish, once reserved for the English Market in Cork, delivered to your home.
The White Hag
Over the past 12-months, I’ve grown quite fond of craft beer. One of those reasons is The White Hag. These guys could see the dangers that lay ahead last March. Just before Paddy’s Day, their biggest time of year, they had to act quick to save lots of beer from seeing the drain. They moved to online beer launches and even an online beer festival to not only survive, but to offer their loyal customers a new way of enjoying what is, to my humble tastebuds, one of Ireland’s finest craft beer selections. Master brewer Joe has yet to product a drink that I don’t love.
Design And Home Improvement
With so many of us all fortunate enough to be working from home and earning uninterrupted income, home improvement is top of the list for plenty of people around the country. Here is a list of some great Irish online shops to spend some of your hard earned cash.
April and the Bear
April and the Bear is one of Ireland’s leading lifestyle and interior stores. Their website is filled to the brim with unique homeware and exclusive art prints. This Dublin-based company was founded by Siobhan Lam and stocks some incredible items to make your home warmer, more homely and definitely quirkier. April and the Bear offer free shipping on orders over €100 in Ireland with orders taking two to three working days within the Republic.
Online, you’ll find anything and everything from UV-light phone sanitisers, a fitting gift at this time of year, to this amazing Grá poster which, as you might imagine, sells out regularly.
Donegal Copper Craft
Perhaps a bit of an outlier, Donegal Copper Craft never actually had a physical store. To date, Neil Ferry, the copper craftsman, has solely focused on selling online. Neil, originally from Ballyfermot, always loved working with his hands. Starting out purely as a hobby, today Donegal Copper Craft is one of the best-known creators of copper gifts.
Donegal Copper Craft specialise in some of the classic pieces you’d expect to see. The likes of family crests, coats of arms and the crests of sporting teams. But Neil also does some incredible bespoke pieces too. Check out this sign, made by the children of a healthcare worker-working during COVID-19 and transformed into a piece of art by Neil.
As long as I’ve lived in Dublin, I’ve woken to look out at the Jam Art Factory. I love this place and love it even more since, at the start of the first lockdown, they painted their shutters and encouraged people to shop online. The Jam Art Factory first opened on Patrick Street in Dublin back in 2011. Ever since it has been the home to and a gallery for some of the most striking and quirky contemporary Irish art.
When it comes to gifting something uniquely Irish while also having the range to capture someones personality, it doesn’t come better than the Jam Art shop. Honestly, I find it very unlikely that you’ll be able to browse the gallery without finding the perfect gift for someone.
While I’m not a religious man, one of my favourite prints they have right now is this Sacred Heart Statue print from Grey Street. One you’ll recognise if you’re familiar with the Liberties.
How does giving someone a greeting card that’s so unique and nice that the card itself could be considered a gift? Honestly, I’m not just trying to cheap out here. Paper Bear makes simply amazing laser cut pop-up cards. I’ve been going on about them for years and always pick up a few throughout the year. These are a must buy gift ahead of birthdays and all other major celebrations.
Plant a Ring
I stumbled upon Plant a Ring while flicking through TikTok of all places! Created by Dean Gannon, Plant a Ring is a Westmeath-based wooden jewellery brand. Woodwork always played a bit part in Dean’s life with his father being a carpenter. Dean’s own business salvages wood and turns them into amazing pieces of jewellery.
I picked myself up a black Bog Oak ring and I adore it. It’s stylish but also plays a role in the environment. For every piece that Dean sells he also plants a tree. Not sure what size ring you would need? Order a free sizer. Rings not your thing? Order another piece of wooden jewellery.
Technology
I guess I kind of have to mention some technology right?
InvizBox
InvizBox is an Irish privacy company which has designed a piece of kit that sits between you and public internet connections to protect your personal data. While it might be a while until we travel again, heading out to the coffee shop might not be that far away again. If you’re doing that for a while and trying to get some work done too, this is a great piece of kit.
Conns Cameras
Ok, so Canon and Nikon aren’t exactly Irish. You got me. I’ve been to Conns Cameras in Dublin a rake of times and it’s like a toy store. They have it all when it comes to hardware but you’ll also find the answer to nearly every imaginable question you can think of. By shopping in this piece of Irish photography retail history you’re helping to support an Irish business and many Irish jobs.
