What gadget have you seen or brought in the past 12 months that you love

Forums › Gadgets, robotics, home automation, electronics (including wearables) › What gadget have you seen or brought in the past 12 months that you love

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#2466546 20-Apr-2020 19:05

Dingbatt:
Now I just have a massive pile of broken concrete to dispose of at some stage.

Household rubbish. I disposed of at least 100kg of concrete by slipping it into rubbish bags over a period of a couple of months, what's in there weighs very little, mostly plastic packaging and the like, so you can easily weigh it down a bit.

SirHumphreyAppleby

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#2466548 20-Apr-2020 19:08

richms:

SirHumphreyAppleby:

A little over 12 months, but I absolutely love my Nordic Pulver powder coating gun. I've got a lot of use out of that too. Nordic Pulver NP-11

What's the availability of different powders like in small quantities?

For smaller quantities, Prismatic Powders looks like the best choice. IIRC, for 6lb the cost is roughly doubled by adding postage.

I did look in to AliExpress and eBay but all my searches turned up were various paint pigments, not powder coating powders. Powders are available via Alibaba, and suppliers would mix and match up to the minimum order quantity, but shipping costs killed that idea.

I paid just under $70 for 4kg of the black powder and $128 for gunmetal metalic (a premium finish) from Dulux in Auckland (delivery included). That's not a bad price when you consider how much area you can coat. The official shelf life isn't long, but I expect it will be fine so long as it's kept sealed. I'd like to buy other colours, but I just don't need 4kg of anything other than black or gunmetal, so I'm planning on putting in an order with Prismatic in the near future.

mdf

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#2466562 20-Apr-2020 19:26

SirHumphreyAppleby:

A little over 12 months, but I absolutely love my Nordic Pulver powder coating gun. I've got a lot of use out of that too. Nordic Pulver NP-11

Oooh, now that is cool! Where did you get it from?

For me, the undoubted star of the lockdown has been the coffee machine and grinder combo recommended in this thread. May well have been looking at this type of situation without them:

I got a 3D printer for my birthday last year, and that has been a lot of fun (and *super* useful).

In the garage, I am not sure that a big pile o' plywood counts as a "gadget", so will have to go with the new ryoba Japanese pull saw. Really nice, and super fast and neat cuts.

SirHumphreyAppleby

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#2466596 20-Apr-2020 19:43

mdf:

SirHumphreyAppleby:

A little over 12 months, but I absolutely love my Nordic Pulver powder coating gun. I've got a lot of use out of that too. Nordic Pulver NP-11

Oooh, now that is cool! Where did you get it from?

I purchased directly from Nordic Pulver. Shipping was only €7.50 for both the gun and two containers of powder.

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#2466627 20-Apr-2020 20:52

My Traeger Pellet Grill has been one of my favourite things I've bought in the past 12 months. It has wireless control, built in thermometer and means I can BBQ all year round.

https://www.traegergrills.co.nz/shop/grills/ironwood-885/TFB89SLC.html

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#2466787 21-Apr-2020 08:18

Handsomedan:

Haven't bought one (and am unlikely to) but one I have seen and really like the look of is the new iPad Pro Magic Keyboard.

Magic Keyboard for Apple iPad Pro

It's WAY too expensive and not very versatile (doesn't fold back on itself, apparently) but it looks a thing of beauty.

Totally agree with all of this. I would love to have one of these but certainly don't have any real use-case at all - I have a MacBook. Just irrational desire for pretty stuff.

Just saw this fresh on the net:

https://www.engadget.com/apple-magic-keyboard-review-ipad-pro-299-349-130015291.html?utm_campaign=homepage&utm_medium=internal&utm_source=dl#/

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#2467019 21-Apr-2020 12:29

eracode:

Handsomedan:

Haven't bought one (and am unlikely to) but one I have seen and really like the look of is the new iPad Pro Magic Keyboard.

Magic Keyboard for Apple iPad Pro

It's WAY too expensive and not very versatile (doesn't fold back on itself, apparently) but it looks a thing of beauty.

Totally agree with all of this. I would love to have one of these but certainly don't have any real use-case at all - I have a MacBook. Just irrational desire for pretty stuff.

Just saw this fresh on the net:

https://www.engadget.com/apple-magic-keyboard-review-ipad-pro-299-349-130015291.html?utm_campaign=homepage&utm_medium=internal&utm_source=dl#/

Great article and completely confirms everything I already thought - I really, really want one, whilst really, really not wanting one.

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#2467026 21-Apr-2020 12:52

Thanks for the Engadget link - led to an interesting article 'Meet the Upscalers'. Just thought I'd throw that (off topic doodah) out there.

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#2467100 21-Apr-2020 14:13

Handsomedan:

Haven't bought one (and am unlikely to) but one I have seen and really like the look of is the new iPad Pro Magic Keyboard.

Magic Keyboard for Apple iPad Pro

It's WAY too expensive and not very versatile (doesn't fold back on itself, apparently) but it looks a thing of beauty.

I have the Samsung Book Cover Keyboard for my Tab S3. I think it is worth every penny. It certainly makes the S3 much more useful for me.

It does fold back and the magnetic attachment makes it super easy to remove when you want to.

https://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/mobile-accessories/tablets/galaxy-tab-s3-9-7--keyboard-cover-ej-ft820useguj/

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#2467102 21-Apr-2020 14:16

My Garmin 645M smart/fitness watch.

When I bought it I was pretty lazy and had gained a few extra kg's. Since the beginning of the year I've now averaged 20-25km per week running, lost 5kgs, feeling healthier and sleeping better thanks to the exercise. I only take this watch off to charge it while in the shower, apart from that its always on my wrist.

Damn good fitness watch with basic smart watch functions and onboard Spotify. The perfect exercise companion.

Handsomedan

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#2467108 21-Apr-2020 14:19

Technofreak:

I have the Samsung Book Cover Keyboard for my Tab S3. I think it is worth every penny. It certainly makes the S3 much more useful for me.

It does fold back and the magnetic attachment makes it super easy to remove when you want to.

https://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/mobile-accessories/tablets/galaxy-tab-s3-9-7--keyboard-cover-ej-ft820useguj/

Looks very similar to the Apple Smart Keyboard I have for my iPad Pro...but it looks like it was probably implemented slightly better than the Apple one I have.

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#2467159 21-Apr-2020 15:40

kiwiace:

Kobo - like a kindle but works with Library books (overdrive) really seamlessly

We are now running 3 different models (kids on lockdown) and this new one seems like the best, and good value.

We got it from here https://www.booktopia.com.au/kobo-libra-h20-white-kobo/book/681495007806.html

Nice cases available on aliexpress

Agree on the Kobo, I bought the Kobo Clara back in January - Didn't find I had the time to read books anymore and hoped having the Library functionality would kickstart it. I have probably read 5 books a week since then.

The Libby app works perfectly on a phone, and then I sync the Kobo which updates the books on it.

I will probably get the Libra at some stage and pass the Clara on to one of the kids, the Clara is perfect however I didn't realise how much time I would spend reading beside the pool while the kids are doing lessons, and waterproof would be a bonus.

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#2468496 23-Apr-2020 11:26

everettpsycho: Simple but effective, but we got an aeropress coffee maker just before Christmas.

We have one of these https://presso.co.nz/shop/coffee-makers/minipresso-ns/

It works with Nespresso pods, and we use it tramping and boating (it doesn't heat the water, you do that separately).

Mike

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#2468522 23-Apr-2020 11:47

KennyM:

In the mean time im going to get a boogie board sync 9.7 which will help with all the notes I take in front of the computer and then just throw out.

I first encountered electronic writing tablets a few months ago and was intrigued by them. I see that there are cheap knock-off ones available on Aliexpress for around $10. Does anyone have any experience with them?

everettpsycho

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#2468577 23-Apr-2020 12:49

MikeAqua:
everettpsycho: Simple but effective, but we got an aeropress coffee maker just before Christmas.

We have one of these https://presso.co.nz/shop/coffee-makers/minipresso-ns/

It works with Nespresso pods, and we use it tramping and boating (it doesn't heat the water, you do that separately).

We really considered that, went as far as adding to cart and then finding out it wouldn't be delivered before we went away over Christmas but the market would send us an aeropress in a couple of days. I liked the idea on thosev that with an attachment one machine could do Nespresso or ground coffee.

Interested to know how good the coffee is and if we should have waited.

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