Cool Tools – Dead Tools

Dead Tools

GRID

LIST

FULL

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Mess-free handwriting/drawing for lefties & artists

03-28-07

SmudgeGuard

[ This may be a worthy product, but we have removed the review for this product because we belatedly learned the reviewer is married to the inventor. The reviewer wrote to us later that he didn't think it would look good if he mentioned that his wife made the product so he misled us on where he got the product. We now find it hard to trust him on the rest of the review. An impartial review (negative or positive) is wanted. -- KK]

SmudgeGuard
(sizes xxs – l)
$5
Available from and manufactured by SmudgeGuard

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Gripping ski boot attachments

03-05-07

Walk-EZ Revolutions

These ski boot clip-ons are much easier to walk in than your average solid, rigid plastic ski boot base. Each one weighs a pound, and they have a thick, semi-flexible layer of rubber that gives you traction much like a pair of hiking boots (they actually grip on snow and ice much better than my Sorrels). The sole also cushions your foot as you step down, and another bonus is that they protect your ski boots from wear.

They are a bit tricky to put on. You flip a lever to attach and remove them to your ski boots. I find the lever works fine for removal, but when it comes to attaching I can’t always get it right. It’s not a huge deal, but something to know. I considered wearing sneakers and stashing them somewhere or putting them in a pack, but the Walk-EZ are a better solution: they come with a neat wire combination lock. When I get to the slopes, I just fold ‘em up, lock ‘em to the ski racks at the resort and pick ‘em up at the end of the day. Now that I’ve used these, I wouldn’t walk up to the ski lift without them. I looked high and low for something I could use to walk the half mile from my house to the ski run and struck out until my local outdoor shop gave these to me to try out. They make it a much more comfortable journey, and I will absolutely buy a pair of my own when I give them back to my local store.

-- Carl Myhill

[This product is no longer being manufactured and is in limited supply. If you have used or know of any product that is similar, please let us know in the comments below or via the submit page. -- SL]

Walk-EZ Revolutions
$50
Designed by RKS Design

Available from Amazon

Try eBay

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

No more soggy tuna

02-22-07

Stainless Steel Can Colander

For years I wondered why no one had built or designed a way to drain out all of the liquid out of a can of tuna. Then, lo and behold, I found one. This stainless steel can colander is relatively inexpensive and built with a high grade of stainless steel, so it is practically bullet proof and almost impossible to bend. This colander also works on any normal-sized can, but its real magic is its ability to completely drain the liquid out of a can to prevent wet and soggy tuna. Progressive also makes a plastic colander but I wouldn’t recommend it. The stainless steel model isn’t much more expensive and it will last you your lifetime.

– Dennis Emge

You can flip the colander over and use it on regular cans of things like corn or beans or whatever to drain off the liquid. Its cool.

– Johanna Bocian

[Although this strainers works as advertised, a more versatile option is the more recently-reviewed OXO Strainer.]

Stainless Steel Can Colander
$8

Manufactured by Progressive

Available from Amazon

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Computing on your back

02-19-07

LapDawg

This portable laptop desk is the most comfortable way I’ve found to use a laptop in bed. It’s a bit pricey compared to the homemade stuff you can find online, but less expensive than similar products like the LapGenie and Laidback, which can go for up to $150. The LapDawg, which is lighter than the Laidback, is also made of wood, which makes it human friendly and gives it a warm touch. It’s very simple to put together and fits my 17″ notebook perfectly.

The InsTand Laptop Stand is a great travel desk but can’t do what the LapDawg does best: allow you to recline. Interacting with your laptop at a comfortable typing angle, right in front of you without feeling the weight and heat you would otherwise feel on your lap is very refreshing. The LapDawg is not the perfect travel solution, but if you have a big enough bag, it doesn’t take up too much space and it weighs less than two pounds. Being able to lie flat on my back and use a laptop comfortably is worth making room.

-- Tanneth

[The wood version reviewed here is no longer available. -- SL]

LapDawg $90 Available from LapDawg

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Best way to waterproof leather

01-17-07

Sno-Seal

Sno Seal waterproofs leather products. The beeswax formula is long lasting, doesn’t harm or weaken leather like animal fat waterproofing products do, and still allows the leather to breath. Easily applied by heating your leather boots with a hair dryer and simply rubbing Sno-Seal into the leather.

I haven’t seen or used another product as good. I’ve been using it for the last tens years on the four pairs of prospector Gortex/leather boots that I’ve owned. Because of the Sno-Seal I wear out the soles (multiple times) before the leather shows any kind of deterioration.

A 3 1/2 oz. (100g) tub of the stuff will last me two years for one pair of boots, reapplying every three to four months, depending on use.

-- Dave Babcock

[Please see the more recently-reviewed Nikwax Aqueous Wax.]

Sno-Seal
$5
Manufactured by Atsko

Available from Amazon

leathers

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Modest digital underwater camera

01-11-07

Olympus Stylus 720 SW

I’m delighted with this relatively inexpensive underwater digital camera. Good for submarining 10 feet deep, it’s perfect for snorkeling, kayaking, canoeing, and water sports. If you are serious about underwater photography at scuba depths, this is not for you. This camera is more comparable to those one-time plastic-housed underwater film cameras we’ve used in the past. But being digital it has many advantages over those. First, you can see what you got (or missed) immediately. Second, you can fit several hundreds of shots in a session instead of film’s 27 frames. Thirdly, you can quickly upload, share, manipulate, or print what you capture.

It’s important to maintain low expectations when you photograph underwater. The light is dim, everything is in constant motion, including you, and it’s hard to see the camera with a mask on. All the more reason you need to take lots of shots. The teeny-tiny flash on this camera is not enough to overcome some of those limitations. But as you can see from these photos I took on a recent trip to the Mayan Coast in Mexico, this $300 camera does a serviceable job.

The camera is quiet small and slim; it fits into a shirt pocket. Its unobtrusive waterproof seals seemed to work fine, much to my amazement. One downside is the non-standard Olympus memory card it uses; I’d rather recycle the many standard SD cards I already have. Since it has a very impressive 7.1 megapixels and a 3x optical zoom (very nice) this camera could, in theory, be used as your all-around digital camera on dry land (and it is sold that way), but I found its very sluggish refresh rate (perhaps due to the large memory card I was using) and very tiny controls to be annoying. But deep in the wet realm these annoyances are tolerable in exchange for an easy and reliable way to take underwater pictures, and as a camera I don’t mind taking on a kayak or surfboard, or a dunk in the lake.

You can buy sophisticated and bulky underwater housing for some popular digital cameras like the Canon Powershots and Nikon Coolpix, but these cases — while allowing you to go deeper — can cost nearly as much as the Olympus 720. (Pentax makes the Optio W20, a similar camera, rated at only 5 feet deep, but using SD cards, which I have not tried, but others like.) For me this tiny clam is the cheapest way to digitally photograph underwater at shallow depths.

-- KK

Olympus Stylus 720 SW
$200 (used)

Available from Amazon

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Cheap international phone calls

11-24-06

OneSuite

I’ve had my OneSuite phone account for a few years and I use it to call friends in China (2.2 cents a minute) and Europe, quite conveniently. Onesuite is a prepaid “phone card” without the card. You get a PIN based on your phone number so it’s easy to remember. You add funds to your account via the website. I like the feature that allows you to add “frequently called from” phone numbers to your account so you don’t have to enter your PIN when calling.

There are several advantages OneSuite has over Internet calling systems such as Skype. With OneSuite you can use a regular phone, including a payphone — you don’t have to be connected to a computer. In all the times I’ve used OneSuite I’ve never experienced the distracting delays during the conversation which I have experienced with Skype and some other calling services (where you don’t hear the what the other person says until 1-2 seconds after they’ve said it. OneSuite claims it does not use Internet telephony so I guess that’s why.

Just as important, some, though not all, of OneSuite rates are often cheaper. I haven’t checked all of them but the two I looked at — China-Beijing and India-Hyderabad — are cheaper with OneSuite. Italy is cheaper to mobile phones but slightly more to land lines.

There’s no per-call surcharge and the per-minute rates are generally quite low. Your account “expires” after six months of non-use (where use includes adding funds). But you actually don’t lose your funds when it expires–you just need to add $10 and you’ll have your previous funds reactivated. (There’s no excuse to let it expire, though, as you can make domestic long-distance calls with the service too–2.5 cents/minute.)

It’s best calling from the U.S. to other countries, but they’re starting to add additional countries you can call from. They also offer voicemail and other services which I haven’t tried, but just the long-distance service is worth it for me. Basically, the prices are comparable and often cheaper than Skype, and you don’t have the worry about the reliability of Internet telephony (and don’t need a computer on the calling end).

-- Maria Blees

OneSuite

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Better flex light

11-22-06

Fiber Optic Flashlight Adapter

This tool is nothing more than a short fiber optic wire attached to a rubber hood, which goes on the end of a Maglite or equivalent. It completely gets rid of the problem of aiming a flashlight beam into a small hole. Just insert the end of the adapter and voila, the inside is lit up and you don’t have to contend with all the glare from the light hitting the edges of the hole. Comes in 7″ and 20″ versions.

It’s simple, inexpensive, and essential.

-- Mike Ginou

Nite Ize Fiber Optic Flashlight Adapter
20 inches
$6

Available from Amazon

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Intuitive clock radio

11-09-06

Boston Acoustics Recepter Alarm Radio

I’ve spent years looking for a clock radio alarm that I wouldn’t hate, either because of poor design, lousy tuning, awful audio, or too much wood-grain. I finally found it in the Boston Acoustics Recepter Alarm Radio. This beauty is exquisite. Great sound. Every control is perfectly intuitive: knob-twist digital tuning and clock setting with built-in acceleration. The thing I like about the alarm-off button on this radio is that it’s all by itself, right above the best-tuning-knob-ever. (Whether in a car or an aircraft, nothing beats a twist-knob digital tuner….) I’ve never had a problem threading my fingers through the various water bottles and night-table crap to stab the button, first try. It’s even made with a tacitly pleasant more-rubbery plastic for good finger traction. The snooze button is an example of what makes the device so sweet. It’s just the right size, well proportioned without being a Huge Snooze Bar. And get this: you tap it once and you have ten minutes of snooze. Tapping it again within three seconds adds five minutes. Each successive tap adds five minutes up to a total of 60. Then, once it’s in snooze mode, it becomes a count-down timer! Hit the button and you see how much time you have left!

It is a gorgeous utility package. Ever buy something you like so much you want to buy another, and then another? I like waking up in the morning just to look at this little clock. Picks up NPR from the fringes too and the audio quality is shockingly good for its small size. There’s nothing I would change about this little appliance.

-- Tom Parker

[Boston Acoustics has discontinued the Recepter Alarm Radio. If you have any experience with the Solo II Radio or another clock radio that's comparable, please let us know.]

Boston Acoustics Recepter Alarm Radio
$150
Manufactured by Boston Acoustics

Available from Amazon

Comments

Favorite (15)

This tool has been UNRECOMMENDED and is now in the DEAD TOOLS category. See the FAQ for more info.

Quickest labels

09-28-06

Dymo Labelwriter Turbo

Addressing envelopes by hand is a drag, but sending them through the printer often involves manual feeding hassle and jamming. When I found the Dymo Labelwriter 400, my envelope-labeling problems were over: this baby will pop out an address label in (literally) one second (or sixty a minute, if you want), using a 300 DPI thermal-printing process. The unit plugs into your computer via USB and shows up as a printer; the included software adds barcodes automatically, and allows you to store addresses in an address book for even quicker future printing. The printed material is monochrome black-on-white, and you need to use the use rolls of thermal-printable labels instead of ordinary paper labels, but the Dymo is fast as hell and turns out crisp-looking labels in no time. You can get the labels in all kind of different sizes for different uses, and it’s easy to swap rolls in and out. It works great to print out labels to put on folders and boxes too.

You can even print postage, stamp by stamp or a roll at a time, by swapping in the appropriate blank-stamp label roll and pre-paying over the Web.

I’ve got one Labelwriter at the office and one at home, and I use both of them just about every day.

-- Thomas Lewis

["Production of this item has ceased and all stocks have been depleted," according to supplier Label City . As of June 2010, there are some new and used units available via Amazon, but it's unclear how long supplies will last. -- SL]

Dymo Labelwriter 400 Turbo
$180

Available from Amazon

Comments

Favorite (15)