Fooxon 6 Pack Wine Bottle String Lights

With Christmas fast approaching the hunt commences for decent quality festive lights. This six-pack of bottle lights allows you to add some festive cheer to individual or hard to reach objects or areas.

In lighting kit arrived simply packed in a resealable bag with each light separately wound around itself within. The strings will easily fit inside the again bag for storage. No instructions or paperwork were included and none needed. Take care when unwinding the lighting strings as they are quite delicate and seem to take a delight in getting into knots!

There are six two metre LED strings included, four are warm white and two multicoloured, each one with a bottle stopper styled battery housing with Off/On switch. The battery compartment of each light can be easily unscrewed to reveal three LR44 watch style batteries. I would have rather they used rechargeable batteries but LR44 are not dear and looking on Amazon I see you can buy packs of 50 for less than £5. As to how economical they are of course depends on the battery life but I have been using mine for several days now with no sign of them running down and so hopefully this may not be too much of an issue. Nevertheless, it would make sense to turn them off when not needed. Each light has a clear battery guard strip inserted between the batteries to prevent accidental use and these strips are robust enough to reuse for long-term storage, so don’t lose them.

The strings can be bent and manipulated in to position how you will and hold their shape pretty well which means they can be bent around or placed inside objects any way you wish. Once in position, they look great, with a gentle and ethereal warm light. There are no lighting patterns just a simple always on, which is really all that is needed.

This is a charming and very effective set of lights that should act some sparkle and colour to your festive or party celebrations.

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WXY Bluetooth Wireless Headphones BT-990

 

You get a good deal for your money with this new budget headset from WXY currently priced at £27.99. This has the upmarket looks and sound quality of a rather more costly device.

Inside the Amazon box was just the headset itself, a hard carry Case, USB Charging Cable, audio cable, carabiner clip and User Guide. The User Guide is well written but small and rather hard to read. I attach a scan of it to my unboxing video. Strangely, there was no product box for the headset, it arrived just as shown in the video. This is a real pity as it devalues the look of the item and makes it far less appealing as a gift.

The headphones feel lightweight and a bit plasticky but well made and are of the on-ear rather than over-ear type. The headset looks good with an attractive rose gold metallic finish to the body and what looks like white PU leather for the headband and earcups. The padding on the earcups and headband is good but by no means luxurious. The build quality seems fine to me with no sign of the padding on the band working loose, poor stitching, visible wires or weak joints – all elements that have failed on similar headsets I have owned in the past. There is nothing to make me suppose that the headset is not well made. Time will tell and if something fails in the future I will update the review accordingly.

As with most Bluetooth headphones of this type they can also be used as a normal headset and an audio cable is provided for this purpose. The simple control buttons are on one ear cup only and are easy to find and identify by touch and by sight. There are the usual track/volume and multifunction buttons to control audio and phone operations. The buttons are large, not recessed and this makes them easy to use by feel and for me, this is a big plus. Also, I was very pleased to see a separate On/Off turret switch, a feature too many budget headsets lack.

Bluetooth 4.2 Pairing is simple enough and achieved in the usual way by depressing the Multi-function/Power button for several seconds. Pairing is indicated by the blue flashing LED, select ‘Headphones 990’ on your phone to pair and the blue LED will stop flashing. Once paired I found the connection to be stable and strong.

Battery life seems fine to me and I have no reason to doubt the claimed twenty-five hours music time from a ninety-minute charge for the 430mAh. A red LED shows when the device is charging and turns blue when fully charged.

This headset is lacking a few features often found even on cheaper units these days. The is no FM radio, SD card slot, NFC pairing or Bluetooth 5. However, they have concentrated on the key features needed by a headset at passed over the often unused extras.

Considering that this is not an expensive headset I was more than satisfied with the audio quality. The bass is good, clear, smooth and undistorted. Mid tones are clear and detailed and very easy to listen to. The sound quality of this headset has to be one of the main selling points.

I like this headset. It is well made, comfortable, lightweight and easy to wear even for extended listening sessions and with decent sound quality too. It is a pity there was no SD card slot or radio but I wonder how many people would actually use them? Nevertheless, the excellent audio reproduction and good build quality make this a great buy for the relatively low price.

The Good
Great price
Attractive upmarket looks
Excellent sound quality
Easy touch controls
Good build quality
Comfortable to wear
Microphone
Bluetooth 4
Hard Carry Case

The Bad
Lightweight Feel
No NFC
No SD card
No Radio

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CREASHINE Christmas Rotating LED Projector Light

 

I have tried several holiday light projectors before and they all used slot-in cards containing coloured slides to be projected like an old style magic lantern. This new Christmas light projector from CREASHINE uses a new and rather more modern technique to project a rotating circular 20 pattern changing the image in brilliant white.

Inside the mid-market product box was the projector itself, a ground spike mount, a stand mount with base, a credit card sized remote control, screw mounting kit, and a short but well-written User Guide. The projector comes with a standard UK plug which is IP44 waterproof with the projector waterproof to IP65. The projector should be good anywhere in the garden but keep the plug out of direct rain. It is a pity there is no hood to keep water off the lens as although it is safe to use water might degrade the projected image.

Using the device is simple enough. Position the projector a good distance from the house to get a large image, ten to fifteen metres is suggested, and switch on using the remote control. The remote control allows the image brightness and rotation speed to be controlled and a timer of between two eight hours of operation to be set. The timer is handy as it can be set to turn off automatically during the night.

The effect is striking and very different from the lantern type rivals. The image is very bright and looks like a large rotating 3D ball when projected on the suitable surface.

Currently available from Amazon for £29.99, this would make a nice addition to your Christmas themed garden.

The Good
Good price
Good Build Quality
Easy to Use
Remote Control
Timer

The Bad
No lens hood

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The perseids Anti-Vibration handlebar phone Mount

This well made and versatile handlebar phone mount from The perseids has an easy to use and very secure mounting system that makes it stand out from other rival products. The mount will work with any handlebar equipped device: motorbike, bicycle, pushchair, treadmill etc.

The mount arrived packaged in an attractive and robust product box with all the necessary information about the mount printed on the box itself and removing the need for a separate printed User Guide. Along with the mount, the only thing in the package was a padded phone protector.

The device is made almost entirely of heavy duty plastic except for the metal handlebar locking screw. However, it all seems robust enough and nothing looks liable to break or fall off anytime soon.

The mount is fixed to the handlebar with an adjustable metal thumbwheel screw clamp which has a removable inner core to accommodate extra large handlebars. Once mounted you can adjust the ball and socket rotating mount to position the phone as you wish and this also has a thumbwheel securing knob. Fitting the phone to the mount is probably best done before the mount is secured to the bars. Push up the red button on the rear of the mount to the Open position whilst turning the large red thumbwheel to open the four clamp jaws. Ensure the corners of the phone are secure in the mount, release the red button and rotate the red thumbwheel to close the jaws tightly to the phone.

Once locked in place the phone seems pretty secure and whilst it is possible as with all such mounts that it may work loose over time and require retightening it seems very unlikely to me that the phone will fall off. Time will tell on this of course.

Currently discounted on Amazon to just £9.99 it this is could make a very worthwhile addition to any handlebar equipped item you use.

The Good
Great Price
Good Build Quality
Easy to Fit
Easy to Adjust
Fits Most Handlebar Sizes

The Bad
No Quick Release Option
Mount May Obscure Phone Camera

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AxCella 2 in 1 Wireless Car Phone Charger

This is not just another car phone charger. As well as wireless charging it also offers a fully automated app-based car location service. In fact, I have seen variously rebadged and otherwise identical versions of this device but this one is the least expensive yet.

The charger arrived presented in an upmarket and attractive mid-market box that helps make the product particularly suitable as a gift. Inside the box was the charger itself together with a rather short USB-micro USB cable, airvent mount, dashboard mount and a two well printed and easy to read user Guides, one for the charger and the other for the iPark car location app.

Build quality seems fine if rather lightweight. The charger has a matt black finish with stainless steel effect highlighting. The two mount adapters attach to the rear of the charger with a ball and socket joint. The air mount adapter can be adjusted to suit varying grill types and the dashboard mount comes with a prefitted sticky pad. No old-style cigar lighter interface is included but then almost all modern cars now come with USB ports. It should work safely with any phone as it has electronic and short-circuit protection.

Having mounted the device using it could not be easier. As with all wireless chargers just put the phone into the mount and touching the charging pad and it will work automatically. In fact, this one is easier to use than desktop chargers because the phone is held in place and positioned exactly over the charging coil by three retractable and adjustable arms that grip it tightly and securely. It should be noted that the arms can be adjusted to suit phones of different lengths as well as width, unlike with some lesser rivals. This adjustable length feature means that even new 18:9 format phones should fit safely into it. The secure mount coupled with the ball and socket joint on the rear means the phone can be quickly and safely rotated from portrait to landscape modes with no fear of it falling out.

The selling point of this device and the feature that lifts it above the herd is the car location feature. The charger has a built-in Bluetooth beacon and after installing the free iPark app the beacon will connect to your phone and automatically tell the iPark app to remember the current GPS location. When you leave the car and go out of Bluetooth range the app can be used to show you where you last parked and guide you back to it. The app also allows you to take a photo of the precise location and append that to the map.

I found that the device worked well both in the car and when tested on my desktop. The choice of mounts should make it suitable for any vehicle and the standard charging protocol should mean it will work with any wireless charging equipped device.

The unit is currently available on Amazon for £17.99 and at that price is a great buy for the convenience and versatility of in-car wireless charging as well as the security of the car location service.

The Good
Good Build Quality
Easy to Use
Good User Guide
Good Presentation
Works well
Excellent Car Finder App

The Bad
Power cable too short
No cigar lighter adapter
Lightweight construction
Wireless charging can be erratic

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Use the Code ‘marcoscu’ to get a 15% Amazon  discount

EMater Snap and Wrap 360° revolving ball head Mini Tripod

Currently available on Amazon at just £12.99 this mini-tripod from EMate can hardly be thought expensive yet there are even cheaper rivals available but even within this budget price range you still get what you pay for and this little device certainly outshines the cheaper rivals.

With a lightweight 10″ device of this price, you are not going to get Manfrotto build quality but you do get a device that with careful management can put your camera or lighting unit in otherwise inaccessible places.

The tripod arrived with no User Guide or external packaging other than a plain box but no instructions are needed and the tripod is robust enough to need no other protection. The package contains the tripod with quick release screw mounting plate.

This tripod is very lightweight at just 240g and features twelve step fully bendable non-extendable legs and a ball socket head with tension screw locking. It has an easy to use and very versatile quick release mechanism better than those found on lesser rivals and this does work surprisingly well. The head unit features a standard 3/8″ screw mount and should fit any standard camera or phone mount. The tripod works best when the legs are fully splayed out to give stability with the angle of view for the fitted device controlled through the ball and socket head unit. The legs can also wrap around pillars, poles or fences to put the camera in otherwise inaccessible places. This device is designed to work with a phone, tablet or small lighting unit. I mainly use it with an accessory lighting panel and an Arlo camera and with these, it works well and makes it possible locate the panel on the same plane as the subject device without the need of a floor standing lighting stand. It is a lightweight device and so do not try and put full-size DSLR camera on there.

This little tripod is small and lightweight enough to be able to add it to your camera bag or pocket without adding weight or bulk. The price is slightly dearer than some rivals but at less than £13 will not break the bank. This well made and versatile piece of kit would make a worthwhile addition to your camera kit.

The Good
Great Price
Fully flexible positioning
Easy to carry/store

The Bad
Lightweight build quality
Cheaper rivals available

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Meifigno in Ear Earphones with Mic

Priced at just £9.88 this new pair from Meifigno are certainly not expensive and certainly fall into the budget category but in fact, they have more going for them than you might think and not the least of which is the really rather decent sound quality.

The headset comes with no product box but instead with a plastic bag with the details of the product printed on it. The headset carry case protects the actual headset itself from damage.

Inside were the headset, three sets of spare buds (one is already fitted), a cable clip, a semi-rigid carry case and a small but well-printed generic User Guide which I append to my unboxing video.

Build quality seems fine for the price. The earbuds have an attractive gloss black finish with matt silver headlining, the cord has a black rubberised anti-tangle finish and seems pretty robust. The in-line control box is a decent size and has large and easy to find raised buttons.

In use, it again was excellent for the price. The earbuds were a good fit and did not project out from the ears. The in-line control box differs from that shown on the Amazon product page but is easy enough to use. The single Multifunction button controls track pause/play and phone answer/reject with one click, two clicks to track advance, three to track back. The slider controls the audio volume and is smooth and accurate in use.

As regards sound quality again I was pleasantly surprised. The headset has excellent audio quality with plenty of bass and detailed and crisp highlights and mid tones. There is no clipping or distortion just a clean flat sound.

I would have preferred a thicker cord and more robust build quality but I doubt if you will find better sound quality from an in-ear headset at this price.

The Good
Great Price
Good Sound Quality
Anti-tangle cord
Carry Case

The Bad
Voice Assistant Support
Poor Packaging

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