Intocircuit Power Castle Series PC11200 11200mAh Heavy Duty 5V 2A/1A Dual USB Ports External Battery Pack with Nexus 7 Tablet, Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet , and Samsung Galaxy Nexus cell phone

I tested Intocircuit Power Castle Series PC11200 11200mAh Heavy Duty 5V 2A/1A Dual USB Ports External Battery Pack with Nexus 7 Tablet (JellyBean 4.2.2), Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (ICS 4.0.4), and Samsung Galaxy Nexus cell phone (JellyBean 4.2.2).



I own several external battery packs.  To test their performance I run the same set on tests on each of them in order to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



To test Intocircuit power pack I ran my 10 minute test for each of my 3 devices on each of the 2 ports for a total of 6 tests. In addition I charged both Nexus phone and Nexus Tablet at the same time, one in each port. The results of these 7 tests are included in the tables below.



I am attaching a collage of 2 photos. You can locate this photo by following 'customer photos' link under the main photo.



Photo #1 shows the power brick on the digital scale, its weight is 9.9 oz. The size of the power pack is 2.625" by 4.375" by 0.875".



Photo #2 shows the top of the unit which has an LED screen showing the level of charge.  Next to the screen there is a small lack button which turns on the LED light. The light is pretty dim. Some other power bricks I have have a much brighter light, however this is not a key feature of the battery pack and the underpowered light did not effect my rating of this unit.



This power pack has two outlets, they are not labelled.



I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



My methodology is to charge each mobile device on each port of the unit for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charge in that 10 minute period. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test.



The key findings:

(1) Both Nexus phone and Nexus 7 tablet (both running Jelly Bean 4.21) charged at AC rate on both ports.

(2) Samsung Galaxy 7.7 works, but show different behaviors on the two ports



The table below summarizes my findings:



Nexus 7 Tablet

--------------

right port.......AC rate.....1% charge increase

left port........AC rate.....2% charge increase





Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone

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right port.......AC rate.....5% charge increase (among the best rates in my tests)

left port........AC rate.....5% charge increase (among the best rates in my tests)





Nexus 7 Tablet and Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone at the same time

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Tablet...........AC rate.....1% charge increase

Phone............AC rate.....5% charge increase (among the best rates in my tests)





Samsung Galaxy Tablet 7.7

--------------------------

right port.......AC rate..... 1% charge increase

left port........AC rate..... discharging if screen is on, 1% charge increase if screen is off



In addition to the tests above we used Nexus 7 Tablet to navigate during a several hour trip while plugged into Intocircuit Power Castle Series PC11200 11200mAh external battery (rather than the car charger).  Nexus 7 remained charged at 100% at the end of the trip.



I received this battery pack from the manufacture for an honest review be it positive or negative. Running the same set of test on all my external batteries allows me to provide an unbiased review. By comparing the results of the tests for this battery to the other external batteries I tested, this power pack earned a 5 star rating.





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★★★

Instapark YT1008 Solar-powered Dusk-to-Dawn Outdoor Motion Sensor LED Light, Weather-proof, Color Black Instapark YT1008 Solar-powered Dusk-to-Dawn Outdoor Motion Sensor LED Light

Instapark YT1008 solar light is 5" x 3.35" in size. When it is mounted on a vertical surface the top part of the light that faces up and the entire surface facing up is the solar panel. This light is both motion and photo sensitive. The light turn on at dusk and shines dimly when noone is around. When the light detects motion it turns on the brighter setting. At the brightest setting Instapark Solar light is not very bright but sufficient to light the area so you can see. After a full day of charging in the sun the light stay on for approximately 6 hours.



To activate the light you need to turn on it with a provided pin by inserting into small hole on the under side (white) of the light. You only need to activate the light once. I suggest you do it before installation as to find a spot where to push inside the light is a little tricky. Just keep poking inside at different angle until it clicks and turns off. The light is water tight and this on/off mechanism provides a way to save the battery when you don't need it operating without compromising the water proof aspect of the light.

  

The attached video shows a close-up of the light, how to turn it on with a pin, then I turn off the lights so you can see the amount of light it generates after a full charge.

I am also attaching a collage of three photos.

Photo #1: show both sides of the light: the top with the solar panel, and the bottom with the light.

Photo #2: shows the lights in the two states: the left light shows the bright state (when motion is detected), and the left light shows the dim state (no motion detected).

Photo #3: shows both lights on bright setting in total darkness. All the light you see is generated by the two solar lights.



I mounted the light on the deck near the rear entrance of the house. The light detected me approaching from any direction (180 degrees) from about 10 feet away. After the movement stopped it went back to dim setting in about 2 minutes.



I received this solar light from Intapark for providing an honest review be it positive or negative. I have no financial interest or business relationship with the manufacturer, and this review represents my independent opinion of the product.



Overall, the light worked well. It detected motion in a good range and turned on to the brighter setting. However it does not light a large area so I recommend using at least a couple of these lights together.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★★☆

Book review: If I Should Die Before My Dog by Joe Connolly and Cathy Connolly

This book turned out to be even more useful and practical than I expected. I thought it would a list of suggestions, a check list of options I should consider for making the best possible arrangements for the canine member of the family in case the owner dies or is not able to take care of their dog.

 But this is not what this book is about. The person who writes most of the book is the pet owner with thoughtful and useful prompts from the authors. The purpose of this book is to share the information about your dog likes, dislikes, habits, health, and so forth with the person who will be taking care of the dog after the owner is no longer able to do it. I am attaching a photo of a typical page, this randomly selected page is on Grooming.

 The questions on the page prompt the owner to fill out whether the dog like warm or cold bath, if the dog has sensitive skin, what shampoo he likes, whether he takes baths at home or at the groomer, address of the groomer if applicable, if he likes or does not like to be brushed... Every possible topic is covered with the same amount of thought and detail. This book is 102 pages. More than half of them are pages that the owner needs to fill out. This book is meant to be given to the next care taker. 



The information in this book is sure to make the life of the dog easier during the transition period. There is no way to replace the loved one, but keeping the routine the same would ease the transition.



I received an evaluation copy of this book for review purposes from the owners, and it over exceeded my expectations. I recommend it to every pet owner.





You can find this book on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★★★

i-Ecko Fitted Jeans Sleeve for Ipad Nexus and other tablet 7-10"

This is a casual looking case for tablets 7" to 10" in size. The front and the back of the case made to look like the front and the back of jeans: pockets, stitching, even a fly! The inside is lined with a soft fleece-like material to protect the tablet. It has a double zipper, which is quite sturdy and operate smoothly. The case has one compartment on the inside. 4 major pockets, and one tiny pocket within a pocket.



I am attaching a collage of three photos.

The size of the case is 11" wide x 8" height x 7/8" inch in thickness.

The large front pockets are 4.5 inches deep in the low part and 5" wide. The small pocket within the pocket is 2" by 2" (it triangular shaped). See photo #1.

The back pockets are 4" deep by 3 1/4" wide. See Photo #2.



The back pockets are well suited for sticking in a stylus or a pen. The front pockets will accommodate a charging cable, a car recharger, or a cell phone.

It is a well designed case.



Photo #3 shows my 7.7" tablet in the case, I turned down one side of the case so you can see the fleece material that lines the case. There is plenty of room left after my tablet is inserted, but the case is not bulky.



It is a nice quality, cute case. Especially perfect for a person who lives in jean!





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★★★

Gurin Digital Bathroom Scale

Gurin precision digital bathroom scale is made out of tempered glass. More than half of it is made transparent glass, so it fits nicely into any decor.  

I am attaching a collage of 4 photos, photo #1 shows the scale in my bathroom and you see that the tile of my bathroom is visible through the scale and so the scale fits right in. I looks a lot nicer than the white scale this Gurin scale replaced.



The glass platform is 12" by 12" and is raised 1" from the floor.



The display is 1.5" inches in size and lights up when you step on the scale. My old scale did not light up, so I had to move it into the light every time I used it to see the reading. Gurin scale allowed me to hop on the scale in the corner where it is stored, since the display is clearly visible even in the dark. The display is shown in photo #2. The display stays on a couple of seconds after you step off the scale and then automatically turns off.



The third photo shows the scale upside down. You can see the scale has feet with traction pads so it does not slide on my tile floor. The feet contain the sensor which turns on the display. The "unit" button allows one to change the units in which the weight is displayed on the scale: kg, lb, or st.



The forth photo shows the battery compartment, the scale runs on four AAA batteries (included).



The glass of the scale look very pretty, but does have some down sides: (1) It is slippery if it gets wet. (2) The surface gets pretty cold in the winter. To solve both problems I keep my socks on when I weigh myself.



I received this scale from the manufacture for unbiased evaluation and review be it positive or negative. I like how this scale looks, I like how the display lights up so I can weigh myself in a dark(ish) corner of the bathroom. I cross checked my weight with my old scale and it is accurate. Thumbs up overall!





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review

i-Ecko Eco-Friendly Speakers for mobile devies, wired

At the price point of i-Ecko speakers I did not expect them to be great speakers, but I hoped that they would be better than the built-in speakers of my tablet. They fell somewhat short of that expectation. I made a video where the same music is being played by my tablet with these speakers, my tablet using built-in speakers, and finally the same song played by a fairly inexpensive bluetooth speaker of a similar size. In the video the i-Ecko speakers are pointing right into the camera, where the tablet speaker is pointing to the side, despite this advantage the built-in speaker at times sounds louder than external speakers. The final segment of the video with the bluetooth speaker (the best overall sound) provides another reference point.







i-Ecko speakers have no volume control of their own, they are controlled by the volume settings on the device. As you see in my video I put the volume control to the max.  The speakers do not have the battery or AC cord and run from the power from your device.

 

The case for these speakers is made out of cardboard. You can create a triangular shaped case for each speaker by folding cardboard tabs. Folding the tabs are important for creating a reasonace chamber. I tested the speakers with and without tucking in the tabs, and the sound was weaker without the folded tabs.

   

I am attaching a couple of photos which show the folding process.   This process is a little fussy, I found that doing all bottom tabs and then all the top tabs was the easiest way to keep tabs from popping out.



For travel purposes in a tightly stuffed luggage the cardboard should be disassembled to avoid tearing the cardboard tabs by something pushing on them. The cardboard case is unlikely to hold up for a long time, but given the price this is not a big issue.



I really wanted to like these speakers: inexpensive and eco-friendly is a good combination. However, I was disappointed. The main issue I had with them that I did not think the sound was better than the built-in speakers. I hope the video will help you decide for yourself.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







I was provided a sample unit for evaluation and unbiased review.



AshopZones review ★★☆☆☆

FRIEQ® Wide Grip Capacitive Stylus for Touchscreen Devices

This stylus is 4.7" long and 1.75" in diameter at the grip point.



I am attaching a collage of three photos (which can be located by following 'customer photos' link under the main photo) that I will be referencing in this review



I LIKE

---------------

1. Comes in a nice looking box (Stylus shown in the opened box in Photo#1). The presentation looks nice for an inexpensive but impressive looking gift.



2. Sensitivity and performance was good. I most frequently use the stylus for typing and editing text as it gives me best precision for positioning insertion point between characters.



I DO NOT LIKE

---------------



1. This stylus is quite heavy. It weight 1.4 oz my digital scale (by comparison the weight of this other  FRIEQ stylus  is 0.4 oz). I had two issues with this heftier weight: (1) the weight made it less comfortable to hold when used for a long time, (2) if the stylus dropped on glass surface it has potential of damaging it.



2. It has no clip to secure it while carrying it around. Given that this stylus is rather heavy it would be better if I could secure it.



3. This stylus as the name implies has a wide grip. I am a female with small hands and I did not find it comfortable to hold. Note that my husband found it comfortable. Photo #3 shows my grip as I use this stylus.



Overall, this stylus is best suited for people with large hands. It has an "expensive" look when presented in its box, so it makes a nice small gift.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★☆☆



Note: I was provided a free sample for evaluation and unbiased review.