(Credit:
Brando)
Those of you who've adopted frugality during this recession know that packing a lunch is one of the best ways to cut down on spending. But waiting in line to use the microwave, washing your Tupperware out, and having your lunch stolen from the company refrigerator can make saving a few dollars everyday quite inconvenient.
The USB LunchBox Warmer, by the Hong Kong-based company Brando, keeps your leftovers and homemade lunches toasty hot. Just plug it in to your computer--which acts a power source--via the included USB cable and you're ready to eat a piping hot meal at a moment's notice. Not near a computer? Switch out the cable for the included AC adapter.
Like the similar device from Thanko, the lunch box keeps your meal at a steamy 122 degrees Fahrenheit and continues insulating once it's unplugged. Thanko's version isn't available in the U.S., so when I found out that Brando was selling this at $30 (with only $3 shipping), I took a moment to rejoice.
I'm a little reluctant about buying this, though. What kind of technology are they using anyhow? It took us years to accept the fact that microwaves don't cause cancer, so I'm wondering if this product is radiation-free. I'd definitely read the fine print before using.
The current generation of compunerds is totally screwed. We (yes, I'm one of you) spend at least eight hours surfing the Internet on a daily basis, weekends included! Those YouTube videos aren't going to watch themselves, right?
That's why ergonomics is so important. We need specific keyboards and mice to angle our wrists properly and alleviate all that unnecessary stress--I can't think of a bigger weekend downer than the dreaded "mouse arm."
Thanks to the brilliant minds at Brando Workshop, we now have another ergonomic tool at our disposal. The White Bread Wrist Rest is designed to fit neatly under your hand, elevating your wrist just enough to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome later in life.*
They're sold in individual slices for $6, but you can save $2 by purchasing two. Each one measures about 4.4 inches long, 5.5 inches wide, and a little over half an inch thick. You might not think that half an inch makes a huge difference, and you're probably right. In either case, Brando's got you covered! According to its Web site, the Bread Wrist Rest is also "good for decoration." Can somebody say...twofer?!
*Absolutely not guaranteed
(Credit:
Gadget Venue)
We're convinced that this gadget was invented by Dr. Evil fans simply for the shark references: It's a Bluetooth headset from Brando (of course) that comes with a built-in laser pointer.
It actually could come handy for PowerPoint presentations, though we'd recommend taking it off your ear before using the pointer to avoid looking like a trained seal. As for the headset, it has a range of 10 meters and talktime of 6 hours, according to Gadget Venue. And it comes with an integrated LED flashlight as well, because Brando can't resist cramming in as many functions as humanly possible in all its products.
(Credit:
Brando)
The mad inventors at Hong Kong-based Brando are at it again, hard at work developing products of little or no use. And its latest offering ranks right up there with the MP3 stylus on the practicality meter.
As ridiculous as it may seem, the Car Projector Clock does exactly what its name indicates: It projects a digital readout on an interior surface, as seen on OhGizmo, not unlike bedroom versions that beam a display on the ceiling. You might ask why someone would need this--and, therefore, why it was created--especially when most if not all cars already have a clock somewhere on the dash. But you've got to consider the source. This is, after all, the same company that makes aromatherapy speakers and combo mouse label makers. Nuff said.
(Credit:
Brando)
Sometimes we wonder if product developers at Hong Kong-based Brando have a quota to fill on new releases. What else could possibly explain the thinking behind such creations as aromatherapy speakers, mouse label makers, and an MP3 stylus?
That's the only reason we can come up with, anyway, for its latest offering--a Bluetooth headset with a built-in FM radio, as seen on Coolest-Gadgets. Given all the choices there are on the market for wireless headsets, we seriously doubt that an integrated radio is going to tip the scales in favor of this one, especially for $53. At that price, the least they could do is throw in a fan or something.
(Credit:
Brando)
Even in the world of ever-shrinking gadgets, small doesn't always mean better. Especially where ergonomics are concerned.
Brando's wireless mini-mouse measures less than 2.7 inches long and would be absolutely tiny to the average person as indicated by this photo, unless Andre the Giant was moonlighting as the hand model. It's definitely portable, as GeekAlerts says, weighing barely an ounce and easily carried in a pocket.
In fact, it might be too portable--we'd be afraid of losing it among the loose change. The real problem, however, is one of functionality: There's no way we could comfortably use a mouse this small. But maybe that's just a reflection of our insufficient motor skills.
Is that a nunchuk or a defibrillator?
We recently reviewed the Nyko Kama Wireless Nunchuk for the Nintendo Wii, and while we considered it to be a luxury item, we thought it was a great way to rid yourself of that last wire from your Wii experience.
Now from Engadget comes word of a new wireless solution to the original nunchuk, but instead of offering a self-contained wireless unit, this adapter takes your current nunchuk and turns it into a wireless one. Just like the Nyko, this uses two AAA batteries and operates on a 2.4GHz transmitter.
From the pictures on the product page, it doesn't look like this contraption could be as comfortable as the Kama, but it does cost $15 less. However, with the Nyko you are getting an additional nunchuk as opposed to this adapter that simply adds on to one you already have. Also, the receiving adapter that you'll plug into your Wii remote looks a lot bigger than the tiny one that Nyko requires.
Product page: Wii Wireless Adapter for Wii Nunchuk Controller from Brando Workshop.
(Credit:
Brando)
Hong Kong-based Brando's obsession with combining gadgetry has been long documented in this space, from its mouse massagers to aromatherapy speakers. And every once in awhile one of its lab rats actually turns out to be something useful. Not this time.
The "Stylus Hanging Bluetooth Headset" is as baffling as its name suggests. The headset hangs from your neck but must still be connected to some kind of headphones, while touting its weak multi-tasking role as a stylus. Which would make it the largest and most cumbersome stylus in the history of technology. They would have been better off making it into an LED or pen. Or something.
(Credit:
Brando)
The PC mouse has, perhaps appropriately, been the subject of myriad laboratory experiments that have grafted on various non-mousage functions that do things like keeping the desktop clean (in more ways than one). And the Frankensteinian ideas are getting weirder all the time.
So it was refreshing to see that this latest gadget--a USB mouse speaker--apparently doesn't do any computer navigation at all, because we think the desktop rodent has already suffered well beyond its fair share of abuse. Instead, it's just a novelty item that's shaped like a toy mouse and can work with an iPod or anything else that takes a standard 3.5-millimeter plug, GeekAlerts says. Another reason it was a smart idea not to make it a computer mouse: If you tried to use it at the same time, your hand would muffle the sound.
(Credit:
Brando)
Well it's about time. Like everyone else, we've been pining for a combo USB Aroma Radio/Speaker for some time.
Apparently the insane but driven R&D staff at Hong Kong's Brando was determined to one-up the competition, which includes aromatherapy gadgets in the form of USB humidifiers and fragrance oil burners. Brando's version not only tickles the olefactory senses but also pipes in the music from your MP3 player and provides mood lighting in seven LED colors.
For optimum relaxation, be sure to use this on a computer with at least two USB ports. Because you'll want to reserve the other for the perfect complement, a mouse massage.
