Category Archives: Gadgets

These are cool gadget type devices I’ve found that do something really cool for my job and/or for personal use.

Update on Air Console and get 10% off!

Gadgets, WhatsInTheBag

Several weeks ago, I wrote about a remote serial solution called Air Console, which provides an all in one solution for wired, LAN, wifi, and bluetooth serial connectivity.  I’ve found Air Console extremely useful since then.  I just initializing  two Data Domains and four RecoverPoint RPAs in a cramped, crowded server room with no comfortable place to work from my laptop.  No problem!  I simply walked in with my Air Console Mini and iPad, and initialized all six devices wirelessly.  It beats figuring out how to maneuver a serial cable to some place where I would have to sit on a floor indian leg style.  Full disclosure: I have the flexibility of a 2×4.  It worked once again like a champ.

Get-Console noticed my blog article and contacted me to offer my readers 10% off using coupon code JJGH667QS on their orders.  (I wish I got that deal, but it was still worth every penny!)

Also, Get-Console has solutions to connect to multiple serial devices simultaneously.  This could be useful for initializing six devices like I just did.  It could also be used as an out of band management solution for a rack full of routers and switches, too!

So, if you’re looking for a smarter serial solution, check them out!

Road warrior portable monitor

Gadgets,

About 13 years ago, I added a second monitor to my home machine, and ever since then, 2 monitors has been a minimum for me when working on a computer without getting mildly annoyed.  It’s so useful to view two full screens simultaneously.  If you’ve used multiple monitors at any length of time, you know what I’m talking about, it’s just hard going back to using one.  In fact, I run 4x 23″ 1080p monitors at my house.

The problem is of course when you’re onsite, or on the road.  Pretty good chance customers don’t have an extra monitor to use, or they look at you weird if you’re brave enough to ask for one, never mind the fact your hotel room won’t have one if you’re out of town.

For me, since I try to travel light, it’s especially worse when I go to a single laptop screen.  Honestly, a laptop with a bigger screen doesn’t help.  Being able to reference something on one screen while working on another is something I’m so used to now; it’s hard to function efficiently when I don’t have it.  I need a portable monitor!

I know, First World Problems.  But First World Problems demand First World Solutions!

Check out the Asus MB168B+.  Make sure it’s the + model, because that’s the 1080p one.  15.4” USB monitor weighing 1.76 pounds, which is astoundingly light for its dimensions.  As a reference, the ipads prior to the air models are about 1.3-1.5 pounds depending on the model.

http://www.asus.com/us/Monitors_Projectors/MB168BPlus/

Comes with a carrying case that doubles as the monitor stand.  It powers off the USB cable, so that also keeps the weight down, although reviews I’ve read said on some computers like the Surface Pros, it’s best to get a USB Y cable, as they often can’t power the monitor alone.  It actually powers perfectly fine off the single USB port on my Surface Pro, but it does fail if I plug in my non-powered USB ethernet/USB hub dongle with an external hard drive drive plugged in without using the Y cable.  It fits easily in my backpack.  Solid picture quality, although it’s a just a bit sluggish.  But definitely good enough to be productive on it, even drawing Visios.

So if you’re like me and want multiple monitors even at a customer’s site or on the road, check this thing out.  Absolutely loving it!

New gadget – RAVPower Filehub wireless NAS

Gadgets

Just got in a pretty cool little gadget that has quite a few practical uses you guys might be interested in.

RAVPower FileHub in White

RAVPower FileHub in Black

This RAVPower device is about the size roughly of a Western Digital My Passport hard drive, (slightly longer, about 33% thinner), pretty darn light, has an SD card slot, a full size USB port for connecting any kind of USB storage to it (pen drives, or even a portable hard drive, which can even be powered from this RAVPower device like a Western Digital My Passport drive).

Basically, any storage device or SD card you plug in gets served up as a file share via wifi.  You can plug both an SD card and USB storage device simultaneously as well, providing access to both.  You can access it like a CIFS share, via web portal, and also via a RavPower Filehub app freely available for IOS and Android.  Up to 5 concurrent sessions are supported.  The app also allows data management such as file copy between devices and folders, moves, and deletions.

For wifi access, you can connect this to a wifi network (b/g/n wifi support with WPA/WPA2 PSK or open), or it can do its own wifi network you can connect to instead if you need to access the data but cannot connect to an external wifi network, but this of course knocks you off the internet.  If it has connectivity to a wifi network you saved in its config, it’ll connect to that automatically, but the isolated network is always up, ready to go.

Another handy feature is the web portal via an IOS device can open up video files to stream unprotected content, I would assume android devices could use this or another method.  I can’t seem to get any protected files to playback though from it via IOS.

Finally, you can connect this to your computer via USB, power it off, and it becomes a regular SD card reader.

Lots of useful scenarios with this…

· Move/backup data on camera SD card by inserting the camera’s SD card into it, and your choice of USB storage (device itself has a single SD card slot, keep that in mind) – I did try to hook my wife’s Fujifilm camera up to it via the USB port, but it didn’t recognize the camera’s inserted SD card unfortunately, so pretty good chance you’d need a USB hard drive or stick as the copy location.  It does claim that many cameras would work in this manner, though.
· Share data with multiple people quickly instead of doing the ol’ USB stick pass along (5 people can connect at once)
· Afraid to go to a meeting with just a tablet or smartphone in case you need to get some data from someone who might have data on a USB stick, or need to give them data?  Use the app to copy to/from USB stick and the SD card within the device or vice versa.  Or they can connect to it wirelessly and dump the data.
· External unprotected movie/music/reading material repository for your family on a road trip

It also serves as a 3000mAh phone power bank for emergency power, and is powered/charged via USB, so you can keep it powered in the car for that road trip with a simple micro-USB car charger, or power it via another power bank if you’re camping or something.

Easy to use (web portal for heavier management, firmware updates, etc), lots of flexibility.

About the only thing I don’t like?  You must authenticate with the admin account of the device to access the CIFS share; there’s no way natively I can tell to create limited users who have say read only rights, or even file share access rights.  And admin has full rights, so don’t put your only copy of data on the thing, and might be smart to virus scan it when you’re done sharing it with other people.  I even tried to Putty into it to see if I could create new accounts that way, and no dice, so I’d probably have to root it (no thanks).