Bill Loguidice's Blog, page 120

Review: Legend of Zelda 12 Hole Ocarina of Time Musical Instrument

Today I’m taking a look at a different kind of videogame collectible, a musical instrument. Naturally, this is not just any musical instrument, but arguably one of the most famous musical instruments in videogames, the ocarina. This particular ocarina is modeled after the one found in the videogame where most of us were first exposed to this 12,000-year-old wind musical instrument, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998) for the Nintendo 64. The 2011 release of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D for the Nintendo 3DS only helped to increase the instrument’s modern day popularity.

The box the ocarina comes in.

CLD Brands’ ocarina is made from kiln-fired ceramic, covered in a dark blue glaze, with a platinum glaze around the Triforce symbol (the three joined, equilateral triangles from The Legend of Zelda series). Handcrafted and tuned, the 12 hole ocarina you receive can easily pass for a high quality instrument.

The front of the ocarina.

The ocarina measures approximately 6.3in/16cm in length, 1.6in/4cm in height, and 3.9in/10cm in width. It’s a great beginner’s instrument since it’s relatively easy to hold and doesn’t require a huge time commitment to start playing simple songs.

Packaging-wise, you get the ocarina itself, along with a mini manual that includes sample songs, a registration post card, as well as what I can assume is an instrument strap (it’s more like a purple shoelace). Presumably this strap goes through the holes at the sides of the Triforce symbol.

The rear of the ocarina.

As for playing, all purchasers get sent a free PDF manual, Just Call Me Ocarina, which is an expansion of the mini manual. Just Call Me Ocarina includes information on history, manufacturing, and how to play, as well as sample songs to get started. These sample songs include well known arrangements like “Mary Had a Little Lamb” and “Scarborough Fair,” as well as a nice surprise or two, like “Zelda’s Lullaby.”

You can see a bit more about the instrument in my quick look video below:

An Ocarina Ceramic Hand Shaped Display Stand, as well as an Ocarina Waterproof Padded Carry Case are also available if you want to accessorize your ocarina. You can get 90% off the former by following the instructions from the included post card or at the end of the PDF manual.

Although not an official Nintendo product, and thus taking more than a few liberties by associating itself with the Zelda franchise, from the feel to the build quality to the sound, this ocarina nevertheless receives my highest recommendation. It’s easy to play and a fun diversion, Zelda association or not.

Thanks to CLD Brands for the review unit.

BMX XXX: The Sexiest Videogames of All Time (06)

In Armchair Arcade‘s  ongoing series (first started back in 2012 on the old version of our Website, here), we ask the provocative question, “What makes a particular videogame sexy?” Each feature explores some of the many intriguing approaches game designers have taken over the years to make their games more sensual, not just with increasingly detailed graphics, but also with romantic and seductive gameplay. While some of the games we’ll be looking at are unabashedly low brow, displaying their raw sexuality like a badge of honor, other games in contrast are remarkably subtle, often downplaying their suggestive themes.

Today’s series entry, which is the sixth, features the extreme sports game, BMX XXX. While the purpose of this series of articles is to bring mature insight and some fun to the subject of how sexy is portrayed in videogames, it’s important to note that our latest subject is a game with few redeeming qualities, which, sadly, appears to have been its raison d’être:

BMX XXX

Developer: Z-Axis

Publisher: Acclaim Entertainment

Initial Release Date: 2002

Platforms: Microsoft Xbox, Nintendo GameCube, Sony PlayStation 2

Game Type: Sports

Critics of the medium often seem under the false impression that videogames are primarily played by horny 13-old-boys, a kind of sociopathic stereotype that’s rife for a cringe inducing comic relief style portrayal in a bad TV show or movie. Of course, the reality is videogame playing spans every age, gender and interest, but with millions of games produced over a span of more than 60 years, it naturally follows that there will be a few prime examples of games that seem designed by and for that very stereotype. In fact, one such game, BMX XXX, was purposely built to be a type of videogame version of the Lord of the Flies conch shell, calling out to all the horny pubescent boys to come buy a copy. Apparently these boys were to have access to one of the three major videogame consoles, but inexplicably lack similar access to either late night cable television or the Internet. Unfortunately for publisher Acclaim Entertainment, who went fittingly “bust” just a few years later, such a wild scenario never played out.

The “edgy” case insert. Don’t worry about “busting” anything from laughing. Or laughing at all.

Just try and control your laughter when reading this manual excerpt. I dare you. Note that there are a few Beavis and Butt-head references in the manual, like “Lord Fartknocker,” so we know at least one of the influences.

BMX XXX was originally intended as an entry in Acclaim’s critically acclaimed Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX-series, but once Mirra got a whiff of the new game’s direction, he promptly took legal action to successfully remove any and all association with the product. That proved a shrewd move, as BMX XXX hits all the sexual – naked boobies! – and comedic – poop! – low points with about as much skill as a bike riding n00b trying to pull off a Flair. This of course extends to the manual, where words like “shizznits” are used to demonstrate how hip the game is while you’re constantly being warned about how much you’re going to laugh.

One of the cut scenes. Nudity filmed from the Scores strip club is considered an in-game reward.

Humping dogs, the height of comedy for 8-year-olds everywhere.

To be fair, for those who favor, say, the “get right to it” nature of today’s porn in contrast to the slower seduction of 1970s theatrical porn like a Behind the Green Door or Emmanuelle, BMX XXX‘s lack of subtlety might have some appeal. In fact, in this way, BMX XXX is the model of consistency, with unabashedly in-your-face juvenile humor, foul language, and instantly recognizable character stereotypes, such as a purple-laden, platform shoe wearing, jive talking, pimp, complete with hump-happy pink poodle.

The Nintendo GameCube version lets you edit almost everything about a female rider right from the start.

It only follows then that despite its promising origins, the gameplay never quite matches up to the polish of the better titles in the extreme sports category, least of all the original gold standard, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. Like with the humor and sexuality, BMX XXX certainly tries its best, offering up more than 2,000 tricks to perform on its virtual bike, but it’s like our stereotypical teenager’s clumsy first time “doing it”–it might be fun for the brief moment the act lasts, but it’s not a particularly positive experience he’d like to revisit in quite the same way again. That analogy is particularly àpropos as the rewards for pulling off tricks and completing goals are to unlock things like new levels or stripper videos, complete with aforementioned naked boobs.

Many “dynamic” angles are used when playing BMX XXX.

Depending upon taste, some may find the above sexy enough to include the game in our list. However, the real reason why BMX XXX made the cut is its robust character editor, where you can create the Weird Science-like lady rider of your dreams, albeit with criminally few polygons. The “M. Night Shyamalan” style twist to this story though is that this character editor only has naked breasts available as an option by default on the Nintendo GameCube version–you have to unlock the privilege on the Microsoft Xbox, and the best you can do is pasties on Sony’s PlayStation 2. For anyone familiar with Nintendo’s infamous family friendly “blood is sweat” policies and Microsoft’s and Sony’s generally looser regulations, you know something like that never should have happened, yet somehow it’s fitting for a game like BMX XXX.

Yes, you can play as men, but you can’t customize them in quite the same way as the women. Of course, I don’t think anyone expected anything resembling gender equality from this particular game.

 

Cable take pole selfie stick review

At this point, I feel I’ve had my fill of selfie stick reviews. With that said, I’m still hopelessly fascinated by any type of new technology, which is why I was so eager to review this particular selfie stick. While the vast majority of selfie sticks use Bluetooth to communicate with your smartphone, this particular selfie stick, Cable take pole Model: Z07-5S, uses a simple wired connection to your smartphone’s headphone jack. As a result, there’s no need to pair it, meaning it’s hassle free to share with friends and family, and it’s completely battery free, meaning no need to worry about keeping it charged so it can be stored and still be ready to go indefinitely.

Cable take pole selfie stick packaging (front).

Cable take pole selfie stick packaging (rear).

The Cable take pole (only $7.99 on Amazon at the moment) uses the same physical Monopod foundation as other selfie sticks I’ve reviewed in the past, which means it has the same sometimes difficult to press shutter button, rubberized grip, fully extendable (telescoping) pole, and a removable smartphone holder that expands to accommodate even large phones like my Apple iPhone 6 Plus. The only difference is that aforementioned 3.5mm headphone jack cable.

You get the Monopod foundation and the adjustable phone holder.

The Cable take pole fully assembled.

The instructions, such as they are, are badly translated English, which shouldn’t be surprising given the product name, Cable take pole, and are found on the back of the box. Fortunately, the instructions really aren’t necessary, especially if you’re an Apple iPhone or iPad user (of course tablets don’t fit in the holder). The built-in photo taking app supports this device, which more or less mimics pressing the device’s volume button (which is Apple’s mobile hardware shutter button), right out of the box. If you’re an Android user or owner of another platform, you’ll need a photo app that can be configured to detect volume button presses as shutter presses. Given the vagaries of Android and other platforms, specific instructions really can’t be given, but rest assured it should be relatively trivial enabling the feature if it’s not already present.

My iPhone 6 Plus on the Cable take pole.

While I still think the oft-used Monopod platform shutter button is too difficult to press at times, making for the occasionally shaky selfie, the bottom line is this product does work. For those frustrated by the pairing and charging with Bluetooth-based selfie sticks, this makes a wonderful alternative. One potential issue to keep in mind, however, is that if you like to take video, rather than photo, selfies, plugging something into your headphone jack may also disable the internal microphone, meaning your videos will not have sound.

An unedited family selfie we took with the Cable take pole on the Fourth of July.

An Auto Awesome from Google+ showcasing how difficult it is to get a selfie with the family!

Thanks to szmittech for the review unit.

40 amazing reviews for CoCo: The Colorful History of Tandy’s Underdog Computer!

This blog post is to officially say thanks for helping us hit the milestone of 40 reviews, with an average rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars, on Amazon.com, for our book, CoCo: The Colorful History of Tandy’s Underdog Computer. Thank you!

 

Also, be sure to check out the Facebook Public Group for further discussions around the book.

AYL Ultra Bright LED Camping Lantern Review

The Accessorise Your Life (AYL) StarLight 330 LED camping lantern is one of those devices that’s good for far more than the primary purpose it’s being marketed for. It’s powerful, portable, and long lasting, which makes it useful for just about any situation where a bright light might be needed. In my case, I’m no camper, but this is perfect for our family’s outdoor gazebo. It should also further prove its value when the power goes out, particularly given the technical specifications (for the record, fortunately, we didn’t lose power before I posted this review).

AYL StarLight 330 LED camping lantern packaging.

AYL StarLight 330 LED camping lantern packaging contents, a manual and the lantern.

LED bulbs with an output of 300 lumens (that’s bright for such a small form factor!) and a rating of over 100,000 hours of use (that’s over 4,1666 days of use if you used it 24 hours a day for each of those days) are the centerpiece of the AYL StarLight 330 LED camping lantern. It’s also shockproof and water resistant (although it has a watertight body with plastic molding and rubber, it’s not water proof; think heavy rain, not submersion). There’s a convex reflector cap that provides 360° lighting, but is removable if you want more focused lighting. Three light modes: low, high, and flashing strobe, round out its primary feature set. As a nice bonus, when the lantern is off, a small green LED occasionally flashes so you can more easily locate it in the dark.

The lantern itself.

How you insert the batteries. Note the hook on the battery cover.

As you might expect from a lantern, there’s a hook on the bottom for hanging, which actually works great for suspending from the top (or other areas) of our aforementioned gazebo. Again, there are many scenarios where this type of lantern might find a use.

The lantern has three different lighting settings.

The lantern’s one catch might be its need for relatively uncommon three D batteries (not included, you can buy them here, though). The benefit of that battery type paired with the lantern’s technical features is that you’ll get about six straight days of power, which works out to well over 140 hours of use before you’ll need to swap them out for a fresh set. That seems to me a fair trade off, particularly since that battery type helps give the lantern more heft, which translates to more stability than you’d otherwise have in such a lightweight design.

Hanging the lantern in the corner of my gazebo.

Thanks to AYL for the review unit.

Apple Watch Charging Dock Review

The Bellini Apple Watch Charging Dock from DTB Enterprizes is elegant in its simplicity. Really nothing more than a metal stand with non-slip silicone pads on its top and bottom, the dock accommodates Apple’s standard watch charging cable (not included), which then magnetically secures and charges your Apple Watch in the usual manner.

Bellini Apple Watch Charging Dock packaging.

The stand itself is aesthetically pleasing, mimicking Apple’s renowned design philosophy. While the dock is best used by placing the watch body without the band, I consider that impractical, so I tested it only with the band attached. While the charging cable did get slightly in the way of the watch band, thanks to the magnetic connection, the watch still remained in place just fine.

Bellini Apple Watch Charging Dock packaging insides.

I’m forgetful, so having a stable, repeatable location for my portable items to reside, including keys, wallet, and electronics, is critically important. By following this simple rule, I always know where to find my devices. I already had a great bedside charging stand for my Apple iPhone 6 Plus and now am happy to say I have something similar for my watch. Considering both items need to be charged at the end of the night and be ready to go by morning, they make ideal companions for just this type of setup.

Bellini Apple Watch Charging Dock bottom.

Bellini Apple Watch Charging Dock top.

While I would have preferred an option to stick the bottom silicone pads to a surface with something like 3M adhesive (meaning semi-permanent, but easily removable; I can of course get my own adhesive should I be so moved), or, barring that, greater heft to the metal, it remains light and transportable as designed, while still providing a reasonably stable platform for any size Apple Watch. At only $9.99 on Amazon, it’s certainly a solid deal as-is.

One view of the stand bedside.

One view of the stand bedside.

One view of the stand bedside.

Thanks to DTB Enterprizes for the discounted review unit.

Infernal Innovations Magnetic Phone Mount Review

If you’re like me, you use your smartphone quite a bit in the car while driving. I of course don’t mean using it for texting, but the usual, safer activities, like as a GPS (my personal favorite app is Waze, but it’s always good to have a backup or two like Google Maps or Apple Maps, since no one solution is perfect at finding every location). If you’re also like me in another regard, you’re always on the lookout for better ways to secure your smartphone on your dashboard or front windshield, which has become increasingly challenging as our smartphones have grown ever larger in size and simple clamping solutions are often too small or too weak (this is one simple solution I have used successfully with larger devices like my Apple iPhone 6 Plus). One such “better way” is from Infernal Innovations, who have designed a winner, albeit with one minor catch that probably won’t even apply to 99.9% of potential buyers. That one catch? You need to be able to place a thin strip of metal (included) between your case and the rear of your smartphone. If there’s no case on your smartphone then this particular device won’t work since the magnet will have nothing to attract (and before you ask, devices like your smartphone are not affected by magnets, which is why magnetic mounts are fairly common).

Infernal Innovations Magnetic Phone Mount packaging.

The Infernal Innovations Magnetic Phone Mount, which presently runs just $19.99 on Amazon, comes packaged with the following: magnetic mount with suction cup, adhesive disk, rectangular metal case insert, circular metal case insert with adhesive (for very small devices or for instead sticking on the back of a phone case), and an instruction manual. It’s a comprehensive bundle for the price.

Infernal Innovations Magnetic Phone Mount contents.

The suction cup on the magnetic mount is actually quite powerful, but today’s dashboards are just as likely to be textured as they are a smooth surface (we have two Toyotas in our household and neither one has a smooth dashboard). That’s where the adhesive disk comes in. Regardless, however – or whatever – you stick the magnetic mount to, once secured, it both rotates 360° and swivels from side to side. The mount’s magnetic top is also reversible if you want to brace an even larger device against the base for added stability (an Apple iPhone 6 Plus is about as big as you’d want to get, though).

The Infernal Innovations Magnetic Phone Mount even works great by a busy bedside, like my wife’s.

Naturally, there are lots of other way to make use of this magnetic phone mount, including making an excellent viewing or charging stand for your smartphone, say by your bedside or on a desktop. This versatility is married to a 60-day money back guarantee and a full five year warranty, making for about as risk free of a purchase as you can have. As far as phone mounts go, this one gets one of my highest recommendations.

Thanks to Infernal Innovations for the review unit.

Some post E3 2015 thoughts on Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo

I wanted to offer some thoughts on what we learned from the big three console makers at E3. I’ll take each company in the same order I listed them in the blog post title.

Sony

Sony didn’t make many dramatic announcements, but did have a few fan friendly wins in there, particularly for the PlayStation 4 (PS4). The first was that the The Last Guardian will finally be released, albeit in 2016. That should pair up nicely with the 2016 release of UNCHARTED 4: A Thief’s End. The second was an announcement that didn’t receive much press, but was a feature many hardcore PS4 fans have been asking for since day one, and that’s a Media Player feature that actually plays a variety of formats from either a home server or USB stick. The best part is is that that’s already available. The third was the long hoped for Shenmue III, albeit as a bizarre, but already incredibly successful, Kickstarter. Although I own the Dreamcast originals and the Xbox re-releases, I’m not exactly a massive fan of the games, but there’s no denying this was a smart move to cement the PS4’s role as the hardcore gamer console of choice. And speaking of hardcore gamer, thanks in no small part to Sony’s generous lead over the Xbox One, the next Call of Duty game will have a DLC exclusivity window on the PS4 first, something that’s never happened in their competition with Microsoft.

Horizon Zero Dawn looks fantastic, but it’s another PS4 game we won’t see until 2016.

There were several other games discussed, of course, and a little more talk of the VR headset, but the latter won’t be released until next year. 2015 should remain a strong year for Sony and the PS4, but it’s clear that they’re looking to 2016 for their biggest impact.

Naturally, the Vita and PlayStation TV, the latter of which is now being sold regularly at what seems to be right around its cost to produce, weren’t given much mention. Both are clearly now just extensions to the PS4, suitable primarily for remote play. I really like the Vita as it’s an extremely well-built and spec’d handheld (and even wrote a book on it) with a surprisingly good selection of games, but, outside of Japan, there’s not a great deal of interest in gaming-centric handhelds (outside of Nintendo’s, which I’ll get to later). That niche is best served I think by Android-based handhelds (example), which can do pretty much anything a gaming-centric handheld can, as well as of course do a better job at media and apps.

Microsoft

Microsoft had one of their better showings. Besides the expected Halo 5: Guardians and reveals of things like Fallout 4 allowing for PC mods, as well as the usual news on a plethora of other coming games both known (Rise of the Tomb Raider) and unknown (the Tom Clancy stuff), there were a few genuine surprises. The first surprise was of course Xbox 360 backwards compatibility through a rather robust software emulation engine. This is particularly unusual because this is not typically something you unveil well into a console’s second year, but got a lot of people excited because, despite the new generation of consoles from both Microsoft and Sony selling extremely well, there are still lots of last gen hold-outs. This is a big step to making it OK for many of those tens of millions of hold-outs to finally consider switching, i.e., the tipping point. What’s especially nice and a big shot in the arm for often criticized digital content ownership is that all of the games you already own digitally on the Xbox 360 will automatically appear in your “ready to install” list on the Xbox One once the feature is activated (you can use the discs as well). One catch, however, is that only 100 titles will be ready to go at launch later this year, although there is the promise of monthly additions. Another catch is that it’s up to each publisher to allow their Xbox 360 game to run on the Xbox One, so it’s obvious there will be some titles we simply won’t see for purely business reasons, i.e., they want you to buy an updated game on the Xbox One. As an aside, in one of the aforementioned Tom Clancy games, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege, this backwards compatibility option will allow them to include free copies of the Xbox 360 versions of Rainbow Six: Vegas and Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 with the new game. That’s of course a great value and a path hopefully other publishers will also go down.

The Xbox Elite wireless controller is a beauty with a beast of a price.

The next surprise was the unveiling of the Xbox Elite wireless controller, which has fully customizable and swappable controls. It’s a true hardcore gamer controller with the only disappointment being a price to match at $150. I honestly would have expected Microsoft to go for economies of scale here and release the controller at $100, but either way, it’s yet another positive indication that Microsoft is trying to win back some of the gamer’s lost to Sony’s somewhat unexpected momentum with the PS4 (unexpected from the standpoint of it not having the greatest launch or post-launch game line-up and still selling like gangbusters).

It was also good to hear more about Hololens (a concept pictured in the featured image at the top of this blog post) and the partnership with Oculus, with Microsost covering both their augmented reality and virtual reality bases. I strongly believe the technology is finally there for this type of technology and we’ll finally have that next revolution in gaming we really haven’t had since the mid-90s transition from pixels to polygons. I think it’s a smart gamble for Microsoft to try and lead in this area (even though Sony has an offering of their own), particularly when combined with the Windows 10 features that will both become present in the Xbox One and will work in conjunction with Windows 10-based machines. Already one of the most rapidly evolving of the three consoles, i.e., with the most consistent monthly software updates and feature roll-outs, late 2015 and beyond look to be especially exciting for an Xbox One that definitely suffered early image issues.

Nintendo

While many were surprised at Nintendo’s lackluster E3 presentation, I really wasn’t expecting much. Prediction time again, but it seems clear to me that major resources are being redirected to Nintendo’s next generation handheld/console, the NX. To me this means that we’ll see a major NX presentation at E3 2016, with a worldwide launch in the holiday 2016 window. The Wii U has never sold to expectations (in fact, because of the Vita’s failure and all the work that went into that book, I ended up having to cancel a similar Wii U book with the same publisher because the same writing was on the proverbial wall; an Xbox One book in the series did make it out, however) and there’s really nothing Nintendo can do about it except start over. As I previously predicted prior to its launch in 2011, while the 3DS has sold well, it’s selling nowhere near what its predecessor, the DS sold (different times, different expectations, etc.). These days, the only stronghold for “pure” gaming handhelds is Japan. They sell decently elsewhere, including here in the US, but just don’t have the mindshare they used to for the very reasons I described when talking earlier about the Vita [Side note: It used to be that for every GameBoy generation through the DS, you’d see kids walking around playing them. In the 3DS era (today), you’re more likely to see these kids on a smartphone (theirs or their parent’s) or tablet than a 3DS. It’s not hard to understand why and why this trend will only continue.]

Super Mario Maker is definitely something to look forward to still on the Wii U.

With the Wii U a lost cause and the 3DS in its twilight years, a single 2016 successor to both makes the most sense and is the most reasonable explanation for why Nintendo had very little to show/wow at E3, including a surprisingly rough looking Star Fox game and a not-the-type-of-Metroid Metroid fans were expecting.

As usual, I’d love to hear your thoughts on anything related to this subject, so sound off in the comments. I’ll also be happy to share more of my thoughts that didn’t make it into this particular blog post, so feel free to ask away.

Silicone Wedding Ring Review

Long-time readers of Armchair Arcade may find it unusual that, despite the fact that I am indeed married, I’m reviewing a wedding band on our videogame-, computer-, and technology-centric Website. Rest assured, however, that this is no ordinary ring.

How the Silicone Wedding Ring comes packaged.

The Smart Band silicone wedding ring is one of many of a new generation of bands designed to be worn where those formulated from metals and alloys are either inconvenient or inappropriate. One example includes lifting weights or other heavy objects where crushing a hard ring between your finger and the object you’re lifting is a very painful possibility. Another example is working with sensitive electronic components, where a traditional ring might act as an unwanted conductor. This soft silicone ring gets around problems like those with ease, remaining soft and pliable, as well as being a low electrical conductor.

Made of hypo-allergenic medical grade silicone that’s both heat and water resistant, this is the type of ring you can take just about anywhere. The fact that it’s on sale for only $14.99 on Amazon right now also means it’s no big deal if something did in fact happen to it.

The Silicone Wedding Ring’s style is suitably modest.

Sizing is a non-issue as well. I certainly had no idea what my ring size is, despite wearing two different wedding bands since 2001 (I switched off for our 10th anniversary). Luckily, there are plenty of quality (and free) online ring sizing sites (I used http://findmyringsize.com/ to discover I’m a 10.5, which fit the same size I specified for the Smart Band silicone wedding ring when it arrived).

If you think this is something that might be of benefit to you, don’t hesitate to go for the Smart Band silicone wedding ring among the ever expanding cavalcade of choices.

 

Thanks to Smart Band for the review unit.

Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder Review

Just when you think there are no more great ideas left in tablet holder/stand designs, along comes something like the Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder. It’s not only a heavy duty tablet holder/stand, but also has a removable charger module in its handle that can help give any USB-powered device a little extra juice. Smart.

Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder box.

The unassuming black cardboard box it comes in, which is held shut with magnets, contains the handle with rechargeable battery module pre-installed, tacky mounting disc, optional handle cover for when you’re charging the battery module, USB cable (to charge the battery module; you would typically use your own device’s USB cable to charge from the stick), and an instruction manual.

Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder open box.

The tacky mounting disc simply screws on the top of the stick where the bearing is and allows it adjust to just about any angle. Unscrewing the battery pack if you want to remove it and charge it elsewhere (or use it to charge a device in another room) is similarly easy, as is screwing on the handle cover.

Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder contents.

Once assembled, I found when testing the Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder with an Apple iPad 2, Amazon Kindle 6″, and an Asus TF101 tablet, it did exactly what I needed it to. I could either hold the device from the stick, or place it on a table for a great viewing angle.

Assembled Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder.

As for the tacky surface, as is usual with these things, if it ever does lose its stickiness, it’s easy enough to run it under water with a little soap, then let it air dry. The stickiness will again work like new.

Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder with the battery module installed.

If you’re in the market for a tablet holder/stand, it’s hard to go wrong with the Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder, particularly since it’s only $35.95 on Amazon at the moment. For that money you’re not only getting a highly functional holder/stand with great build quality, but also an emergency charger. While its battery is not quite strong enough to charge a full-sized tablet’s battery beyond 25% or so, that’s still 25% more usage than you otherwise might have. If you use it to charge a smaller device, expect even better results.

Futur-e-Stick Tablet Holder supporting an iPad on a table.

Special thanks to Futur-e-Stick  for the review unit. Finally, for more info, check out their promotional video below: