Status Audio CB-1 review – CNET
The Good The Status Audio CB-1 headphones sound much better than their low price might suggest. Extra padding on the ear cups and headband give you all-day comfort. Removable coiled and straight cords included.
The Bad Though comfortable, the ergonomic ear pads don’t offer the best sound isolation. The generic design is, well, generic. No case is included. Their big size and lack of a cord with an in-line mic make them less attractive for mobile use.
The Bottom Line Those more interested in getting excellent audio quality for their money than high-end design or a big brand name will appreciate the Status Audio CB-1 over-the-ear headphones.
The Status Audio CB-1 headphones’ generic looks don’t do justice to their audio quality. Frankly, after not being overly impressed with the company’s HD2 premium over-the-ear consumer headphones, we almost passed on reviewing the CB-1s. That would have been a mistake.
True to the company’s claims, the closed-back, over-the-ear headphones sound flat or neutral, which is typically what you want for studio work. They’re well balanced, making them a good choice for listening to a wide variety of musical styles. Also, their neutrality allowed me to use them all day without fatigue. For their $79 cost (about £55 or AU$110), I doubt you’ll be disappointed.
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The Status Audio CB-1 over-ear headphones are comfortable and feature a rare lack of branding.
Sarah Tew/CNET
That said, if you’re used to consumer headphones that pump up bass or accentuate vocals, the CB-1s might sound dull. Similarly, the Audio-Technica M50x, one of our favorite monitor-style headphones, have brighter, more detailed audio with tighter bass. The CB-1s just don’t seem to seal out as much external noise as the M50x, either. Basically, in this category the M50xs are a better choice for the extra cost (they run about $120). If you don’t want to spend more, the CB-1s are a safe bet, and better than the comparably priced Audio-Technica M30x in sound and build quality.
There is no hint of company branding on the headphones, and although that’s completely intentional, it doesn’t help them look any less generic. They are comfortable, due in part to the hefty ear pads that are slimmer at the front and get wider at the back, so they hug the curve of your head. The headband is also well padded and I had no problem wearing these headphones hour after hour.
The left ear cup has the cable input and Status Audio includes a coiled cable and an extended-length straight cable as well as a 1/4-inch adapter (but sadly no storage case or bag). Just make sure you twist and lock the cable in place or you’ll likely get some static from not having a solid connection.
Unless you’re really looking for a flashier design or are willing to pay more, the Status Audio CB-1 headphones are a very good bargain.
Mophie Juice Pack Plus for iPhone 6/6S review – CNET
The Good The Mophie Juice Pack Plus more than doubles your iPhone’s battery life. An indicator light helps you keep tabs on power levels, and its burly plastic construction protects against drops.
The Bad The case is pricey and its matte finish attracts fingerprints.
The Bottom Line Mophie’s backup battery case remains one of the best in the biz, but it’s pricier than others, so consider it an investment.
Visit manufacturer site for details.
If your iPhone’s battery is running low and you don’t have your charger handy, a case with a built-in battery can be a blessing. This is especially true if a clunky external battery pack that you have to plug into your phone sounds cumbersome. One option is Mophie’s Juice Pack Plus, which has been around in one form or another for years. This particular model features a 3,300mAh battery inside its hard-shell case, which promises 120 percent more battery power.
At $119.95 and £109.95 (or about AU$167) the Mophie Juice Pack Plus is pricier than its competitors like Incipio, Trianium and Anker (which fall between $60-80). But it’s a good buy for the person who cares tremendously about effortlessly keeping the phone powered up and who doesn’t mind carrying extra bulk.
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A sliding toggle switch gets the case charging when your iPhone’s power starts to dip; indicator lights on the back of Mophie’s slide-on case help you keep tabs on how much power it has left. Since the Juice Pack Plus adds extra bulk, Mophie includes a short headphone jack extension in case your pair of headphones don’t fit.
There’s also a Micro-USB charging cable, which you use to charge the case. That means your iPhone’s eight-pin Lightning charger won’t work, which is a common case for third-party battery cases (if you’re adamant on using only one cable, Apple’s own battery case uses the Lightning port).
An indicator on the back shows how much juice the case has.
Josh Miller/CNET
It took about 50 minutes for the case to charge an empty iPhone 6 50 percent, and a little over 2 hours to fully charge, with a little power left over.
Pleasantly, the case didn’t obstruct the iPhone’s audio or silent toggle, though its matte coating attracted fingerprints and smears. If you don’t see yourself going through extra-long stretches without charging, you might be fine with a less expensive, lower-capacity charging case or small external power brick. But if you want a charger you don’t have to worry about, the Mophie Juice Pack Plus is a reliable option that will last you days.
Huawei Watch Jewel review
One of the more common complaints when it comes to smartwatches is their big, bulky, and often industrial design that sometimes looks out of place even on average-sized wrists, and seem to be catered exclusively towards men. While not the most compact smartwatch out there either, Huawei attempted to address some of these concerns last year with their Android Wear offering, the Huawei Watch, which featured a very elegant design, and one of the classiest we’ve seen thus far.
- Huawei Watch review
However, there was a market requirement that needed to be filled, and Huawei did just that, with the introduction of the Huawei Watch Elegant and Huawei Watch Jewel, first unveiled at CES earlier this year. While these devices will look great on anybody’s wrists, they were certainly designed with women in mind. Today, we’ll be taking a closer look at the latter, in this in-depth Huawei Watch Jewel review!
Buy the Huawei Watch Jewel now
Buy the Huawei Watch Elegant now
Unboxing
As was the case with the original Huawei Watch, the classy, elegant, and high-end experience that is on offer with the Huawei Watch Jewel starts not with the device itself, but the packaging as well. You get a beautiful unboxing experience with this smartwatch, with a stylish box that springs open to reveal the watch in all its glory, nestled within the soft, fuzzy, velvet interior, with the words, “timeless design, smart within,” printed at the top. Pulling up on the small gold handles, included to ease the struggle with lifting the internal cover, removes the encasing. Below this is where you will find the usual device documentation, the proprietary charging cable, the magnetic charging platform, and an AC wall plug.
Design
As mentioned, Huawei has released that two smartphones that have been designed to cater to women. The one we will be taking a closer look at in this review is the rose gold Huawei Watch Jewel, which gets its name from the 68 1.5 mm Swarovski Zirconia stones that border the display, while the other, the Huawei Watch Elegant, comes with a rose gold stainless steel body as well, but replaces the stones in favor of a knurled pattern ring around the screen.
As is the case with its namesake, the Huawei Watch Jewel comes with a round display, which is the direction more and more Android Wear device manufacturers are heading, allowing for a more traditional look and feel. The round display can make viewing some content a little bit difficult, but in terms of design, this is definitely the better option. The crown is positioned for easy access at the 2 o’ clock position, and while it does rotate, it only functions when pressing it. Pressing the crown turns the display on or off, and a long press will take you directly into the Settings menu.
There are a few options available when it comes to watch straps, with the standard version of the Jewel and Elegant coming with blue and white Italian leather straps respectively. However, this particular review unit features a white leather strap with a snakeskin pattern, that adds to the overall elegance of the watch. With a width of 18 mm, the band itself is thinner than the 21 mm strap that is available with the original, which not only puts a bigger emphasis on the watch itself, but allows for it to sit very comfortably on the wrist.
That said, the new designs mean the Huawei Watch Jewel body is actually larger than the original Huawei Watch, with the diameter increased to 44 mm from 42 mm, and the thickness bumped to 12.45 mm from 11.3 mm. The large size can take some getting used to, but actually adds to the elegance of the design by offering ample space for the larger number of stones. Yes, it’s certainly bigger but it’s not unbearable and considering the added stones and increased beauty, the larger design is not an issue.
This watch may be the rose gold version, but you don’t really see the pink hue that is usually associated with this color option. In fact, it looks much closer to the regular gold version, with a pink tinge appearing only when the body of the watch catches the light at the right angle.
The striking element of this design has to be the jewels, 68 1.5 mm Swarovski Zirconia stones, that are encrusted into the top ring. These stones don’t fail to sparkle regardless of what the lighting condition is, and will definitely catch the eye and turn heads. However, this ring around the frame sits high up and above the level of the display, which can make it a touch difficult to pull menus from the sides of the screen with your finger.
The Huawei Watch was already a stylish and flashy smartwatch to begin with, but the company takes things to a whole other level with the Watch Jewel. It may seem a little out of place in certain situations, and is difficult to pair with more casual attire. For example, the Watch Jewel will certainly stand out like a sore thumb if you are planning to wear it to the gym. That being said, the design is absolutely fantastic, and the rose gold version of the Huawei Watch Jewel is definitely one of the most flashy and luxurious smartwatches that is currently available in the Android Wear space.
Display
Apart from the design, everything else remains the same when comparing the Huawei Watch Jewel and its namesake. As such, the Watch Jewel also comes with a 1.4-inch AMOLED display, with a 400 x 400 resolution, and allows for one of the best smartwatch display experiences available right now.
Using an AMOLED display has its advantages, with it helping keep the watch from using too much power, given that for the majority of your day, the watch will be in an ambient mode, that utilizes a black background, with a white outline of your watch face. Not only does this look great, with the deep, inky blacks that are seen, but there is a lot of power saving here, with only around 10 percent of the display being lit.
The major gripe with the Huawei Watch is the lack of an ambient light sensor, which means that the brightness of the display has to manually be set by you. At the highest levels, it can be blindingly bright in low-light conditions, and will require a little more micromanagement than you’d like. The good news is that the brightness at the preset level proves to be good enough to allow for comfortable outdoor visibility.
Performance
As mentioned, things under the hood remain identical to the Huawei Watch. What you get here is a Snapdragon 400 processor, backed by 512 MB of RAM, which is the standard processing package as far as Android Wear devices are concerned. 4 GB of on-board storage is also available for those looking to locally store any data, like music. Android Wear isn’t very processor-intensive at all, and as such, the performance is as smooth and snappy as expected, with no notable performance issues found with the Watch Jewel.
The Watch Jewel comes with a 300 mAh battery, which stands up well to Huawei’s claims of the device allowing for 1.5 days of use. However, this does mean that you will find yourself having to at least top up the charge everyday. Included in the box is a magnetic charging platform, which isn’t the most elegant solution when it comes to charging your smartwatch. Although it is magnetic, you still have to make sure that the pins line up correctly before snapping it into place. It can be quite annoying to get this alignment right, and if you aren’t careful, you may end up with an uncharged watch the next day.
Software
The Huawei Watch Jewel is running Android Wear, and if you’ve ever used an Android Wear smartwatch before, you will be right at home with the software experience, given that it is identical across the board. Notifications are found in the form of cards, and you have the option to dismiss them, or swipe to the left to further interact with them. There’s a pull down menu for certain settings, and swiping to the left on the watch face brings up apps, contacts, and Google Now. It is a very streamlined and simple experience, and provides a great way to help avoid having to pull your phone out of your pocket every few minutes.
Android Wear can best be described as a notification center, and while Huawei as included their own Health suite, things remain largely the same. However, there are big exciting changes coming with Android Wear 2.0, which will take the Huawei Watch Jewel smartwatch experience to an entirely different level when it is released later this year.
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Pricing and final thoughts
The Huawei Watch Jewel is priced at $599.99, with the Elegant iteration without the Swarovski Zirconia stones available for $100 less.
So there you have it for this closer look at the Huawei Watch Jewel! Between the beautiful AMOLED display, and the elegant crystals that surround it, the Watch Jewel is in a class of its own. It is admittedly very flashy, which can be a turn off for some users, but some women will certainly appreciate that there is now a smartwatch available that was designed with them in mind.
- Huawei Watch Review
The Watch Jewel is also definitely on the higher side of the price spectrum, and if you are looking for something a little less showy, the Watch Elegant is priced at a 100 dollars cheaper. However, the new designs are certainly worth the price, and if you are in the market for a elegant, classy smartwatch, the Huawei Watch Jewel is one of the better options out there.
Buy the Huawei Watch Jewel now
Buy the Huawei Watch Elegant now
Kenmore 92583 review – CNET
The Good The $2,800 Kenmore 92583 electric range is a fast and furious cooker with a design that evokes luxury-brand design. The dual convection fans in the oven help you bake multiple racks of food evenly.
The Bad The range has too much of a heavy hand with some features such as broiling and the Accela-Heat mode, which promises to cook food without having to preheat the oven. The test results included burnt burgers and crunchy cinnamon rolls.
The Bottom Line This range looks like a pro, but still needs some practice when it comes to cooking.
Visit manufacturer site for details.
Kenmore has in recent years produced a steady stream of reliable ranges that cook food well. Many of them have even gotten good reviews here at CNET Appliances.
More Kenmore ranges
- Kenmore 95073 induction freestanding range
- Kenmore 97723 electric double oven range
- Kenmore 72583 gas slide-in range
Unfortunately, the company’s winning streak has ended with its Pro line. The Sears-held brand designed this suite of large kitchen appliances to rival products that come from luxury (read: more expensive) manufacturers. The Kenmore 72583 gas range from the Pro catalog was amateur in its cooking performance and gave me pause about Kenmore’s attempt to reach a higher-end market. The Kenmore 92583 electric range solidified my feelings about the company’s Pro ranges: These products let the entire brand down.
Like its gas counterpart, the $2,800 Kenmore 92583 has impressive extras — no-preheat baking, rapid boiling, dual convection fans — and a physical profile that will make home cooks feel like top chefs. The range nails basic tasks like baking and boiling as you would expect from a product that’s nearly $3,000. But it flounders at perfecting the features that are supposed to elevate the range above other mainstream brands. Tests left me with scores of unexceptional test food and questions about Kenmore’s move into professional kitchen-inspired appliances.
The Kenmore 92583 isn’t the range you’re looking for from this brand. Save yourself some money and go with the Kenmore 95073, a freestanding model that makes up for its lack of special features with its fast-boiling induction cooktop and $1,700 price.
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A remarkable range at first glance
The Kenmore 92583 has all the physical qualities that a house-hunting couple on HGTV could ask for. The 30-inch wide range has a stainless steel finish, a smooth electric cooktop and a slide-in design, features that allow it to make a confident statement in the kitchen without being too garish.
A few performance details are as equally noteworthy as the range’s appearance. The cooktop features a Turbo Boil burner, which lived up to its name in my tests. This burner took an average of 8.93 minutes to bring 112 ounces of water to a rolling boil. Only one other electric cooktop has clocked in a faster time: another Kenmore range, the 97723.
Large Burner Boil Test (Electric Models)
Kenmore 97723
8.68
Kenmore 92583
8.93
KitchenAid KSEG950ESS
9.13
GE PB911SJSS
9.32
Kenmore 41313
9.4
LG LRE3021ST
12.17
Samsung NE58K9850WG
13.2
Note:
Time to achieve rolling boil, in minutes
The 5.1 cubic-foot oven also has a couple of pleasant surprises hiding in its walls. The oven comes with dual convection fans that help circulate air more evenly and efficiently throughout the oven cavity. Convection works well when you’re baking food on more than one oven rack, and the two convection fans in this Kenmore proved that point well.
Xiaomi Mi Drone Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
With the Xiaomi Mi Drone, the Chinese company keeps doing what it does best: promising tech with high-end specs and performance at incredibly competitive prices.
Outside of China the company is best known for its smartphones, but it has been building a lineup of related devices such as the Yi action cam and the Mi Box, an Android TV-powered set-top box.
Now there’s a quadcopter. Xiaomi says the Mi Drone will come in two versions, one with a 4K-resolution camera and another with a 1080p camera. The former will be available in late July for 2,999 yuan (approximately $455, AU$635 or £310) as part of an open beta program. The latter is priced at 2,499 yuan (around $380, AU$530 or £260) and will be crowdfunded through the company’s Mi Home app, starting on May 26.
While there’s definitely been a drop in consumer drone prices, a sub-$500 price for a quad with a 4K-resolution camera is remarkable. Category leader DJI’s least-expensive quad with a 4K camera comes in at $799. Though you probably won’t get as polished a product as the DJI, Xiaomi is promising a compelling package.
The 1080p camera features a 16-megapixel Sony sensor while the 4K version uses a 12-megapixel sensor to record at 3,840×2,160-pixel resolution and supports photo capture in raw format. Both are mounted on motorized three-axis gimbals for image stabilization. To make traveling easier, the cameras are removable and the landing gear folds up.
Other features include:
- GPS and Glonass support for accurate positioning outdoors
- Visual positioning system for stability when flying indoors or without GPS (below 2.5 meters/8 feet)
- Up to 27 minutes of flight time from a 5,100 mAh removable battery
- Automatic take-off, landing and return modes
- Flight path planning and point-of-interest orbiting modes
Verykool Spark LTE SL5011 review: All that glitters is not gold
If you haven’t caught wind of verykool yet, it’s an affordable phone maker that you should be keeping an eye on. The company has been around for a while now, which means that its phone-building skills are now to very compelling levels. Earlier in the year, I reviewed the verykool Maverick SL5550 and came out fairly impressed.
Now there’s a new kid on the block – the compact Spark LTE SL5011. This 5″ phone brings pushes value to a new height, with fine-tuned refinements and aesthetics that even premium smartphone users will gawk at. Let’s check out how the Spark LTE ranks in the grand scheme of affordable unlocked phones.
Design
I’ll cut to the chase; verykool nailed the Spark LTE’s design. It’s a beauty. The second you unpack it, you’ll be blown away by the kind of build that the bargain price could get you.
The device is flanked by a premium metal frame, that has a smooth, reflective matte finish. Shiny chamfers are then trimmed out on each edge. You’d typically find this kind of detail on smartphones 3x the price. It makes me happy that the Spark’s metal brings the same eye-candy and premium feel that my flagship daily driver does (making me question how much I spent).
The power button and volume rocker share the same material, and they’re nicely tactile and firm to the press.
Only, I wish that the power button was under the volume rocker; it’s placed too high, in my opinion. But that’s a minor gripe on a 5″ phone. Also, a fingerprint scanner is no where to be found on the Spark.
One of my complaints on the Maverick was the cheap-feeling, glossy back cover. I’m glad that verykool listened; the Spark has a much nicer matte cover.
Despite having a smooth finish, it’s a lot less slippery than the glossy cover. I also think that, together with the shiny metal frame, the presentation of my white/gold model looks super classy. The Spark also comes in black/silver.
However, I must mention that shortly after unpacking the unit, I noticed these faint dark smudges on the back cover. But they disappeared after some use. I’m thinking that it’s some residue from the finish out of its manufacturing, so I’d recommend verykool to condition it before packing the phone up. Another minor gripe is the camera hump; it sticks out like on the Galaxy S6. This is OK, but the camera lens cover isn’t recessed. So I’m seeing hairline scratches appear on it.
The bottom is simply and symmetrically laid out. There’s a microUSB port at the center and two audio grills on either side (for the microphone and external speaker). Then there’s two plastic strips for antennas. On the top you’ll just find the 3.5mm headphone jack and more antenna lines.
The front of the Spark has fairly average sized bezels (by today’s standards). The glass has subtle 2.5D curves at the edges. Though, it doesn’t curve directly into the metal frame; there’s a thin plastic lining between the glass and the frame.
This phone interestingly goes with capacitive buttons instead of on-screen (like the Maverick). A nice addition is a tiny LED flash on the top left, so you can continue to take selfies even in the dark.
Performance
Let’s take a quick look at what the Spark LTE’s is packing:
- Chipset: MediaTek MT6735P (quad-core, 1.0Ghz)
- Memory: 1GB of RAM
- Display: 5″ 720p IPS LCD
- Storage: 16GB internal and up to 64GB microSD
- Camera: 13MP rear and 8MP front, both with LED flash
- Battery: 2,200mAh (non-removable)
- Connectivity: 4G LTE CAT 4 (bands: B2/4/5/7/17), HSPA+, GSM bands: 850/900/1800/1900Mhz
- Software: Android 5.1 (Lollipop)
Despite the premium exterior, the specs bring us back to the reality that we’re looking at a budget smartphone. The quad-core MediaTek MT6735P processor is capable enough, but 1GB of RAM is just too low these days. To me, that’s the biggest letdown of this phone, and it shows in the performance.
While the Spark can be snappy, occasionally, there are delays in operations (i.e. opening/switching apps). Don’t get me wrong, it’s in no way an unusable experience. But I feel like an extra gig of RAM could’ve gone a long way. You don’t want the user to look at their buddy’s phone and notice that it doesn’t hang as much.
On the storage side of things, I’m glad that there’s 16GB and not 8GB. And you can bump that up by 64GB with a microSD card. The SIM tray that you eject from the side nicely accepts two cards, from either side. You can either tack on a microSD card or a second SIM card.
Considering the size and price of the Spark, a 2,200mAh capacity battery is in the ballpark that I’d expect. It performed modestly in my experience, but don’t expect superb battery life. It should get the job done (get you through the day) unless you’re a heavier user.
Available internal storage out of the box.
Battery drain throughout a day of use and idle while sleeping (long slope at the end).
Display
I was satisfied with the Maverick’s display when I reviewed it. I appreciated that verykool was using a competent IPS LCD screen; I’ve seen some terrible displays on budget phones. Fortunately, the Spark shares the same sentiment.
Its 5″ screen shows decent colors and good viewing angles. It can also get sufficiently bright to view outside. No, it won’t compete with more brilliant displays from top-end manufacturers, but its definitely great for the price. Some may scoff at the 720p resolution, but I think it’s sufficient on a 5″ panel (~ 294 ppi).
Camera
The Spark packs 13MP rear sensor. On the surface, that sounds great, but we have to be mindful that it’s not all about megapixels. Its f/2.2 aperture lens and 1.12µm pixel size implies modest performance. On the front, we also have a high megapixel 8MP shooter.
Verykool’s camera interface works sufficiently. The capture speed is average, which is fine with me; I’ve seen some slow cameras even from pricier smartphones. The buttons are laid out intuitively. Along the top you have toggles for HDR, flash, and camera switching between the back and front. There’s also a shutter activating gesture (peace sign with your hand) that you can toggle.
You’ll also see various modes along the left. Some of these are recognizable, like panorama and face effects, but others are verykool’s own specialty. Live Photo Mode is a gif-like capture (or moving set of pics), Motion Track Mode keeps an object focused during movement, and Multi-angle View Mode lets you capture angles of a subject and slide about it.
My only gripe with the software is the shutter button. I complained on my Maverick review that you have to hit the shutter button dead center or it won’t take, leading to frequent misses. Unfortunately, it’s the same on the Spark. But you can capture with the volume buttons to sidestep the virtual button.
Camera Samples
The reproduction is just OK, to my eyes. It’s not hard for dynamic ranges to get the best of the camera and blow out the lighting. HDR only helps a little bit. Also, the images are too fuzzy for a 13MP camera. You can pull off some decent shots in good lightning conditions, but if you look closely, they’ll all have noticeable blur.
Software
It’s a good thing that verykool keeps the custom software to a minimum. You won’t get a completely stock Android experience, but very close. Verykool throws in some of its own apps (i.e. gallery, browser, calendar). I do wish manufacturers would not bother with that and just use Google’s solutions. It’s a wasted effort. Verykool also includes its own app with additional features, if you like that kind of thing.
We’re looking at an Android 5.1 build (Lollipop), so it’s not the most current, but acceptable. The software doesn’t use Google’s launcher, so while you’ll get Material Design’s look, the animations/transitions aren’t all there (i.e. the pop up app drawer. Though, folders do pop up the stock way).
Final Thoughts
I think that the Spark LTE is a great evolution for verykool. It’s fortunate that I got to try the Maverick, because I can see how the brand is progressing. It’s doing a great job refining those rough edges and increasing value.
Although, there’s still more work to do. My biggest gripe with the meager 1GB of RAM. That must change. The camera performance also has plenty of room for improvement. While other aspects of the phone are aggressively closing the gap between pricier phones, the camera is still significantly behind.
But with all that said, the fact is that the Spark LTE runs at only $179 retail, and that’s a bangin’ value. You get a lot of phone for that price.
Verykool Spark LTE SL5011 product page
Omega J8006 Nutrition Center Juicer review – CNET
The Good The Omega J8006 Nutrition Center Juicer uses its mighty motor and auger to cold press an impressive amount of juice from even the most troublesome produce. The machine is small, sturdily built, and is simple to operate. The Omega J8006 is also very easy to clean by hand and uses dishwasher-safe parts. The machine can operate as a pasta maker or basic food processor in a pinch.
The Bad The Omega J8006 Nutrition Center Juicer costs a lot more than less capable centrifugal juice extractors. The Omega J8006’s food chute has a small opening that only accepts chopped or diced produce.
The Bottom Line The Omega J8006 Nutrition Center Juicer doesn’t come cheap, but it offers outstanding juicing performance and is a breeze to clean, both making the machine a shrewd purchase for the juicing set.
The Omega J8006 is an excellent juicing machine.
Chris Monroe/CNET
Compared with cheaper centrifugal models, the $300 Omega J8006 Nutrition Center Juicer is a big investment. If you’re serious about making fresh fruit and vegetable drinks at home though, this machine’s excellent cold-press juicing abilities and superb design more than offset the steep price.
Looking more like a stand mixer or a sewing machine than a juicer, the Omega J8006 may not seem like it can crush produce items and unlock their nutritious nectar. Looks can be deceiving, though, and sure enough, the Omega J8006 excels at transforming raw ingredients into liquid. In fact, it extracted more juice from our trial oranges than any other machine I’ve tested to date, earning a high 76.8 extraction percentage (based on amount of ingredients, remaining pulp, and extracted juice).
It’s a higher result than the Hamilton Beach 67601A (71.8 percent) and Breville JE98XL Juice Fountain Plus (66.4 percent). The VonShef Premium Slow Masticating Juicer, another cold-press juice-maker, couldn’t keep up here, either (64.5 percent). That said, both the Omega J8006 and VonShef appliances create juice that’s clear, lacks foam, and generally has a cleaner taste than their centrifugal counterparts.
The Omega pulled moisture from leafy greens with ease as well, notching an impressive average extraction percentage of 44.2 when processing kale and trouncing the VonShef’s weak kale showing (18.6 percent). More importantly the J8006 produced very consistent juice amounts during each respective test, the only product I’ve yet seen to do so.
Which juicer is best for you? (pictures)
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Also key, the Omega J8006 uses few parts (all dishwasher-safe) and creates less waste material, making cleanup a cinch. Add to this skillset the ability to stand in as a pasta maker, food processor, even coffee grinder in a bind and it’s clear why this juicer should be on your short list despite having a high price. If cash is tight, however, you can enjoy similar though less consistent performance by choosing the $80 Hamilton Beach 67601A Juice Extractor.
VonShef Premium Slow Masticating Juicer review – CNET
The Good The VonShef Premium Slow Masticating Juicer efficiently juices citrus and hard fruit. The cold-press machine also operates more quietly than centrifugal juice extractors.
The Bad The VonShef Premium Slow Masticating Juicer clogs often and has trouble chewing through fibrous kale leaves. The appliance uses a complex design with numerous parts that are tricky to assemble and break down. None of the juicer’s components are dishwasher-safe.
The Bottom Line Though relatively affordable for a cold-press machine, the VonShef Premium Slow Masticating Juicer clogs often, is overly complex, and is a pain to clean.
The VonShef Premium Juicer looks nice but had trouble performing.
Chris Monroe/CNET
Priced below the bulk of typical cold-press machines, the $200 VonShef Premium Slow Masticating Juicer certainly plays the role of fancy home juice extractor. It’s large, sports a pair of collection cups and spouts, and boasts an eye-catching red paint job. The juicer’s tower stands tall and imposing and has at its heart a menacing plastic auger, a drill bit-like piece that pulls in fruit and wrings liquid from produce slowly but with lots of torque.
Unfortunately, this kitchen gadget’s performance falls short of its imposing profile and grandiose name. First, the VonShef Premium Juicer is a jigsaw puzzle of many parts: eight in all, not counting the main unit that houses the machine’s power cord and electric motor. Second, these components must be aligned precisely or they won’t fit together. Worst of all, none of the juicer’s parts are dishwasher safe, so you’ll have to clean the entire contraption by hand. The VonShef Premium’s narrow food chute compounds these annoyances because you have to slice and dice produce into small chunks before you juice.
Which juicer is best for you? (pictures)
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The appliance did remove a decent amount of liquid from fruit and citrus, managing an average extraction of 64.5 percent when processing oranges (which means that 64.5 percent of the orange turned into juice, and the remaining percent was pulp). By contrast, the Omega J8006, a competing cold-press juicer, fared much better here (76.8 percent).
Running leafy and fibrous kale leaves through the VonShef Premium proved to be this machine’s undoing. The machine scored a low average kale extraction of 18.6 percent (compared with the Omega’s 44.2 percent) and clogged frequently, producing no juice at all.
All of these factors combine to paint a picture of a cold-press juicer that is relatively less expensive than its competition for a reason. For a juice extractor with satisfying results, you’d be wise to splurge on the $300 (about £210 or AU$410) Omega J8006, which makes more juice, produces less waste, and cleans up with minimal hassle.
Pebble Core Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
Meet the Pebble Core, one of the hardest-to-describe products I’ve seen recently. Unlike Pebble’s other wearable devices, this isn’t a smartwatch.
Think of it as a standalone, multipurpose, Android-powered smart button. Or a GPS fitness tracker that’s also a Spotify iPod Shuffle. Or, a 3G-optional GPS tracker. Pebble Core wants to be all of these things — and more.
Pebble Core can be a keychain.
John Kim/CNET
Maybe the best way to think of the Pebble Core is a product that takes features missing from the Pebble Time and offloads them onto a separate clip-on product. The Core has standalone 3G functions, and can track runs via GPS without a phone. Or, it could stream music over 3G cellular wireless (if you invest in a SIM card, and add it to your monthly phone bill). An included headphone jack plus Bluetooth make it, at the least, a Spotify mini-music player (it can play a downloaded Spotify playlists from its 4GB of built-in storage).
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According to CEO Eric Migicovsky, the Pebble Core is programmable and hackable. It can not only run software, but it has two large touch buttons on the front that can be assigned smart-button functions. Send an SOS ping via text, call an Uber, open a door, turn off a light — whatever smart buttons (such as the Flic) do, Pebble Core could theoretically do via a Pebble app interface.
Two buttons and a headphone jack.
John Kim/CNET
The Pebble Core runs for about 9 hours of music playback using GPS, or for days on standby. And it charges using the contactless Qi standard, meaning you don’t need to worry about a dongle, something that even the Pebble watches don’t have yet.
Pebble Core works as an accessory while wearing a Pebble watch, but it also works independently. It can pair with a phone or work on its own.
Pebble Core is available to back on Kickstarter, but it won’t arrive until January 2017. At its current $69 US promotional price, it’s affordable. But it’s not entirely clear whether what it does will be as good as what it promises.
Pebble
The Core could be a truly open type of online mini-computer hub, or hacker’s smart-button dream. Or, it could be a missing link for wearable off-wrist fitness. Or, perhaps it’s a testbed for the direction Pebble watches and products could evolve in the future.
That said, its lack of a screen and more buttons could limit its appeal, especially as a music player.
Features:
- Runs Android
- 3G SIM card slot
- Bluetooth
- Wi-Fi
- Two programmable touch buttons
- GPS
- Syncs with health apps (Runkeeper, Strava, MapMyRun, Google Fit, UA Record)
- Records voice notes
- Wireless Qi charging
- 4GB storage
Aquanta Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
The second largest energy suck in residential homes is the water heater — nearly one-fifth of your monthly power bill, according to one study. Turns out it takes a lot of energy to keep hot water on standby for when you need it.
Enter Aquanta. At $150, it’s a retrofit gadget that connects to your water heater to make it more energy efficient. How? By learning user patterns — like when you tend to shower or fill up the dishwasher. The result? Hot water when you need it, less wasted energy when you don’t.
It’s a simple idea, and one that’s been applied successfully to other parts of the smart home, like thermostats. If it works, Aquanta could have a shot at Nest-like success.
Aquanta will sit on top of your water heater. Which Aquanta model you buy and how exactly it will connect will depend on whether your heater is gas or electric.
Aquanta Inc.
How it works
Aquanta Inc. (the company and the product share a name) says water heaters are simpler in some ways to automate than thermostats. The simplicity is a result of their binary nature. Either they’re on or off. So the Aquanta device doesn’t have to do much automation other than control the power switch or ignition.
Where the smarts come in is with energy monitoring and device scheduling. Aquanta Inc. uses what they call an Enthalpy Sensor, which measures the changes in energy inside the water heater. This sensor lets the device gauge how much energy is lost by maintaining the heat of standing water. Aquanta also tracks water entering the water heater to help measure how many gallons of water are being used.
Together, these two sensors help Aquanta learn your hot water usage, and over time lower your energy waste. Ideally, that could mean plenty of hot water for showers in the morning, but during the day with kids at school and parents at work, hot water will be kept at a reasonable minimum — enough for an impromptu shower, but not an excessive amount, according to the developer.
According to the developer, installing Aquanta should be feasible for DIYers with basic plumbing skills. Everyone else will have to hire a professional.
Aquanta Inc.
How it could go right (or wrong)
Adding smarts to water heaters is a patently good idea. Especially if, as the company claims, Aquanta really works with up to 85 percent of American water heaters, and if it really cuts enough wasted energy to significantly affect your electricity bill. That said, Aquanta has me asking a few questions.
First off, the app to control the device isn’t an app at all. It’s a website you have to access via Web browser. Sure, users shouldn’t have to log into the control center often if everything works as planned. But if something does go wrong, I want solutions and control at my fingertips in seconds.
The other question I’ve got is about performance. Nest, the thermostat that popularized learning algorithms in smart home tech, worked well — but when it didn’t work, it wasn’t a huge deal. If Nest turned the temperature too low during the evening, you could just adjust the thermostat in the hallway. If Aquanta runs low on hot water when you stop at home to shower before an afternoon meeting, it could be a lot more inconvenient.
Both of these problems could be minor, though, depending on the execution of the product. And I can afford Aquanta a little breathing room on some of these features, because nobody else is attempting what it is. If this device can surmount these flaws, it could be a must-buy for the eco-conscious smart home owner.
AIVAnet 