3 top-selling gadgets that will fit into any stocking

[boingboingshop]

Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/12/05/3-top-selling-gadgets-that-wil.html

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[reactionabe]

@boingboingshop

This handy unit is perfect for the outdoorsy, but won’t go unused by anyone who cares about the environment, their power bill, or both. Capable of charging up and storing a battery capacity of 5,000mAh, the Universal Waterproof Solar Charger can charge up an iPhone or Android from what it gathers just soaking up the sun

These are terrible. Do not buy them if you care about the environment, because you’re wasting the energy on the manufacture of solar cells that you very, very likely will not use, because you need hours and hours and hours of sun to fill that doohickey. You’re very unlikely to “pay back” the energy that was used to make it by using the sun unless you’re more dedicated about it than you are likely going to be.

[tamooj]

Just FYI - 500 lumen is not bright, is not uber-bright, and is certainly not ‘military grade’. These are cheap because vendors are dumping the older tech LEDs. The new Cree LED based LED chips and drivers crank out about 1250 lm each and lights that utilize them are about $14 over on the Bezos pit. Better filters, please - the demographic here is a bit more nerdy and tech savvy than the rubes over at hammacher schlemmer.

[anon75430791]

@tamooj

the demographic here is a bit more nerdy and tech savvy than the rubes over at hammacher schlemmer.

While I am not aware of the tech specs, I just kind of assumed with these three products that they are very cheap to make and high profit margins.

By virtue of all the scammy ads I see them in all over the damn internet. It’s kind of like how no high quality product advertises itself in an infomercial at 4am.