Read: 8 mins. Jackery impressed me with their Explorer 1000 battery power station and its excellent customer service. I complemented it with two SolarSaga 100W solar panels for camping and in case we had a power outage. That was exactly what happened one day: we lost power for an ENTIRE day. Were the panels able to produce enough energy to get us through the whole day working from home?
Read: 4 mins. A tire can run flat at any time while biking, riding a scooter, or driving a car. For that reason, I have an $80 electric pump in my car's trunk that operates off the cigarette lighter plug, and a tall hand pump for bicycles that is inconvenient to pack into the backpack. One day, I came across an advertisement for this Vastar electric air pump -- a small, lightweight, ELECTRIC pump! Intriguing. I never knew compact ones like these existed! Naturally, I purchased one to see how it would do.
Read: 13 mins. Those who have known me know that I really like the Rockpals 500W battery power station for its compact size, but ultimately gave it away after falling in love with the Goal Zero Yeti 500x. It was no surprise then when one of my former coworkers bought the company's car refrigerator/freezer last month, the 26qt Rockpals RP-25L, and asked for my opinion of it. At first glance, I really liked the look: solid black with accents of bright orange in a compact size. I told him that it probably was good based on my past tests with the solid battery power station. As it turns out, the car freezer is Rockpals' first one ever. Did it live up to my expectations? How did it compare to my Foho 54qt car freezer? I asked him if I could borrow it for a week for evaluation, only to find a serious issue (and workaround) with the product.
Read: 6 mins. Ever since my best friend and I tried stand up paddle boarding (SUP) a few years ago, we had always wanted to purchase one but did not know whether we would enjoy it enough to buy one. Today, after having rented one many times, we decided it was time to own one but were unsure about whether to get an inflatable (iSUP) or a hard SUP. This review dives into the differences between them, and why I ultimately chose the inflatable, DvSport Sunshine.
Read: 14 mins. A week ago, I took my young son on his first backpacking trip into the Sierra Wilderness on a multi-day journey. Naturally, my wife was worried for our safety, and that gave me the opportunity to finally purchase something I had been eyeing for a while: an emergency GPS satellite communication device. I looked into SPOT, Garmin inReach, and various other products, but ultimately went with Garmin for its reliability and Iridium global, satellite network. How did it work for the trip? Did it send timely updates on our status and whereabouts?
Read: 5 mins. When the summer heat hits, having ice readily available is a blessing for quenching one's thirst and to cool down. Ice makers come in various shapes and sizes, and I was looking for an inexpensive, compact one for use on camping and road trips with a portable, solar-capable, battery power station. In this review, I take a look at a beautiful, red-colored ice maker from Euhomy that was recently used in 106F-degree weather during a backpacking outing and for a few days at home.