Not all earphones have to be fancy or expensive and so it's nice to be able to play with a pair of earbuds that are just plain good. There's literally nothing fancy or extraordinary about these other than the fact that they sit comfortably in my ear and transmit good quality sound from my phone to my ears. Soul Byrd is essentially my new go-to backup ear buds for traveling when my more fancy and expensive pairs run out of juice on a long plane flight.

The smart phone market has pretty much reached maturity. Simply put they are "fast enough" and most people don't need an upgrade. However, that leaves a saturated market forcing phone makers to innovate or die. That, combined with the roll-out of 5G in the United States and around the world, we may be ready to enter a new era of smart phone innovation. Here's some phones we're excited about in 2019!

The simple keyboard is something that most people don't think much about until it gets worn out. For gamers looking for an extra edge though, a good gaming keyboard is as important as your mouse for getting frags faster. Along with simply being more responsive though, a good gaming keyboard needs to have flair and look cool to match the amped up style and attitude of the gamer himself. After spending a few hours "testing" this keyboard with Fortnight and some other games, I'm happy to say that it lives up to it's potential.

Your iPad is either a valuable business tool, a recreational device that you could not be without or both. It's a sleek elegant device offering both form and function that is matched by its toughness. That said it is important that you protect this device using a good sleeve.

Embarking on an adventure is one of the most exciting feelings ever. You might be thinking of the way to capture your trip, as you’re planning it. There are so many boring travel photos wrapped all over your Instagram homepage, but you want to make a travel video that can truly capture your memories.

Typically when I travel, I have a carry-on bag and backpack. Sometimes though, for quick overnight trips I honestly don't need that much space and it would be nice to travel with just a single bag. Unfortunately my backpack wasn't designed for clothes and my carry-on bag certainly wasn't designed for carrying my laptop and paperwork. 

I take a lot of photos and while it's great to see them on the computer or my phone and share them on Facebook... there's nothing that can compare to printing them out. I've been a fan of the prints on canvas format for a few years now and honestly I typically bounce around from one vendor to the next depending on the deals offered online. CanvasPop offered to let me try their service though and I'm impressed. Not only were the images color accurate and printed flawlessly, but the canvas and frames were far superior to other services out there.

It’s Mardi Gras season again and that means it’s time to get your party going. While this gear guide is designed for guys headed to New Orleans (or one of the other awesome cities that have Mardi Gras Celebrations!), you can use this guide to help create the ultimate Mardi Gras experience in your own home.

Last fall I lost my wallet. I took it out at Home Depot's self-checkout and didn't notice it till I tried to buy my groceries an hour later. The embarrassment of ringing up more than a $100 worth of food with people waiting in back of you only to realize you have no money is something I'll remember for a long while. It's not that I didn't have money it was simply I had no wallet. Immediately I feared that it had fallen out in the parking lot and was likely long gone. Luckily the folks at Home Depot were amazing and kept it safe. However, since then I've been using Tile to keep tabs on my wallet as well as my camera bag.

A couple years ago the founder of Standard Luggage reached out to me with a great product they had just launched. As a fan of travel backpacks I agreed to give it a review, but now they've come back with an incredible updated version that is honestly my "go to" bag for short 2-3 day trips. Since I started testing it last fall, this bag has been with me to on more than a dozen excursions ranging from overnight road trips to quick flights across country. It is quite frankly the perfect bag for any busy guy that loves to travel.

I get a lot of pitches for earphones and there is quite literally a box under my desk with the discarded samples that I offer to friends with they come over. These new ones from Phiaton though have earned a spot on my desk and especially when I'm on the go. Simply put, they sound great, are comfortable in my ear, light enough that they don't feel awkward on my neck and with the active noise canceling I can quite literally turn off distracting noises around me.

These days, most of us rely on our phones to some extent. It’s just part of modern life. It can be a big expense if you approach it in the wrong way though. Too many people spend far more than they should on things like their phone contract and everything else associated with their smartphone, but it shouldn’t be that way. Just because you need your phone, that doesn’t mean you should accept spending more than you have to on it.

Generally when you shop for a new computer it's just like buying a car... there's the practical side of your brand that say you just need something to get you to work and back... but then there's the fun side that says, "but I want to feel good doing it!" That's what I love about this Legion Y530 laptop that Lenovo sent me to check out as part of our holiday gifts for guys. I'll admit, I'm not a seasoned tech reviewer and despite my previous life being a hardcore gamer - those days were years behind me. Until this week anyhow when I was "forced" to test this laptop out... for research purposes of course. 

We don't endorse drinking and skiing any more than we would drinking and driving. However, sometimes a run is so great, the powder is so amazing, or the view is so incredible that it deserves to be toasted. Unfortunately though, as anyone who skis knows, alcohol prices are ridiculous at ski resorts and even then, you might not have a vendor at the summit. Since a traditional flask is bulky and glass breaks... what's a guy to do? That's where WhiSki Poles comes in and it can hold up to 8 oz of liquid inside an otherwise standard aircraft grade aluminum ski pole! 

I love smart watches but like the early days of hybrid cars - the design is meant to appeal to "tech people" and not those that just want a good looking watch. Over the past few years though, there have been hundreds - maybe even thousands - of watch faces released for Google's Wear OS. As beautiful as those are and with the improvements in screen technology making them look more realistic every year... it's still no replacement for mechanical movement and physical hands. That's what LG's designers believed when they created this watch and I'm fundamentally in agreement with them. A true chronograph with mechanical movement is a work of art that makes a "tool" a fashion accessory that makes a statement when worn on a man's wrist.

Gadgets have become apart of modern life in a way that few people could have accurately predicted just a few decades ago. Whether we are at home or out and about, there is some form of technology that has been designed to assist or entertain us. Here we are going to discuss some of those pieces of tech based on their role in certain environments.

When it comes to buying gifts, we often forget about making sure we look and feel good too. The folks over at BabbleBoxx.com sent us some great items to help guys look great while not spending a ton of money doing so. Products included here include selections from: ZENNI Optical, Ties.com, Dr Scholl's, Beau Brummell, and because earbuds and headphones are sooooo last year, a super cool item from the folks at AfterShokz.

Sure, you can connect your Xbox to pretty much any old TV and start playing... but what's the fun in that? There are so many awesome gaming accessories now that the hardcore gamer has so many options to customize their experience. Here's a few of our favorite products for guys who love video games!

For those with trucks, tailgate parties and trail lunches are easy... in fact, the entire act of tailgating sorta implies that you have a tailgate. What if you have an SUV or a car though? Setting stuff up in the trunk just isn't the same and that means you have to bring a big bulky table with you. Luckily, I've found a solution!

Years ago, I bought a new car at the dealership and they suckered me into buying their “protective coating” that would help the car stay clean and help protect from nicks and scratches. That coating cost me hundreds of dollars and frankly … I’m not sure it did anything. Flash forward a few years and the folks at AvalonKing sent me their Armor Shield IX DIY Kit to try out. For under $100, this is a great solution for anyone looking to keep their car looking like new.