Platinum Tools EZ-SnapJack

Waaaaaaaaaaay back in the day (okay, so it was only this past February), I talked about an EZ RJ45 plug that saved tons of time for installers because you slide all 8 wires into a wide, unpartitioned slot, instead of inserting each wire into its own individual channel. Believe me – I did a couple of comparison terminations myself, and the EZ version was practically fun compared to the standard RJ45 plugs. The hands-down winner. Well, I’ve just met the EZ RJ45’s soul mate: Platinum Tools’ EZ-SnapJack™, otherwise known as the keystone jack that’s about to rock your world.

If I remember correctly, I actually giggled with glee as I witnessed my first demo of this product. Now, I’m no jaded, punchdown-weary telecom tech, but I have done a few jack terminations at work and in the Learning Lab at CEDIA Expo 2008 (just a quick aside – if you get the chance, go). And while keystone punchdowns are no big deal, they definitely land on the time-consuming side of things.

Not anymore – well, not as long as you’re using EZ-SnapJacks™. These things work exactly the same way as the EZ RJ45 connector, in that you just arrange the 8 wires into the correct sequence, slide them into an alignment sleeve, and then trim the ends. From there, all that’s left to do is pop the prepped cable into the open jack, snap the top down (which, by the way, is the action that acts as the actual “punchdown”), and you’re done. It’s complete and utter laziness, but in the most positive and productive sense of the word. All I have to say is: way to save time on the job.

TeleAdapt Wired Connectivity Pull-Through Hubs

Generally speaking, I’d rather be at my place than staying in a hotel, but here and there I’ve found a few “hotel-only” features that I’ve wished I could have taken home with me. Minibars, for instance. Who wouldn’t want an ever-stocked stash of soda and macadamia nuts right in their very own bedroom? Then again, that would just make one chubby, and a girl prefers to stay in single-digit clothing sizes. And then there’s the coveted glass and travertine shower with rainfall showerhead… but that’s a little out of my bank account’s league right now. So where does that leave me?

At the desk, of course. Well, not the actual desk itself, but the sleek little disk-shaped cable holder stuck to the top of it. You know, the thing that holds onto the built-in Ethernet cord, so everything’s ready to plug in as soon as you whip out your laptop. Unlike at home, at hotels, you never have to crawl under the desk to find the cable. It’s an altogether winning concept. Now, I have far too much of a conscience (or guilt complex?) to make off with lodging-establishment property, but unlike the shower and minibar, those nifty cable-holding hubs are both readily available and in compliance with my ordinary-person budget.

Before I go any further, I should probably tell you exactly what they’re called: TeleAdapt Wired Connectivity Pull-Through Hubs. And they’re the exact same thing that you find at hotels and resorts – right down to the desk card that holds your choice of instructions or messages. If you’re going to use it at home or at work, you could always stick a motivational quote or something funny into the card holder, but if that’s not your thing, you can just remove it completely.

The TeleAdapt hub has a weighted base and a suction cup to keep it in place, and here’s the really cool thing – it isn’t just for Ethernet cords! There are 3 types of pull-thoughs, one each for Internet, Audio, and A/V connections – and each one includes a cable for its respective application. But if you already have all the cables you need, just go with the Cablesitter, a non-wired model that can be used with any cord you have.

Datacomm Electronics Recessed Media Box

First of all, let me say that I am not a two-face. A few months back, I did a blog post on a line of home theater wall plates that act as transition points for A/V cables wherever they enter into, or emerge from, your walls. Really neat products. Today, I learned about a different set of wall plates that operate under the same general concept, but with a slight design twist. So, before I tell you about those, I just wanted to clarify that I still fully endorse the first wall plates I wrote about. But new mention-worthy things come along from time to time, right?

Okay, now that I’ve cleared the air, we can get down to business. Like I said, the particular wall plate we’re going to be talking about today, the Recessed Media Box by Datacomm, is made to cover cable entrance and exit points on your walls, but unlike the hooded designs you’ll find a lot of the time, they’re styled more along the lines of self-healing grommets. If you’re wondering what the heck I mean by “hooded design” and “self-healing grommet,” let me explain.

In every home theater setup, there comes a point where your A/V cables need to come through the wall and attach to your A/V equipment. So far so good? And while some people go for schmancy, professionally-wired wall plates, some of us want to forego the extra steps and expense, and just pull our cables out of a hole in the drywall and carry on with our business. But you don’t want an ugly, rough-cut hole staring you in the face. That’s where hooded wall plates come in. They create a neat border around the exit point, and protect cables from abrasion as they come through the wall. The hood actually helps to further neaten things up, and direct the overall cable flow.

On the other hand, you can have a self-healing grommet-style wall plate – case in point, the Recessed Media Box. With this type of face plate, cables are fed through radial slits in a flexible material. These slits gently grip and conform to your A/V cables, holding them in place while ensuring that no gaps or holes are left around them. The gap-free factor is the part that I really appreciate, because I’m not completely sure that I’d want an ever-open hole in my living room wall. In the event that pestilence or mold spores were lurking behind my drywall, I’d want them to stay there, not have a way to creep through. But that’s just me… I’m an apartment-dweller with shared walls, so personally, I just like the idea of having somewhat of a seal in place.

UPM Outdoor Programmable Timer

Autumn is here, Halloween’s right around the corner, and now that the Sun is coming up later and setting a little earlier every day, I’ve been thinking that this is the time of year when an outdoor timer could really be appreciated. A lot of people have outdoor lights that are set to timers, but during the Fall and Spring, when daylight hours can drastically shorten and lengthen, it can be tough to synchronize your outdoor lighting with ever-shifting sunrises and sunsets. Instead of having to constantly recalculate and reset things for yourself, how about letting a photosensitive timer take care of things for you?

UPM’s Outdoor Programmable Timer makes timed lighting a no-brainer because it’s equipped with a built-in photocell that detects ambient light levels. When the photocell detects darkness falling, it automatically turns the lights on, and the next morning, it shuts things off when it senses that the Sun is putting out enough light for you to get around by. Sounds like a nice thing to have around, doesn’t it? You can always know that you’ll come home to a lit path, and if you’re one of those go-getter morning people who leave the house before it’s light out, you’ll still be able to see where you’re going.

This is not only great for those of us who tend to trip over ourselves in the dark, but it also helps you to be more aware of your surroundings in case the might be any uninvited guests lurking in the shadows. I don’t want to go on too much of a tangent or bring unpleasant things to mind, but I live in crazy South Florida, and simply put, things happen. I used to live in a neighborhood where a decent-sized feral cat would occasionally prowl during the night, and lately I’ve been reading newspaper stories about people being robbed near their front doors as they’ve gotten home from work late or left very early in the morning. I used to leave the house before 5am, so needless to say, I appreciate the extra measure of security that mere light can bring. A timer like this just makes that easier.

And back to business – I’m just going to tell you one more thing. I’ve been focusing on the photocell aspect of this timer, but I should mention that it also has a time dial for manual settings and overrides, so that gives you a little more flexibility for more fun things… like Christmas lights.

Pink Products for Breast Cancer Awareness

No matter who you are, where you live, or how big or small your circle of family and friends is, chances are very good that you know someone whose life has been changed because of breast cancer. Maybe you’ve lost a loved one to it. Maybe you’ve watched someone close to you battle though it and emerge a survivor. Maybe you’re living with it yourself. But one thing’s for sure – once you have a brush with the disease, you never forget it.

Since yesterday, October 1st, you’ve probably begun seeing a lot pink ribbons and references to Breast Cancer online and in the media. That’s because October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and this year, 2009, CableOrganizer.com has decided to jump in and do something to support this admirable, and universal, cause.

And so, today, I’m not going to focus on one cool product, but 9 very worthwhile ones that are not only fun and useful, but whose purchase goes toward supporting breast cancer research, as well as meeting the needs of women who are fighting the disease. If you or someone you know is a fan of the color pink, please visit our Breast Cancer Pink Page, which is full of rosy-hued products that have been chosen to help raise funds in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. From now through October 31, 2009, we’re donating $1 from each purchase of these products to The Donna Foundation, a Florida-based non-profit organization dedicated to furthering breast cancer research and providing assistance to breast cancer patients.

So if you’re already looking into accessorizing your iPod or organizing some cables around the house, please be sure to check out the items on our Pink Page first – by purchasing one of these products, you’ll not only be getting something you need, but will also be helping to prevent and cure breast cancer in the process.

Belkin In-Desk iPod® Dock

When you think about it, iPods® are kind of like our little buddies. They make us happy. They keep us company while we’re working out, chilling out, or stepping out to have some fun. Is there any other companion out there that shows us such a good time, yet requires so little in return? Kind of makes you wish that you treated yours a little better, doesn’t it?

The next time you tote your iPod® to work, instead of just tossing it haphazardly onto your desktop, show it some respect by seating it comfortably in an In-Desk iPod® Dock from Belkin. This compact docking station essentially becomes built into you work surface, because it installs right into a pre-existing, or specially made, 3″ grommet hole (the kind you run cables through). Once it’s in place, the dock sits just about flush with your desk’s surface, so it’s not like you’ll have some weird electronic appendage growing out of your desktop – it’s actually quite polite and unobtrusive.

After the iPod® dock has been installed into the grommet hole, all you need to do is run the included USB cable between your computer and the underside of the dock, and then pop your iPod into its rightful seat of honor. Just don’t forget to glance over and smile at it once in a while.

JuiceBar Solar Charger

Ahhhhhhhhh, Florida. Sun. Sand. Citrus. Hurricanes. It figures that there has to be some sort of trade-off, especially when one lives in a place that can be total paradise for years at a time. As most of you already know, every few summers here in the Sunshine State, one of the named storms that taunt us menacingly from nearby Atlantic coordinates will actually make good on its threats, come charging ashore, and give us a proper thrashing. As long as you don’t live in a flood zone, lose a part of your roof, or have a window smashed by a wind-hurled coconut, things generally turn out okay in the end. There’s just that pesky wait of 2 days to a week to get your power back on. Curses!

Up until now, many of us have whiled away post-hurricane downtime by looking on helplessly as the battery bars on our cell phone displays rapidly dwindled. Sure, you can leave your electricity-deprived home and try to plug in at the first Starbucks or McDonald’s to open their doors, but there’s just one problem – everyone else is having the same brilliant idea. What’s a tech-dependent Floridian to do? Why, take advantage of that ever-abundant sunlight, of course.

To do that, you’ll need a JuiceBar solar charger. To be honest, as a fan of that Jamba place, the JuiceBar’s name was the first thing that appealed to me (and yes, I know that it’s also an electrical pun, but that’s beside the point). I just heard “Juice Bar” and my ears automatically perked up. But my interest really picked up when I found out what this thing does. The pocket-sized JuiceBar uses small solar cells to charge the batteries of cell phones, iPods, portable gaming systems, and plenty of other gadgets. Genius. As you can imagine, the entire CableOrganizer staff was immediately enthralled. We’re saved!

I realize that I’ve probably already typecast this product as a must-have for residents of the Southeastern Atlantic and Gulf Coast states, but really, this is also a terrific charger for the green-conscious, tech addicts, and frequent campers out there. And here’s something else you’ll also like: the JuiceBar charger comes with twelve connectors that are more or less universally compatible with most current portable electronics. The JuiceBar has a high-capacity battery that becomes fully charged when it spends 12 to 15 hours in direct sunlight, and that charge is enough to “re-juice” two standard cell phone batteries (on average).

Panduit® Mini-Com® Snap-In Port Identification Icons

Don’t get me wrong – labeling network data ports and phone jacks is a great thing, especially if you have a situation where the two are grouped together. Unless you want to stick to the old phone and data jack color codes (which many people don’t do anymore for decor reasons), the two can be just about impossible to tell apart at a glance, so labels can be pretty important. But then again, they can look so, well… networky. That is to say, extremely technical. Let’s admit it – there are probably times, now and then, when you just don’t want to see printed labels all over your wall jacks. And do you know what? I can’t blame you for that. Neither can Panduit®, which is why they developed Mini-Com® Snap-In Port Identification Icons.

Instead of relying on bold lettering to tell you which jack is which, Panduit’s®  Mini-Com® port ID plates rely on subtle icons to clue you in. A computer means “data,” and a phone means “voice.” Super easy. And since the icons are molded-in and not printed on, they don’t scream for the attention of people who are passing by – they just sort blend in until you need them. Another nice thing about Mini-Com® snap-in icons is that they’re available in 12 different colors – neutrals to further blend in with your room’s color scheme, or brighter hues that fit in with just about any color code. And have I mentioned that they’re fast and inexpensive to use? No labels to print, no backings to peel off – you just snap a plate into the icon slot of a Mini-Com®  module, wall plate, surface mount box or patch panel, and your work is done.

Powramid™ Surge Protector

Just when you thought they couldn’t invent a surge protector in another shape. First came block-style surge suppressors, the kind that most of us have under our desks. Then came the round tabletop version for conference rooms. And believe it or not, there’s even one out there that looks like a squid. But up until now, there haven’t been any pyramids -at least not that I know of. But I found one! Meet the uniquely conical Powramid™, a 6-outlet surge protected PDU that gives you 360° power. Because it provides receptacles that face in all directions, it’s perfect for use on conference tables, or for any other situation in which you have a group of people who need to plug multiple devices into a central power source.

The Powramid’s™ design benefits don’t end with 360° power availability, though. It just so happens that it’s a lot easier to fit bulky plugs, adapters, and transformers into outlets that are configured like a pyramid. When you plug fat adapters into regular power strips or surge protectors that have their outlets placed side by side, you can run into a little problem: wasted outlets. Extra-wide adapters have a tendency to creep over the borders of the outlets that they’re plugged into and invade the space of neighboring receptacles, making them unusable for other devices. Call me crazy, but I think that if you pay for a certain number of outlets, you should be able to use them all.

The Powramid™ is crowned with a power switch that lights up when the unit is running, and allows you to switch the whole thing off when none of the devices plugged into it are being used. The switch is also covered with a removable plastic dome that prevents you from accidentally shutting the surge suppressor down while it’s in use.

Watts Up? .Net Watt Meter

These days, it seems like power usage meters for home and office are popping up everywhere. And why shouldn’t they be? Not only are they green (they tell you how much electricity different electrial appliances consume while running), they’re also big money-savers (they help you make smart utility-bill-reducing decisions on which power-guzzlers to get rid of or use less). The only catch is that you have to actually be present to use them. That’s fine for an average home-bodyish chick like me, but what about the environmentally-conscious jet-setters out there? How do they keep tabs on how much energy their homes and businesses are using, and more importantly, how much that power consumption is costing them?

I just found out. They use the Watts UP? .Net Electricity Watt Meter. While it works just like the other power usage meters out there (you plug it into a wall outlet, then plug an appliance into the meter, and the meter tells you how much power the device consumes), it has an extra high-tech feature that lets you control it and get readings even when you’re far, far away: a built-in web server. Whether you’re down the road or overseas, you can access your power usage data, and even switch the device attached to the .Net on and off, all via the Internet.

The Watts Up? .Net is compatible with any device that’s between 100 and 250VAC, and has a non-volatile built-in memory that can store up to 8,000 records for long-term tracking.

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