After a very successful Kickstarter campaign back in January, Canadian bag makers VENQUE (pronounced Venk) have returned to Kickstarter to launch the newest item in their collection: the Campro DSLR Bag. Made from a durable, water-resistant fabric blend of their own creation—dubbed Quanta Fabric—the Campro is capable of carrying just about everything a photographer might need for a pro shoot: a camera…
If drinking cold brew coffee out of a mason jar is your thing, you'll appreciate having a Cuppow around. It's a BPA-free plastic lid that essentially converts the jar into a travel mug. You can sip straight from the lid or use a straw, whichever you prefer. There are a variety of Cuppow colors and sizes to choose from, whether you're drinking…
The Tessel Anti-Gravity Pack is a Kickstarter campaign for a sleek modular backpack system inspired by space exploration. They had me at hello. There are four components in this system (from largest to smallest): Anti-Gravity Pack — The primary backpack piece, made from water-resistant nylon. Sports ventilated shoulder harnesses, an adjustable sternum strap, and hidden pockets. Lander — Smaller pack that can…
The Mod Folio is a leather case for securely carrying an iPad mini and other small items such as cards, pens, earbuds, and more. What makes it really interesting is that they have all these various inserts—each designed with a different purpose in mind—that magnetically attach to the inner spine of the folio. Say you buy the Traveler Mod to start with,…
The Stayhold is an ingenious divider that can keep things in your car trunk from falling down or rolling all over the place. It works great for groceries, toolsets, paint cans, and a lot more. You can reposition it as needed, but it grips the carpet wherever you place it so it won't slide around as you drive. You can get a…
This one could come in handy for those of you lucky enough to be at WWDC this week. The Limefuel Blast is a handy external battery pack for charging a full-sized iPad, iPad mini, or iPhone while on the go. It can charge two devices at once, even while being charged itself. When the battery isn't being recharged (which should be most…
This 5-port USB charger by Anker gets everything right. It lets you charge up to five gadgets at once—iPads, iPhones, Kindles, cameras, you name it—and intelligently adjusts the output of each port based on whatever's connected (or disconnected, for that matter). Awesome for families with a lot of stuff to charge. It draws very little power while idle, and it has built-in…
After a successful Kickstarter campaign that far exceeded their funding expectations, Kendall & Hyde are just about ready to start selling their leather goods to the world. Everything they sell is crafted from vegetable-tanned, full-grain leather, some of which sport top-notch hardware—such as snaps made from real 1930s buffalo nickels. As of this writing (May 28th, 2014) they are still allowing pre-orders…
Cargo Works' MacBookAir + iPad sleeve is a military-style polyester canvas sleeve that holds—you guessed it—a MacBook Air and an iPad of any size. The laptop compartment is lined with protective padded neoprene, while the iPad rests in an easily accessible front flap pocket. The exterior sports a series of elastic straps for holding pens and other small items. This sleeve comes…
Luckily for international travelers, most modern gadgets can be plugged into power outlets in different countries without a voltage converter, but there's still the problem of different-shaped outlets to contend with. This power adapter world pack from Ceptics comes with plug adapters that will work in several countries: the US, the UK, Germany, France, Japan, Canada, Australia, Dubai, China, and more. It…
In our eyes, a good Dopp kit is an essential item for the traveling gentleman. It certainly beats throwing your grooming materials into a big plastic bag, anyway. We've featured a few Dopp kits in the past, and the Grady Travel Kit is a handsome addition to the list. It sports a canvas-and-twill exterior along with a brass-studded leather base and other…
Available for full-sized iPads and the iPad mini, the Cargito charging iPad case is an all-leather case that includes a 7,000 mAh battery pack and Lightning cable to give your iPad a power boost when you need it most. Its exterior compartments can house a stylus and other small items—cards, cash, etc. It even fits iPads with slim cases like the Apple…
Hard Graft, makers of fine bags and other accessories, today unveiled their "Ocean" collection. Like their other products, these items are crafted from vegetable-tanned, hand-stained Italian leather and heavy-duty wool felt, but what sets the Ocean collection apart is that each piece is shaded a deep, gorgeous blue. They're really quite striking, but the wool felt's muted gray tones keep everything nicely…
Written and illustrated by Nathan W. Pyle, NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette is all about the unwritten rules of society that people in the Big Apple (and cities everywhere, really) often get wrong. The book offers friendly tips and advice to visitors and New Yorkers alike, answering important questions such as: What is a bodega? How do I walk on an escalator?…
The Travelmate Kit by Buck Knives is a portable toolset for preparing and eating food while traveling or out on the trail. It includes a wide, serrated butter knife, a fork—with integrated bottle opener, can opener, flathead screwdriver and even grill scraper—and an injection-molded sheath to hold it all together when you're not using it. It's a bit of a novelty item,…
I'm the type of guy that likes to carry a water bottle wherever I go. I'm a lot less likely to go out and buy a sweet drink if I've got some water with me, and refilling the same bottle over and over helps me use fewer disposable containers. That's why the Vapur Element collapsible water bottle is perfect for me. It…
(Photo credit: Alex Bernson, Sprudge.com) While we're on the subject of coffee, we should talk about an awesome vessel for consuming the stuff. The KeepCup Brew—a brand-new glass version of the plastic KeepCup Original—is a reusable coffee cup that aims to do away with wasteful, disposable paper cups and look great doing it. If you frequently stop in for a quick cup…
My wife runs her own dance school, which often requires us to leave town for competitions and performances. On those trips, we track our mileage and travel expenses for tax purposes. Nothing a simple notepad can't handle, but I am a nerd so I enjoy the extra bells and whistles of an app like Mileage Log+ for iPhone. Made by the same…
As slim as wallets have gotten in recent years, there are still times when it's unfeasible to carry one. Some mornings, I enjoy a quick bike ride to and from my local coffee shop but I'm often wearing shorts with no pockets. I could toss my wallet and keys into a backpack, but I don't need or want to carry all my…
If you're the kind of person that likes to know how the infrastructure all around you works, then you're gonna love Kate Ascher's books. In 2007's The Works: Anatomy of a City, she showed us the myriad factors that keep a city like NYC running every day. You find out all sorts of interesting things: how electricity makes its way from the…