Review: VicTsing 2-in-1 LED Camping Lantern and Flashlight

Disclaimer: This product was provided by VicTsing in exchange for an unbiased review.

Pros:

• Light weight
• Dual use
• AA battery
• Low price
• Feels sturdy

Cons:

• Not waterproof

I am reviewing the  VicTsing 2-in-1 LED Camping Lantern and Flashlight.  For £11.99 these flashlights are a steal!  With two flashlight in the box,  this works out to be about £6 per flashlight.  The package includes

• 2 LED Camping Light
• 6 AA Battery (hooray!).  Product uses 3 AA batteries
• 1 User Manual

Box contents

Unlike traditional flashlights that uses large chunky D batteries, this product requires 3 AA batteries, which are included in the box (unlike those * batteries not included products).  Despite relying on AA batteries, light is surprisingly bright.

Lamp mode

Flashlight mode

As shown above, the product can switch between the two modes quite seamlessly.  The product works on a cycle.  The first press turns on the flashlight.  Second turns it off.  The third and fourth presses toggle the lantern on and off. With 3 AA batteries, I'm not sure how long it will last.  One reviewer said it lasted 7 hours for him.  But on the flip side is that you could use rechargeable AA batteries to save the cost of disposable ones.

The product is a bit plasticky and thus very light.  There's a convenient leather handle to use when in torch mode.  The handle isn't much use in lanturn mode as it becomes taut.  There is no indication of waterproofness of the product so I wouldn't use it anywhere near water.

For what it's worth, this is a sturdy low cost 2-in-1 LED Camping Lantern and Flashlight device.

Review: VictSing Waterproof Mechanical Keyboard

Disclaimer: This product was provided by VicTsing in exchange for an unbiased review.

Today I'll be reviewing the VicTsing Waterproof Mechanical Keyboard, which sells on Amazon for £28.99.

Pros

• N key roll over - all key strokes recognize
• Waterproof - IP X4 unknown
• Keys replaceable if faded away
• Wide space between keys

Cons

• Rather pricey
• US layout
• Can be rather loud
• Keys smaller than traditional keyboards
• Heavy
• Not wireless

In the box there was the keyboard (of course) with attached USB cable, manual, keycap puller.

The keyboard is a bit on the heavy and loud side.  When you type it you can hear the clicky clacky of the mechanical keys that reminisce of old-style typewriters. In addition, the keys are fully replaceable.  So that means if any keys are faded away, they can easily be replaced.  There is adequate space between the keys, which make it easy to type.  Also, because the keyboard has n-key rollover, all keys can be pressed at once and be registered.  I have tested it with the Microsoft tool and it showed that if I press all the keys (or most of the keys), all of them were recognized.

One drawback is that despite buying in the UK, it is in US layout.  However, this can be easily remedied by buying replacement keys or stickers.  It also doesn't come with a number pad, which kinda sucks.  It is also not wireless, which means you would have to think about cable management.

One benefit of this particular keyboard is that it's waterproof.  It has an Ingress Protection (IP rating of X4) meaning "Protected against spray up to 60° from vertical."  I tested it by pouring a cup of water on it.  Though it doesn't say the rating of the keyboard, it withstood the dunking.  Immediately after the water bath, it didn't type anything and I was getting worried about whether I have damaged this fine keyboard.  But my worries were alleviated since when it dried out it started to work.

For £28.99, the keyboard leans on the expensive side.  Based on an Amazon search, I found cheaper waterproof keyboards but I can't vouch for their quality.  Personally, I like this keyboard, but I am more used to ergonomic keyboards.

Rant: Windows 10

Is it just me or does the Windows 10 Anniversary Update start menu looks suspiciously familiar?

Windows 10 Star Menu - I mean Linux Mint

Windows 10 Anniversary Update Star Menu

Review: VicTsing Electric Pencil Sharpener

Disclaimer: This product was provided by VicTsing in exchange for an unbiased review.

Today I'll be reviewing the VicTsing Pencil Sharpener, which sells on Amazon for £15.99.

Box contents. Pencil not included.

As seen in above, the sharpener comes with 1 spare blade core. However, I couldn't find the blade core for sale anywhere. So it's good that VicTsing provided one in the box.

The sharpener uses 4 AA batteries, which doesn't come in the box. With a potentially power hungry appliance I would probably get a rechargeable battery such as the Eneloop AA batteries.

The sharpener does the job well. The pencil comes out reasonable sharp. One thing I like about the sharpener is that it stops automatically when the pencil gets sharp. This prevents you getting stubby pencils from over sharpening.

Close up of sharpened pencil

The drawback of this pencil sharpener is its design. The core is behind a metal mesh, which traps the pencil shavings. Therefore, cleaning the sharpener isn't as simple as dumping the catchment container.

Container case

You have to unscrew the cage and then dump the trapped shavings.
In conclusion, the sharpener does the job well. For £15.99 it leans to the expensive size. Granted there are cheaper sharpeners, I can't vouch for their effectiveness.

Review: VicTsing 3 in 1 Clip-On Lenses for Mobile Phone

Disclaimer: This product was provided by VicTsing in exchange for an unbiased review.

Update: On request to VictTsing I have re-reviewed the wide angle lens.  This time I have opted to use the Xperia Z5 Premium for the test.  As seen in the photograph below I could certainly see more.  However, the original problem with the black rings

Photo of Halbullock View without the lens

The black splodge in the right hand side is due to the edge of the wide angle lens, which I have simply slid away from the camera aperture.

Wide angle shot with VictSing lens

As you can see from the reshoot the wide angle lens certainly gives a wider view.  But the problem of black rings is still present.  Also it seem to me that the picture is less clear with the wide angle shot.

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I received the VicTsing 3 in 1 Clip-On Lenses for Mobile Phone from Amazon.  I was quite skeptical over whether the product would work or not.  After testing it, I got mixed results.  The micro and fish eye lens worked quite well but the wide angle lens didn't.  I couldn't see a difference between the picture shot with the lense and one without.

Box content: Fish Lens, Micro / Wide Angle Lens, Manual, Clips to hold lens, carrying case

Test shots:
I took the pictures using the well renowned Sony Xperia Z3 running the experimental Android N Beta 3.

First up are the macro shots.  The macro and wide angle lenses are combo lens.  Unscrewing the wide angle bit gives you the macro lense.

I tried to take the shots using the same distance from the subject, an unappealing orange.

Macro lens

Orange shot without micro

Macro of orange peel

Macro of orange stalk

The macro lenses work particularly well.  It managed to enable the phone to capture the details of both the orange peels and the stalk.

Next up are the wide angle lens.

Wide angle shot of Habullock View

Non wide angle shot ie plain Z3

The wide angle shots weren't particularly impressive.  I couldn't see a discernible differences in the view captured.  And to make matters worse, it added a dark ring to the shot as seen in the wide angle picture above.

The last lens in the package is the fish eye test.

Fish eye lens

This lens certainly give that classic fish eye effect so nothing much to say here.

Fish eye shot of Halbullock View

Conclusions
The lens clips damaged my glass protectors, chipping them slightly.  The manual instructed me to "spread" the to fit but I was scared to do that in fear of damaging the clips.  In addition, unless you align them properly, you will get a black ring effect around the photos as you can see in the corner of the wide angle shot above.  All in all a mix bag.  In conclusion, unless you want to take macro shots and fish eye lens, you should stay away.  For £8.99 (as of the writing of this blog), you can't go wrong.