Hyundai Stainless steel sandwich toaster review

Hyundai Stainless steel sandwich toaster

My gorgeous wonderful Daisy cow...yes..I said cow...toaster officially died a few months ago and I have been in mourning ever since.

I cant believe I never reviewed her for you guys because now shes gone I miss her so much; she even mooed when you lifted the lid...sigh and best of all she made the BEST Marmite toasties...EVER!

 I have been craving toasties over the last few weeks; even waking up and really wanting one...no guys Im not pregnant before one of you asks...sheesh!

So after popping into Poundstretchers for yet more wild-bird food; I saw this toaster sitting on the shelf. Did I notice the thick dust on the top...yes...but just brushed it off...did I notice the box was quite battered...er...yes! 

Hyandai make cars for goodness sake they must be ok...mustn't they...so you can guess where this review is going cant you.

Packaging
This was packaged in a thick cardboard box with  great food images on the front making my mouth water at the thought already.

 Inside is the medium sized toastie maker and an instruction manual, looks ok so far.

Description

This clean looking stainless toastie maker is 700watts and makes 2 sandwich toasties at a time; so Ive no need for the usual four as its only for me as my other half isn't that keen on them.

 On top are 2 LED's one green and one red.

 At the back is a large heavy duty spring coil connecting the wiring from hotplate top to hotplate bottom, or viceversa.

It also has the clever space-saving option to standup and out the way either away in a cupboard or tucked next to the kettle for emergency toasties.

 Opened up; the nonstick coating hotplates have a basic no fancy toast pattern as expected. I don't need fancy toast after all do I...does it make the day better having a smiley face on your snack while your eating it?, well yes, but not by much.

The toastie area isn't too deep so I cant do any deep fill toasties...again no probs I'm a Marmite cheesy toastie kinda gal, not a Scooby snack one so its still OK for me. I really wasn't expecting much for a £9.99 sandwich toaster.

The front handle is chunky and feels really substantial and has a good locking latch. Its also cool touch so no more burnt fingers, something I did get with my Daisy...bless her soul.

Underneath it has good chunky rubberized feet and it feels really stable on my worktop.

Use

So I checkout the user leaflet and it said to clean the plates for the first time so I did.

Next Ta..Daa...I turned it on and the orange light litup, so far so good, while that was heating up I buttered some brown bread.

 Finally both lights on meaning its hot enough to toastie...woohoo! I laid the first slice butter side down.

*For those who have never used a toastie maker, you need to have the butter side on the hot plate to toast. Then I spread a thin layer of Marmite and a thin slice of cheese on the bottom slice and placed the 2nd slice on top butter-side up so it once again was against the hotplate.

 I did find however my slices were a bit too big for the toaster, but instead of cutting them off I just wanted to see what would happen. So it was just the wait now till it was ready; so after 5 mins I checked, not even brown, then after 10 mins....maybe very slightly browner.

After 20 mins Id had enough as I was soooo hungry; well...the big dramatic silence...well it was hot...I can say that...but the bread hadn't browned much at all. 

The LED's kept going on and off saying it was plenty hot enough and I have never had to leave my toastie in for over 20 minutes in my Daisy, it was always less than 10 minutes.

 As you can see the toastie maker had also shaped my bread as it was too big so I had a curve the same shape as the handle in my bread...quite amusing. I know...I could have cut it.

You can also see that it has browned a bit but didn't get any browner and I do like my toast black...okay dark brown at least. The only part that got crispy brown was the central middle all about an inch as it was next to the 2nd toastie section.

But the worst bit for me was that the middle part of the bread was SOGGY; so I had to slip it into my normal toaster to brown and dry it off.  It had sealed ok so no cheese was dripping as the edges were rock hard; but strangely not browned.

So by the time I got my "quickie snack", 45 minutes had gone by with hard edges and a very soggy middle.

No-one wants a soggy middle do they...sheesh!

I put it down to being a newbie the first time; so I tried the next day for another and even though I trimmed the bread to fit, the same thing happened, I even added extra marge to the hot plates too to see if it just needed more searing but it didn't make any difference...gutted :-(

Opinion

Well after several more tries and leaving it over 30mins in the toastie maker it still didnt toast properly plus the hotplates creak and rock while they contract and expand during the heating and cooking process. Not a good sound, plus once cooled I noticed the plates dont seem to fit very well on the base and are loose with nowhere to tighten them up.

So anemic toast, soggy middles and creaking hotplates, its going back tomorrow something I very rarely do with my gadgets unless they are genuinely faulty; but I feel this is not just faulty its badly made and badly designed. The only good idea was that it stands up to put it away...okay thats it...the only good thing I can think of...sorry.

 I just want to say too I have nothing against buying a bargain and nothing against Pound-stretchers as I shop their regularly for household bits and bobs and you really can get a great bargain occasionally...and I like to take a chance; but Im disappointed in such a huge company like Hyandai.

Remind me NEVER EVER to consider buying a Hyundai car...OMG! It may have a soggy middle and creaky hotplates.

Sorry for bringing you an unrecommended product its about time eh...but I'll let you know which toastie maker I get next; or if you guys have one you can recommend please send me a line. I'm craving my Moomite toastie, sorry I mean Marmite...sigh!

R.I.P Daisy -2005/2014.

Hoont Plug-in Electronic total pest eliminator with night-light review

 Hoont Plug-in Electronic total pest eliminator

Hiya people this is something a bit different, how many of you get the occasional mouse or rat near your home. Do you keep your pet-food in the shed/garage and constantly find holes in it from cheeky mice pinching a few bites.

Well we've had the occasional split dogfood or bird seed bag in our shed from mice; but thats to be expected living in the country; but still its annoying and I didn't think we could do anything about it.

Until Hoont kindly offered me one of their pest eliminators to try.

take a peek after the jump to see my full review.

 This pest eliminator is something that arrived in brilliant timing as we have had a few bags of bird food torn due to mice coming in our shed for the Winter looking for food. Im a big softie and wouldn't ever deprive any wildlife from food if they were starving plus would never want to poison or use mouse traps as neither I feel are humane. They are just trying to survive after-all.

But I have paid alot for good quality dog food and good quality bird and wild-bird food and hate to see sacks with holes and seed wasted across the floor, Soooo annoying.

So I was excited to find this Hoont pest eliminator was completely humane too. I don't want to harm the sensitive wildlife balance of where we live. By poisoning the mice I'm also poisoning the local owls, Marsh harriers and other birds of prey or stoats and weasels in the surrounding area.

Its completely environmentally friendly and if I can simply persuade them they don't want to come in thats good for me. Yes I did say "Persuade" read on to see what I mean.

 Packaging
 The packaging is a simple bright yellow cardboard box with explanations of the product surrounding the outside.

In the box is your Hoont eliminator and leaflet with thorough instructions.

Description
 This Hoont is a white plastic 3 pin plug in unit with patented technology inside it designed to help you get rid of your pest problems safely to you and nature, with nothing being hurt, poisoned or squished.

Pests to persuade to leave are rates, mice, cockroaches, spiders, fleas, bats, beetles, mites, ticks, waterbugs, silverfish and crickets WITHOUT ANY HARMFUL CHEMICALS.
Id like to state however I wouldn't want to get rid of bats?

3 pin plug unit.

 Patented wave technology
This plug-in eliminator uses a "Patented" mixture of wave technology; electromagnetic and ultrasonic and ionic against your pests.

1. High density ultrasonic technology.
2. Deep wall electromagnetic technology.
3. Negative ion technology.

• Deep penetrating electromagnetic technology which is the first line of defense by using your own wiring within your walls to act as a shield which prevents insects and pests from entering through outside walls.Your home wiring sends electronic pulses irritating all pests making them feel uncomfortable and not wanting to enter.
• It also disturbs nests of rodents and insects situated within your walls. The ultrasonic, deep penetrating electromagnetic fields and negative ion waves is really irritating to all rodents and insects, the sounds don't let up.
• Eradicate all pests from your home environment using this mix of waves, sending your pests scrambling looking for a new home as far away from yours as possible.
• Works on rats, mice, cockroaches, ants, spiders, fleas and more.
• Simple to use just by plugging it into a plug, its completely silent to humans and they do stress does not effect cats, dogs, birds or fish. This was one of my main concerns as I have a dog and birds inside my home.
• Do I need to say people don't use if you have pet mice or rats...do I ...do I? ;-)
• This is also completely humane and safe for you too. It simply makes the area uncomfortable for the pests making them want to leave.

 The Science bit
Negative Ion repelling and purifying technology
In nature negative ions are produced by lightening before a storm; wildlife sense this change in their environment and run for cover, the ionizer makes the room a hostile environment for pests by mimicking that charge and frightening them into packing their little suitcases.

Coverage
This single pest eliminator will cover an area of 600Sq.Meters. However it cannot go round corners or penetrate hard surfaces like furniture, cabinets, walls and ceilings.
*You will need one for every room you have rodent problem.


How to install your repellent.

1. In an open area closest to the source of the pests activity, if you cant see them look for their droppings etc.
2. Plug into an unobstructed area to ensure maximum coverage for ultrasonic waves, so preferably an uncluttered room.
3. It works similar to light rather than sound so think of blocking out the light scenario.
4. They cannot pass through solid objects or bend round corners.
5. They can be reflected by hard surfaces and absorbed by soft so you need to have a little think of the best place.

*This sounds complicated but I would plug it as near to your pest area as possible and move as much clutter away too. Think of placing near chewed holes or frequent pest runways, you will know these if you have rats and mice, you can use an extension lead if you haven't a plug nearby to get as near to them as possible.

How do you know its worked?
Also once installed you may see more activity than normal as they are moving looking for rest from the waves.
Hoont state to give it 10-14 days and can take upto 6 weeks to see positive results.
If your not seeing anything after 20 days move the plug to somewhere else; something maybe blocking the waves.


The Hoont offers you full control over this technology so you know what works for you. On both sides are 2 slider switches.

 On one side you have on/off sliders for the Negative ions and Electromagnetic waves.

 On the other is the on/off for the Ultrasonic waves and a brilliant add on; a night-light. So useful if its in the house.

On the front of the plug unit you have alot going on;

• Top blue part, the nightlight.
• Middle triangle has 3 coloured LED's these tell you which wave you have switched on, if all LEDs are flashing then you have them all on.
• The middle circle is a ultrasonic speaker and the base part is the ionizer.

Use
We've used several different types of plug in pest control similar to this and to be honest none have worked.
This one designed by Hoont offers a brilliant amount of technology and most importantly nothing gets hurt its simply made to feel like an electrical thunderstorm making them want to seek cover away from that feeling. I personally find this a fascinating way if it works as it keeps nature on balance.

I hate to use poison and worse still id never use the clip-snap mouse traps which more times than most fatally injuring the rodent rather than killing it outright making death slow and painful; this is inhumane and cruel so to find something like this is just genius...fingers crossed.

I plugged this in the shed with all sliders to on except the night light as I don't need that on if I'm not in the shed at night. So all the main wave technologies are on.

The front left flashed blue (Ultrasonic indicator), red (electromagnetic indicator) and the yellow (ionizer indicator) in turn showing me they are all working as you cannot hear anything; so its sort of hard to believe anything is working. I could have just been sent a flashy plastic case...eeep...have I....!

No don't worry as trading standards wouldn't let them.

*As a side note I personally cannot see a reason to just ever use one of the deterrents eg; ionizer one day and electromagnetic the next; I personally turned on all 3 deterrents so it was on full whack!

 Here is the nightlight on its super bright enough to see where your going at night in a hallway etc. I really love the subtle hint of blue too as its not too in your face.

Measurements 

Height is 12.7cm.

Total width including switches is 3 inches/7.6cm 

Note: Be aware that because of its width it may need space on your plug socket. Our double switches were absolutely fine, but on our power plug/Gang strip the plugs were too close together for this to fit and be able to access the switches properly.

Opinion
When I placed this in my shed I took note of over 8 Daddylongleg spiders all within a meter of the plug so I was hoping to have some sort of movement away so I would know if it was working.
I have to say the spiders haven't budged after 2 weeks and they are still there and I do still also have woodlice and beetles (which I don't mind in the shed) but the good news is that I haven't had any mice or rats in the shed so I'm super pleased with that.
For me I'm sure its worked as I was getting regular teeth marks and tiny holes in my sacks of pet food and its been a month without anything so fingers crossed that continues and I will keep you all updated.
The plug is stylish and well designed; but I found the switches felt unfinished and inferior compared to the main plug.

This is a slightly dearer version than Ive had in the past (£29.95) but then they didn't work and were a waste of money and Ive bought quite a few which work along the electric cables, this one is completely different and works with the wave technology as described above; this seemed to have worked; so for me it would be worth the money especially if you have pests in your home.
Its safe reliable and chemical free; especially if you have children and other pets around, you could not ever risk bringing in poison to your home even if it were to kill rats and mice, you would then have to call in an exterminator costing a small fortune. This is a one off investment for you and your family and I love the fact of using technology of mimicking a storm so the pests just want to pack their little bags to find safety and cover. Nothing is hurt and no cruelty involved...phewey!

I will keep you all updated to this.



Pro's

• Patented mix of waves to deter pests.
• safe for humans, home pets and plants.
• Humane towards pest; nothing hurt or injured.
• Nightlight added to unit.
• LED's flash so you know its working.
• Great design and style for the home.
• So simple to just plug in.

 Con's

• The switches could do with more finishing.

Buy yours from Amazon UK/US

£29.95

 All my thanks goes to Hoont for supplying a sample for this review.

Die trying by Nicholas Ryan Book Review

Die trying by Nicholas Ryan

Best selling author of Ground Zero

Blurb

Trapped amidst the horror of the zombie apocalypse, three men hear the sound of a helicopter overhead and know it represents their last desperate hope to survive the terror and reach safety.
But survival comes at a cost - and the undead hordes that ravage the world are
not the only lurking evil the men must face.
But for Mitch Logan, his brother, Jed, and their friend, Clinton Harrigan, there is no choice.
They must fight to survive - or Die Trying.

Yay another great zombie read. This was the 2nd book I've read from Mr Ryan and it was another heart stopping read from page one. Nick creates fantastic believable characters introducing Harrison a big burly Christian man and 2 brothers Jed and Mitch who are on the run fighting for survival from humans infected with the jaws virus. With a clever addition in that the dead not only turn into flesh eating zombies, but can hunt their prey successfully too.

What makes this book more unique is that it centers around a helicopter crash and the rescue of its occupants. When Harrison and the brothers discover Clive Walker and his daughter Millie alive with a dead pilot, things are definitely not what they seem.
But as with any zombie apocalypse it's not just the zombies that you need to fear; with a brilliant parallel twist running through the plot with Jed; who after 10 yrs in one of the toughest prisons is seeking revenge on his brother Mitch, keeping us all gripped.
I grew to really like Mitch and Harrigan's character's but felt I wanted more from Millie.
This brilliant fast paced creative action-fest is delivered in dramatic detail and plenty of gore to keep every zombieholic happy. Offering clear vision to whats going on so you can almost smell that rotten flesh. This was so fast paced I found myself holding my breath a few times.The ending is just fantastic and didn't see it coming, loved it.
A Die Trying 2 would be fab, but its also a great stand alone read too.


Amazon US
Amazon UK
Goodreads

Check out my review of Nicholas Ryan's best selling Ground Zero zombiefest too.

Rebelite Extreme Watershow Bluetooth speakers Review and video

Rebelite Extreme Watershow Bluetooth speakers

Hiya people, with so many portable speakers on the market at this time its unusual to get something different. If you guys are anything like me and you  love your tech with a dash of fun; then you will love these speakers from Rebelite with not only great sound; but colour and water dancing...yes I did say water dancing and no its not an April Fool!

These are not only Bluetooth but rechargeable too; so I was excited to have the opportunity to review these Xtreme Water-show Bluetooth speakers for you all.

If you cant wait to read through my review; then take a peek at my full video review after the jump.
Just a quick tease of whats to come with our fun GIF.

Rebelite are one of the largest distributors of cellular phone/tablet accessories in the US. Their state of the art product line is rigorously tested for the best possible performance.

Packaging

The packaging is a solid substantial cardboard box; it has to be, as its got to protect these two thick plastic water filled speakers. It has a side window offering you a teaser of whats inside perfect to give as a gift.

In the box

You get two 3Watt speakers,

Charging USB cable.

Speaker connector cable.

Axillary cable.

Manual.

You don't get 3 cable options with many speakers so Im really impressed you get all of these. The fact you can use these speakers with or without Bluetooth offers this choice to many more people. The extra auxilary cable means you can use them with any device. I can now use them with my new Swing radio too meaning I can take them both anywhere.

Description

Rebelite have produced these 2 wireless, Bluetooth stereo speakers; which are completely rechargeable. 
All the techie bits are hidden in the black bases making them very compact. The thick plastic transparent skittle shaped tops are designed to get the best out of the water show. So the footprints themselves are small if your worried about space; ideal for dorms and flats or smaller desks.

Both sealed units contain just enough water to jet to the top via a small motor in each base; they are completely vacuum sealed so will not leak.

The motor is covered by a circular metal disc with 5 holes in through which it jets up the water; above them you have 5 LED's, 2 green, 2 blue and one red in the middle.

Each speaker has a 3 watt speaker in the front giving you plenty of sound and volume.

The main speaker contains the rechargeable 800mAh battery and that also powers speaker two. It also has the charging port, auxillary port, speaker connection port, on/off button and the three responsive buttons at the top are the volume, play/pause etc for your music.

Speaker two (on the right) just has the speaker connector port on the back and wont work without being connected to the main speaker.

The main speaker also has a single LED which is red while charging and blue while searching for Bluetooth.

Measurements

They are both approximately 22cm high and 8cm base at its widest which then tapers to a smooth domed 4cm at the top, these are a perfect compact size with its small footprint base. You then have the choice whether you wish to use one or two for stereo sound; but who wouldn't use both when you want to listen to your favorite vibes.
The speaker connection cable is approximately 98cm long so you could use them either side of your laptop or monitor.
The auxillary cable is also 98cm so there is plenty of room you can connect them to your phone.

Weight only 1.9lbs.

Use

I cannot express how excited I was to try these speakers as Im a huge sucker for music and flashy lights; and to have all this combined into one gorgeous speaker I'm one happy bunny.

So I immediately charged them up even though they had a little charge already in them. But you can damage the battery forever on a new rechargeable product by using it without giving it the full+ charge first.

So I charged for the recommended 2 hours and then an extra hour to make sure.

By getting the auxillary cable it means you don't have to have Bluetooth to use them.

From the minute you press the on button your goal is to get the water to pulse to the top of the dome...go on admit it thats what you want to see isn't it? lol!

Or is that just me then....;-)

When you turn them on you get a lovely bing-bong and a pulse of water a few secs later just as a tease. Everything about this design has been thought out.

Pairing

Most of you know how to pair your devices; each one just differs to your own settings but roughly along the same lines.
I found these paired in seconds to my phone, tablet and main PC and they didn't ask for any codes, like previous devices; as you will see in my review video where Im pairing them for the very first time to my Samsung S4. 
*What I did find however was my phone picked them up as headphones and this limited the volume of my phone, but this is a problem I have had previously and NOT; I stress NOT to do with the speaker itself. 

Both speakers again paired super-fast with my tablet and main PC.

Range

I have to make a huge point about the Bluetooth range as most of my other Bluetooth devices have a range of approximately 10m or less. After taking them outside I turned them on and then walked away....and kept walking away...and kept walking...till...I reached over 24 meters away from my tablet WOW...thats soooo damn impressive.
Its the longest range Bluetooth device I have and I have alot!
Perfect for any party or barbeque so you don't need to be sitting ontop of them all the time you can actually wander if you wish; as long as you keep an eye on your jealous pals though or the speakers may go walkies as they look so good.

Water Jets and LED's
In the base there are 5 holes where the water jets shoot up, lit up by 2 green, 2 blue and 1 central red LED. The water pulses are around 3-4mm wide and extend from shooting up from an inch to hitting the top of the dome. You get different strengths of pulse offering you different light effects and of course that all depends on the music your playing; but the strongest pulse really does jet that water to the top its gorgeous to watch.

Even when just turned on and no music the gorgeous blue hue surrounds the whole dome its beautiful accent to any room just as lights.

The blue seems to be the strongest colour as you see above and will see in my video below.

 The red and green LEDs just add a quirky colour accent which is beautiful . Photo taken from the top of the dome looking down.

The colour display is just stunning especially in the dark. It feels like being in an aquarium and so soothing. What surprised me the most was that you don't have to have your music at full volume to get the water to reach the top, even quieter music still reached. 

I think its to do with the bass and treble balance; so its nice to discover you don't need to have them on full blast to achieve it, its the type of music your playing. On my video you will see at the end Ive added a variety of music to show you how different types act with the water.

Opinion

I love these speakers, the coloured water-show is absolutely mesmerizing and so beautiful and the fact they dance in-time with your fave vibes makes them extra fun.
If you want deep basey beats you need to go for something different; but Im a bass baby and I still found these speakers have a great sound balance. For me personally I wasn't expecting the music to be as such good quality as I had fallen in love with the light and water-show by itself; so for me to have the quality sound is a huge bonus.

These are an ideal room addition; combining light and sound so you can be the envy of all your friends and family. Perfect for your evening barbeques or parties, take down the beach or to a picnic even in daytime as they still look stunning in the day too. The fact they are made of thick plastic makes them able to take a few knocks from over zealous kids or a clumsy bump or two.
They do get quite finger-printy as the tendency is to pick them up by the plastic tops, but a quick wipe they are gone.

 Day and Night water show

Water is know for its calming effects what better way to relax by music, water and a beautiful light show. Its soothing and calming and combined with relaxing, chill-out sounds make you feel amazingly relaxed. Play the sound of the waves and music combo and WOW what a combination. I felt like I was under the sea or in an aquarium. My walls, ceiling was bathed in blue light...stunning!

On a special note; I feel most people would love these speakers from adults to kids and as an ex-nurse I feel these speakers would have a special place with autistic children and those with physical and learning difficulties as colour therapy.

If you cant sleep or have trouble relaxing and switching off from work etc; you NEED to get these...seriously...right now!

Checkout my video to get the full effect of these speakers I'm so impressed with both sound quality and especially with how they look. What a stunning affordable gift for anyone who loves their tech or their music.

Pro's

• Water dances to the beat and volume of your music.
• Two 3Watt speakers with stereo sound for left and right channels.
• Rechargeable 800mAh battery 3.7V with micro USB cable.
• Audio input for music sharing or with no Bluetooth.
• Full audio control on the back of one speaker.
• Compact.
• Strong thick plastic to protect from bumps.
• Affordable.

Con's

• None.

Rebelite Extreme Watershow Bluetooth speakers
or from
Amazon US
ONLY
£33.99

All my thanks goes to Rebelite for kindly sending me these amazing speakers for this review. All my views and opinions are my own.

I also reviewed the Rebelite Extreme fashion Stylus pen here.

Coming soon are the

Rebelite Xfit Bluetooth wireless tracker