Your iPhone 12 offers the convenience of MagSafe charging & Anker’s PowerCore Magnetic 5K Wireless Power Bank makes it even easier—and keeps it out of a case. This compact induction charging bank connects to all 12 series iPhones with magnets to bring your device back to life. Charging at speeds up to 7.5 watts it delivers up to 95% recharge for your device and when you’re topped back up, just pop it off.
Bourbon has never been more popular than it is right now. This definitive guide of the best bourbons of 2021 explores everything you need to know about America’s favorite brown spirit, including important terminology and, of course, a list of the best bottles you can buy at your local liquor store.
Knob Creek
In a whiskey market that’s become increasingly fragmented and allocated, Knob Creek’s classic small batch bourbon distinguishes itself. It’s our best overall bourbon not by way of life-altering tasting notes, but by stuff the stat sheet in a way no other bourbon can. It is available everywhere and thus resistant to the price gouging associated with brands like Buffalo Trace. Its 100 proof retains a fully body and mixing bonafides without lighting your mouth on fire. And this year the brand got its 9-year age guarantee back, too. If you’re looking for the best value in bourbon, just get this.
Proof: 100
Average Price: $35
Evan Williams
“If Evan Williams were to sell this whiskey to someone else, that brand would mark it up to $40, and people would be happy buying it,” says expert whiskey reviewer Fred Minnick. But Evan Williams is a value brand. So its whiskey, at a great proof point of 86 and an age that Minnick says is roughly five-and-a-half years old, goes for less than $20. “It’s a fantastic bourbon, especially for the money,” he says.
Proof: 86
Average Price: ~$15
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These bourbons are all under $25. They have some of the same flavors found in the world’s best, most sought-after whiskeys. They just don’t carry the same level of complexity; the flavors tend to come and go more quickly.
“A more expensive whiskey might have this rich note that lasts for ten to twelve seconds,” Minnick says, “whereas a cheaper bottle has that note just for one to two seconds.” Still, this price range has the best value of the entire market, and it also provides opportunities for bourbon to be used in cocktails — or as gifts.
“If Evan Williams were to sell this whiskey to someone else, that brand would mark it up to $40, and people would be happy buying it,” Minnick says. But Evan Williams is a value brand. So its whiskey, at a great proof point of 86 and an age that Minnick says is roughly five-and-a-half years old, goes for less than $20. “It’s a fantastic bourbon, especially for the money,” he says. “You can get a lot of satisfaction out of that.”
Proof: 86
Average Price: $11 – $15
“This is such a dynamic whiskey,” Minnick says. “And it’s the best cocktail bourbon out there.” Four Roses is a highly regarded distillery, with a high-rye mash bill that produces an extra spiciness and a concentration on yeast that has been “eye-opening” for the bourbon world. They’ve also led the way in transparency. “They’ll tell you everything there is to know about their whiskey — they don’t hide the mash bill, the distillation proof. I presume you could ask ’em how much their CEO makes and they’d tell you,” Minnick says.
Proof: 80
Average Price: $12 – $20
In 2017, Jim Beam’s Old Grand-Dad line of whiskeys was nearly axed. Now, thanks to rising whiskey prices and a consistently strong product, the brand — shortened to OGD by fans — has a cult following. Because it’s not a “hype” whiskey, doesn’t have a famous name and isn’t a limited release, it doesn’t get talked about — but I challenge you to find a bourbon with this much firepower at the price point. Its relatively low-corn mashbill (only 63 percent) is also unique, utilizing a staggering amount of rye and malted barley, creating a spicy bourbon ideal for drinking on the rocks or in a cocktail.
Proof: 114
Average Price: $25 – $35
“This has an incredible sweetness to it,” Minnick says. “It’s not complex, but the sweetness is really nice — the way it hits the palate. It’s a good, inexpensive, wheated everyday sipper.”
Proof: 92
Average Price: $20 – $25
According to Minnick, this is where the majority of the bourbon world lives. “You start with the six- to twelve-year-old bourbons that you can find regularly.” What changes from the entry-level spirits is complexity. The very best bourbons in this range “will have note after note after note after note, and then you can still taste that dominant note on your palate,” Minnick says.
Four Roses’s upgrade over Yellow blends 180 barrels of four different recipes per bottling. “If you love cinnamon notes, you’ll love this,” Minnick says. It’s more complex than Yellow, but still drinks easy. “It’s what I want to sip at a ballgame.”
Proof: 90
Average Price: $30 – $35
Made using a single recipe and barrel per bottle, it’s between 7 and 8 years old and has more complexity than the Small Batch. “For being the same brand as the Small Batch, they taste very different. This one is more of a sipper. I want to really sit there and think about it when I’m drinking it,” Minnick says.
Proof: 100
Average Price: $40 – $50
Minnick has a unique use for one of bourbon’s classic names. “I drink so much Makers with BBQ,” he says. Its mellow balance — helped by the prominent caramel notes of its wheated mash bill — doesn’t overpower meaty flavors.
Proof: 90
Average Price: $30 – $35
Its “cornbread” note makes this Minnick’s stand-in for rye in Manhattans. That cornbread flavor profile is shared across many Jim Beam bourbons, but Knob Creek’s 100 proof is the perfect expression of the flavor, as opposed to Booker’s 126 and Jim Beam Black’s 86.
Proof: 100
Average Price: $30 – $40
Though it shares DNA with other Heaven Hill bourbons like Evan Williams and Henry McKenna, Elijah Craig Small Batch is balanced, with extra maltiness. “It’s got so much caramel, and a beautiful nutmeg note,” Minnick says. “This is all about the sweetness.”
Proof: 94
Average Price: $25 – $40
The McKenna distillery was established in 1855, founded by the noted Irish immigrant distiller. Seagrams closed the business in the 1970s, and Heaven Hill purchased the brand name in 1994, but no longer uses the original recipe; as Minnick notes in his book, “The original yeast, mashbill, and flavor profile are gone, lost with time.” But one thing the new bottle does have is time: its 10 year age statement makes it one of the older bourbons at this price range. Take heed, though, since it somewhat controversially took home “Best in Show, Whiskey” at last year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition it’s been harder to come by, and more expensive than it used to be.
Proof: 100
Average Price: $50 – $100 (price varies severely store-to-store)
New Riff Distilling was founded in 2014. “Relative to Kentucky, they’ve been around for a few days. The rest of the nation is just kinda getting to know ’em,” Minnick says. The mash bill here, made entirely of non-GMO grains, is 65 percent corn, 30 percent rye and 5 percent malted barley.
Proof: 100
Average Price: $40
Luxco’s Old Ezra line could have fit in the “best kept secret” category, too. Bourbon with an age statement and available at barrel strength for a good price? That’s nuts in today’s whiskey world.
Proof: 117
Average Price: ~$50
These run north of $60, all the way up to a month’s paycheck. Buying in this range is high risk, high reward. “Sometimes you’re gonna be disappointed,” Minnick says. “Just because a bourbon is 90 bucks doesn’t mean it’s good.” The benchmark bourbons at this range have upwards of 100 flavor notes to pick out, often happening at the same time and lingering on the tongue for ages. Or, as Minnick put it, the best should make you think, “If god gave birth to his bourbon child, this is what it would taste like.”
This bourbon just won Whisky Advocate’s whiskey of the year, and Minnick was on the tasting panel. “It was very, very nice bourbon,” he says, wistfully. It has none of the harshness you’d expect from a 133.2 proof bourbon, and doesn’t undergo chill filtering — instead just using light filtration to remove barrel char flakes.
Proof: 125+ proof
Average Price: $65
It’s bottled at 115 proof — “for this distillery, that’s the perfect proof,” Minnick says. “I’m going through a bottle a month. The notes kind of just linger. You can have five different notes hitting at once. I believe that to be the definition of nuance.”
Proof: 115
Average Price: $60 – $80
You might notice there isn’t a price, tasting notes or distillery information listed on this pick. That’s because Barrell is, at this moment, the best blended of American whiskey there is (they have the trophy case to prove it). Each of its releases makes clear what went into it — distillery location, whiskey age, proof, etc. — and all are worth seeking out. Barrell is a blender, not a distiller, and the flavor mastery of founder Joe Beatrice and master distiller Tripp Stimson have won the old bourbon guard over. “It won my American Whiskey of the Year award [in 2018] in a blind tasting,” Minnick says. “It’s got so much flavor to it, so much complexity — it’s just brilliant whiskey.”
“Are we including bottles that are impossible to find?” Minnick asks. Sure. This treasure from Buffalo Trace’s Antique collection does its namesake a service, representing some of the world’s best wheated bourbon, a style Weller himself pioneered. “If God gave birth to a bourbon child, this is what it would taste like,” Minnick says. “It’s so fucking amazing.”
Proof: 120+
Average Price: $800+
File it under another bourbon you’ll never find on liquor store shelves. The 50th-anniversary whiskey is made in part of 23-year old bourbon and has, according to Four Roses brand ambassador Al Young himself, flavor profiles of “cinnamon, peaches and cherries, plus aromas of gardenias and magnolia blossoms.” Minnick scored it a 96 for Whiskey Advocate. “It’s just so complex,” he says. “Last I tasted it, I was up to 100 notes that I picked up on it. They have something special there.”
Proof: 109.98
Average Price: $500+
At this point, there are plenty of two-wheeled electric vehicles for you to choose from when you’re looking for something practical yet fun for your urban mobility needs. But none of them look quite like…
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There are dozens of brands to choose from when you decide to buy a car. Just about every one of them offers an array of models — and a storied lineage to boot. Dive beneath the surface, however, and you’ll discover a lot of links between brands and vehicles that you might not have realized.
The automotive world has seen rampant consolidation over its 100-plus years of existence. Brands have aligned themselves into multinational conglomerates and share platforms, parts, engines and infotainment systems. That trend is likely to exacerbate with the era of electrification, as carmakers are forced to pour billions into redefinining their lineups and electric motors make individual powertrains less of a distinctive characteristic that defines vehicles and brands.
In one sense, consolidation can be dispiriting. A new Lamborghini won’t be as madcap as it was when they were flying solo in the 1970s and 1980s; indeed, it’ll have a lot of Audi, Porsche and even some VW DNA coursing through its figurative veins. On the other hand, the alternative would be losing niche brands like Lamborghini when times go south; and thanks to standardized engines and platforms, a new Lamborghini will be more reliable and cheaper to maintain than the eccentric beasts of yore.
So if you’re wondering who’s really behind your new ride — here’s a look at who owns which car brand.
(Note: This list doesn’t include every automotive brand in the world, just the car manufacturers that would be familiar to a western audience. For a full accounting of brands associated with each entity, check out their respective company websites or Wikipedia pages.)
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The Alliance (yes, fans of The Office, that is the actual name) is a strategic partnership between French company Groupe Renault and Japanese companies Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors. Renault and Nissan aligned themselves (don’t call it a merger) in 1999; Nissan then purchased a controlling stake of Mitsubishi in 2016, bringing them into the Alliance as a partner.
The group includes luxury and performance brands like Infiniti, Alpine and DS Automobiles. The Alliance also owns Eastern European manufacturers Lada and Dacia.
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The German company Bayerisch Motoren Worke, better known as BMW, formed in 1916 as a WWI airplane engine manufacturer. BMW devoted itself full-time to automobile manufacturing in 1952 and found its footing with the Neue Klasse sedans in the 1960s.
BMW surfed the Cool Britannia wave in the 1990s, buying the Rover Group — formerly British Leyland — in 1994. They dismantled it in 2000, selling Land Rover to Ford, casting off the other brands and launching Mini as an independent marque. BMW also won a tussle with VW for Rolls-Royce control in 1998, and took over operations in 2003.
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General Motors first formed as a holding company in 1908. They swiftly bought several automotive brands, including Buick, Cadillac, Oldsmobile and what eventually became Pontiac. They also tried and failed to buy Ford.
Two purchased companies, Rapid and Reliance, were merged to become GMC (originally known as the General Motors Truck Company, though we’re not sure what happened to the “T”) in 1912. Chevrolet joined the fold in 1918.
In the 2000s, GM began to trim down an unwieldy, amorphous brand lineup. First, the company dissolved Oldsmobile in 2004. After GM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009, the fallout killed the Saturn, Pontiac and Hummer brands, and led to the sale of Saab, which has yet to reemerge. In the U.S., that has left General Motors with its present four-brand alignment of Chevrolet, GMC, Buick and Cadillac.
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Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company in 1903. The company proceeded to invent the mass-produced automobile with its revolutionary assembly line production system.
After picking up many marques over the decades, FoMoCo pared down its brand lineup considerably in the 2000s. Ford sold Jaguar, Land Rover, Volvo, Aston Martin and what had been a considerable stake in Mazda. They also killed off the middle-tier Mercury brand in 2011, leaving just Ford and its luxury division, Lincoln.
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Geely Auto Group is a Chinese-owned multinational corporation. The company bought Volvo from Ford in 2010; the company then promoted Polestar from Volvo’s performance division into its own brand in 2017. That same year, Geely also bought a controlling stake in Lotus.
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Japanese company Honda began as a motorcycle manufacturer following World War II, eventually becoming the world’s largest bike builder. They branched out into production automobiles in 1962, eventually becoming a dominant force with standouts like the Civic, Accord and CR-V. Honda founded its luxury brand Acura in 1986.
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South Korean manufacturer Hyundai was formed in 1967. They began building their own cars in the 1970s, and expanded to the U.S. market in the 1980s. In 1998, they acquired a bankrupt Kia in a complicated ownership exchange agreement. Come 2015, Hyundai created Genesis as a standalone luxury brand.
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The German company Mercedes-Benz had been a subsidiary of Daimler, which just this year rebranded itself as Mercedes-Benz and announced plans to spin off the Mercedes truck division into a separate company.
Mercedes-Benz dates itself back to 1886, when Karl Benz patented the first internal combustion engine. The first Mercedes-Benz vehicles debuted in 1926 after the merger of Benz’s company and Daimler. Daimler entered a “partnership” with Chrysler (it was closer to a takeover, really) in 1998, only to walk away in 2007.
The AMG sub-brand started as an independent Mercedes tuner before Mercedes bought it out in 1999. Mercedes-Benz bought luxury manufacturer Maybach in 1960, killed off the brand in 2013, then revived it as Mercedes-Maybach in 2018.
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Stellantis recently formed as a super-conglomerate from the merger of two conglomerates, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Europe’s Groupe PSA. FCA emerged when Fiat bought the Chrysler Group in 2014. PSA, meanwhile, formed when Peugeot took over Citroën in the 1970s; the company then bought German Opel and British Vauxhall from GM in 2017. The name “Stellantis” technically means nothing, but was presumably pan-European sounding enough to please all parties.
The North American branch consists of Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge and Ram. Overseas, the brand also includes two of the three largest manufacturers in France — Citroën and Peugeot — and almost every non-manufacturer in Italy.
Technically, FCA spun off Ferrari as a separate publicly held company in 2014. However, FCA was still the largest individual Ferrari shareholder, and executives have held concurrent leadership positions at both companies.
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Tata Motors is an Indian-owned multinational corporation, founded in 1945 as a locomotive manufacturer. The company sells its own Tata-branded vehicles, and is the parent company of British subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover, formed after Tata bought the two companies from Ford in 2008.
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Volkswagen was founded in 1937 to build the people’s car of Nazi Germany, better known nowadays as “the Beetle.” After the war, British manufacturers and Ford were offered ownership, but they turned it down. Eventually, VW was handed over to the German state, began producing Beetles and other cars…and people really liked them.
That company became Volkswagen AG. VW bought Auto Union and NSU in the 1960s and merged them to create Audi. The company acquired Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini in 1998.
Porsche and Volkswagen had ties dating back to the founding of both companies; Ferdinand Porsche designed the Beetle, and the original Porsche 356 was built with VW parts. Parts, engines, ownership stakes and Porsche relatives all shuttled between the two companies for years before VW bought Porsche in 2011 (after Porsche tried and failed to buy VW just before that).
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The members of this group, like the proverbial cheese, stand alone (though in many cases, they benefit from partnerships with larger automakers, such as Aston Martin’s relationship with Mercedes, Subaru’s ties with Toyota and Rivian’s investment from Ford). The reduced complexity of electric drivetrains means many an independent carmaker seen here aims to follow Tesla’s lead into redefining the automotive paradigm. How long they all remain independent, of course, remains to be seen.
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Welcome to Deals of Note, where Gear Patrol captures all the best deals of the day. You can also visit GearPatrol.com/Deals for constant updates on the latest deals discovered by our team.
The most rare or exceptional deals picked by Gear Patrol’s product experts.
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J.Crew
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2020 was a year that had most of us living in sweatpants, but now it’s 2021 and we’re looking at our closets hoping to get more use out of them than we did last year. Sweats are here to stay, but hopefully as more of a rotation piece and not the focal point of our wardrobe. You can, and should be, getting dressed while working from home each day. Just in time to save us from another humdrum year with no fashion sense, J.Crew is offering up 50 percent off Work From Anywhere styles and 30 percent off select full-price and sale items with code SALETIME at checkout.
J.Crew is the perfect place to refresh your style because it offers value, quality and has everything you need for a head-to-toe fit update (sweats included). Since hundreds of items are eligible for the deal, we decided to shop the sale for you and highlight some of our favorites below.
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Most of us who regularly sit in front of our computers or laptops do just fine with what we have. However, if you are the type of user who normally needs multiple windows simultaneously open to boost efficiency, this setup is likely not for you. A huge monitor seems like a good solution but is counterintuitive for those who travel or work out in the field. Thankfully, Desklab offers a solution that’s surprisingly versatile and extremely portable.
It’s easy to guess that a portable display is a go-to solution for what we previously pointed out. Unfortunately, the market is flooded with a lot of these that often neglect what the consumer actually wants. As such, the majority of models available tend to omit modern functionalities that would benefit both productivity and entertainment.
Desklab goes out of its way to give us a sleek and slim 4K-ready touchscreen monitor that ships with a remarkable suite of features. To be honest, when it was still on a crowdfunding platform back then, some of us thought it was too good to be true. Yet, after spending some time with it, I think the folks behind this project delivered something impressive. So, let’s find out if this is the device for you.
If at this point I have somehow already convinced you to get one, by all means, head on over to their online shop and do so. It’s important to note that Desklab is offering two versions of their portable monitor: 4K and 1080p. Personally, I don’t really see the reason why you would go for the latter when you can enjoy all the extra pixels.
I recommend that you also grab the Desklab Foldable Magnetic Cover which we will go into detail about later. Kudos to the shipping team and courier as the package arrived in excellent condition. The monitor was wrapped in plastic and was securely nestled between foam paddings.
Below the top layer are the documentation and a thicker foam padding with cutouts for its accessories. What came with the 4K monitor were an HDMI to Mini-HDMI cable, a USB-C to USB-C cable, and a USB-C power adapter (rated at 5V, 4A).
With the monitor in my hand, I immediately noticed the cool touch of metal. It comes in black with a mix of brushed and matte finishes on specific surfaces. Moreover, the chamfered edges endow a premium vibe to an already stylish aesthetic. Overall, its profile should please consumers who prefer something with a minimalist appeal.
The unit I have might be a redesign as most of the ones I saw on other reviews had different port and button placements. On the right side of the frame are three push buttons and a single USB-A port right below. Meanwhile, the left flank houses two USB-C ports, an HDMI port, and a 3.5 mm auxiliary. Then there are two rear-firing speakers and two rubber feet at the bottom.
As for the protective cover I mentioned earlier, it augments the usability of your Desklab monitor. Unless one forgets that portability is the name of the game here, this cover/stand combo is a must-have item. Nomads who love to set up shop anywhere are going love this 2-in-1 add-one. It attaches magnetically to the upper rear section and does not even add any bulk at all.
What immediately blew me away once it was connected to my Windows laptop was the vibrant display and the thin bezels around it. Desklab says that the IPS panel is equipped with a “True LED” backlight that helps it hit up to 400 nits of brightness. At 4K resolution, the details of the images and videos look crisp. If you are a creative professional who wants color accuracy on your portable monitor, then this could be it. I am no expert on this aspect, but there has been a lot of positive feedback directed its way.
Talking about versatility, another capability that many would likely appreciate is its capacitive touch capabilities. Although there are exceptions, if the connected device has a touchscreen interface, the monitor will register touch input. In my opinion, this is one of its best features especially when you plug in an Android smartphone that supports desktop mode.
With a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard, the Desklab monitor becomes a mobile workstation courtesy of your smartphone. In fact, I wrote a few parts of this article with that setup. Now, how awesome is that? Currently, not all Android handsets have it, but Google might enable the option in a future software update.
As for console gaming, I tested it with my Nintendo Switch and PS4. No qualms here as the 20-ms response times keeps up with the action. Those who were lucky enough to snag a PS5 or Xbox Series X should be able to maximize their games in native 4K with Desklabs monitor. Ultimately, it is a fantastic portable display that caters to the needs of both casual and professional users.
Pros:
Cons:
As you can see, the pros far outweigh the cons. In fact, what I listed as issues are just minor gripes in reality and do not take away from what the Desklab 4K model can do. Personally, I would recommend it to anyone who might be planning to buy a portable monitor anytime soon.
If you would like your product reviewed and featured on Men’s Gear as well as its vast social media channels, e-mail Joe@mensgear.net
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We’re still in the thick of winter here in the Northern Hemisphere, but that isn’t keeping us from daydreaming about fast, fun bike rides this spring. And the Swedish design wizards at POC Sports have launched just the thing to make those rides a little faster and more fun: the new Ventral Lite helmet, which weighs in at a feathery 240 grams (for a size medium).
For those who embrace alternative measurement systems, that translates to about 8.5 ounces. For those who embrace even more alternative measurement systems, that’s roughly equivalent to five brown sugar cinnamon Pop Tarts or three medium-sized oranges. It’s a bit more than the Syrian hamster you might keep as a pet, but well under the weight of the rare, endangered European hamster (a.k.a. the common hamster), which weighs about a pound.
How’d POC do it? By stripping the idea of a bike helmet down to its very essence. The liner is specially shaped to accommodate a lower-density foam, the straps and clip are super streamlined and the outer PC shell is strategically abbreviated, covering only what it must.
The byproduct of all that is, of course, maximal air flow. “Riders who are focused on climbing or ride in hotter conditions are extremely conscious about weight, ventilation and comfort, which is where the Ventral Lite will excel,” says POC’s head of product, Oscar Huss. “It will provide the protection those riders deserve without ever noticing it’s there.”
The Ventral Lite can still be adjusted for a secure fit, courtesy of a small dial at the back. It meets major safety standards as well. Truly, the only thing that isn’t minimal is the cost, which is significantly higher than that of even the fanciest hamster.
Price: $275
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After years of online retail experience, Amazon has become a brand synonymous with awesome first-party products. You have growing lineups of Kindles, Echos, and its continuously improving Alexa. In fact, the latter has grown into the virtual assistant of choice for consumers. The company behind it seems ready to integrate the technology on almost anything. Case in point, this Smart Cuckoo Clock.
This odd product is one of several items under Amazon’s Day 1 Editions project. For those unaware, the former is an experimental initiative that somewhat shares some elements with crowdfunding. It’s supposedly a way for the retail giant to gauge public interest in certain stuff before they peg it for mass production.
So far, we think the Smart Cuckoo Clock is an interesting blend of classic timekeeping with hints of smart functionalities. To be honest, its unique profile allows it to stay discrete and match any classic or modern interior design. Of course, Alexa takes center stage as it pairs with your compatible Echo device via Bluetooth.
As long as it’s within range, each time you ask Alexa to set a timer, the Smart Cuckoo Clock responds accordingly. It took us a while to notice, but the minute markers actually house LEDs inside. These light up to give users a visual indicator of the countdown.
Meanwhile, the hands will automatically adjust according to the Echo’s system time. The removable pendulum also swings to emulate the real thing. The final touch is the mechanical bird that springs into action when the alarm sounds. We hope enough people preorder the Smart Cuckoo Clock because most of us here want one now.
Images courtesy of Amazon
Vans
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Nothing says sunshine quite like a pair of Vans. Born in Orange County, Vans has been at the center of the cultural zeitgeist since the 1960s, outfitting skaters, surfers and just about everyone else with shoes that ooze California cool. In the past decade or so, Vans has not only kept the classics coming but has added a ton of new shoes to its repertoire, including the weatherproof MTE line and adventure-ready UltraRange. Since spring is on the way, we dove into the sale section at Vans.com to see what we could find a deal on.
There are a ton of options available at a discount right now, so we picked out some of our favorites that we’ll be putting on once the sun decides to show itself again.
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Welcome to Product Support, a column devoted to helping you get the most out of the gadgets and software you already use.
If you have any of Apple’s main devices — iPhone, iPad or Mac — that means you have an Apple ID and you have access to iCloud, Apple’s cloud-based storage service. iCloud makes sure that the information on Apple’s default apps (such as Files, Mail, Calendar, Photos and Notes) is backed up and synced across all your various devices. For example, it’s the reason you can access the same Notes file on your Mac and iPhone, or the same photos on your iPhone and iPad.
iCloud is a pretty robust service with many different features — one of those is a built-in password manager called Keychain. That’s right, instead of paying for a separate service like 1Password or LastPass, you can just turn on this feature inside the service you’re likely already for paying for.
It has its limits, but the recent introduction of the iCloud Passwords Chrome Extension which will let you use it outside of Safari makes it more feasible than ever to use it as a full fledged password manager.
Here’s how to do it.
If you’re setting up on your iPhone or iPad:
If you’re setting up on your Mac:
Apple
Once turned on, you’re going to want set up Keychain so that it works for you, meaning you’re going to want it to autofill or keep track of the passwords that you already use every day. These are passwords for various apps, email, websites and other password-protected items.
If you’re on an iPhone or iPad:
If you’re on a Mac:
Apple
Now you’ve successfully turned iCloud into a password manager, you need to learn how to take advantage of it. One of the main advantage of any password manager is that it means that you don’t have to remember all your different passwords to your various apps, website and accounts. But it also lets you quickly find those passwords when you need them. And with Keychain, that’s really easy.
Apple
If you’re on an iPhone or iPad:
If you’re on a Mac:
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Looking for even more great savings? Head over to Today’s Best Deals page to see all our top deals from today.
Design Within Reach is one of the best destinations for all types of furniture, whether you’re looking to complete your WFH set up or trying to upgrade your kitchen furniture. If it is the latter, you’re in luck. DWR is offering 15 percent off plus free shipping on some of its finest dining room furniture, including Knoll classics.
This 12-seat midcentury-inspired kitchen table and some Profile Chairs to go with it will make for an enviable dining room. Or you could complete a breakfast nook with a super comfy Lina Swivel chair. If you can’t wait for summer, upgrade your outdoor furniture with the 1966 Collection. Maybe you are looking forward to entertaining (safely via social distancing obviously), so pick up a barstool or two for your wet bar. No matter what dining setup you’re looking for, this sale has an excellent range of options.
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Beer Pong is still a popular favorite drinking game among those who prefer the amber brew. Perhaps part of its appeal comes from how easy it is to set up as long as you have a few of the items. Any surface or table can become the play area as long as its level. Just bust out the ping pong balls, cups or glasses, and your beverage of choice. PONGConnect, on the other hand, has other plans.
Behold the interactive Beer Connect Table in all its glory. With this in your home, you can challenge anyone in a modern match of accuracy and ability to stay sober until the game crowns a winner. Normally, unless one of your buddies is the designated driver for the affair, keeping becomes score is a challenge.
PONGConnect understands and slaps on a feature to handle the task. The Beer Pong Table supposedly meets the official regulation size of 94.50 inches long and 30.71 inches wide. The player surface stands 35.40 inches high according to PongConnect.
With that out of the way, what this awesome machine does is add electronic elements to make the experience immersive. Sections light up which makes it easy to play even in the dark, while audio cues and effects boost the fun.
To keep score, RFID sensors track points as disputes become the thing of the past. Two LED Screens displays all essential information such as stats, achievement badges, and rankings. Download the optional PONGConnect companion app on your smartphone to check out where you stand against the global community of players.
Images courtesy of PONGConnect
Welcome to Deals of Note, where Gear Patrol captures all the best deals of the day. You can also visit GearPatrol.com/Deals for constant updates on the latest deals discovered by our team.
The most rare or exceptional deals picked by Gear Patrol’s product experts.
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There are many great camper van builders out there producing an exciting array of vehicles. However, few of them are going to match up to Chinese manufacturer SAIC Maxus’s Life Home V90 Villa Edition, found by the folks at New Atlas, which takes the pop-top concept to a whole new level — literally and figuratively.
The first floor isn’t too shabby. Sides pop out to reveal a sprawling living space, enough for a living room area with an L-shaped sofa, a kitchen, a bar area and a bathroom.
We say the first floor because the pop-up area is not merely a sleeping cubby, but a full height, glass-enclosed second-floor providing yet more living space with a small deck area.
And there’s no undignified or unwieldy climbing required to reach it. You access it via a tiny single-person elevator.
SAIC Maxus
SAIC Maxus
Functionality on the second-floor seems to be limited by height with the pop-top down. Renderings show a low-lying tea lounge setup; presumably, you could convert it into a master bedroom with majestic views, as the sleeping compartment is tucked in behind the driver’s seat. (However, the floor-to-ceiling glass windows may not be optimal for that.)
The SAIC Maxus Life Home V90 Villa Edition doesn’t exactly look trail-ready, or fun to drive anywhere but open highway, and it seems more fit for entertaining than for family function. The optimal use would seem to be whatever the Chinese equivalent of a swanky college football tailgate would be.
Even by luxury camping standards, SAIC Maxus Life Home V90 Villa Edition doesn’t come cheap. According to New Atlas, this camper van’s price starts at the equivalent of $413,000. For perspective, that’s more than twice the cost of a super-lux Bowlus Road Chief Endless Highways trailer.
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No celebrity family is more prone to getting heat than the Jenner / Kardashian clan. On Tuesday, Kendall Jenner announced the launch of her own tequila brand, 818, with an Instagram post. Commenters did not hold back, calling out Jenner for cultural appropriation.
In her announcement post, Jenner mentions she had been working on 818 in secret for nearly four years, “after dozens of blind taste tests, trips to our distillery, entering into world tasting competitions anonymously and WINNING.” The lineup of 818 tequilas include a blanco, reposado and añejo, all of which have won some type of spirit award. (Notably, 818’s reposado took home the award for best in its category in the 2020 World Tequila Awards.)
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Jenner’s friends and family rained praise on her and her tequila. Many others, however, were not so kind.
In a subreddit thread from six months ago, one user discovered 818 after winning in the World Tequila Awards. Last week, however, said subreddit became active again after Jenner’s announcement. One user, who identified as a Mexican tequila maker, wrote: “This is a joke for real tequila makers, what Kendall did was literally make a bottle, found a bigger brand that bottles ‘her tequila.'”
Diet Prada, an Instagram account that calls out wrongdoings in the fashion industry, also posted about 818, highlighting the pushback to the brand and Jenner. “Scrolling past the top comments from her influential friends, it seems the Mexican and Latinx community aren’t so keen on the launch,” the account wrote, citing several comments criticizing Jenner’s new venture.
Issues of cultural appropriation were behind much of the vitriol. Many of those commenters were angry that Jenner is another non-Mexican person profiting off a Mexican product, when so many Mexicans rely on making and selling tequila to support their families. Commenters also said they were worried about the potential exploitation of the workers who harvest the agave and make the tequila.
An apparent lack of tequila knowledge also seems to have led some to criticize Jenner. The model is seen sipping her tequila on ice, a faux pas among many tequila experts. Also, each bottle features a grammatical error: instead of saying “blanco tequila,” it should be “tequila blanco.” (In Spanish, the adjective follows the noun it’s describing.)
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Beyond its celebrity parentage, little is known about 818. Its bottles mention “handcrafted” and “small batch” — buzzwords with little meaning — and all three are made in Jalisco, Mexico, from 100 percent Weber Blue agave.
As many noted, Jenner is hardly the first celebrity to start a tequila brand. Dwayne Johnson has Teremana; Nick Jonas and John Varvatos have Villa One; and perhaps most famously, George Clooney had Casamigos, which he and his business partners Rande Gerber and Mike Meldman sold to Diaego for $1 billion back in 2017. (On a related note, Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul have a mezcal brand, Dos Hombres.)
The aforementioned celebrities have also received pushback for their foray into the tequila business, and the criticism from the Mexican community over cultural appropriation certainly seems justified. But the outcry over 818 certainly seems louder than the online
(Either Jenner’s gender or the fact that her family always manages to find itself on the receiving end of condemnation both seem likely potential reasons, however.)
And while the general public has yet to try 818, before you snap up a bottle, just remember: there are plenty of tequila brands out there owned by Mexican distillers that are making excellent spirits.
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This definitive guide provides information on the 11 best rain jackets available based on features like waterproofing, fit, features, weight, durability and price. In it, we offer suggestions on which jacket to buy for different activities and needs. Keep reading beyond our picks for information rain jacket materials and an explanation of DWR (durable water repellent).
We live in a Golden Age of water-repellency; before nylon shells and Gore-Tex membranes, humans devised hydrophobic clothing using vinyl, oiled canvas and, before that, cured seal and whale intestines. Now, (thankfully) waterproofing happens at a molecular level with advanced membranes that keep water droplets out but let body vapor (think sweat) through.
The advancements have allowed rain jackets to become lighter, more breathable, packable and no less rain-proof. Rain jacket technology keeps getting better too — today, companies are experimenting with new fabrics to make rain shells softer and more comfortable and adding stretch for increased mobility (and less of that trademark crinkly jacket sound). Style hasn’t fallen by the wayside either. The new class of rain jacket is light enough, durable enough, breathable enough and waterproof enough to handle multi-day treks through misting rain as well as the inevitable deluge during commuting hours.
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A quick Google search for “best rain jacket” will reveal various lists like this one, and Patagonia’s Torrentshell makes an appearance on nearly all of them. It’s the outdoor brand’s jack-of-all-trades rain shell, with a classic construction that includes hand pockets, an adjustable and stowable hood, and zippered underarm vents for when things get warm.
Patagonia made the latest iteration of the Torrentshell with a three-layer construction — the same that you find on ski outerwear — that includes a recycled nylon face fabric, a waterproof membrane and a soft interior lining. It’s an upgrade over the older 2.5-layer model and one that significantly ups the value ante as Patagonia stuck with its already-low $149 price. Patagonia’s Rainshadow rain jacket is similar, but comes at a lower weight and uses a stretchier fabric for $50 more.
Weight: 13.9 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: H2No
Shell Material: 3.3-oz 50-denier Econl 100% recycled nylon ripstop
Price: $149
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When The North Face released its FutureLight waterproof fabric technology in late 2019, it only showed up in outerwear made for skiing, snowboarding and other mountain adventures. Now though, the brand is rapidly rolling the tech into everything from hiking footwear to tents. Like other waterproof membranes, FutureLight is impermeable, but thanks to a unique manufacturing process, it’s also remarkably breathable. That makes it the perfect material for a lightweight rain layer, like the new and improved Dryzzle.
Rain jackets tend to become clammy as soon as temperatures rise, so the additional breathability of FutureLight is a welcome upgrade to this TNF classic. We’ve worn the similar pullover version, the Arque Active Trail FutureLight Jacket ($229), through the New York City subway system, which becomes a sauna in the summertime, and had no sweaty issues.
The Dryzzle is a classic rain jacket with an adjustable hood and hem, an exterior chest pocket and two hand pockets.
Weight: 12 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: FutureLight
Shell Material: 100% recycled polyester
Price: $229
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Most rain jackets that cost less than $100 use a two-layer construction consisting of a shell fabric with a waterproof laminate bonded to its interior (it’s often white and feels plasticky to the touch). These jackets can be good at keeping you dry, though they tend not to be nearly as durable — we’ve seen some laminates begin to flake away after one or two seasons of hard use.
REI’s Rainier Rain Jacket has a 2.5-layer construction, which means that in addition to its recycled ripstop nylon shell and Peak waterproof laminate, it has a light interior lining that makes a protective sandwich that helps this jacket last more than a few seasons. It has lots of other features, too, like a collar separate from the adjustable hood, though it isn’t as lightweight or packable as some of the others on this list.
Weight: 13 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: Peak 2.5-layer waterproof breathable laminate
Shell Material: Bluesign-approved recycled nylon ripstop
Price: $90
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The sleuth detective in an outdoor-themed film noir flick might don the Sawyer. It’s defining characteristic is its clean style, which stems from a logo-less front and a longer sub-hips length. Even the inside is a gunmetal gray instead of the white that’s traditional in most technical rain jackets. It’s not entirely unbranded though, Arc’teryx’s trademark archaeopteryx fossil is perched on the left shoulder, and “Gore-Tex” falls on the right forearm, perhaps the only two visible markers of the tech supporting this jacket.
Drawing on Arc’teryx’s outdoor expertise, the Sawyer is completely waterproof, seam-sealed and lightweight given its length. It’s the perfect rain jacket for those who spend more time in urban environments than in the mountains.
Weight: 13 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: Gore-Tex 3 layer
Shell Material: nylon
Price: $449
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Stretch is one of the biggest trends in rain jackets at the moment, and it’s easy to write off as a feature only available on jackets at the upper end of the price spectrum. The Black Diamond Stormline Stretch shatters those preconceived notions. It’s impossibly stretchy, still offers 100-percent waterproofing that you’d expect in a high-end rain jacket and comes in at a price of just $149. Bring your lunch to work for a week or two and you’ll have saved up enough for it.
Beyond price, Black Diamond brings some serious performance to the table with its BD.Dry waterproof breathable membrane. It beads water on par with more expensive jackets on this list, and while other features beyond stretch are sparse, you get far more than you pay for.
Weight: 9.9 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: BD.dry
Shell Material: nylon
Price: $149
Like many of the jackets to make our list this year, Mountain Hardwear’s Exposure/2 Gore-Tex Paclite consists of a fabric that’s not only lightweight but also slightly stretchy. Also superseding older jackets is the Exposure/2’s packability. Mountain Hardwear employed Gore-Tex’s Paclite Plus fabric, which combines these qualities with high durability in a two-layer construction.
The Exposure/2 doesn’t come with underarm vents, but its two oversized hand pockets are lined with mesh on the interior and can be left open to allow heat to escape. The jacket also has an exterior chest pocket and an adjustable hood and hem. At only 9.6 ounces, it’s one of the lighter jackets on this list, and perfect for stashing in a backpack when the forecast isn’t confirmed. That factor, along with its durability, makes the Exposure/2 perfect for the trail.
Weight: 9.6 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: Gore-Tex
Shell Material: nylon
Price: $300
On Running
We don’t often reach for rain layers during a run — once our bodies warm up, even a little rain isn’t as uncomfortable as a clammy jacket. But for those who lose sleep over a missed training run (or simply hate treadmills), a rain jacket that can handle some movement is an essential. That’s why On built its Weather Jacket with a stretchy polyester that’s also highly breathable. In addition to its fabric though, the Weather Jacket uses a design that allows for large vents between its upper and lower sections. And if the skies clear up mid-run the entire garment squishes down into a self-contained wad small enough to carry.
For a rain jacket dedicated specifically to trail and distance running, check out Patagonia’s Storm Racer Jacket ($249), which uses an innovative design that allows for access to a running vest worn beneath.
Weight: 9.8 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: DWR
Shell Material: polyester and elastane
Price: $240
Rapha
Umbrellas aren’t an option for those who commute by bike, making a rain jacket all the more essential for journeys to-and-from. Yes, any rain jacket will do, but Rapha included a docket of features that make its Commuter Jacket particularly adept at the task. One is an bike-specific pattern that includes a longer rear to protect from road splatter, and another is reflective detailing that beams back headlights for visibility. The jacket also features a hood small enough to fit beneath a helmet and a zipper slightly offset to minimize skin abrasion.
If you’re looking for a rain jacket that’s geared toward snow and winter riding, check out Rapha’s Classic Winter Gore-Tex Jacket ($370).
Weight: n/a
Membrane/Laminate: “waterproof membrane”
Shell Material: n/a
Price: $135
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Compared to other rain jackets, Columbia’s OutDry EX Reign immediately looks different. That’s because OutDry Extreme, one of Columbia’s proprietary waterproofing technologies, is constructed differently than Gore-Tex, Dermizax or other commonly used barriers. Instead of layering the waterproof membrane between a liner and a shell, Columbia put it on the outside, where it’s exposed directly to the weather.
That construction has multiple consequences: the fabric-lined interior wicks and is left soft; the exterior feels more like a classic, slicker-style raincoat that won’t wet out (when a coat’s shell fabric gets saturated). It also means that the seams are taped on the outside, which adds to the jacket’s unique look. It also has two large pockets and underarm zips for venting. The OutDry EX Reign doesn’t follow the most recent trend in rain jackets — it doesn’t have any stretch — but it’s still comfortable, breathes quite well and is impenetrable to rain.
Weight: 22 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: OutDry Extreme
Shell Material: nylon
Price: $150
If you’re a serious outdoorsman, it can be easy to dismiss REI’s in-house brand as just that, an in-house brand. But much like Costco’s Kirkland brand, there’s a lot to love. For one, the Stormbolt is incredibly durable. I posit that you could rub it up against a rock face a few too many times and still come away with a jacket that looks and performs as if it were new. It brings a Gore-Tex three-layer construction to the table, which is the gold standard for waterproofing.
The fit allows for layering underneath, which adds to the jacket’s versatility and allows it to be used as a ski shell in winter. If you’re an REI member, there isn’t much of a reason to look elsewhere. Add to your dividend and save for something on your wish list.
Weight: 15 ounces
Membrane/Laminate: Gore-Tex
Shell Material: nylon
Price: $279
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Reading through this guide, you may notice that most rain jackets opt for necessary-only features like hand pockets, adjustable hoods and cuffs, and, sometimes but not always, underarm vents. Goldwin gave all of these except vents to its Element Jacket and then added a unique feature: a front pocket with a mesh liner that pops out and snaps to the front, creating a place to carry soggy items you don’t want to put in your pack with things that are still dry. It’s simple yet practical and a brilliant addition to a rain jacket that already sets a high bar with its highly-waterproof three-layer Pertex Shield Air fabric.
Weight: n/a
Membrane/Laminate: Pertex Shield Air 3L
Shell Material: nylon
Price: $400
The outer textile of most three-layer shells is made of a rugged nylon or polyester that’s coated with Durable Water Repellent (DWR). The inner membrane is a microporous fabric, typically made of ePTFE or Polyurethane that acts as the shell’s primary waterproof and breathable layer. It’s the secret sauce. The backer textile is a thin layer, usually gauze, that’s laminated to the back of the membrane, which eliminates the need for a liner.
While the waterproof and breathable technologies are all generally related in the way they function, several brands have proprietary technologies, among them Gore-Tex, Polartec NeoShell, eVent, Schoeller and Dermizax NX. Discerning one technology from another can be difficult, in part because the technology is kept under lock and key, but also because the technology requires an understanding of terms like “phase change” and how things work on a molecular level. To repair a ripped rain jacket, read our guide.
When you’re buying a rain jacket or any outerwear for that matter, you’ll often come across the initials DWR, which stand for durable water repellent. DWR is a coating applied to fabrics that lets them shed fluids, and it’s commonly used in conjunction with waterproof membranes. DWR works by making the surface of the exterior fabric spiky at a microscopic level, which forces water and other liquids into rounder, beaded forms. That helps them roll off the garment instead of saturating it. DWR isn’t permanent, but it can easily be revived. To re-waterproof your rain jacket, read our guide.
A38 Arkitekter–aka A38 Architects–is a Norwegian architectural firm that’s been producing innovative spaces since their inception almost half a century ago. Their latest project “Annex Oppdal” was produced in collaboration with the local TV program…
The post Annex Oppdal Diamond Cabin first appeared on Cool Material.
