I have some several must-have tech items for back-to-school. I went on Amazon and picked out several items that I think would be extremely beneficial for school and would not really break the bank. Many tech reviewers are highlighting back-to-school products that cost hundreds of dollars and they include laptops and tablets. But I just wanted to include and highlight some smaller, lesser known but equally useful products that (once again) do not cost an arm and leg. I will post links to all the products mentioned in this video down below in the description bar.
Timbuk2 Rouge Backpack
The first product is a backpack from Timbuk2. It’s the Rouge laptop backpack and this is my daily driver backpack. I’ve been using this guy for almost a year now. I bought it originally for CES 2015 and it has served me well. It retains its excellent shape because of how well it’s made. It features a water-resistant exterior for those rainy school days. There’s a front zip pocket that I use to carry my smartphone chargers and external battery packs. And there’s a large compartment to fit all of my school supplies like textbooks and even a laptop.
Timbuk2 Classy Customizable Messenger Bag
If you’re looking for something a little classier, you can go with something like this. This is a custom classic messenger bag from Timbuk2 that I customized with my BeauHD colors. It’s a little flashy to say the least but once again, this bag is customizable. It really just consists of this large flap which can actually fit a camera insert perfectly. But for school purposes, it can hold a lot of textbooks as well as a 15-inch laptop and it just looks really good. The small classic messenger bag that you see here costs $124 and the Rouge laptop backpack costs only about $60.
PowerAdd X7
Whenever you are traveling, I would recommend at least one external battery pack. And this is the PowerAdd X7 2000mAh battery pack that I like because it doesn’t really take up too much space yet it’s huge and can charge two devices simultaneously. The LED displays the remaining power of the battery pack, which is a pretty neat feature. On other battery packs, they kind of just have to guess how much battery there is. But I can just leave this battery pack in my backpack and really not have to worry about running out of power wherever I am. The 2000 high capacity battery can charge my Note 5 more than six times so I only really need to charge the X7 itself maybe once every couple of weeks. It really does last a long time.
The PowerAdd X7 2000mAh battery costs only $30 and it’s available in black, black and red, and blue.
TYLT Flyp Duo
I do like to accompany the X7 battery pack with this guy. This is the TYLT Flyp Duo, a very convenient cable to say the least. I often carry around two smartphones. Sometimes it’s an iPhone, sometimes it’s an Android device. I can use this one cable to charge either my iPhone or my Android device as it features a 2-in-1 lightning to micro USB connector. I can also be nice and just help a fellow classmate out who may need their device charged. Let’s be honest, there’s always that one kid in class who’s looking for a charger.
The icing on the cake is the fact that the USB itself is reversible and can be inserted into the port either way, which really doesn’t sound terribly impressive but it’s the simple things in life that I’ve really learned to love. The TYLT Flyp Duo costs about $25 and comes in a multitude of colors.
LuguLake Swan Wireless Bluetooth Speaker
When you have some free time and between classes, you’ll probably want to listen to some music to relax, just get your mind off things, or get pumped for the next class. I have two Bluetooth speakers here from LuguLake. The first is the LuguLake Swan Wireless Bluetooth Speaker with NFC and a 360-degree sound field and built-in microphone. First of all, this speaker is incredibly portable. I can literally fit it in the palm of my hand. I do enjoy the 360-degree sound field as I can pop it down on a bench or something and stretch and just get ready for the next class and just not have to reorient the speakers to face me. That’s kind of cool. For $40 on Amazon, it’s worth checking out simply for the portability.
LuguLake Slim Bluetooth Speaker
If you’re looking for a more traditional slim Bluetooth speaker, the LuguLake Slim Bluetooth Speaker is pocket-size. You can slip this guy in your pocket and play some tunes, granted that’s not the optimal way to listen to a Bluetooth speaker but I found it to have more bells and whistles than the Swan speaker as it has NFC pairing, a microSD card slot so that you can access files from a microSD card, which is very useful; something I haven’t really seen a lot on other speakers. There’s also an auxiliary port for playing music via a wired connection. And there’s a charge indicator along with a built-in microphone. I really do like all of these bells and whistles, all these extra features. I also do prefer the sound quality slightly more than the Swan speaker. It doesn’t offer a 360-degree sound field but it can get louder and sound is more rich and full.
The LuguLake Slim Bluetooth Speaker is about $43 on Amazon right now.
PowerAdd Glowing Earphones
But let’s say you’re looking for a way to playback music in a more stealthy yet stylish fashion. The PowerAdd Glowing Earphones serve both of those functions. Not only are they sports earphones with removable tips to fit better in your ears but they also feature a mic and pause/play button that doubles as an answer/hang up button. The coolest feature though and really why these are on the list is because they light up and they will emit light based off the music you are listening to. Whether you’re trying to impress everybody around you in class or just rocking these earphones as a form of style or whether you use them to run outside and warn drivers of your whereabouts, the PowerAdd Glowing Earphones are really worth checking in to. They’re really cool-looking. They cost $40 on Amazon.
GateKeeper
The last product I wanted to take a look at is the GateKeeper. I thought this product was pretty unique as it’s a wireless computer lock and tracker with Bluetooth 4.0 technology. As mentioned on the box, it will automatically lock and unlock your computer based on your proximity. All you need to do is plug the USB into your computer and register it with the keychain and you’re good to go. You can even use the GateKeeper software to actually customize the proximity of the keychain to determine just exactly how far away you want to be before your computer is either locked or unlocked.
You might be thinking what happens if the USB connector is removed from the computer itself? Well, the computer becomes locked so you don’t have to worry about somebody pulling out the USB connector because the computer will lock itself. And they won’t have access to any of your files. So for about $50, the GateKeeper is really a great way to keep your computer safe and secure.
With that said, those were some of my must-have tech gadgets for heading back to school. Obviously, there’s going to be some gadgets I have left out, which is why I want you to include some of your favorite school tech gadgets you can’t live without by leaving me a comment down below.
