UMI Ergonomic office chair by Amazon Review

The chair arrived in a large brown box with all the parts either individually wrapped, in plastic bags or separated by card to avoid damage during transit. I unpacked the box and unwrapped all the parts, I gave everything a good look over to check for flaws or bad finishing and found everything to be well finished to a high quality with no apparent defects. I had a look at the assembly instructions; these are fairly easy to follow and have itemised diagrams to identify all the parts, I did notice I had a couple of additional bolts according to the count which is far better than not enough :)

I was ready to start the assembly. I found the whole process fairly straight forward although I did make a schoolboy error of putting the arm rests on the wrong way round, this was easily and quickly rectified. The main test for me was going to be how comfortable and adjustable it was, I have been using it now since it arrived and spend anything between 10 and 15 hours a day working at the computer so a comfortable supporting chair is essential.

The arm adjustment work well and they are quick and easy to adjust while being nice and secure when in place, the arm rest pads are PU (Polyurethane) and give good support without being too hard. The main seat is nice and thick but also soft enough not to be uncomfortable, the chair tilt system is linked/attached to the base and works really well allowing you to either tilt right back or lock it at three different angles. I like the back to the chair being mesh as it stops the chair getting too hot over long periods of sitting or no doubt in the summer and it has a neat support system.

With everything on the chair looking and feeling nice and having good adjustment and support the main thing was how comfortable is it, I have previously fallen foul of getting a chair that ticked all the boxes but wasn’t actually very comfortable or supportive, when I first started using it I wasn’t sure but now after getting used to the change I really like it, I find it to give good support, the headrest works well with the system on the back of the chair giving really good support along with being nice and cool with the mesh. The arm rests adjust to exactly the height I need, the seat is firm but well padded and comfortable.

Overall a really nice and comfortable chair, as I sit at the computer for long periods comfort and support are essential and this chair delivers exactly that, the support is very good, the adjustment allows me to get exactly the sitting position I require, the tilt system along with the headrest work really well as does the mesh to keep the chair nice and cool so overall I am impressed with this chair. 

Product Description: UMI. by Amazon - Ergonomic office chair, Swivelling Mesh Computer Chair with Adjustable Lumbar Support and PU Armrests, Breathable Mesh Back and Padded Seat, 150 kg Max Load（Green）

CLASSIC BACKREST - The classic outer frame is made of eco-friendly PA materials, which is sturdy and durable to ensure your safety. The design of a slight S-shaped backrest combines the rear adjustable lumbar pillow, which fits to protect your cervical spine and lumbar spine, reduces back pain. When you feel tired from work or study, you can easily lock the three angles of 102-110-130 by adjusting the backrest level to release physical and mental pressure.

BREATHABLE & COMFORTABLE - The backrest and headrest are made of high-quality breathable polyester mesh to keep you cool and comfortable. High-density foam-filled seat cushion resists deformation to provide support that lasts all day long.

FREE ADJUSTMENT - Adjustable headrest and armrests show the flexibility of the ergonomic office chairs, you can adjust the height of the headrest and armrests according to your needs, finding the best position to perfectly support your neck, cervical spine, shoulders and arms to get the maximum relaxation. By adjusting the seat height to meet your work and daily needs.

SAFE & RELIABLE - The three-stage steel gas spring and heavy-duty nylon legs with max. load of 150 kg, certified by BIFMA and SGS. The thickened explosion-proof steel chassis is hard-wearing, all the details make this desk office chair use longer. The quiet chair wheel wrapped by PU can smoothly rotate 360° and is suitable for almost all floors.

PREMIUM SERVICE - This executive office chair has a 3-year warranty. If you have any quality problems, please contact us immediately, we will provide you with a 100% satisfactory solution. Besides, this mesh office chair comes with clear instructions and a full set of assembly tools, so don't worry completely.

Price: £179.99

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Bose TV Speaker Small Soundbar with Bluetooth Connectivity

 This arrived double boxed and extremely well packed and protected with the speaker inside a bespoke Bose branded lift top box, this contained the speaker on the top with power lead, optical lead, remote control and instructions on the bottom. The instruction are simple and clear to get it set up having linked diagrams for identification and gives an online link for a more in depth breakdown of functions, features and adjusting settings which is very comprehensive.

First impressions: the speaker has a very good weight to it around 3kg sitting nicely in front of my television and the quality is clear to see and feel straight away, the remote control is simple and clear not being overly cluttered with non functional buttons which is the case with some, I like how the cable sockets are situated into a recess in the back and laid out with a good space between them.

I already own a Bose SoundLink mini Bluetooth speaker II which I absolutely love with outstanding sound so I had high expectations for the quality of this and am pleased to say I wasn’t disappointed, after setting it up I first tried it on the main terrestrial television stations and found the enhanced dialogue feature of the speaker worked really well clarifying speech giving a good clear crisp vocal removing any muffled sound. I switched over to some gaming and this really showed the power and sound quality of the speaker, I was really impressed and engrossed in the game with the way it filled the room with the sound even more enhanced with the bass button.

I linked the speaker via Bluetooth to my phone to play some music, a very simple process of searching for it under the Bluetooth connection on the device and selecting, the sound again was superb and I was somewhat blown away by the power and quality produced, you can easily switch between the television connection and Bluetooth with the TV button on the remote control, with this speaker using multiple Bluetooth connections I was able to connect my tablet to the speaker as well making it easy to switch between the two connections.

Overall this really is a superb TV speaker, I love the quality and sound produced by Bose products with this more than impressing and blowing me away with the amazing sound it produces, I am not normally one to get overly enthusiastic about a product but this really delivers and I can’t fault it. I highly recommend following the link given in the manual to ensure you are getting the most out of the speaker with features and adjustments should you purchase it.

Price: £239.00

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Russell Hobbs 26095 Express Air Fryer Mini Oven

This arrived in a large Russell Hobbs branded box opening at the top, everything was tightly packed and protected with polystyrene with the grill section on the top, base plate at the bottom along with the manual and the main oven having tape securing all moving parts.

First impressions: I was surprised how light it was probably because it is around the size of a large microwave but far lighter; the finishing is very nice with the black inlaid dials against the stainless steel and glass panel in the front. I was disappointed in the manual having very basic operational instructions with no food preparation information when using the air frying option, I know there is plenty of information to hand online but would have liked a more detailed glossy manual with maybe some recipe ideas to match the quality of the oven which I found to be high.

After unpacking everything I gave it all a good clean and set it up ready to try out, I prepared some potato wedges or big chips depending on how you want to describe them, I cut them up leaving the skin on and coated them in a small amount of olive oil in a bowl then placed them into the grilling tray/rack and placed them in the oven, settings are straight forward just setting the dial to air frying then setting the timer on the second dial and it starts. I was pleased with the results and they all came out nice a crisp, I have since cooked several other things including a half chicken which came out perfect, the grill function works well and ideal for making cheese on toast. Cleaning isn’t too bad with the main sections that need cleaning being removable.

Overall this performs really well and ideal for cooking smaller meals or even as a main cooker in a student digs, the air frying function works really well and I was impressed with the results, the manual needs a revamp in my opinion but other than that it’s a very useful addition to the kitchen.

Price: £89.99

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Soyes Mini Smartphone Review

This arrived in a simple lift top box with the phone on the top in a rubber protective insert with foam covering the top, below the phone it has a two pin European style charge plug, a USB-C to USB-A charge lead and a small user manual, although the charge plug is a two pin European style it clearly states this will be the case and a three pin UK plug would be an additional purchase, I don’t consider this any sort of issue as the provided lead will charge it via any USB socket.

First impressions, the phone has a good weight to it, is thicker than an average phone, all the finishing on it looks very high quality and with the rubber wrap around it feels like it would withstand being dropped or banged about without causing any damage, it has everything you would expect to see on a larger phone but at a reduced size.

I put the phone on charge via the USB-C socket in the base, this has a rubber cover which can be a bit fiddly to open, and the manual is all very small text with no diagrams or pictures to assist although it does go through all the functions and features. I fitted two sim cards into the phone, the design of the sim card holder is quite neat with the sims going above and below on the slider and it takes a Nano sim and a Micro (USIM) on the bottom, it is also possible to fit a micro SD card for as an alternative to one sim but not in addition to dual sims.

Once it was charged I turned it on, the language defaulted to Dutch so I had to guess/navigate through the menu to switch the language to English, once I had set it to English I had a good look through the features, the phone has facial recognition which I set up and that worked very well, I set up the fingerprint unlocking and this also worked very well with the fingerprint pad being on the back of the phone. I tested out the cameras and they are fairly good with a two megapixel front and eight megapixel rear cameras, the quality more than acceptable.

The phone comes with Android 6 (marshmallow) which is quite an old version but works very well with the phone being nice and fast to navigate and I liked the menu system, I was quite surprised how loud the phone would go considering its size although playing music through the phone speaker is a bit tinny, The battery is 1900mAh and I found it lasts a full day with heavy use and over two days plus with minimum use before it needing charging.

Overall I have been using the phone since it arrived as my main phone and everything works perfectly, I thought phone calls might be a bit difficult to hear but its fine, the menu system is fast, well thought out and easy to navigate, it’s durable, shockproof and waterproof so will put up with a lot of rough treatment, it fits easily into a small pocket and has a good loud ring tone along with some of the most recent features such as facial recognition. The default language being Dutch, opening the charge port being fiddly and the manual only being small text with no diagrams are the only things stopping me giving this top marks. 

Product description

• Colour Name: Black
• Operating system: Android 6.0
• Standard frequency band: GSM: 900/1800 WCDMA: B1/B8 FDD: B1/B3, TDD: B38/B39/B40/B41
• GPS: YES
• Wi-Fi: Dual band (2.4GHz/5GHz) single stream 802.11 a/b/n/g Bluetooth: V2.1+EDR/V3.0+HS/V4.0
• NFC: Support
• Talkback: Supports public network intercom. Supports video calls.
• Processor: MTK6737 ,CPU：4x Cortex-A53, GPU：ARM Mali-T720 MP1 550MHz
• Key: 6 independent keys: PTT Photo Keyboard Boot SOS Volume + Volume- Three virtual keys: Return to the next level Open Background Applications Return to the main interface
• Keypad lamp: Virtual Key 3 White Light
• Memory: 3GB(ROM) +32GB(RAM)
• External storage: Maximum Supporting external TF card default 128GB
• Photography/Camera: The first 2 megapixels and the last 8 megapixels
• Screen: "3.0 IPS", "Color Screen", Touch Screen Support Resolution: 480*854 FWVGA RGB PPI:326
• Battery: 1900mAh
• Fingerprint: Fingerprint unlocking
• Sensor: Vibration motor, gravity, geomagnetism
• Headset: Support TYPE-C earphone(but no include headset in package)
• Hardware interface: TF、SIM、TYPE-C
• Included accessories : 1* type C cable , 1* EU charging adaptor ,1* English user manual

Price: £125.00
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Moochies - Kids Smart Watch Phone & Tracker Review

This arrived in a Moochies branded display box with the watch secured in a lift front panel and the charging lead along with instruction book under this. The first thing I did was to put the watch on charge, the charging lead is a USB to a magnet connection on the back of the watch, a neat system and easy for a child to put on charge without messing up the charging port trying to force it in.

The manual is very well laid out being easy to follow detailing all the functions and features along with exploratory diagrams that take you through step by step. Once the watch had fully charged I turned it on and followed the instructions registering on the Moochies web site and choosing a package. The basic package is £10 a month giving 180 minutes of calls along with 300 Mb of data not a great deal for £10 a month in my opinion. There isn’t a contract and you can cancel the rolling payment at any time although this would render the watch inactive and fairly pointless.

I tested out the video calling that works well and gives a reasonable display image and the sound is acceptable although somewhat tinny on the watch side, the tracking works fairly well within my area but as a test my wife took the watch to work and I found the signal was lost at points during her travel.

The camera works fine for taking snaps but the results are not of great quality and somewhat distorted, messaging works perfectly, the class mode worked as it should, the pedometer although basic worked very well. The safe zones feature worked very well alerting you when it was breached, the SOS sounds an audio alert when pressed and held for a short while although this does not alert for very long so could be missed.

I found the watch to be very bulky for a child and thought the screen wouldn’t be too hard to scratch or break, the swipe function works well and the features are easy to navigate and use even for a small child.

Overall this watch has some great features and functions but I do have quite a few issues with it, the monthly payment although not contract is expensive for the allowance you get, it ties you into a rolling payment or the watch is inactive for its primary purpose, I would have liked to see it fitted with a pay as you go sim giving more flexibility and not tying you into a yearly cost in excess of the cost of the watch.

The battery life isn’t the best and with high usage needs charging after around eight hours although the charging system is very good and charging is fairly quick. The watch in my opinion is very bulky on a child’s wrist and everything is reliant on a good signal with the provider being “EE” so I would suggest checking out how good their signal is in your area before purchase, I did contact the Moochies support and found them very quick to respond and helpful on a plus side.

Price: £99.99

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Jabra Elite Active 75t True Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds Review

These arrived in very nice Jabra branded sleeved box that opened up to the earbuds and charging case mounted in the box with an introductory card instructing you to download the Jabra application, a simple glossy going through how to use/activate the functions and features, a small box containing different size earbud rubbers, the USB to USB-C charging lead and warning and declarations booklet.



After opening everything up I put the case and earbuds on charge and installed the Jabra sound+ application to my Android phone, I then had a look through the glossy going through the features. Once they had fully charged I linked the earbuds to my phone, this is a fairly straightforward painless process with the Jabra application walking you through the setup step and the application is well laid out and easy to set and select different listening modes.








It was time to try them; I found the fitting/feel very different to the earbuds I normally use when taking my morning run fitting tightly into the ear with a vacuum rather than the ear hook ones I have, it felt a bit odd at first but after a short period I got used to it. They hold in extremely well and even on a good run I didn’t have to check the hold or adjust them because they came loose.










The sound quality is superb with the customisation being easy to adjust and select different modes and the connection distance is extremely good, I didn’t want the earbuds to stop when removed but this is easy to change in the headset settings. The ability to link to multiple Bluetooth connections I found extremely useful being able to use my Bluetooth MP3 player yet having a call cut in from my phone and seamlessly cut back to my MP3 player once the call was finished and the priority also being adjustable in the Jabra application.








Call quality is extremely good with the 4 microphone call technology it removed the tinny and slightly distant sound I get with my other earbuds, the charge time I was longer than I expected taking over 2 hours to give a full charge although fast charge provides an hour’s battery after just 15 minutes of charging so a quick top up does not take long. The charging case is very compact and fits easily into the palm of your hand with the earbuds using a magnet securing system to charge.




One thing I didn’t like was that the left earbud can’t be used on its own although the right earbud can, this might not be an issue for some but I will often use just one earbud when round the house being able to swap over if the power runs out on one.

• Best Fit Yet – We scanned thousands of ears to create the best-fitting earbuds for sport that we’ve ever created, with a special grip coating, to make sure they stay in while you work out
• Most durable – Waterproof, sweat proof, workout-proof, with IP57-rated protection there’s nothing holding you back from pushing yourself further and working harder than ever
• Keeping you safe – HearThrough mode lets the outside in, like a volume button for the real world, keeping you alert and aware of what’s going on around you so you’re always in full control
• Up to 28 hours of use – Up to 7.5 hours of listening time on a single charge, and a total of up to 28 hours with the charging case, you’ll need to recharge before they do
• Crystal-clear calls – Four microphones, the latest digital signal processing and pioneering beamform technology means these tiny pieces of tech offer good call quality wherever you are
• Included Components: Earbuds, Charging Cae, Usb-C Cable, 3 Sets Of Silicon Eargels, Warranty And Warning Leaflets

Overall the sound quality is superb, the Jabra sound+ application works very well and is easy to navigate with a multitude of different settings and options. They have IP57-rated waterproof protection so no problem if they get a bit sweaty, the fit is very secure and both the case and earbuds seem very robust, the call quality is superb and with the multiple Bluetooth connection ability it does not tie you to a single device for both calls and music. The only thing I didn’t like was not having the ability to use both earbuds as standalone listening devices.

Price: £189.99
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IKOHS NETBOT S15 Robot Vacuum Cleaner Review

This arrived in an Ikohs branded lift top box with bespoke packaging securely holding and protecting everything. Before I first got a robot vacuum cleaner I dismissed them as novelty gadgets that couldn’t or didn’t really do a good job but I was wrong, although they have a smaller suction area the simple fact they will spend sometimes ten times the amount of time cleaning a single area that I would they actually do a far better job only slower. The only thing I would say is of course they can’t move and vacuum under things like sofas so they replace the day to day cleaning.

First impressions, the manual is very good, easy to navigate with explanatory diagrams showing all the functions and features, the vacuum looks and feels very high quality and I like that the air filter has a separate release feature to the collection compartment and is easy to slide out for emptying with a release catch. The remote control is quite nice with a LED display and the button functions being fully detailed in the manual, the brushes are simple to remove with the centre brush having release clips making all the brushes easy to remove, clean and replace.

Once I had unpacked everything and set up the charge station and placed the vacuum on charge, I installed the Ikohs application on my Android phone (you need to register) and had a good read through the manual, once it had fully charged I gave it a good test cleaning round the house, I found it did a great job and the Ikohs application maps the areas it has cleaned as a visual guide, I liked the increased suction setting which gives a strong boost to the suction power for more intense cleaning, I tested the schedule settings which worked perfectly starting the vacuum at the set time. I tested out the mop attachment and that worked a lot better than I expected with it feeding the water to the mop pad it gave a very good result.

• Robot Vacuum Cleaner 4-in-1: Sweep, vacuum, mop and scrub, all in one and on all types of surfaces. With our APP you can program, stop, apply functions and cleaning times and have control of the robot cleaner from anywhere.
• SmartGYROSCOPE: smart navigation technology with gyroscopic sensors that, unlike other cleaning robots, allows you to map while cleaning and turn round to cover 100% of the surfaces, avoiding crashes and falls.
• Now you can see on the map of the APP: where you cleaned the smart vacuum cleaner and what remains until you complete the entire surface. In addition, thanks to its WIFI system with voice recognition, it is compatible with ALEXA and Google Home systems.
• Technology useful in daily cleaning: NETBOT S15 automatic vacuum cleaner is very useful in the daily cleaning of your home, since it memorizes the fastest and most efficient route mapping from day one while cleanig and thanks to its AutoBack system, it return to its charging base at the end of its task.
• Clean up Netbot S15: Its powerful turbine with Max Power technology maximizes suction power up to 1500 Pa, absorbs all types of dirt and guarantees a floor in perfect conditions silently, without losing suction power.

Overall I found this to be a very good robot vacuum giving excellent results on both cleaning and mopping, the functions and features all work very well and the only issue I have is I am unable to link the vacuum to Alexa, I went through the instructions and tried searching the skills and linking but kept getting an invalid password error on the final step, I know the details I am inputting are correct as I need to log into the ikohs application with them, I wasn’t planning on using the vacuum with Alexa but it may be an issue for others and the reason it didn’t get top marks. 

Price: £193.95

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HP Sprocket Select Photo Printer Eclips Review

This arrived in a lift top HP branded box, on the top it had simple instructions to get the sprocket app for your device and then follow the on screen instructions to run through the setup. The Sprocket was in the top of the box with a USB to Micro USB charging lead and a pack of 10 HP ZINK Sticky-Backed Photo Paper, all simply packed but well protected in the box.

The Sprocket was sealed in plastic and after unwrapping it I put it on charge and installed the sprocket application onto my Android phone, once the Sprocket was charged I went through the setup and was impressed by how simple and straight forward it was. I was a bit nervous about loading the paper but although I can be all thumbs sometimes when doing things like this it loaded easily, once I replaced the magnet held cover the orange sheet came out which made me more confident it was loaded correctly.

The sprocket application isn’t too complicated and actually through the setup to making my first print didn’t take long at all, there is a photo editing menu to add effects, text, adjust brightness, contrast, add frames along with other effects and also has social media options.

My wife has been using this a lot since it arrived and quickly went through the 10 supplied sheets of photo paper just in time for the additional 20 sheets I ordered to arrive, my wife has an iphone and she set the sprocket application on that no problem and loaded the extra paper I ordered, she loves it and we now have pictures on the fridge and inside the covers of our mobile phones.

Overall a clever little device that’s easy and straight forward to set up, the print quality looks great and I see no difference between the prints it produces and if you get a film developed, I can’t really fault it so have given full marks.

Price: £140.98
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