John Cox

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www.gearpatrol.com

Hai’s New Smart Showerhead Brings Spa-Level Water Pressure Home

Hai's new smart showerhead with aromatherapy infusions promises spa-like luxury for under $300, featuring improved water pressure, water usage tracking via a Bluetooth app, and dissolvable scent tablets in three varieties. While the showerhead itself performs excellently with strong pressure and a useful mist setting, the infusion tablets dissolve too quickly to deliver a meaningful scent experience and cost nearly $2 each, making them an expensive add-on that the reviewer suggests skipping in favor of the showerhead alone.

Permalink gearbathroomsmart homewater

www.gearpatrol.com

5 Bourbon Makers to Know Before They Go Mainstream

The piece identifies five distilleries positioned to make waves in bourbon in 2022, based on their upcoming age statements, product innovations, and market expansion. Green River is rebounding after a rebrand and technical controversy with traditional aging methods and five-year releases coming soon; Wilderness Trail's founders bring expert problem-solving credentials and major age-statement releases in 2022; Lux Row is finally bringing its own distillates to market after years of managing heritage brands, bolstered by its parent company's acquisition by distributor MGP; Frey Ranch is scaling beyond Nevada with grain-to-glass experimentation and multi-state distribution; and George Dickel has reinvigorated itself under new head distiller Nicole Austin with well-reviewed releases and creative collaborations.

Permalink whiskeyrecommendationsbusinessbourbon

www.gearpatrol.com

This Camper Is a True Home on Wheels But Still Fits in a Garage

The new [[Exodus Capax]] from [[Exodus Rigs]] compresses full-RV amenities into a trailer that still fits inside a [[single-car garage]] thanks to an electronically operated collapsible roof and convertible interior layout. At 72 inches when collapsed the unit is easy to store and tow, and when raised to 112 inches it reveals a living area with 14 panoramic windows, a pop-up TV, sectional seating and a telescoping dining table that converts into a full-size bed. A separate work area converts into bunk beds, and the camper includes a full indoor bathroom, interior and slide-out exterior kitchens, multiple comms systems, four solar panels with a 3000W inverter, and off-road-ready underpinnings. Available in three trims and shown at the [[Los Angeles Auto Show]], the Capax starts at $120,000.

Permalink campinggeardesignsolar

www.gearpatrol.com

The Best Vintage Turntables That You Can (Maybe) Still Buy

Vintage turntables attract buyers primarily for their aesthetic appeal, nostalgic value, and affordability compared to modern equivalents, though they typically require restoration work and won't match the sound quality of contemporary models. The article identifies iconic models from the 1970s and '80s like the Linn Sondek LP12 and Technics SP-10, explaining that sourcing these requires patience and research through secondhand marketplaces, with potential restoration costs that may exceed the original purchase price. Success in buying vintage hi-fi depends on communicating with sellers to understand a turntable's condition and consulting local shops about repair feasibility before committing to a purchase.

Permalink gearaudiovintagevinyl

www.gearpatrol.com

Two Vintage-Audio Professionals Pick Their Go-To Stereo Receivers

Vintage stereo receivers and amplifiers remain highly sought-after for their aesthetic appeal and warm, analog sound quality, though they typically require expensive restoration since many original parts are no longer manufactured. Audio experts highlight the most desirable models, including the Marantz 2270 receiver and 1060 integrated amp from the early 1970s, the Fisher 500C and 800C tube receivers from the 1960s, Pioneer's powerful SX-series receivers, and the highly-regarded McIntosh line, with more affordable options like the Dynaco ST-70 also attracting enthusiasts. The appeal lies partly in the "thrill of the hunt" combined with superior sonic characteristics—particularly the warm, full-bodied sound of tube amplifiers that modern equipment cannot replicate.

Permalink gearaudiovintagerestoration

www.gearpatrol.com

How to Build a Hi-Fi Turntable System for Less than $1,000

The piece explains that vinyl's resurgence has made it easy and affordable to build a complete turntable system, breaking down the four essential components (turntable, phono preamp, amplifier, and speakers) and how they work together. It then presents three different budget-friendly system configurations under $1,000, each combining components in different ways: an integrated turntable paired with a wireless powered speaker, a turntable with separate external preamp and powered speakers, and a turntable with an integrated amplifier and passive speakers that allows for future upgrades.

Permalink audiobudgetturntablevinyl

www.gearpatrol.com

The Complete Guide to All of Pro-Ject’s Excellent Turntables

Pro-Ject, an Austrian company founded in 1991, manufactures turntables ranging from budget-friendly entry-level models ($300–$500) to ultra-premium audiophile systems (over $16,000), all designed around the founder's goal of making high-quality vinyl playback accessible across price points. The company achieves competitive pricing by producing most components in-house across facilities in Austria, Czech Republic, and Slovakia, and integrating its own phono stages, DACs, and amplifiers directly into turntables. The guide walks through Pro-Ject's major product lines—from the E1 and Primary series for beginners, through mid-range options like the T Series and Debut line, to high-end alternatives like the RPM Carbon and X Series, concluding with premium offerings like the Signature series for discerning audiophiles.

Permalink gearaudioreviewsturntable

www.gamesradar.com

The 32 greatest sci-fi movies

This is a ranked list of 32 essential science fiction films spanning from 1927's *Metropolis* to 2022's *Nope*, selected for their influence, innovation, and enduring impact on cinema. The selections range from celebrated classics like Kubrick's *2001: A Space Odyssey* and Scott's *Alien* to more recent entries like Villeneuve's *Dune*, with entries representing diverse subgenres including cyberpunk, time travel, AI thrillers, and alien invasion narratives. The list emphasizes both Hollywood blockbusters and international works, recognizing key films that shaped sci-fi's visual language and thematic concerns across nearly a century of filmmaking.

Permalink filmrecommendationsanimesci-fi

www.gamesradar.com

Best anime on Netflix: 30 shows to stream in 2025

This is a ranked list of 30 anime series available on Netflix, spanning genres from action shonen like Jujutsu Kaisen and Demon Slayer to slice-of-life comedies like Komi Can't Communicate and romantic dramas like My Happy Marriage. Each entry includes a brief description of the plot and why it merits watching, with particular emphasis on animation quality, character development, and emotional impact, while noting that the list is regularly updated as new titles arrive on the platform.

Permalink recommendationsstreaminganimenetflix

www.gamespot.com

13 Brainy Sci-Fi Films To Stream That Are Guaranteed To Warp Your Mind

This is a curated list of thirteen cerebral science fiction films available on various streaming platforms, selected for their thought-provoking premises that explore concepts like simulation theory, artificial intelligence, time travel, and altered perception of reality. The films range from classics like *2001: A Space Odyssey* and *The Matrix* to more recent entries like *Arrival* and *Ex Machina*, with streaming availability noted for each title across services including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Google Play, and others. The author emphasizes these aren't typical sci-fi action movies but rather films designed to provoke deep contemplation about the nature of existence and human experience.

Permalink streamingsci-fimovies

www.foxhound.systems

Speeding up SQL queries by orders of magnitude using UNION – Foxhound Systems

When SQL queries join multiple table branches with OR conditions—a "diamond-shaped" schema—query optimizers often struggle to create efficient plans, causing dramatic performance degradation. Using UNION ALL to split such queries into separate simple queries, each optimized independently, then combining the results can improve performance by orders of magnitude; the author demonstrates this with a real example where a 3,264ms query becomes 112ms when rewritten this way.

Permalink performanceindexingdatabasesql

www.forbes.com

10 Apps To Make Money From Home In 2025

The piece argues that joining the gig economy through mobile apps offers more than just supplementary income—it provides the career fulfillment and sense of purpose that many full-time jobs fail to deliver. Rather than spending your working life in misaligned careers chosen out of necessity or family expectation, gig work allows you to pursue activities aligned with your values while maintaining financial stability through your primary employment. The article then lists ten apps (Upwork, Fiverr, Etsy, Vinted, Shopify, Nextdoor, Twitch, YouTube Studio, Shutterstock Contributor, and TaskRabbit) that enable side hustles across various skill sets, from freelancing to content creation to reselling.

Permalink remote workpersonal financefreelancinggig economy

www.forbes.com

3 High-Income Skills You Can Turn Into A Side Hustle In 2024

Rachel Wells identifies three high-income skills — project management, software development and digital marketing — that professionals can convert into profitable side hustles in 2024, advising readers to find market gaps, specialize and build a personal brand to increase demand and rates. She references demand projections and industry reports from [[U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics]] and [[Coursera]] to illustrate growth, and recommends practical routes such as consulting, creating niche services (SEO, email campaigns, branding) and freelancing via platforms like [[Toptal]] and [[Upwork]]. The piece stresses starting with smaller projects to build a portfolio, collecting client testimonials, and continuous upskilling to remain relevant as technologies reshape work, offering a pragmatic roadmap to monetize expertise alongside a day job and diversify income streams.

Permalink productivitytechnologyleadershipbusiness

www.fool.com

Amex Cardholders Can Now Save $2,000 or More on a Mortgage Loan

American Express has partnered with Better Mortgage and Rocket Mortgage to offer cardholders statement credits of $2,000 for conforming loans or $6,000 for jumbo loans when financing or refinancing a home through these lenders. The offer applies to all personal American Express cards (excluding corporate, business, or prepaid variants) with specific application and closing deadlines depending on the lender, and the primary cardholder must be a borrower or co-borrower on the loan.

Permalink real estatecredit cardspersonal financeamerican express

www.foodandwine.com

27 Delightful Recipes with White Wine

This roundup of 27 recipes shows creative ways to use leftover [[white wine]] to elevate everyday meals, from bright, citrusy preparations to rich, creamy sauces. The collection runs the gamut — simple one-pot pastas and risottos, shellfish-forward plates like [[mussels]] and baked clams, elegant preparations such as [[Lobster Thermidor]] and Coq au [[Riesling]], and weeknight-friendly roasted or pan-seared [[chicken breasts]] finished with wine-based pan sauces. The recipes explore how different varieties — including [[Sauvignon Blanc]], [[Pinot Grigio]], and [[Riesling]] — interact with ingredients like mushrooms, shallots, herbs, and cream, and teach techniques such as deglazing, braising, and poaching. Notes on substitutions, wine choices, and pairing suggestions make this a practical guide for home cooks seeking to add depth and acidity to savory dishes without wasting a partial bottle. It also highlights vegetarian options.

Permalink foodrecipescookingwine

www.foodandwine.com

What It Was Like to Eat with Anthony Bourdain

[[Laurie Woolever]] remembers traveling and eating with [[Anthony Bourdain]], describing moments that ranged from decadent to domestic. She recounts filming at [[Aqueduct Racetrack]] where they ate mass-produced [[Jamaican beef patties]] off wobbly plastic cups, an oddly perfect scene, and a swanky scavenger hunt for [[Dungeness crab]] with [[caviar]] and Champagne before a private jet departure. In Vietnam she chased a bowl of [[Bún bò Huế]] at a market counter, slurping broth alongside a local cook. In Japan he chased novelty canned coffee from a [[Shinkansen]] platform vending machine, and in Sri Lanka he led a crew rooftop feast after finding a nearby [[KFC]] following a long shoot at the [[Madai Festival]]. [[Woolever]] conveys his generosity, humor, and the permission to choose simple pleasure over spectacle.

Permalink foodtravelmemoirdining

www.foodandwine.com

The Best Sandwich in Every State

David Landsel presents a state-by-state tour of America's sandwich culture, celebrating regional icons and long‑running shops. From New Orleans' [[muffuletta]] to Maine's chilled [[lobster roll]], Tampa's classic [[Cuban sandwich]] and Los Angeles' hand‑carved [[pastrami]], the piece profiles the origin stories, signature ingredients, and local rituals that make each bite worthy of pilgrimage. Landsel emphasizes enduring institutions and homegrown inventions—like Chicago's [[Italian beef]] and the Midwest [[pork tenderloin sandwich]]—while excluding burgers, hot dogs, burritos, tacos, and most barbecue to focus squarely on sandwiches proper. The tone blends history, travel dispatch, and appetite-driven reporting, offering readers a road map to favorites, recommended purveyors, and the cultural reasons these sandwiches resonate in their communities. He spotlights small family businesses, historic delis, roadside stands, and coastal shacks, connecting food, place, and memory.

Permalink foodrestaurantsroad tripssandwiches

www.fodors.com

Is There Anything You Can Do About Hidden Cameras at Your Airbnb?

CNN's investigation found that Airbnb receives tens of thousands of reports about hidden cameras in listings but has done little to address the problem, partly because the company owns no properties and thus faces minimal legal accountability. Although Airbnb banned indoor cameras globally in March 2024, the company quickly settles lawsuits with victims under non-disclosure agreements, rarely involves law enforcement, and provides no transparency about how it enforces the policy. Guests are left to conduct their own searches for cameras upon arrival, with no foolproof method available to ensure their privacy.

Permalink technologysafetyprivacytravel

www.fatherly.com

55 Essential Disney World Tips, Tricks, And Dad Hacks

Disney World demands strategic planning through apps and itineraries to maximize a costly visit, but the real secret to a memorable trip is balancing structured priorities with flexibility—hitting key attractions early, taking mandatory midday breaks to prevent meltdowns, and embracing downtime at the pool rather than trying to cram every experience into exhausting days. Expert parents emphasize that pacing matters more than volume, practical logistics like proper footwear and sunscreen prevent misery, and the most cherished memories often come from unrushed moments rather than checking off a list.

Permalink traveltipsdisneyparenting

www.fastcompany.com

It’s time to start removing highways. For real this time

Highway removal offers significant benefits for urban communities—reconnecting neighborhoods fragmented by decades of freeway construction, reducing carbon emissions, and reclaiming valuable urban land—yet remains rare in the U.S. due to outdated federal transportation policy, institutional resistance from state departments of transportation, and flawed evaluation methods that systematically favor highway expansion over removal. State DOTs like Minnesota's employ misleading traffic models, vague equity metrics, and inadequate public engagement to justify maintaining highways rather than exploring removal alternatives, perpetuating a system that perpetually harms the communities most affected by these infrastructure decisions.

Permalink urbaninfrastructure