Also in this issue:

• Cigar Toy
  Davidoff in Rose Gold
• Connoisseur's Corner
  Connoisseur's Corner: An Impressive "A"
• Editors' Note
  A Great Celebration
• Out of the Humidor
  Out of the Humidor
• Good Life Guide
  Panasonic 3-D TV
• More from this Issue

Gear For Your Gear

Dressing up your tech ensembles with devices that expand their capabilities is the kind of accessorizing that even a man can love

Steve Morgenstern
From the Print Edition:
Chris Noth, May/June 2010

Vampire Slayer
Monster GreenPower HDP 900G
You've probably heard about "vampire power," the continuing electrical drain that besets many electronic products and power adapters even when the equipment is turned off. Monster's GreenPower adapter provides the surge protection and power conditioning your home theater deserves plus the wallet-friendly pleasure of lower electric consumption. Four out of eight provided outlets are linked together, with one designated the GreenPower control outlet, to be used for your TV or AV receiver. When that piece of gear is turned off, it turns off completely (take that, you vampire!) along with the three linked outlets, putting a stop to the stealth power-sucking habits of DVD and Blu-ray players, game consoles and other gear. $129.95, monsterpower.com

Get a Charge Out of It
Powermat
As you wearily trudge into the house at the end of the day, you toss your wallet and keys on the table. Wouldn't it be nice to toss your cell phone and iPod too, without hunting for charger cables? The Powermat makes that possible. It's a two-part system, a flat mat wide enough to charge three devices at once and custom receivers for each piece of gear you want to power up. There are no wires to worry about-in fact, there are no direct electrical connections at all.

Instead, the system relies on inductive charging (the same kind used for charging electric toothbrushes without shorting out your choppers). It's just as safe and fast as conventional charging and a lot more convenient. The downside: you need to buy a $40 receiver for each chargeable device. So far, the number of receivers is limited-iPods and iPhones, the Nintendo DS, and a few BlackBerry models, with more on the way. But if your gear applies, its a cool magic trick. $99.99 plus receivers, powermat.com

Power in Your Pocket
Ecosol Powerstick
Here's a perfectly portable cure for juiceless, useless cell phones, MP3 players and Bluetooth earbuds. The Ecosol Powerstick is a portable device charger that's about the size of a pack of gum. You charge the Powerstick by plugging it into a computer USB port (an easy-to-read LCD display shows the current power level). Then, when it's time to resurrect your dead portable gear, simply attach one of the nine provided adapters (including most phone models and iPods). No dead phone throwing, no music-deprived road trips, no worn-out alkaline batteries headed for the landfill-it's a great solution. $49.99, powerstick.myshopify.com

Steve Morgenstern is a Cigar Aficionado contributing editor.

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