Archive for Victorinox

What’s In My Tech Sling – The 2024 Edition

Posted in Products with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on November 17, 2024 by itnerd

When I get a phone call from a client from a client to assist them with some sort of tech issue, I need to grab a handful of things that I know that I will usually need on a job and go. For years, I’ve sort of scrambled to find what I need on a moment’s notice. To make my life easier, I have built up a tech sling bag that has my commonly used items that I need when I go to see a client. By doing this, I simply have to do a “grab and go” and I can add it to my backpack if I need to as it doesn’t take up a lot of space. Let’s start with the bag itself:

The is the tomtoc Explorer-H02 EDC Sling Bag in the 8 inch size which has an outer compartment that holds miscellaneous items, a compartment in the back that holds one item that I will get to in a moment, and a middle compartment that holds the majority of my gear. Because it is a sling bag, it goes over my shoulder which is handy if I am just using it by itself. But it will also fit inside my laptop bag or backpack.

Inside the sling bag is this OWC Envoy 1 TB SSD which recently was added to the sling bag. It doesn’t take up a lot of space, but it is quick. That makes it ideal to travel with and use with my clients.

 The Victorinox Cyber Tool on the right the next item in my sling bag I find this to be extremely handy to do everything from open boxes to disassembling computers. Attached to that is Olight i3E EOS flashlight which makes life easier for me when I need light in a dark corner of a computer case or a room as it gets pretty bright.

I usually have a few random USB sticks with utilities on them. Such as malware scanning or unlocking utilities. But I also have a SanDisk 128GB Extreme PRO flash drive which occasionally comes in handy with clients. Though with the 1TB OWC drive, I have to admit that I am rethinking whether I need to have that in my tech sling.

I’ve got an Apple AirTag in it so that if I misplace the tech sling, I can find it easily. Because I have left a customer’s site a few times without it, and then had an alert pop up on my iPhone telling me so. It’s inside a Belkin AirTag holder which makes sure that I can attach it to a loop inside the sling bag.

I have a plastic bag with batteries. Specifically some AA, AAA, CR1632, and CR2032 batteries. Because there have been numerous times where a customer had an issue that was solved by a battery, and the customer didn’t have any spare ones. Thus I cover myself for that eventuality.

I also carry a bag with some Woosh Screen shine and a microfibre cloth as I never know when I might need to clean a computer’s screen or keyboard. Be it mine or somebody else’s. This stuff works really well and it’s currently my go to for my computer cleaning needs. I also have some Q-Tips in the bag to get to those hard to reach places.

I have a small bag with a bunch of USB-A to USB-C and USB-C to USB-A adapters as they come in handy for customers who need to plug something into a computer and don’t have the right adapter.

Another recent addition to my tech sling is this Anker Ethernet to USB-C adapter that runs at 2.5 Gbps. Ideally, I would want to have a 10 Gbps adapter in my sling, but those are still pretty pricy. Thus this will work for me until prices drop.

To cover off any charging needs that I or others might have, I have a UGREEN Nexode 100W charger that has three USB-C ports and a single USB-A port. I can charge anything from phones to my MacBook Pro to my iPhone. Most of the time, I’ve used it to charge my client’s stuff quickly.

I have a variety of cables in my tech sling, starting with this Anker 100W USB-C power delivery cable for charging purposes only.

I also have an HDMI cable that comes in handy when I have a MacBook Pro and I need to plug into a projector or TV at a client’s site.

I also have a flat Ethernet cable which comes in handy when I need to plug into something using the Anker Ethernet adapter that I spoke of earlier.

The key cable that I carry is a RollingSquare InCharge XL which is my one cable to rule them all. I say that because it will cover any use case that I may need when at a client’s location as it is good for data transfer and for charging.

I also have that cable’s little brother the RollingSquare InCharge X as it it sometimes is handy to have a second cable that doesn’t take up a lot of real estate. It’s beaten up as it once was on my keychain. But it works just fine.

The second last item is this GearAid HeroClip. What this is for is to allow me to hook, hang, and carry my gear. I have it because if I have to use a public restroom, there is often no place to hang a jacket, or the sling bag, or a laptop bag. Thus making this piece of kit extremely handy. I got the large size to make sure that I could hang anything that I needed as it has a 100 pound weight limit.

The last item is this pen. Because everyone needs a pen.

So that’s what is inside my tech sling bag. This works for me, but I would be interested in hearing from you in terms of what you think I should add to it or change. Please leave a comment below and share your thoughts.

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What’s In My Tech Sling Bag – The 2023 Edition

Posted in Products with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on January 20, 2023 by itnerd

Often when I get a phone call from a client from a client to assist them with some sort of tech issue, I need to grab a handful of things that I know that I will usually need on a job and go. For years, I’ve sort of scrambled to find what I need on a moment’s notice, and that came to a head when I lost my Victorinox Cyber Tool. Thus I decided that I needed to do something different and have a bag that has the most commonly used items that I need when I go see a client. That way I know where everything is, and I can get out of the house quicker. Not to mention reduce my chances of losing something. I decided on a sling bag as that is compact enough to fit inside a backpack or a laptop bag, but holds everything that I need. This is the sling bag in question:

The is the tomtoc Explorer-H02 EDC Sling Bag in the 8 inch size which has an outer compartment that holds miscellaneous items, a compartment in the back that holds one item that I will get to in a moment, and a middle compartment that holds the majority of my gear. Because it is a sling bag, it goes over my shoulder which is handy if I am just using it by itself. But it will also fit inside my laptop bag or backpack. Another plus is that it will fit some of my EDC should the need arise. Be it my sunglasses, AirPods Pro or anything like that.

As for what’s inside of it, here’s the current list.

I’ve got an Apple AirTag in it so that if I misplace it, I can find it easily. It’s inside a Belkin AirTag holder which makes sure that I can attach it to a loop inside the sling bag.

In the back compartment is this GearAid HeroClip. What this is for is to allow me to hook, hang, and carry my gear. I have it because if I have to use a public restroom, there is often no place to hang a jacket, or the sling bag, or a laptop bag. Thus making this piece of kit extremely handy. I got the large size to make sure that I could hang anything that I needed as it has a 100 pound weight limit.

I also carry some Woosh Screen shine and a microfibre cloth as I never know when I might need to clean a computer’s screen or keyboard. Be it mine or somebody else’s. This stuff works really well and it’s currently my go to for my computer cleaning needs.

I carry two cables with me at all times. The first is an Anker USB-C cable that does power delivery, as well as a RollingSquare InCharge XL which is my one cable to rule them all. I say that because it will cover any use case that I may need when at a client’s location as it is good for data transfer and for charging.

On the right is a replacement Victorinox Cyber Tool as I find this to be extremely handy to do everything from open boxes to disassembling computers. On the left is a 1TB NVMe that I use to transfer data at a customer’s site. This is something that I built myself so let me explain what went into building this. I started with a SABRENT 1TB SSD Rocket NVMe m.2 4.0, Gen4 PCIe M.2 SSD which is one of the fastest drives that the company makes, then I got my hands on this four pack of thermal pads from Amazon as NVMe SSDs tend to get hot, and I wanted to make sure that it didn’t nuke itself while I was using it. I also got my hands on this enclosure from Amazon that did USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 10Gbps transfer speeds. That’s more than fast enough for my needs. Plus it’s made of metal so it will dissipate heat. Putting it together was a bit tricky as I wrapped the thermal pads around the SSD which made sliding it together a tight fit. But by using the thermal pads, I can be assured that the heat that the SSD generates would be transferred to the case and then dissipated from there. I will say the case does get hot when it is used for extended periods of time, but that does not concern me given the care that I have taken to put this together.

The next thing in my sling bag is this Ugreen Nexode 100W USB charger. This allows me to provide power to my MacBook Pro or customer’s computer, tablet, or phone should the need arise. And you would be surprised how often that happens. Because this adapter is 100W and doesn’t take up a lot of real estate, I am covered for almost any charging related issue.

If I am away from a AC outlet and I need to top off my iPhone, or a phone belonging to someone else, I have this Jackery Mini charger along with the RollingSquare InCharge X which between the two of them allow me to charge any smartphone to past 50% at the very least.

Finally, I have the Bic 2 in 1 Pen. This is a lightweight pen plus stylus for any capacitive touch screen device which is handy for an iPad or iPhone. I have an emergency pen as part of my EDC, but it doesn’t hurt to have another one in my sling bag.

I have a CR2032 battery in this sling bag. Why? I can’t count the number of times that I have come across a PC with a dead clock battery, and then had to find a battery either at a corner store or a local “The Source” store in a panic. Thus I keep one in my possession at all times.

So that’s what is inside my tech sling bag. This works for me, but I would be interested in hearing from you in terms of what you think I should add to it or change. Please leave a comment below and share your thoughts.

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My Every Day Carry (EDC) – The 2022 Edition

Posted in Products with tags , , , , , , , on May 20, 2022 by itnerd

My every day carry or EDC has evolved over the last year or so. I’ve tweaked some of the items that I carry not only for meeting my daily needs but to add some style as well. As we go through this, you’ll see a trend. Let’s see if you can spot what it is. Let’s start with the phone that I carry on a daily basis:

My current phone is the  iPhone 12 Pro. It covers my needs for a fast phone with great cameras, lots of storage, and an amazing screen. I always keep my phones in a case, and the case that I use on a daily basis is the Spigen Tough Armor which has a kickstand for watching media hands free. But more importantly promises twice the military standard for drop protection. Something that I’ve unintentionally tested on a few occasions. To add to that protection, I have added a FloLab NanoArmour Anti-Microbial Screen Protector screen protector on it so that scratches on the screen are a non-issue and it gives the screen some extra resilience. The anti-microbial features are really just a bonus. You’ll also note that on the back I have a carbon fibre skin done by dBrand which is most evident around the camera and Apple logo.

The Apple Watch Series 6 with cellular is my smart watch of choice as its a great way to stay in touch without carrying my phone if I choose to do that as I can stay in touch minus my phone as this is the cellular model. It also keeps track of all my health metrics as that’s important to me these days. While you see that I have a Nike sports band on it at the moment, I have a variety of bands to choose from.

My keys are the next things that I grab. My keys are in a KeyPort Pivot 2.0 key holder which on the outside includes a flashlight along with a Lightning to USB cable which can allow me to charge my phone if I need to in a pinch. On the inside I have a 64GB USB stick, a multi-tool that in a pinch can open an Amazon box, a SIM card ejector tool, and a pen. Oh yeah. It also has my keys as well. One thing that I appreciate about this setup is that keys don’t dig into my thighs and they don’t jingle. Besides having actual keys and a key fob for my condo along with a hook to allow me to hook onto things like door handles that look sketchy, I also have the Apple AirTag on them to find them when I misplace them. Since you can’t directly mount an AirTag to anything, I use the Belkin Secure Holder with the AirTag as it’s secure and cheap relative to the cost of what Apple wants you to pay for their products.

My car keys also live in my pocket and they have an Apple AirTag which is being held in a Belkin Secure Holder so that I can find them when I misplace them.

A new addition to my every day carry is this Ekster Carbon Fibre Cardholder which is made of 3K carbon fibre. All the cards and ID that I need are in this slim and light package that I barely notice in my pocket. It does have RFID blocking capabilities which is a good thing. It also is a statement piece when I whip it out to pay for something. Or as the kids would say, it’s a flex.

I have this Chipolo CARD Spot tracking card in my cardholder so that I can use Apple’s Find My app to find it should I misplace it. While it hasn’t got the same sort of precision finding functionality of an AirTag, it does allow you to play “Marco/Polo” to find it if you lose it. One bummer is that it has non-replaceable batteries. That means that I will have to spring for a new one in a couple of years time. Hopefully by then there will be other options in this form factor that have replacement batteries.

I’ve been carrying this Victorinox CyberTool M for years. And if you look at the picture, it shows as you can see that it does have some light scratches on it. Despite that it still looks great and works just fine. That’s a testament to the quality that Victorinox builds into I use it to do everything from open up computers and to open up Amazon boxes as it has 32 different tools on it that are useful for almost any situation that I have found myself in. I have a pouch for it that has a loop that allows me to put it on my belt. It is beaten up. But that’s not a surprise as the CyberTool M and the pouch are well over a decade old.

Let’s say that I can’t carry my Swiss Army knife because I’m getting on a plane. Or I choose not to carry it. I have two other options for multi-tools to choose from. The first is the Axiom FLAT PACK TO 8 multi-tool. Originally designed for cyclists who might need to fix something on the road, I’ve found that it is useful for opening up computers as it has Allen keys as part of the deal. It doesn’t take up a whole lot of space in my pocket and it’s durable.

My second option is the Swiss+Tech Transformer 11-In-1 multi-tool. While it is on the heavy side, it does have a full array of screwdrivers and a flashlight among other things in a package that fits in my pocket. I’ve only ever had to replace the batteries for the flashlight. Beyond that, it’s survived the test of time as I have had this since the late 2000’s.

If I want to listen to music while I am on the go, my Apple AirPods Pro is my go to as they allow you use active noise cancelling to shut out the outside world, or use transparency mode to stay aware of what’s going on around you. I put them in a Spigen Rugged Armour AirPods Pro case which protects them from scratches and provides some drop protection. The case came with a carabiner that recently broke. Thus I replaced it with a more heavy duty carabiner that has a screw lock along with a matte black ring. One other thing that I have done is replace the silicone ear tips with the Comply Foam Tips which not only make the AirPods Pro feel more comfortable in my ears, but they allow the AirPods stay in my ears better.

If I am going to be out for while and I need to ensure that I have enough power to keep my phone online, I drop this Jackery Mini power bank in my pocket. It’s a 3200 mAh power bank that allows me to get about a 70% charge on my iPhone 12 Pro should I need it. It will also give my AirPods Pro a full charge as well. It doesn’t take up a lot of real estate in my pocket which is a good thing. In terms of a cable, that’s when the Lightning cable that’s on my key holder comes in handy as both my AirPods Pro and iPhone 12 Pro can use that to get a charge.

In a rare photo of yours truly, you can see the Rudy Project Deewhy sunglasses with Polar3FX HDR Grey lenses. Rudy Project doesn’t make these anymore, but that doesn’t matter to me as they work extremely well for me. The lenses are polarized lenses that filter harmful UV rays and eliminates glare by selectively filtering non harmful wavelengths through the lens. It’s designed to filter glare from car headlights, sun rays and the refracted light on wet or shiny surfaces like water and snow. All of which means that my eyes don’t take a beating when I drive. I also use them when I am walking around town. You can also see the Devon+Lange 3 layer face mask that is made from silver infused premium modal, and it has a filter pocket to hold the included PM2.5 filters. There’s also a removable and replaceable nose piece to ensure that they fit properly. These masks are comfortable to wear, I can breathe in them and I can wear them for long periods of time without an issue.

When I can’t be bothered to take a trip down to the car to get my Rudy Project Deewhy sunglasses as that’s where those sunglasses normally live, I often grab these Rudy Project Agon sunglasses which live at my desk. They have the “Laser Black” lenses which allows for about 12% light transmission. But I also notice that they enhance contrast and I can wear them while driving, or taking a walk in the woods or just walking around. The fact that they enhance contrast means that you can pick up small details that would have gone unnoticed even by the naked eye. Such has cracks in the road while driving or uneven terrain while hiking. That makes them a great general purpose pair of sunglasses for me.

From the mundane item department comes this tube of Blistex. I often have dry chapped lips. So to mitigate that I always have some lip balm on me. In this case it’s Blistex, but I have also been known to carry ChapStick as well.

That’s my EDC or every day carry. What do you think? What do you think I should add to it or change? And were you able to spot the theme? Drop a comment below and share your thoughts.

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Review: Victorinox Cyber Tool M

Posted in Products with tags on March 8, 2021 by itnerd

I will say this up front. I’ve had this tool for years. As in over 15 years. It’s survived everything that I could possibly throw at it and it has not failed me once. That tool is the Victorinox Cyber Tool M:

Like I said, I bought this 15 years ago or so and while it does have some light scratches on it, it still looks great. That’s a testament to the quality that Victorinox builds into I use it to do everything from open up computers and to open up Amazon boxes. It fits into my pocket without an issue though it is on the heavy side. The CyberTool is a geek and computer tech’s dream tool because of the amount of tools it provides:

To save you the trouble of figuring out what all of this stuff is, here’s a list:

  1. large blade
  2. small blade
  3. corkscrew
  4. reamer, punch and sewing awl
  5. can opener
  6. screwdriver 3 mm
  7. bottle opener
  8. screwdriver 6 mm
  9. wire stripper
  10. key ring
  11. toothpick
  12. tweezers
  13. mini screwdriver
  14. pressurized ballpoint pen
  15. pin, stainless steel
  16. pliers
  17. wire cutter
  18. wire crimping tool
  19. scissors
  20. multipurpose hook
  21. bit slotted 4
  22. bit Phillips 2
  23. bit Phillips 0 (Pozidrive)
  24. bit Phillips 1 (Pozidrive)
  25. bit Torx 10
  26. bit Torx 15
  27. bit case
  28. bit wrench
  29. female Hex drive 5 mm for D-SUB connectors
  30. female Hex drive 4 mm for bits
  31. bit Hex 4
  32. bit Torx 8

There’s a few things that I would like to highlight here:

Items 29 and 30 are actually located here. I love the fact that they put both of these in the same slot that the bits go into as that saves space.

The pin which is item 15 is hidden here so that it doesn’t slip out and stab you while you have this tool in your pocket. You also are getting a look at the scratches that I have on the tool after 15 years of use.

I found that this covers all my needs with the exception of tools to open an Apple product which tends to use their “unique” screws. I’ll admit that I don’t use all the tools that the CyberTool offers. Like the crochet hook, corkscrew and can/bottle openers and tweezers. But the blades and screw drivers see very frequent use from me. I’m always needing to do things like open the back of a computer, cut open a box, or tighten the screws on my wife’s eyeglasses. Having dropped it in server rooms and kicked it across the room accidentally, I can say it’s a very durable product that will last you years. It also has a very high quality feel as the blades and the like snap into place and that feels the same as they did on day one.

The only thing that you might not like is the price. I found it ranging between $160 to $180 CDN on Amazon. It’s not cheap. But I’ve had mine for 15 years and it’s survived everything that I have thrown at it. Which means it will survive your daily activities with ease.

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